Curcumin extract addition to bull semen does not adversely affect in vitro fertilization

Curcumin extract has demonstrated antioxidant and antibacterial properties in bull semen samples at a concentration of 5%. Nevertheless, its impact on fertilization outcomes remains largely unexplored. This study aimed to evaluate if curcumin extract added to bull semen had an effect on in vitro fertilization (IVF) results. Bovine ovaries were collected from an abattoir, cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) were aspirated, graded, and randomly assigned to treatment groups before maturation. The COCs were matured for 22 hours and fertilized using semen from one bull with verified fertility. Semen samples were thawed and treated with 5% curcumin extract for 30 minutes at room temperature, and IVF was conducted at a reduced sperm concentration (0.5 × 10⁶/mL) to better assess treatment effects. Cleavage was evaluated, 44 hours post-fertilization, and embryo development was assessed on day 8. Sperm quality parameters were evaluated using Computer-Assisted Sperm Analysis for motility and kinematics, and Flow Cytometry for viability markers, including membrane integrity, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), and chromatin integrity.

No statistically significant differences were observed between groups for any IVF outcomes. A trend toward significance was observed for total motility and immotile spermatozoa, with higher motility and lower immotility in the curcumin-treated group compared to controls.

The results demonstrated that curcumin treatment does not seem to have an effect on in vitro fertilization (IVF) outcomes since no statistically significant differences were observed between the curcumin-treated and control groups in cleavage rate, the proportion of oocytes reaching more than two cells, or blastocyst formation on day 8. These findings indicate that, under the experimental conditions of this study, curcumin does not impair the fertilization capacity of bull sperm.