The Prediction of Parturition Date in Canine Pregnancy

In bitches, the length of gestation is highly variable when measured from the day of mating, thus prediction of parturition may be greatly inaccurate when determined from this point. The ability to precisely predict the duration of pregnancy is of practical importance for managing parturition or planning caesarean section and this review analyses the methods that can be used to accurately forecast the day of parturition. At the time of breeding, determination of the luteinizing hormone surge and the initial rise in progesterone provide reliable information on gestational length of the bitch, but when pregnancy is ascertained, ultrasonography is the most useful tool to predict the delivery day. In fact, by ultrasonographic measurements of the extra-foetal and foetal structures an accurate prediction can be made both in early and late pregnancy.     

Incidence and Prevention of Early Parturition in Sows

A retrospective study, based on 60 990 farrowing records from 35 commercial herds, was performed to determine the incidence of early parturition (<114d) and to investigate the relationship between early parturition and total number of piglets born, number of piglets born alive and percentage of stillborn piglets per litter. The mean gestation length was 115.4 ± 1.62d, and early parturition occurred in 10% of all farrowing records. Sows with early parturition had significantly more stillborn piglets and a larger litter size compared to sows with a normal gestation length (114–117d). Sows with a gestation length <114d were 1.2 times (95% CI: 1.19–1.21; p < 0.001) more likely to have an early parturition at the subsequent parity. A second study was performed in four herds (n = 329) to investigate the efficacy of altrenogest administration on 110–112d (T112) or 111–113d (T113) of gestation for preventing early parturition and to investigate the effect of this treatment on the reproductive performance of sows. The interval between the last altrenogest treatment and the onset of parturition was 3.3 ± 1.32 (T112) or 2.0 ± 0.89 (T113) days. The gestation length of sows of the altrenogest group (T112 + T113) (115.3 ± 1.23d) was significantly longer compared to gestation length of the non‐treated sows (114.7 ± 1.69d) (p < 0.01). Altrenogest treatment had no negative effect on the reproductive performances of the sows. In conclusion, the administration of altrenogest in late gestation is an effective and safe method to prevent early parturition and can counteract the reproductive losses because of premature farrowing, which may occur in a substantial part of the farrowing events.     

Expression and Hormonal Regulation of E‐Cadherin in Canine Uterus During Early Pregnancy

E‐cadherin, a Ca^{2 +} ‐dependent cell adhesion molecule, is necessary for endometrial receptivity to blastocyst implantation. The aim of this study was to investigate the differential expression of E‐cadherin in canine uterus during early pregnancy and its regulation under different conditions by in situ hybridization. E‐cadherin mRNA expression was at a low level in the glandular epithelium on days 6, 12 and 17 of pregnancy. On days 20 and 23 of pregnancy, E‐cadherin mRNA was highly expressed in the glandular epithelium surrounding the embryo, but not in the luminal epithelium and declined in villi and placenta on day 28 of pregnancy. During oestrous cycle, a moderate level of E‐cadherin mRNA expression was found in the luminal and glandular epithelium of canine uteri at oestrus stage. The same expression was also found at anoestrus stage. Progesterone slightly induced the expression of E‐cadherin mRNA in the luminal and glandular epithelium of ovariectomized canine uterus. These results suggest that E‐cadherin expression is closely related to canine implantation and can be up‐regulated by progesterone.     

犬卵母细胞体外成熟及其体外受精研究进展

犬科动物胚胎对于改进犬科珍贵物种及保护濒危犬种十分重要,因此对犬科动物体外受精(IVF)以及辅助生殖(ART)的研究逐渐变得必要.通过体外受精和核移植已经成功获得能够发育的犬科动物胚胎,克隆的犬胚胎移植到受体母犬能成功产仔,但是这一技术的效率仍然很低.主要原因是犬科动物胚胎在体外发育能力很低.犬卵母细胞早期发育和其他动物不同,犬卵巢排出的卵母细胞处于生发泡(GV)期,在输卵管中恢复减数分裂.犬卵母细胞核难以观测并且不容易确定排卵时间,所以很难确定精子入卵的确切时间,并且多精受精的情况时常发生.回顾犬卵母细胞体外成熟(IVM)和体外受精取得的进展,对于提高其胚胎生产效率很有必要.     

Expression and Hormonal Regulation of IL-11Rα in Canine Uterus During Early Pregnancy

Embryo implantation is critical for the successful establishment of pregnancy. Interleukin-11 (IL-11) is essential for adequate decidualization in the mouse and human via binding to the specific IL-11 receptor α (IL-11Rα). But the expression and regulation of IL-11 and IL-11Rα in the canine endometrium remain unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the differential expression of IL-11Rα in canine uterus during early pregnancy and its regulation under different conditions by in situ hybridization. Interleukin-11Rα mRNA was mainly localized in glandular epithelium in canine uterus. There was a low level of IL-11Rα expression in the glandular epithelium on days 6, 12 and 17 of pregnancy. On day 20 of pregnancy when embryo implanted, IL-11Rα mRNA was highly expressed in the glandular epithelium surrounding the embryo, but not in the luminal epithelium and stroma. On day 23 of pregnancy, the expression of IL-11Rα mRNA maintained a constant level compared with the expression of day 20 and increased on day 28 of pregnancy. During the oestrous cycle, a high level of IL-11Rα mRNA expression was seen in the oestrous uterus. Progesterone slightly induced the expression of IL-11Rα mRNA in the ovariectomized canine uterus. These results suggest that IL-11Rα expression is closely related to canine implantation and up-regulated by progesterone.     

Altrenogest Treatment Associated with a Farrowing Induction Protocol to Avoid Early Parturition in Sows

This study investigated the effect of altrenogest treatment on the farrowing development of sows, and birth weight (BW) and piglet survival until the third day of life. Three control groups were used: (i) sows that farrowed spontaneously before 114 day of gestation (CONT <114); (ii) sows that spontaneously farrowed at ≥114 day of gestation (CONT ≥114); (iii) sows that farrowed at ≥114 day with cloprostenol treatment (CONTCLOPR). Other sows were treated with altrenogest (Regumate^®) for 3 days (days 111, 112 and 113 of gestation): one group gave birth spontaneously (ALT) and the other group received altrenogest until day 113 and cloprostenol on day 114 (ALTCLOPR). There were no differences (p > 0.05) in farrowing duration, BW, coefficient of variation (CV) of BW, stillborn piglets, mummified foetuses, percentage of light piglets and survival until Day 3 between sows with and without cloprostenol treatment, in both control (CONT ≥114 vs CONTCLOPR) and altrenogest‐treated sows (ALT vs ALTCLOPR). Further comparisons were performed taking into account three groups: sows with early delivery (CONT <114 – farrowing before 114 days of gestation; n = 56), sows with longer gestation (CONT ≥114 – with and without cloprostenol treatment sows; n = 103) and ALT sows (with and without cloprostenol treatment; n = 105). Gestation length of CONT ≥114 and ALT sows was similar (p > 0.05), but higher than in CONT <114 sows. There were no differences (p > 0.05) between groups in farrowing duration, CV of BW, and percentages of stillborn piglets and mummified foetuses. Sows of CONT <114 group had a larger litter size and a lower BW than sows of the other two groups (p < 0.05). Sows of CONT <114 group had a higher percentage of lighter piglets and a lower piglet survival rate (p < 0.05) than ALT sows. In conclusion, altrenogest treatment proved to be an efficient method to avoid early parturition in 3–5 parity sows resulting in heavier piglets at birth.     

犬卵母细胞体外成熟的研究进展

阐述了影响犬卵母细胞体外成熟的各种因素,总结概括了目前新的培养方法,并对国内的研究现状及前景作了思考,以期为研究犬卵母细胞体外成熟研究提供参考。     

Surfactant Protein C in Canine Pulmonary Fibrosis

Background: Canine pulmonary fibrosis (CPF) occurs most commonly in West Highland White Terriers. The differing incidences of CPF among dog breeds suggest that genetic factors contribute to its pathophysiology. Pulmonary fibrosis in humans is associated with mutations in the gene coding for lung surfactant protein C (SP-C) ( SFTPC ).
Hypothesis/Objectives: To investigate the histopathologic changes and SP-C composition and genetic structure in dogs with CPF.
Animals: Five dogs with PF, 2 dogs with other lung diseases, and 3 healthy dogs.
Methods: Lung tissue from dogs with clinically suspected CPF and 5 control cases was analyzed histopathologically. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) collected postmortem from 3 terriers with histopathologically confirmed pulmonary fibrosis and the 5 controls were analyzed by Western blots, and the exons of SFTPC were sequenced for 2 dogs with PF and 1 dog with other lung disease.
Results: SP-C could not be detected in BALF of 1 dog with PF, although SP-B was present. A mutation was detected in SFTPC exon 5 of this dog. From 2 dogs with PF and in all 5 control dogs SP-B and SP-C were detected in BALF.
Conclusions: Taken together, the results indicate that canine and human lung fibrosis share histopathologic features and that analysis of SP-C and its gene in a larger set of dogs with PF is warranted.     

胰岛素对犬卵母细胞体外成熟的影响

研究不同浓度胰岛素及不同培养时间对犬卵母细胞体外成熟率的影响,为改善犬卵母细胞体外培养体系提供参考,采用切割法收集卵巢表面卵丘—卵母细胞复合体(cumulus oocyte complexes, COCs),在含有0.6%葡萄糖的TCM199中添加不同浓度的胰岛素（0、3、6、9 IU/mL）,38.5 ℃、5% CO₂培养箱内成熟培养,观察卵丘扩散程度,剥离卵丘细胞获得裸卵后,室温下固定15 min;Hoechst 33342染色,压片,荧光显微镜下观察核形态,用SPSS 14.0软件统计试验数据。不同浓度胰岛素培养48 h后,各组卵丘细胞扩散效果都不明显;卵母细胞核成熟期没有达到减数分裂中期（MⅡ）,但是6 IU/mL胰岛素组生发泡破裂期（GVBD）比率（35.88%±14.63%）显著高于对照组（11.25%±9.75%）;6 IU/mL胰岛素组延长培养时间至72和96 h后,MⅠ-MⅡ期卵母细胞成熟率分别为13.33%±1.5%、20.8%±1.9%。以上结果表明,犬体外成熟培养基中添加胰岛素既没有提高犬卵母细胞核成熟到MⅡ期,也没有改善犬卵母细胞卵丘扩散效果。但是,在6 IU/mL浓度下延长培养时间,相对增加了成熟率。     

母海狸鼠早期怀孕的诊断

采用MCD Ⅰ型检侧仪对 16 2 0只海狸鼠进行了早期怀孕诊断 ,并与分娩记录相比较 ,其符合率高 ,最早探测宫血音、胎心音、胎血音时间分别为 8,12 ,16d。宫血音诊断与分娩记录符合率在配种后 10～ 15d ,16～ 2 5d分别为 97 7% ,10 0 % ;未怀孕的符合率为 10 0 %。本试验还采用AlokaSSD 2 10DXⅡ型超声诊断装置 (超声断层扫描、B超 )鉴定了已用MCD Ⅰ型检测仪诊断为怀孕的母海狸鼠 2 3只 ,这两种检测结果一致。超声断层扫描最早可在配种后 8～ 13d对怀孕作出诊断 ,故证明MCD Ⅱ型检测仪检测宫血音的效果是可靠的 ,因此 ,母海狸鼠的早期怀孕诊断可用宫血音阳性和超声断层扫描作为其判定怀孕的主要依据     

不同培养液及不同培养时间对犬卵母细胞体外成熟的影响

试验采集犬卵巢,用切割法回收卵泡中的卵母细胞,选取胞质均匀、2层或2层以上颗粒细胞、直径≥110μm的卵母细胞移入不同的培养液中:(A)M199+10%FBS+0.5μg/mL FSH+10 IU/mL hCG,(B)M199+0.1%PVA进行体外成熟培养。在培养不同时间(0,48,72 h)用1%醋酸地衣红染色,在显微镜下观察卵母细胞核成熟情况,探索适宜犬卵母细胞体外成熟的培养体系。结果表明:卵母细胞在A液中培养48 h MII期比例(7.84%)高于B液中的比例(P<0.01);在培养72 h MII期比例也是A液中(8.00%)高于B液,虽然二者差异不显著(P>0.05),但72 h卵母细胞退化比例高于48 h(P<0.01)。因此培养液中添加FBS,FSH和hCG有利于犬卵母细胞体外成熟,且在此培养液中培养48 h为最佳成熟时间。     

妊娠相关糖蛋白(PAG)在奶牛早期妊娠诊断上的应用现状

妊娠相关糖蛋白(pregnancy associated glycoproteins,PAG)是反刍动物妊娠后外周血液出现的特异性蛋白,在妊娠过程中发挥着重要的作用。目前,在生产上通过检测PAG在血清中浓度能够进行奶牛的妊娠诊断。作者综述了PAG的发现、分离纯化及其在奶牛体内的代谢水平和近年奶牛早期妊娠诊断上的应用情况。     

Parturition in the multiparous mare fed to obesity

At 40 to 75 days of pregnancy, 20 multiparous mares of Quarter Horse breeding were blocked by expected foaling date and assigned to one of two treatment groups such that average age, body weight, body condition and percent body fat were similar between groups. Body condition was evaluated using a scoring system based on visual appraisal and palpable fat cover, with scores ranging from 1 to 9. Percent body fat was estimated by ultrasonographic scanning of rump fat thickness. The two treatment groups were: 1) control—fed to maintain and foal at a moderate condition (condition score 5.5 to 7.0) and 2) obese— fed to achieve and foal at an extremely high degree of body fatness (condition score 9). Condition score (p<0.001), body weight (p<0.01) and percent body fat (p<0.05) were greater for obese compared to control mares prior to and following parturition. Gestation was not affected by treatment. Parturition was observed and video taped from a raised platform located outside of a foaling stall. The duration of stages II and III of parturition, all intermediate times, the interval from birth of the foal to standing and nursing, and the degree of cervical and vaginal bruising incurred during parturition were not different between treatment groups. Foal birth weights and placenta weights did not differ between treatment groups, however, the nonfoal/non-placenta weight loss was greater in obese compared to control mares (33.2 vs 17.4 kg, SE = 3.6, p<0.05). Excessive body fat stored during gestation in the multiparous mare was not detrimental to parturition.