eFSH is a

follicle-stimulating hormone Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) is a gonadotropin, a glycoprotein polypeptide hormone. FSH is synthesized and secreted by the gonadotropic cells of the anterior pituitary gland and regulates the development, growth, pubertal maturation, ...

obtained from

equine Equinae is a subfamily of the family Equidae, which have lived worldwide (except Indonesia and Australia) from the Hemingfordian stage of the Early Miocene (16 million years ago) onwards. They are thought to be a monophyletic grouping.B. J. Mac ...

species, used to stimulate fertility.

Clinical studies

The effects of eFSH on

mares A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than fou ...

is observed by creating a

treatment group In the design of experiments, hypotheses are applied to experimental units in a treatment group. In comparative experiments, members of a control group receive a standard treatment, a placebo, or no treatment at all. There may be more than one tr ...

that received 12.5 milligrams of eFSA injections twice a day when the follicle of the mare was 25 mm in diameter then received

human chorionic gonadotropin Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) is a hormone for the maternal recognition of pregnancy produced by trophoblast cells that are surrounding a growing embryo (syncytiotrophoblast initially), which eventually forms the placenta after implantati ...

(hCG) at 35 mm follicle diameter while a control group only receives hCG at 35 mm follicle diameter.

Embryo transfer

The application of utilizing eFSH to increase the efficiency of equine embryo transfer was tested at the

University of Saskatchewan A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which ...

. Embryos from 12 donor mares at 8 days of ovulation were recovered, scored, then transferred to 37 recipients mares who were tested for pregnancy after 7-10 days. 5 pregnancies resulted from the 15 embryos were recovered from the eFSA treatment group and 4 pregnancies occurred from the 6 embryos collected from the control. The usage of eFSA in the study had a correlation with a lower score.

Equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG) production

The study conducted by the Department of Veterinary Sciences at the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state's ...

has found that eFSH injections increase the probability

superovulation Controlled ovarian hyperstimulation is a technique used in assisted reproduction involving the use of fertility medications to induce ovulation by multiple ovarian follicles. These multiple follicles can be taken out by oocyte retrieval (egg collect ...

occurring in mares and that carried twin result in a greater

eCG Electrocardiography is the process of producing an electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG), a recording of the heart's electrical activity. It is an electrogram of the heart which is a graph of voltage versus time of the electrical activity of the hear ...

concentration than one. Weekly

blood samples In medicine, venipuncture or venepuncture is the process of obtaining intravenous access for the purpose of venous blood sampling (also called ''phlebotomy'') or intravenous therapy. In healthcare, this procedure is performed by medical labora ...

were examined for eCG levels and the mares were compared

gestation Gestation is the period of development during the carrying of an embryo, and later fetus, inside viviparous animals (the embryo develops within the parent). It is typical for mammals, but also occurs for some non-mammals. Mammals during preg ...

, twin pregnancy, and test grouping. 9 of the 10 mares in the eFSH group carried twin pregnancies and 1 of the 9 mares in the control groups carried twins. The mares carrying twins averaged around twice the eCG concentration of a regular pregnancy.

Effects of progesterone and estradiol

The aim of this experiment was to determine whether administration of progesterone and estradiol for 10 days eFSH would enhance the response to eFSH administration. The experiment was carried out with two groups. Group 1 was the control and group were injected with progesterone and estradiol. From this experiment it was concluded that there is no benefit to treating mare with progesterone and estradiol before eFSH treatment.

References

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