ELECTROPHORETIC STUDIES OF ESTERASES OF BULL SPERMATOZOA, CYTOPLASMIC DROPLETS AND SEMINAL PLASMA

STANLEY MEIZEL ¹, DONNA BOGGS ¹, and JOSEPH COTHAM ¹

¹ Department of Human Anatomy, School of Medicine, University of California, Davis, California 95616

Flat bed gradient acrylamide gel electrophoresis at constant pulsed power was used to resolve multiple forms of nonspecific esterases and acetylcholinesterases of ejaculated bull spermatozoa cytoplasmic droplets, seminal plasma and isolated spermatozoan heads, midpieces and tail fragments. Several substrates and inhibitors were used to distinguish the esterases. Eleven distinct zones of spermatozoan nonspecific esterase activity not found in droplets or seminal plasma were detected with -naphthyl acetate as substrate. All 11 zones were present in sperm heads and tails. A single nonspecific esterase was demonstrated in sperm heads, midpieces and tails and in seminal plasma with -naphthyl butyrate or -naphthyl caproate. Two other seminal plasma nonspecific esterases were detected: one with -naphthyl acetate and one with -naphthyl butyrate or -naphthyl caproate. Three seminal plasma, two cytoplasmic droplet and one spermatozoan acetylcholinesterases were demonstrated with acetythiocholine. The electrophoretic stusdies, together with previous cytochemical studies, suggested that certain bull seminal plasma nonspecific esterases are adsorbed by spermatozoa.

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