How Do Sperm Cells Enter the Egg? - Medical Animation

MEDICAL ANIMATION TRANSCRIPT: At long last, the sperm reach the egg. ♪ [music] ♪ Only a few dozen of the original 300 million sperm remain. The egg is covered with a layer of cells called the corona radiata. The sperm must push through this layer to reach the outer layer of the egg, the zona pellucida. When sperm reached the zona pellucida, they attach to specialized sperm receptors on the surface, which triggers their acrosomes to release digestive enzymes, enabling the sperm to burrow into the layer. Inside the zona pellucida is a narrow fluid-filled space just outside the egg cell membrane. The first sperm to make contact will fertilize the egg. After a perilous journey and against incredible odds, a single sperm attaches to the egg cell membrane. Within a few minutes, their outer membranes fuse, and the egg pulls the sperm inside. This event causes changes in the egg membrane that prevent other sperm from attaching to it. Next, the egg releases chemicals that push other sperm away from the egg and create an impenetrable fertilization membrane. As the reaction spreads outward, the zona pellucida hardens, trapping any sperm unlucky enough to be caught inside. Outside the egg, sperm are no longer able to attach to the zona pellucida.