Improving the Quality of Catfish Sperm, IPB University Researchers Perform Zinc Supplementation
Catfish is one of the most developed aquaculture commodities in Indonesia. The production of catfish can be maintained with the support of quality broodstock. Researchers from the Department of Aquaculture IPB University consisting of Nunun Ainun Putri Sari Banun Kaliky, Dr. Mia Setiawati, Dr. Odang Carman, Dr. Nur Bambang Priyo Utomo and Rahman, MSi researched to improve the sperm quality of male Siamese catfish.
A good quality parent can be achieved through genetic modification and improvement of sperm and egg quality by increasing nutrient intake. Increasing nutritional intake can not only improve the quality of sperm and eggs but also the quality and quantity of seeds.
"In broodstock, sperm quality and quantity are important parameters to determine reproductive activity. Its quality is known by looking at concentration, motility, eligibility, morphology, metabolic activity and the ability to fertilize an egg. Several factors can affect sperm performance. Namely temperature, season, stress, hormone stimulation and mother feed, "said Dr. Mia.
For this reason, in research conducted by Dr. Mia and the team at the Department of Aquaculture, male catfish fed with zinc supplementation (Zn) for eight weeks. Zn is given at different doses of 0, 50, 100, 150 and 200 mg/kg of feed.
The results found that Zn supplementation can improve the quality and quantity of catfish sperm. The addition of Zn has a significant effect on semen volume, motility (movement), viability and sperm concentration.
Zn supplementation at 200 mg/kg feed dose showed the best results. This is indicated by an increase in the quality and quantity of catfish sperm by 51 percent by volume; 11.6 percent motility; 5.81 percent viability and 54.1 percent sperm concentration compared with controls.
"The results of this study indicate that Zn plays an important role in improving the reproduction of catfish. Besides, the process of spawning catfish is generally done artificially by mixing eggs and sperm. With increasing sperm quality can save the use of male broodstock," he said. (IAAS/YN)
