Abstract
The fertilization potential, or activation potential, has been demonstrated in the eggs of various species1, and it has been shown to block polyspermy in echinoderm2,3, echiuran4 and frog5 eggs, but no studies have been reported of electrical phenomena occurring when mammalian eggs are fertilized. We report here the fertilization potential of golden hamster eggs in vitro. To correlate the change of potential with the interaction between sperm and egg, only one sperm was attached to each egg. We found that a sperm induces recurring hyperpolarizations, constituting a fertilization potential which differs from that in the eggs of other species.
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Miyazaki, Si., Igusa, Y. Fertilization potential in golden hamster eggs consists of recurring hyperpolarizations. Nature 290, 702–704 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1038/290702a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/290702a0
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