Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-t5pn6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-25T05:04:31.963Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The influence of azaperone treatment at weaning on reproductive function in sows: ovarian activity and endocrine profiles during the weaning-to-ovulation interval

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 January 2018

T. Schwarz ,
A. Zięcik ,
M. Murawski ,
J. Nowicki ,
R. Tuz ,
B. Baker  and
P. M. Bartlewski
T. Schwarz*
Affiliation:
Department of Swine and Small Animal Breeding, Institute of Animal Sciences, Agricultural University of Kraków, 24/28 Mickiewicza Ave., 30-059 Cracow, Poland
A. Zięcik
Affiliation:
Department of Hormonal Action Mechanisms, Institute of Animal Reproduction and Food Research, Polish Academy of Sciences, 7 Bydgoska St., 10-243 Olsztyn, Poland
M. Murawski
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Biotechnology, Agricultural University of Kraków, 1B Rędzina St., 30-248 Cracow, Poland
J. Nowicki
Affiliation:
Department of Swine and Small Animal Breeding, Institute of Animal Sciences, Agricultural University of Kraków, 24/28 Mickiewicza Ave., 30-059 Cracow, Poland
R. Tuz
Affiliation:
Department of Swine and Small Animal Breeding, Institute of Animal Sciences, Agricultural University of Kraków, 24/28 Mickiewicza Ave., 30-059 Cracow, Poland
B. Baker
Affiliation:
Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Rd., Guelph, ON, Canada N1G 2W1
P. M. Bartlewski
Affiliation:
Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Rd., Guelph, ON, Canada N1G 2W1
*
†E-mail: rzschwar@cyf-kr.edu.pl
Get access

Abstract

Azaperone can reduce stress caused by weaning and relocation of breeding sows, but its effects on reproductive processes are still poorly understood. The primary aim of this study was to describe and compare the endocrine and ovarian activity in ultrasonographically monitored second parity sows, with or without azaperone treatment at weaning (2 mg/kg BW i.m.). The intervals from weaning to the onset of estrus and ovulation were both greater (P<0.05) in azaperone-treated (n=12) than in control sows (n=12) by ~12 h. Mean daily growth rates of identified antral follicles were less (P<0.05) in azaperone-treated than in control sows (1.08±0.17 v.1.23±0.18 mm/day; mean±SD) and treated animals exceeded (P<0.05) controls in the mean ovulation rate (13.7±1.3 v. 12.6±1.2). A transient suppression of cortisol release was observed in the treatment group (at 10 and 30 min after azaperone injections) but circulating cortisol concentrations were variable in both groups of sows for the remainder of the study. The preovulatory rise in LH and estradiol secretion was delayed (P<0.05), and the duration of the LH surge was greater (P<0.001) in azaperone-treated sows compared with their control counterparts. The amplitude of episodic fluctuations in serum cortisol concentrations was correlated with the number of stillborn piglets in control sows (r=0.63, P=0.04). The amplitude and concentration of the preovulatory rise in estradiol secretion were negatively correlated with ovulatory response and litter size (r=−0.63 to −0.82, P<0.05), whereas the time at which the LH surge ended was directly related to the number of live-born piglets (r=0.82, P=0.002) in azaperone-treated animals. The present results indicate that administration of azaperone at weaning had a profound effect on preovulatory LH secretion as well as growth kinetics and estrogenicity of ovarian antral follicles. However, the causative associations among various characteristics of the preovulatory LH discharge, ovarian and adrenal steroid secretion post-weaning, and reproductive variables in sows remain equivocal.

Keywords

pigweaningstressazaperonereproduction
Type
Research Article
Information
animal , Volume 12 , Issue 10 , October 2018 , pp. 2089 - 2097
Copyright
© The Animal Consortium 2018 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Adashi, EY, Jones, PBC and Hsueh, AJW 1981. Synergistic effect of glucocorticoids on the stimulation of progesterone production by follicle-stimulating hormone in cultured rat granulosa cells. Endocrinology 109, 1888–1894.Google Scholar
Andersen, CY, Morineau, G, Fukuda, M, Westergaard, LG, Ingerslev, HJ, Fiet, J and Byskov, AG 1999. Assessment of follicular cortisol: cortisone ratio. Human Reproduction 14, 1563–1568.Google Scholar
Baldwin, DM and Sawyer, CH 1974. Effects of dexamethasone on LH release and ovulation in the cyclic rat. Endocrinology 94, 1397–1405.Google Scholar
Barbarino, A, De Marinis, L, Tofani, A, Della Casa, S, D’Amico, C, Mancini, A, Corsello, SM, Sciuto, R and Barini, A 1989. Corticotropin-releasing hormone inhibition of gonadotropin release and the effect of opioid blockade. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 68, 523–528.Google Scholar
Bidarimath, M, Khalaj, K, Kridli, RT, Wessels, J, Koti, M and Tayade, C 2016. Altered expression of chemokines and their receptors at porcine maternal-fetal interface during early and mid-gestational fetal loss. Cell and Tissue Research 366, 747–761.Google Scholar
Blackshaw, JK 1981. The effect of pen design and the tranquilizing drug, azaperone, on the growth and beahviour of weaned pigs. Australian Veterinary Journal 57, 272–275.Google Scholar
Clifton, DK and Steiner, RA 1983. Cycle detection: a technique for estimating the frequency and amplitude of episodic fluctuations in blood hormone and substrate concentrations. Endocrinology 112, 1057–1064.Google Scholar
Croy, BA, Wessels, J, Linton, N and Tayade, C 2009. Comparison of immune cell recruitment and function in endometrium during development of epitheliochorial (pig) and hemochorial (mouse and human) placentas. Placenta 30 (suppl. A), S26–S31.Google Scholar
Cunnigham, GR, Caperton, EM Jr and Goldzieher, JW 1975. Antiovulatory activity of synthetic corticoids. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism 40, 265–274.Google Scholar
Dantzer, R and Mormede, P 1983. Stress in farm animals: a need for re-evaluation. Journal of Animal Science 57, 6–18.Google Scholar
Dewailly, D, Bourdelle-Hego, MF, Pouplard-Barthelaix, A and Fossati, P 1988. Recovery of ovulatory menstrual cycles under hydrocortisone in two amenorrheic women with isolated corticotropin deficiency. Hormone Research 29, 14–16.Google Scholar
Duggavathi, R, Bartlewski, PM, Barrett, DMW and Rawlings, NC 2003. Use of high-resolution transrectal ultrasonography to assess changes in numbers of small ovarian antral follicles and their relationships to the emergence of follicular waves in cyclic ewes. Theriogenology 60, 495–510.Google Scholar
Edwards, LM, Rahe, CH, Griffin, JL, Wolfe, DF, Marple, DN, Cummins, KA and Pitchett, JF 1987. Effect of transportation stress on ovarian function in superovulated Hereford heifers. Theriogenology 28, 291–299.Google Scholar
Edwards, S and Foxcroft, GR 1983. Endocrine changes in sows weaned at two stages of lactation. Journal of Reproduction and Fertility 67, 161–172.Google Scholar
Einarsson, S, Madej, A and Tsuma, V 1996. The influence of stress on early pregnancy in the pig. Animal Reproduction Science 42, 165–172.Google Scholar
Ensminger, ME and Parker, RO 1997. Swine science, 6th edition. Prentice Hall, Interstate Publishers Inc., Shawnee Mission, KS, USA.Google Scholar
Etim, NN, Williams, ME, Evans, EI and Offiong, EEA 2013. Physiological and behavioral responses of farm animals to stress: implications to animal productivity. American Journal of Advanced Agricultural Research 1, 53–61.Google Scholar
The European Agency for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products (EMEA) 1998. Veterinary Medicines Evaluation Unit, Azaperone, Summary Report No. 2. Retrieved January 2018 from http://www.ema.europa.eu/docs/en_GB/document_library/Maximum_Residue_Limits_-_Report/2009/11/WC500010786.pdf.Google Scholar
Ewy, Z, Wierzchoś, E, Bielański, A and Gajda, B 1985. Effect of dexamethasone and hydrocortisone on the course of superovulation in cattle. Theriogenology 23, 415–420.Google Scholar
Golan, DE 2016. Principles of pharmacology: the pathophysiologic basis of drug therapy. In Pharmacology of dopamine neurotransmission (ed. DE Golan, EJ Armstrong and AW Armstrong), pp. 185–207. Walters-Kluver, Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands.Google Scholar
Gore, AC 2010. GnRH – the master molecule of reproduction. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Norwell, MA, USA.Google Scholar
Harlow, CR, Jenkins, JM and Winston, RML 1997. Increased follicular fluid total and free cortisol levels during the luteinizing hormone surge. Fertility and Sterility 68, 48–56.Google Scholar
Iannaccone, A, Gabrilove, JL, Sohval, AR and Soffer, LJ 1959. The ovaries in Cushing’s syndrome. New England Journal of Medicine 261, 775–785.Google Scholar
Jaiswal, RS, Singh, J and Adams, GP 2004. Developmental pattern of small antral follicles in the bovine ovary. Biology of Reproduction 71, 1244–1251.Google Scholar
Jamil, M, Kridli, RT, Ngo, B, Liu, X., Khalaj, K, Tayade, C and Bartlewski, PM 2017. The expression of autophagy-related genes Atg9a and Atg9b in normally developing and arresting porcine conceptuses on gestational days 20 and 50. Integrative Journal of Veterinary Biosciences 1, 1–8.Google Scholar
Keay, SD, Harlow, CR, Wood, PJ, Jenkins, JM and Cahill, DJ 2002. Higher cortisol:cortisone ratios in the preovulatory follicle of completely unstimulated IVF cycles indicate oocytes with increased pregnancy potential. Human Reproduction 17, 2410–2414.Google Scholar
Kendall, JZ, Richards, GE and Shih, LN 1983. Effect of haloperidol, suckling, oxytocin and hand milking on plasma relaxin and prolactin concentrations in cyclic and lactating pigs. Journal of Reproduction and Fertility 69, 271–277.Google Scholar
Kol, S, Ben-Shlomo, I, Payne, DW, Ando, M, Rohan, RM and Adashi, EY 1998. Glucocorticoids suppress basal (but not interleukin-1-supported) ovarian phospholipase A2 activity: evidence for glucocorticoid receptor-mediated regulation. Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology 137, 117–125.Google Scholar
Kotwica, J, Krzymowski, T and Dębek, J 1978. Kaniulizowanie naczyń żylnych do badań endokrynologicznych. Medycyna Weterynaryjna. 34, 118–120. (in Polish).Google Scholar
La Torre, D and Falorini, A 2007. Pharmacological causes of hyperprolactinemia. Therapeutics and Clinical Risk Management 3, 929–951.Google Scholar
Liptrap, RH 1970. Effect of corticotrophin and corticosteroids on oestrus, ovulation and oestrogen excretion in the sow. Journal of Endocrinilogy 47, 197–205.Google Scholar
Malikova, LA and Arefolov, VA 1983. Protective effect of phenazepam and sodium oxybutyrate on somatic manifestations in immobilization stress. Bulletin of Experimental Biology and Medicine 96, 60–62. (in Russian with English abstract).Google Scholar
Magiakoui, MA, Mastorako, G, Webster, E and Cgrousos, GP 1997. The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and the female reproductive system. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 816, 42–56.Google Scholar
Mermillod, P, Oussaid, B and Cognie, Y 1999. Aspects of follicular and oocyte maturation that affect the development potential of embryos. Journal of Reproduction and Fertility 54, 449–460.Google Scholar
Moberg, GP 2000. Biological response to stress: implications for animal welfare. In The biology of animal stress: basic principles and implications for animal welfare (ed. GP Moberg and JA Mench), pp. 1–22. CAB International, Wallingford, UK.Google Scholar
Muneyyirci-Delale, O, Goldstein, D and Reyes, FI 1989. Diagnosis of stress-related hyperprolactinemia. Evaluation of the hyperprolactinemia rest test. New York State Journal of Medicine 89, 205–208.Google Scholar
Pope, WF 1994. Embryonic mortality in swine. In Embryonic mortality in domestic species (ed. MT Zavy and RD Geisert), pp. 53–78. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, USA.Google Scholar
Riviere, JE and Papich, MG 2009. Veterinary pharmacology and therapeutics, 9th edition. Wiley-Blackwell, Haboken, New Jersey, USA.Google Scholar
Schoonmaker, JN and Erickson, GF 1983. Glucocorticoid modulation of follicle-stimulating hormone-mediated granulosa cell differentiation. Endocrinology 113, 1356–1363.Google Scholar
Schreiber, JR., Nakamura, K and Erickson, GF 1982. Rat ovary glucocorticoid receptor: identification and characterization. Steroids 39, 569–584.Google Scholar
Schwarz, T, Murawski, M, Wierzchoś, E and Bartlewski, PM 2013. An ultrasonographic study of ovarian antral follicular dynamics in prepubertal gilts during the expected activation of the hypothalamo-pituitary-ovarian axis. Journal of Reproduction and Development 59, 409–414.Google Scholar
Schwarz, T, Nowicki, J, Tuz, R and Bartlewski, PM 2017. The influence of azaperone treatment at weaning on reproductive performance of sows: altering effects of season and parity. Animal (in press); https://doi.org/10.1017/S1751731117001641.Google Scholar
Shaw, HJ and Foxcroft, GR 1985. Relationships between LH, FSH and prolactin secretion and reproductive activity in the weaned sow. Journal of Reproduction and Fertility 75, 17–28.Google Scholar
Spitzer, M, Sajjad, R and Benjamin, F 1988. Pattern of development of hyperprolactinemia after initiation of haloperidol therapy. Obstetrics & Gynaecology 91, 693–695.Google Scholar
Stresnil Injection (Canada) 2016. Retrieved January 2018 from https://www.drugs.com/vet/stresnil-injection-can.html.Google Scholar
Tayade, C, Black, GP, Fang, Y and Croy, BA 2006. Differential gene expression in endometrium, endometrial lymphocytes, and trophoblasts during successful and abortive embryo implantation. Journal of Immunology 176, 148–156.Google Scholar
Tayade, C, Fang, Y, Hilchie, D and Croy, BA 2007. Lymphocyte contributions to altered endometrial angiogenesis during early and midgestation fetal loss. Journal of Leukocyte Biology 82, 877–886.Google Scholar
Thomas, FJ, Thomas, M, Tetsuka, M, Mason, JI and Hillier, SG 1998. Corticosteroid metabolism in human granulosa lutein cells. Clinical Endocrinology. 48, 509–513.Google Scholar
Urban, RJ, Bodenburg, YH, Nagamani, M and Pierce, J 1994. Dexamethasone potentiates IGF-I actions in porcine granulosa cells. American Journal of Physiology 267, E115–E123.Google Scholar
Wessels, JM, Linton, NF, Croy, BA and Tayade, C 2007. A review of molecular contrasts between arresting and viable porcine attachment sites. American Journal of Reproductive Immunology 58, 470–480.Google Scholar
Wilson, ME, Biensen, NJ and Ford, SP 1999. Novel insight into the control of litter size in pigs, using placental efficiency as a selection tool. Journal of Animal Science 77, 1654–1658.Google Scholar
Wu, MC, Hentzel, MD and Dziuk, PJ 1987. Relationships between uterine length and number of fetuses and prenatal mortality in pigs. Journal of Animal Science 65, 762–770.Google Scholar
Youngs, CR, Ford, SP, McGinnis, LK and Anderson, LH 1993. Investigations into the control of litter size in swine: I. Comparative studies on in vitro development of meishan and yorkshire preimplantation embryos. Journal of Animal Science 71, 1561–1565.Google Scholar
Zięcik, AJ, Jedlińska, M and Rzucidło, JS 1992. Effect of estradiol and progesterone on myometrial LH/hCG receptors in pigs. Acta Endocrinologica (Copenh) 127, 185–188.Google Scholar
Zięcik, AJ and Ziemińska, A 1995. Effect of transport stress and hydrocortisone on the oestrogen-induced luteinizing hormone surge in pigs. Animal Reproduction Science 37, 337–347.Google Scholar
Zudova, D, Rezacova, O, Kubickova, S and Rubes, J 2003. Aneuploidy detection in porcine embryos using fluorescence in situ hybridization. Cytogenetic and Genome Research 102, 179–183.Google Scholar