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Embryo production by in vitro fertilization in wild ungulates: progress and perspectives. ANNALS OF ANIMAL SCIENCE 2022. [DOI: 10.2478/aoas-2022-0013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Wild ungulates are of fundamental importance for balancing ecosystems, as well as being the species of economic interest. Increasing concern over the accelerated population reduction of these species has resulted in the development of assisted reproduction techniques, such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), as a tool for conservation and multiplication. In the present scenario, IVF protocols were developed based on the methodologies used for domestic ungulates. Nevertheless, owing to the physiological and reproductive differences among the species, several factors associated with IVF and its relationship with the characteristics of the species of interest require clarification. In vitro conditions for the collection and selection of female and male gametes, oocyte maturation, sperm capacitation, co-incubation of gametes, and embryonic development can influence IVF results. Therefore, the present review considers the main advances in the methodologies already used for wild ungulates, emphasizing the strategies for improving the protocols to obtain better efficiency rates. Additionally, we discuss the conditions of each IVF stage, with emphasis on aspects related to in vitro manipulation and comparability with the protocols for domestic ungulates.
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Viera MN, Ungerfeld R, Velázquez R, Santiago-Moreno J. Relationship between the seasonal changes in plasma testosterone and thyroxine concentrations with sperm cryoresistance in Gabon bucks. Trop Anim Health Prod 2021; 53:370. [PMID: 34173067 DOI: 10.1007/s11250-021-02830-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2020] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Gabon buck is a breed with little marked seasonality in our latitude (Uruguay, 35° SL). The role of thyroid hormones on the regulation of their seasonal reproductive activity and sperm cryoresistance is unknown. Seasonal changes in testosterone concentration can affect sperm variables, but the influence of testosterone changes on sperm cryoresistance in other species determines that the recommended time for freezing sperm does not coincide with the period with greater sperm fresh quality. The objectives of the present work were to (i) describe the thyroxine seasonal pattern in bucks in a subtropical area, and its association with annual changes in sperm variables; (ii) relate the seasonal changes of testosterone and thyroxine concentrations with the sperm cryoresistance. For one year, semen of 10 adult Gabon bucks was collected by electroejaculation every two weeks. After sperm selection, the sample was frozen. Testosterone and thyroxine concentrations varied according to the month (P < 0.0001). Testosterone reached the greatest values in April (P < 0.0001) and May (P < 0.0001) and thyroxine reached minimum values (P < 0.0001) in the same months. During these months, a negative correlation ratio (CR) was found between testosterone concentration and CR-functional membrane (R = - 0.50; P < 0.0001). CR values for most sperm variables decreased during March-May, coinciding with the presence of maximum testosterone concentrations. In conclusion, high testosterone levels are associated with the worst sperm response to freezing-thawing process. Thyroxine concentrations have a strong seasonal pattern, but there was no relationship to sperm cryoresistance.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Noel Viera
- Departamento de Biociencias Veterinarias, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de La República, Montevideo, Uruguay.
| | - Rodolfo Ungerfeld
- Departamento de Biociencias Veterinarias, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de La República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Rosario Velázquez
- Departamento de Reproducción Animal, Instituto de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimenticia (INIA), Madrid, Spain
| | - Julián Santiago-Moreno
- Departamento de Reproducción Animal, Instituto de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimenticia (INIA), Madrid, Spain
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Viera MN, Santiago-Moreno J, Ungerfeld R. Comparison of the Conventional and Ultra-Rapid Freezing Techniques in Gabon Bucks Throughout the Year. Biopreserv Biobank 2021; 19:312-317. [PMID: 33751902 DOI: 10.1089/bio.2020.0155] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The aim of this work was to compare the effectiveness of ultra-rapid freezing (UF) and conventional slow freezing (CF) to cryopreserve buck sperm throughout the year. During 1 year, semen from 10 adult Gabon bucks was collected by electroejaculation every 2 weeks. Before and after freezing, samples were selected by density gradient centrifugation, and after sperm selection, the sample was divided into two aliquots. One aliquot was CF with an extender based on Tris, citric acid, and glucose (TCG) +6% yolk +5% glycerol, and maintained at 5°C for 3 hours of equilibration before freezing. The other aliquot was frozen using an UF method with an extender based on TCG +6% yolk +100 mM sucrose, and maintained at 5°C for 30 minutes. The evaluations included the percentages of motile sperm, sperm with progressive motility, quality of sperm motility, and the percentages of sperm with functional membrane, live sperm, sperm with morphoabnormalities, and sperm with intact acrosome. The percentage of sperm with intact acrosome was higher using the conventional freezing method (p < 0.05). After thawing and at pre- and postselection stages, the quality of motility, and the percentages of motile sperm, progressive motile sperm, sperm with functional membrane, and with intact acrosome were greater using CF than UF (p < 0.005). Conventional freezing was more effective than UF to cryopreserve sperm from Gabon bucks, at least in our experimental conditions. Most differences in favor of CF were observed in the quality of motility, and the percentages of motile sperm, progressive motile sperm, sperm with functional membrane, and with intact acrosome during long periods of the year, or even remained throughout it.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Noel Viera
- Departamento de Biociencias Veterinarias, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Julián Santiago-Moreno
- Departamento de Reproducción Animal, Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Tecnología Agraria y Alimentaria (INIA), Madrid, Spain
| | - Rodolfo Ungerfeld
- Departamento de Biociencias Veterinarias, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
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Cunha DMDS, de Souza MB, Brito BF, Silva HVR, Ribeiro LR, Xavier Júnior FAF, Evangelista JSAM, Pereira LMC, Teixeira DÍA. Characterization of seminal parameters, sperm morphometry, micromorphology, and ultrastructure in gray brocket deer (Mazama gouazoubira, Fischer, 1814). Microsc Res Tech 2020; 84:313-325. [PMID: 32959457 DOI: 10.1002/jemt.23590] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2019] [Revised: 06/22/2020] [Accepted: 08/25/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Populations of gray brocket deer (Mazama gouazoubira) are declining; yet, knowledge on the reproductive biology of this species remains limited. Therefore, this study aimed to describe morphology, viability, membrane integrity, mitochondrial activity, morphometry, micromorphology, and ultrastructure of the gray brocket deer sperm. Three adult male gray brocket deer were used in the study. Semen collection was performed using electroejaculation. Semen were analyzed by evaluating pH, motilities, vigor, mass movement, volume, concentration, viability, membrane integrity, mitochondrial activity, morphology, and morphometry. Micromorphology and ultrastructure of sperm were analyzed using scanning and transmission electron microscopy (SEM and TEM), respectively. There was no significant difference among males regarding on pH, motilities, vigor, mass movement, volume, concentration, viability. High values for membrane integrity, mitochondrial activity, and normal sperm were observed. The most frequent defects were simple bent tail and bowed midpiece. The head length, and width, midpiece, and tail length were 8.5, 4.4, 11.5, and 41.3 μm, respectively. SEM sperm showed paddle-shaped heads, with apical ridge and serrated band on the equatorial segment. TEM revealed the nucleus, acrosome, plasma membrane, mitochondria sheath, proximal centrioles, segmented columns, axoneme, outer dense fibers, and fibrous sheath. SEM and TEM showed the presence of some abnormalities. These results are expected to provide baseline values of diverse semen parameters, contributing toward the development of reproductive biotechnologies for gray brocket deer and, other deer species at risk of extinction.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Bruna Farias Brito
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ceara State University, Fortaleza, Brazil
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Yániz J, Alquézar-Baeta C, Yagüe-Martínez J, Alastruey-Benedé J, Palacín I, Boryshpolets S, Kholodnyy V, Gadêlha H, Pérez-Pe R. Expanding the Limits of Computer-Assisted Sperm Analysis through the Development of Open Software. BIOLOGY 2020; 9:E207. [PMID: 32764457 PMCID: PMC7464510 DOI: 10.3390/biology9080207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2020] [Revised: 07/31/2020] [Accepted: 08/02/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Computer assisted sperm analysis (CASA) systems can reduce errors occurring in manual analysis. However, commercial CASA systems are frequently not applicable at the forefront of challenging research endeavors. The development of open source software may offer important solutions for researchers working in related areas. Here, we present an example of this, with the development of three new modules for the OpenCASA software (hosted at Github). The first is the Chemotactic Sperm Accumulation Module, a powerful tool for studying sperm chemotactic behavior, analyzing the sperm accumulation in the direct vicinity of the stimuli. This module was validated by comparing fish sperm accumulation, with or without the influence of an attractant. The analysis clearly indicated cell accumulation in the treatment group, while the distribution of sperm was random in the control group. The second is the Sperm Functionality Module, based on the ability to recognize five sperm subpopulations according to their fluorescence patterns associated with the plasma membrane and acrosomal status. The last module is the Sperm Concentration Module, which expands the utilities of OpenCASA. These last two modules were validated, using bull sperm, by comparing them with visual counting by an observer. A high level of correlation was achieved in almost all the data, and a good agreement between both methods was obtained. With these newly developed modules, OpenCASA is consolidated as a powerful free and open-source tool that allows different aspects of sperm quality to be evaluated, with many potential applications for researchers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jesús Yániz
- BIOFITER Research Group, Higher Polytechnic School of Huesca, Institute of Environmental Sciences of Aragón (IUCA), University of Zaragoza, Ctra. Cuarte s/n, 22071 Huesca, Spain; (J.Y.); (I.P.)
| | - Carlos Alquézar-Baeta
- Department of Mathematics, Institute of Mathematics and Applications (IUMA), University of Zaragoza, Pedro Cerbuna 12, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain;
| | - Jorge Yagüe-Martínez
- Department of Computer Science and Systems Engineering (DIIS), Aragón Institute for Engineering Research (I3A), Universidad de Zaragoza, María de Luna 3, 50018 Zaragoza, Spain; (J.Y.-M.); (J.A.-B.)
| | - Jesús Alastruey-Benedé
- Department of Computer Science and Systems Engineering (DIIS), Aragón Institute for Engineering Research (I3A), Universidad de Zaragoza, María de Luna 3, 50018 Zaragoza, Spain; (J.Y.-M.); (J.A.-B.)
| | - Inmaculada Palacín
- BIOFITER Research Group, Higher Polytechnic School of Huesca, Institute of Environmental Sciences of Aragón (IUCA), University of Zaragoza, Ctra. Cuarte s/n, 22071 Huesca, Spain; (J.Y.); (I.P.)
| | - Sergii Boryshpolets
- Laboratory of Reproductive Physiology, Faculty of Fisheries and Protection of Waters, South Bohemian Research Center of Aquaculture and Biodiversity of Hydrocenoses, Research Institute of Fish Culture and Hydrobiology, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Zátiší 728/II, 389 25 Vodňany, Czech Republic; (S.B.); (V.K.); (H.G.)
| | - Vitaliy Kholodnyy
- Laboratory of Reproductive Physiology, Faculty of Fisheries and Protection of Waters, South Bohemian Research Center of Aquaculture and Biodiversity of Hydrocenoses, Research Institute of Fish Culture and Hydrobiology, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Zátiší 728/II, 389 25 Vodňany, Czech Republic; (S.B.); (V.K.); (H.G.)
| | - Hermes Gadêlha
- Laboratory of Reproductive Physiology, Faculty of Fisheries and Protection of Waters, South Bohemian Research Center of Aquaculture and Biodiversity of Hydrocenoses, Research Institute of Fish Culture and Hydrobiology, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Zátiší 728/II, 389 25 Vodňany, Czech Republic; (S.B.); (V.K.); (H.G.)
- Department of Engineering Mathematics, University of Bristol, 75 Woodland Rd, Bristol BS8 1UB, UK
| | - Rosaura Pérez-Pe
- BIOFITER Research Group, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular and Cell Biology, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, Institute of Environmental Sciences of Aragón (IUCA), University of Zaragoza, Miguel Servet 177, 50013 Zaragoza, Spain
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Ungerfeld R, Villagrán M, Gil-Laureiro J, Sestelo A, Beracochea F, Fumagalli F, Bielli A. Adult and yearling pampas deer stags ( Ozotoceros bezoarticus) display mild reproductive seasonal patterns with maximum values in autumn. Anim Reprod 2020; 17:e20200021. [PMID: 32714462 PMCID: PMC7375868 DOI: 10.1590/1984-3143-ar2020-0021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
The pampas deer is an endangered species, from which reproductive biology little is known. We aimed to describe and compare the reproductive seasonal patterns of adult and yearling pampas deer stags throughout the year, including morphological traits, testosterone concentration, sperm morphology and cryoresistance pattern changes. Six adult (AS) and five yearling (YS) stags were captured with anesthetic darts once in winter, spring, summer and autumn to study morphological variables, serum testosterone and semen. Adult males were heavier, their neck girth tended to be greater and their testosterone concentration was higher than in YS. Animals were heavier in summer and autumn. Neck girth and testosterone concentration were greater in autumn. Scrotal circumference, testicular volume and gonado-somatic index varied with seasons, decreasing from winter to spring, increasing in summer and remaining in greater values in autumn. Sperm quality had maximum values from summer to winter. However, the cryoresistance ratio of motility score was greater in spring. In conclusion, in the captivity conditions, pampas deer stags seems to present a light seasonal reproductive pattern, with maximum testis size, testosterone secretion and fresh semen quality in autumn. Nevertheless, sperm cryoresistance ratio seemed to remain stable along the year. Although YS were still growing, they achieved similar semen quality than AS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rodolfo Ungerfeld
- Departamento de Biociencias Veterinarias, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Matías Villagrán
- Departamento de Biociencias Veterinarias, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Jorge Gil-Laureiro
- Laboratorio de Reproducción Animal, Centro Universitario Regional Litoral Norte Salto, Universidad de la República, Paysandú, Uruguay
| | - Adrián Sestelo
- Laboratorio de Biotecnología Reproductiva, Ecoparque, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Florencia Beracochea
- Departamento de Biociencias Veterinarias, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Fernando Fumagalli
- Área de Semiología, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Alejandro Bielli
- Departamento de Biociencias Veterinarias, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
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Beracochea F, Gil J, Sestelo A, Garde J, Santiago-Moreno J, Fumagalli F, Ungerfeld R. Sperm characterization and identification of sperm sub-populations in ejaculates from pampas deer (Ozotoceros bezoarticus). Anim Reprod Sci 2014; 149:224-30. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anireprosci.2014.07.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2014] [Revised: 07/08/2014] [Accepted: 07/09/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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