Vol. 44, No. 4, 2000
THE EEFFICIENCY OF ADMINISTERING NATURAL ANTIOXIDANT IN LATE GESTATION ON SOME METABOLIC PARAMETERS IN EWES AND THEIR LAMBS
Milad, K., Kováč, G., Reichel, P., Paulíková, I.
Department of Anatomy and Histology
University of Veterinary Medicine
Komenského 73
041 01 Košice
The Slovak Republic
This paper was originally presented at the 2nd Middle-European Congress for Buiatrics held in Stará Lesná, The High Tatras, from the 10th to 13th May 2000
Summary
The effects of the administering vitamin E and selenium during the late stage of pregnancy on serum concentrations of vitamin E and selenium in lambs before and after suckling their dams were studied. The ewe vitamin E serum-concentrations decreased at parturition in the treated and control groups. There was a decrease in the concentration of vitamin E in the treated ewes but it was not significant. The vitamin E serum-concentrations in the control group at parturition were significantly lower (p < 0.05) compared with the concentration before injection. The treatment slightly increased the vitamin E serum-concentration of newborn lambs, but when compared with the effect produced by the feeding of colostrum was considered of negligible quantity. Both groups of lambs had very low vitamin E serum-concentrations at parturition. This was linked with a lipid profile, wherein concentrations of vitamin E and cholesterol in serum were correlated. The experiment showed that the effect of suckling on cholesterol concentration was significant in both groups (p < 0.05). Vitamin E and selenium administration to pregnant ewes in late gestation increased vitamin E serum-concentration in their lambs via colostrum consumption.
Key words: sheep; natural antioxidants; blood biochemistry
References
Folia Veterinaria / 2000