EARLY EFFECT OF CONCEPTUS ON PLASMA PROGESTERONE LEVEL IN THE COW

Abstract

Progesterone levels in jugular venous blood are being measured by us in cycling (unmated) and inseminated (pregnant or non-pregnant) cows as part of a comparative study of cows with normal and difficult breeding histories. Hawk, Wiltbank, Kidder & Casida (1955) reported a high incidence of embryonic death in cows during the period 16 to 25 days after insemination. The 3rd week of gestation may indeed be a critical phase in the regulation of luteal function, since towards the end of this week regression of the corpus luteum normally occurs in the absence of a conceptus. This note records that in a herd of normal Friesian cattle with a cycle length of 21·2 days±1·5 s.d. the presence of a conceptus in the uterus first exerted a significant