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Cortical Granules of Sea Urchin Eggs do not Undergo Exocytosis at the Site of Sperm‐egg Fusion *
Author(s) -
EPEL DAVID,
PATTON CHRIS
Publication year - 1985
Publication title -
development, growth and differentiation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.864
H-Index - 66
eISSN - 1440-169X
pISSN - 0012-1592
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-169x.1985.00361.x
Subject(s) - sperm , exocytosis , sea urchin , human fertilization , biology , centriole , cortical granule , granule (geology) , polyspermy , microbiology and biotechnology , anatomy , cytoplasm , oocyte , botany , embryo , biochemistry , membrane , paleontology
Microscopic observations of sea urchin egg fertilization (phase contrast, Nomarski and transmission electron microscope) reveal that the cortical granules in the area of sperm egg‐fusion do not undergo exocytosis. These intact granules remain associated with the sperm, moving into the egg cytoplasm with the entering sperm. This sperm‐cortical granule association occurs before the sperm centriole affects microtubule organization and the sperm‐cortical granule association is not affected by cytochalasin D or griseofulvin. We discuss the possibility that a reorganization of the egg cytoplasm ensues from the sperm‐egg interaction at the site of sperm‐egg fusion. Other possibilities are that the retention of cortical granules is not related to egg reorganization, but is necessary for successful sperm incorporation or reflects an unrelated component of the activation process.