Sharanya Jeevendra Naidu; Arangasamy Arunachalam; Akeem Babatunde Sikiru; Selvaraju Sellappan; Backialakshmi Sekar; Ippala Janardhan Reddy; Raghavendra Bhatta
Volume 14, Issue 8 , August 2023, , Pages 405-413
Abstract
The effect of dietary calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) supplementation on serum biochemical parameters, steroid hormones, gene expression, and the sex ratio was investigated in female New Zealand white rabbits. A total of 25 rabbits were allocated into five treatment groups: The control group was fed ...
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The effect of dietary calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) supplementation on serum biochemical parameters, steroid hormones, gene expression, and the sex ratio was investigated in female New Zealand white rabbits. A total of 25 rabbits were allocated into five treatment groups: The control group was fed with regular pellet feed, whereas, treatment groups were supplemented with Ca and Mg: T1 (0.40% and 0.01%), T2 (0.60% and 0.02%), T3 (0.80% and 0.03%) and T4 (1.00% and 0.04%), respectively. The rabbits were subjected to three breeding cycles. The T3 group skewed towards females (65.33%) from all three breeding. There was elevated Ca concentration in T3 (15.26 ± 0.77 mg dL-1) and T4 (15.61 ± 0.82 mg dL-1) groups compared to the control. The concentration of estradiol was significantly high in T3 and T4 groups at 0.5 days post-coitus (dpc) and T2, T3 and T4 groups at 21dpc. Testosterone was significantly high in T4 group at 0.50 dpc and T2 and T4 group at 21dpc. The expression of 13 genes was studied in the oviduct. Genes such as OVGP1, CCT4, ANXA2 and TLR4 were up-regulated and positively correlated with the female sex ratio. The molecular functions and pathways of up-regulated genes were suggestive of their role in fertilization such as sperm selection, sperm storage, immune regulation, implantation and early embryonic development. The variations in the serum electrolytes, steroid hormones and gene expression might have an impact on the skewing process.
Theriogenology
Amir Khaki; Atefeh Araghia; Mehdi Lotfi; Alireza Nourian
Volume 10, Issue 4 , December 2019, , Pages 333-341
Abstract
Artificial insemination is a well-established and widely used method for genetic improvement in cattle breeding industry. Recently, researchers have shown an increased interest in the cryoprotective effects of minerals and antioxidants on semen. Previous studies on calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg), two ...
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Artificial insemination is a well-established and widely used method for genetic improvement in cattle breeding industry. Recently, researchers have shown an increased interest in the cryoprotective effects of minerals and antioxidants on semen. Previous studies on calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg), two main macro-minerals, have mainly investigated their roles in mammalian spermatogenesis and fertility. In addition, the experimental data examining the semen content regarding these minerals and antioxidants from different animal species are rather controversial and there is no general agreement about their associations with semen quality. Therefore, this study was conducted to assess the seminal plasma concentrations of Ca, Mg and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) in first and second ejaculations of dual-purpose Fleckvieh bulls and to link them to the sperm characteristics of fresh and frozen-thawed semen. Sperm progressive motility after thawing was used to classify the data into three groups: < 40.00%, 40.00 to 50.00% and > 50.00%. The measurements of two minerals and TAC were carried out using spectrophotometry and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, respectively. The results showed that there were significant differences in several parameters of semen quality between first and second ejaculations. No significant differences were also found on Ca and Mg concentrations and Ca/Mg ratio. The TAC level was significantly higher in the first ejaculation than the second one. The findings of this study suggest that TAC is a potential marker for bull semen quality assessment in the frozen semen production industry.
Sayed Mortaza Alavi Shoushtari; Siamak Asri Rezaie; Amir Khaki; Abulfazle Belbasi; Hamid Tahmasebian
Volume 5, Issue 4 , December 2014, , Pages 301-305
Abstract
To investigate uterine fluid and serum calcium (Ca) and Magnesium (Mg) variations during the estrus cycle in water buffaloes, 71 genital tracts and blood samples were collected from the abattoir in Urmia. The phase of the estrous cycle was determined by examining ovarian structures. 18 animals were pro-estrous, ...
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To investigate uterine fluid and serum calcium (Ca) and Magnesium (Mg) variations during the estrus cycle in water buffaloes, 71 genital tracts and blood samples were collected from the abattoir in Urmia. The phase of the estrous cycle was determined by examining ovarian structures. 18 animals were pro-estrous, 15 estrous, 16 met-estrous and 22 diestrous. The uterine fluid was collected by gentle scraping of the uterine mucosa with a curette. Blood serum and uterine fluid samples of 71 pre-pubertal buffalo calves were also collected and treated in similar manners. The mean ± SEM total serum and uterine fluid Ca in cyclic buffaloes were 8.68 ± 0.28 mg dL-1 and 8.10 ± 0.2 mg dL-1 vs. 6.76 ± 0.65 mg dL-1 and 7.90 ± 0.15 mg dL-1 in pre-pubertal calves, respectively. Blood serum Mg was not different in cyclic and pre-pubertal animals but the uterine fluid Mg in cyclic cows was higher than those in pre-pubertal calves. Serum Ca in pro-estrus and estrus were higher than those in other stages and also higher than those in the uterine fluid. The lowest Mg content of serum was recorded in diestrus, while in the uterine fluid it was observed in estrus. In all stages of estrous cycle except for estrus the uterine fluid Mg content was significantly higher than those of the serum. These results suggested that during the estrous cycle in the buffalo cows, Ca was passively secreted in uterine lumen and mostly dependent on blood serum Ca concentrations but Mg was secreted independently. The values (except for serum total Mg) also increased after puberty.
Sayed Mortaza Alavi-Shoushtari; Siamak Asri-Rezaie; Roya Abedizadeh; Amir Khaki; Mozhgan Pak; Sajad Alizadeh
Volume 3, Issue 2 , June 2012, , Pages 137-141
Abstract
To investigate uterine and serum Ca++ and Mg++ variations during the estrous cycle in the bovine, 66 genital tracts and blood samples were collected from Urmia abattoir, Urmia, Iran. The phase of the estrous cycle was determined by examination of the structures present on ovaries and uterine tonicity. ...
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To investigate uterine and serum Ca++ and Mg++ variations during the estrous cycle in the bovine, 66 genital tracts and blood samples were collected from Urmia abattoir, Urmia, Iran. The phase of the estrous cycle was determined by examination of the structures present on ovaries and uterine tonicity. Of the collected samples, 17 were pro-estrus, 12 estrus, 14 metestrus and 23 diestrus. The uterine fluid was collected by gentle scraping of the uterine mucosa with a curette. The mean ± SEM concentration of serum Ca++ in pro-estrus, estrus, metestrus and diestrus was 5.77 ± 0.69, 8.87 ± 1.83, 10.95 ± 1.52, 11.09 ± 1.08 mg dL-1, and the mean concentration of uterine fluid Ca++ was 4.40 ± 0.72, 3.15 ± 0.67, 5.89 ± 0.88, 8.63 ± 0.97 mg dL-1, respectively. The mean concentration of serum Mg++ in pro-estrus, estrus, metestrus and diestrus was 3.53 ± 0.30, 4.20 ± 0.52, 3.49 ± 0.38, 3.39 ± 0.29 mg dL-1, and mean concentration of uterine fluid Mg++ was 5.27 ± 0.42, 4.92 ± 0.60, 5.56 ± 0.30, 5.88 ± 0.36 mg dL-1, respectively. The serum and uterine fluid Ca++ in pro-estrus were significantly different from those of the metestrus and diestrus. In all stages of estrous cycle the mean concentration of serum Ca++ was higher than that in the uterine fluid. The difference between serum and uterine fluid Ca++ in estrus, metestrus and diestrus was significant. There was no significant difference between serum Mg++ content nor was it different from uterine fluid Mg++ content at any stages of estrous cycle. In all stages of estrous cycle the uterine fluid Mg++ was higher than that of the serum. These results suggest that during the estrous cycle in the cow, Ca++ is passively secreted in uterine fluids and is mostly dependent on blood serum Ca++ variations but Mg++ is secreted independently and does not follow variations in the serum concentrations.
