In-vitro fertilization is a routine livestock-breeding technique widely used around the world. Several studies have reported the interaction of bovine viral-diarrhea virus (BVDV) with gametes and in-vitro-produced (IVP) bovine embryos. Since, gene expression in BVDV-infected IVP bovine embryos is scarcely addressed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLactoferrin and lysozyme are 2 glycoproteins with great antimicrobial activity, being part of the nonspecific defensive system of human milk, though their use in commercial products is difficult because human milk is a limited source. Therefore, many investigations have been carried out to produce those proteins in biological systems, such as bacteria, yeasts, or plants. Mammals seem to be more suitable as expression systems for human proteins, however, especially for those that are glycosylated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFStructural changes in the zona pellucida (ZP) of bovine oocytes seem to modulate their interaction with various viral agents, facilitating the viral infection in in vitro production systems. To evaluate the susceptibility of bovine oocytes to noncytopathogenic bovine viral diarrhea virus (ncp-BVDV), cumulus-oocyte complexes were exposed to 10(7) tissue culture-infective doses (TCID50)/mL of an ncp-BVDV strain during IVM (in vitro maturation). After that, cumulus cells and the ZP were removed by hyaluronidase and pronase treatment, respectively, and the percentages of oocytes with polar body were analyzed as a sign of nuclear maturation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFReproductive biotechnologies such as in vitro fertilization (IVF) and somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) enable improved reproductive efficiency of animals. However, the birth rate of in vitro-derived embryos still lags behind that of their in vivo counterparts. Thus, it is critical to develop an accurate evaluation and prediction system of embryo competence, both for commercial purposes and for scientific research.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Use of RNA-Seq presents unique benefits in terms of gene expression analysis because of its wide dynamic range and ability to identify functional sequence variants. This technology provides the opportunity to assay the developing embryo, but the paucity of biological material available from individual embryos has made this a challenging prospect.
Results: We report here the first application of RNA-Seq for the analysis of individual blastocyst gene expression, SNP detection, and characterization of allele specific expression (ASE).
Interspecies somatic cell nuclear transfer (iSCNT) has the potential to become a useful tool to address basic questions about the nucleus-cytoplasm interactions between species. It has also been proposed as an alternative for the preservation of endangered species and to derive autologous embryonic stem cells. Using chimpanzee/ bovine iSCNT as our experimental model we studied the early epigenetic events that take place soon after cell fusion until embryonic genome activation (EGA).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study assessed the in vivo effects of recombinant growth hormone (rGH) administration on the expression of connexin-43 (Cx43) in bovine ovarian follicles. Two independent experiments were carried out using either estrous unsynchronized or synchronized multiparous Aberdeen Angus cows. rGH-treated animals were inoculated with a single dose of hormone (500 mg, intramuscular) while control animals were inoculated with hormone diluent.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe objective of the present work is the description outbreaks caused by bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) in commercial beef cattle ranches in Argentina. Genetic affiliation and their association with the clinical manifestation were carried out with five BVDV isolates from an outbreak of mucosal disease (MD) (Outbreak #1), acute enteritis (Outbreaks #2 and #3) and generalized dermatitis (Outbreaks #4 and #5). Upon genetic analysis CP BVDV isolate of Outbreak #1 clustered to closely to BVDV Oregon (Genotype 1).
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