Embryonic maternal interaction in cattle and its relationship with fertility

Embryo mortality is a major contributor to poor reproductive efficiency and profitability in cattle production systems. While conception is achieved (i.e., the oocyte is fertilized) in the vast majority of cases if insemination is carried out correctly, a significant proportion of the resulting embryos fail to develop to term. Appropriate communication between the developing conceptus and the maternal endometrium is essential for the establishment and maintenance of pregnancy in all mammals. Up to the blastocyst stage, around Days 7-9, contact worth the female reproductive system is not required. However, the process of conceptus elongation after hatching and prior to implantation is entirely maternally driven and is essential to ensure that sufficient quantities of interferon-tau (IFNT) are secreted by the developing conceptus to abrogate the mechanisms that bring about luteolysis. While the importance of conceptus-derived IFNT in maternal recognition of pregnancy and prevention of luteolysis in cattle is unequivocal, many questions, such as the threshold level of IFNT required for pregnancy maintenance, remain unanswered. Furthermore, the precise role of IFNT-independent mechanisms in pregnancy establishment remains to be elucidated. Irrespective of this, failure of the conceptus to elongate undoubtedly results in embryonic loss and is thus believed to contribute greatly to reproductive failure in cattle. This review will address some of these answered questions and try to shed some light on those gaps in knowledge that could potentially contribute to improved embryo survival and reproductive efficiency.