Comparative study of the beat patterns of american and asian horseshoe crab sperm: Evidence for a role of the central pair complex in forming planar waveforms in flagella

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Abstract
American horseshoe crab sperm flagella have the typical 9+2 structure whereas Asian horseshoe crab sperm flagella have a 9+0 axoneme lacking central pair and central sheaths. Beat patterns of the American and the Asian horseshoe crab sperm were recorded by means of a high‐speed video system (200 fields/second) and were compared in order to study the role of the central pair of the axoneme in ciliary and flagellar movement.The American horseshoe crab sperm beat with relatively planar waves, whereas the Asian horseshoe crab sperm beat with right‐handed helical waves. These results suggest that the central complex plays an important role in forming planar waves, whereas it is not essential for the conversion of microtubule sliding into axonemal bends.