EFFECT OF SUPPLEMENTATION OF OMEGA-3 FATTY ACIDS ON BLOOD PARAMETERS AND SEMEN QUALITY OF FRIESIAN BULLS

Abstract

The aim of this work was to evaluate the effects of flaxseed oil supplementation as a source of omega-3 fatty acids (OFA) on some blood parameters, semen quality and testosterone level in male Frisian bull. A total of 30 Friesian bulls (14.2 ± 0.16 month of age and 265±15 kg body weight) were divided into three equal groups according to age and live body weight. Bulls in the 1st group (G1) were supplemented with 2% dray matter intake (DMI) flaxseed oil as a source of OFA, while those in 2nd group were supplemented with 4% DMI flaxseed oil as a source of OTA at 14 to 21 months of age (G2). Bulls in the 3rd group were fed a basal diet and considered as a control group (G3). The obtained results revealed that OFA administrated animals had a significant (P< 0.05) inducing effect on serum levels of total protein, globulin, glucose, high density lipoprotein (HDL) and triglyceride compared to the control group. No significant changes were noticed in albumin levels among the three groups. However, the levels of total cholesterol, urea and low density lipoprotein (LDL) were significantly lower in bulls received OFA than the control group. Omega-3 fatty acids treatment has a significant positive effect on the semen characteristics and lower abnormality in G2 and G3 than in G1. G2 and G3 also showed a significant higher intact spermatozoa cell membrane than in G3 by about 9.68 and 10.84%, respectively. Omega-3 treatment significantly increased blood testosterone levels to be 23,78% in G2 and 31.82% in G3 higher than that of the control. In conclusion, dietary supplementation with omega-3 in male Frisian ration improved semen quality and reproductive potentiality as well as testosterone level. Key words: Frisian bull; omega-3 fatty acids; testosterone and semen quality