Med. Weter. 71 (2), 109-113, 2015
full text
| Brodzki P., Wrona Z., Klimont M., Krakowski L. |
| Morphological characteristics of boar spermatozoa in the annual production cycle |
| The assessment of sperm morphology is an important part of the analysis of semen and breeding soundness in controlled reproduction of pigs. During long-term semen storage (for up to 10 days) at 16-18°C, an even small increase in the percentage of impaired semen, especially semen with primary defects, diagnosed at semen collection, reduces its ability to achieve fertilization. It is therefore advisable to carry out studies aimed at identifying certain common causes of periodical fluctuation of semen quality, so as to compensate for its negative effects. The increasing number of new cross-breeds introduced by breeders is another factor influencing semen quality. The present research involved monthly evaluation of semen morphology in 240 ejaculates from 20 boars in the course of a 12-month production cycle. Semen was dye-marked by the Diff-Quick method and evaluated under immersion at 1000x magnification, with an Olympus CX4 light microscope and an attached Basler A312 scan camera. .In each specimen, 500 spermatozoa were assessed. The percentage of sperm with primary defects was slightly increased in April (≤ 6%) and more considerable in May and June (≤11%) and in July (≤10%). The highest percentage of sperm with primary defects, which exceeded physiological norms, was observed in August, when it amounted up to 18%. An increased percentage of sperm with secondary defects was observed in May (9.14 %), June (12.36%), and July (11.3%). The highest value, 19.98 %, was recorded in August. In the following months, it decreased to 4-5%. Values of this parameter remained within physiological norms in the entire research period. |
| Key words: boar sperm morphology, primary defects, secondary defects, fertility |