Bulgarian Journal of Veterinary Medicine (Sep 2024)
Effects of honey addition to Tris media on osmolality, pH values and quality parameters of fresh and chilled buck spermatozoa
Abstract
The effects of honey addition to Tris media on osmolality, pH values and on the quality characteris-tics of fresh and chilled goat spermatozoa were studied. Semen samples were collected from five Shami bucks and incubated at 20 °C for the fresh samples and at 5 °C for the chilled ones in Tris-Based Medium (TBM) and Tris-Egg Yolk (TEY) medium without (controls) and with honey at ratios of 1%, 2% and 4% (v/v) respectively. Osmolality and pH levels were determined for all used media. Spermatozoa motility was analysed using the Computer Assisted Sperm Analyzer (CASA) system and the integrity of sperm plasma membrane was tested by the Hypo-Osmotic Swelling Test (HOST). Osmolality values were significantly increased (P<0.05) by honey addition reaching 558 mOsm/kg in TBM and 675 mOsm/kg in TEY with 4% of honey compared with 307 mOsm/kg and 312 mOsm/kg for the controls respectively. In contrast, pH values decreased (P<0.05) from 6.93 in TBM control medium to 6.4 in TBM with 4% of honey and from 6.83 in TEY control medium to 6.1 in TEY with 4% of honey. CASA motility parameters including the percent motility (MOT%) and the percent of sperm showing progressive motility (PMOT%) increased after adding 1% and 2% of honey while the addition of 4% led to a clear decrease (P<0.05) for the fresh and chilled samples. The percentages of spermatozoa subpopulations including the rapid % and the static % categories for fresh and chilled samples were significantly decreased and increased respectively after adding 4% honey. Moreover, for all media and for all incubation temperatures, the HOST percentage decreased significantly (P<0.05) by adding 4% honey. It was concluded that honey addition to Tris media influenced the osmolality and pH values, which in turn affected the quality characteristics of buck spermatozoa based on honey concentration regardless of the incubation temperature or the used media.
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