~ 1618 ~ Journal of Pharmacognosy and Phytochemistry 2018; 7(2): 1618-1621 E-ISSN: 2278-4136 P-ISSN: 2349-8234 JPP 2018; 7(2): 1618-1621 Received: 09-01-2018 Accepted: 10-02-2018 Ashish Lakhera Department of Veterinary Gynecology and Obstetrics, College of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, NDVSU, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India Nitin Bajaj Department of Veterinary Gynecology and Obstetrics, College of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, NDVSU, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India SK Jain Department of Veterinary Gynecology and Obstetrics, College of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, NDVSU, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India Brejesh Singh Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, NDVSU, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India Amir Amin Sheikh Department of Veterinary Physiology and Biochemistry, College of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, NDVSU, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India Rakshanda Bhagat Division of Veterinary Medicine, F.V.Sc and A.H., Sher-e- Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Jammu, RS. Pura, Jammu, Jammu Kashmir, India Correspondence Ashish Lakhera Department of Veterinary Gynecology and Obstetrics, College of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, NDVSU, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India Salvaging the reproductive potential of culled cows by In-vivo ovum pick up technique Ashish Lakhera, Nitin Bajaj , SK Jain, Brejesh Singh, Amir Amin Sheikh and Rakshanda Bhagat Abstract The genetic potential of cows can be harvested by recent techniques like ultrasound guided ovum-pickup technique (In-vivo) and aspiration of oocytes from (SO) slaughter house ovaries (In-vitro) and subsequently production of embryo by IVF for transfer. However Unproductive, infertile or sterile genetically superior cows are regularly culled at farms. These cows do not have any commercial value and are ultimately sent to gaushalas. The aim of the present research was to study the maturation potential of immature oocytes recovered in vivo from unproductive cows by ultrasound guided ovum- pickup technique (OPU). Keywords: OPU: ultrasound guided ovum-pickup technique, SO: Slaughter house ovaries Introduction Each ovary contains thousands of oocytes at birth, most are lost through atresia. This tremendous loss of genetic material could be reduced by harvesting oocytes from the ovary using ovum pick-up techniques [1] . With the initiation of in vitro fertilization (IVF) programs, a need of good quality oocytes have increased, the ability to produce oocytes from genetically valuable donors in a safe, repeatable manner would broaden the application of in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedure for beef and dairy cattle industry. Traditionally, oocytes for IVF are obtained from slaughterhouse ovaries. The ovaries being collected at slaughter and transported to the laboratory. Follicles of 2 to 8 mm size on the ovarian surface are punctured for oocytes collection and culture in maturation medium, The main disadvantage of this technique is the lack of repeatability in genetically superior donors as there can be no further collection of oocytes once the cow has been slaughtered, Moreover cow slaughter is banned in india except in few states. Hence, numerous researchers have looked for alternative techniques to retrieve oocytes from living animal. A breakthrough was achieved with the adoption of human transvaginal ultrasound scanning procedures for ovum pick-up (OPU) in bovines. This technique is less traumatic for the animals and less invasive than other systems [1] . It has evolved as a valuable technology in breeding programmes because it can be applied to cattle in different reproductive stages and has been successfully applied in cycling, pregnant, senescent animals, and also in prepubertal calves. Harvesting of oocytes by OPU for in vitro embryo production has been a routine practice in advanced countries since its advent in 1996 [2] . However, in India, only few institutes have initiated the use of OPU technology with varying success [3] . Material and Methods Apparently four healthy culled crossbred cows, reared under standard managemental conditions, maintained at College of Veterinary Science and A.H., Livestock Farm, Adhartal, Jabalpur comprised of the experimental animals for the present study. The cows with regular ovarian cyclicity and apparently normal genetalia and ovaries with no adhesion were selected for the study and their detailed reproductive history was recorded from the farm records. Before the cows were subjected to OPU session, the internal genitalia were palpated and their reproductive status was ascertained. The detailed history of individual cow and reasons for culling has been recorded. Initiation of new cycle prior to OPU The donors were synchronized with two prostaglandin F 2 α (25 mg) treatment at 11-day interval. Ultrasound-guided ovum pick-up was performed 24 hours after the last PGF 2 α injection. OPU was repeated once a week for four consecutive weeks followed by three weeks rest. OPU was then repeated twice weekly at three days interval for four consecutive weeks.