Search

The practice of artificial insemination for the long-tailed chinchilla has not been fully elaborated to date, and existing data available regarding their reproduction properties is contradictory. Until now, the collection of semen for chinchillas has been most-commonly obtained using electro-ejaculation methods exclusively. The primary objective of this study was the development of a manual technique for semen collection which meets all animal welfare requirements. An additional aim was to determine the basic spermatological parameters, such as motility, concentration, type and ratio of morphological abnormalities and live/dead cell ratio, under typical northern-hemisphere conditions, in Hungary. Over a 3 month period, a special massage technique was developed for the study, and using this method, the sperm parameters of 46 males were subsequently analyzed weekly for a period of one year. Approximately 66% of chinchillas responded positively to this technique, with the success rate of semen-collection attempts showing no variation between seasons. Average sperm concentration for the whole year was 935.17 million/ml using this method. Total cell motility was the highest in winter (90.3%), and the lowest in spring (84.3%). The proportion of live, intact cells were above 80% on average for the year, while the ratios of live, morphologically abnormal and dead cells were 6% and 14%, respectively. We found that midpiece abnormalities occurred in the highest proportion (0.95%-3.38%), while the head abnormalities showed the lowest ratio (0.01%-0.15%). Standard deviation among the parameters was relatively high, with the spring season proving to be the weakest in terms of sperm quality. This study has demonstrated that, semen can be successfully collected without the use of electro-ejaculation or anesthesia. Furthermore, although spermatological parameters do exhibit some fluctuation for the different times of the year, semen collected is nonetheless suitable for the purpose of artificial insemination of chinchillas at any time.

Although numerous studies reported the effects of heat stress in chickens, it was not investigated in the Transylvanian Naked Neck breed. In our research, Transylvanian Naked Neck chickens, 24 h after hatching, were heat-treated at 38.5 °C for 12 h. We compared the control and heat-treated adult chickens’ productivity parameters following 12 weeks of heat-stress at 30 °C. We found that the heat-treated layers had significantly higher egg production in heat stress, but in cockerels, the sperm quality did not differ significantly between the two groups. To detect the effect of heat-treatment on a molecular level, the expression of two heat-shock proteins and four heat-shock factors were analysed in the gonads of control and heat-treated chickens. We found that the expression level of HSP90 and HSF4 increased significantly in heat-treated female chicken gonads. Still, in adult females, the expression of HSF2 and HSF3 were substantially lower compared to the control. In adult heat-treated males, the HSP70, HSF1 and HSF3 expression levels showed a significant increase in both gonads compared to the control. We think that the presented significant differences in egg production might be related to the increased expression level of HSP90 and HSF4 in heat-treated female gonads.

Conservation of indigenous poultry species is an important part of the new Hungarian agricultural strategy. Semen cryopreservation is the most practical method for the long term storage of poultry genetic material. The objective was to compare four protocols for cryopreservation of guinea fowl sperm (slow and fast programmable, freezing in nitrogen vapor, and pellet) and three cryoprotectants (10% ethylene glycol, 6% dimethyl-formamide and 6% dimethyl-acetamide). The efficiency of the methods was examined by in vitro tests (subjective motility scoring, sperm concentration, morphological and live/dead sperm analysis with eosin-aniline staining). Thereafter, the two most promising methods were tested by artificial insemination of frozen-thawed semen (3 times a week for 3 weeks using 300 million spermatozoa/hen), followed by candling of incubated eggs, assessment of fertilization, embryonic death, and hatching rate. The survival rate of live, intact spermatozoa was greatest (p≤0.05) in pellet method and the slow programmable protocol (with 10% ethylene glycol) (28.6 and 23.5%). The two best protocols (based on in vitro assessment of post-thaw semen quality) were subsequently tested in vivo with artificial insemination. The pellet method yielded a 64% fertility rate compared to slow protocol with only 30% fertility. Regardless, both freezing protocols significantly increased embryonic deaths compared to the control group (16,7; 9,1 and 8,3%, respectively). During the 3-week in vivo trial, fertility increased and early embryonic death decreased over time. According to the results the guinea fowl sperm could tolerate the fast freezing in pellet better than the slower freezing rates and resulted acceptable fertility rate.

Copyright of Animal Breeding & Feeding / Állattenyésztés és Takarmányozás is the property of Herman Otto Intezet Nonprofit Kft. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Magyar Állatorvosok Lapja is the property of Herman Otto Intezet Nonprofit Kft. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)