Loading...
Anand Agricultural University, Anand
Anand Agricultural University (AAU) was established in 2004 at Anand with the support of the Government of Gujarat, Act No.(Guj 5 of 2004) dated April 29, 2004. Caved out of the erstwhile Gujarat Agricultural University (GAU), the dream institution of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Dr. K. M. Munshi, the AAU was set up to provide support to the farming community in three facets namely education, research and extension activities in Agriculture, Horticulture Engineering, product Processing and Home Science. At present there seven Colleges, seventeen Research Centers and six Extension Education Institute working in nine districts of Gujarat namely Ahmedabad, Anand, Dahod, Kheda, Panchmahal, Vadodara, Mahisagar, Botad and Chhotaudepur
AAU's activities have expanded to span newer commodity sectors such as soil health card, bio-diesel, medicinal plants apart from the mandatory ones like rice, maize, tobacco, vegetable crops, fruit crops, forage crops, animal breeding, nutrition and dairy products etc. the core of AAU's operating philosophy however, continues to create the partnership between the rural people and committed academic as the basic for sustainable rural development. In pursuing its various programmes AAU's overall mission is to promote sustainable growth and economic independence in rural society. AAU aims to do this through education, research and extension education. Thus, AAU works towards the empowerment of the farmers.
Browse
Search Results
ThesisItem Open Access COMPARATIVE EFFICACY OF DIFFERENT LEVELS OF ANTIOXIDANT SERICIN IN EGG YOLK TRIS EXTENDER FOR CRYOPRESERVATION OF BOVINE SEMEN(DEPARTMENT OF VETERINARY GYNAECOLOGY AND OBSTETRICS COLLEGE OF VETERINARY SCIENCE & ANIMAL HUSBANDRY ANAND AGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY ANAND, 2019) Patel Tapasvikumar M.; Dr. A.J. DhamiThis investigation was undertaken during winter season on three mature healthy pedigreed breeding bulls each of Gir cattle and Murrah buffalo breeds, with the aim to assess effect of different concentration of antioxidant Sericin in standard Tris fructose egg yolk glycerol (TFYG) extender for improving cryopreservation of cattle and buffalo semen based on sperm quality parameters, and assay of oxidative markers in seminal plasma of freshly diluted and cryopreserved semen, and thereby to find out the optimum level of Sericin that can be recommended for cryopreservation of bovine semen. Ten ejaculates were studied from each bull at weekly interval in a split-sample technique for spermatozoa quality traits, and representative six ejaculates for oxidative markers, viz., malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity in freshly diluted and frozen-thawed seminal plasma. Only the ejaculates with >70% initial motility were used.ThesisItem Open Access MONITORING POSTPARTUM REPRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE IN KANKREJ COWS THROUGH CLINICAL DIAGNOSIS, BLOOD PROFILE AND HORMONAL THERAPY(AAU, Anand, 2012) NAIKOO, MEHRAJUDDIN; Dhami, A. J.The present study was carried out at Livestock Research Station of the University on 42 Kankrej cows of 2nd to 4th parity. The chief objectives were: to monitor the early postpartum period (0-90 days) clinically and through plasma profile of progesterone, metabolites and macro-micro minerals at 10 days intervals; to evaluate the efficacy of a sustained release mineral supplement (Mega bolus PO) on the day of calving and five oestrus induction and synchronization protocols (Ovsynch, CIDR, Ovsynch + CIDR, Cosynch and PGF2α) on day 90-95 postpartum towards augmenting reproductive efficiency of anestrous and subestrous cows (6 animals in each group), keeping 6 normal cyclic animals as control, and its effect on above profile till day 40 post-treatment/post- AI, and to compare plasma profiles of conceived and non-conceived cows at first Al. The time required for expulsion of fetal membranes, weight of expelled fetal membranes and the birth weight of calf (pure and crossbred) were 5.04 ± 2.0 hrs, 2.84 ± 0.76 kg and 24.29 ± 1.54 kg, respectively. The Kankrej cows showed complete uterine involution by mean interval of 36.80 ±1.21 (range 32-45) days postpartum. The interval for occurrence of first oestrus postpartum clinically and through plasma P4 profile was 105.49 ± 1.66 (range 86-106) and 56.42 ± 3.88 (range 30-80) days, respectively (P<0.05). The first service and overall conception rates obtained at spontaneous/ induced oestrus, within 150 days postpartum were 30.95 (13/42) and 40.47 (17/42) per cent. The comparative evaluation of the efficacy of five oestrus induction/ synchronization protocols tested, on 6 cows each, viz. Ovsynch, CIDR, Ovsynch + CIDR, Cosynch and PGF2α revealed oestrus induction response of 66.66, 83.33, 50.00, 66.66 and 66.66 per cent, respectively, with behavioural signs at FTAI as confirmed by palpation per rectum. The first service conception rates obtained were 16.66, 33.33, 16.66, 50.00 and 50.00 per cent, respectively, as compared to 33.33 per cent in normal cyclic control cows. The corresponding second service conception rates were nil, 25.00, 20.00, nil, nil and nil per cent, as compared to 25.00 per cent in untreated control animals. The overall conception rates of three cycles over the 45 days period were 33.33, 50.00, 33.33, 50.00 and 50.00 per cent, respectively, as against 50.00 per cent in normal cyclic group. The results of CIDR, Cosynch and PGF2α protocols were better than the Ovsynch and normal control groups.ThesisItem Open Access EFFECT OF PROGESTERONE AND HEAT STRESS ON REPRODUCTIVE PERFORMANCE OF DAIRY COWS AND VALIDATION OF CONTINUOUS BODY TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENT IN IDENTIFYING ESTRUS(AAU, Anand, 2012) SUTHAR, VISHAL S.; Dhami, A. J.The present study with four experiments and manifold objectives were conducted on German (HF) dairy cows at or affiliated farm facilities of Clinic for Animal Reproduction, Freie Universitaet Berlin, Germany, during January 2010 to June 2012. The overall objectives of this study were to evaluate: 1) performance of temperature data logger in in vitro and in vivo conditions, 2) validity of BT to identify induced estrus, 3) effect of exogenous and endogenous P4 on BT of dairy cows and 4) and to study effect of heat stress on BT and postpartum performance of dairy cows. In first study to evaluate performance of temperature data logger (Minilog 8, Vemco Ltd., Halifax, Canada), three sub-experiments were conducted. The study began with an in vitro validation of 24 temperature loggers comparing them to a calibrated liquid-in-glass thermometer as a reference method (sub-experiment 1). The association and agreement between the 24 temperature loggers with the reference method was r = 0.996 (P < 0.001) and a negligible coefficient of variance (0.005) between the loggers. In vivo temperature loggers were tested in 11 healthy postpartum cows (sub-experiment 2) and 12 early postpartum cows with greater BT (sub-experiment 3). Temperature loggers were set to record VT and RT at 1 min intervals. To prevent rectal and vaginal straining and potential expulsion of temperature logger an epidural injection of 2.5 ml of 2% Procain was administered. Association between RT and VT was r = 0.92 (P < 0.001) in sub-experiment 2 and r = 0.94 (P < 0.001) in sub-experiment 3 with a negligible difference of -0.1 and 0.01°C, respectively. Bland-Altman plots demonstrated an agreement between RT and VT for healthy and early postpartum cows with greater BT in sub-experiment 2 and 3, respectively. Therefore, continuous VT monitoring with temperature loggers can be used as a measure for BT in dairy cows.ThesisItem Open Access INVESTIGATIVE ANDROLOGY OF GIR (Bos indicus) AND JAFARABADl (Bubalus bubalis) BULLS(AAU, Anand, 2000) Shelke, Vinaya B.; DHAMI, A. J.This investigation was undertaken from March to July 1999 on 6 Gir and 5 Jafarabadi bulls of 4-7 yrs age at Regional Semen Station, Rajkot, to compare between them as well as between good and poor freezability groups, the clinical aspects, scrotal biometry, haematology, blood biochemistry and testosterone profile (assessed thrice at monthly interval) as well as the physico-morphological characteristics of semen, freezability and cold shock resistance of sperm, biochemical, enzymatic and mineral profiles of seminal plasma and their interrelationships (assessed weekly on 9 ejaculates/bul1). In addition, the pattern of episodic release of testosterone and androstenedione before and after GnRH therapy (250 µg Busreiin i/v at 12 noon) was also studied once at hourly interval between 8 am and 4 pm in these bulls. Clinically external and internal genitalia were found to be normal with square to oblong scroti in all the bulls. The preputial sheath was much pendulus in Gir and tight in Jafarabadi bulls. Jafarabadi bulls were significantly tall and heavier than the Gir bulls, but had significantly lower scrotal circumference (33.03 + 0.78 vs 37.39 ± 0.53 cm) ; scrotal length/width, scrotal volume (940.00 ± 21.10 vs 1217.50± 20.69 ml) and libido score with longer react ion time (184.00 ± 28.79 vs 61.28 ± 16.92 sec). The means of seminal attributes and freezability in Gir and Jafarabadi bulls were ; ejaculate volume 4.84 + 0.16 and 5.09 + 0.18 ml, density score 2.96 + 0.13 and 2.72 + 0.13, pH 6.61 ± 0.01 and 6.66 + 0.02, mass activity 2.96 ± 0.14 and 2.23 + 0.15 (P<0.01), initial motility 67.87 + 2.69 and 59.44 + 3.05%, sperm concentration per ml 1219.44 + 38.24 and 1209.56 + 53.48 million, and per ejaculate 5927.95 + 281.66 and 6075,18 + 324.7] million, live sperm 80.13 ± 1,43 and 82.60 + 1.52%, total sperm abnormalities 15.54 + 1.09 and 22.18 + 3.11% (P<0,05), crenellation score 2.07 + 0.13 and 2.03+ 0,11, prefreeze motility 55.46 + 2.80 and 41.65 + 3.30% (P<0.01), post-thaw motility 42.19 + 2.67 and 28.22 + 2.82% (P<0.01), and cold shock resistant sperm 38.19 ± 1.03 and 36.40 + 1.23%, respectively. All these traits, except ejaculate volume, pH and abnormal sperm were highly significantly (P<0.01) and positively interrelated among each other (r= 0.362 to 0.951) in both the species. The influence of bull was significant on most of the seminal attributes, freezability and cold shock resistance, except ejaculate volume and pH in both the breeds. Further, the values of sperm density, motility and concentration were significantly (P<0.01) higher and those of live sperm (before and after cold shock) and abnormal sperm per cent were lower (P<0.01) in bulls of good freezable group than the Poor freezable.group in both the breeds, suggesting that the quality and freezability of semen were significantly superior in bulls of former than the later group in both species. The mean seminal plasma biochemical and enzymatic profiles in Gir and Jafarabadi bulls were : initial fructose 7 33.54 + 40.31 and 993.42 +50.34 mg% (P<0.01) , total proteins 7.21 + 0.23 and 2.61 + 0.10 g% (P<0.01), albumin 2.85 + 0.11 and 1.44 + 0.06 g% (P<0.01), globulin 4.35 ± 0.18 and 1.17 + 0.08 g% (P<0.01), A:G ratio 0.73 + 0.05 and 1.79 + 0.23 (P<0.05), cholesterol 33.44 + 1.77 and 17.17 + 1.07 (P<0.01), GOT 14,51 ± 1.41 and 19.58 + 2.13 lU/L (P<0.05), GPT 5.61 ± 0.47 and 3.19 ± 0.26 lU/L (P<0.01), GOT:GPT ratio 3.00 ± 0.27 and 6.19 + 0.38 (P<0.01), AKP 362.83 ± 19.12 and 1417.11 + 74.89 KAU/100 ml (P<0.01), ACP 281.96 ± 13.95 and 566.84 + 38.93 KAU/100 ml (P<0.01), and AKP:ACP ratio 1.35 ± 0.07 and 2.99 + 0.24 (P<0.01), respectively.ThesisItem Open Access COMPARATIVE EVALUATION OF DIFFERENT GRADES OF SEPHADEX FOR IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF SEMEN OF GIR (Bos indicus) AND JAFARABADI ( Bubalus bubalis ) BULLS(AAU, Anand, 2001) Rana, Chandrakant Mavjibhai; DHAMI, A. J.This study was undertaken during the summer season of the year 2001 on semen of 2 Gir and 2 Jafarabadi bulls, aged 4-7 years, stationed at Regional Semen Station Rajkot. The study included evaluation of seminal characteristics, acrosome morphology, hypo-osmotic swelling (HOS) test, storageability at 5°C, freezability (at -196°C) and post-thaw incubation survival at 37°C of unfiltered control semen (10 ejaculates of each bull) and the filtrates of same split-samples filtered through five different grades of sephadex columns before freezing/ storage, with a view to evaluate the relative efficacies of different filtration media towards improving the quality, freezability & storage ability of bovine semen, and to recommend the best one amongst them for routine use by semen'banks. The initially motile semen ejaculates were diluted 1: 1 with Tris fructose egg yolk glycerol diluent; 2 ml each was filtered through sephadex G-25, G-50, G-75, G-lOO and G-200 gel columns and 2 ml was kept as control. All six parts were then examined for sperm motility, sperm concentration and percentages of live and abnormal sperms, intact/damaged acrosome and HOS positive sperms. The samples were then further extended upto 1:15 dilution and divided into two parts; one was preserved in refrigerator (5-6"C) and the other part was processed for cry ©preservation in LN2 (-196°C). These were evaluated for all above parameters at immediate post-thaw stage and after 48 hrs of refrigeration storage. Sperm motility was also assessed at 1, 2 and 3 hrs of post-thaw incubation and after 24, 48 and 72 hrs of refrigeration storage. The initially unfiltered splitsamples of all 40 ejaculates frozen as usual in bulk were also used for post-thaw filtration to check the possibility of improving the frozen-thawed semen. The mean semen picture in Gir and Jafarabadi bulls was: ejaculate volume (double thrust) 7.03 ± 0.44 and 6.36 ± 0.33 ml, mass activity (score 0-5) 3.33 ± 0.11 and 2.80 ± 0.06 (P < 0.05), initial motility 71.50 ± 0.89 and 66.75 ± 1.04 percent (P < 0.05), sperm concentration 1608.0 ± 53.04 and 1384.0 ± 40.06 million/ml (P < 0.01), live sperm 71.85 ± 1.49 and 77.75 ± 1.37 percent (P < 0.05), total abnormal sperm 22.50 ± 1.40 and 22.30 ± 1.57 percent, intact acrosome 84.80 ± 0.89 and 83.50 ± 1.24 percent and HOS positive sperm 54.35 ± 3.04 and 58.40 ± 2.29 percent (P<0.05), respectively. Initial Filtration of Semen: The mean sperm concentration (million/ml) observed in the fresh unfiUcrcd semen (1496.25 ± 37.38) was reduced significantly in the filtrates of sephadex G-25 (1423.50 ± 36.28), G-50 (1340.50 ± 35.76), G-75 (1261.00 ± 35.43), G-lOO (1181.25 ± 34.45) and G-200 (1091.50 ± 34.26) columns. The filtrates of five columns registered 4.86, 10.41, 15.72, 21.05 and 24.65 percent decline in sperm concentration over the control, the decline being greater with higher grades of sephadex. The overall mean motility of spermatozoa at initial, prefreeze, post-thaw and 1, 2 & 3 hrs of post-thaw incubation (37°C) was: 69.38 ± 0.78, 58.75 ± 0.96, 43.38 ± 0.95, 34.75 ± 1.03, 25.75 ± 1.04 and 18.13 ± 0.81percent, respectively, in the unfiltered control semen. The corresponding values in the filtrates of sephadex G-25 were 73.50 ± 0.96, 63.00 ± 1.09, 47.88 ± 1.06, 39.50 ± 1.16, 30.13 ± 1.02 and 22.25 ± 0.89 percent; in the filtrates of sephadex G-50 column 75.50 ± 0.96, 64.75 ± 1.32, 50.00 ± 1.01, 41.38 ± 1.21, 32.38 ± 1.12 and 24.38 ± 1.05 percent; in the filtrates of G-75 column 79.38 ± 0.88, 68.38 ± 1.33, 53.63 ± 1.12, 45.13 ± 1.27, 35.88 ± 1.16 and 27.75 ± 1.17 percent; in the filtrates of G-100 column 82.38 ± 0.90, 72.00 ± 1.14, 56.63 ± 1.08, 48.25 ± 1.14, 38.88 ± 1.02 and 30.75 ± 1.07 percent, and in the filtrates of G-200 column the values were 86.50 ± 0.92, 75.38 ± 1.14, 60.13 ± 1.07, 51.50 ± 1.12, 42.38 ± 1.00 and 34.50 ± 1.06 percent, respectively. The percent sustenance of sperm motility in the filtrates of five grades over the controls varied from 5.94 to 24.68, 7.23 to 28.31, 10.37 to 38.61, 13.67 to 48.20, 17.01 to 64.58 and 22.72 to 90.29 at different stages, respecfively. The mean motility of spermatozoa in the extended semen preserved at 5°C as unfiltered control and as filtrates of sephadex G-25, G-50, G-75, G-lOO and G- 200 columns was 53.25 ±0.96, 57.38 ± 1.09, 59.50 ± 1.25, 62.75 ± 1.32, 66.63 ± 1.14 and 70.13 ± 1.10 percent after 24 hrs of storage and declined significantly to 47.63 ± 0.98, 51.38 ± 1.13, 53.75 ± 1.22, 57.00 ± 1.25, 60.50 ± 1.12 and 63.75 ± 1.09 percent after 48 hrs, and to 31.00 ± 1.42, 35.50 ± 1.52, 37.75 ± 1.63, 41.20 ± 1.59, 44.63 ± 1.45 and 48.00 ± 1.45 percent after 72 hrs of storage, respectively. The improvement in percent sustenance of sperm motility at 5°C storage varied from 7.76 to 31.70, 7.81 to 33.84 and 14.52 to 54.84 in different filtrates over the controls at three intervals, respectively. The influence of breeds, bulls, stages/periods, filtration treatments and breed x bull and bull x stage interactions was highly significant (P < 0.01) on free/ability, post-thaw incubation survival and keeping quality (at 5°C) of bovine spermatozoa. The values for Gir bulls spermatozoa were significantly higher than the Jafari bulls at all times. There was significant and progressive improvement in the percentage of motile sperm with finer grades of sephadex columns i.e. from G-25 to G-200 and all grades were significantly superior over the control. The mean percentages of live spermatozoa at initial, post-thaw (0 hr) and post-refrigeration (48 hr) were 74.80 ± 1.10, 51.83 ± 1.56 and 58.95 ± 1.45 in unfiltered semen; 79.10 ± 1.12, 56.18 ± 1.81 and 62.73 ± 1.54 in the filtrates of sephadex G-25; 80.10 ± 1.24, 58.15 ± 1.68 and 65.13 ± 1.60 in the filtrates of G- 50; 84.13 ± 1.08, 60.43 ± 1.69 and 67.38 ± 1.61 in the filtrates of G-75; 85.65 ± 0.98, 64.70 ± 1.46 and 70.98 ± 1.57 in the filtrates of G-lOO, and 88.13 ± 0.99, 67.93 ± 1.50 and 72.75 ± 1.65 in the filtrates of G-200 column, respectively. The percent increase in live sperm content in the filtrates of different sephadex columns varied from 5.45 to 17.82, 8.39 to 31.06 and 6.41 to 23.41 over the controls at three stages, respectively. The pooled mean percentages of total sperm abnormalities in the unfiltered semen and in the filtrates of sephadex G-25, G-50, ,G-75, G-lOO and G-200 columns averaged 22.40 ± 1.04, 18.93 ± 0.63, 16.93 ± 0.75, 14.25 ± 0.78, 12.73 ± 0.85 and 10.78 ± 0.84, respectively, at the initial stage, which increased significantly at post-thaw stage to 34.45 ± 1.09, 30.88 ± 0.94, 28.10 ± 0.93, 25.68 ± 0.90, 23.30 ± 0.92 and 20.80 ± 1.03 percent, and after 48 hrs of refrigeration storage to 28.83 ± 1.10, 25.93 ± 0.83, 23.25 ± 0.83, 20.78 ± 0.88, 18.65 ± 0.92 and 16.68 ± 1.02 percent, respectively. The percent decline in total abnormal sperm content in five filtrates over the controls varied from 15.49 to 51.88, 10.36 to 39.62 and 10.09 to 42.14 at initial, post-thaw and post-refrigeration stages, respectively. The mean percentages of sperm head, midpiece and tail abnormalities in unfiltered semen and in the filtrates of 5 sephadex columns also showed similar trend at all three stages. The influence of breeds, stages/periods, filtration treatments, and breed x bull and breed x bull x treatment interactions was highly significant (P < 0.01) on percentages of live sperm and those with head, midpiece, tail and total abnormalities. There was a progressive (P < 0.01) increase in live sperm percent and decrease in abnormal sperm percent in the filtrates of sephadex columns G-25 to G-200 and the values of all were significantly superior over the control. The percentages of spermatozoa with intact acrosome found at initial, postthaw and post-refrigerafion stages were 84.15 ± 0.76, 69.33 ± 1.17 and 73.78 ± 1.00 in the unfiltered semen; 86.50 ± 0.79, 71.53 ± 1.00 and 76.60 ± 1.04 in the filtrates of sephadex G-25; 88.33 ± 0.68, 74.73 ± 1.02 and 78.73 ± 0.99 in the filtrates of G-50; 91.05 ± 0.62, 76.98 ± 0.92 and 81.38 ± 0.90 in the filtrates of G- 75; 92.55 ± 0.59, 79.40 ± 0.97 and 84.15 ± 0.93 in the filtrates of G-lOO, and 94.63 ± 0.64, 82.20 ± 0.86, and 86.35 ± 0.90 in the filtrates of G-200 columns, respectively. The sperm with intact acrosome registered 2.79 to 12.45, 3.17 to 18.56 and 3.82 to 17.04 percent increase in the filtrates of different columns over the controls at initial, post-thaw and post-refrigeration stages. Further, the initial percentage of denuded acrosome recorded in the unfiltered semen and in the filtrates of sephadex G-25, G-50, G-75, G-lOO and G- 200 columns as 10.65 ± 0.71, 9.43 ± 0.69, 8.38 ± 0.59, 6.38 ± 0.51, 5.60 ± 0.58 and 3.95 ± 0.53, respectively, increased significantly to 19.40 ± 1.08, 18.65 ± 0.86, 16.55 ± 0.86, 14.70 ± 0.82, 13.85 ± 0.87 and 12.98 ± 0.76 at post-thaw stage and to 16.65 ± 0.88, 15.28 ± .92, 14.35 ± 0.88, 13.00 ± 0.71, 11.20 ± 0.75 and 9.75 ± 0.77 after 48 hrs of refrigeration storage, respectively. The filtrates of all columns over the control registered 1.46 to 62.91, 3.87 to 33.09 and 8.23 to 41.44 percent decline in denuded acrosme at initial, post-thaw and post-refrigeration stages, respectively. The mean percentages of spermatozoa with swollen and ruffled acrosome also revealed same end in the control and filtered semen at all three stages. The influence of breeds, bulls, stages/periods, filtration treatments, and breed x bull and breed x bull x stage interactions was highly significant (P < 0.01) for the percentages of sperm with intact acrosomes and for different types of acrosomal changes. There was significant and progressive improvement in the percentage of sperm with intact acrosome with corresponding decrease in the incidence of various types of damaged acrosomes in filtrates of ascending grades ofsephadex. The HOS reactive sperm percent recorded at initial, immediate post-thaw and after 48 hrs of refrigeration storage were 56.38 ± 1.91, 25.65 ± 1.52 and 32.98 ± 1.56 in the unfiltered semen; 59.90 ± 2.07, 28.50 ± 1.61 and 35.28 ± 1.60 in the filtrates of sephadex G-25; 63.93 ± 2.17, 31.78 ± 1.80 and 38.73 ± 1.81 in the filtrates of sephadex G-50; 68.05 ± 2.20, 36.05 ± 1.79 and 43.30 ± 1.88 in the filtrates of G-75; 71.50 ± 2.05, 38.50 ± 2.07 and 46.80 ± 1.99 in the filtrates of G- 100, and 75.87 ± 1.96, 42.55 ± 2.02 and 50.18 ± 2.13 in the filtrates of G-200 column, respectively. The percent increase in HOS positive sperm in the filtrates of different columns over controls ranged from 6.24 to 34.57, 6.94 to 59.66 arjd 6.97 to 52.15 at three stages, respectively. The sperm with different types of hypo-osmotic swelling patterns also showed similar trend. The effect of all major factors and breed x stage and bull x stage interactions was highly significant (P < 0.01) for the percentage of total and different types" of HOS positive spermatozoa. The percentages of motile, live and HOS positive sperm and intact acrosome in fresh, post-thawed and post-refrigerated semen revealed highly significant (P < 0.01) positive interrelationships among themselves (r = 0.17 to 0.90), and negative correlations with the sperm/acrosome abnormalities in three types of semen (r = -0.15 to -0.73) in both the species, suggesting that these traits could be of practical utility in routine semen evaluation to predict its keeping quality, freezability and fertility (by HOS test) in both Gir and Jafarabadi bulls. Post-thaw Filtration: The values of different spermatozoal traits in the frozen-thawed semen kept as unfiltered control and that filtered through sephadex G-25, G-50, G-75, G-lOO and G-200 columns were 49.00 ± 0.98, 54.00 ± 1.02, 56.63 ± 0.83, 59.75 ± 0.91, 63.38 ± 0.87 and 66.63 ± 0.79 percent, respectively, for progressive sperm modlity; 98.42 ± 1.83, 85.58 ± 1.47, 78.72 ± 1.44, 71.65 ± 1.35, 65.43 ± 1.49 and 58.10 ± 1.31 million/ml for sperm concentration; 58.05 ± 1.07, 60.75 ± 1.04, 63.53 ± 1.12, 67.20 ± 1.10, 71.00 ± 1.23 and 73.03 ± 1.09 percent for live spermatozoa; 31.08 ± 0.54, 28.10 ± 0.56, 25.70 ± 0.54, 22.90 ± 0.57, 20.30 ± 0.54 and 17.20 ± 0.49 percent for total sperm abnormalities; 70.70 ± 0.75, 73.50 ± 0.71, 76.40 ± 0.73, 78.95 ± 0.71, 81.38 ± 0.71 and 84.00 ± 0.65 percent for intact acrosomes, and 30.93 ± 0.92, 34.08 ± 1.00, 36.85 ± 1.06, 41.25 ± 1.16, 44.58--h 1.25 and 47.98 ± 1.29 percent for HOS positive sperm. The filtrates of 5 grades of sephadcx columns registered improvement over control in motility by 10.20 to 35.98%; live sperm by 4.65 to 25.81%; intact acrosome by 3.96 to 18.81%, and HOS positive sperm by 10.18 to 55.58%; and a relative reduction in sperm concentration, abnormal sperm and damaged acrosome by 13.05 to 40.97%, 9.58 to 44.66% and 3.96 to 18.81%, respectively. The influence of breeds, bulls, filtration treatments and breed x bull interaction was highly significant (P < 0.01) for almost all parameters studied in frozen-thawed semen. The segment-wise sperm abnormalities i.e. of head, mid-piece, tail and also the acrosomal alterations i.e. swollen, ruffled and denuded, varied significantly between filtration treatments. The semen quality was much better in Gir than in Jafri bulls and in filtrates of higher grades of sephadex (G-75 to G- 200) as compared to lower grades (G-25, G-50). Like fresh semen, various sperm traits of frozen-thawed filtered semen in both the species were highly significantly (P < 0.01) interrelated. In general, the sephadex column filtration techniques significantly improved the sperm motility, viability (live sperm %>), intact acrosome and HOS positive sperm percent, and decreased sperm concentration and the sperm/ acrosome abnormalities, and thereby enhanced freezability and keeping quality of semen at 5oC; the improvement was particularly marked in the poor quality semen ejaculates and with higher grades of sephadex. The sephadex G-100 and G-200 columns were proved to be more efficient than G-25 and G-50 columns with regards to overall improvement of quality of semen at initial, post-thawed and post-refrigerated stages, hence can be recommended for the wide scale application, as a routine practice, in improving the semen quality by all semen banks.ThesisItem Open Access HORMONAL AND BIOCHEMICAL PROFILE IN FERTILE AND INFERTILE POSTPARTUM SURTI BUFFALOES(AAU, Anand, 1999) Shah, Rohit G.; Kavani, F. S.The study entitled "HORMONAL AND BIOCHEMICAL PROFILE IN FERTILE AND INFERTILE POSTPARTUM SURTI BUFFALOES" was conducted on 39 suckled postpartum Surti buffaloes of University farm, Navsari, in three experimental phases/groups (viz., Fertile-18Vs infertile-8; GnRH treatment-6 Vs control- 5 and PGF2α treatment-7 Vs control-4) to know their postpartum hormonal., biochemical and reproductive status, and to evaluate the effect of GnRH (Fertagyl, 250 µg i.m. on day 40 postpartum) and PGF2α (Prosolvin, 15 mg i.m. on day 10 postpartum) on reproductive efficiency as well as above profiles. Jugular blood samples (604) were collected at weekly intervals from the day of calving to at least 91 days postpartum in all animals, and additional collections were made in GnRH treated group at 0, 30, 60, 120 and 240 minutes of injection and in PGF2α treated group at 0,1, 2 and 3 days of PG injection. Blood plasma stored at -20°C was used to determine hormonal profiles (Progesterone, P1 and estradiol- 17β, E2) , biochemical constituents (Total cholesterol, Total protein. Calcium, Inorganic phosphorus, Ca : P ratio, Ionized calcium) and trace elements (Iron, Zinc, Copper, Manganese) by standard procedures. The uterine involution and ovarian changes were evaluated with the help of rectal palpations. The reproductive attributes viz., placental expulsion time and weight, regression of pregnancy CL, initiation of ovarian activity, uterine and cervical involution, first heat/ovulation postpartum, service period and number of services/conception were also assessed.ThesisItem Open Access EFFECT OF DIFFERENT CONCENTRATIONS OF FRUCTOSE AS SEMEN ADDITIVE ON SPERMATOZOAL MITOCHONDRIAL ACTIVITY AND PRESERVATION OF JAFFARABADI BUFFALO BULL SEMEN(AAU, Anand, 1997) Merja, R. M.; Derashri, H. J.The present study on effect of different concentrations of fructose as semen additive on spermatozoal mitochondrial activity and preservation of Jaffarabadi buffalo bull semen was carried out over a period of 8 weeks during the months of January,1996 to March,1996. This study included evaluation of seminal characteristics and evaluation of effect of three different concentration of fructose in Tris Yolk Glycerol dilutor viz., 1.25 g % (control), 2.5 g %, (T1) and 3.50 g %, (T2) on buffalo spermatozoa stored at refrigeration temperature for 24 and 48 h and at pre-freeze and post-freeze stages as well as estimation of initial fructose content and SDH activity of Jaffarabadi buffalo semen. Based on 32 ejaculates (8 ejaculates from each of the four bulls), the mean values for various seminal characteristics were s ejaculate volume 4.37 ± 0.37 ml, colour and consistency score 4.40±0.15 , mass activity 3.29 ± 0.07, individual motility 65.78 ±1.17 per cent, sperm concentration 1054.37 ± 20.97 millions per ml, spermatozoal viability 88.12 ± 0.70 per cent, spermatozoal abnormality 5.87 ± 0.47 per cent, initial fructose content 610.59 ± 7,06 mg/100 ml and initial SDH activity 48.58 ± 0.58 )µg formazon formed per ml of semen. The 'F' test analysis for the effect of bulls revealed the bull effect to be non-significant for volume, colour and consistency, mass activity, sperm concentration, individual, motility and viability. However, the bull effect was significant (P<0.05) for spermatozoal abnormality. The initial fructose content and initial SDH activity of semen, both of these were highly significantly (P<0.01) and positively correlated with mass activity, individual motility, sperm concentration and spermatozoal viability, where as, ejaculate volume and abnormal sperm count were negatively correlated. Addition of 2.5 g % fructose to Tris Yolk Glycerol dilutor proved to be a superior semen diluent additive than others (control and T2), as indicated by significantlyThesisItem Open Access STUDIES ON SOME ASPECTS OF INFERTILITY IN JERSEY COWS USED EXTENSIVELY IN EMBRYO TRANSFER TECHNOLOGY.(AAU, Anand, 2004) SHAH, RAKHIBEN MADANBHAI; PATEL, D. M.The present investigation on "Studies on some aspects of infertility in Jersey cows used extensively in Embryo Transfer Technology" was undertaken on Jersey animals (n=10) at the Department of Animal Reproduction, Gynaecology and Obstetrics, College of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, Anand Agricultural University, Anand Campus Anand. The study was carried out during the months of May 2003 to September 2003 The experimental animals were located at Reproductive Biology Research Unit, Veterinary College, Anand. All the Jersey cows were used in research related to non-surgical embryo transfer and were super-ovulated and flushed number of times under the strict Veterinary care. Also, excellent quality embryos after evaluation were transferred into some these animals, which served as recipients. Preliminary examination was made to know the reproductive status of the animals. Animals were divided in two groups. In first group normal estrus cycle of animals before breeding were observed. In the second estrous cycle of the first group all the animals were given intrauterine antibiotic, ampicilin and cloxacilin preparation (Ampoxin 2 gm containing ampicilin 1000 mg. and cloxacilin 1000 mg). In the second group animals were treated with GnRH (Receptal, 5 ml, I/M) and were bred. Blood collection was made at weekly interval and the pregnancy diagnosis was done on day 45 post breeding. The blood serum levels of glucose, calcium, phosphorus, calcium: phosphorus ratio, iron, copper, cobalt, zinc, manganese were lower in these animals. Repeated rectal examination of these cows revealed the cause of infertility to be cystic ovarian degeneration (two animals), ovarobursal adhesion (one animal), and early embryonic mortality (two animals). Tubal insufflation method of testing fallopian tube patency revealed bilateral complete tubal blockage in two animals and partial tubal blockage in three animals. These findings clearly demonstrated that superovulation in embryo transfer technology lowers the fertility in cows and repeated super ovulation lead to sterility in cows.ThesisItem Open Access STUDIES ON PHYSICO-BIOCHEMICAL ATTRIBUTES AND PRESERVABILITY (AT 5°C AND -196°C) OF SEMEN OF TRIPLEBRED (HF X JERSEY X KANKREJ) BULLS(AAU, Anand, 2006) JAGDISHCHANDRA, RAVAL RUPESHKUMAR; DHAMI, A. J.This study was undertaken in 2 phases on semen of 4 mature triplebred bulls at Livestock Research Station, AAU, Anand. The study covered evaluation of seminal characteristics, seminal plasma biochemical profiles, acrosomal morphology, and effect of extender-additives, viz. cysteine HCl (0.1 %) and EDTA (0.1 %) in Tris fructose yolk glycerol (TFYG) diluent on cryo-freezing as well as refrigeration preservation (5°C till 48-hr) of semen in terms of motility, viability, morphology and acrosomal integrity of spermatozoa. In phase-I, physico-biochemical attributes and their interrelationships were studied, while in phase-II, the effect of additives was studied using split-sample technique (1:10 dilution) on 36 ejaculates for cryo-freezing and refrigeration storage. Sperm motility was examined at 24 hourly intervals till 96- hr in refrigerated semen. The data on various traits of cryopreserved and refrigerated semen were analysed using 3-factors' Factorial CRD. The ejaculate, volume, mass activity (score 0-5), individual sperm motility, sperm concentration, live sperm and abnormal sperm recorded in triplebred bulls' semen during phase-I (winter) were 3.88 ± 0.16 ml, 3.73 ± 0.06, 999.06 ± 16.14 million/ml, 84.00 ± 1.02 %, 86.28 ± 0.97 % and 8.28 ± 0.44 %, respectively. The average seminal plasma content of GOT, GPT, AKP, total protein, total cholesterol, calcium, inorganic phosphorus and magnesium was 189.11 ± 6.29 lU/L, 82.53 ± 4.29 lU/L, 718.94 ± 24.27 lU/L, 6.95 ± 0.34 g/dl, 42.77 ± 2.87 mg/dl, 21.26 ± 0.56 mg/dl, 44.16 ± 1.30 mg/dl and 2.89 ± 0.06 mEq/L, respectively. The bulls varied significantly (P < 0.05) in their ejaculate volume, sperm concentration, abnormal sperm per cent, seminal plasma total protein, total cholesterol, GPT, calcium and magnesium levels. Semen quality of all 4 triplebred bulls was of optimum type and its' biochemical profile was within normal physiological limit. Moreover, the ejaculate volume had significant positive correlation (P < 0.01) with abnormal spermatozoa (r = 0.41); mass activity with the initial motility (r = 0.81), abnormal sperm (r = -0.46) and plasma total protein (r = 0.50); live sperm percentage with initial motility (r = 0.54), abnormal sperm (r = -0.60) and plasma cholesterol (r = 0.36); initial motility with abnormal sperm (r = -0.59) and plasma GPT (r = 0.34) and sperm concentration with seminal plasma GPT, total protein and magnesium levels (r = -0.43, -0.46, -0.39). Seminal plasma GOT activity was significantly (P < 0.01) correlated with plasma GPT, total protein, total cholesterol and magnesium concentrations (r = 0.46, 0.39, 0.36, 0.39, resp), while GPT activity had significant correlations only with plasma protein and magnesium contents (r = 0.64, 0.60), and magnesium with total protein and calcium levels (r = 0.65, 0.39). Plasma AKP and inorganic phosphorus levels did not show significant correlations with any of the physico-biochemical attributes studied. The mean percentages of motile, live and abnormal sperms and intact acrosome observed in freshly extended semen in standard TFYG diluent were 77.92 ± 0.73, 88.89 ± 0.57, 7.44 ± 0.28 and 92.33 ± 0.33, respectively. There was insignificant change in most of these values at prefreeze level, but the post-thaw values differed highly significantly (P < 0.01) from the initial as well as prefreeze values, and so also was the case for the effect of 24-hr and 48-hr of refrigeration storage. The relative % decline in motile and live sperms and intact acrosome at postthaw stage over the initial values was 40.46, 35.63 and 11.82, respectively, while the incidence of abnormal sperm and damaged acrosome increased relatively by 87.10 and 142.24 % at post-thaw stage over the initial values. The values of segment-wise sperm abnormalities and acrosome abnormalities were found to be more than double at post-thaw stage over the initial values. The 48-hr refrigeration storage of extended semen caused significant change in these parameters, but the magnitude of change was relatively small (12 to 18%). Statistically, that there were significant (P < 0.01) differences in percentages of motile, live and abnormal sperms and intact/damaged acrosomes between bulls (n=4), between stages (n=3, initial, prefreeze & post-thaw or 0, 24 & 48 hr) and between additives (n=3, EDTA, cysteine & control) both in cryopreservation and refrigeration storage of semen. Among all the two- and three-way interactions of bulls, stages and additives studied, only bull x stage and/or bull x additive interaction was found significant (P < 0.05) for some of these traits during cryo-freezing and/or refrigeration preservation. The overall pooled mean values of progressively motile sperms (irrespective of diluent additives) at initial, post-thaw and 48-hr post-refrigeration of semen were 81.07 ± 0.48, 50.60 ± 0.77 and 72.41 ± 0.61 %, respectively. The corresponding values for live sperm were 88.89 ± 0.32, 58.63 ± 0.63 and 73.22 ± 0.37 %; abnormal sperm 7.44 ± 0.16, 13.57 ± 0.20 and 11.02 ± 0.15 %; intact acrosome 92.33 ± 0.19, 83.65 ± 0.27 and 86.82 ± 0.21 %, and damaged acrosome 7.67 ± .19, 16.30 ± 0.28 and 13.18 ± 0.21 %, respectively. The sperm motility sustained in the extended semen till 96-hr of refrigeration was 63.47 ± 0.69 %, indicated acceptable preservability of crossbred bulls' semen at 5°C for 3-4 days. The mean percentages of progressively motile spermatozoa at initial, postthaw and 48-hr of refrigeration of semen in control Tris diluent were 77.92 ± 0.73, 46.39 ± 1.27 and 70.00 ± 0.91, respectively. The corresponding values for the diluent containing EDTA were 83.20 ± 0.67, 53.19 ± 1.26 and 74.31 ± 0.96, and that containing cysteine were 82.08 ± 0.85, 52.22 ± 1.20 and 72.92 ± 1.17, respectively. The corresponding values for live sperm per cent in control Tris diluent were 88.89 ± 0.57, 57.22 ± 1.09 and 72.28 ± 0.62, respectively; in EDTA containing diluent 88.89 ± 0.57, 61.50 ± 0.76 and 74.50 ± 0.68, and that in cysteine containing diluent 88.89 ± 0.57, 57.17 ± 1.25 and 72.89 ± 0.57, respectively. The mean percentages of sperms with intact acrosome at initial, post-thaw and 48-hr of refrigeration of semen in plain Tris diluent were 92.33 ± 0.33, 81.42 ± 0.44 and 85.31 ± 0.26, respectively. The corresponding values for the diluent containing EDTA were 92.33 ± 0.33, 85.08 ± 0.39 and 88.08 ± 0.27, and that containing cysteine were 92.33 ± 0.33, 84.44 ± 0.35 and 87.08 ± 0.39, respectively. The trend observed for the effect of freezing steps, storage intervals and additives was identical in the semen of all 4 individual bulls for motile and live sperm and intact acrosome. In general, the values of all three traits were significantly higher at all stages of cryo-freezing and refrigeration preservation of semen in the presence of EDTA and cysteine hydrochloride (EDTA being superior than cysteine) as compared to control Tris diluent. The mean percentages of total sperm abnormalities at initial, post-thaw and 48-hr of refrigeration of semen in control Tris diluent were 7.44 ± 0.28, 13.92 ± 0.26 and 11.42 ± 0.23, respectively. The corresponding values for the diluent containing EDTA were 7.44 ± 0.28, 13.03 ± 0.32 and 10.53 ± 0.28, and that containing cysteine were 7.44 ± 0.28, 13.78 ± 0.41 and 11.11 ± 0.23, respectively. The overall mean percentages of sperms with head, midpiece and tail abnormalities recorded initially in fresh semen of triplebred bulls were 2.33 ± 0.06, 1.37 ± 0.06 and 3.78 ± 0.12, respectively. The corresponding values after freezing thawing of semen were 4.35 ± 0.13, 2.78 ± 0.09, 6.45 ± .018, respectively, and after 48-h of refrigeration storage 3.60 ± 0.11, 2.07 ± 0.09, 4.61 ± 0.13 per cent, respectively. The differences due to freezing stages and storage intervals were significant (P < 0.01) for all the three traits. However, there was no significant effect of diluent-additives on any of these segmental defects in either of the protocols, except tail defects. The mean percentages of sperms with damaged acrosome at initial, post-thaw and 48-hr of refrigeration of semen in control Tris diluent were 7.67 ± 0.33, 18.42 ± 0.50 and 14.69 ± 0.26, respectively. The corresponding values for the diluent containing EDTA were 7.67 ± 0.33, 14.92 ± 0.39 and 11.92 ± 0.27, and that containing cysteine were 7.67 ± 0.33, 15.56 ± 0.35 and 12.92 ± 0.39, respectively. The mean percentages of sperms with swollen, ruffled, denuded and detached acrosome recorded initially in fresh semen were 2.25 ± 0.06, 2.03 ± 0.08, 2.00 ± 0.09 and 2.55 ± 0.10, respectively. The corresponding values at post-thaw stage were 3.69 ± 0.12, 3.79 ± 0.13, 3.63 ± .012 and 5.32 ± 0.16, respectively. The values after 48-h of refrigeration were 3.05 ± 0.10, 4.47 ± 0.18, 2.27 ± 0.11 and 3.28 ± 0.13 per cent, respectively. All types of acrosomal defects were significantly lower (P < 0.01) in presence of EDTA and cysteine than the control diluent, and increased with freezing or storage time. Highly significant (P < 0.01) interrelationships observed for the percentages of motile, live and abnormal sperms and intact/damaged acrosome in fresh, post-thawed and refrigerated semen of triplebred bulls (r = ± 0.19 to 0.88) proved that the assessment of initial motility can be taken as a fairly good indicator of semen quality after freezing and/or refrigeration in terms of above traits.
