PUBLISHED: 19:00 GMT, 7 May 2012 By Claire Bates
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Fertility doctors have long puzzled why only one per cent of the 300million sperm released by a man during sex manages to
reach their partner's uterus, while just a few dozen reach the egg. Now British scientists think they have the answer - it's all
down to an appalling sense of direction. The findings could help scientists created more effective fertility treatments.
A joint study by the University of Warwick and University of Birmingham has found that sperm avoids the 'middle lane' of the
female reproductive tract and instead crawl along the channel walls. They also struggle to turn sharp corners and crash into
the walls and each other in a scene reminiscent of a demolition derby.
Dr Peter Denissenko from Warwick said: 'I couldn't resist a laugh the first time I saw sperm cells persistently swerving on tight
turns and crashing head-on into the opposite wall.' The successful sperm were those that were best able to negotiate the
complex and convoluted channels filled with viscous fluids.
Male semen contains 300million sperm but only one is needed for conception. The sperm swim through the cervix, into the uterus
and along the fallopian tubes. As they travel, chemical changes mature the sperm so that are capable of fertilising an egg. Only one
sperm enters the egg as afterwards the cell membrane hardens and the remaining sperm die.
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Fertility doctors have long puzzled why only one per cent of the 300million sperm released by a man during sex manages to
reach their partner's uterus, while just a few dozen reach the egg. Now British scientists think they have the answer - it's all
down to an appalling sense of direction. The findings could help scientists created more effective fertility treatments.
A joint study by the University of Warwick and University of Birmingham has found that sperm avoids the 'middle lane' of the
female reproductive tract and instead crawl along the channel walls. They also struggle to turn sharp corners and crash into
the walls and each other in a scene reminiscent of a demolition derby.
Dr Peter Denissenko from Warwick said: 'I couldn't resist a laugh the first time I saw sperm cells persistently swerving on tight
turns and crashing head-on into the opposite wall.' The successful sperm were those that were best able to negotiate the
complex and convoluted channels filled with viscous fluids.
Male semen contains 300million sperm but only one is needed for conception. The sperm swim through the cervix, into the uterus
and along the fallopian tubes. As they travel, chemical changes mature the sperm so that are capable of fertilising an egg. Only one
sperm enters the egg as afterwards the cell membrane hardens and the remaining sperm die.
