STUDIES IN THE PHYSIOLOGY OF SPERMATOZOA. 



smaller than that of sperm that have been in sea water, the fertili- 

 zing power of the latter is soonest lost. Schiicking reports an 

 experiment of this kind. "Wenn einer grosseren Spermiehmenge 

 ein geringes Quantum Eisubstanz zugesetzt war, so dass die 

 Samenfaden nur gelahmt wurden, so konnten die Spermien noch 

 nach 12 Stunden durch Zusatz von Seewasser wieder beweglich 

 und befruchtungsfahig gemacht werden, wahrend die in See- 

 wasser gebrachten Spermien je nach der Temperatur nach fiinf 

 bis acht Stunden abgestorben waren " (Schiicking, A., 1903, p. 59). 

 Since the length of time that "egg water" preserves the life 

 of sperm depends upon the relative concentration of the "egg 

 water" and of the sperm, and since the ability of "egg water' 1 

 to preserve the life of the sperm depends on the decreased ac- 

 tivity of the sperm that follows the initial activation, the sooner 

 the sperm become non-motile (or exhibit decreased activity) the 

 longer the span of their life. It is therefore obvious that a very 

 concentrated "egg water" will often be less effective in preserving 

 their life than a less concentrated "egg water." In Table XV. 

 such conditions evidently obtained. Distilled water extracts 

 of eggs (made isotonic by the addition of sea water that had been 

 concentrated by evaporation) such as were employed by Schiick- 

 ing were used in Experiments 13 and 19. Egg extracts can be 

 obtained with very great "agglutinating strength." 



In the experiments reported in Table XIV. the sperm suspen- 

 sions were, for the most part, made in weaker egg waters. (The 

 egg waters employed in different experiments were probably not 

 of exactly equivalent concentration. The concentrations re- 

 ported are only approximate.) Moreover sperm was added to 

 eggs in large volume of sea water. Under such conditions the 

 length dHfc of spermatozoa, as measured by the loss of fertilizing 

 power, wRlatively short. 



A large part of the effect of "egg water" in preserving the life 

 of spermatozoa is attributable to the hydrogen ion concentration 

 of these solutions. 1 Lillie, F. R., remarked: "That the sea water 



1 Schucking, A., also ascribed this property of egg "extracts" to their acidity. 

 The acidity in the case of his distilled water "extract" of Echinid eggs he believed 

 to be due to mono-sodium and mono-calcium phosphate. The acidity in these 

 experiments was due to the carbon dioxide production of the eggs, for the "egg 

 water" of eggs that had stood in sea water for but short periods of time was used. 



