From One Ejaculate to Another: Transference of Sperm Traits via Seminal Plasma Supplementation in the Ram.

ABSTRACT: Males can adjust sperm motility instantaneously in response to the perceived risk of sperm competition. The speed of this response suggests that sperm motility is regulated by changes in seminal plasma rather than changes in the sperm cells themselves. Hence, here we test whether inter-ejaculate variation in seminal plasma can be used to alter sperm quality prior to use in assisted reproductive technologies. We supplemented fresh ejaculates of Merino rams with seminal plasma collected from previous 'donor' ejaculates to test whether changes in sperm kinetics were related to the relative quality of donor to focal ejaculates. We found a positive relationship between the change in sperm traits before and after supplementation, and the difference in sperm traits between the donor and focal eja

SUBMITTER: Green C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7168205 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature