EFFECT OF DIFFERENT ADENOSINE CONCENTRATIONS IN COOLED RAM SEMEN
Animal reproduction. Oxidative stress. Purinergic nucleoside.
This study objective was to evaluate the potential of adenosine addition and in different concentrations in cooled semen of sheep, as well as in different incubation times at 5 ° C. Six adult Santa Ines sheep were used, from which six ejaculates were collected, totaling 36. The experimental design was in randomized blocks, with six blocks, five treatments and 36 replications. In the physical evaluation of fresh semen, the following parameters were analyzed: volume, appearance, swelling, motility, vigor, sperm concentration, normal spermatozoa, major, minor and total defects. The structural and functional integrity of sperm plasma membrane were obtained by supravital (SV) and hyposmotic (HOST) tests, respectively. After semen physical examination, dilution with Andromed® extender (control), Andromed® + 0.5% adenosine, Andromed® + 0.75% adenosine, Andromed® + 1% adenosine, Andromed® + 1.5% adenosine, were realized. The samples were removed from the cooling after 4, 8, 12 and 16 hours and submitted to slow thermoresistance test (TTR), and evaluated by motility and sperm vigor in the course of three hours. At “zero” moment, the SV and HOST tests were performed. The data were submitted to analysis of variance and Tukey's test, and, when not normal, to the Kruskal wallis test, at a level of 5% of probabilities. The adenosine addition as an additive in diluent extender was beneficial on the sperm motility and vigor of ovine spermatozoa up to 12 hours of cooling. However, after 16 hours of incubation at 5 oC no positive effect of this nucleoside was found. No effect (P> 0.05) of adenosine addition on the functional integrity of the spermatozoa membrane was observed. On the other hand, adenosine promoted a protective effect up to 16 hours of cooling on structural integrity of plasma membrane. The best concentrations of adenosine that maintained the quality parameters of cooled sheep semen (sperm motility, vigor and structural integrity of the plasma membrane) were predominantly 0.5 and 0.75.