Effects of Capacitating Media and Incubation Time on Collared Peccary Sperm Quality, Acrosome Reaction, and Binding Ability

ContextSeveral assisted reproduction techniques have been proposed for collared peccaries due to the interest in its conservation. However, there is little information about the requirements for sperm capacitation, an initial step in in vitro fertilisation.AimsWe aimed to determine the optimal conditions for collared peccary sperm capacitation by comparing Tyrode's albumin lactate pyruvate (TALP) or the same media plus heparin, caffeine, or their combination at different exposure times (1, 3, and 6 h).MethodsThe samples were evaluated for kinetic parameters, membrane functionality and integrity, mitochondrial activity, morphology, DNA integrity, reactive oxygen species (ROS) expression levels, capacitation, and sperm binding ability using swine oocytes.Key resultsSamples incubated with caffeine or heparin had a higher percentage of capacitated spermatozoa. The maximum percentage of capacitation was achieved after 3 h of incubation with either agent. Moreover, spermatozoa subjected to heparin capacitation showed better motility than when subjected to caffeine, and lower ROS expression levels after 1 h. No differences were observed among incubation times for the binding ability.ConclusionsIn summary, collared peccary spermatozoa can be capacitated with caffeine or heparin; however, heparin better maintains sperm motility and ROS expression levels. The co-incubation of gametes in a medium with heparin for 3 h could be efficient for in vitro fertilisation in collared peccaries.ImplicationsThis result will contribute to the development of assisted reproduction techniques for conservation and productivity of collared peccaries. In vitro fertilisation can contribute to the conservation and knowledge of the reproductive characteristics of collared peccary. There is little information about the requirements for sperm capacitation in the collared peccary, an initial step in in vitro fertilisation. We compared different capacitating media and incubation times and we observed that heparin improved sperm motility and promoted the capacitation of collared peccary spermatozoa. This result will contribute to the development of assisted reproduction techniques for conservation and productivity of collared peccaries.