The effect of medroxyprogesterone acetate with or without eCG on conception rate of fat-tail ewes in out of breeding season.

Many protocols of estrous synchronization in ewes have been developed in the last few decades. The aim of this study was the effect of intravaginal progestogen, medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA), sponges (a progesterone analogue) with or without equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG) in out of breeding season of fat-tailed Iranian Shaal breed anestrus ewes to estimate the conception rate in suburb of Tehran-Iran. In total, 50 non-cyclic ewes out of 85 ewes with < 0.05 ng/ml progesterone (P4) and aged 2 to > 7 years old were selected for out of breeding season program in May-June 2018. They were distributed into two groups (control and treatment). The treatment group (no. 25) received 12 days a sponge containing 60 mg MPA and 500 IU eCG on the day of sponge removal. The control group (no. 25) received 12 days of sponge containing MPA only. Rams were introduced to the flock after removal of sponges in treatment group and concomitant in control group. They remained within the flock for 40 days. The ram to ewe ratio was 1 to 6. Transabdominal ultrasonography was performed for pregnancy diagnosis. The obtained data was analyzed using SPSS software version 16. The conception rate in treatment and control groups were differed significantly (P < 0.01). The conception rates in MPA and MPA+ eCG were 28% and 44%, respectively. Ewes (60%) with < 2 years old had the most conception rate. However, it was shown that use of vaginal sponges containing MPA and eCG in removal time of sponge can increase significantly the conception rate in out of breeding season fat-tail ewes Shaal breed.

Evaluation of recombinant P23 protein as a vaccine for passive immunization of newborn calves against Cryptosporidium parvum.

Cryptosporidiosis is a zoonotic protozoan disease that affects the gastrointestinal tract of animals and humans. Diarrhoea as the most important indication of the infection leads to high economic losses in livestock industries and is a life threatening infection in immunocompromised individuals. In the absence of the effective drugs, vaccine has an effective role in the prevention of infection. For this purpose we developed a vaccine utilizing recombinant P23 protein and immunized pregnant cows four times from 70 days to parturition every 2 weeks. After parturition, each calf received his dam colostrum and challenged with 1 × 10(7) Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts at 12 h of age. Results showed that in contrast with the control group, the antibody titre in the sera and first milking colostra of the immunized cows significantly increased and calves fed hyperimmune colostrum did not show cryptosporidiosis signs. Moreover, enriched colostrum not only reduced significantly the amount of oocyst excretion but also delayed its onset. Our study showed that recombinant P23 protein could be used for passive immunization of newborn calves against Cryptosporidium parvum.