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    <front>
        <journal-meta>
            <journal-id journal-id-type="publisher-id">VETZOO</journal-id>
            <journal-title-group>
                <journal-title>Veterinarija ir Zootechnika</journal-title>
            </journal-title-group>
            <issn pub-type="epub">2669-2511</issn>
            <issn pub-type="ppub">1392-2130</issn>
            <issn-l>2669-2511</issn-l>
            <publisher>
                <publisher-name>Veterinarija ir Zootechnika</publisher-name>
                <publisher-loc>Tilžės str. 18, Kaunas, LT-47181, Lithuania</publisher-loc>
            </publisher>
        </journal-meta>
        <article-meta>
            <article-id pub-id-type="publisher-id">VETZOO1310</article-id>
            <article-categories>
                <subj-group subj-group-type="heading">
                    <subject>Article</subject>
                </subj-group>
            </article-categories>
            <title-group>
                <article-title>Effect of Rosmarinus officinalis (L.) essential oil alone or in association with vitamin E and vitamin C on cryopreserved bull sperm</article-title>
            </title-group>
            <abstract>
                <p>Bull sperm cryopreservation induces significant cellular damage through reactive oxygen species generation and oxidative stress, compromising motility, membrane integrity, and fertilizing capacity. Bull spermatozoa are particularly vulnerable due to limited cytoplasmic antioxidant defenses and high metabolic activity.The aim of this study wasto evaluate the protective effects of vitamin C, vitamin E, their combination, and vitamin E combined with Rosmarinus officinalis essential oil on bull sperm quality parameters following cryopreservation.Epididymal spermatozoa from ten bulls were collected and divided into five groups: control (Tris-based extender), vitamin E (0.5 mg/mL), vitamin C (0.25 mg/mL), vitamin E+C association (Vit E-C) (0.5 and 0.25 mg/mL), and vitamin E+essential oil association (Vit E-EO) (0.5 mg/mL+1 µl/mL). Post-thaw sperm quality was assessed using computer-assisted sperm analysis for motility and kinematic parameters, hypo-osmotic swelling test for membrane integrity, and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances assay for lipid peroxidation. All antioxidant treatments improved sperm parameters compared to control. Vitamin E+essential oil combination demonstrated the highest total motility (73.8±5.6% vs. control 64.3±3.5%) and progressive motility (33.7±7.1% vs. control 24.4±3.2%). This treatment also achieved superior kinematic parameters including curvilinear velocity (47.8±2.4 vs. 34.3±0.7 µm/sec), straight-line velocity (23.7±1.6 vs. 14.7±0.5 µm/sec), and membrane integrity (23±4% vs. 14±2%). Vitamin E+essential oil showed the greatest reduction in lipid peroxidation(0.26 vs. 0.35 nmol MDA/10⁸ spermatozoa). Antioxidant supplementation, particularly vitamin E combined with essential oil, significantly enhances bull sperm cryopreservation outcomes through synergistic protective mechanisms against oxidative damage and membrane destabilization.</p>
            </abstract>
            <kwd-group>
                <label>Keywords</label>
                <kwd>Bovine sperm</kwd>
                <kwd>cryopreservation</kwd>
                <kwd>Rosmarinus officinalis, essential oil, vitamin C, vitamin E.</kwd>
            </kwd-group>
            <contrib-group>
                <contrib contrib-type="author">
                    <name>
                        <surname>Iguer-Ouada</surname>
                        <given-names>Mokrane</given-names>
                    </name>
                    <email xlink:href="mailto:mokrane.iguerouada@univ-bejaia.dz">mokrane.iguerouada@univ-bejaia.dz</email>
                    <contrib-id contrib-id-type="orcid"/>
                    <xref ref-type="aff" rid="993b7d19-d43e-483c-8a48-26de9c022b75"/>
                    <xref ref-type="corresp" rid="cor2">*</xref>
                </contrib>
                <aff id="993b7d19-d43e-483c-8a48-26de9c022b75">
                    Associated Laboratory in Marine Ecosystems and Aquaculture, Department of Biological Sciences of the Environment,
Faculty of Nature and Life Sciences, 
					<institution>Bejaia University</institution>,
                    <city>Bejaia</city>,
                    <country>Algeria</country>,
                    <post>06000</post>
                </aff>		
                <contrib contrib-type="author">
                    <name>
                        <surname>Aitbelkacem </surname>
                        <given-names>Aitbelkacem Amar</given-names>
                    </name>
                    <email xlink:href="mailto:amar.aitbelkacem@univ-blida.dz">amar.aitbelkacem@univ-blida.dz</email>
                    <contrib-id contrib-id-type="orcid"/>
                    <xref ref-type="aff" rid="e1ed3f0e-cc4a-4d05-80a5-8fedf97996ba"/>
                </contrib>
                <aff id="e1ed3f0e-cc4a-4d05-80a5-8fedf97996ba">
                    <institution>1Institute of Veterinary Sciences, Ibn Khaldoun University Tiaret</institution>
                    <city>Tiaret</city>
                    <country>Algeria</country>
                    <addr-line>Ibn Khaldoun University Tiaret</addr-line>
                    <post>14000</post>
                </aff>
            </contrib-group>
            <history>
                <date date-type="received">
                    <day>22</day>
                    <month>01</month>
                    <year>2026</year>
                </date>
                <date date-type="rev-recd">
                    <day>27</day>
                    <month>02</month>
                    <year>2026</year>
                </date>
                <date date-type="accepted">
                    <day>03</day>
                    <month>03</month>
                    <year>2026</year>
                </date>
            </history>
            <permissions>
                <license license-type="openAccess" xlink:href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">
                    <license-p>Open access article under the CC BY license</license-p>
                </license>
            </permissions>
            <article-id pub-id-type="doi">252666</article-id>
            <fpage>35</fpage>
            <lpage>42</lpage>
            <issue-title content-type="ISSUE">Volumes 83, Issues 2, (2025): Veterinarija ir Zootechnika</issue-title>
            <volume>83</volume>
            <issue>2</issue>
            <pub-date iso-8601-date="2026-08-31"/>
            <pub-date pub-type="ppub">
                <year>2025</year>
            </pub-date>
        </article-meta>
    </front>
</article>
