ArticleProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America2015
Microgrooves and fluid flows provide preferential passageways for sperm over pathogen Tritrichomonas foetus.
Article in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 41 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
41 citing papers in PubMed.
- Sperm hyperactivation drives a circling-and-wandering swimming behavior.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Simple and rapid microfluidic device for processing raw human semen and separation of motile sperm based on their intrinsic behavior and morphology.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Hybrid motility mechanism of sperm at viscoelastic fluid-solid interface.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Fallopian tube rheology regulates epithelial cell differentiation and function to enhance cilia formation and coordination.Nature communications · 2024Article
- Hybrid motility mechanism of sperm at viscoelastic-solid interface.Research square · 2024Article
- Sperm hyperactivation in the uterus and oviduct: a double-edged sword for sperm and maternal innate immunity toward fertility.Animal reproduction · 2024Review
- Qualified sperm selection based on the rheotaxis and thigmotaxis in a microfluidic system.Biomedical engineering letters · 2023Article
- Human sperm cooperate to transit highly viscous regions on the competitive pathway to fertilization.Communications biology · 2023Article
- Article
- Activation of sperm Toll-like receptor 2 induces hyperactivation to enhance the penetration to mucus and uterine glands: a trigger for the uterine inflammatory cascade in cattle.Frontiers in immunology · 2023Article
- Lab-on-chip (LoC) application for quality sperm selection: An undelivered promise?Open research Europe · 2023Review
- Separation of motile human sperms in a T-shaped sealed microchannel.Biomedical engineering letters · 2022Article
- Biological benefits of collective swimming of sperm in a viscoelastic fluid.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2022Article
- The influence of the female reproductive tract and sperm features on the design of microfluidic sperm-sorting devices.Journal of assisted reproduction and genetics · 2022Review
- Mammalian sperm hyperactivation regulates navigation via physical boundaries and promotes pseudo-chemotaxis.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2021Article
- Viscous Cervical Environment-on-a-Chip for Selecting High-Quality Sperm from Human Semen.Biomedicines · 2021Article
- Rheotaxis-based sperm separation using a biomimicry microfluidic device.Scientific reports · 2021Article
- Rolling controls sperm navigation in response to the dynamic rheological properties of the environment.eLife · 2021Article
- Sperm migration in the genital tract-In silico experiments identify key factors for reproductive success.PLoS computational biology · 2021Article
- A dynamic basal complex modulates mammalian sperm movement.Nature communications · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Successful mammalian reproduction requires that sperm migrate through a long and convoluted female reproductive tract before reaching oocytes. For many years, fertility studies have focused on biochemical and physiological requirements of sperm. Here we show that the biophysical environment of the female reproductive tract critically guides sperm migration, while at the same time preventing the invasion of sexually transmitted pathogens. Using a microfluidic model, we demonstrate that a gentle fluid flow and microgrooves, typically found in the female reproductive tract, synergistically facilitate bull sperm migration toward the site of fertilization. In contrast, a flagellated sexually transmitted bovine pathogen, Tritrichomonas foetus, is swept downstream under the same conditions. We attribute the differential ability of sperm and T. foetus to swim against flow to the distinct motility types of sperm and T. foetus; specifically, sperm swim using a posterior flagellum and are near-surface swimmers, whereas T. foetus swims primarily via three anterior flagella and demonstrates much lower attraction to surfaces. This work highlights the importance of biophysical cues within the female reproductive tract in the reproductive process and provides insight into coevolution of males and females to promote fertilization while suppressing infection. Furthermore, the results provide previously unidentified directions for the development of in vitro fertilization devices and contraceptives.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.