Improving the sperm of interspecific hybrids of the genus Ovis using biotechnological approaches

Relevance and methods. The efficiency of obtaining and reproduction of hybrid animals is closely related to their reproductive performance during interspecific hybridization. Hybrid males often have low fertility. In this regard, it is necessary to carry out the procedure for the preparation of semen for further use. The aim of the research was to study the effectiveness of using the flotation method (swim-up) to improve the quality of the sperm from hybrid males. The object of the study was the sperm from hybrids of argali with Romanov breed ewes (1/8 argali x 7/8 Romanov breed, n = 15).Results. A comparative analysis of the qualitative and quantitative indicators of freshly obtained, frozen-thawed and processed by the swim-up method was carried out. The sperm freeze-thaw cycle was accompanied by an increase in the sperm DNA fragmentation index and an increase in the proportion of immotile spermatozoa by 10% and 37%, respectively, compared with freshly obtained semen. The number of sperm with abnormal morphology doubled. Using the procedure «swim-up» possible to increase the content of the progressive motile sperm by 2.1 times compared with that established for the frozen-thawed sperm (p ≤ 0,01). The obtained results indicated the effectiveness of using the “swim-up” procedure to improve the quality of the semen from interspecific hybrid males.