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Anovulation, Delayed Ovulation and Luteal Insufficiency
Anovulation, Delayed Ovulation and Luteal Insufficiency
ABSTRACT
Ovulation in the cow occurs 10 to 12 hours after the
end of behavioral estrus and 18 to 26 hours after the
ovulatory LH peak. During estrus and after the end of
estrus, several follicles undergo development but
usually only one, it ovulates & the other follicles
regress and become atretic. The consequences for
fertility of an ovulatory defect are two-fold; either the
oocyte is not liberated and hence cannot be fertilized,
or it is liberated too late so that the spermatozoa are
now incapable of fertilization, or the oocyte has aged
and is not capable of normal development. Ovulatory
defects occur due to endocrine deficiency or imbalance,
failure of the development of hormone receptors at
the target tissue or mechanical factors. If the quantity
of pituitary hormone released is insufficient, or its
timing is incorrect, then ovulation is delayed or fails
to occur. In a minority of cases, because of extensive
lesions involving adhesion of the ovarian bursa to the
surface of the ovary, the physical process of ovulation
is prevented.
Key words
Anovulation
Anovulation is failure of cows to ovulate.
These animals have abnormal follicular development
and abnormal estrous cycles. A syndrome that is
associated with those conditions that lead to both
true anoestrus or to cystic ovarian disease is that
of ovulation failure. Sometimes anovulation is
observed before the onset of a period of anovulatory
anoestrus, with the follicle regressing and becoming
atretic. Similarly, during the puerperium, before the
onset of normal cyclical ovarian activity, a similar
situation may arise, which is comparable with that
observed in seasonal polyestrous species at the start
of the breeding season (Jolly, et al., 1995; Beam
and Butler, 1999).
If cows are examined per rectum during the
first few weeks after calving, a number of enlarged
anovulatory follicles can often be detected; they
are incorrectly described as being cysts but they
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Delayed ovulation
Delayed ovulation is generally assumed to be
one of the causes of failure of conception. Certain
cows have prolonged estrus. However, this is
opined to be related to a delay in corpus luteum
(CL) assuming normal steroidogenesis rather than
to the delayed ovulation. Conception rate is reduced
in cows that ovulated by the second day after estrus
(Singh, et al., 2005). Ovulatory defects may be
due to endocrine deficiency or imbalance and
mechanical factors.
Luteal insufficiency
Luteal defects could result from an
abnormality inherent to the follicle that ovulate
(DiZerega and Hodgen, 1981). For example,
Follicular maturity is not synchronized with the
ovulatory hormonal signal. To the same extent, the
nature of the gonadotropic stimulus provided for
ovulation could be of relevance to luteal function.
Corpora lutea formed by LH-stimulated ovulation
secreted progesterone normally, whereas corpora
lutea induced by FSH did not secrete progesterone.
Premature stimulation of ovulation with either
gonadotropin was followed by suppressed luteal
function. Corpora lutea of gonadotropin treated
animals appeared older (further developed) which
secrete low progesterone. Premature induction of
follicular rupture in the ewe is followed by an
insufficient luteal phase.
Two distinct irregularities of corpus luteum
function are known to occur, The short luteal phase
and The inadequate or insufficient luteal phase
(Inskeep and Murdoch, 1980; DiZerega and
Hodgen, 1981). Secretion of progesterone from the
corpus luteum is aberrantly reduced, while the
interval to the next ovulation (unlike the shortened
luteal phase) is normal. Ovulation attendant with
an insufficient luteal condition which leads to the
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LITERATURE CITED
Bage, R., Gustafsson, H., Larsson, B., Forsberg, M. and
Rodriguez-Martinez, M. 2002. Repeat breeding in
dairy heifers: follicular dynamics and estrous cycle
characteristics in relation to sexual hormone patterns.
Theriogenology., 57(9): 2257-2269.
Beam, S. W. and Butler, W. R., 1999. Effects of energy
balance on follicular development and first ovulation in
postpartum dairy cows. J. Reprod. Fertil. Suppl., 54:
411-424.
Britt, J. H., Armstrong, J. D., Cox, N. M. and Esbenshade,
K. L. 1985. Control of follicular development during
and after lactation in sows. J. Reprod. Fertil. Suppl., 33:
37-54.
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Accepted on 07-02-2015