Secretion Rates and Chemical Composition of Oviduct and Uterine Fluids in Ewes

Abstract

Oviduct and uterine fluids were collected by cannulation for 33–57 days from three nonpregnant ewes during the breeding season. Secretion rates of oviduct fluids were 1.35± 0.08 ml/24 hr from both oviducts during the 4-day period following the onset of estrus, and 0.45 ± 0.04 ml/24 hr during the remainder of the estrous cycle. Secretion rates of uterine fluids during the same two periods were 3.43 ± 1.59 and 0.59 ± 0.31 ml/2 uterine horns/24 hr, respectively. Oviduct fluids contained lower (p < .05) concentrations of dry matter, lipid choline, and glycerophosphoryl choline (GPC) diesterase activity than uterine fluids. Concentrations of protein, glucose, lactate, citrate, and lipid aldehyde did not differ significantly between the two fluids. Concentrations of lipid choline and GPC diesterases increased (p < .05) near estrus in oviduct and uterine fluids. Concentrations of other components did not vary widely between the stages of the estrous cycle, even though secretion rates changed markedly.