Gene expression during early pregnancy in Bubalus bubalis

• Grant number: 21/08515-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Start date: November 15, 2021
• End date: July 29, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Animal Reproduction
• Principal Investigator: Eunice Oba
• Grantee: Viviane Maria Codognoto
• Supervisor: Ronaldo Luis Aoki Cerri
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (FMVZ). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: University of British Columbia, Vancouver (UBC), Canada
• Associated to the scholarship: 18/13338-3 - Serum and embryonic protein of gestant buffaloes, BP.DR

Abstract

The pursuance of better reproductive outcomes has driven for the selection of animals that are genetically superior through the utilization of varying reproductive techniques. However, in buffalo, several different factors impact their reproductive performance, such as the long interval between parturitions observed in the species, and failures in the detection of estrus due to low expression of estrual behaviors. For an improvement in reproductive outcomes, it is necessary to comprehend the biologic and genetic mechanisms that are related to early pregnancy, contributing to the understanding of different phenomena surrounding different reproductive phases, and use this knowledge to help move towards improvements in fertility. Early diagnosis of pregnancy is a practice that can increase the reproductive efficiency of farms by reducing the interval between inseminations and thus parturitions. However, methods already used in cattle, such as rectal palpation, ultrasonography and quantifying concentrations of progesterone or pregnancy-associated glycoproteins, are often methods that cannot be identified in early pregnancy in buffalo, and also demand proper equipment and knowledge to be able to obtain results with high accuracy and precision. Although, several studies have been developed with the aim to identify a reliable and low cost method to diagnose pregnancy using biomarkers available in bodily fluids with easy access. Therefore, the objective of our study is to describe and correlate genes expressed in blood, the corpus luteum, caruncle and endometrium of buffalo which can be used for early pregnancy diagnosis in the species. (AU)