Kallikrein proteoforms and reproductive parameters in stallion are conditioned by climate

• Published in: Scientific reports Vol. 12; no. 1; p. 18690
• Main Authors: Senra, Renato Lima, Ramírez-López, Camilo José, Magalhães-Júnior, Marcos Jorge, Neves, João Gabriel da Silva, Barros, Edvaldo, Waddington, Bruna, Guimarães, Simone Eliza Facioni, Guimarães, José Domingos, Baracat-Pereira, Maria Cristina
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 04-11-2022; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 631/45; 631/45/475; Angiotensin; Animal husbandry; Animals; Breeding seasons; Cholesterol; Glucose; Hormones; Horses; Humanities and Social Sciences; Kallikrein; Kallikreins; Laboratories; Male; Morphology; Motility; multidisciplinary; Plasma; Proteins; Proteomes; Renin; Reproduction; Reproduction - physiology; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Seasonal variations; Semen; Semen - physiology; Semen Analysis; Sperm; Sperm Motility - physiology; Spermatozoa - physiology; Summer; Vasodilation
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-21350-w

Horses are seasonal polyoestrous animals, and the photoperiod is the main factor modulating their reproductive activity. There is no consensus on the andrological and biochemical factors that influence breeding seasonality. To assess the involvement of climate in reproduction, Mangalarga Marchador stallions were monitored over 1 year regarding semen quality and seminal plasma proteome. Here, we show that kallikrein (KLKs) proteoforms in seminal plasma are involved in climate conditioning of reproduction. During the breeding season, greater abundance and different types of KLKs occurred simultaneously to lower sperm motility, greater semen volumes and higher concentrations of glucose and cholesterol. Considering that vasodilation due to activation of the kallikrein-kinin system and the consequent inhibition of the renin-angiotensin system may be associated with lower sperm motility, unravelling the involvement of KLK proteoforms in reproductive seasonality is a priority in horse breeding.