Renata Simões
Universidade Federal do ABC, Centro de Ciências Naturais e Humanas, Santo André, SP
Adriano Felipe Perez Siqueira
Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Departamento de Reprodução Animal, são Paulo, SP
Marcilio Nichi
Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Departamento de Reprodução Animal, são Paulo, SP
José Antonio Visintin
Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Departamento de Reprodução Animal, são Paulo, SP
Mayra Elena Ortiz D'Ávila Assumpção
Universidade de São Paulo, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Departamento de Reprodução Animal, são Paulo, SP
Abstract
The conventional evaluation of bovine semen has been studied for several decades, and it includes sperm volume, forward motility pattern, concentration and sperm morphology. These analyses have been routinely used for the selection of bulls and determination of ejaculates’ yield, aiming to improve the efficiency of biotechnologies such as artificial insemination and in vitro embryo production. Unfortunately, inconsistent results have been obtained, especially in cases of idiopathic infertility. Therefore, despite the fact that fertility is dependent of several factors and that one test or a set of tests could hardly be able to predict fertility, the use of new functional techniques, may lead to a more complete and robust evaluation. Sperm chromatin integrity is essential for the transmission of paternal genetic information. Changes in sperm DNA can lead to failures in the reproductive process. Loss of chromatin integrity may occur due to several reasons, and the most important are apoptosis-like events, protamine deficiency and damages caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS).Information on the influence of sperm DNA integrity in the process of fertilization and embryonic development in cattle are scarce. This paper reviews the main causes of sperm chromatin damage that can influence the early embryo development.
