Effect of Royal Jelly Tris-enriched Extender on Buffalo Semen Cryopreservation

Abstract

Royal Jelly (bee's milk) is produced by the hypo-pharyngeal and mandibular glands of the worker honey bees and this is considered the primary food of the honey bee queen and honey bee larvae during the first three days of its life [5]. Royal jelly is composed of proteins, lipids, sugars, vitamins and essential amino acids [6,7]. Royal jelly has a beneficial biological activity in different cells and tissues of laboratory animals [8]. Royal jelly has antibacterial effect [9]. The objective of this study was to elucidate the protective effect of royal jelly addition in semen extender on semen quality post-cooling and postfreezing and on conception rate.

The Supplementation of Bee Bread Methanolic Extract to Egg Yolk or Soybean Lecithin Extenders Can Improve the Quality of Cryopreserved Ram Semen

“…Thus, it is clear that bee byproducts—propolis, royal jelly, and bee pollen—allow for the improvement of sperm characteristics during semen preservation. These findings are in agreement with the studies of [ 15 , 16 ] on propolis, [ 18 , 19 ] on royal jelly, and [ 20 , 21 , 22 ] on pollen grains, confirming the potential of bee byproducts for preserving semen through cooling and freezing. The positive effect of BBE on sperm quality is due to its beneficial unique structural components allowing the preservation of sperm cells as effectively as other bee byproducts.…”

“…Modification of semen extenders by adding natural bee byproducts for preserving sperm may enhance sperm characteristics, provide energy, and control bacterial contamination or antioxidant activity, thus enabling fertilization [ 17 ]. Moreover, several authors have reported that various factors influence the preservability of spermatozoa through cooling or freezing, particularly by affecting the osmotic stress, ice crystal formation, toxicity of the cryoprotectants, and the sensitivity to cryoinjury, which is variable among species [ 1 , 11 , 18 , 19 ].…”

“…Many authors have studied the effects of various natural compounds as additives to semen extenders for promoting the quality of the extenders and, consequently, sperm characteristics [ 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ] after cooling and thawing. These natural additives comprise bee byproduct extracts such as propolis [ 15 , 16 , 17 ], royal jelly [ 18 , 19 ], and pollen grains [ 20 , 21 , 22 ]. Studies have attributed the enhancement of sperm activity by bee byproduct extracts mainly to the extract’s rich content of nutrients [ 23 ] such as sugars, minerals, and vitamins (B1, B2, C, B6, B5, and B3).…”