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Effect of various hCG treatment protocols on luteal characteristics, plasma progesterone concentration, and pregnancy in normal cyclic Indian crossbred dairy cows

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Abstract

Limited information exists on the application of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) post insemination in the Indian crossbred dairy cows. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of four hCG administration protocols on luteal characteristics and pregnancy outcomes following artificial insemination (AI). Using block randomization, 50 healthy lactating crossbred cows were allocated in equal numbers (n = 10 cows per group) to receive either 5 mL normal saline (control) or 1500 IU hCG on the day of AI (hGG-0), day 7 post AI (hCG-7), day 14 post AI (hCG-14), or days 0, 7, and 14 post AI (hCG-0,7,14). All cows were scanned using sequential transrectal ultrasound examinations to evaluate primary luteal parameters, development of accessory corpora lutea, and pregnancy. Serial blood samples were collected to measure plasma progesterone concentrations. Data were analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA and Fisher’s exact tests. The mean primary luteal area, total luteal area, and total luteal diameter values were significantly greater in the hCG-treated cows. Compared to the control, the hCG-14 group had a significantly higher percentage of cows with an accessory corpora luteum. However, there were no significant differences in the mean progesterone concentrations or the first service conception rates between any of the groups. Overall, the results of this study indicate that while hCG administration post AI in healthy Indian crossbred cows may enhance primary luteal dimensions or induce the formation of accessory corpora lutea, it does not appear to have any beneficial effect on luteal function or pregnancy.

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Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are thankful to the staff of the Instructional Dairy Farm (IDF), Nagla, Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar, India for their assistance with the handling and restraint of the cows during this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Veterinary Gynaecology and Obstetrics, College of Veterinary and Animal Science, G. B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar, India

    Sanjay Agarwal, Harihar Prasad Gupta, Shiv Prasad & Firdous Ahmad Khan

  2. Division of Veterinary Gynaecology and Obstetrics, Faculty of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, R. S. Pura, India

    Sanjay Agarwal

  3. Division of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, R. S. Pura, India

    Pawan Kumar Verma

  4. Department of Large Animal Medicine and Surgery, School of Veterinary Medicine, St. George’s University, True Blue, Grenada

    Afroza Khanam & Firdous Ahmad Khan

Authors
  1. Sanjay Agarwal
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  2. Harihar Prasad Gupta
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  3. Shiv Prasad
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  4. Pawan Kumar Verma
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  5. Afroza Khanam
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  6. Firdous Ahmad Khan
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Contributions

Sanjay Agarwal: conceptualization, methodology, investigation, writing—original draft preparation. Harihar Prasad Gupta: funding acquisition, project administration, supervision. Shiv Prasad: project administration, resources, supervision. Pawan Kumar Verma: data curation, formal analysis. Afroza Khanam: data curation, formal analysis, visualization. Firdous Ahmad Khan: conceptualization, formal analysis, software, writing—review and editing.

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Correspondence to Firdous Ahmad Khan.

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This article belongs to the Topical Collection Dairy Science and Health in the Tropics

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Agarwal, S., Gupta, H.P., Prasad, S. et al. Effect of various hCG treatment protocols on luteal characteristics, plasma progesterone concentration, and pregnancy in normal cyclic Indian crossbred dairy cows. Trop Anim Health Prod 53, 220 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-021-02665-8

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