Author: Merentsova Anastasia
Translator: Uspanova Ainura
Copy editors: Kigbaeva Kamila, Issabayeva Madina
According to the results of a study by scientists from Sweden and England, human eggs independently choose the “liked” sperm cells, using chemical signals to attract them. “Human oocytes secrete chemicals called chemo attractants that attract sperm to unfertilized eggs,” says John Fitzpatrick, an assistant professor at Stockholm University.
During the experiments, scientists examined how sperm in a Petri dish respond to follicular fluid, the complex biological environment surrounding the oocyte (the female reproductive cell is the precursor). As a result of the experiment, it was found that the follicular fluid from one woman better attracted sperm from a particular man, while the follicular fluid from another “preferred” the sperm of another man.
Thus, the authors of the work conclude that the “choice” of an ovum really cannot always exactly match the choice of a woman: as a result of the study, they found that the sperm of her mistress’s partner cannot necessarily “attract” an egg. The authors associate this circumstance with the choice of an ovum of higher quality or genetically compatible sperm for the birth of healthy offspring.
Summing up, it is important to note that this idea is new, but further studies of the interaction of eggs and sperm will help to understand some of the inexplicable causes of infertility in couples today, and will also contribute to the treatment of infertility.
Source: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/
