Browsing by Subject "Oxytocin"

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    Changes in oxytocin concentrations in saliva of pigs after a transport andduring lairage at slaughterhouse
    (Elsevier, 2020-08-31) López Arjona, Marina; Escribano, Damián; Mateo, Sandra V.; Contreras Aguilar, María Dolores; Pérez Rubio, Camila; Tecles Vicente, Fernando; Cerón Madrigal, José Joaquín; Martínez Subiela, Silvia; Medicina y Cirugía Animal
    Oxytocin is associated with reproductive physiology but also with welfare and positive emotions. In this study,oxytocin was measured in saliva samples of 45 pigs that were collected before being transported to theslaughterhouse, at the time of arrival and 4 h after arrival to the slaughterhouse. Two previously validatedassays, one that measures free oxytocin and other that measures oxytocin linked to proteins, were used. Inaddition, cortisol, salivary alpha-amylase (sAA), total esterase activity (TEA), butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) andlactate dehydrogenase (LDH), which are biomarkers associated with stress and pain in pigs, were measured. Theresults showed a decrease in free and protein-linked oxytocin concentrations at 4 h after transport comparedwith the time before transport, while cortisol, sAA, TEA, BChE and LDH showed an increase at 4 h after transportcompared with the time before transport. Based on these results it can be concluded that the transport andlairage at slaughterhouse in the conditions of this study produce a decrease in oxytocin in the saliva of pigs thatcould indicate a reduced emotional well-being
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    Oxytocin in pig seminal plasma is positively related with in vivo fertility of inseminated sows
    (BMC, 2021-09-13) Padilla, Lorena; López Arjona, Marina; Martínez Subiela, Silvia; Rodríguez Martínez, Heriberto; Roca, Jordi; Barranco, Isabel; Medicina y Cirugía Animal
    Background: identification of relevant in vivo biomarkers for fertility remains a challenge for the livestock industry. Concentrations of the small peptide hormone oxytocin (OXT), involved in male reproductive function and present in the seminal plasma (SP) of several species could be a robust one. This study characterized concentrations of SP-OXT in ejaculates from boars used in artificial insemination (AI) programs aiming to evaluate its relationship with sperm quality variables and in vivo fertility of their liquid-stored AI-semen. Seminal OXT concentrations (ng/mL) were measured in 169 ejaculates from 61 boars of the Duroc, Pietrain, Landrace and Large White breeds using a direct competitive immunoassay test based on AlphaLISA® technology. Ejaculate (ejaculate volume, sperm concentration, total sperm count) and sperm parameters (motility, viability, intracellular generation of reactive oxygen species, plasma membrane fluidity) were assessed at 0 h and 72 h in AI-semen samples stored at 17 °C. In vivo fertility included only 18 Large White and Landrace boars whose AI-semen was used to inseminated > 100 sows and evaluated both farrowing rate and litter size of 3,167 sows. Results: The results showed that SP-OXT differed between boars and between ejaculates within boar (P < 0.05) but not between breeds (Duroc, Pietrain, Landrace and Large White). Ejaculates with higher SP-OXT concentration/mL (hierarchically grouped; P < 0.001) had larger volume and came from younger boars (P < 0.05). Ejaculates of boars showing positive farrowing rate deviation exhibited higher (P < 0.05) SP-OXT concentration/mL than those with negative farrowing rate deviation. Conclusion: The SP concentrations of OXT are boar, ejaculate and age dependent, and positively related with ejaculate volume and farrowing rates of liquid-stored semen AI-doses.