The effect of zinc oxide on the glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase enzymes activities of ram sperm at cooling

This study was conducted to explore the Zinc oxide on the glutathione peroxidase (GPx) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity of the Awassi ram sperm. The semen was divided into four groups, including control by adding Tris extender, T1= Tris extender + 0.01mg Zinc oxide/ml, T2= Tris extender + 0.04 mg\ml Zinc oxide/ml, and T3 = Tris extender + 0.08 mg\ml Zinc oxide/ ml. The diluent semen kept at 5°C. GPx and SOD were measured after reaching to 5°C (Zero time) and 72 hr. The results showed a significant (P 0.05) enhancement of GPx activity at 5°C in the T1 and T2 treatments. There were no significant changes in the T3 and the control group. After 72 hr, the T1 showed the highest GPx activity compared with the control group, whereas, no significant variation between the control and T3 groups. The SOD activity improved significantly (P 0.05) in the T1 and T2 groups as a comparison with the control group. In addition, no significant changes were found among the control and T3 groups at 5 and 72 hr of cooling.