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Changes in the relationship between porcine fetal size and organ development during pregnancy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 November 2017

A. M. Finch
Affiliation:
Rowett Research Institute, Greenburn Road, Bucksburn, Aberdeen, AB21 9SB, UK
C. Antipatis
Affiliation:
Rowett Research Institute, Greenburn Road, Bucksburn, Aberdeen, AB21 9SB, UK
C. J. Ashworth
Affiliation:
Applied Physiology Department, SAC, Ferguson Building, Craibstone Estate, Bucksburn, Aberdeen, AB21 9YA, UK
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Extract

Individual piglet birthweight is a major determinant of subsequent survival and weaning weight of the litter. Low birthweight piglets are more likely to die from starvation and thermoregulatory stress than their heavier littermates, while those that do survive grow more slowly and reach a lower mature body weight with a higher body fat to muscle ratio. Inadequately grown porcine fetuses are often characterised by assymetrical organ development although it is not clear when this difference in relative organ size arises and whether this is a consequence of changes in cell size or cell number. The objectives of this study were to assess a range of determinants of fetal growth at stages of gestation and to determine when changes in the relationship between fetal size and organ development occur.

Type
Poster Presentations
Copyright
Copyright © The British Society of Animal Science 2000

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References

Ashworth, C.J. 1991. Effect of premating nutritional-status and postmating progesterone supplementation on embryo survival and conceptus growth in gilts. Animal Reproduction Science, 26: 311321.CrossRefGoogle Scholar