| 11. | After this capacitation, the sperm must undergo the final maturation step, activation, involving the acrosome reaction.
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| 12. | This binding triggers the acrosome to burst, releasing enzymes that help the sperm get through the zona pellucida.
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| 13. | The cortical reaction and acrosome reaction are both essential to ensure that only one sperm will fertilize an egg.
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| 14. | It is highly expressed in testis, and is required for sperm head elongation and acrosome formation during spermatogenesis.
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| 15. | After the acrosome reaction, the sperm is believed to remain bound to the zona pellucida through exposed ZP2 receptors.
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| 16. | Once this occurs, the sperm is capable of binding with the zona pellucida, and the acrosome reaction can occur.
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| 17. | Some sperm cells consume their acrosome prematurely on the surface of the egg cell, facilitating the penetration by other sperm cells.
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| 18. | However, the incidence of acrosome reaction in freely swimming human sperm does not accurately reflect the fertilizing ability of the sperm.
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| 19. | It may function as a regulator of both motility-and head-associated functions such as capacitation and the acrosome reaction.
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| 20. | A sperm penetration assay includes an acrosome reaction test that assesses how well a sperm is able to perform during the fertilization process.
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