USE OF CHOLESTEROL IN EQUINE SPERM CRYOPRESERVATION: A REVIEW.

Abstract

Semen biotechnology provides several advantages to current reproductive programs. The benefits include the possibility of transporting semen over long distances, increased use of genetically superior stallions, and reducing the risk of spreading diseases to both the mare and the foal. Even with these advances, there is still a wide disparity among stallions regarding semen quality due to the processes of cryopreservation, which generates significant variation in fertility rates. In this regard, studies have been conducted to test new substances that can be incorporated into sperm and confer increased resistance against injuries caused by cooling and freezing. The addition of cholesterol bound to cyclodextrin (CLC) in vitro has been suggested as a promising alternative for stallions known to have poor semen viability after cryopreservation. However, to date the results regarding fertility do not justify commercial applicability of this approach. The objective of this review is to compile articles on the effect of adding cholesterol into the membrane of cryopreserved equine sperm.