Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1
Former M. Sc. Student in Animal Physiology, Islamic Azad University, Karaj Branch, Iran
2
Ph.D. Candidate in Animal Physiology, University College of Agriculture & Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran
3
Assistant Professor, Department of Veterinary, Saveh Branch, Islamic Azad University, Saveh, Iran
4
Assistant Professor, University College of Agriculture & Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran
Abstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of different concentration of Butylated hydroxy toluene (BHT) and Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) on freezing capacity of Rams semen. Semen of four healthy mature ram (2.5 - 4 years) was collected, twice a week for three weeks. Collected semen samples were pooled after primary evaluation and divided into 8 groups. Then samples were diluted with one of the treatments [ including negative control (without antioxidants and DMSO), positive control (without antioxidants, with DMSO), BHA-0.5 (containing 0.5 mM BHA), BHA-1 (containing 1 mM BHA), BHA-2 (containing 2 mM BHA), BHT-0.5 (containing 0.5 mM BHT), BHT-1 (containing 1 mM BHT) and BHT-2 (containing 2 mM BHT)] and were equilibrated at 4 ºC for 150 min. Afterward the cooled semen were loaded into 0.25 mL straws and were frozen in liquidnitrogen vapor. Motion characteristic (using CASA: Computer Assisted Sperm Analysis), viability and membrane integrity were assessed after thawing. The results of this study showed that addition of 2mM BHA to the extender could significantly increase total motility compared to the negative and positive control treatments (P>0.01).Also addition of 2 mM BHA significantly improved the progressive motility and membrane integrity compared to rest of the groups (P>0.05). However, different levels of BHA and BHT have not shown any significant difference in viability of ram sperm (P>0.05). So it is concluded that the addition of 2 mM BHA to the extender could improves the freezability of Ram semen.
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