Gentamicin preserves motility and viability of Zebrafish (Danio rerio) sperm inoculated with bacteria during short-term storage

Authors

1 Department of Animal Biology, School of Biology, College of Science, University of Tehran, Tehran 14176-14411, Iran

2 South Bohemian Research Center of Aquaculture and Biodiversity of Hydrocenoses, Faculty of Fisheries and Protection of Waters, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Vodňany 389 25, Czech Republic

3 2 South Bohemian Research Center of Aquaculture and Biodiversity of Hydrocenoses, Faculty of Fisheries and Protection of Waters, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Vodňany 389 25, Czech Republic

10.22092/ijfs.2025.133805

Abstract

Sperm short-term storage at low temperatures provides an advantage to control artificial reproduction in fish. However, spermatozoa lose their potential for motility and fertilization during the storage period that may be associated with microbial growth. In the present study, we used Zebrafish (Danio rerio) sperm to investigate the effects of bacterial contamination on spermatozoa motility and viability during short-term storage. Spermatozoa retained better motility characteristics during the storage period when sperm was diluted with an extender compared to the undiluted sperm. Inoculation of sperm with bacteria decreased spermatozoa motility in a concentration-dependent manner. Through the storage period, spermatozoa motility was not affected in sperm inoculated with 103 CFU/mL Vibrio harveyi or Pseudomonas aeruginosa. A significant decrease in spermatozoa motility was observed in the sperm inoculated with 108 CFU/mL V. harveyi and with 105 CFU/mL P. aeruginosa at 3 h post-storage. Next, we determined the effective concentrations of gentamicin to preserve spermatozoa against bacteria during short-term storage. The spermatozoa motility was similar to that of non-infected sperm when 0.08–0.15 and 0.02–0.04 mg/mL gentamicin was added to the sperm inoculated with 108 CFU/mL V. harveyi or P. aeruginosa, respectively. At 24 h post-storage, spermatozoa viability was significantly decreased in the sperm inoculated with 108 CFU/mL V. harveyi or P. aeruginosa, while it showed an increasing trend of spermatozoa viability in bacterially infected sperm with gentamicin. The results showed the detrimental effects of bacteria on spermatozoa motility during short-term storage, and determined effective dose of gentamicin to preserve spermatozoa against V. harveyi or P. aeruginosa. This study provides valuable information to develop artificial reproduction in Zebrafish research centers.

Keywords

Iranian Journal of Fisheries Sciences
Volume 24, Issue 3
May 2025
Pages 633-649

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics