Investigating reproductive organ blood flow and blood perfusion to ensure healthy offspring

Authors: LEMLEY, CALEB - Mississippi State University

Submitted to: Animal Frontiers
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/18/2017
Publication Date: 7/6/2017
Citation: Lemley, C.O. 2017. Investigating reproductive organ blood flow and blood perfusion to ensure healthy offspring. Animal Frontiers. 7(3):18-24.

Interpretive Summary: This review article summarizes several years of research, including our own work, investigating non-invasive techniques to determine blood flow and blood perfusion through the reproductive tract of livestock species. We summarize our current research with Doppler ultrasonography techniques to monitor uterine artery blood flow in models of developmental programming. These techniques can be used to determine negative impacts on fetal well-being. Importantly, these techniques can be used to identify therapeutic supplements to negate specific insults during pregnancy, which can have lifelong consequences to the offspring.

Technical Abstract: Irrespective of an animal’s genetics, an environmental stimulus or insult during critical periods of development can program lifelong production characteristics of an animal. Several environmental factors have been shown to negatively impact placenta development and blood flow during the pregnancy, all of which can hinder offspring health and vigor. Doppler ultrasonography and laser Doppler perfusion techniques can increase our understanding of blood flow and blood perfusion of the reproductive tract in association with fertility and developmental programming. Elucidating the consequences of specific hormonal supplements on the continual plasticity of placental functional capacity will allow us to determine important endogenous mediators of offspring growth and development.