Comprehensive multi-omics analysis uncovers potential risks of aged sperm on offspring development after short-term storage [WGBS]

In vitro short-term sperm storage is a common method used for artificial reproduction of fishes in aquaculture. Recent studies have demonstrated that prolonged sperm storage adversely affects offspring through epigenetics, yet its broader effects on other molecular levels such as transcription in progeny have been rarely explored. We employed comprehensive multi-omics approaches to uncover storage-induced epigenetic changes in sperm, and their effects on embryonic development and offspring health. Sperm from common carp (Cyprinus carpio) was stored in vitro in artificial seminal plasma for 14 days, and the impacts of storage on functional properties of sperm and progeny development were investigated. We combined DNA methylome and transcriptomic data to elucidate the potential mechanisms by which sperm storage influences progeny development. Overall design: We have performed whole genome bisulfite sequencing of genomic DNA and RNA-seq from fresh and aged sperm after storage for 14 days post-stripping and their embryos from mid-blastula stage.