Evaluation of a portable device for assessment of motility in stallion semen.
Abstract: In horse breeding, quality assessment of semen before insemination is often requested. Non-laboratory-based techniques for objective analysis of sperm motility are thus of interest. The aim of this study was evaluating a portable device for semen analysis (Ongo sperm test) and its comparison with computer-assisted semen analysis (CASA). Semen was collected from 10 stallions, diluted to 100, 50 and 25 × 106 sperm/ml and analysed for total (TM) and progressive motility (PM). The final sperm concentration influenced total motility analysed by Ongo (p < 0.05) which was higher at 100 × 106 sperm/ml when compared to 25 × 106 sperm/ml (p < 0.05) but not when compared to 50 × 106 sperm/ml (n.s.). Sperm concentration did not influence total motility when assessed by SpermVision (n.s.). Agreement between methods was evaluated by correlation analysis and Bland-Altman plot. Intra-assay variation of Ongo was 5.2% ± 3.0 for TM and 6.9% ± 3.4 for PM. Correlation between Ongo and CASA was r = 0.79, 0.88 and 0.83 for 100, 50 and 25 × 106 sperm/ml for TM, and r = 0.87, 0.89 and 0.87 for PM, respectively (all p < 0.001). At the 100 and 25 mio/ml dilutions, the difference between the two systems deviated significantly from 0, while no such bias existed at the 50 mio/ml dilution (TM Ongo 85.0%, CASA 82.3%; PM Ongo 64.1%, CASA 66.1%). The 95% confidence interval was 19.9%, 18.9% and 19.2% ± mean for TM and 20.7%, 17.4% and 20.3% ± mean for 100, 50 and 25 × 106 sperm/ml, respectively. In conclusion, Ongo sperm test sperm motility data were strongly correlated with data obtained by CASA. In addition, at a concentration of 50 × 106 sperm/ml values measured with both systems were close to identical. At this concentration, which is recommended in equine AI, Ongo and CASA can be used interchangeably.
© 2018 The Authors. Reproduction in Domestic Animals Published by Blackwell Verlag GmbH.
Publication Date: 2018-12-28 PubMed ID: 30592335PubMed Central: PMC7379573DOI: 10.1111/rda.13390Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary
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This study examines the efficacy of a portable device, the Ongo sperm test, in analyzing the motility of stallion semen, comparing it to the traditional computer-assisted semen analysis (CASA) method. The research found a strong correlation between the results produced by the Ongo test and the CASA method, especially at a specific concentration of semen.
Research Objectives
- The primary aim of this research was to evaluate the effectiveness and accuracy of a portable device called the Ongo sperm test in analyzing the motility of stallion semen for horse breeding.
- Moreover, the study intended to compare the results produced by the Ongo sperm test with those obtained through the traditional method of semen analysis: computer-assisted semen analysis (CASA).
Methodology
- Semen was collected from 10 stallions and diluted to different concentrations: 100, 50 and 25 × 10 sperm/ml.
- The researchers then performed total motility (TM) and progressive motility (PM) analyses on these samples using both the Ongo test and the CASA system.
- Correlation analysis and Bland-Altman plots were used to evaluate the agreement between the two methods. The intra-assay variation of the Ongo test was also measured.
Results
- The study found that the final sperm concentration notably influenced the total motility when analyzed by the Ongo test. The highest total motility was observed at 100 × 10 sperm/ml when compared to 25 × 10 sperm/ml. Yet, no significant difference was noted when compared to 50 × 10 sperm/ml.
- However, the sperm concentration did not seem to impact the total motility when analyzed through the SpermVision system.
- The correlation between the Ongo test and CASA was relatively high, showing strong agreement between the two methods of semen motility analysis.
- The study discovered significant differences between the two systems when examining semen samples at 100 and 25 million/ml dilutions, but not at a 50 million/ml dilution.
Conclusion
- The Ongo sperm test produced semen motility data that strongly correlated with the data obtained by the CASA system.
- At a semen concentration of 50 × 10 sperm/ml – a level recommended for equine artificial insemination – the values measured by both the Ongo test and CASA were nearly identical.
- This consistency suggests that, at this concentration, the two systems can be used interchangeably for stallion semen motility analysis, making the Ongo test a viable option for non-laboratory-based sperm motility evaluations.
Cite This Article
APA
Buss T, Aurich J, Aurich C.
(2018).
Evaluation of a portable device for assessment of motility in stallion semen.
Reprod Domest Anim, 54(3), 514-519.
https://doi.org/10.1111/rda.13390 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Artificial Insemination and Embryo Transfer, Department for Small Animals and Horses, Vetmeduni Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
- Section for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Andrology, Department for Small Animals and Horses, Vetmeduni Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
- Artificial Insemination and Embryo Transfer, Department for Small Animals and Horses, Vetmeduni Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Fertility
- Horses / physiology
- Image Processing, Computer-Assisted
- Male
- Semen / cytology
- Semen Analysis / instrumentation
- Semen Analysis / veterinary
- Sperm Motility
- Spermatozoa / ultrastructure
Conflict of Interest Statement
None of the authors have any conflict of interest to declare.
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Citations
This article has been cited 6 times.- Ge YM, Lu JC, Tang SS, Xu YH, Liang YJ. Performance evaluation of sperm concentration, motility, and morphological analysis for GSA-810 series of sperm quality analysis system. J Clin Lab Anal 2023 Dec;37(23-24):e24986.
- Egyptien S, Deleuze S, Ledeck J, Ponthier J. Sperm Quality Assessment in Stallions: How to Choose Relevant Assays to Answer Clinical Questions. Animals (Basel) 2023 Oct 6;13(19).
- Suárez-Trujillo A, Kandula H, Kumar J, Devi A, Shirley L, Thirumalaraju P, Kanakasabapathy MK, Shafiee H, Hart L. Validation of a smartphone-based device to measure concentration, motility, and morphology in swine ejaculates. Transl Anim Sci 2022 Oct;6(4):txac119.
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