title: Effect of feeding and body condition score on multiple ovulation and embryo production in zebu cows.
abstract: The aim of this study was to standardize the feeding regimen and the body condition score (BCS) for maximum superovulatory responses in indigenous zebu cows. Ten regularly cycling 5-8-year-old dry cows, weighing 176--260 kg with BCS 2.5--4.5 were divided into two equal groups at random. The groups were maintained on either a good-nutrition or a high-nutrition diet. The feedstuffs were analysed by proximate feed analysis and the metabolizable energy content was estimated. After 3 months feeding, individual cows were injected (i.m) with 1500 IU pregnant mare's serum gonadotrophin (PMSG) at day 10 or day 11 of the oestrous cycle (day of oestrus = day 0). Alfaprostol (6 mg) was injected (i.m) 48 h after the injection of PMSG to induce oestrus. At day 6 or day 7 (day of insemination = day 1), the contents of individual uterine horns were flushed with 150-200 ml of phosphate-buffered saline + 0.2% bovine serum albumin using a two-way Foley catheter. The embryos were identified, evaluated and graded as excellent, good, fair or poor under a stereomicroscope. For the good- and high-nutrition diets, the daily intake of green grass, straw, concentrate, dry matter, crude protein and estimated metabolizable energy by individual cows were 5 and 6 kg, 3 and 3 kg, 1.5 and 3.5 kg, 4.87 and 6.82 kg, 0.39 and 0.74 kg, and 39.60 and 59.12 MJ, respectively. The protein content was 8 and 11% in the good- and high-nutrition diets, respectively. The two groups of cows on different nutritional diets differed significantly with regard to body weight, body condition score and number of palpated corpora lutea (p < 0.01). For cows on the good-nutrition diet, the median number of recovered embryos and transferable quality embryos were three and two, respectively. The recovery rate of embryos was 79.30% of palpated corpora lutea. Cows on the high-nutrition diet did not yield any embryos. The indigenous zebu cows fed on the good-nutrition diet with BCS 2.5-3 were considered suitable for the induction of superovulation, the cows on the high-nutrition diet with BCS 4-4.5 were unsatisfactory and were more prone to cyst formation in the ovaries.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery and Obstetrics, Faculty of Veterinary Science, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, Bangladesh.
authors.forename: M A R
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Siddiqui
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shamsuddin
authors.forename: M M U
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Bhuiyan
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Akbar
authors.forename: K M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Kamaruddin
mesh_terms: D000821:Animal Feed / Q000032:analysis / Q000592:standards; D000824:Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D000818:Animals; D001823:Body Composition / Q000502:physiology; D002417:Cattle / Q000502:physiology*; D004032:Diet / Q000662:veterinary*; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian / Q000502:physiology*; D004971:Estrus; D005260:Female; D006064:Gonadotropins, Equine / Q000494:pharmacology; D009752:Nutritional Status / Q000502:physiology; D011897:Random Allocation; D013480:Superovulation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D006064:Gonadotropins, Equine