Regulation of Sperm Membrane Dynamics

Mammalian sperm cells have to undergo two crucial events during fertilization: (i) fusion of the sperm cell membrane with the outer acrosomal membrane to release acrosomal enzymes and (ii) merging of the postacrosomal parts of the sperm cell membrane with the vitelline membrane of the egg. During this process, the sperm cell membrane undergoes complex changes, including a delicate reorientation of membrane lipids. However, little is known about the molecular mechanisms and the membrane proteins involved in the regulation of these dynamic processes, and this has become critical questions in reproductive biology. The funding is provided to start up joined interdisciplinary studies between the two labs with focus on the role of lipid flippases in spermatogenesis.