spermatocyte
spermato.site · being built
| What it is | A male germ cell in meiosis inside the seminiferous tubules of the testis, on the way to becoming sperm. |
|---|---|
| Comes from | Primordial germ cell |
| About | In men one cycle of the seminiferous epithelium lasts 16 days, and the whole of spermatogenesis takes about 64 days. |
| Source | Heller CG, Clermont Y. Spermatogenesis in man: an estimate of its duration. Science. 1963;140(3563):184-6. PMID: 13953583 |
| Status | being built; its twin, knowledge and helper come with spermato.site |
Where it lives
| The seminiferous epithelium of the testis, between the Sertoli cells, moving from the basement membrane toward the lumen | human · PMID 23946533 |
What it does
| Passes through meiosis: preleptotene at 1 hour after DNA synthesis, midpachytene at 16 days, spermatids at 32 days; the whole of spermatogenesis takes about 64 days | human · PMID 13953583 |
| One cycle of the seminiferous epithelium lasts 16 days; a twelve-stage classification now follows acrosome development | human · PMID 23946533 |
What goes wrong
| Regardless of age there is substantial loss of potential sperm from degeneration of spermatocytes, but not spermatids | human · PMID 18497337 |
| Daily sperm production per testis tends to decline with advancing age | human · PMID 18497337 |
Pictures 2
Immunofluorescence staining of meiotic chromosome spreads from an OA control with normal spermatogenesis (C) and patient P01 (D) using antibodies against SYCP3 and γH2AX. SYCP3 is shown in green and γH2AX in red. OA control spermatocytes showed stage-appropriate γH2AX localization, whereas P01 spermatocytes showed persistent nuclear-wide γH2AX staining and absence of a typical γH2AX-positive XY body. L, leptotene; Z, zygotene; P, pachytene; D, diplotene; P-like, pachytene-like. Scale bar, 10 μm. (human; Figure 3, panels C and D.)
Zheng, Wang, Wang et al 2026, Frontiers in Endocrinology · CC BY 4.0
Testicular tissue presents spermatocyte cysts in prepuberal mice and adult humans. (A) Electron microscopy images of spermatocytes at prophase I presenting fragments of synaptonemal complex (yellow arrowheads) which are connected by intercellular bridges (orange arrowheads). The centrosome of one of the spermatocytes is enhanced in an amplified image. Scale bars are included in each image. Adapted: EM panel A only; IF panels B, C, and D excluded. (mouse (prepubertal testis, prophase I spermatocytes); FIGURE 4, panel A only (electron microscopy of spermatocyte cysts; IF panels B-D excluded).)
Perez-Moreno, Lopez-Jimenez, Zapata-Polo et al 2026, Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology · CC BY 4.0
Papers 2
- Zheng H, Wang Y, Wang J, Chen W, Chen J, Yang X, et al. A homozygous SPDYA variant associated with meiotic arrest and failed microdissection testicular sperm extraction in non-obstructive azoospermia. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2026;17:1916743. PMID: 42769070.
- Pérez-Moreno I, López-Jiménez P, Zapata-Polo H, Pérez-Martín S, López-Panadés M, Urtasun-Elizari J, et al. The dynamics of ciliogenesis in prepubertal mouse meiosis reveals new clues about testis maturation. Front Cell Dev Biol. 2026;14:1910205. PMID: 42666407.
sperm 4
Representative immunofluorescence images of TTC29 in spermatozoa from the fertile control. TTC29 signal was readily detected along the sperm flagellum. alpha-Tubulin labeled the sperm flagellum, and DAPI stained the nuclei. (human (fertile control spermatozoa); FIGURE 4, control arm (fertile control spermatozoa; left half, cols 84-845 of figure).)
Li, Wan, Feng et al 2026, Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology · CC BY 4.0
Transmission electron micrograph of a transverse section through the flagellum of a sperm from a fertile control, cropped from a figure that compares the fertile control with the proband. Control sperm flagella exhibited the canonical "9 + 2" axonemal organization. Yellow arrows indicate the central pair (CP), blue arrows indicate peripheral doublet microtubules (DMTs), and red arrows indicate outer dense fibers (ODFs). Scale bar, 200 nm. (human (fertile control donor spermatozoa); FIGURE 3, control arm.)
Li, Wan, Feng et al 2026, Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology · CC BY 4.0
Ultrastructure of sperm from Lrrc71-/- mice. A, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis of epididymal sperm from Lrrc71+/+ and Lrrc71-/- mice. Adapted: SEM panel A only; TEM panels B and C, IF panel D, and quantification panels E and F excluded. (mouse (epididymal sperm, Lrrc71-/- and wild-type); Figure 3, panel A only (SEM of epididymal sperm; TEM panels B-C, IF panel D, and bar charts E-F excluded).)
Yuan, Xu, Ge et al 2026, The Journal of Biological Chemistry · CC BY 4.0
Structural and molecular defects of the sperm flagellum in Cfap251 knockout mice. (B, C) Immunofluorescence of sperm stained with TOMM20 (B, red) or SEPT4 (C, red), acetylated tubulin (green), and DAPI (blue), indicating mitochondrial and annulus defects in Cfap251-/- sperm. Scale bar, 5 um. Adapted: IF panels B and C only; TEM panels A and F, quantification panels D and E, and additional IF panels G-K excluded. (mouse (Cfap251 knockout and wild-type epididymal sperm); Figure 4, panels B and C (IF of mature sperm with TOMM20 and SEPT4; TEM panel A, quantification D-E, and IF G-K excluded).)
Liu, Wang, Zhou et al 2026, International Journal of Biological Sciences · CC BY 4.0
- Li L, Wan F, Feng K, Qu X, Xia Y, Dong J, et al. A novel frameshift variant in TTC29 associated with total asthenozoospermia and male infertility. Front Cell Dev Biol. 2026;14:1937470. PMID: 42756534.
- Yuan L, Xu C, Ge T, Li G, Meng S, Lu W, et al. LRRC71 is essential for sperm motility, fertilization, and male fertility. J Biol Chem. 2026;302:113176. PMID: 42167576.
- Liu L, Wang Z, Zhou Y, Tang D, Hua R, Li K, et al. CFAP251 Deficiency Induces Male Infertility and PCD-like Ciliary Defects by Disrupting TUBB4B and SLC25A4 Recruitment in Humans and Mice. Int J Biol Sci. 2026;22:2970-2985. PMID: 41943837.