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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 36(5)

The case for considering the term ‘mitochondrial vesicle’ as a misnomer in publications about assisted reproductive technologies (ART) for amphibians

Robert K. Browne https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3172-9991 A * , Govindappa Venu https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4873-7418 B and Svetlana A. Kaurova https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2298-1597 C
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Sustainability America, La Isla Road, Sarteneja, Corozal District, Belize.

B Department of Zoology, Centre for Applied Genetics, Jnana Bharathi Campus, Bangalore University, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560056, India.

C Institute of Cell Biophysics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Pushchino, Moscow Region 142290, Russia.

* Correspondence to: robert.browne@gmail.com

Handling Editor: Graeme Martin

Reproduction, Fertility and Development 36, RD24014 https://doi.org/10.1071/RD24014
Submitted: 31 January 2024  Accepted: 5 February 2024  Published online: 28 February 2024

© 2024 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing

Abstract

The term ‘mitochondrial vesicle’ was first used in 2003 in a description of anuran sperm and persists to this day throughout the literature on assisted reproductive technologies (ART) for amphibians. In the present paper, we argue that the term is inappropriate because the widely accepted definition of a ‘vesicle’ refers to an integral structure with an enclosing lipid bilayer/membrane. Moreover, there are no electron micrographs that show a vesicular structure encapsulating mitochondria on amphibian sperm heads in the literature. In fact, in 1993, the mitochondria in the anuran sperm head had been described as positioned in ‘mitochondrial collars’ or ‘mitochondrial sheaths’ surrounded by the plasma membrane of the sperm head. On the other hand, mitochondrial-derived vesicles are defined as vesicles shed from mitochondria surfaces, potentially creating confusion. Therefore, our view is that the term ‘mitochondrial vesicle’ should be avoided in describing the positioning of mitochondria on sperm.

Keywords: amphibian, anuran sperm, ART, assisted reproductive technology, mitochondrial collar, mitochondrial sheath, mitochondrial vesicle, motility, swimming.

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