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Hypoglycemia Alters Pulsatile Luteinizing Hormone Secretion in the Postpartum Beef Cow^1,2,3,4,

University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Canada S7N 0W0

Abstract

This study tested the hypothesis that the increased glucose requirement of lactation had effects that were independent of the suckling-dependent inhibition of postpartum endocrine function in beef cows. Mature Hereford cows were either suckled ad libitum and infused with saline iv (n = 9) from d 2 through 4 (d 0 = jugular catherization on d 32 ± 3 postpartum); were nonsuckled and infused with saline from d 2 through 4 (n = 10); or were nonsuckled and infused with phlorizin (3 g/d) from d 2 through 4 (n = 10). Nonsuckled cows infused with phlorizin had lower (P<.05) plasma concentrations of glucose and amino acid nitrogen (AAN) on d 2 compared with pre-infusion levels (d 1), but their metabolic profile returned to levels similar to the suckled cows by d 3 and 4. Nonsuckled cows infused with saline had elevated glucose and insulin and lower AAN and free fatty acids (FFA) on d 3 and 4 compared with pre-weaning (d 1) levels (P<.05). Nonsuckled cows infused with phlorizin did not show this weaning-induced elevation in glucose and insulin. The number of luteinizing hormone (LH) pulses was not affected by treatment. However, in contrast to the large LH pulses observed in the nonsuckled cows infused with saline, both the suckled cows and the nonsuckled cows treated with phlorizin had more small and fewer large amplitude pulses (P<.01). Treatment did not affect serum concentrations of follicle stimulating hormone, gonadotropin release in response to gonadotropin releasing hormone (25 µg) or the number of cows ovulating by 55 d after calving. We conclude that the increased glucose clearance caused by phlorizin infusion or lactation results in depression of LH pulse amplitude in suckled postpartum beef cows.

¹ This work was funded by the Alberta Agr. Res. Council.

² The authors gratefully acknowledge the outstanding technical assistance of Jay Cross, Ray Snopec and Anita Unruh.

³ Dept. of Vet. Physiol. Sci.

⁴ Presented in part at the 425th meeting of the Nutr. Soc., Univ. of Leeds, United Kingdom.

⁵ Address reprint requests to this author.

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