Comparative electron microscopy study of spermatozoa in snakes (Lepidosauria, Squamata)

The ultrastructure of snake sperm has received substantial attention primarily because snakes exhibit considerable variability in reproductive characteristics between species, with a wide range of mating systems and reproductive behaviors. Variability of sperm morphology among snake species may be associated with the reproductive strategies of each taxon, such as competition or sperm storage. We provide a detailed description of the sperm ultrastructure of nine snake species (Anilius scytale, Tropidophis paucisquamis, Bothrops jararaca, Oxyrhopus guibei, Dipsas mikanii, Micrurus corallinus, Xenopholis scalaris, Acrochordus javanicus, and Cylindrophis ruffus) and compared this with sperm data from the literature for the following taxa: Liotyphlops beui, Amerotyphlops reticulatus, Trilepida koppesi, Anilios waitii, Anilios endoterus, Aspidites melanochephalus, Boa constrictor amarali, Corallus hortulana, Epicrates cenchria, Boa constrictor occidentalis, Eryx jayakari, Micrurus corallinus, Micrurus surinamensis, Micrurus frontalis, Micrurus altirostris, Oxyuranus microlepidotus, Bothrops alternatus, Bothrops diporus, Crotalus durissus, Agkistrodon contortrix, Vipera aspis, Boiga irregularis, Zamenis schrenckii, Zamenis scalaris, Stegonotus cuculatus, Nerodia sipedon, Liodytes pygaea, and Myrrophis chinensis. We found twelve polymorphic characters in the ultrastructure of sperm among the described snakes. Our work supports the importance of ultrastructural analysis of sperm morphology to understand snake reproduction, and provides sperm-derived morphological characters for phylogenetic analysis.

The ultrastructure of the spermatozoa of the worm lizard Amphisbaena alba (Squamata, Amphisbaenidae) and the phylogenetic relationships of amphisbaenians

We describe the ultrastructure of epididymal spermatozoa of Amphisbaena alba and make comparisons with spermatozoa of other squamates. The mature spermatozoon of A. alba is filiform and characterized by the following features: the acrosome is depressed in transverse section; the perforatorial base plate is absent; the perforatorial tip is pointed; the perforatorium is single; the epinuclear lucent zone is well developed; the midpiece is moderately long; the mitochondria are columnar, forming regular circlets interrupted by dense bodies in transverse section; the dense bodies are solid, arranged in regular rings and linear series; the nuclear shoulders are rounded; the nucleus is elongate; the endonuclear canal is absent; fibers 3 and 8 are enlarged; multilaminar membranes are absent; and the fibrous sheath is in the midpiece. A phylogenetic analysis of squamates using spermatozoon-ultrastructure characters resulted in 2415 equally parsimonious, largely unresolved trees. The use of a constraint tree derived from gross anatomical characters suggested that the Amphisbaenia is the sister-group of the Autarchoglossa. We conclude that to improve the resolution of phylogenetic hypotheses derived from spermatozoon-ultrastructure characters, the number of characters ought to be increased, and more investigations are necessary to ascertain the degree of intrafamilial variability.