An Observation of the Microstructure of Cervical Mucus in Cows during the Proestrus, Estrus, and Metestrus Stages and the Impact on Sperm Penetration Ability
Abstract
:Simple Summary
Abstract
1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Ethics Statement
2.2. Materials
2.3. Collection of Cervical Mucus
2.4. Observation of Cervical Mucus Crystallization
2.5. Scanning Electron Microscopy Was Used to Observe the Microstructure of Cervical Mucus in Cows at Different Stages of Estrus
2.6. Study on the Sperm Penetration Ability of Cervical Mucus in Dairy Cows during Different Estrous Phases
2.7. Statistical Analysis
3. Results
3.1. Observation of Cervical Mucus Crystallization in Dairy Cows during Different Estrous Phases Using Optical Microscopy
3.2. Scanning Electron Microscopy Observation of Cervical Mucus
3.3. Statistical Results of Sperm Counts Penetrating Cervical Mucus in Dairy Cows during Proestrus, Estrus, and Metestrus
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Group | Number of Cows (Head) | Cervical Mucus Collection Volume (mL) |
---|---|---|
Proestrus | 60 (58) | 32.55 ± 6.31 b |
Estrus | 60 (57) | 59.83 ± 14.45 a |
Metestrus | 60 (57) | 27.36 ± 9.92 b |
Group | Number of Cows (Head) | Content of Different Types of Cervical Mucus (%) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
L | S | P | G | ||
Proestrus | 60 (58) | 57.36 ± 5.17 a | 19.42 ± 4.33 bc | 16.92 ± 4.27 bc | 3.55 ± 1.09 d |
Estrus | 60 (57) | 23.53 ± 4.01 bc | 55.82 ± 6.13 a | 18.94 ± 3.25 bc | 5.02 ± 1.47 d |
Metestrus | 60 (57) | 13.66 ± 3.62 c | 25.41 ± 4.89 b | 62.35 ± 5.25 a | 4.85 ± 1.57 d |
Group | Number of Cows (Head) | Pore Length of Different Types of Cervical Mucus (μm) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
L | S | P | G | ||
Proestrus | 60 (58) | 1.82 ± 0.75 c | 6.53 ± 1.94 a | 3.38 ± 0.95 bc | 0.38 ± 0.29 d |
Estrus | 60 (57) | 1.75 ± 0.86 b | 6.39 ± 2.02 a | 3.57 ± 1.05 ab | 0.42 ± 0.33 c |
Metestrus | 60 (57) | 1.79 ± 0.72 b | 6.44 ± 2.31 a | 3.42 ± 1.26 ab | 0.45 ± 0.36 c |
Group | Number of Cows (Head) | Penetrating Sperm Counts (Million/mL) |
---|---|---|
Proestrus | 60 (58) | 36 ± 5.18 c |
Estrus | 60 (57) | 68 ± 7.32 a |
Metestrus | 60 (57) | 58 ± 6.61 ab |
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Huang, F.; Zhang, L.-L.; Niu, P.; Li, X.-P.; Wang, X.-Y.; Wang, J.; Wang, J.-R.; Suo, J.-J.; Fang, D.; Gao, Q.-H. An Observation of the Microstructure of Cervical Mucus in Cows during the Proestrus, Estrus, and Metestrus Stages and the Impact on Sperm Penetration Ability. Vet. Sci. 2024, 11, 391. https://doi.org/10.3390/vetsci11090391
Huang F, Zhang L-L, Niu P, Li X-P, Wang X-Y, Wang J, Wang J-R, Suo J-J, Fang D, Gao Q-H. An Observation of the Microstructure of Cervical Mucus in Cows during the Proestrus, Estrus, and Metestrus Stages and the Impact on Sperm Penetration Ability. Veterinary Sciences. 2024; 11(9):391. https://doi.org/10.3390/vetsci11090391
Chicago/Turabian StyleHuang, Fei, Lu-Lu Zhang, Peng Niu, Xiao-Peng Li, Xue-Yan Wang, Jie Wang, Jie-Ru Wang, Jia-Jia Suo, Di Fang, and Qing-Hua Gao. 2024. "An Observation of the Microstructure of Cervical Mucus in Cows during the Proestrus, Estrus, and Metestrus Stages and the Impact on Sperm Penetration Ability" Veterinary Sciences 11, no. 9: 391. https://doi.org/10.3390/vetsci11090391