Factors affecting superovulation in heifers treated with PMSG

In this study we determined 1) if the immunoneutralization of PMSG affected the ovulatory response, the number of large follicles and embryo yield compared with that of PMSG alone or pFSH, and 2) whether the stage of the estrous cycle at which PMSG was injected affected the ovulatory response and yield of embryos in superovulated heifers. Estrus was synchronized in 99 (Experiment 1) and 71 (Experiment 2) heifers using prostaglandin F2 alpha (PG) analogue, cloprostenol, given 11 d apart in replicate experiments over 2 yr. In Experiments 1 and 2, heifers were randomly allocated to 1 of 3 treatments (initiated at mid-cycle): Treatment 1 - 24 mg of pFSH (Folltropin) given twice daily for 4 d; Treatment 2 - a single injection of 2000 IU PMSG; Treatment 3 -2000 IU PMSG followed by 2000 IU of Neutra-PMSG at the time of first insemination. In Experiment 3, 116 heifers were given 2000 IU PMSG on Day 2 (n = 28), Day 3 (n = 27), Day 10 (n = 41) or Day 16 (n = 20) of the estrous cycle. The PG was given at 48 h (500 mu g cloprostenol) and 60 h (250 mu g cloprostenol) after the first gonadotropin treatment. Heifers were inseminated twice during estrus, and embryos were recovered on Day 7, following slaughter and graded for quality. The numbers of ovulations and large follicles (greater than or equal to 10 mm) were also counted. There was no effect of treatment on ovulation rate in Experiment 1, but in Experiment 2 it was greater (P < 0.002) in heifers given PMSG (14.7 +/- 1.5) than pFSH (7.5 +/- 1.4) or PMSG-neutra-PMSG (8.7 +/- 1.5). The number of large follicles was higher following PMSG than pFSH treatment in Experiment 1, and it was higher (P < 0.004) in heifers given PMSG (5.5 +/- 0.8) than pFSH (1.12 +/- 0.7) or PMSG-neutra-PMSG (2.7 +/- 0.8) in Experiment 2. The use of Neutra-PMSG did not affect the numbers of embryos recovered or numbers of Grade 1 or 2 embryos, but it did decrease the number of Grade 3 embryos in both experiments. In Experiment 3, the ovulation rate decreased (P < 0.004) when PMSG was given on Day 3 (5.7 +/- 1.46) of the cycle rather than on Day 2 (12.3 +/- 1.64), Day 10 (13.4 +/- 1.45) or Day 16 (12.5 +/- 1.87). There was no effect of day of treatment on the numbers of large follicles. The mean numbers of embryos recovered were lower (P < 0.01) in heifers treated on Day 3 (2.1 +/- 0.67) than on Day 2 (6.8 +/- 1.0), Day 10 (6.4 +/- 0.86) or Day 16 (7.8 +/- 1.87). It is concluded that Neutra-PMSG given to heifers treated with PMSG did not improve embryo yield or quality and that treatment with PMSG early in the cycle can result in acceptable embryo yields provided sufficient time elapses between treatment and luteolysis.