Abstract
IN most mammals which have been examined, the first spermatozoon that penetrates into the egg stimulates the egg to undergo a reaction which prevents subsequent spermatozoa from traversing the zona pellucida1. This phenomenon is called the ‘zona reaction’. In the pig, following the zona reaction, spermatozoa can still penetrate into the zona but they normally cannot traverse it2. However, eggs aged for several hours before exposure to the first spermatozoon sometimes fail to elicit the zona reaction and several spermatozoa enter the vitellus (polyspermy) to become male pronuclei (polyandry)3.
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References
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DZIUK, P., DICKMANN, Z. Failure of the Zona Reaction in Five Pig Eggs. Nature 208, 502–503 (1965). https://doi.org/10.1038/208502b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/208502b0
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