Improving Boer goat sperm cryopreservation efficiency using sucrose and ascorbic acid as cryoprotectants

Abstract

Importance of the work: Cryopreservation of goat sperm is known to cause damage that
reduces the sperm's motility, viability, acrosome integrity and antioxidant rate.
Objectives: To optimize Boer goat sperm cryopreservation by adding sucrose and
ascorbic acid as cryoprotectants in the medium.
Materials and Methods:
Experiment 1 tested four concentrations of sucrose (0 M, 0.025 M, 0.05 M, 0.1 M).
Experiment 2 tested four concentrations of ascorbic acid (0 µM, 40 µM, 60 µM, 80 µM)
combined with the optimal sucrose concentration determined from Experiment 1. After
72 hr of storage in liquid nitrogen, sperm quality parameters were assessed.
Results: Based on the results from Experiment 1, 0.05 M sucrose was the optimal
concentration for goat sperm preservation with mean ± SD values for overall
motility, progressive motility, viability, membrane integrity and acrosome integrity of
75.50 ± 0.68, 59.17 ± 0.64, 79.71 ± 0.42, 63.11 ± 0.55and 83.09 ± 0.75, respectively
(p < 0.05). Based on the results from Experiment 2, the combination of 0.05 M sucrose
and 60 µM ascorbic acid significantly (p < 0.05) improved sperm quality, with values
for overall motility of 81.88 ± 1.73%, progressive motility of 69.13 ± 0.71%, viability of
81.96 ± 1.44%, membrane integrity of 68.33 ± 1.60%, antioxidant rate of 49.60 ± 1.53%
and acrosome integrity of 93.13 ± 1.19%.
Main finding: The cryopreservation medium supplemented with 0.05 M sucrose and
60 µM ascorbic acid protected Boer goat sperm during preservation. The findings
highlighted the synergistic effects of sucrose and ascorbic acid, suggesting their potential
to greatly enhance goat sperm cryopreservation outcomes