Study of the effect of arginine injection on reproductive performance in ewes

Document Type : Scientific-Extensional Article

Author

Ph.D. Candidate of Animal Physiology, Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran

Abstract

Sheep is considered an acceptable source of tasty meat for people in Middle Eastern countries. Due to nutritional deficiencies in sheep herds, a high percentage of pregnancy failure prevents success in breeding this animal. Arginine as a supplemental nutrient in mammalian diets has been shown to play a beneficial role in fetal development due to its activation of nitric oxide (NO) and polyamines. This study aimed to investigate the effect of arginine injection on Awassi sheep reproductive performance. According to the results obtained in this study, intravenous and intramuscular injection of arginine compared to the control group had a significant effect on reproductive function (estrus time, estrus rate, fertility rate, Pregnancy rate, birth rate, twinning rate, infertility rate, survival rate, and lamb weight) and concentrations of hormones and other metabolites in ewe’s serum. Pregnancy rates in arginine injection groups (intravenous and intramuscular) and control were 71.43%, 57.14% and 42.85%, respectively. The positive effects of arginine can be due to the activity of the amino acid arginine in enhancing blood flow in the reproductive organs and thus releasing NO, which helps to dilate blood vessels and increase the speed of blood flow to the organs (increase nutrition and oxygen) be attributed. In general, injection of the amino acid arginine leads to improved reproduction and Lambing yield.

Keywords

References

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