The cow as an induced ovulator: timed AI after synchronization of ovulation

Timed-AI after synchronization of ovulation has become one of the most used reproductive technologies developed during the past 40 years. Various adaptations of this technology are now extensively used worldwide, in the beef and dairy cattle industry. Our well-cited report, published in Theriogenology in 1995, presented a method termed Ovsynch, that used GnRH and PGF2α to perform synchronization of ovulation and timed AI in lactating dairy cows. This report introduced Ovsynch, more as a concept of induced ovulation, and demonstrated the ovarian dynamics during the protocol. Validation and improvements on this method were subsequently performed in numerous university studies and on commercial dairies, worldwide. This review will provide a brief historical background, some personal recollections, and certain modifications that have been made in synchronization of ovulation protocols. Each section emphasizes the physiology that underlies the most widely-used synchronization of ovulation protocols and key modifications and some practical application of these protocols on commercial operations. Finally, the effect of timed AI in the US dairy industry and in the Brazilian beef cattle industry are compared. Although numerous studies have been done using these protocols, there is still substantial need for research to improve the synchronization, efficacy, simplicity, and practical application of these protocols.