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Serum and Seminal Plasma Element Concentrations in Relation to Semen Quality in Duroc Boars

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Abstract

Element concentrations in serum and seminal plasma were studied in Duroc boars with different semen quality characteristics. Based on the utilization rate of 2174 ejaculates from June to August in 2016, a total of 166 Duroc boars were allocated into three groups: low utilization rate group (LG, 0 to 60% utilization rate), medium utilization rate group (MG, 60 to 80%), and high utilization rate group (HG, 80 to 100%). Serum and seminal plasma samples were collected, and element levels were analyzed using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The results showed that LG boars had higher concentrations of serum copper and seminal plasma cadmium compared with MG and HG boars (P < 0.05), and serum copper and seminal plasma cadmium were negatively correlated with sperm motility, while positively correlated with the abnormal sperm rate. We observed the abnormal sperm rate increased by approximately 4.53% with serum copper increasing from 1.63 to 2.44 mg/L, while sperm motility decreased by approximately 2.85% with seminal plasma cadmium increasing from 0 to 0.82 μg/L. Moreover, serum iron and manganese levels in the LG group were significantly reduced compared with the HG boars (P < 0.05), and the two elements were negatively correlated with the abnormal sperm rate (P < 0.05). In conclusion, excessive copper and absence of iron and manganese in serum as well as higher seminal plasma cadmium may reduce the utilization rate of semen by impairing sperm motility and morphology, indicating the importance of adding and monitoring microelements in boar diet.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the National Key Research and Development Project of China (2017YFD0502004) and China Agriculture Research System (CARS–36). Ying-hui Wu and Jian Peng designed the study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Animal Nutrition and Feed Science, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, People’s Republic of China

    Ying-hui Wu, Wen Lai, Hong-kui Wei, Yuan-fei Zhou & Jian Peng

  2. Department of Chemistry, College of Science, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, People’s Republic of China

    Zi-hui Liu & Sheng-qing Li

  3. YangXiang Joint Stock Company, Guigang, 537000, People’s Republic of China

    Jia-jian Tan & Hai-qing Sun

  4. The Cooperative Innovation Center for Sustainable Pig Production, Wuhan, 430070, People’s Republic of China

    Jian Peng

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  1. Ying-hui Wu
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  2. Wen Lai
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  9. Jian Peng
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Contributions

Zi-hui Liu and Sheng-qing Li offered detecting instrument for determined of element levels, and Jia-jian Tan and Hai-qing Sun offered conditions for boar evaluation at YangXiang Joint Stock Company. All authors contributed to analysis, interpretation of the result, and writing of the article. Jian Peng had primary responsibility for the final content.

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Correspondence to Jian Peng.

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The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest. All authors have read the manuscript and have agreed to submit it in its current form for consideration for publication in the journal.

Ethics Approval

All animal handling protocols were approved by the Animal Care and Use Committee of the College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University (approval permit number HZAUSW-2016-011), and were conducted in accordance with the National Research Council’s Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.

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Wu, Yh., Lai, W., Liu, Zh. et al. Serum and Seminal Plasma Element Concentrations in Relation to Semen Quality in Duroc Boars. Biol Trace Elem Res 189, 85–94 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-018-1459-y

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