Native Italian chicken (22) and turkey (8) breeds are an import-ant resources of avian biodiversity. The development of intensive farming systems has reduced the genetic pool of the local avian breeds, putting them at potential risk of extinction. The project ‘TuBAvI-2’ aims to preserve the Italian poultry genetic resources, by supplying new data and tools for the implementation of a nationwide conservation program. The phenotypic characteriza-tion of the breeds is an important task within the project. The purpose of this work was to assess the fresh semen quality of different Italian chicken and turkey breeds, that up till now has never been evaluated before. In total, 38 cockerels: Bionda Piemontese (BP, n = 7), Robusta Maculata (RM, n = 11), Mericanel della Brianza (MB, n = 9), and Siciliana (SI, n = 11); and 13 turkeys: Romagnolo (RO, n = 5), Bronzato Comune (BC, n = 5), and Ermellinato di Rovigo (ER, n = 3) were used. All donors were trained for semen collection for a period of 2–6 weeks. Each ejaculate was evaluated considering quantitative (volume, concentration) and qualitative (sperm membrane integrity, motility) sperm traits.Sperm variables were compared among the breeds using the one-way ANOVA followed by Scheffe’s test. In regard to chicken breeds, a higher value of sperm volume was recorded in BP (402 ± 25 μL) (p < 0.05), higher sperm concentration was found in the SI breed (3.4 ± 0.1 × 109 sperm/mL), which resulted in a significant differ-ence compared to MB (2.3 ± 0.2 × 109 sperm/mL) and RM (1.6 ± 0.1 × 109 sperm/mL), no significant differences were obtained in terms of total, progressive motility, and kinetic param-eters. The MB breed had the higher sperm viability (96.2 ± 0.9%) when compared to the BP breed (89.2 ± 1.6%) (p < 0.05). In turkey breeds, no significant differences, neither for quantitative, nor for qualitative traits were recorded, except for sperm viability, which was lower in the ER breed (p < 0.05). Overall, ER breed had a lower sperm quality.For the first time, the results provided a phenotypic characteri-zation of semen production in Italian avian breeds and this knowl-edge is useful in predicting the fertilizing ability of each donor. Moreover, the quality of fresh semen is an important prerequisite for the implementation of a successful freezing protocol. Further studies are planned to evaluate the main structural components of the sperm membrane, such as the lipid composition and pro-tein profile, to obtain a more comprehensive overview.
Phenotypic characterization of semen production and quality in Italian chicken and turkey breeds. XXV National Congress ASPA Monopoli (Bari - Italy),
Michele Di Iorio
;Nicolaia Iaffaldano;Giusy Rusco;Emanuele Antenucci;
2023-01-01
Abstract
Native Italian chicken (22) and turkey (8) breeds are an import-ant resources of avian biodiversity. The development of intensive farming systems has reduced the genetic pool of the local avian breeds, putting them at potential risk of extinction. The project ‘TuBAvI-2’ aims to preserve the Italian poultry genetic resources, by supplying new data and tools for the implementation of a nationwide conservation program. The phenotypic characteriza-tion of the breeds is an important task within the project. The purpose of this work was to assess the fresh semen quality of different Italian chicken and turkey breeds, that up till now has never been evaluated before. In total, 38 cockerels: Bionda Piemontese (BP, n = 7), Robusta Maculata (RM, n = 11), Mericanel della Brianza (MB, n = 9), and Siciliana (SI, n = 11); and 13 turkeys: Romagnolo (RO, n = 5), Bronzato Comune (BC, n = 5), and Ermellinato di Rovigo (ER, n = 3) were used. All donors were trained for semen collection for a period of 2–6 weeks. Each ejaculate was evaluated considering quantitative (volume, concentration) and qualitative (sperm membrane integrity, motility) sperm traits.Sperm variables were compared among the breeds using the one-way ANOVA followed by Scheffe’s test. In regard to chicken breeds, a higher value of sperm volume was recorded in BP (402 ± 25 μL) (p < 0.05), higher sperm concentration was found in the SI breed (3.4 ± 0.1 × 109 sperm/mL), which resulted in a significant differ-ence compared to MB (2.3 ± 0.2 × 109 sperm/mL) and RM (1.6 ± 0.1 × 109 sperm/mL), no significant differences were obtained in terms of total, progressive motility, and kinetic param-eters. The MB breed had the higher sperm viability (96.2 ± 0.9%) when compared to the BP breed (89.2 ± 1.6%) (p < 0.05). In turkey breeds, no significant differences, neither for quantitative, nor for qualitative traits were recorded, except for sperm viability, which was lower in the ER breed (p < 0.05). Overall, ER breed had a lower sperm quality.For the first time, the results provided a phenotypic characteri-zation of semen production in Italian avian breeds and this knowl-edge is useful in predicting the fertilizing ability of each donor. Moreover, the quality of fresh semen is an important prerequisite for the implementation of a successful freezing protocol. Further studies are planned to evaluate the main structural components of the sperm membrane, such as the lipid composition and pro-tein profile, to obtain a more comprehensive overview.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
