No abstract

The IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria were applied to 845 reef-building coral species, comprised of 827 zooxanthellate coral species (Order Scleractinia), and 18 species from the families Helioporidae, Tubiporidae and Milleporidae. The vast majority of coral species were assessed under Criterion A, which is based on population reduction. Six species were assessed under Criterion B, which is based on geographic range size, and is relevant for species with smaller distributions and with a few or highly fragmented populations. Three species were assessed under Criterion D, which is only used for species with very small or restricted populations. No Criteria were applied to the 141 species that were listed as Data Deficient, due to taxonomic discrepancies or to insufficient information on distribution or life history traits for further assessment. Application of Criterion ACriterion A is based on rates of population reduction measured over the longer of 10 years or three generation lengths. The IUCN definition of generation length is the average age of parents or mature individuals of the current cohort of newborn individuals (IUCN 2000). The use of generation length as a timeframe to measure population reduction accounts for the reproductive capacity and life span of each species and acts THE IUCN RED LIST OF THREATENED SPECIES™

The concentrations of androstenedione, estradiol-17β, progesterone and PGF2α contained in the follicular fluid produced by the follicles in collected ovaries of mares that have had estrous phase during the breeding season were measured and analyzed the relation between the growth stage of follicles and the hormone levels in the follicular fluid. An ultrasonographic diagnostic instrument was used to measure the diameter of the follicles in order to categorize the follicles into three groups the following: 8 small follicles (from 1.0 to less than1.5 cm), 8 medium follicles (from 1.5 to less than 3.0 cm), and 8 large follicles (from 3.0 to 5.0 cm), respectively. The analysis of the follicular fluid in ovaries of estrous mares showed that the concentrations of androstenedione were significantly higher in the medium or large follicles than in the small follicles and the concentrations of estradiol-17β were significantly higher in larger follicles than in the small or medium follicles (P<0.05). The concentrations of progesterone and PGF2α, on the other hand, did not significantly vary regardless of follicluar size. In the follicles within the mare ovaries that have had estrous stage, the concentrations of the hormones related the ovulation, namely androstenedione and estradiol-17β, were higher with larger follicles.

ABSTRACT. The morphology of spermatozoa of modern Thoroughbred stallions in Japan was investigated during the breeding season. A total of 299 semen samples were collected from the penises of 16 stallions immediately after service. The rate of abnormalities in sperm heads and tails, spermatozoa with cytoplasmic droplets and slides with medusa cells to total observed slides in each stallion were 3.9 ± 2.1%, 11.5 ± 5.9%, 2.4 ± 2.6% and 20.1%, respectively. The values for the area, length, width and aspect ratio of the stallion sperm head were 12.54 ± The breeding stallion for Thoroughbred racehorses is prized for the chance of siring future champions. The number and quality of his prodigy depend, however, on the quality of his spermatozoa. Morphological features of the spermatozoa provide useful criterion for assessing the quality of semen and clinical value for informing veterinary decisions [6]. Jasko et al. reported that the rate of spermatozoa with normal morphology correlates positively with the rate of fertility [16]. Wide variation in the size and shape of spermatozoa occurs in virtually all mammalian species, however, and an abundance of abnormalities can be found. The sperm head has been reported to be larger in semen taken from subfertile stallions than in that from fertile stallions [6,14]. The converse has also been reported [17], and variations in size of the sperm head have been attributed to the staining methods of the studies [4,5,15,22]. The staining method has also influenced the ratio of morphologically abnormal spermatozoa to the total sperm count [18,21]. These problems remain unsolved.For a popular stallion, the number of services may exceed 200 in a single breeding season. A previous study showed in Thoroughbreds engaged in five services every hour that, in spite of decreases in volume, number or concentration of spermatozoa, sperm viability was not different in the ejaculation repeats [23].The morphology of the spermatozoa has not been investigated in Thoroughbred stallions during the breeding season in Japan. We hypothesized that if the ejaculated semen could be examined from time to time throughout the breeding season, the semen would exhibit morphological differences and allow clarification of abnormalities in the spermatozoa produced during that critical period in the work of the stallions. Morphological data on semen ejaculated throughout the breeding season would provide a reference index for judging the normal morphology of spermatozoa to estimate reproductive activity at copulation. To clarify the morphology of spermatozoa from Thoroughbred stallions servicing a large number of mares during the breeding season, in the present study we examined spermatozoa collected from the semen remaining in the urethra of the penis immediately after the stallion dismounted from servicing since sperm head measurements from dismount semen are representative of those of the ejaculate [13].The study was comprised 16 Thoroughbred stallions in Hokkaido within age range of 4 to 15 (mean ± SD, 8.9 ± 3.2) y...

A total of 88 thoroughbred mares were diagnosed with clinical ovarian quiescence and subjected to four treatment regimens. Using PMSG, hCG or combinations of both. A high dose combination of 5,000IU PMSG with 5,000IU hCG showed significantly higher rates of marked estrus and ovulation induction (P<0.01) as well as conception rates (P<0.05). In the present study, the administration of a high-dose combination of PMSG with hCG was shown to be an effective treatment of ovarian quiescence in light mares.