X and Y Spermatozoa

Abstract

READING Dr. Shettles's first communication¹ leaves one with a variety of disturbing thoughts. Should one be able to hurdle the compounded artefacts of air-dried shrinkage and phase-contrast optical aberration, there still remain the matters of interpretation and communication. Agreeing, but only for the moment, with Dr. Shettles that his Fig. 1 shows “no intermediate types”, wherein lies his evidence for specifying the “most central chromosome”, either in theory or in Fig. 3 ? Furthermore, in the light of considerable recent disagreement concerning even the extent and outline of the sperm nucleus, based on cytochemical and electron-micrographic preparations, the description of the ultrastructural pattern of nuclear arrangement seems fragile indeed. Finally, one would hope that some additional technique and confirming evidence might be supplied before assuming too hopefully that “discrete chromosomes” and the “X and Y chromosomes” can, by this method, be unequivocally recognized. I presume Fig. 3 lost some detail in reproduction.