Comparative evaluation of two methods of pregnancy diagnosis in dairy cattle in the East of Algeria: proteins associated with pregnancy and ultrasonography

ABSTRACT

An early and reliable diagnosis of pregnancy in cows is of considerable economic interest. It would improve the profitability of farmers by reducing the calving-calving interval and avoid any delay of fertilisation which is a cause of significant economic losses. The aim of this study is to evaluate and compare two diagnostic methods of pregnancy in cows after artificial insemination by the assay of the pregnancy-associated proteins (PAGs) and the ultrasonography. The study was carried out on 41 cows aged 3 to 6 years from the Batna region. Blood samples were collected at day (D28) post insemination. This study has shown that among the 41 cows, 25 (60.98%) were pregnant and 16 (39.02%) were not using the transrectal ultrasonography. The sensitivity and the specificity of the PAG assay were 100% and 93.75%, respectively. The specificity was 100% for the ultrasonography, and the embryonic mortalities was 2.43%. The comparative study of the two diagnostic methods of pregnancy has revealed the liability and precocity of the biochemical methods. It is necessary to sensitise inseminators and farmers to the importance of early diagnosis of pregnancy, especially by the use of PAG’s assay. It is an essential component of reproduction monitoring and an excellent indicator of early abortions.

KEYWORDS:

• Dairy cow
• PAG
• early pregnancy diagnosis

Acknowledgments

The authors are indebted to Dr Nadjib B and all the IDEXX Staff for the supply of the ELISA PAG Kit. The dairy farmers of Ain Yagout and Djerma are deeply thanked for having permitted the realisation of the present study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.