Observations of circular human sperm swimming and trapping in a very viscous fluid.
   
Mathematical modelling predictions for circular sperm swimming and trapping in a very viscous fluid.

Ever wondered how sperm know where they're going? Every one of us is the consequence of a sperm cell winning the epic race through the female tract to reach the egg, covering the equivalent distance of climbing Mount Everest. A ‘virtual sperm’ can be developed and explored, based on computational simulations of a biologically inspired mathematical model. In particular, such models highlight that changes in the surrounding fluids may cause sperm to switch from straight-swimming to going round in circles, effectively trapping them, due to a buckling-effect on the whip-like motions of the sperm tail. Characteristic features of this mechanics have also been observed in the laboratory, while understanding these mechanisms and more generally how sperm may become trapped is potentially important in developing future simple treatments and diagnoses for human subfertility and animal conservation. These results featured as a ScienceShot in Science-Now, the popular arm of the prestigious journal Science, after a recent publication in The Journal of The Royal Society Interface. The latter was authored by Hermes Gadelha and Eamonn Gaffney of The Mathematical Institute with collaborators from the Centre for Human Reproductive Science, Birmingham Women’s NHS Foundation Trust.

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