Oxidative metabolic activity of boar spermatozoa: a system for assessing anti-glycolytic activity of potential inhibitors in vitro.

The oxidative metabolic capability of mature boar spermatozoa has been determined in vitro. The high rate of oxidation of fructose, glucose, glycerol, glycerol-3-phosphate and lactate to CO2 and the optimization of incubation conditions indicates that these cells could constitute a model system for investigating the anti-glycolytic activity of potential male anti-fertility agents. The effects of several chemical agents on the oxidative metabolism of boar spermatozoa are reported.