Relationship between final temperature, thaw rate, and quality of bovine semen

Relationships between thaw rate, thaw bath time, and initial bath and final seminal temperature with coefficients of determination .99 and .97 were: bath time = -.01 + 220.25(1/thaw rate); initial bath temperature = final seminal temperature - 7.29 + 390.05 (1/bath time). Ejaculates from 10 bulls were split and processed in egg yolk-citrate-glycerol, egg yolk-Tris-glycerol, and whole milk-glycerol. All semen was packaged and frozen in .5-ml French straws at -196 degrees C. Sixteen thaw treatments consisted of factorial combinations of four final seminal temperatures and four thaw rates. Treatments were assessed by post-thaw acrosomal integrity after 3-h 37 degrees C incubation. Seminal quality improved with increasing final seminal temperature up to 31 degrees C and did not differ between 31 and 44 degrees C for any of the extenders. A slow thaw rate (3 degrees C/s) resulted in inferior quality for all extenders, and rates 11, 19, and 27 degrees C/s resulted in similar quality for citrate and milk extended semen. Acrosomal integrity was most for 19 degrees C/s in Tris extended semen. A significant factorial interaction existed for Tris and milk extended semen. Predicted acrosomal response of 57.7% across all extenders was at optimum final seminal temperature and thaw rate 37 degrees C and 18 degrees C/s. Bath temperature and bath time determine optimum thaw rate and final temperature of semen packaged in French straws and thus maximize seminal quality.