Macro- and microelements in serum and seminal plasma as biomarkers for bull sperm cryotolerance

Abstract

Background Wide variation in fertility rates is observed when using frozen bull semen, even when the bulls have met quality standards for semen production. Therefore, a simple and reliable test to assess the freezing potential of bull semen based on the analysis of fresh semen or blood would be of great value. Attention is now turning to assessment of seminal plasma components such as proteins and elements. In the present study, the concentrations of macro- and microelements in fresh bull semen plasma and in serum and their correlation with quality characteristics of fresh semen and with semen quality after freezing and thawing were determined. Ejaculates were collected from 30 mature bulls, and semen volume, concentration, sperm motility, morphology, tail membrane integrity, plasma membrane permeability and DNA fragmentation were determined on the day of collection and after freezing and thawing. The concentrations of macroelements (Na, Mg, K and Ca) and microelements (Cu, Fe, Zn and Se) were determined in the seminal plasma and serum. The semen samples were classified into satisfactory and unsatisfactory groups according to the fresh semen quality. Results Zinc and Se levels measured in serum were associated with almost all fresh and frozen-thawed semen quality characteristics, while Fe levels were associated only with acrosomal defects in fresh semen. Zinc and Fe levels in fresh seminal plasma were associated with various quality characteristics of fresh and frozen-thawed semen, while Se level in fresh seminal plasma was not associated with any of the semen quality characteristics. Conclusions Microelements were shown to be useful as biomarkers involved in the analysis of bull sperm quality and could be used as an additional tool to predict bull semen quality after freezing and thawing. Our results confirm that the analysis of Zn and Se levels in serum and Zn, Cu and Fe levels in fresh seminal plasma can provide information to discriminate between bull semen samples with spermatozoa with high or low cryotolerance.

Using Bee Bread Extract as Natural Source of Energy, Antibiotics and Antioxidants Instead of Synthetic Sources During Freezing Steps of Ram Semen Extender

“…Otherwise, the superior to all BBE extenders specially E3 and E4 compared to E0 extender may be due to the presence of Ca ++ in BBE which has positive effect on the mitochondria metabolic rate thus enhancing the enhancement of generating a higher ATP. These results are equivalent to the current study that recorded increasing in Ca ++ concentration in semen extender enhances cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) synthesis in the spermatozoa mitochondria thus leading to an enhancement of the metabolic rate which had a higher ATP level (Zakošek et al, 2021). Moreover, it has been reported that arginine in BBE has significant increase in ATP, which is thought to be associated with an increase in glycolysis rate resulting in higher ATP rates (Omar et al, 2021).…”

“…Means denoted within the same column with different superscripts are significantly different at P<0.05. important role in reproduction performance also, zinc is a crucial element for reproduction, and its lack can result in degenerative changes sperm activity. Also, Zakošek et al (2021) had shown that enrichment of a sperm extender with calcium (Ca ++ ) to raise sperm quality posthawing and consequently improves fertility by decreasing cryopreservation-induced sperm damage. In addition, Pinto et al (2020) extender's supplementation with Vitamin C has shown positive impacts on sperm motility and preservation of plasma and acrosomal membranes throughout semen cryopreservation.…”

Resveratrol and lycium barbarum polysaccharide improve Qinling giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca Qinlingensis) sperm quality during cryopreservation

“…In addition, plasma membrane integrity, which is involved in metabolism and osmotic pressure, is a critical factor in fertility [28]. Recently, evidence has confirmed that cryopreservation are detrimental to plasma membrane integrity and acrosome integrity in bulls, boars, rams, and sheep [26,[29][30][31]. To improve plasma membrane integrity and acrosome integrity, 50 μM RSV was found to be an effective antioxidant for boar semen cryopreservation [13].…”

Using Aqueous Extract of Maca (Lepidium meyenii) to Study its Effectiveness on Short-Term Storage Ram Semen Dilution and Fertility

“…On the other hands, elements in maca can be able to activate sperm function (Kerns et al, 2018) who noticed that elements are known to play an important role for reproduction performance, specially zinc (Zn) are essential for reproduction and that their deficiency can lead to degenerative changes of sperm activity. Also, Zakošek et al (2021) shown that enrichment of a sperm extender with calcium (Ca) could be improved sperm quality after thawing and consequently increase fertility rates by reducing cryopreservation-induced sperm damage.…”