The Effect of Poly-L-Lysine Concentration, Molecular Weight, and Encapsulation Temperature on Microencapsulated Bovine Spermatozoa

A series of in vitro studies were conducted to evaluate the effect of poly-l-lysine concentration, molecular weight, and encapsulation temperature on the post encapsulation survivability of spermatozoa. Viability of spermatozoa encapsulated at 2012 C using four poly-l-lysine concentrations (.05%, .15%, .25%, and .35%) did not differ over the 8 h incubation period. However, the viability of each of the four treatments was lower than that of the unencapsulated control (p<.05 and p<.01; percentage motility and percentage intact acrosomes, respectively), indicating spermatozoal damage occurred during the encapsulation process. Capsule wall thickness and integrity for the .15%, .25%, and .35% concentrations were greater (p<.Ol) than that of the .05% capsules.