Investigating the relationship between blood parameters copper, molybdenum, iron, and estrogen with the lambing rate of laparoscopic artificial insemination of ewes in Shahrebabak County

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Hassan Rezaei 1
Seyed Morteza Aghamiri 2
Neda Eskandarzade 1
Ehsanollah Sakhaee 2
Saeed Nazifi 3
Farnoosh Bakhshaei 3
1 Department of Basic Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Kerman, Iran
2 Department of Clinical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Kerman, Iran.
3 Department of Clinical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran
10.22034/ijvcs.2024.14303.1043
Abstract
Due to the pollution from the copper smelter factory in Shahrebabak County, the dust on the plants of this area contains substantial amounts of copper, which sometimes causes copper poisoning in sheep. This study aimed to investigate the correlation of serum concentration of trace mineral elements: copper, molybdenum, and iron with the lambing rate of ewes in Shahrebabak County using laparoscopic artificial insemination. For this purpose, 500 ewes were oestrus synchronized in herds in Shahrebabak County located at various distances from the copper factory. The laparoscopic artificial insemination was performed 52±4 hours after eCG hormone injection but before the laparoscopy, serum sampling was done from 17% of the herd to assess the concentration of trace mineral elements: copper, molybdenum, and iron as well as estrogen. The results showed that the Khatoon-Abad herd with the shortest distance to the copper factory (10 km) had significantly higher levels of copper, molybdenum, and iron compared with other herds. However, there was no relationship between the concentration of copper, molybdenum, and estrogen with the lambing rate. There was a relationship between the amount of iron and the lambing rate, so the chance of fertility increased marginally with the increase in iron. Hence, the present findings indicate that the low distance of the herd from the copper factory results in high levels of copper, molybdenum, and iron in the ewe's serum; however, it has no effect on the lambing rate by laparoscopic artificial insemination. More research is needed to prove this claim.

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