Oocyte recovery and in vitro embryo production in cows treated with a single dose of follicle-stimulating hormone

Cows were treated with follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) in a single dose and then subjected to ovum pick-up (OPU) for evaluation of oocyte recovery and in vitro fertilization (IVF). Cows underwent OPU followed by application of FSH (200 mg) on day 2 and new OPU on day 3. This methodology was repeated 3 times sequentially. In FSH-free the cows (control), OPU was performed at intervals of one week The number of oocytes recovered was higher in the control cows (22.2 +/- 1.5) compared to the treated cows (16.9 +/- 1.4; P < 0.05). There was no difference between the control (13.2 +/- 0.6) and the treated (11.2 +/- 1.1) cows in the number of viable oocytes (P > 0.05). There was no difference between the control cows (47.1 +/- 4.2%) and the treated cows (45.3 +/- 7.7%) with respect to the percentage of embryos (P > 0.05). There were no differences in pregnancy for the blastocysts between the control and the treated cows (50.0 +/- 2.1 and 47.3 +/- 2.5%; P > 0.05), respectively. In conclusion, the single-dose FSH protocol did not significantly alter the evaluated results of viable oocytes, in vitro production of embryos, or pregnancy percentage. However, there is a possibility of several consecutive OPU/IVF sessions every three days.