How 'teamwork' between egg and sperm works: Little-known protein identified in vertebrate fertilization process
Monday, August 12, 2013 - 21:00
in Biology & Nature
Researchers have decoded a previously unknown molecular mechanism in the fertilization process of vertebrates. The team of scientists have identified a specific protein in frog egg extracts that the male basal bodies need, but that is produced only by the reproductive cells of the female. This "teamwork" between the egg and sperm is what makes embryo development possible.