The Money Shot Transformed
Jonathan A. Allan in Men, Masculinities, and Infertilities, 2022
This chapter highlights a growing cultural anxiety about sperm quality and quantity. On March 11, 2017, The New York Times called attention to the declining quality and quantity of sperm in the average human ejaculate. Semen has long been and is once more becoming an interesting and important barometer of men and masculinity, especially in relation to men’s reproductive and sexual health. Semen anxiety and masculinity seemingly go hand-in-hand—after all, the sample consisted of over 1,000 questions about semen. There is much to discuss and think about with regard to semen, which is about much more than just mere ejaculation as a physiological reaction. The money shot has a long and significant history in pornography, and consequently it has become one of the most hotly debated aspects of critical responses to pornography. Pornography fetishizes semen, and perhaps nowhere is this more obvious than in the money shot.
The Use of Sperm Ultra-Morphology Assessment in Assisted Reproduction
Nicolás Garrido, Rocio Rivera in A Practical Guide to Sperm Analysis, 2017
Semen examination is one of the key steps in the exploration of infertile couples. The normal ejaculate contains spermatozoa with significant changes in the size and shape of the head, the acrosome, and the intermediate part of the flagellum. Sperm morphology has been recognized as the best predictor of natural fertility or after in vitro fertilization (IVF) or intrauterine insemination. Sperm morphology is only one qualitative parameter of spermatogenesis, and the conventional sperm morphological analysis is a descriptive exploration of sperm shape from a representative sample of spermatozoa from one ejaculate. Light microscopy is the most common imaging system used in routine in reproductive biology laboratories and allows after staining of fixed sperm preparations the classification of morphologically normal or abnormal spermatozoa. The evaluation of the integrity of the different structures of the male gamete by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) or scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is important in sperm ultramorphology assessment.
The Usefulness of Antisperm Antibodies Testing
Nicolás Garrido, Rocio Rivera in A Practical Guide to Sperm Analysis, 2017
Fertilization is a fundamental process that involves a coordinated sequence of interactions between two highly differentiated cells, the spermatozoon and the oocyte, giving rise to a diploid zygote. This chapter presents basic concepts on antisperm antibodies (ASA) etiology in men and women and their impact on fertility. It then describes several analytical techniques to evaluate ASA presence and incidence for both women and men and presents data on ASA incidence retrieved from published reports. The chapter summarizes recent findings on the assessment of sperm surface ASA in a large group of patients attending an Andrology Laboratory. It then provides findings on ASA incidence and their relationship with routine semen parameters and sperm kinematics. The chapter describes a set of practical guidelines to perform ASA evaluation, and provides information on commercially available kits as well. To tolerate sperm antigens, the immune system exhibits a particular behavior, in both the male and the female reproductive tract.
A Washing Technique for Collection of Honeybee Semen
Published in Journal of Apicultural Research, 1980
Osman Kaftanoglu, Ying-Shin Peng
Summary A simple and fast method for collecting honeybee semen in large quantity is described. Semen and mucus of many drones, everted and ejaculated by hand, were scraped into Kiev diluent in a semen-washing funnel and a collecting tube. The semen-mucus-diluent mixture was centrifuged at 2500 rpm for 10 min to separate semen from mucus and the diluent. The collecting tube containing semen was incorporated into a special large-capacity syringe, and the semen was used to inseminate queen honeybees. No significant differences were found in the amount of brood produced between 31 queens instrumentally inseminated with semen collected by this method, queens inseminated with semen collected by the conventional Mackensen technique, and open-mated queens (P > 0·05 in all cases). However, significant differences were observed in the onset of oviposition (P < 0·05 in all cases). There was a delay before oviposition by all the instrumentally inseminated queens, which was greatest for queens inseminated with semen collected by the washing technique (P < 0·05). Effects of washing and centrifugation of semen are discussed.
Semen providers and their three families
Published in Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology, 2005
K Daniels, A Lalos, C Gottlieb, O Lalos
Background: In 1985 the Swedish government introduced legislation that required all semen providers to furnish identifying information on themselves which would then be made available to their biological/provider offspring when they are deemed to have ‘sufficient maturity’. The purpose of the legislation was to protect the child's rights and needs. The aim of this paper is to examine the degree to which semen providers have considered the implications of their decision to donate upon their three families; their birth family, the family they form with their partner, and the recipient family. Methods: Thirty semen providers from two Swedish clinics were sent self-completion questionnaires collecting both quantitative and qualitative information. The initial response rate was 100%. Questions requested demographic information; the degree to which semen providers had consulted with or advised their partners, family, existing offspring and acquaintances about their semen donation; views and attitudes of semen providers towards donor offspring, anonymity, information sharing, payments to semen providers, community acceptance of DI and semen providers, experience of donation, recruitment/screening procedures. Results: Almost all respondents had told their partners that they were providing semen, however, a much smaller proportion had told their birth families. Almost two thirds of semen providers were positive or very positive about the prospect of meeting their offspring at some time in the future, with older men expressing more enthusiasm. Conclusions: The findings suggest that semen providers have only partially considered and addressed the full implications of having semen provider offspring. The age of semen providers could be influential in determining some attitudes and views.
Effects of Differing Gentamicin Concentrations in Semen Extender on Spermatozoa Motility and Velocity in Fresh and Cooled Stallion Semen
Published in Journal of Applied Animal Research, 2001
K. Bennett-Wimbush, A. Andrews, J. Jones, B. Musolf
Bennett-Wimbush, K., Andrews, A., Jones, J. and Musolf, B. 2001. Effects of differing gentamicin concentrations in semen extender on spermatozoa motility and velocity in fresh and cooled stallion semen. J. Appl. Anim. Res., 20: 41–47. Ten light-horse stallions (ages 5–16) were used to determine the effects of differing concentrations of gentamicin sulfate in semen extender on sperm motility and velocity in both fresh and cooled stallion semen. Semen was collected once from all stallions from October 1997 through March 1998. Immediately after collection, semen was extended with a dried-skim milk based extender (pH—7.0) containing either 0, 500 or 2000 μg/ml gentamicin sulfate to a final concentration of 10 × 106 spermatozoa/ml. Average path velocity decreased (p