Ultrastructural changes in spermatozoa of the Brush-tailed possum,Trichosurus vulpecula (Marsupialia), during epididymal transit

Summary During epididymal transit, a fibre network and an array of vesicles develop in the posterior two-thirds of the midpiece in sperm of the Brush-tailed possum, Trichosurus vulpecula. The fibre network is developed by the time the sperm reach the corpus epididymidis, and is composed of evenly spaced, helically arranged fibres lying immediately beneath the plasma membrane. The angle of these fibrous helices is always counter to that of the underlying mitochondrial helix. Separating the fibre network from the mitochondria is a layer of granular material which develops at the same time, and over the same length of the midpiece as the fibre network.A somewhat tenuous fibre network is found between the fibrous sheath and plasma membrane in the anterior principal piece of sperm from all regions of the epididymis.The array of vesicles is developed by the time sperm reach the cauda epididymidis. The vesicles resemble pinocytotic vesicles; some appear as invaginations of the plasma membrane, and are open to the medium surrounding the spermatozoon by a narrow neck, while others are entirely enclosed within the spermatozoon, and lie at varying distances between the plasma membrane and the layer of granular material.The authors would like to acknowledge the assistance of Miss Dianne Higginbotham of the Electron Microscope Unit, University of Sydney for expert assistance with the scanning electron microscopy. Also to Dr. D.J.H. Cockayne, Director of the Electron Microscope Unit, for use of the transmission electron microscope facilities.