What’s involved in the development of sperm?
Approximately 123 million sperm are produced within male testes each and every day once men reach sexual maturity. That figure evokes a picture of sperm production operating at breakneck speed, which is not a completely accurate picture. It actually takes a little more than two months for each individual sperm to develop. Because so many sperm are made in parallel, the process scales quickly to provide a flood of the reproductive cells each day.
“Men are like factories. There is just constant sperm production in the testicles. On average, it takes around 64 days to make a sperm cell. Other variables may impact sperm production such as well-being and health condition, so we wait around 3 months to repeat a semen analysis to examine changes in the sperm parameters. Semen analysis is important in the evaluation and treatment of male infertility,” states Dr. Parviz Kavoussi, a distinguished Austin based reproductive urologist.
Sperm develop along the walls of the seminiferous tubules that lie underneath the strong wall of fibers surrounding each testis. Mother cells, known as spermatogonia cells, give birth to the cells that become sperm once they are fed, nurtured, and literally pushed towards the tube’s lumen (the opening) by the surrounding Sertoli cells. The Sertoli cells are also located within the tubule walls. In order to travel quickly, the DNA material within the sperm becomes more compact and unneeded cytoplasm is shed while the tail forms, which these housekeeper cells remove.
Dr. Kavoussi, who has won many awards including the Texas Monthly Magazine’s Texas Rising Star Super Doctor, provides a wide variety of treatments in male fertility and sexual health at Austin Fertility & Reproductive Medicine/Westlake IVF.
Those interested in a consultation with Dr. Kavoussi at his South or Westlake locations in Austin can contact the clinic by calling (512) 444-1414.