Effects of garlic extract on ram semen after the freeze–thawing process

Background: Antibiotics are used as a component of semen extenders, and presently there is great interest of using natural antibiotics rather than the synthetic antibiotics due to safety concerns. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of garlic extract added into ram semen extender on sperm parameters following the freeze/thawing process.Methods: Twenty ejaculates obtained from four rams were pooled and diluted with lecithin Tris-based extenders containing 0, 0.5, 1 and 1.5 percent of garlic extract. After thawing, sperm motility (CASA), viability (eosin/nigrosin) and membrane integrity (HOS test), abnormal morphology, lipid peroxidation (MDA) were assessed.Result: Garlic extract at dose of 1 % increased the percentages of sperm motility, compared to control following the freeze-thawing (P < 0.05). For kinematic parameters, no significant difference was observed among treatment. Extenders containing 0.5 and 1% garlic extract improved (P < 0.05) membrane integrity, viability compared and reduced lipid peroxidation (malondialdehyde concentration). At the abnormal morphology, the additives did not lead to the protective effect in comparison to control group.Conclusion: Findings of this study showed that garlic extract supplementation in semen extenders was of greater benefit to sperm quality of frozen–thawed ram sperm.

کلیدواژه ها:

Lecithin ، Lipid peroxidation ، Ram sperm ، Garlic extract