Abnormal Epididymal Spermatozoa Two to Thirty‐five Days after a Brief Experiment Cryptorchidism in the Rabbit

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Abstract
Spermatozoa from the middle and the terminal segments of the rabbit epididymis were examined 2 to 35 days after experimental cryptorchidism for 24 h. Prominent changes were found in the nucleus, the acrosome and the tail. Many bent and broken tails were seen and it is suggested that tail breaks always occur in the same direction, perpendicular to a plane through the central pair of the axial filament complex. Back‐calculations to determine what stage of development the cells were in when exposed to abdominal temperature indicated that spermatogonia were not affected and that primary spermatocytes were the most heat sensitive germ cells. Tail abnormalities occurred in spermatozoa that were in the proximal part of the epididymal duct during the experimental cryptorchidism.