title: Combined effect of DHA and alpha-tocopherol enrichment on sperm quality and fertility in the turkey.
abstract: The aim of the present study was to characterize the dietary effects of n-3 LC-PUFA and alpha-tocopheryl acetate (vE) on the quality, phospholipid fatty acid composition, alpha-tocopherol content (alpha-T) and in vitro susceptibility to lipid peroxidation in turkey semen. Fertility of fresh semen was also evaluated. Male turkeys were randomly divided and fed either a control diet or a fish oil and vE rich diet (FO diet) from 40 to 60 weeks of age. The FO diet increased the proportion of n-3 fatty acids in spermatozoa and as a consequence the (n-3)/(n-6) ratio also increased. These changes did not affect the proportion of n-9 PUFAs, particularly of C22:3n-9, in semen. The sperm content of alpha-T was dependent by the dietary supplementation of the vitamin and the sperm content was more than doubled supplying 120 mg kg(-1) of feed to the males compared to the 60 mg kg(-1) of feed in the control diet. In agreement with the major content of alpha-T in spermatozoa collected from the FO group were significantly less susceptible to in vitro induced oxidation. The reproductive capacity of the male breeders was not affected by the diet; however the result is considered of some relevance for field conditions where even very small changes have economic interest being applied to large bird population.
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Sciences and Technologies for Food Safety (VSA), University of Milan, Via Trentacoste 2, 20134 Milan, Italy. luisa.zaniboni@unimi.it
authors.forename: Luisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zaniboni
authors.forename: Rita
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rizzi
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cerolini
mesh_terms: D000824:Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D000818:Animals; D004032:Diet; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000032:analysis; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3 / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility; D005395:Fish Oils / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000737:chemistry; D008055:Lipids / Q000032:analysis; D008297:Male; D012661:Semen / Q000737:chemistry; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology*; D024505:Tocopherols; D014422:Turkeys / Q000502:physiology*; D024502:alpha-Tocopherol / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives*
chemical_list: D005227:Fatty Acids; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3; D005395:Fish Oils; D008055:Lipids; D024502:alpha-Tocopherol; D024505:Tocopherols