Efficacy of a single intramuscular injection of porcine FSH in hyaluronan prior to ovum pick-up in Holstein cattle.

Plasma FSH profiles, in vitro embryo production (IVP) after ovum pickup (OPU), and establishment of pregnancy with IVP embryos were compared in untreated Holstein oocyte donors and those superstimulated with multiple injections or a single intramuscular (IM) injection of porcine FSH (pFSH) in hyaluronan (HA). Plasma FSH profiles were determined in 23 heifers randomly allocated to one of four groups. Controls received no treatment, whereas the F200 group received 200 mg of pFSH in four doses, 12 hours apart. The F200HA and F300HA groups received 200- or 300-mg pFSH in 5 mL or 7.5 mL, respectively of a 0.5% HA solution by a single IM injection. Plasma FSH levels were determined before the first pFSH treatment and every 6 hours over 96 hours. All data were analyzed by orthogonal contrasts. Circulating FSH area under curve (AUC) in pFSH-treated animals was greater than that in the control group (P = 0.02). Although the AUC did not differ among FSH-treated groups (P = 0.56), the total period with elevated plasma FSH was greater in the F200 group than in the HA groups (P < 0.0001). However, the F300HA group had a greater AUC than the F200HA group (P = 0.006), with a similar total period with elevated plasma FSH (P = 0.17). The IVP was performed in 90 nonlactating Holstein cows randomly allocated to one of the four treatment groups as in the first experiment. A greater proportion of medium-sized (6-10 mm) follicles was observed in cows receiving pFSH, regardless of the treatment group (P < 0.0001). Also, numbers of follicles (P = 0.01), cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) retrieved (P = 0.01) and matured (P = 0.02), cleavage rates (P = 0.002), and blastocysts produced per OPU session (P = 0.06) were greater in cows receiving pFSH, regardless of the treatment group. Cows in the F200HA group had a greater recovery rate (P = 0.009), number of COCs cultured (P = 0.04), and blastocysts produced per OPU session (P = 0.06) than cows in the F300HA group. Similar pregnancy rates were observed 50 to 60 days after transferring IVP embryos from donors in the different treatment groups (P > 0.05). In conclusion, a single IM injection of pFSH combined in 0.5% HA resulted in similar plasma FSH profiles as twice-daily pFSH treatments. Treatment of nonlactating donors with pFSH, with or without HA, resulted in increased IVP over untreated controls. A single dose of 200 mg of pFSH in 0.5% HA resulted in greater IVP than 300-mg pFSH in HA. Finally, pregnancy rates with IVP embryos were similar, regardless donor treatment.

Plasma anti-mullerian hormone: an endocrine marker for in vitro embryo production from Bos taurus and Bos indicus donors.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between plasma anti-mullerian hormone (AMH) concentration and in vitro embryo production (IVP) from Bos taurus (Holstein) and Bos indicus (Nelore) donors. A total of 59 Holstein (15 prepubertal heifers aged 8-10 mo, 15 cyclic heifers aged 12-14 mo, 14 lactating cows, and 15 nonlactating cows) and 34 Nelore (12 prepubertal heifers aged 10-11 mo, 10 prepubertal heifers aged 21-23 mo, and 12 cyclic heifers aged 24-26 mo) females were enrolled. All females underwent an ovum pick-up (OPU), without previous synchronization of the follicular wave, and IVP procedure. Immediately before the OPU procedure, blood samples were collected for subsequent AMH determination. A positive correlation was observed between the plasma AMH and number of in vitro embryos produced from Holstein (r = 0.36, P < 0.001) and Nelore (r = 0.50, P = 0.003) donors. For additional analyses, donors within each genotype were classified into 1 of 2 AMH categories (low or high) according to the average AMH concentration for each genotype. The results revealed that females classified as having high AMH presented a greater number of visible aspirated follicles (Holstein: 20.9 ± 1.5 vs 13.6 ± 0.9, P < 0.0001; Nelore: 54.3 ± 6.1 vs 18.6 ± 2.1, P < 0.0001) and a greater number of recovered cumulus-oocyte complexes (Holstein: 17.3 ± 1.5 vs 9.0 ± 0.9, P < 0.0001; Nelore: 45.3 ± 6.4 vs 13.4 ± 1.7, P < 0.0001). However, there was no difference in the blastocyst production rate (Holstein: 20.6% ± 4.0% vs 19.8% ± 4.2%, P = 0.60; Nelore: 33.7% ± 6.5% vs 27.4% ± 5.5%, P = 0.41, high and low AMH, respectively). Moreover, donors classified as having high AMH yielded a greater number of embryos produced per OPU (Holstein: 3.0 ± 0.7; Nelore: 7.0 ± 1.7) compared with those classified as having low AMH (Holstein: 1.2 ± 0.3, P = 0.04; Nelore: 2.2 ± 0.5, P = 0.007). In conclusion, although the plasma AMH concentration did not alter the ability of the cumulus-oocyte complex to reach the blastocyst stage, the AMH concentration in plasma can be an accurate endocrine marker for the in vitro embryo yield from either B. taurus (Holstein) or B. indicus (Nelore) donors. Therefore, AMH is a promising tool to enhance the overall efficiency of OPU-IVP programs in the field as a selective criterion for high embryo producing donors.

Superstimulation prior to the ovum pick-up to improve in vitro embryo production in lactating and non-lactating Holstein cows.

The present study evaluated the efficacy of superstimulation with p-FSH (Folltropin) before the ovum pick-up (OPU) on IVP in lactating and nonlactating Holstein donors. A total of 30 Holstein cows (15 lactating and 15 nonlactating) were blocked by lactation status to one of two groups (control or p-FSH), in a cross-over design. On a random day of the estrous cycle, all cows received an intravaginal progesterone device and 2.0 mg IM of estradiol benzoate (Day 0). Cows in the control group received no further treatment, whereas cows in the p-FSH group received a total dosage of 200 mg of p-FSH on Days 4 and 5 in four decreasing doses 12 hours apart (57, 57, 43, and 43 mg). On Day 7, the progesterone device was removed, and OPU was conducted in both groups (40 hours after the last p-FSH injection in the p-FSH-treated group). There was no difference between groups (P = 0.92) in the numbers of follicles that were aspirated per OPU session (17.2 ± 1.3 vs. 17.1 ± 1.1 in control and p-FSH-treated cows, respectively); however, p-FSH-treated cows had a higher (P < 0.001) percentage of medium-sized follicles (6-10 mm) at the time of the OPU (55.1%; 285/517) than control cows (20.8%; 107/514). Although recovery rate was lower (60.0%, 310/517 vs. 69.8%, 359/514; P = 0.002), p-FSH-treated cows had a higher blastocyst production rate (34.5%, 89/258 vs. 19.8%, 55/278; P < 0.001) and more transferable embryos per OPU session were produced in the p-FSH group (3.0 ± 0.5 vs. 1.8 ± 0.4; P = 0.02). Regardless of treatment, non-lactating cows had a higher blastocyst rate (41.9%, 106/253 vs. 13.4%, 38/283; P = 0.001) and produced more transferable embryos per OPU session (3.5 ± 0.5 vs. 1.3 ± 0.3; P = 0.003) than lactating cows. Thus, superstimulation of Holstein donors with p-FSH before OPU increased the efficiency of IVP. In addition, non-lactating donors had higher percentage of in vitro blastocyst development and produced more embryos per OPU session than lactating cows.

Uveitis due to anaplasmosis in a newborn Holstein calf

Relata-se o caso de um bovino com, aproximadamente, seis horas de vida, apresentando histórico de febre, apatia, inapetência e desconforto ocular. No exame oftálmico rotineiro, encontraram-se valores do teste da lágrima de Schirmer aumentados, diminuição da pressão intra-ocular, hemorragia conjuntival, uveíte anterior, edema corneal e injeção ciliar em ambos os olhos. Coletou-se amostra de sangue para realização de esfregaço sangüíneo, hemograma e bioquímica sérica. No esfregaço visibilizaram-se corpúsculos de Anaplasma marginale em hemácias parasitadas. Quanto à bioquímica sérica, não foram observadas alterações. Os mesmos exames foram realizados na mãe do animal tendo como resultado a positividade para A. marginale. Para o controle da uveíte foi utilizada uma única aplicação de 0,5ml de betametasona a 5 por cento, por via subconjuntival, em cada um dos olhos. Para o tratamento da anaplasmose, seguiu-se o protocolo a base de 10mg/kg de oxitetraciclina, por via intramuscular profunda, a cada 12 horas. Diante os achados oftálmicos e a presença de corpúsculos de A. marginale em hemácias parasitadas, contatou-se, ser um caso de uveíte crônica secundaria a doença sistêmica, factível com Anaplasmose.

Alterações ultra-sonográficas em equinos com lesões crônicas distais do tendão flexor digital profundo e estruturas correlatas

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