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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Anim. Sci.
Sec. Animal Physiology and Management
Volume 5 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fanim.2024.1479602
This article is part of the Research Topic Sustainably Improving Fertility for Animal Production View all articles

Nanotechnology-Assisted Cryopreservation of Ovine Semen: Evaluation of Thymus vulgaris Essential Oil as a Natural Antioxidant

Provisionally accepted
Samia Khnissi Samia Khnissi 1*Rania Maaloul1 Rania Maaloul1 1Hela Chalouati Hela Chalouati 1Laura Mara Laura Mara 2Dorra Aouadi Dorra Aouadi 1Basma Adouani Basma Adouani 3Maria Dattena Maria Dattena 2Ikram khemiri Ikram khemiri 4Sami Fattouch Sami Fattouch 5
  • 1 Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique de Tunisie (INRAT), Ariana, Tunisia
  • 2 Agris Sardinia, Sassari, Italy
  • 3 Faculté des Sciences Mathématiques, Physiques et Naturelles de Tunis, Tunis El Manar, Tunisia
  • 4 Faculty of Sciences of Tunis, Tunis El Manar University, Tunis, Tunisia
  • 5 National Institute of Applied Science and Technology, Tunis, Tunisia

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The objective of the present study was to evaluate the protective effects of nanoemulsion of thyme (Thymus vulgaris) essential oil (EO) during the liquid state preservation of ram semen. storage media were prepared: one containing Thymus vulgaris essential oil (Th), another with its nanoemulsion form (NTh), and a control sample without essential oil (Dovx).The quality of the semen diluted in the prepared media after preservation at 4 °C and 15 °C was examined by measuring the two parameters indicative of semen quality: semen motility and progressivity refer to the ability of ram sperm cells to move actively and efficiently, which is crucial for successful fertilization. The results showed a decrease in the mobility and progressivity of the sperm in all the mediums, but the thyme EO and its nanoemulsion showed slight decreases compared to the control medium (p<0.05). On the other hand, the study identified a negative impact of thyme EO nanoemulsions on catalase concentrations, potentially leading to mobility inhibition (p<0.05). In addition, the nanoemulsion significantly (p<0,05) decreased the malondialdehyde concentration, increased the total protein and the glucose contents, the lactate dehydrogenase activity. A significant decrease in calcium content was observed (p < 0.05). The essential oil of Thymus vulgaris, combined with nanotechnology encapsulation as a delivery method (nanoemulsion), demonstrated a notable and effective role in enhancing the preservation of ovine semen.

    Keywords: Semen, Cryopreservation, ram, Thymus vulgaris, Nanoemulsion

    Received: 12 Aug 2024; Accepted: 11 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Khnissi, Maaloul1, Chalouati, Mara, Aouadi, Adouani, Dattena, khemiri and Fattouch. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Samia Khnissi, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique de Tunisie (INRAT), Ariana, Tunisia

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