Effect of dietary vitamin E and selenium supplementation on semen quality in Cairn Terriers with normospermia

Abstract

Among others, selenium (Se) and vitamin E (VitE) have been provided to dogs to improve semen quality. However, scientific evidence documenting an effect in dogs is lacking. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of supplementation of these antioxidants on various ejaculate parameters in a randomized, double-blinded trial using Cairn Terrier males exhibiting normal seminal quality parameters. Three dogs each were fed a standardized diet and supplemented with 0.1 mg Se, 100 mg VitE or 0.1 mg Se + 100 mg VitE/dog for 3 months. Ejaculate analyses (volume, progressive motility, vitality, morphology, concentration) were performed before inclusion (D0) and after 1, 2 and 3 months (+1, +2, +3). At the same time, glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX) and VitE in seminal plasma (SP) and GSH-PX in blood samples were determined. Vitamin E levels in SP were below the detection limit (1.0 mg/L) in all samples. GSH-PX in blood (164.0-2794.4 IU/L) and SP (18.4-4326.0 IU/L) was highly variable. Supplementation only significantly affected the total percentage of sperm head abnormalities (p = .011). Time significantly affected the percentage of morphologically abnormal sperm (p = .025), sperm head abnormalities (p = .007), proximal droplets (p = .001) and GSH-PX in SP (p = .015). Additionally, a significant interaction between time and group was identified for the percentage of membrane-intact sperm (p = .048), head abnormalities (p = .018), acrosomal defects (p = .043) and proximal droplets (p = .002). Although some effects could be identified for selected parameters, we failed to identify a clear trend about how a 3 months VitE and/or Se supplementation affects semen parameters in normospermic Cairn Terriers.

Selenium and vitamin E supplementation enhances the antioxidant status of spermatozoa and improves semen quality in male dogs with lowered fertility

“…On the other hand, Kirchhoff et al. () failed to identify a clear trend in the extent to which a 3‐month vitamin E and/or Se supplementation affects semen quality in normospermic Cairn terriers, although an effect of treatment (head sperm defects) and a significant interaction between time and treatment could be identified for some semen indicators (percentage of vital spermatozoa, sperm head abnormalities, acrosomal defects, proximal cytoplasmic droplets). A few studies have reported the effects of vitamin E supplementation on semen indicators in the dog.…”

“…The doses and the length of supplementation were recommended by the manufacturer of the preparation. In other studies, the length of supplementation with Se and/or vitamin E varied from 4 weeks to 3 months (Kawakami et al., ; Kirchhoff et al., ; Lopes‐Santiago et al., ).…”

“…There are only few studies on the effect of oral vitamin E supplementation (Hatamoto et al., ; Kawakami, Kobayashi, Hori, & Kaneda, ; Kirchhoff, Failing, & Goericke‐Pesch, ; Lopes‐Santiago et al., ) or vitamin E together with selenium (Domoslawska, Zduńczyk, Nizański, Jurczak, & Janowski, ; Kirchhoff et al., ) on canine semen quality. However, these studies yielded conflicting results.…”

“…However, these studies yielded conflicting results. Only in one study in normospermic dogs were the content of vitamin E and activity of glutathione peroxidase (GSH‐Px), as a Se status marker, determined (Kirchhoff et al., ).…”

Total antioxidant capacity and protein peroxidation intensity in seminal plasma of infertile and fertile dogs

“…These studies concerned the effect of supplementation with selenium and/or vitamin E on semen quality and yielded conflicting results. While some studies showed the improvement of semen quality (Domoslawska et al, ; Hatamoto et al, ; Kawakami et al, ), other studies found only slight effect (Kirchhoff, Failing, & Goericke‐Pesch, ) or no effect (Lopes‐Santiago et al, ).…”