Prolonged survival of fowl spermatozoa in the oviducal tissues in organ culture

When fowl spermatozoa were incubated at 41 degrees C with tissues from the infundibulum, magnum, isthmus, shell gland, uterovaginal junction and vagina, their motility, assessed at room temperature (20 to 25 degrees C), was maintained for 4 to 12 d. 2. The survival period was much longer for spermatozoa incubated with the tissues from the infundibulum and uterovaginal junction (with sperm-host glands, 11 to 12 d) than for those incubated with tissues from the other regions (lacking host glands, 4 to 7 d). 3. In the tissues of the infundibulum and uterovaginal junction, spermatozoa entered the sperm-host glands and were more closely associated with the epithelial cells than they were in tissues from other regions.