<b>Analysis of mechanism of flagellar movement with golden hamster </b><b>spermatozoa </b>

Abstract

The golden hamster spermatozoon has a head with a hook-shaped projection. During fiagellar beating, the principal bend occurs in the direction of the projection and the reverse bend in the opposite direction. Movement of sperm models demembranated with Triton X-100 and reactivated with ATP was arrested by 1 mM CaCl2 in a position where only the reverse bend persisted, whereas by 50 /.iM vanadate in another position where the principal bend was prevailing. It has been known that the convex edge of the principal bend contains doublet No. l, while that of the reverse bend contains doublets Nos. 5 and 6. When treated with elastase and ATP, demembranated sperm model extruded doublet microtubules from the proximal region of the flagellum. In the cases where the principal bend persisted in the proximal region, doublets began to slide out from the side containing Nos. 5 and 6. In the presence of CaCl2, on the other hand, doublets slid out first from the opposite side. The results seem favorable for the idea that doublets Nos. 6 to 9 are active during the principal bend while doublet Nos. l to 5 are passive, and vice versa in the reverse bend.