Semen quality in a Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) in relation to estrus of a nearby resident female panda

Tsutsui, Toshihiko; Hori, Tatsuya; Nakashige, T.; Narushima, Etsuo; Hara, Tatsuko; Akikawa, Takako; Nose, N.; Saito, Kazuki; Shichiri, Shigemi; Hashizaki, Fumitaka; Komiya, Teruyuki

doi:10.1016/j.theriogenology.2006.01.014

Cited by 8 publications

(8 citation statements)

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“…(2002) studied serum concentrations of testosterone, which showed that they are three times greater in April than in May, June and October. Tsutsui et al. (2006) determined that plasma concentrations of testosterone in giant panda bears are markedly lower after the oestrus period in comparison with those observed before and during the oestrus.…”

Section: Challenges In Obtaining and Working With Brown Bear Electroementioning

confidence: 95%

Sperm Cryopreservation in Brown Bear (Ursus arctos): Preliminary Aspects

Anel

Álvarez

Martínez‐Pastor³

et al. 2008

Reprod Domestic Animals

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The development of sperm cryopreservation procedures in brown bear is the basis for establishing a specific genetic resource bank aimed at the preservation of a Cantabric brown bear population, which is seriously threatened. Several issues complicate the development of these cryopreservation procedures: lack of previous specific studies, a high incidence of urospermia and spermagglutination observed in bear ejaculates. Moreover, the availability of individuals for research from these threatened populations is problematic. In the case of the Cantabric brown bear, we have used males from other populations, but of the same species, as surrogates, to carry out a direct extrapolation of the results. Urospermia-- Moreover, 70% of the ejaculates are urine contaminated and spermagglutination have a detrimental effect on post-thawing cell quality recovery in this species. Considering the high value of these samples (autochthonous population with few individuals), a pre-selection of the ejaculates is not a viable alternative. Preventive methods reducing the mentioned detrimental effects need to be developed. On the basis of previous data, we can suppose that bear spermatozoa resist freezing injuries well. Nevertheless, because of the scarcity of this information, it is necessary to conduct further research on bear semen freezing under field conditions. Epidydimal spermatozoa can be important for genetic resource banking of threatened populations and thus specific cryobiological protocols need to be assayed. To date, 168 brown bear ejaculates have been frozen by the ITRA-ULE group at the University of León (Spain) in the development of methodologies for the preservation of brown bear sperm.

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Section: Challenges In Obtaining and Working With Brown Bear Electroementioning

confidence: 95%

Sperm Cryopreservation in Brown Bear (Ursus arctos): Preliminary Aspects

Anel

Álvarez

Martínez‐Pastor³

et al. 2008

Reprod Domestic Animals

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“…Giant pandas have a promiscuous mating system and male ranges overlap the smaller, more concentrated core areas of females [11]. Beginning in November, males start to roam persistently and testosterone levels are elevated at least three months prior to oestrus [11,12]. Males monitor the location of other males, females and communal scent-marking locations during this period.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sex differences in spatial ability: a test of the range size hypothesis in the order Carnivora

et al. 2011

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Sex differences in spatial cognition have been reported for many species ranging from voles to humans. The range size hypothesis predicts that sex differences in spatial ability will only occur in species in which the mating system selects for differential range size. Consistent with this prediction, we observed sex differences in spatial ability in giant pandas, a promiscuous species in which males inhabit larger ranges than females, but did not observe sex differences in Asian small-clawed otters, a related monogamous species in which males and females share home ranges. These results provide the first evidence of sex differences in spatial ability in the order Carnivora, and are consistent with the range size hypothesis.

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“…The total volume of the semen ejaculated from multiple electric stimulations was about 7 ml [12]. In natural mating, ejaculation may occur in the vaginal vestibule before the pseudocervix, and the structure of the pseudocervix suggests that a large volume of semen is lost before it reaches the external uterine orifice.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Semen collection: Under general anesthesia, semen was collected from the male using the electrical stimulation method [12]. Anesthesia was induced using diazepam (HORIZON ® , 0.2 mg/kg/im; Yamanouchi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan) and ketamine hydrochloride (KET-ALAR ® 50, 8.0 mg/kg/im; Sankyo Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan) and was maintained by inhalation of isoflurane (ISOFLU ® , Dainippon Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Osaka, Japan).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The ejaculated semen was collected into a warmed semen-sampling bottle, and a semen quality test was immediately performed. In the semen quality test, the percentage of progressive motile spermatozoa (sperm motility) and viable spermatozoa (sperm viability), incidence of morphologically abnormal spermatozoa (sperm abnormality), and total number of sperm were measured [12].…”

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A Trial of Intrauterine Insemination Using a Fiberscope in the Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca)

Hori

Hashizaki

Narushima

et al. 2006

The Journal of Veterinary Medical Science

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ABSTRACT. An intrauterine insemination technique using a fiberscope was investigated in the giant panda. A septal wall was present about 5 cm from the vulva, the external urethral orifice was present in the ventral region, and the entrance (pseudocervix) to the vagina was present in the dorsal region. The uterovaginal region protruded in the dorsal region about 15 cm from the pseudocervix. The external uterine orifice was present in the uterovaginal region, revealing that intrauterine insemination can be easily performed. This technique may greatly contribute to artificial reproduction of the giant panda. KEY WORDS: fiberscope, giant panda, intrauterine insemination.J. Vet. Med. Sci. 68(9): 987-990, 2006 The giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca: G. panda) is an endangered species, and many efforts are being made to conserve this animal. Ueno Zoo (Tokyo, Japan) started a raising and reproduction program for G. pandas in 1972, and 3 births were obtained by AI in 1985AI in , 1986AI in , and 1988. All were obtained by intravaginal insemination using bovine insemination equipment. However, no conceptions have been achieved since then.Artificial insemination (AI) is divided into intrauterine and intravaginal based on the site of semen infusion, and the number of sperm required to obtain conception by these methods is markedly different. For example, in beagles, 2 × 10 8 sperms are required for intravaginal insemination, but only 1/10 of this, or 2 × 10 7 sperms, is required for intrauterine insemination [14]. The number of sperm required for intrauterine insemination is 1/5 of that required for intravaginal insemination in cats [11,13]. In frozen semen, sperm motility markedly decreases and survival time shortens after thawing [8][9][10]. For efficient usage of sperm in an endangered species, establishment of an effective intrauterine insemination technique is urgently needed.There is very little information on the intravaginal structure of living G. pandas. A narrow region is present about 5 cm from the vulva, and the vagina is located in the inner part, but it cannot be visually confirmed because of the body shape of the animal. Development of intrauterine insemination using a laparoscope is underway for animals in which transvaginal intrauterine insemination is not applicable [4]. However, this method requires an incision in the abdominal wall and takes time for insemination. Thus, development of a non-invasive intrauterine insemination technique is necessary for rare animals including the G. panda.The objective of this study was to clarify the fiberscopic anatomical characteristics of the vaginal cavity, which is the region from the vulva to the external uterine orifice, and investigate the development of a transvaginal intrauterine insemination technique using a fiberscope for efficient usage of G. panda sperm.Animals: A female G. panda that had been maintained in Mexico (Chpultepec Zoo) was transferred to Ueno Zoo for AI. The animal was 16 years of age, and 130 kg in weight. Semen was collected from a 19-yea...

show abstract

Semen quality in a Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) in relation to estrus of a nearby resident female panda

Cited by 8 publications

References 5 publications

Sperm Cryopreservation in Brown Bear (Ursus arctos): Preliminary Aspects

Sperm Cryopreservation in Brown Bear (Ursus arctos): Preliminary Aspects

Sex differences in spatial ability: a test of the range size hypothesis in the order Carnivora

A Trial of Intrauterine Insemination Using a Fiberscope in the Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca)

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