Mammalian sperm capacitation: role of phosphotyrosine proteins.

Capacitation was discovered independently by Austin and Chang in the early 1950s and was defined as the obligate period of residence of spermatozoa in the female reproductive tract, which confers on the spermatozoa the ability to fertilize an oocyte. The molecular basis of the phenomenon of capacitation is poorly understood despite the fact that it is an important event preceding fertilization. This review presents our current understanding of the signalling events involved in the process of capacitation.