The development of assisted reproduction methods requires the application of techniques for the assessment of sperm quality of animals kept for breeding purposes. At present there are a number of methods for the parametric evaluation of spermatozoa, used to determine the reproductive potential of males. Owing to the large number of factors inf1uencing the maturation and capacitation of sperm and the complexity of the fertilisation process, it is difficult to accurately estimate fertilising potential. None of the presently used methods is fully reliable. Conventional laboratory methods, such as the microscopic analysis of the number, mobility, morphology and vitality of spermatozoa or the computer-assisted CASA method, do not provide reliable results as to the functional properties of semen. Most of these methods make it possible to analyse only a single determinant of sperm fertilization potential. High heterogeneity in sperm population makes semen analysis even more difficult. In order to achieve more reliable results, a number of functional analyses are applied, such as flow cytometry, sperm-zona binding tests, HZA and SPA tests. Other such methods include the evaluation of apoptosis and DNA damage as well as acrosome reaction assessment and the use of the molecular marker of spermatozoa. All the above methods make it possible to observe a number of influences and transformations occurring in spermatozoa prior to fertilization. A detailed analysis of the stages by which sperm acquires the ability to fertilize an egg is not only essential for the evaluation of sperm quality, but it is also a source of valuable information on molecular and cellular mechanisms of the fertilization process, some aspects of which still remain elusive.
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