Effects of pre- and post-mating nutritional status on hepatic function, progesterone concentration, uterine protein...

This experiment examined whether the pre- or the post-mating diet had greater impact on embryo survival in Meishan gilts. Gilts received either a maintenance (1.15 kg day(-1); n = 12) or a high (3.5 kg day(-1); n = 12) diet during the oestrous cycle preceding mating. After mating, half the animals in each group received either the maintenance or the high diet until slaughter on Day 12. Gilts fed the high pre-mating diet had more corpora lutea (22.7 v. 19.0, SED = 0.98; P<0.001), increased embryo survival (95.5% v. 74.8%, SED = 7.58; P<0.01) and heavier corpora lutea (-0.71 log g v. -0.90 log g, SED = 0.09; P = 0.07) compared with gilts fed the maintenance diet prior to mating. The post-mating diet had no effect on embryo survival. There were no treatment effects on blastocyst developmental stage, luteal surface area or progesterone release. Gilts receiving the high post-mating diet had heavier livers than those fed the maintenance post-mating diet (1.45 v 1.08% of total bodyweight, SED = 0.07; P<0.001), suggesting that these gilts have a greater capacity to metabolize progesterone. Pre-mating nutritional status therefore appears to be a greater determinant of embryo numbers and survival than the post-mating diet.