Motility of human sperm without outer dynein arms

Motility of human sperm lacking outer dynein arms has been studied before and after selection of the motile fraction of spermatozoa by migration in a saline solution. The flagellar wave forms appeared normal in both the seminal plasma and saline but the rate of forward progression, the head velocity and the beat frequency were approximately half of those observed with normal sperm. However the spermatozoa were capable of moving forward and of migrating out of the seminal plasma.