The results of this study demonstrate that the motility parameters of stallion sperm are improved when the semen is frozen in lactose EDTA extender supplemented with duck egg yolk rather than chicken egg yolk. Moreover, sperm motility and the percentage of morphologically normal sperm were higher after freezing at a concentration of 200 x 10(6)/ml rather than 20 x 10(6)/ml.
The aim of the present study was to evaluate the potential oocyte binding ability and functional integrity of fresh or frozen-thawed, sex-sorted or non-sorted stallion spermatozoa. In the absence of effective IVF procedures in the horse, a heterologous sperm-binding assay was used as an indicator of fertilising capacity to assess differences in the ability of stallion spermatozoa to bind to bovine oocytes. The functional integrity of four treatment groups was assessed: (1) fresh non-sorted spermatozoa; (2) fresh sex-sorted spermatozoa; (3) frozen-thawed non-sorted spermatozoa; and (4) frozen-thawed sex-sorted spermatozoa. Spermatozoa found in association with the zona pellucida of the bovine oocytes were deemed 'attached' or 'bound' depending on their characterisation as either acrosome intact or acrosome reacted, respectively. Significantly less frozen-thawed spermatozoa were found attached to the oocytes compared with fresh spermatozoa. No significant differences were identified between the number of attached sex-sorted and non-sorted frozen-thawed spermatozoa. However, significantly more sex-sorted than non-sorted fresh spermatozoa were found attached to the oocytes after 1 h coincubation, although after 3 h coincubation this difference was no longer apparent. In conclusion, sex-sorted fresh and frozen-thawed stallion spermatozoa are functionally capable of attaching and binding to bovine oocytes in vitro. Furthermore, fresh sex-sorted spermatozoa attach better than non-sorted spermatozoa, suggesting that they have a more advanced capacitation-like status.
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