In Vitro Swelling of the Human Sperm Nucleus in the Presence of Sodium Dodecyl Sulphate

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Abstract
The in-vitro swelling of human sperm nuclei in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) was studied by counting swollen sperm nuclei in a microscopic preparation and by measuring the decrease of optical density at 600 nm (OD600). At .ltoreq. pH 8.0, OD600 showed a linear relationship to the sperm count. At higher pH values a fraction of the nuclei became swollen and OD600 decreased proportionally, although the sperm count did not change in the first 2 h. The fraction of swollen sperm nuclei increased with time and by raising the pH or temperature. The swelling occurred only in the presence of SDS and was the consequence of a binding of SDS to the hydrophobic regions of the nuclear proteins.
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