Melatonin Promotes Superovulation in Sika Deer (Cervus nippon)

International Journal of Molecular Sciences

Liang Wang²  Zhi-Yong Zhuo²  Wen-Qing Shi¹  Dun-Xian Tan⁴  Chao Gao²  Xiu-Zhi Tian²  Lu Zhang²  Guang-Bin Zhou³  Shi-En Zhu²  Peng Yun¹ 

[1] Animal Husbandry Station of Beijing, Beijing 100101, China; E-Mail:;Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding of the Ministry of Agriculture, National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100091, China; E-Mails:;Institute of Animal Genetics and Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, Sichuan Agricultural University (Chengdu Campus), Chengdu 611130, China; E-Mail:;Department of Cellular & Structural Biology, the UT Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA; E-Mail:

关键词: melatonin;    superovulation;    FSH;    LH;    PRL;    sika deer;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijms150712107

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

In this study, the effects of melatonin (MT) on superovulation and reproductive hormones (melatonin, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH) and PRL) were investigated in female sika deer. Different doses (40 or 80 mg/animal) of melatonin were subcutaneously implanted into deer before the breeding season. Exogenous melatonin administration significantly elevated the serum FSH levels at the time of insemination compared with levels in control animals. During superovulation, the serum LH levels in donor sika deer reached their highest values (7.1 ± 2.04 ng/mL) at the point of insemination, compared with the baseline levels (4.98 ± 0.07 ng/mL) in control animals. This high level of LH was sustained until the day of embryo recovery. In contrast, the serum levels of PRL in the 80 mg of melatonin-treated group were significantly lower than those of control deer. The average number of corpora lutea in melatonin-treated deer was significantly higher than that of the control (p < 0.05). The average number of embryos in the deer treated with 40 mg of melatonin was higher than that of the control; however, this increase did not reach significant difference (p > 0.05), which may be related to the relatively small sample size. In addition, embryonic development in melatonin-treated groups was delayed.

【 授权许可】

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© 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.