139 Heat stress has a deleterious effect on bull semen quality and subsequent embryo development

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 196
Author(s):  
A. Seifi-Jamadi ◽  
H. Kohram ◽  
M. Zhandi ◽  
N. Llamas Luceño ◽  
B. Leemans ◽  
...  

High ambient temperature induces an increase in bovine body temperature above the physiological homeothermic point, leading to impaired reproductive performance. Belgian Blue bulls are more susceptible to heat stress compared with most other cattle breeds. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate whether high ambient temperature affected bull semen quality and subsequent embryo development. For this purpose, semen samples were collected from six Belgian Blue bulls during August (14-28 days after three consecutive warm days with temperature-humidity index between 63.8 and 83.7) and March 2016 (temperature-humidity index between 35.9 and 47.4). After semen collection, volume, sperm concentration, and motility of fresh semen were assessed. Furthermore, frozen sperm samples were used to assess the motion parameters and morphological abnormalities using computer-assisted sperm analysis, viability and reactive oxygen species (hydrogen peroxide and superoxide) production using flow cytometry, and acrosome integrity and chromatin condensation using fluorescence microscopy. Afterward, blastocysts were produced (r=4) by conventional invitro methods for assessment of embryo development (Wydooghe et al. 2014 Reprod. Fertil. Dev. 26, 717-724; https://doi.org/10.1071/RD13043). Cleavage rate was determined 48h after fertilisation, and the blastocyst rates were determined on Days 7 and 8 postinsemination. Moreover, Day 8 blastocysts underwent differential staining in order to determine the numbers of the inner cell mass, trophectoderm, total cell number, and apoptotic cells ratio. The data set was analysed using the GLM procedure of SAS (SAS Institute Inc.). Normal distribution was checked using the UNIVARIATE procedure, and the Shapiro-Wilk test and arcsine square root transformation were used when required. Furthermore, Duncan's test was applied to determine the significant differences (P=0.05). In fresh semen, samples from the non-heat-stressed (NHS) group showed a higher sperm concentration compared with samples from the heat-stressed (HS) group (P=0.05), whereas semen volume and motility were not affected by heat stress (P>0.05). In frozen-thawed semen, total and progressive motility and straight-line velocity were lower in the HS group compared with the NHS group (P=0.05), whereas the generation of H2O2, percentages of aberrant chromatin condensation, total morphological abnormality, spermatozoa with bent tails, and distal protoplasmic droplets were higher in the HS group compared with the NHS group (P=0.05). The cleavage rate and blastocyst rates on Days 7 and 8 were higher (P=0.05) in the NHS group (70.4±1.13, 25.4±1.84, and 40.3±1.15, respectively) compared with the HS group (62.8±1.49, 15.4±1.56, and 23.3±1.84, respectively). However, there were no significant differences in hatched or hatching rate of two treatments (P>0.05). The total cell number and trophectoderm were higher in NHS-derived blastocysts than in HS-derived blastocysts (P=0.05), whereas the apoptotic cells ratio was lower (P<0.001) in NHS blastocysts (2.16±0.48% vs. 5.21±0.52%). In conclusion, these findings show that elevated ambient temperature during summer as a consequence of climate change can lead to decreased quality of fresh and frozen-thawed bull spermatozoa and subsequent embryo development.

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 151-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
A Rahman ◽  
MM Hossain ◽  
M Khan ◽  
MT Kamal ◽  
MA Hashem

The experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of heat stress on adaptability and semen quality of buck. Almost similar 10 Black Bengal bucks were selected for the study at Artificial Insemination Centre, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Bangladesh. Prerequisite biological data were collected from each animal before keeping them sun heat and after 1 hour sun exposure. Different semen characteristics of each animal were measured. Temperature humidity index (THI) was 19.95 in the morning which indicate all the animals were in absence of heat stress and THI was 25.54 in the noon which indicate all the animals were in severe heat stress at noon. Buck 1 and buck 5 were more heat resistant (p<0.01), because their thermolysis capacity (TC) values were less than the others. There were no differences in tunica dartos index and semen characteristics among different bucks (p>0.05). Positive correlation between sperm motility and testis length (p<0.05), and negative correlation between sperm concentration and scrotal skin temperature (p<0.05) were found. From the study it can be concluded that all the bucks were in severe heat stress at noon time and TC can be used as an indicator for selection of buck for heat tolerance.J. Environ. Sci. & Natural Resources, 9(1): 151-156 2016


Reproduction ◽  
2001 ◽  
pp. 737-744 ◽  
Author(s):  
Z Roth ◽  
A Arav ◽  
A Bor ◽  
Y Zeron ◽  
R Braw-Tal ◽  
...  

The fertility of dairy cows decreases during the summer and remains low during the cooler autumn although the animals are no longer under heat stress. The aim of this study was to characterize a delayed effect of summer heat stress on oocyte quality in the autumn and to improve oocyte quality by enhanced removal of follicles damaged during the previous summer. Lactating cows (n = 16) were subjected to heat stress during the summer. In autumn, ovarian follicles (3-7 mm in diameter) were aspirated by an ultrasound-guided procedure during four consecutive oestrous cycles. Follicles were aspirated from control cows on day 4 and from treated cows on days 4, 7, 11 and 15 of each oestrous cycle. All cows received PGF(2alpha) and GnRH injections on days 19 and 21, respectively, and maintained cyclicity, as indicated by plasma progesterone concentrations. On day 4 of each cycle, the oocytes recovered were examined morphologically, matured and activated in vitro, and cultured for 8 days. In cycle 1 (early October) both groups showed low percentages of grade 1 oocytes, cleavage, four- and eight-cell embryos, morulae and parthenogenetic blastocysts. Subsequently, the number of grade 1 oocytes increased earlier (cycle 2) in treated than in control cows (cycle 3; P < 0.05). The cleavage rate in the control group remained relatively low throughout (32-58%), whereas in the treated group it increased from 40% (cycle 1) to 75% (cycles 3 and 4; P < 0.05). The number at each stage of embryo development increased slightly but remained low throughout in the control group, whereas in the treated group significant (P < 0.05) increases of all stages were observed in cycles 3 and 4. The results show a delayed effect of summer heat stress on oocyte quality and embryo development in the autumn. Enhanced removal of the impaired cohort of follicles led to earlier emergence of healthy follicles and high quality oocytes in the autumn.


2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 88-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Sankhi ◽  
K.R. Sapkota ◽  
B. Regmi

Objective: To determine the effect of age and frequency of collection on quality parameters of Jersey bull semen at National Livestock Breeding Center (NLBC), Pokhara. Materials and Methodology: Nine Jersey bulls were selected randomly from NLBC. To obtain the effect of age, six bulls of three different age interval (3-4, 5-7 and 8-9 years) were selected randomly. Remaining three bulls were used to determine the effect of frequency of collection on semen quality. Studies were conducted for three months (Nov/Dec to Dec/Jan, 2016). Semen quality was analyzed using CASA system and SMILE software. ANOVA and paired t- tests were applied to find out level of significance. All the statistical analyses were done using SPSS 17.0 Results: Sperm concentration, post- thaw motility, live sperm, and abnormal sperm were significantly affected by the age of the bulls. Semen quality was found superior in the bulls belonging to 5-7 years of age intervals. Significantly higher value for semen volume, sperm concentration and post- thaw motility was obtained on second collection (P<0.05). However, volume initial motility, pre-filling motility, live sperm and abnormal sperm percentage did not differ significantly among different age intervals and between the frequencies of collection. Conclusion: Different quality parameters of semen like volume, concentration, initial motility, pre-filling motility, post thaw motility, live and normal spermatozoa percentages were higher in 5-7 years old bulls and in second collection of semen. Int. J. Appl. Sci. Biotechnol. Vol 7(1): 88-95


Author(s):  
Angela H Cliff ◽  
J H Dunne ◽  
P R English ◽  
J S M Hutchinson ◽  
O Macpherson

It is well established that high environmental temperature can have adverse effects on sperm concentration and the normality of sperm in the boar. Induced abnormalities include reduced motility, abnormal heads, proximal droplets, coiled and bent tails and abnormal acrosomes (Malmgren and Larsson, 1989). While all stages of spermatogenesis can be adversely affected, the primary spermatocytes are most vulnerable to these influences. Since spermatogenesis occurs over 45 days, any adverse effects of elevated ambient temperature can affect sperm quality for around 6 weeks. The maximum period of infertility appears around weeks 3 and 4 after heat stress. Reduced levels of testosterone and sometimes of LH following heat stress are implicated in these adverse effects. There is evidence that boars subjected to high constant temperature (30°C), which have become acclimatised to such, are affected less in terms of sperm output and quality (Cameron and Blackshaw, 1980) than when boars are subject to sudden major increases in temperature from fairly low levels (15 to 30 C) e.g. during the summer months (Antonyuk et al, 1983). There also appears to be large differences between boars in their ability to adapt to exposure to high environmental temperature by minimising temperature rise and avoiding adverse effects on semen quality (Cameron and Blackshaw, 1980). These workers found that boars prone to heat stress show an acute rise in body temperature in response to elevated environmental temperature and this sudden rise has a more adverse effect on semen quality than the length of exposure to the elevated temperature. There appears to be little information available on the reasons for such important between boar differences. This study was carried out to determine rectal temperature responses of boars to varying summer temperature in an intensive pig enterprise in Scotland and to attempt to determine some of the factors associated with ‘high’ and ‘low’ responding boars.


2018 ◽  
Vol 35 ◽  
pp. 9-22
Author(s):  
S. Sankhi ◽  
K.R. Sapkota ◽  
B. Regmi

The present study was undertaken to determine the effect of age and frequency of collection on quality parameters of Jersey bull semen at National Livestock Breeding Center (NLBC), Pokhara, Kaski district. Nine Jersey bulls were selected randomly from NLBC. To obtain the effect of age, six bulls of three different age interval (3- 4, 5-7 and 8-9 years) were selected randomly. Remaining three bulls were used to determine the effect of frequency of collection on semen quality. Studies were conducted for three months (Nov/Dec to Dec/Jan 2017). Semen quality was analyzed using CASA system and SMILE software. ANOVA and paired t- tests were applied to find out level of significance. All the statistical analyses were done using SPSS 17.0. Sperm concentration (0.551 ±0.004 to 1.084 ± 0.014x109), post- thaw motility (42.44±0.11 to 51.72±0.03 %), live sperm (45.62 ± 0.13 to 51.23±0.15 %), and abnormal sperm (11.57±0.12 to 19.59±0.24%) were significantly affected by the age of the bulls. Semen quality was found superior in the bulls belonging to 5-7 years of age intervals. On the other hand, volume (3.98±0.09 to 6.72±0.06 ml), initial motility (72.68±0.02 to 78.64±0.15 %) and pre-filling motility (71.34±0.17 to 77.62±0.02 %) did not differ significantly among different age intervals. Significantly, higher value for semen volume (3.98±0.12 to 6.02±0.14 ml), sperm concentration (0.572±0.119 to 1.095±0.015) and post- thaw motility (40.34±0.21 to 48.54±0.06% was obtained on second collection. However, initial motility (70.58±0.06 to 75.64±0.13 %), prefilling motility (68.11±0.12 to 71.62±0.02 %), live sperm (53.27±0.54 to 56.17±0.02 %) and abnormal sperm (12.31±0.12 to 14.3±0.47 %) did not differ significantly between the frequencies of collection. Different quality parameters of semen like volume, concentration, initial motility, pre-filling motility, post thaw motility, live and normal spermatozoa percentage were higher in 5-7 years old bulls and in second collection of semen.


1999 ◽  
Vol 1999 ◽  
pp. 2-2 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Kuran ◽  
M.E. Staines ◽  
G.J. McCallum ◽  
A.G. Onal ◽  
T.G. McEvoy

Ovine embryos produced in synthetic oviduct fluid (SOF) medium or in coculture with granulosa cell monolayers supplemented with low (A; 120 μmol/l) and high (B; 190 μmol/l) ammonia-producing steer sera caused different degrees of fetal oversize (Carolan et al., 1998). The objective of the present study was to determine whether the effects on fetal growth induced by these sera were associated with alterations in early embryo development.A total of 911 bovine oocytes, used in 8 replicates to test the effect of three culture treatments on embryo development, were matured and fertilized in vitro (IVF= Day 0). Presumptive zygotes were allocated on Day 1 to culture in SOF supplemented with 10% v/v steer serum (SOF+A, n=308; SOF+B, n=302) or with amino acids plus 0.4% w/v crystalline BSA (SOFaaBSA, n=301). All cultures were in 20 μl droplets under oil (38.5°C; 5% CO2, 5% O2; 4 zygotes per drop) and droplets were renewed every 48 h. Cleavage rate was recorded on Day 3. On Days 7 and 8, blastocyst yields, grade 1 and 2 blastocysts, their cell numbers (by staining with Hoechst 33342) and their stage and diameter were determined.


Zygote ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 219-229 ◽  
Author(s):  
A.L.S. Guimarães ◽  
S.A. Pereira ◽  
N.R. Kussano ◽  
M.A.N. Dode

SummaryThis study aims to evaluate if a pre-maturation culture (PMC) using cilostamide as a meiotic inhibitor in combination with insulin, transferrin and selenium (ITS) for 8 or 24 h increases in vitro embryo production. To evaluate the effects of PMC on embryo development, cleavage rate, blastocyst rate, embryo size and total cell number were determined. When cilostamide (20 μM) was used in PMC for 8 or 24 h, 98% of oocytes were maintained in germinal vesicles. Although the majority of oocytes resumed meiosis after meiotic arrest, the cleavage and blastocyst rates were lower than the control (P < 0.05). When the cilostamide concentration was lowered (10 μM) and oocytes were arrested for 8 h, embryo development was improved (P < 0.05) and was similar (P > 0.05) to the control. The deleterious effect of 20 μM cilostamide treatment for 24 h on a PMC was confirmed by lower cumulus cell viability, determined by trypan blue staining, in that group compared with the other groups. A lower concentration (10 μM) and shorter exposure time (8 h) minimized that effect but did not improve embryo production. More studies should be performed to determine the best concentration and the arresting period to increase oocyte competence and embryo development.


2005 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 292
Author(s):  
D.H. Kim ◽  
S.W. Kim ◽  
G.S. Im ◽  
B.C. Yang ◽  
D.R. Lee ◽  
...  

Maturation of mammalian oocytes is a very important process for subsequent embryo development after fertilization. Prolonged maturation time by meiotic inhibitors could be an effective method for improvement in the meiotic and developmental competence of mammalian oocytes. Roscovitine, a cyclin dependent kinase inhibitor, is known to specifically inhibit M-phase promoting factor (MPF) kinase activity and prevent the resumption of meiosis. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of roscovitine on the maturation and subsequent development of porcine oocytes. Ovaries were collected from slaughtered prepubertal gilts and COCs were aspirated from 2- to 5-mm antral follicles. In control, porcine cumulus oocyte complexes (COCs) were cultured in the maturation medium (TCM-199 supplemented with 0.3% BSA, 1 μg/mL FSH, 1 μg/mL LH, and 10 ng/mL EGF) for 44 h. In the experimental group, COCs were cultured in the inhibition medium (TCM-199 supplemented with 0.3% BSA and roscovitine) for 24 h, and then further cultured in the maturation medium for 44 h. Matured oocytes from both groups were activated by electrical pulse (1.2 kV/cm for 30 μs), and then cultured in PZM-3 medium for 6 days. Apoptotic cells in blastocysts were detected by TUNEL assay and total cell number was examined by propidium iodide (PI) counterstaining. Data were analyzed by chi-square and Student's t-test. The first experiment was conducted to determine the effect of roscovitine (0, 12.5, 25, 50, and 100 μM) on meiotic inhibition of GV oocytes. This effect was dose-dependent, and a concentration of 50 μM was sufficient to prevent meiotic resumption in 79.2% (76/96, 5 replicates) of the porcine oocytes after 24 h of culture when compared to 0 (15.4%, 15/97), 12.5 (32.1%, 36/112), 25 (57.4%, 54/94), and 100 μM (77.8%, 77/99). The second experiment was carried out to examine the kinetics of maturation of roscovitine-treated porcine oocytes. The concentration of roscovitine used was 50 μM. A total of 75.8% (50/66, 3 replicates) of roscovitine-treated oocytes reached metaphase II stage compared with 70.8% (46/65) of control. The third experiment was performed to compare embryo development between control and treated group after parthenogenetic activation. No differences (P > 0.05) were found between the control and the treated group in cleavage rate (77.2%, 132/171 vs. 68.0%, 115/169), blastocyst rate (26.9%, 46/171 vs. 17.8%, 30/169), and total (33.7 ± 12.4 vs. 35.1 ± 12.6) and apoptotic (2.2 ± 2.4 vs. 2.2 ± 1.2) cell number per blastocyst (4 replicates). The results suggest that roscovitine can be used to prolong maturation time of porcine oocytes without reducing meiotic maturation but also without significantly decreasing their subsequent developmental competence. Further studies are necessary to improve the developmental competence of porcine oocytes treated with roscovitine.


2010 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 328
Author(s):  
I. La Rosa ◽  
R. Fernandez y Martín ◽  
D. A. Paz ◽  
D. F. Salamone

BMP4 regulates different events during development in all vertebrates and Noggin is one of its powerful inhibitors that blocks BMP4 interaction with its receptors (Groppe et al. 2002). In this work, the effect of these factors on bovine oocyte maturation and subsequent embryo development has been investigated. COCs were aspirated from abattoir ovaries and in vitro-matured for 22 h or 24 h in a 5% CO2 humidified atmosphere at 39°C in TCM containing 0.6% BSA, 2 mM FSH, 10 mM cysteamine, 1% antibiotic and 1% pyruvate, control group (C), plus 100 ng mL-1 of BMP4 (B), or 100 ngmL-1 of Noggin (NOG). Oocytes were stained with Hoechst 33342 and classified by their nuclear stage. Effects on embryo development were investigated for embryos produced by parthenogenic activation (PA) and IVF For PA, denuded oocytes were chemically activated in 5 μM ionomycine for 4 min, and immediately incubated in 1.9 mM of 6-dimethilaminopurine for 3 h. For IVF, frozen-thawed semen was centrifuged and resuspended in Bracket and Oliphant (BO) solution and incubated with 22 h matured COCs for 5 h. Embryos were cultured in CR2 medium free of serum and co-culture. Cleavage and blastocyst formation were registered at Day 2 and 9 respectively. Fischer’s exact test was used and P ≤ 0.05 was considered significant. Nuclear progression was not affected by maturation treatments [% of MII: 79.4(C, n = 102), 72.4 (B, n = 98), 80.9 (NOG, n = 89)]. For PA, both factors significantly increased cleavage rates [%: 51.7 (C, n = 284), 65 (B, n = 186), 62.1 (NOG, n = 198)] while blastocyst rates were not affected [%: 8.8 (C), 7.5 (B), and 8.6 (NOG)]. On the other hand, for IVF, cleavage rate was statistically lower for Noggin group [%: 70.7 (C, n = 140), 71.3 (B, n = 157), 64 (NOG, n = 159)] while blastocyst rates were similar between groups [%: 15.7 (C), 13.4 (B), 14.5 (NOG)]. Any of the added factors affected cell number of the embryos at Day 2. Blastocysts did not differ in the number of cells at Day 9 (Student’s t-test was used) neither for PA [mean ± SD: 100 ± 33 (C, n = 9), 88 ± 14 (B, n = 3) and 68 ± 8,(NOG, n = 3)] nor for IVF [mean ± SD: 90 ± 24 (C, n = 9), 132 ± 18 (B, n =4) and 99 ± 8 (NOG, n = 3)]. It is noticeable that addition of these factors during in vitro maturation showed different effects on subsequent embryo development depending on whether the embryos were PA or IVF. Probably, these responses represent differences in the BMP signaling system between these embryos which could be associated with different imprinting pattern. Further experiments are needed to elucidate clearly the mechanisms implicated. To our knowledge, this is the first work to study BMP4 inhibition during bovine in vitro maturation. To “Merlo” and “Nueva Escocia” Slaughterhouses


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