Abstract
Semen quality is one of the most important factors for the success of artificial insemination which has been widely applied in swine industry to take the advantages of the superior genetic background and higher fertility capability of boars. Hydroxytyrosol (HT), a polyphenol, has attracted broad interest due to its strong antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antibacterial activities. Sperm plasma membrane contains a large proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids which is easily impaired by oxidative stress and thus to diminish semen quality. In current investigation, we aimed to explore the effects of dietary supplementation of HT on boar semen quality and the underlying mechanisms. Dietary supplementation of HT tended to increase sperm motility and semen volume/ejaculation. And the follow-up 2 months (without HT, just basal diet), the semen volume was significantly more while the abnormal sperm was less in HT group than that in control group. HT increased the “beneficial microbes” Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus, Eubacterium, Intestinimonas, Coprococcus, and Butyricicoccus, however, decreased the relative abundance of “harmful microbes” Streptococcus, Oscillibacter, Clostridium_sensu_stricto, Escherichia, Phascolarctobacterium, and Barnesiella. Furthermore, HT increased plamsa steroid hormones such as testosterone and its derivatives, and antioxidant molecules while decreased bile acids and the derivatives. All the data suggest that HT improves gut microbiota to benefit plasma metabolites then to enhance spermatogenesis and semen quality. HT may be used as dietary additive to enhance boar semen quality in swine industry.
Highlights
Artificial insemination (AI) has been extensively used in swine industry in order to take the advantages of the superior genetic background and higher fertility capability of boars and sows [1,2,3,4]
Sperm plasma membrane contains a large proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), which is impaired by oxidative stress and to diminish semen quality [1, 2]
Dietary supplementation of HT increased the protein levels of important genes related to sperm quality such as Catsper, p-ERK, PKA, p-AKT, and ZAG by IHF staining analysis (Figures 2A,B; P < 0.05)
Summary
Artificial insemination (AI) has been extensively used in swine industry in order to take the advantages of the superior genetic background and higher fertility capability of boars and sows [1,2,3,4]. Sperm plasma membrane contains a large proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), which is impaired by oxidative stress and to diminish semen quality [1, 2]. In vitro studies found that supplementation with exogenous antioxidants, such as rosmarinic acid, polysaccharide, and skim milk could improve boar sperm quality by alleviating oxidative stress during the cryopreservation [5,6,7]. A lot of evidence from in vivo studies illustrated that dietary supplementation with antioxidants improved the boar semen quality. Dietary supplementation of L-arginine and lysine improved boar semen quality by increasing antioxidant capacity [3, 4]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
