Increasing ovulation rate in sheep by active immunisation against an ovarian steroid androstenedione

ALTHOUGH low rates of ovulation constitute a major limitation to increased productivity of sheep and cattle little is known about the mechanisms that control ovulation either within or among species. Androstenedionem a week androgen secreted by ovaries 1 and adrenals 1 , is quantitatively the major...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nature (London) 1977-10, Vol.269 (5631), p.817-818
Main Authors: Scaramuzzi, R.J, Davidson, W.G, Van Look, P.F.A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Androstenedione - immunology
animal breeding
animal science
Animals
Antigen-Antibody Reactions
Estrus
Female
Humanities and Social Sciences
Immunization
letter
livestock
Luteinizing Hormone - blood
multidisciplinary
Ovulation
Pregnancy
Progesterone - blood
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
Sheep
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Summary:ALTHOUGH low rates of ovulation constitute a major limitation to increased productivity of sheep and cattle little is known about the mechanisms that control ovulation either within or among species. Androstenedionem a week androgen secreted by ovaries 1 and adrenals 1 , is quantitatively the major steroid secreted by the ovary before ovulation in several species 2 and as such it might have a role in determining ovulation rate; it is also an important precursor for the biosynthesis of oestrogens, by the ovary 3 . Although androstenedione can act as a prehormone by virtue of its peripheral metabolism to oestrogens 4 a direct hormonal action has only been demonstrated in the female rhesus monkeys 5 where it seems to be important for sexual behaviour. We report here that by actively immunizing sheep against androstenedione a slight but significant increase in ovulation rate can be induced.
ISSN:0028-0836
1476-4687
DOI:10.1038/269817a0