Figure 3.

Npre improves semen parameters and sperm fertilization capability of BU-treated mice. (A) Representative images of sperm of the indicated male groups in the CASA system. In the upper picture, the red lines pointed by the arrows are sperm that move rapidly forward (also called class a sperm), green lines represent sperm that move slowly forward (class b sperm), blue lines represent sperm that do not move forward (class c sperm), and yellow represents sperm that are extremely slow or immobile (class d sperm). And the sperm was stained with eosin (1%) to assess sperm morphology (bottom). (B) Semen analyses of the groups indicated in A. The total proportions of class a and class b sperm were calculated as the index of sperm motility. At least 5 male mice were scored in each group for semen parameters. (C)About 138 1-cell embryos were obtained from 12 females mated with CTRL and Npre males, these almost 100% (136/138) formed blastocysts, 6 females mated with BU males did not form blastocysts, whereas there are 95 1-cell embryos from 7 females mated with BU+Npre males, and about 10% 1-cell embryos (n=9/95) formed blastocysts. Scale bar=100 μm. About 3-5 male mice were used to mate with female mice in each group. Data are shown as mean ± SD (^*P < 0.05; ^**P < 0.01).