My urology colleagues with special interest in andrology will definitely agree that —- ‘Man is a scrotal mammal with immunologically privileged status of testes’.
A tiny microscopic sperm can teach us how to face the challenges and come out as a winner at the sunny end of the dark tunnel of life. The effort it takes to reach and breach the zona pellucida by swimming across great distances with constantly changing PH, microenvironment and viscosities
is a great achievement in itself. All this for continuation of human species.
Sperm has very great indigenous qualities which are to be followed and applied in our day-to-day life.
🛑1. Patience and harmony with surroundings
Sperm waits patiently and silently for its turn in the epididymis for 2-4 days before it gets a chance to continue its herculean task of fertilizing the ripe ovum. The patience required in observing a pathology slide smeared with seminal fluid for microscopic semen analysis under the pathologist’s microscope is the same patience we seek in life.
To achieve inner peace and success in life, we should try to imitate the sperm, “be like a sperm”. We should develop the same harmonious relation with our ever-changing cycle of life, which the sperm adapts concerning its surrounding microenvironment of seminal plasma, cervical mucus and highly acidic vagina [PH—4.2—4.6]. We need to imbibe the fluid mechanics of the male gamete.
❤❤Note — the cauda epididymis is not meant for semen storage in humans as evas as evidenced by its relatively small size and rapid sperm transit through it.
Humans don’t store much sperms and have a poor sperm reserve[as evidenced by rapid decline in sperm numbers in successive ejaculates] because of the absence of interspecies competition and threat of extinction as compared to other land mammals, which havea large storage of sperm in their cauda. MMayben alien invasion will lead to an increase in the size of the human cauda epididymis…………be prepared, folks.
🛑2. No noise please
The sperm is a silent but fast swimmer and it covers the vanguard distance by swimming like a small boat with large and powerful motor with little or no turbulence. It swims forward by creating BENDING WAVES propagating through its tail.
Flapping motions ,although present won’t help the sperm in forward progression.
Point to learn – – – vigorous flapping with a lot of noise and turbulence, although dramatic,,c may be successful temporarily to draw the attention does no good other than wasting one’sone’sgy and time. The silent and fast swimmers always reach their destination. Got my point?
❤❤Note – although semen is not a Newtonian fluid with steady laminar flow and constant viscosity, the sperm manages without much turbulence because of the amazing viscoelastic property of the seminal fluid.
So, hyper-viscosity or seminal hyperviscosity [S.H.V] can lead to decreased sperm motility due to an increase in shear stress and increased resistance to flow and motility. S.H.V can be a reason for sterile semen samples in up to 30 % of cases.
S.H.V causes increased sperm coagulation and decreased motility due to SPERM TRAPPING EFFECT, decreased ZINC uptake leading to chromatin damage, increased R.O.S, and oxidative stress injury. Infections and inflammations of the male genitals and accessory sex glands are the primary reason for S.H.V.
🛑3. Avoids too much friction and heat
Adequate healthy Viscosity of seminal plasma and cervical mucus is important in maintaining the rapid progressive motility of sperm until it reaches its queen ovum. Oxidative stress, GU infection – inflammation, S.H.V will all hampers the motility by increasing shear stress and resistance to smooth flow.
Similarly too much stress, too much friction and too much negativism will hamper our mobility on the path towards a peaceful life.
❤❤Note – POISE [centimeter – gram – second cgs] is the unit for viscosity measurement.
❤❤increased Temperature [In vivo scrotal and in vitro during storage] has a significant negative effect on sperm viscosity, motilimotilitynd viability. In vitro sperm samplesamplesd be stored at 20 °C to maintain their motility and vitality before being examined under a microscope.
🛑4. Has a Rhythm
Sperms swim by creating rhythmic flagellar beats and body bending, reiterating the importance of rhythm and discipline.
🛑5. Know how far to go
We all should know how far to go. When to stop? Know our limitations. Sperm is a biological heat-seeking missile..
Fallopian tube pressure gradiants, follicular progesterone, cilia of the female genital tract – vagina, cx, fundus, infundibulum and fallopian cilia, sperm chemo taxis and thermo taxis all guide the sperm towards the ova and tell him how far to go and when to stop.
Sperm takes guidance from its friendlies in the female genital tract to hit the target.
Similarly, we should be responsive to the guidance and positive vibes of the well-wishers who try to guide us as to where to stop and how far to go in this highly materialistic world. We all need a GURUJI……sacred games style.
❤❤Note – intense research is directed now towards the importance of female sexual arousal during sexual intercourse as a necessasity for successful sperm guidance and fertilization after the sperms are lodged in vagina.
Arousal leads to positive changes in vaginal PH and viscosity, causes rhythmic contractions of the pelvic floor and female genitals and fallopian tubes. VIP [vasoactive intestinal peptide] secreted during female sexual arousal is being studied again.
🛑6. Goes well prepared
Sperms wait for their chance patiently in the epididymis. They do not just relax here but prepare themselves to be mature enough [maturity] for their ultimate life goal, which fertilization of ova and the continuation of the human species. In short, the spespermow up and become mature in the epididymis.
So, wait for your chance and go well prepared because it’s a MAN-EAT-MAN WORLD OUT THERE AFTER ALL.
❤❤Note – the function of the epididymis is primarily in sperm maturation rather than storage as was,s once thought. Maturation increases the fertilization potential of sperm and makes them battle-ready.
❤❤Caput sperms are non-monon-motile poor fertilizing potential as compared to cauda sperms. During their rapid transit through the epididymis,th the S-RNAs load on the sperm surface undergo significant remodeling.
❤❤EPIDIDYMOSOMES secreted by the Epididymal epithelium have a role in cell-cell communication and epigenetic inheritance of nongenotypic paternal traits and behavioral phenotypes.
🛑7. Sperms form friends along their path
The walnut shaped sex accessory gland called prostate which gives the seminal fluid its typical milky color, viscous consistency and also provides healthy micronutrients, ZN,Amino acids and enough energy to the sperms for their long distance swim.
Prostate also contributes to fibrinolysin which is important for sperm liquefaction after ejaculation. Time to liquefaction of more than 2 hours is deemed abnormal. Seminal vesicles contribute fructose. The viscoelastic cervical mucus and the female genital cilia are also very friendly to the sperm.
Sperms make friends and have friends all over their path. Got the point?
❤❤Note – In cases of FRUCTOSE NEGATIVE OBSTRUCTIVE AZOOSPERMIA due to E.D.O[ ejaculatory duct obstruction], the semen analysis is one of low volume, acidic, abnormal viscosity semen due to lack of contribution thee the prostate.
❤❤ A healthy and functional prostate is important in male reproductive physiology.
🛑8. Cannabis is bad for sperm
The Endocannabinoid system E.C.S RECEPTORS, CB1 and CB2, are found on sperm head and tail, and the endocannabinoid Ethanolamine, called ANANDAMIDE [AEA], plays a very important role in the regulation of H-P-G axis and epigenetic inheritance and phenotypes.
The E.C.S maintains the sperm in a quiescent stage, inhibits hypermobility, and conserves energy before it reaches the stage of CAPACITATION in the female reproductive tract. Now, it’s the exogenous cannabinoids or the phyto cannabinoids that screw up things for the sperm.
Phyto cannabinoids interfere with the ECS regulation of the male reproductive physiology. Marijuana causes decreased sperm count, density, motility, and testosterone synthesis. Although marijuana may cause increased short-term libido, it eventually causes decreased testosterone synthesis and ED due to CB1 receptor-mediated sinusoidal endothelial damage.
🛑9. Coffee causes hypermobility
Caffeine is a important ingredient of the I.V.F medium used to store sperms. Caffeine is required for in vitro capacitation of sperms to improve chances of in vitro fertilization.
Caffeine causes hyperpolarization of sperm plasma membrane and causes intracellular influx of calcium,,m leading to a hyperactively motile sperm.
Coffee is a stimulant. Period.
❤❤Note – capacitation is a unique quality of human semen which differentiates it from other mammalian sperm. In vivo capacitation occurs in female genital tract after ejaculation into vagina.
There is intense intracellular calcium influx by activation of the CATSPER calcium channel in the sperm head, there is tyrosine phosphorylation throughout the sperm tail, which makes it hypermotile, and there is shedding of the fatty cholesterol layer that forms around the sperm membrane during its transit through the epididymis.
There is acrosome reaction at the sperm head that exposes the precious genetic cargo for fertilization and injection into the female gamete.
🛑10. Few good sperm are enough
The world’s spinning right due to contributions from a few good men ( and women,, course, I don’t want to be sexiest). But when it comes to sperm talk, it has to be about men, right?
You only need a few good sperms with reasonable motility— atleast 50 % should be motile with either grade A ( Rapid progression) or grade B ( slow progression) motility pattern on Semen analysis . Also according to KRUGERS STRICT criteria of sperm morphology atleast 14% sperms should have normal morphology. W.H.O is way lineant they put it at 4% sperms should have perfectly normal morphology.
❤❤The one sperm that achieves all the necessary steps of capacitation and arrives on time gets the queen. Yep, IT’S FIRST COME, FIRST SERVE.
Now with all said and done …. it’s not just having a few good sperm with reasonable motility and morphology that will do the job for you…… It’s about them being proactive in earning the capacity to fertilise the ovum.
World War II would have been avoided if the few good men in EUROPE had come forward on time and prevented Hitler from ruining the world.
Now, with so much to learn from the friendly sperm that’s, that’s all more to say than “BE LIKE THE SPERM”……..
copyright © Dr Amol Mutkekar
Urologist
Feb 2021.
