Development and behavior of synaptonemal complexes in human spermatocytes by light and electron microscopy.

We describe in this paper the human male synaptic cycle using light and electron microscopy and the distribution of cells in the different stages of prophase I. The pattern of chromosome pairing and synapsis is an important tool to determine accurately whether a given synaptic behavior in infertile or sterile men is really abnormal or not. The relationship of prepachytene to pachytene cells is also important for the diagnosis of the different types of meiotic arrest at the primary spermatocyte level.