Anatomical Basis of Sperm-Storage in the Avian Oviduct

Authors

M. R. Bakst, U.S.D.A. Agricultural Research Service Avian Physiology Laboratory

Abstract

The anatomical basis of oviductal sperm-storage in the avian oviduct is the sperm-storage tubule (SST). In the turkey this is composed of a simple columnar epithelium characterized by a supranuclear vacuole, which possibly contains lipid material, and appears to differentiate from the oviductal surface epithelium prior to full sexual maturation. Turkey SST epithelium was periodic-acid Schiff-negative and failed to bind four of the five lectins examined. Only winged pea agglutinin, which has an affinity for fucose-containing glycosidic residues, bound to some individual SST epithelial cells. Short-term cultures of oviductal mucosae containing SST showed aggregates of sperm associated with the spaces between adjacent folds and in surface openings assumed to be SST.

Recommended Citation

Bakst, M. R. (1987) "Anatomical Basis of Sperm-Storage in the Avian Oviduct," Scanning Microscopy: Vol. 1: No. 3, Article 40.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/microscopy/vol1/iss3/40