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The effect of periconceptional undernutrition of sheep on the cognitive/emotional response and oocyte quality of offspring at 30 days of age

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 February 2014

J. A. Abecia ,
A. Casao ,
M. Pascual-Alonso ,
S. Lobón ,
L. A. Aguayo-Ulloa ,
A. Meikle ,
F. Forcada ,
C. Sosa ,
R. H. Marín  and
M. A. Silva
...Show all authors
J. A. Abecia*
Affiliation:
Dept de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Facultad de Veterinaria, Zaragoza, Spain
A. Casao
Affiliation:
Depart de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular y Celular, Facultad de Veterinaria, Zaragoza, Spain
M. Pascual-Alonso
Affiliation:
Dept de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Facultad de Veterinaria, Zaragoza, Spain
S. Lobón
Affiliation:
Dept de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Facultad de Veterinaria, Zaragoza, Spain
L. A. Aguayo-Ulloa
Affiliation:
Dept de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Facultad de Veterinaria, Zaragoza, Spain
A. Meikle
Affiliation:
Laboratorio de Técnicas Nucleares, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay
F. Forcada
Affiliation:
Dept de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Facultad de Veterinaria, Zaragoza, Spain
C. Sosa
Affiliation:
Dept de Anatomía Patológica, Medicina Legal y Forense y Toxicología, Universidad de Zaragoza, Facultad de Veterinaria, Zaragoza, Spain
R. H. Marín
Affiliation:
Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Argentina
M. A. Silva
Affiliation:
Dept de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Facultad de Veterinaria, Zaragoza, Spain
G. A. Maria
Affiliation:
Dept de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Facultad de Veterinaria, Zaragoza, Spain
*
*Address for correspondence: J. A. Abecia, Departamento de Producción Animal y Ciencia de los Alimentos, Facultad de Veterinaria, Miguel Servet, 177, 50013 Zaragoza, Spain. (Email alf@unizar.es)
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Abstract

Maternal periconceptional undernutrition is associated with altered development and increased risks of adverse outcomes in the offspring. This circumstance is normal in flocks under extensive farming systems, which depend on natural forage resources. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of periconceptional undernutrition in sheep on behavioral and reproductive aspects of the offspring. Eighty ewes were synchronized in estrus and allocated to two groups (n=40) to be fed diets that provided 1.5 (C) or 0.5 (L) times the requirements for maintenance. Ewes were mated and 7 days later fed the control diet until lambing. One month after lambing, 32 lambs were exposed to tests to determine their cognitive and emotional responses. Six ewe lambs were euthanized and in vitro maturation and fertilization procedures were performed. L ewes presented a significant reduction in prolificacy and fecundity (P<0.05) in comparison with C ewes. Mean LW at lambing of L lambs was significantly higher than C lambs (C: 3.80±0.11; L: 4.24±0.15 kg, P<0.05). Lambs born from C ewes spent more time walking than L lambs (P<0.05) in the isolation test, revealing a decrease in the locomotor activity of lambs born from undernourished ewes around conception. Ewe lambs from the undernourished ewes presented a total population of oocytes 2.3 times higher than ovaries from control ewe lambs (60.0±7.8 v. 140.0±18.5 oocytes; P<0.05). In conclusion, periconceptional undernutrition is able to produce an increment in the body weight and the oocyte population, and an alteration of the locomotor activity of the offspring.

Keywords

offspringpericonceptionalsheepundernutrition
Type
Original Article
Information
Journal of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease , Volume 5 , Issue 2 , April 2014 , pp. 79 - 87
Copyright
© Cambridge University Press and the International Society for Developmental Origins of Health and Disease 2014 

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