Morphological and functional characteristics of chilled semen obtained from domestic feline epididymides (Felis catus)

Villaverde, A.I. Silva Balbin; Martins, M.I. Mello; Castro, V. Basto; Lopes, M.D.

doi:10.1016/j.theriogenology.2006.02.011

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Volume 66, Issue 6 , Pages 1641-1644, October 2006

Morphological and functional characteristics of chilled semen obtained from domestic feline epididymides (Felis catus)

A.I. Silva Balbin Villaverde
- Department of Animal Reproduction and Veterinary Radiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, FMVZ, UNESP, Distrito de Rubião Junior, s/n°, zip code 18618-000, Botucatu, Brazil
- Corresponding author. Tel.: +55 14 38116249; fax: +55 14 38116249.
M.I. Mello Martins
- Department of Animal Reproduction and Veterinary Radiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, FMVZ, UNESP, Botucatu and Department of Veterinary Clinic, UEL, Londrina, Brazil
V. Basto Castro
- Department of Veterinary Surgery and Anesthesiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, FMVZ, UNESP, Botucatu, Brazil
M.D. Lopes
- Department of Animal Reproduction and Veterinary Radiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, FMVZ, UNESP, Distrito de Rubião Junior, s/n°, zip code 18618-000, Botucatu, Brazil

published online 03 April 2006.

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine morphological and functional characteristics of semen retrieved from the feline epididymis before and after cooling. Sixteen adult male cats were orchiectomized. The distal portion of the epididymis and proximal part of the deferent ducts were dissected and squeezed to obtain their content. After centrifugation, the supernatant was removed, sperm were resuspended in a 0.9mL Tris–fructose–citric acid extender containing 20% egg yolk, aliquoted into three 0.3mL samples, placed in a refrigerator (4.8°C) and cooled (0.5°C/min). Semen evaluations were performed on four occassions: immediately after epididymal sperm retrieval (T₀), and at 24h (T₁), 48h (T₂) and 72h (T₃) after cooling. On each occasion, progressive motility, vigor and sperm morphology were determined. Mean motility and vigor decreased (P<0.05) between each successive examination. Although the majority of sperm cell damage occurred within the first 24h, there was a decrease (P<0.05) in mean percentage of morphologically normal sperm between T₀ and each evaluated time (T₁, T₂, T₃) after cooling, due to an increase in coiled and bent sperm tails. Further studies are needed to evaluate the effects of cooling on the fertilizing capacity of cat epididymal spermatozoa in assisted reproduction programs.