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Lagares MDA, da Silva GC, Cortes SF, Moreira FHM, Neves FCD, Alves NDC, Viegas RN, Diniz TF, Lemos VS, de Rezende ASC, Freitas MM, Stahlberg R, Nicolino RR. L-carnitine added to post-thawed semen acts as an antioxidant and a stimulator of equine sperm metabolism. Andrologia 2021; 54:e14338. [PMID: 34878673 DOI: 10.1111/and.14338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2021] [Revised: 11/09/2021] [Accepted: 11/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
The objective of this study was to enhance the in vitro sperm quality and in vivo fertility of frozen-thawed equine semen by the addition of l-carnitine (LC) to post-thawed semen. Different concentrations of LC were added to thawed samples to obtain four treatments control and 0.5, 1 and 2 mM LC. In the in vitro experiments, sperm motility and kinematics, membrane integrity and intracellular calcium ion concentration ([Ca2+ ]i ) were investigated, and the antioxidant bioactivity of LC was assessed by measuring hydrogen peroxide and nitrite concentrations (NO2 - ). The fertility rate was assessed via the artificial insemination of mares. The treatment with 1 mM LC increased sperm [Ca2+ ]i (60.6 ± 0.05 AU), reduced nitrite concentration (39.1 ± 14.9 µM/µg protein), increased the sperm straightness percentage (STR: 78.3 ± 5.3%) and increased the pregnancy rate (75%) as compared to the control ([Ca2+ ]i 48.4 ± 0.05 AU, NO2 - concentration 63.1 ± 14.4 µM/µg protein, STR 67.5 ± 7.9%, 12.5% pregnancy rate, p < 0.05). These results suggest that 1 mM LC acts as an antioxidant and stimulator of sperm metabolism in post-thawed equine semen, increasing the fertility rate. Thus, addition of LC might be an alternative to improve the fertility of poor quality post-thawed equine semen.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Steyner Franca Cortes
- Institute of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | | | | | | | - Rodrigo Novaes Viegas
- Veterinary School, Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Thiago Frederico Diniz
- Institute of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Virginia Soares Lemos
- Institute of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | | | - Marina Morra Freitas
- Veterinary School, Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Rubens Stahlberg
- Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Pontifical Catholic University (PUC- Minas) of Minas Gerais, Betim, Brazil
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