Mouse oocytes penetrated by spermatozoa during germinal vesicle (GV) breakdown undergo maturation and are arrested at metaphase of the second meiotic division despite the presence of sperm nuclei within the ooplasm. When these oocytes were re-inseminated, none was penetrated by newly added spermatozoa. When GV oocytes were inseminated and cultured in the presence of dibutyryl cAMP, the oocytes remained at GV stage, yet they did not permit entry of additional spermatozoa. These observations suggest that the plasma membrane of maturing oocytes is modified by precociously penetrating spermatozoa independently from cortical granule exocytosis. Sperm components incorporated into the oocytes seem to be responsible for the modification of the oocyte's plasma membrane.

Fertilised mouse eggs develop the oolemma block to sperm penetration within 1 h. This block makes zona-free eggs at the pronuclear stage (zygotes) fully resistant to sperm penetration. In this study we investigated whether this block can spread – as a result of cell fusion – to the oolemma of eggs that are competent to be penetrated by spermatozoa. Preovulatory (GV) oocytes, ovulated oocytes in metaphase II (MII) and 1-cell parthenotes were fused with zygotes and the hybrid cells inseminated at various intervals after fusion. Sperm penetration was assessed on the basis of the presence of Giemsa-positive sperm heads in the air-dried preparations. The oolemma block to sperm penetration develops in all types of hybrids although at different speeds: it develops fast (2–3 h) in oolemma derived from MII oocytes and artificially activated eggs, and slowly in oolemma derived from GV oocytes. In the GV oocyte–zygote hybrids the time of formation of the block varied: while 50% of cells lost the ability to fuse with sperm by 2 h after fusion, in the remaining cells the block must have developed some time between 5 and 18 h after fusion. How these sperm-induced modifications of the oolemma of fertilised egg spread in the hybrid cell and render the ‘virgin’ part of oolemma resistant to sperm penetration remains unknown.