Sperm quality in male Barbus barbus L. fed different diets during the spawning season

Abstract

Sperm quality of Barbus barbus L. was compared among the three following dietary regimes: Group A, fed 100% commercial diet (Karpico containing 33% crude protein and 6% fat), Group B, fed 78% commercial diet and 22% frozen chironomid (Chironomus plumosus) larvae, and Group C, fed 56% commercial diet and 44% frozen chironomid larvae. Concentrations of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in Group A, B, and C were 39.1, 42.0, and 44.6, respectively, as a percentage of total fatty acids. Sperm morphology, volume, concentration and motility, total number of spermatozoa, and osmolality of the seminal plasma were compared during the spawning season. Dietary regime did not influence sperm volume, concentration, or total number of spermatozoa, osmolality of seminal plasma, or the percentage of motile sperm, but significantly affected sperm morphology (except for anterior and posterior parts of the midpiece) and sperm velocity (P < 0.05). Groups B and C showed similar sperm characteristics during the spawning season compared to Group A. Almost all parameters changed either among or within groups during the spawning season, suggesting differences in terms of the optimal time for sperm collection. The best time for sperm collection was March for Group A, but April for Groups B and C, when the osmolality of the seminal plasma measured 289 mOsmol kg(-1) and sperm motility was maximal. Spermatogenesis, hydration, and cell decomposition were confirmed as the three major parameters controlling sperm characteristics during the spawning season. The possible correlation between sperm morphology and motility requires further study.

Growth and survival rates, puberty and fecundity in captive common barbel (Barbus barbus L.) under controlled conditions

“…The effect of nutrition in barbel males on the sperm quality was described by Alavi et al (2008cAlavi et al ( , 2009a. However, there is no information about female and male fecundity and its changes under controlled conditions during the reproductive season.…”

Dynamic resource allocation between pre- and postcopulatory episodes of sexual selection determines competitive fertilization success

“…[19]). In addition to several examples on the adverse consequences of low food quantity and/or quality on postcopulatory sexual traits across a wide range of taxa [20,21], precopulatory sexual traits can also be negatively affected. In particular, the expression of conspicuous sexually selected male colour traits depends on food quantity and/or quality (e.g.…”

The Diversity, Plasticity, and Evolution of Sperm Morphology in Anolis Lizards

“…Consistent with this idea, when food quantity or quality is low, total sperm length often decreases (Alavi et al 2009;) whereas within-individual variation in sperm morphology increases (Hellriegel and Blanckenhorn 2002). However, other studies found no relationship between condition and sperm length (Gage and Cook 1994;Amitin and Pitnick 2007;Gasparini et al 2013).…”

“…Limited resources may result in trade-offs within ejaculates, such as, a trade-off between sperm size and sperm number (Immler et al 2011). Empirically, sperm count (Gasparini et al 2013;Kaldun and Otti 2016;Chapter 4), sperm length (Simmons and Kotiaho 2002;Alavi et al 2009;; Chapter 4), and within-male variation (Chapter 4) are associated with body condition in a wide range of taxa. However, there are very few studies that have assessed the condition dependence of the individual morphological components of the cell, which could indicate areas of the cell that are energetically expensive, potentially due to sexual selection.…”