Improvement of beef cattle cow’s pregnancy rate using an effective dose of Galectin-1

Abstract

AbstractGalectins are mentioned in the literature as multifunctional molecules that participate in several biological processes such as adhesion, cell proliferation, and cycle, apoptosis, RNA processing, inflammatory process control, and reproductive physiological mechanisms. Galectin-1 has been referred to as a mediator involved in the prevention of early embryonic mortality in mammals. Exogenous GAL-1 (eGAL-1) can be found in Tolerana®. The objective of the study was to evaluate whether eGAL-1 can increase the pregnancy rate when used in an AI procedure (in a complementary artificial insemination procedure, using a second AI gun). The pregnancy rate was determined by the pregnancy condition through an ultrasound exam performed 25 to 35 days after the fixed-time artificial insemination (FTAI) of breeding cows (n=3,469 beef cows). The efficacy of GAL-1 was evaluated by comparing the pregnancy rate of the two groups (Treatment and Control Groups) in 107 contemporary groups (YG) established by the created statistical model. Based on the obtained results, it can be confirmed that the correct administration of a single dose of eGAL-1 can increase the probability of obtaining pregnancy in beef cows by up to 8.68% (p < 0.0001). The recommendation of the use of eGAL-1 during the FTAI procedure was reasonable in the beef cattle AI routine. On average, the complete procedure, using eGAL-1, took about 10 ± 5 seconds more time than the conventional procedure.