麻豆传媒

The 麻豆传媒 Department of Biology鈥檚 Professor Patrick Burns, Ph.D., and Assistant Professor James Haughian, Ph.D., are using fish byproducts, which are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, to improve reproduction in female cows in the dairy and beef industries.

Burns (image at left) said, 鈥淭here鈥檚 a critical window following mating that involves communication between a developing embryo and the mother. Reproductive biologists refer to this window as maternal recognition of pregnancy.鈥� 

To summarize: The recently conceived embryo must signal its presence to the mother, and a successful pregnancy can only establish when the signal preserves production of a pro-pregnancy hormone, progesterone, from a gland on the ovary called the corpus luteum. Progesterone from the corpus luteum in turn prompts the uterus to secrete nourishing factors that support the developing pregnancy.

Sometimes, there鈥檚 a 鈥渕iscommunication鈥� between the developing embryo and the mother, resulting in the corpus luteum dying, progesterone levels dropping and the loss of the pregnancy.

For female dairy cows, the likelihood of this miscommunication has increased, resulting in fewer pregnancies. It鈥檚 speculated that slower developing embryos miss their window of opportunity and fail to establish the maternal recognition of pregnancy. Burns and Haughian believe that omega-3 fatty acids could 鈥渆xtend the window鈥� of time for perfectly healthy, yet slow growing, embryos to be recognized, resulting in more successful pregnancies.

鈥淚t's been documented that we do see an increase in pregnancy outcomes with the supplementation of omega-3 containing fish byproducts to the diet, and we're really interested in fine-tuning the mechanisms to make it even more efficient,鈥� Burns said.

Because the embryo is developing slowly, the mother cow doesn鈥檛 recognize she鈥檚 pregnant, so she naturally signals from the uterus to kill the corpus luteum gland, which resets her cycle and inadvertently also kills the embryo. The uterine hormone that ultimately kills the gland and the underdeveloped embryo is prostaglandin.  Supplementing omega-3 fatty acids appears to shield the gland from prostaglandin, allowing the embryo more time to develop and be recognized, resulting in more successful pregnancies.

鈥淏ecause the embryo develops slowly, the mother thinks she鈥檚 not pregnant and, thus, releases the prostaglandin signal to kill the gland, and once the gland鈥檚 going, then the embryo鈥檚 also going [to die]鈥� said Burns. 鈥淲hat we're trying to do is widen this window of opportunity so that if by chance mom makes a mistake and releases the prostaglandin hormone, then we can better protect the gland from the first initial signal with the use of omega-3 fatty acids in order to give the developing embryo more time to signal to its mother that she鈥檚 still pregnant.鈥�

If Burns and Haughian鈥檚 research proves positive, then dairy farmers and cattle ranchers could see an increase in profits that would then trickle down to consumers as cost-savings when purchasing milk and beef products.

鈥淏y increasing pregnancy outcomes, by say, 10%, this translates to an increase of profitability for American ranchers and dairy farmers in the millions of dollars in meat and dairy products,鈥� Burns said.

Another benefit is applying this research to other fields of biology. 鈥淵ou often also learn something about the way humans operate, as well,鈥� Haughian (image at right) said. 鈥淚n some ways, we know more about how we, as humans, reproduce due to work done in cattle, sheep, pigs, etc. There鈥檚 this ultimate benefit to better understand human reproductive processes.鈥�

Burns and Haughian have partnered with Colorado State University鈥檚 Animal Reproduction and Biotechnology Laboratory to house, care and feed the animals the omega-3 rich fish byproducts for their research. They鈥檙e also conducting research in their lab at 麻豆传媒 with the help of numerous 麻豆传媒 undergraduate and graduate students.

鈥淭his gives an opportunity for undergraduates to participate in authentic research experiences and an opportunity to work with large, domestic farm animals,鈥� said Burns. 鈥淚t allows these students to get into the laboratory and develop hands-on laboratory skills.鈥�

The research鈥檚 first trial is set to begin in March, dependent on public health guidelines due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

鈥擶ritten by Katie Corder