VME480 Advanced Reproductive Tech. in Sheep and Goats

Productivity is the key to growth and reproduction is the backbone of animal production. Reproductive inefficiency is one of the most important causes of economic losses in animal industries and it is realized throughout the world. Reproduction technologies have now become a practical technology in breeding programs in both developed and developing countries. On the historical point of view, first reproductive technology was performed by Spallanzani, (1784) in a bitch. Pioneering efforts to Al were begun in Russia in 1899 by Ivanoff, (Ivanoff, 1922). Ivanoff, (1922) had studied in domestic farm animals, dogs, foxes, rabbits, and poultry. Later on, the use of frozen semen (Polge et al., 1949) revolutionized the Al program through worldwide transport of semen. Along with these revolutions, the discovery of oocyte culture at the end of the 19th century, but it was only at the beginning of the 1930s that studies us­ing animal models started to be published (Pincus and Enzmann 1930; Chang 1930, Yanaginachi and Chang 1963). These improvements has fastened and introduced new assisted reproductive technologies like, estrus synchronization, superovulation, Laparoscopic and Transcervical embryo collection, transfer, in vitro maturation, fertilization, embryo production, Multiple ovulation embryo transfer and oocytes pick­up from live animals could not make an impact on quality animal production due to non-availability of low cost embryos from quality animals. The recent scientific developments in assisted reproductive techniques have made it possible to manipulate the reproductive processes in many ways to revolutionize world animal agriculture. The development of ARTs mingles with the development of ultrasonography as an ancillary method for the control of induced cycles and hormone dosages. Along with the evo­lution of ARTs, the improved knowledge of the ultrasonography and the use of thermography allowed for the establish­ment of several synchronization protocols aiming at multi ovulation. The imaging instruments such as ultrasonography and thermography have reached applicative efficiency level, as well as ergonomics and cheapness so that they can be used in the monitoring protocols of physiologic and/or para-physiologic processes, of importance for the management of reproduction. Small ruminants have been important components of rural life and still play a substantial role in the livelihood of farmers. 

  • Superovulation
  • Artificial Insemination
  • Semen Cryopreservation
  • Moet (Multiple ovulation-Emryo Transfer)
  • IVP (in vitro embryo production)
  • Transgenic Animal Production
  • Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer