Initial stages of sperm-egg fusion in the freshwater teleost,Rhodeus ocellatus ocellatus

Abstract

The morphology of spermatozoa and the initial stages of sperm-egg fusion at fertilization were investigated ultrastructurally in the rose bitterling, Rhodeus ocellatus ocellatus. Each spermatozoon is composed of a spherical head without an acrosome, two centrioles, a large mitochondrion, and a flagellum. Freeze-fracture of spermatozoa illustrates that specialized arrays of intramembranous particles (IMPs) are present on the protoplasmic facing (PF) surface of the head plasma membrane at the portion slightly in front of the centrioles. The specialized arrays, whose functions are uncertain, are parallelogram-like in shape. The distribution of the particles is random and less compact in other areas of the head plasma membrane. The number of particles on the PF surface is larger than that on the extracellular facing (EF) surface. The complementary structures of the specialized arrays are also found on a similar portion of the EF surface. An ultrastructural study clearly shows fusion of gamete plasma membranes at the initial stages of sperm entry into the egg. Membrane fusion is first observed in eggs fixed 10 seconds after insemination in fresh water. The fusion site is the microvillus membrane of a sperm entry site on the egg and the head membrane of the spermatozoon. The plasma membrane fusion of gametes is discussed relative to the distribution of the IMPs and the fusion site.