Effects of the supplementation of trehalose extender containing egg yolk with sodium dodecyl sulfate on the freezability of goat spermatozoa

Abstract

Two experiments were conducted to determine the effect of sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) added to a trehalose-egg yolk extender on the cryopreservation of goat spermatozoa. In Experiment 1, semen from four goats was frozen in trehalose extender (osmolality=370, pH=7) containing 4 and 20% (v/v) glycerol and egg yolk, respectively, and 0.035–0.2% SDS. After thawing, sperm motility and acrosome integrity were assessed using a computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA) system and fluorescein isothiocyanate-conjugated peanut agglutinin (FITC-PNA). Both motility and progressive motility were improved ( P<0.05) by increasing the concentration of SDS in the trehalose-egg yolk extender, with the best results obtained with SDS at 0.1% (80.0±1.5% and 65.0±1.7%, respectively). There were no significant differences in path velocity when spermatozoa were frozen in a diluent containing 0.035, 0.05, 0.075, or 0.1% SDS, but path velocity decreased significantly with 0.2% SDS. The percentage of acrosome-intact sperm were highest ( P<0.05) when 0.05% (74.0±1.1) and 0.075% (70.0±1.2) SDS were used. In Experiment 2, the effect of diluent storage time (6, 24, or 48 h) before freezing on the cryoprotective effect of SDS was investigated. Prolonged storage of the diluent had slight cryoprotective effects when 0.2% SDS is used, while motility and the acrosome integrity of the cryopreserved spermatozoa improved slightly when the extender was stored for 48 h at 5 °C before use. In conclusion, goat sperm freezability was significantly improved when sperm were frozen in a trehalose-egg yolk extender containing an adequate concentration of SDS.