Sperm have a sense of smell

Here’s a little bit of news that I doubt many people knew. The fine folks at SEED magazine have published a short about the sense of smell that sperm have.

A new study published in the journal Analytical Chemistry shows that sperm have a sense of smell. Further, it’s so sophisticated that even an ovarian scent that’s diluted 100,000 times will cause the little gametes to turn tail and swim in its direction. The study’s authors note that sperm have olfactory receptor proteins—much like those in our noses—which reside over their outer membranes. The researchers used mouse sperm for their study, but they are confident their results apply to man-sperm as well. Apparently, sperm does not hold much of a species bias, as sperm from one mammal will respond to ovarian chemicals from another.

(source: Discovery News)

I just had to post this, as how often can one post about sperm, use the term man-sperm, and speak about SEED magazine all at the same time and not be discussing something dirty? I didn’t want to pass on the opportunity to educate and use funny words at the same time. I’ll avoid the offensive or suggestive jokes I could make at this time.

However, since we’re on the subject, here’s another sex-related article from the same page.

Hold the Screaming Orgasm

Norwegians like their nights long, their herring pickled and their sex sober. According to a survey of 1736 people by Arcus, the only wine distiller in Norway, 52% of Norwegian men and 59% of Norwegian women think sex is better without social lubricant. However, 27% of men and 20% of women responded that it’s preferable to have a few glasses of wine before doing the deed. This study is the first step in Arcus’s grand plan to find out exactly when and how Norway wants its booze.

(source: Aftenposten) Thanks to Seed‘s Deputy Art Director Adam Billyeald for his translation assistance.

[tags]SEED magazine, Science news[/tags]