Retrograde flushing collection and freezing of dromedary camel epididymal spermatozoa with seminal plasma

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to describe the parameters of dromedary camel epididymal spermatozoa collected by retrograde flushing (RF) technique and to evaluate the freezability of the collected sperm, diluted with and without the supplementation of seminal plasma (SP). Two experiments were conducted: in Experiment 1, ES were recovered within 6–8 h after castration; selected samples were diluted with a Tris-citrate egg-yolk glycerolated buffer and frozen. In Experiment 2, epididymides were stored for 24 h at 4 °C before RF and semen samples were frozen after dilution with a Tris-lactose egg-yolk glycerolated extender with and without 15% SP. In Experiment 1, eight semen samples were obtained from ten epididymides with a mean of 500 × 106 total spermatozoa recovered, per flushed epididymis. Mean post-thaw motility and progressive motility were 75 and 17%, respectively. In Experiment 2, 15 samples were collected, out of the 18 epididymides (mean number of collected spermatozoa: 700 × 106), and 13 of these samples were of excellent quality. Post-thaw parameters were not satisfactory but the supplementation of the freezing medium with 15% SP improved the progressive motility and kinematic parameters of the spermatozoa.

The Effect of Cushioned Centrifugation, with and without Enzymatic Reduction of Viscosity, on the Motility Pattern and Kinematic Parameters of Dromedary Camel Bull Spermatozoa

“…The effect of 15% seminal plasma on ES motility before and after freezing has been evaluated previously [9]; the addition of seminal plasma did not cause significant variation in the sperm's motility before freezing; however, the total and progressive motility were subjectively evaluated and only after 4 • C incubation (pre-freezing evaluation). It is also possible that the 15% SP was not effective in terms of biological activity for impairing the sperm motility pattern, such as that observed in the present study, with 35% SP.…”

“…Adult (>5 years of age) dromedary camel bull testis were retrieved at the local slaughterhouse, kept at room temperature, and processed within two hours of collection. Epididymal Spermatoza were recovered by retrograde flushing with TCF, according to a previously described technique [9,24]. Samples were kept in a water bath at 37 • C and evaluated for concentration (spectrophotometer), morphology (Eosin/Nigrosin staining [25]), and motility.…”

“…The effects of the addition of seminal plasma on ES parameters have been investigated in several species [3][4][5][6][7][8], including camelids [9,10]. However, to date, no studies have investigated changes in motility patterns in ES following exposure to SP in dromedary camels.…”