Abstract
DURING an investigation of the cytoplasmic inclusions of the fertilized egg of the mouse, the sperm middle-piece, and in some cases the whole tail, was observed in the ooplasm (a and b). The middle-piece usually becomes detached from the sperm-head shortly after the entry of the sperm, but may remain attached until the stage of the pronuclei is reached. The middle-piece is, at first, compact and deeply stained, but soon shows a granular structure. These granules are identified as the mitochondria of the sheath of the axial filament (a, S.M.P.). After the middle-piece is free of the sperm-head the sheath becomes less compact, so that the individual granules can be identified with ease (b, S.M.P.).
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GRESSON, R. Presence of the Sperm Middle-Piece in the Fertilized Egg of the Mouse (Mus musculus). Nature 145, 425 (1940). https://doi.org/10.1038/145425b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/145425b0
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