Osteopontin enhances sperm capacitation and in vitro fertilization efficiency in boars

Abstract

In this study, we used more reliable experimental materials and methods to detect the effects of osteopontin (OPN) on boar sperm in vitro capacitation, acrosome reaction, and fertilization efficiency. We reorganized and obtained the OPN protein of the porcine source. Immunofluorescence and Western blot show the localization and expression of the OPN protein before and after sperm capacitation. To determine whether OPN can affect sperm during sperm capacitation, we examined cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) concentrations after sperm capacitation, and the results showed that OPN significantly increased the cAMP concentration in sperm (p < 0.05). Flow cytometry showed that 0.1 μg/mL OPN-treated sperm had better acrosome reaction ability. In vitro fertilization (IVF) showed that 0.1 μg/mL OPN significantly increased the rate of embryo division. In conclusion, this study found that 0.1 μg/mL porcine OPN protein can significantly improve porcine capacitated sperm motility, cAMP concentration after capacitation sperm, acrosome reaction ability, and embryo division during IVF and provides new clues to explore the mechanism of OPN’s function on sperm.