Notoginsenoside R1 protects boar sperm during liquid storage at 17°C.

Abstract

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) damage mammalian sperm during liquid storage. Notoginsenoside R1 (NR1) is a compound isolated from the roots of Panax notoginseng; it has powerful ROS-scavenging activities. This work hypothesized that the antioxidant capacity of NR1 could improve boar sperm quality and fertility during liquid storage. During liquid storage at 17°C, the supplementation of semen extender with NR1 (50μM) significantly improved sperm motility, membrane integrity and acrosome integrity after 5days of preservation. NR1 treatment also reduced ROS and lipid peroxidation (LPO) levels at day 5 (p<0.05). Higher glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) levels and sperm-zona pellucida binding capacity were observed in the 50μM NR1 group than those in the control group at day 7 (p<0.05). Importantly, statistical analysis of the fertility of 200 sows indicated that addition of NR1 to the extender improved the fertility parameters of boar spermatozoa during liquid storage at 17°C (p<0.05). These results demonstrate the practical feasibility of using 50μM NR1 as an antioxidant in boar extender during liquid storage at 17°C, which is beneficial to both spermatozoa quality and fertility.