Monitoring the Foetal Phase of Gestation in the Queen With a 12.5‐MHz Ultrasound Probe and Prediction of the Parturition by Combining the Measurements of Head and Abdominal Diameters

Ten gestations in six domestic shorthair cats (Europeans) were monitored daily during the foetal phase of gestation, from the 28th day after the first mating until parturition, using ultrasound with a 12.5‐MHz probe. The development of the various organs over this period was recorded. The diameters of the head (HD) and abdomen (AD) were measured. Skeletal calcification visible on ultrasound occurred in a defined order between the 34th and 40th day of gestation. During the last 30 days of gestation, there was a significant correlation between HD and days before parturition (DBP) (r² = 0.99) and between AD and DBP (r² = 0.98). The following equations were obtained: DBP = ?2.10*HD (mm) + 50.74; DBP = ?1.01*AD (mm) + 42.19. The confidence intervals were stable over the last 30 days of gestation. For the HD, the confidence interval was ±1 day in 53% of cases and ±2 days in 85% of cases. For the AD, the confidence interval was ±1 day in 45% of cases and ±2 days in 77% of cases. A table obtained by combining the HD and AD measurements made it possible to estimate the date of parturition within 2 days with a reliability of over 85%.     

The Advantages of Combining Low‐Density Lipoproteins with Glutamine for Cryopreservation of Canine Semen

Twenty sperm samples from five dogs were frozen in liquid nitrogen at ?196°C in 16 different media, two control media containing 20% egg yolk and 6% low‐density lipoproteins (LDL); 10 test media containing 6% LDL (the active cryoprotective ingredient of chicken egg yolk) combined with 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, and 100 mmol of glutamine respectively at 4%, 5%, 7%, and 8% LDL. Following thawing, sperm mobility was assessed using an image analyser, HAMILTON THORN CERROS 12. The percentage of mobile spermatozoa was 62.05% in the 6% LDL + 20 mmol glutamine medium compared with 48.90% in the egg yolk‐based medium (p < 0.05) or 57.55% for the 6% LDL medium (p < 0.05). Furthermore, in most cases, the motility parameters (average path velocity, curvilinear velocity, straight line velocity) in the 6% LDL + 20 mmol glutamine medium, were superior, to a statistically significant extent, to those in the control media. Finally, the 6% LDL + 20 mmol glutamine combination provides spermatozoa with better protection during freezing than egg yolk or the 6% LDL medium alone in terms of acrosome integrity (fluorescein isothiocyanate–Pisum sativum agglutinin test: p < 0.05), the flagellar plasma membrane (hypo‐osmotic test: p < 0.05 for 6% LDL), the DNA (acridine orange test; no significant difference) and the integrity of the acrosome (Spermac^® test: no significant difference).     

Abortifacient agents in the sow

Abortion in sows may be complete, or much more often partial, since the average litter size is about 10. This review describes the clinical and serological findings, mode of transmission and recommended treatment for the most common parasitic, fungal, mycotoxin, deficient, and toxic causes of abortion in sows. The most likely possibilities in France are brucellosis, leptospirosis, Aujeszky virus, mycotoxin, or dietary deficiencies. The bacterialtion in French sows are Brucella species, Leptospira species, E. coli, streptococci, staphylococci, Pseudomonas, Hemophilus, Corynebacterium pyogenes, salmonellae, Listeria monocytogenes, Mycobacteriumr fetus, Chlamydia and Mycoplasma bovi genitalium. Toxoplasma gondii are parasites known to cause abortion in sows. Mycotoxins from Fusarium species may contaminate feed. Noninfectious causes include poisoning from nitrates, nitrites, estrogens, or insecticides and deficiencies of Vitamins-A, -B, in abortion.     

Development of a Synthetic Medium for the in Vitro Culture of Bovine Embryos

The aim of this study was to develop a synthetic medium for the in vitro culture of bovine embryos, using various growth factors and cytokines （GF-CYK）： insulin-like growth factorl （IGF-Ⅰ）, insulin-like growth factorⅡ （IGF-Ⅱ）, basic fibroblast growth factor （bFGF）, leukemia inhibitory factor （LIF）, granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor （GM-CSF） and transforming growth factor beta Ⅰ （TGF-β1） ＋ hyaluronan （HA） ＋ recombinant albumin （RA）. The embryos were cultured in synthetic oviduct fluid （SOF） supplemented with： treatment 1 （T1）： bovine serum albumin （BSA） ＋ insulin, transferrin and selenium （ITS） （control）; or treatment 2 （T2）： GF-CYK ＋ HA ＋ RA. The blastocyst rates were not significantly different between TI and T2, at seven days post fertilization （dpf） （28.9% ± 2.4% and 31.8% ±2.2%）, and at 8 dpf （36.5% ±2.4% and 39.1% ±1.9%）, respectively （P 〉 0.05）. The total cell number （TCN） was significantly higher with T2 than that with T1 at 7 dpf（164.9 ±5.3 and 149.7 ±4.0） and 8 dpf （182.7 ±6.4 and 165.0 ±5.5） （P 〈 0.05）. The blastocyst diameter obtained with T2 was significantly greater （P 〈 0.05） than with T1 at 7 dpf （173.3 μm ±4.9 μm and 157.2μm ±4.1 μm, respectively）, however, no significant differences were observed at 8 dpf （190.3 μm 5.2 μm and 179.7 μm ± 5.3 μm, respectively）. In conclusion, the synthetic medium （T2） shows a comparable development rate to the control medium and improves the blastocyst diameter and the TCN.     

Seroprevalence of Neospora caninum antibodies and its consequences for reproductive parameters in dairy cows from Dakar–Senegal,West Africa

The aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence of Neospora caninum antibodies and its effects on reproductive parameters in cows in intensive dairy herds in Dakar. Randomised blood samples were taken for serology from 196 cows in four herds with a history of sporadic abortion. All of the sera were assayed for antibodies against N. caninum, Candida guillermondii, Coxiella burnetii, and Chlamydophila sp. The associations between serostatus and reproductive parameters (abortion, number of inseminations to conception, and calving to conception interval) were assessed over a period of 5 years (2004–2008). The seroprevalence of N. caninum antibodies in dairy cattle was 17.9%. The local Gobra breed and crossbreeds had higher levels of N. caninum antibodies than exotic breeds (p < 0.05). For the most recent pregnancies, seropositive cows required more inseminations to establish conception than seronegative cows (p < 0.05). The results indicate that dairy cattle from Dakar are exposed to N. caninum. Neosporosis should, therefore, be systematically considered as a cause when the calving to conception interval is prolonged.     

Investigation of Neospora sp. antibodies in aborted mares from Normandy, France

Neospora caninum, an apicomplexan protozoan parasite, is recognized as a major cause of abortion in cattle while limited information is presently available on association between equine Neospora infections and abortions. The aim of the present study was to document prevalence of antibodies against Neospora sp. in aborted mares as a clue to the role of N. caninum in mare reproductive failure in Normandy, France. Using an agglutination test, the number of animals with elevated (>80) anti-Neospora sp. antibody titer was higher in a group of 54 aborted mares than in randomly chosen groups of 45 mares and 76 horses sampled for equine arteritis virus and Fasciola hepatica antibodies, respectively (P<0.001). N. caninum DNA was found in 3/91 fetal brains, 2/77 fetal hearts, and 1/1 placenta, and present in both brains and hearts of two fetuses. In 13 cases for which both mare serum and fetus were available, no fetal N. caninum amplification product was present while a large variation of maternal antibody titers was found. Data prompt at additional surveys of association between equine reproductive failure and Neospora sp. infection.