Sperm Quality of Sheep Fed Cottonseed Cake

Guedes, Filipe Carlos BezerraSoto-Blanco, Benito

Cottonseed cake is used as source of proteins for animal feeding. However, cotton seeds present a substance with toxic potential in their composition, the gossypol. Gossypol is a compound highly reactive that binds rapidly to different substances, including minerals and amino acids. In males, gossypol promotes reduction of motility and spermatozoid concentration. The present work evaluated the effects on spermatogenesis of male sheep fed cottonseed cake.(AU)

1. spermatogenesis
2. cottonseed cake
3. gossypol
4. sheep
5. sperm pathology