J. Anim Sci.
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J. Anim Sci. 1976. 42:400-404.
© 1976 American Society of Animal Science
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Association between Endometrial Phosphatase Activity and Fertility in Beef Cattle1

B. V. Able2, R. H. Dutt, F. A. Thrift and N. W. Bradley

University of Kentucky, Lexington 40506

Abstract

Reproductive performance and endometrial enzyme activity of 56 beef females, consisting of 48 cows of various ages that failed to conceive during a normal breeding season (will be referred to as subfertile) and eight non-parous yearling heifers, were studied. All females were checked twice daily for estrous, bred naturally at the second estrous during the experiment and slaughtered 3 days following breeding. Tissue samples were taken and analyzed for endometrial protein, alkaline and acid phosphatase. Ova were collected and examined. Similar tissues were collected from cows not showing estrus at the end of the 60-day test period. All females exhibiting estrus had ovulated. However, seven of the subfertile cows and one yearling heifer failed to exhibit estrous during the test period. Ova were recovered from 70.7% of the subfertile cows and from 85.7% of the yearling heifers that had ovulated, and ovum fertilization rates in the two groups were 65.5 and 50.5%, respectively.

Mean endometrial acid phosphatase levels were 2.07 and 1.99 units per 10 mg of tissue per hour in the subfertile cows and yearling heifers, respectively. Mean endometrial alkaline phosphatase level of yearling heifers was significantly less than that of subfertile cows (15.2 vs 20.6 units per 2.5 mg tissue per hour). Significant negative correlations between endometrial protein and both alkaline and acid phosphatase (–.33 and –.46, respectively) were found in the subfertile cows. No significant correlations were found among these traits in the yearling heifers. Significant negative correlations between both alkaline (–.36) and acid phosphatase (–.46) and endometrial protein occurred in cycling cows. There were no significant correlations among these traits in the non-cycling females. Cows with unfertilized ova had a significant negative correlation (–.56) between endometrial alkaline phosphatase and endometrial protein. In cows with fertilized ova, alkaline and acid phosphatase were both negatively related (–.60 and –.42, respectively) to endometrial protein.

Footnotes

1 Published with approval of the Director of the Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station as Journal Article 73-5-102.

2 Present address: Department of Animal Science and Industry, Kansas State University, Manhattan 66506.






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Copyright © 1976 by the American Society of Animal Science.