SPECIFICITY IN FER riLIZATIOX 185 



bodies identified by the latter as sperm heads in the 

 uterine epithelium may be shrunken nuclei. Rohl- 

 brugge has gone as far as to suggest that there ma\' 

 be a fusion of the sperm nuclei and the nuclei of epi- 

 thelial cells and a consequent stimulation of cell division 

 and growth; but the evidence offered for these sugges- 

 tions is highly unsatisfactory. However, he presents 

 his observations as a possible explanation of telegony, 

 a phenomenon which has no present status among 

 biologists. The observations of Kohlbrugge require 

 confirmation before they can be accepted as a body 

 of ascertained fact. The same author has also main- 

 tained that spermatozoa may enter cleavage cells, or 

 cells of the blastodermic vesicle of mammals; but here 

 also confirmation is lacking. 



There is some evidence from the clinical side that 

 the sperm of the male influences the body of the female, 

 and Waldstein and Eckler (1913) niaintain that a 

 specific ferment develops in the blood of rabbits a few 

 hours after coitus which is directed against sperm, and 

 may be detected by the method of Abderhalden. This 

 would demonstrate absorption of sperm, but not neces- 

 sarily in the manner described by Kohlbrugge. 



In a considerable number of animals spermatozoa 

 find their way among the tissues either as a result of 

 the method of copulation or otherwise. But they arc 

 not known to react with any other cells than the ova. 

 There is quite an extensive literature on this subject ; 

 the principal references are Whitman (1891), Kohl- 

 brugge (1910, 191 1, 191 2), Berlese (1898), etc. 



The problem of tissue specificity as between ovum 

 and spermatozoa has not, however, attracted much 



