Axis determination in polyspermic Xenopus laevis eggs

Polyspermic Xenopus laevis eggs can be identified easily because of regions of pigment accumulation and white stripes, which arise by a nocodazole-sensitive process. Eggs containing up to four sperm are capable of forming a single embryonic axis. Dispermic eggs display two regions of pigment accumulation, one around each sperm entry point (SEP), and one white stripe between the SEPs. Such eggs with a 180 degree separation between the SEPs were bisected before first cleavage along the white stripe, creating dorsal and ventral halves in many cases. Each half cleaved and formed a tadpole. When eggs were bisected early in the period of cytoplasmic reorganization (0.5-0.6 normalized time), each half could form a complete tadpole. When eggs were bisected after the period of reorganization (0.8-0.9), often one half formed a tadpole with a complete head but reduced or absent tail and the other half formed a tadpole with a complete tail but reduced or absent head. These results demonstrate that sperm cooperate to give a single embryonic axis in polyspermic eggs and the development of dorsal and ventral egg halves differs after egg reorganization before first cleavage.