Human sperm subpopulations: relationship between functional quality and protein tyrosine phosphorylation

Abstract

Human semen is composed of a heterogeneous population of sperm with varying degrees of structural and functional differentiation and normality, which result in subpopulations of different quality. Using a discontinuous Percoll gradient, we separated three subsets of sperm [(45%; L45), (65%; L65) and (90%; L90) fractions] from normozoospermic human semen samples from healthy donors and proceeded to characterize their morphology, motility and hyperactivation, as well as their ability to undergo tyrosine phosphorylation under capacitating conditions.