Reproduction Flashcards
Draw a mature mammary gland and label.
Alveoli
Ducts
Udder cistern
Teat cistern
Which hormones are responsible for mammary gland development?
What process is each responsible for?
- Oestrogen - increased branching and diameter
- Progesterone - alveoli formation
- Prolactin/ GH - speeds up puberty
Mammary glands are modified _________ _________.
Sweat gland
What are the main components of milk? How does colostrum differ?
Milk - water, lactose, protein, fat
Colostrum - Ig, fructose vitamin A, lactose
__ progesterone at parturition causes increased lactose synthesis due to increased ____.
What effect does this have?
Increased
Prolactin receptors.
Increased lactalbumin, the milk protein.
What is the significance of well timed milk let down at parturition?
Too early = leaking out
Too late = starving neonates
What hormone causes contraction of myoepithelial cells and milk ejection?
Oxytocin
The sucking stimulus is vital in maintenance of milk production since it…
Stimulates oxytocin and prolactin release from the pituitary gland and removes FIL
How can puberty be defined?
Male - first ejaculation
Female - maintaining pregnancy without damage/ first cycle
What hormonal changes occur at puberty?
Decreased sensitivity to negative feedback of HPA axis leads to GnRH release in pulses.
Name three factors which cause the onset of puberty.
Age
Fatness - leptin, FA’s and blood glucose
Metabolic status
Seasonality - photoperiod
Social conditions
Name four factors which can increase milk yield.
- Blood supply
- Water intake
- Suckling frequency
- Lactose - glucose (blood)
Draw and label an alveolar cell of the mammary gland
- Fat droplets
- rER/ sER - Fat products
- Golgi apparatus
- Milk - blood barrier - tight junctions
- Milk proteins
6.
What are the major componants of milk?
- Fat
- Protein
- Lactose
- Ions - Na+, K+, Cl-, Ca2+ (free/protein bound)
How does the composition of colostrum differ from that of milk?
How long should milk be witheld from human consumption after parturition?
More fat, protein and vitamin A and reduced lactose.
Immunoglobulins secreted by plasma cells.
4 days.
What are the endocrine controls of lactogenesis during late pregnancy and at parturition?
- Late pregnancy - Increased cortisol, prolactin, oestrogen and placental lactogen.
- Parturition - decreased progesterone - upregulation of prolactin receptors leads a-lactalbumin synthesis (increased milk secretion)
Why is the suckling stimulus vital for galactopoiesis? What processes does it stimulate?
- Pituitary secretion of oxytocin and prolactin
- Prolactin - maintains alveolar cell metabolism and a-lactalbumin secretion
- GH (via IGF-1) does this in ruminants
- Also required are - GH, Insulin, TH and cortisol
- Fedback inhibitor of lactation needs removing
Describe how photoperiod affects cyclicity.
Specifically in the horse and sheep.
Light meets eye - reaches ganglia cells of the eye - travels to the superior cervical ganglion - pineal gland cells - these detect melatonin levels.
Low melatonin has the following effects:
- Horse - long day breeders - kiss neurons stimulated - increased GNRH = cyclicity
- Sheep - short day breeders - kiss neurons inhibited = no cyclicity
The anterior pituitary gland secretes which hormones?
The posterior pituitary secretes which hormones?
- AntPit - FLAT PiG
- PostPit - Oxytocin and vasopressin (ADH)
What happens at puberty in the male to set off the GnRH pulse generator?
Decreased negative feedback sensitivity of testosterone to GnRH leads to LH pulses.
What does GnRH stand for and from where is it released?
Gonadotrophin releasing hormone - secreted by hypothalamus
Meiosis
PMAT - haploid chromasomes produced, genetically different cells, 4 daugter cells
Oogenesis
Primary oocyte - secondary oocyte at LH surge (puberty)
Secondary oocyte - ootid at ovulatio/fertilisation –Zygote
Follicle development
Draw and label a graafian follicle. Which hormones are secreted from which follicular layers?
- Internal layer - granulosa cells convert testosterone to oestrogen in response to FSH
- External layers - theca cells secrete testosterone
Which hormones are dominant in the follicular and luteal phases of the oestrus cycle?
Follicular = oestrogen
Luteal = progesterone
Name and describe the phases of the oestrus cycle.
Proestrus - follicular - luteolysis
Oestrus - follicular - sexually receptive
Metoestrus - luteal
Dioestrus - luteal
Describe the oestrus cycles of:
Cow, ewe, mare and sow.
Describe the difference between short and long loop negative feedback.
The last hormone in a chain of control exerts a negative feedback on the hypophysio-pituitary system = long-loop negative feedback.
Anterior pituitary hormones exert negative feedback effect on hypothalamus = short-loopnegative feedback.
Reflex Ovulator
- In the absence of coitus only have a follicular phase
- Need additional inputs to brain to induce ovulation
- GnRH pulse generator is not sensitive enough to the high oestrogen to induce an LH surge. In these animals there are additional inputs during copulation.
- Stretch inputs from vagina and sensory inputs all combine to increase GnRH.
Corpus Luteum structure and function
Secretes progesterone for the maintenance of pregnancy
Present for about 14 days after follicular phase.
Spermatogenesis
Leydig and sertoli cells are found where? What is their function?
Found in the seminiferous tubules
- Leydig - peripheral - Secrete testerone in response to LH
- Sertoli - central - Secrete inhibin and testosterone (converted to oestradiol and dihydrotestosterone) in response to FSH
What is the function of the sperm-testis barrier?
Tight junctions prevent the haploid cell coming into contact with the adults blood etc since they are considered foreign by the immune system.
How do the cells of the basal and adluminal compartments of the seminiferous tubules differ?
Basal = diploid PGC
Adluminal = haploid spermatocytes ect
What are the vital characteristics of the male endocrine system for sperm production?
- GnRH pulses every 3-6 hours
- Temperature
- LH receptors
- Testosterone in SNT’s
Describe how an erection is formed.
- Increased arterial flow
- Corporal sinusoids dilate
- venous outflow restricted
- Increased intrapenile pressure
- Retractor penis relaxes
Describe the nervous systems input into erection formation.
The PNS uses NANC neurones (NT = NO) which cause the convertion of GTP > cGMP
Once cGTP is metabolised the penis becomes flaccid.
What is the difference between emission and ejactulation?
Emission is the mixing of seminal fluid with sperm.
Ejactulation is the expulsion of fluid and sperm from the penis.
Seminal plasma is secreted by what? What are its main componants?
Secreted by epididymis and accessory glands.
Contains - fructose (energy), hormones and enzymes.
Describe the follicular waves of the oestrus cycle.
Follicular waves are stimulated by FSH, there is often more than one follicular wave since progesterone prevents full development of follicules during the luteal phase of the cycle.
Once luteolysis occurs P4 levels decrease and a dominant follicle develops which is then ovulated at the LH surge.
Why does the length of the epididymis limit a males fertility?
The available store limits the number of fertile breedings within a certain time period.
Sperm need 8-15 days to mature within the epididymis
How does the dominant follicle differ from those in previous stages of the wave?
Dominant follicles have LH receptors