Vital Analysis of Cryopreserved Sperm of Marbled Flounder, Pseudopleuronectes yokohamae

The marbled flounder (Pseudopleuronectes yokohamae) is a commercial flatfish in East Asia. The aim of this study was to improve its sperm cryopreservation protocol based on the vitality assessment of 7-day and 1-year cryopreserved sperm. Four extenders (extender-1: sucrose solution; extender-2: glucose solution; extender-3: fish Ringer's solution; and extender-4: modified fish Ringer's solution) were tested with a combination of five cryoprotectants (CPAs) (dimethyl sulfoxide: Me(2)SO; glycerol: GLY; ethylene glycol: EG; propylene glycol: PG; and methanol: MeOH) at four different concentrations (5, 10, 12, and 15%). Fluorescent technique was applied to detect the plasma membrane integrity (PMI), mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and DNA integrity of fresh and cryopreserved sperm specimens. Fresh sperm was diluted at a ratio of 1:2 (sperm:extender). Post-thaw motility of sperm cryopreserved using 15% Me(2)SO along with either extender-1 (86.0 ± 5.2%) or extender-2 (85.7 ± 7.1%) was similar (p > 0.05) to that of fresh sperm. Sperm cryopreserved using 12% GLY combined with extender-1 (83.67 ± 6.7%) or extender-2 (83.3 ± 4.7%) showed a similar motility to those cryopreserved with 15% Me(2)SO, but significantly lower from fresh sperm. The type of straw (0.25 or 0.50 mL) did not show any significant difference (p > 0.05) in post-thaw sperm motility. The highest values of PMI and MMP were observed for 7-day cryopreserved sperm using extender-1 in combination with 15% Me(2)SO (91.0 ± 2.9% and 90.0 ± 2.0%, respectively) or 12% GLY (90.0 ± 1.3% and 90.0 ± 4.6%, respectively). These results were similar to those of fresh sperm (95.3 ± 2.1% and 92.9 ± 2.5%, respectively). PMI and MMP of 1-year cryopreserved sperm using extender-1 in combination with 15% Me(2)SO (90.3 ± 2.5% and 89.3 ± 2.1%, respectively) or 12% GLY (90.0 ± 4.4% and 88.7 ± 2.2%, respectively) were significantly similar (p > 0.05) to those of fresh sperm. Sperm DNA integrity did not reveal any significant difference (p > 0.05) between fresh and cryopreserved (7-day and 1-year) sperm. Based on the assessed sperm vitality indicators, a cryopreservation protocol using extender-1 in combination with 15% Me(2)SO or 12% GLY has potential for hatchery as well as to create a germplasm bank.