Folliculogenesis, Fertility and Biotechnology in Dairy Cattle

The ovarian follicle population is formed by thousands of follicles, preantral and antral, where oocytes are included. During fetal life, the first follicles produced are preantral, and, as they undergo the development process, they reach the final stage of antral follicles, where a cavity/or antrum is developed. All this growth phase is called folliculogenesis, and this chapter will abord the most important aspects of this process. Moreover, not all follicles reach the preovulatory phase and can be fertilized, so we will discuss how reproductive biotechniques can positively influence the fertility of bovine females. We will also discuss the possibility of antral follicle count to influence reproductive performance and the correlation to biotechniques. Finally, we present alternatives on how to improve fertility and productive efficiency in dairy herds

Mining a differential sialotranscriptome of Rhipicephalus microplus guides antigen discovery to formulate a vaccine that reduces tick infestations

Abstract Background Ticks cause massive damage to livestock and vaccines are one sustainable substitute for the acaricides currently heavily used to control infestations. To guide antigen discovery for a vaccine that targets the gamut of parasitic strategies mediated by tick saliva and enables immunological memory, we exploited a transcriptome constructed from salivary glands from all stages of Rhipicephalus microplus ticks feeding on genetically tick-resistant and susceptible bovines. Results Different levels of host anti-tick immunity affected gene expression in tick salivary glands; we thus selected four proteins encoded by genes weakly expressed in ticks attempting to feed on resistant hosts or otherwise abundantly expressed in ticks fed on susceptible hosts; these sialoproteins mediate four functions of parasitism deployed by male ticks and that do not induce antibodies in naturally infected, susceptible bovines. We then evaluated in tick-susceptible heifers an alum-adjuvanted vaccine formulated with recombinant proteins. Parasite performance (i.e. weight and numbers of females finishing their parasitic cycle) and titres of antigen-specific antibodies were significantly reduced or increased, respectively, in vaccinated versus control heifers, conferring an efficacy of 73.2%; two of the antigens were strong immunogens, rich in predicted T-cell epitopes and challenge infestations boosted antibody responses against them. Conclusion Mining sialotranscriptomes guided by the immunity of tick-resistant hosts selected important targets and infestations boosted immune memory against salivary antigens