title: Yucca schidigera extract can promote rabbit fecundity and ovarian progesterone release.
abstract: The aim of the present in vivo study was to determine the effects of yucca powder extract added to the rabbit females feed mixtures on kindling and conception rate. Rabbit does of the experimental groups were fed with the standard diet enriched with supplement of yucca dry extract at doses of 5 g/100 kg feed (E1 group) or 20 g/100 kg feed (E2 group) for 50 days. In our preliminary in vivo results, we shown that conception rate was significantly higher in both experimental E1 and E2 groups (82.4% and 100.0%, respectively) than in the control group (47.1%). The kindling rate was also significantly higher in the experimental groups (70.6% and 100.0%, respectively) than in the control group (41.2%). The differences between control and yucca-treated groups in the number of liveborn, stillborn, and weaned pups per doe were not statistically significant. To understand possible endocrine mechanisms of yucca action on fertility rate, we have examined the influence of yucca extract additions on the release of steroid hormones by isolated and cultured rabbit ovarian fragments. Yucca additions promoted release of progesterone (at dose of 1 μg/mL, but not at doses of 10 and 100 μg/mL). Yucca addition at these doses did not affect testosterone or estradiol release. Our observations show the stimulatory effect of yucca consumption on rabbit fecundity, which can be due to its direct stimulatory influence on ovarian progesterone but not on testosterone or estradiol output.
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology and Anthropology, Constantine the Philosopher University, Nitra, Slovakia. Electronic address: aneta.stochmalova@ukf.sk.
authors.forename: Aneta
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Štochmal'ová
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Science, Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra, Nitra, Slovak Republic.
authors.forename: Martina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Földešiová
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics and Reprodution, Research Institute for Animal Production, NAFC Nitra, Lužianky, Slovak Republic.
authors.forename: Andrej
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Baláži
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Science, Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra, Nitra, Slovak Republic.
authors.forename: Attila
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kádasi
authors.affiliation: Department of Functional Genomics and Bioregulation, Institute of Animal Genetics, Friedrich Loeffler Institute (FLI), Neustadt, Germany.
authors.forename: Roland
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Grossmann
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology and Anthropology, Constantine the Philosopher University, Nitra, Slovakia.
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Alexa
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Science, Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra, Nitra, Slovak Republic; Department of Genetics and Reprodution, Research Institute for Animal Production, NAFC Nitra, Lužianky, Slovak Republic.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Chrenek
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology and Anthropology, Constantine the Philosopher University, Nitra, Slovakia; Department of Genetics and Reprodution, Research Institute for Animal Production, NAFC Nitra, Lužianky, Slovak Republic.
authors.forename: Alexander V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Sirotkin
mesh_terms: D000821:Animal Feed / Q000032:analysis; D000818:Animals; D004032:Diet / Q000662:veterinary; D005260:Female; D010053:Ovary / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism*; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011374:Progesterone / Q000378:metabolism*; D011817:Rabbits / Q000502:physiology*; D012098:Reproduction / Q000187:drug effects; D027623:Yucca / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D010936:Plant Extracts; D011374:Progesterone
keywords: Conception rate; Hormone release; Kindling rate; Rabbit; Yucca