Turbo Twist

To successfully reach and fertilise an egg, sperm must endure a long and arduous journey through the female reproductive organs. Many fall by the wayside, but a team of scientists has recently developed a technique that could provide struggling sperm with a little roadside assistance. They developed magnetic micromotors, based on minute metal-coated helices, which can be linked to sperm and remotely guided to power them towards their destination. As seen in this video, a tiny motor attaches itself to the sperm’s tail, drives it towards the egg and finally releases it to bring about fertilisation. For couples unable to conceive because of problems with sperm motility, this method could provide a more effective solution than traditional IVF, without having to extract eggs and induce fertilisation in an artificial environment. While much more research is needed, motorised assistance has the potential to transform the future of fertility treatments.

Written by Emmanuelle Briolat

Emmanuelle Briolat

Writer

A researcher specialising in visual signals in Lepidoptera, camouflage and the effects of light pollution, Emmanuelle’s writing covers a range of topics, from biomedical research to children’s books about moth defences.

Website

• Image/video from work by Mariana Medina-Sánchez and colleagues
• Institute for Integrative Nanosciences, IFW Dresden, Germany
• Image/video copyright American Chemical Society 2015
• Published in Nano Letters, December 2016