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The World of Protozoa, Rotifera, Nematoda and Oligochaeta

Ref ID : 865

Samuel Ward, Thomas M. Roberts, Gregory A. Nelson, and Yair Argon; The development and motility of Caenorhabditis elegans Spermatozoa. J.Nematology 14(2):259-266, 1982

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Nematode sperm have puzzled zoologists for nearly a century because they are not flagellated. Their morphology is amoeboid, but there have been only a few descriptions of their actual movement. We have undertaken an intensive examination of the spermatozoa of Caenorhabditis elegans in order to learn how they propel themselves and how they develop their specialized morphology. This nematode was chosen because it is easily cultured in the laboratory and it has become the subject of detailed studies of its genetics, development, and behavior. In this paper we summarize our recent results which demonstrate that these spermatozoa have a novel mechanism of amoeboid motility.