Viral contamination of bull semen used for artificial insemination

A significant disadvantage of the widely used technology of artificial insemination is the possibility of spreading infectious diseases. Freezing semen creates ideal conditions for the long-term preservation of infectious viruses, and the existing control standards in Russia do not allow the detection of viral contamination. The purpose of this work was to assess the frequency of occurrence of various viruses by PCR in the semen of a large Material and methods. Cryopreserved bull semen samples from Russian (n = 211) and foreign (n = 199) breeding centers were studied. Motility and the number of abnormal forms of spermatozoa were assessed. Isolation of DNA and RNA from the samples was carried out using the kit "Ribo-prep" (Russia). The genetic material of viruses was detected by PCR using LSI VetMAX™ (France), AmpliSens™ (Russia) reagent kits and proprietary methods. Results. BHV-1 DNA was found in 0.97% of samples, BHV-4-in 0.73%, BVDV-1 genome-in 0.43% of samples, SBV and BTV viruses were not detected. BHV-6 DNA sequences were found in 34.1% of Russian semen samples and in 8.04% of samples from international breeding centers. For the first time, the genome of bovine herpesvirus type 6 (bovine lymphotropic virus) was found in semen samples used for artificial insemination. The relevance of improving the control of sperm production is discussed.