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Research Project: Validate Causative Mutations in Agriculturally-Important Vertebrates

Location: Plant Genetics Research

Title: Capacitation-induced zinc ion flux and sperm plasma membrane remodeling predict porcine in vitro fertilization cleavage success

Author
item RODRIGUEZ, ISABEL - Iowa State University
item KELLER, ALEXANDER - Iowa State University
item JENNETT, LINDSEY - Iowa State University
item JOHNSON, MEGAN - Iowa State University
item SHOFNER, IAN - Iowa State University
item MOHMOOD, MUBASHRAH - Iowa State University
item Redel, Bethany
item KERNS, KARL - Iowa State University

Submitted to: Molecular Reproduction and Development
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 1/14/2026
Publication Date: 1/21/2026
Citation: Rodriguez, I., Keller, A., Jennett, L., Johnson, M., Shofner, I., Mohmood, M., Redel, B.K., Kerns, K. 2026. Capacitation-induced zinc ion flux and sperm plasma membrane remodeling predict porcine in vitro fertilization cleavage success. Molecular Reproduction and Development. 93(1). https://doi.org/10.1002/mrd.70085 Digital Object Identifier (DOI).
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/mrd.70085 Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

Interpretive Summary: Currently, pig farms mostly check boar fertility by looking at how sperm move and what they look like under a microscope. But these test aren't always a reliable method to check fertility. One in four boars seem to have healthy sperm but still don't have good pregnancy results. This study looked at a new way to predict fertility by focusing on certain chemical markers in the sperm to see if they could better predict whether fertilization would be successful in the lab. This research showed that sperm biomarkers could be powerful tools for identifying which boars are most likely to produce successful pregnancies. By adding these kinds of sperm checks to routine sperm evaluations, pig producers could make better decisions about which boars could lead to pregnancy success, improving reproductive efficiency across the industry.

Technical Abstract: Semen evaluation in human and animal reproduction relies on sperm motility and morphology; however, these often fail topredict fertility. The domestic boar (Sus scrofa) serves as a biomedical model for male reproduction due to similarities in spermsize, capacitation dynamics, and acrosomal structure to humans in comparison to traditional rodent models. This studyevaluated sperm capacitation biomarkers, particularly zinc signatures, to predict cleavage success after in vitro fertilization(IVF). Semen from 20 boars (3 replicates each) was analyzed at 0, 1 and 4 h post-in vitro capacitation (IVC) using image-basedflow cytometry to assess 4 zinc signatures, plasma membrane integrity, and acrosomal remodeling. Capacitation kinetics werequantified between timepoints. Motility was measured by computer-assisted semen analysis, and IVF cleavage percentages weredetermined. Zinc signature 1 at 4 h post-IVC negatively correlated with cleavage percentage (r = -0.366), indicating highernoncapacitated sperm proportions reduce fertilization potential. The delta of zinc signature 3 from 1 to 0 h also negativelycorrelated (r = -0.441), suggesting excessively rapid capacitation impairs fertilization. Models combining capacitation bio-markers, motility, kinetics, and morphology parameters had higher predictive power (R2 = 0.469) than motility models alone.Zinc signatures may serve as mechanistic fertility biomarkers in a translational boar model applicable to animal breeding andhuman-assisted reproduction