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  • About
  • The Global ETD Search service is a free service for researchers to find electronic theses and dissertations. This service is provided by the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations.
    Our metadata is collected from universities around the world. If you manage a university/consortium/country archive and want to be added, details can be found on the NDLTD website.
1

Sperm Production and Variance in Sperm Quality

Knudsen, JILL 26 September 2009 (has links)
An unusually high level of inter- and intraspecific variability in spermatozoa has been well documented. However, recent evidence indicates that the level of variation within spermatozoa differs markedly across taxa. In particular, it appears that the variability in spermatozoa tends to decrease across species as the risk of sperm competition increases. In this thesis, I present a model that explains how variability in spermatozoa may arise due to errors made during the sperm production process. In doing so, I also provide an explanation for why variability in sperm traits tends to decrease as the level of sperm competition experienced by males of a given species increases. The model presented in this study provides a novel perspective on spermatozoa and their production. While many sperm traits are thought to be selected upon, I suggest that variability in spermatozoa may also be the result of evolutionary forces such as sperm competition. Variability in spermatozoa, then, can be adaptive and can represent an optimal reproductive strategy. / Thesis (Master, Biology) -- Queen's University, 2009-09-25 21:53:23.172

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