Potential fertility biomakers in stallions

• Grant number: 22/03405-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Start date: August 01, 2022
• End date: November 30, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Animal Reproduction
• Principal Investigator: Frederico Ozanam Papa
• Grantee: Thaís Mendes Sanches Cavalero
• Supervisor: Alan James Conley
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (FMVZ). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: University of California, Davis (UC Davis), United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 19/01119-8 - Gene expression of fertility biomarkers, hormonal profile and sperm production of fertile and subfertile stallions treated with GnRH, BP.DR

Abstract

The equine species has low fertility when compared to other species, since the animals are selected for their athletic performance and not for their reproductive characteristics. Thus, a large number of stallions present subfertility and few treatments have been developed to improve the seminal quality of these animals. Besides, in valuable stallionseven slight decreases in reproductive efficiency can result in substantial economic losses stemming from the loss of breeding fees. The aim of this research was to evaluate the effect of lecirelin application, an GnRH analogue, in testicular function in fertile and subfertile stallions. Serum hormonal profile, kinetics, morphology and sperm viability of the testes were evaluated before, during and after daily treatment with 5mg of exogenous GnRH. The stallions' ejaculates were collected twice a week and the sperm, hormonal and testicular parameters were evaluated once a week during the 60 days of treatment and every 15 days after the end of the treatment for another 60 days. (AU)