Brazilian equine chorionic gonadotrophine production

• Grant number: 17/12650-0
• Support type: Research Grants - Innovative Research in Small Business - PIPE
• Duration: November 01, 2018 - January 31, 2021
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Biophysics - Biophysics of Processes and Systems
• Principal Investigator: Luis Augusto Ferreira Rossa
• Grantee: Luis Augusto Ferreira Rossa
• Company: Innovare Biotecnologia e Saúde Animal Ltda
• CNAE: Fabricação de medicamentos para uso veterinário ; Pesquisa e desenvolvimento experimental em ciências físicas e naturais ; Atividades veterinárias
• City: Monte Aprazível
• Assoc. researchers: Maria Cecilia Maia Chierotti
• Associated research grant: 15/01088-4 - Brazilian equine chorionic gonadotrophine production, AP.PIPE

Abstract

Brazil has the largest commercial cattle herd in the world and its reproductive efficiency is fundamental for the production of meat and milk. The eCG (Equine chorionic gonadotrophin) is a hormone used to provide increases in reproductive efficiency in bovine females. Brazil is the world's largest consumer of eCG, but it does not produce it. Although onerous, when compared to other hormones used in Artificial Insemination with Fixed Time, it offers an advantageous cost / benefit. Every world production of eCG is made from the plasma of pregnant mares. During Phase 1 of the PIPE project, where the plasma volumes used went from 40mL to 6L in the eCG purification process, the goal was to obtain purification yields greater than 80%. Proven yields with in vivo study with prepubertal rats. The next step will be to optimize large-scale eCG purification and validate the scaling of the lyophilization process to ensure the stability of the small-scale verified protein. The hypothesis of the present project is that the eCG purification process constitutes an efficient protocol to obtain a lyophilized purified extract with high biological activity and production capacity of the hormone on an industrial scale in Brazil. The project's innovation is not limited to the nationalization of production, but also to the process of purification (yields greater than 80%) and the production of plasma from pregnant mares, where a network of equine breeding properties will be created that will sustain the production of matter eCG. Thus, Innovare demonstrates a project with feasibility of supplying the Brazilian eCG market with adequate supply of raw material. (AU)