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Luteal maintenance in mares after transfer of equine trophoblastic vesicles
Author(s) -
BALL B. A.,
ALTSCHUL M.,
HILLMAN R. B.
Publication year - 1989
Publication title -
equine veterinary journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.82
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 2042-3306
pISSN - 0425-1644
DOI - 10.1111/j.2042-3306.1989.tb04667.x
Subject(s) - conceptus , luteal phase , ovulation , corpus luteum , pregnancy , horse , andrology , embryo transfer , medicine , in utero , endocrinology , biology , uterus , equine chorionic gonadotropin , gynecology , fetus , ovary , paleontology , genetics
Summary Trophoblastic vesicles have been used to study maternal recognition of pregnancy in several domestic species. Because of the unique aspects of pregnancy recognition in mares, this study was conducted to examine the ability of trophoblastic vesicles from Day 12 to 14 equine conceptuses to prolong luteal maintenance in mares. Trophoblastic vesicles formed in vitro from conceptus fragments were transferred surgically to the uterus of mares (n=15) at Days 6, 8 or 10 after ovulation. Sham‐operated mares (n=8) served as controls. Luteal maintenance was assessed by daily serum progesterone concentrations and by evaluation of interovulatory intervals. Interovulatory intervals were longer (p<0.1) in treated than in control mares (30.2 ± 2.6 vs. 22.6 ± 2.9, respectively). Trophoblastic vesicle transfer at Day 10 after ovulation resulted in more (P=0.16) treated than control mares with interovulatory intervals of at least 42 days (5 of 9 vs 0 of 3, respectively). Progesterone concentrations differed (p<0.05) between treated mares with prolonged interovulatory intervals, and control or treated mares without prolonged interovulatory intervals, by Day 14 or 15 after ovulation, respectively. Although luteal maintenance was prolonged in 56 per cent of the treated mares that received vesicles at Day 10, trophoblastic vesicles did not enlarge spherically in utero sufficiently for detection by transrectal ultrasonography.