Glutathione and selenium nanoparticles have a synergistic protective effect during cryopreservation of bull semen

Shubin Li; Jingyu Ren; Wenqi Zhang; Biao Wang; Yuzhen Ma; Liya Su; Yanfeng Dai; Gang Liu

doi:10.3389/fvets.2023.1093274

Glutathione and selenium nanoparticles have a synergistic protective effect during cryopreservation of bull semen

Front Vet Sci. 2023 Feb 16:10:1093274. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2023.1093274. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Shubin Li¹, Jingyu Ren², Wenqi Zhang¹, Biao Wang³, Yuzhen Ma⁴, Liya Su¹, Yanfeng Dai², Gang Liu¹

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Medical Cell Biology, Clinical Medicine Research Center, Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, China.
² College of Life Science, Inner Mongolia University, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, China.
³ Animal Husbandry Institute, Inner Mongolia Academy of Agricultural & Animal Husbandry Sciences, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, China.
⁴ Center of Reproductive Medicine, Inner Mongolia People's Hospital, Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, China.

Abstract

Introduction: In the present study, the synergistic protective effect of co-supplementation of glutathione (GSH) with selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) on the cryopreservation efficiency of bull semen was analyzed.

Methods: After collection, the ejaculates of Holstein bulls were subsequently diluted with a Tris extender buffer supplemented with different concentrations of SeNPs (0, 1, 2, and 4 μg/ml), followed by semen equilibration at 4°C and assessment of sperm viability and motility. Subsequently, the ejaculates of Holstein bulls were pooled, split into four equal groups, and diluted with a Tris extender buffer supplemented with basic extender (negative control group, NC group), 2 μg/ml SeNPs (SeNPs group), 4 mM GSH (GSH group), and 4 mM GSH plus 2 μg/ml SeNPs (GSH + SeNPs group). After cryopreservation, motility, viability, mitochondrial activity, plasma membrane integrity, acrosome integrity, concentration of malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase (CAT), and ability of frozen-thawed sperm cells to support in vitro embryonic development were evaluated.

Results and discussion: No side effect of SeNPs concentrations applied in the current study on the motility and viability of equilibrated bull spermatozoa was found. Meanwhile, supplementation of SeNPs significantly promoted the motility and viability of equilibrated bull spermatozoa. Furthermore, the co-supplementation of GSH with SeNPs effectively protected bull spermatozoa from cryoinjury as expressed by promoting semen motility, viability, mitochondrial activity, plasma membrane integrity, and acrosome integrity. Finally, the enhanced antioxidant capacity and embryonic development potential in the frozen-thawed bull spermatozoa cryopreserved by co-supplementation of GSH with SeNPs further confirmed the synergistic protective effect of co-supplementation of GSH with SeNPs on the cryopreservation of bull semen.

Keywords: GSH; SeNPs; bull; oxidative stress; semen cryopreservation.

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (32002184 to BW), the ZhiYuan project of Inner Mongolia Medical University (ZY0120025 to LS), and the Key Technology Research, Development and Transformation Projects of Inner Mongolia (2021GG0402 to YD and 2022YFSH0102 to YM).