C(60) Fullerenes Suppress Reactive Oxygen Species Toxicity Damage in Boar Sperm

We report the carboxylated C(60) improved the survival and quality of boar sperm during liquid storage at 4 °C and thus propose the use of carboxylated C(60) as a novel antioxidant semen extender supplement. Our results demonstrated that the sperm treated with 2 μg mL(−1) carboxylated C(60) had higher motility than the control group (58.6% and 35.4%, respectively; P ˂ 0.05). Moreover, after incubation with carboxylated C(60) for 10 days, acrosome integrity and mitochondrial activity of sperm increased by 18.1% and 34%, respectively, compared with that in the control group. Similarly, the antioxidation abilities and adenosine triphosphate levels in boar sperm treated with carboxylated C(60) significantly increased (P ˂ 0.05) compared with those in the control group. The presence of carboxylated C(60) in semen extender increases sperm motility probably by suppressing reactive oxygen species (ROS) toxicity damage. Interestingly, carboxylated C(60) could protect boar sperm from oxidative stress and energy deficiency by inhibiting the ROS-induced protein dephosphorylation via the cAMP-PKA signaling pathway. In addition, the safety of carboxylated C(60) as an alternative antioxidant was also comprehensively evaluated by assessing the mean litter size and number of live offspring in the carboxylated C(60) treatment group. Our findings confirm carboxylated C(60) as a novel antioxidant agent and suggest its use as a semen extender supplement for assisted reproductive technology in domestic animals. [Image: see text] ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1007/s40820-019-0334-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.