1. THE EFFECTS OF DIETARY CLOVER SPECIES ON REPRODUCTION IN THE EWE LACEY BEAM DEPARTMENT OF ANIMAL SCIENCES OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY

2. BACKGROUND Escalon, CA

3. BACKGROUND SAN JOAQUIN DELTA COLLEGE 2000-2002 OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY –B.S. IN ANIMAL SCIENCE 2004 OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY – M.Ag. GRADUATE STUDENT

4. REPRODUCTION REPRODUCTIVE DIFFICULTIES IN SHEEP GRAZING CLOVER SPECIES WERE FIRST RECOGNIZED IN 1946 (Bennetts et al.) “CLOVER DISEASE” –SYNDROME OF ABNORMAL REPRODUCTIVE FUNCTIONS OF EWES GRAZING CLOVER PASTURES

5. GRAZING LEGUMES ARE A WIDELY AVAILABLE FEEDSTUFF FOR MAINTAINING RUMINANT ANIMALS SHEEP ARE A USEFUL TOOL IN A GRAZING SYSTEM –SEED TO SOIL CONTACT –CREATES MORE TILLARS –CONTROLS PLANT SIZE –INEXPENSIVE FERTILIZER –LEGUMES ARE HIGH IN CP, DIGESTIBILITY, INTAKE

6. CLOVER SPECIES SUBTERRANEAN CLOVER Trifolium subterraneum CultivarsFormononetin % DM Yarloop1.5 Dwalganup1.3 Dinninup1.2 Geraldton.9 Tallarook.8 Daliak.2 Clare.15 Trikkala.15 Seaton Park.12 Bacchus Marsh.11

7. CLOVER SPECIES RED CLOVER Trifolium pratense CultivarsFormononetin % DM Broad.99 Tetraploid.90 Morocco.14

8. PHYTOESTROGENS DEFINITION: COMPOUND THAT EXERTS ESTROGENIC EFFECTS ON THE CNS, INDUCE ESTRUS, AND STIMULATE GROWTH OF THE GENITAL TRACT OF FEMALE ANIMALS CONTAINED IN MANY LEGUMES ESTROGENIC ACTIVITY DEPENDS ON POSITION OF 2 HYDROXYL GROUPS

9. PHYTOESTROGENS PHYTOESTROGEN CONTENT VARIES BETWEEN PLANT SPECIES, AND GROWING AND HARVESTING CONDITIONS –EARLY SPRING: PLANT STRESS DUE TO CHANGES IN AVAILABLE NITROGEN OR PHOSPHORUS TEMPERATURE –DISEASE –DROUGHT –INCREASES PHYTOESTROGEN ACCUMULATION IN LEAVES

10. PHYTOESTROGENS PHYTOESTROGENS CONTAIN ESTROGENIC COMPOUNDS: COUMESTANS ISOFLAVONES LIGNANS

11. PHYTOESTROGENS COUMESTANS COUMESTROL –MOST COMMON COUMESTAN –MOST ESTROGENIC POTENCY OF ALL PHYTOESTROGENS (ADAMS, 1995a)

12. PHYTOESTROGENS ISOFLAVONES FORMONONETIN –MOST IMPORTANT ISOFLAVONE PERTAINING TO RUMINANTS –REDUCED AND DEMETHYLATED INTO THE MORE ESTRTOGENIC COMPOUND EQUOL (Lundh, 1990)

13. EQUOL MORE ESTROGENIC THAN FORMONONETIN RAPIDLY ABSORBED THROUGH RUMINAL WALL MAJOR ESTROGENIC METABOLITE THAT INITIATES ESTROGENIC EFFECTS IN SHEEP CHEMICAL STRUCTURE RESEMBLES ESTRADIOL - ALLOWS BINDING TO THE ESTROGEN RECEPTOR EquolEstradiol (Lundh, 1990)(ADAMS, 1995a)

14. RUMINANTS AND ISOFLAVONES DEGREDATION AND DETOXIFICATION OF ISOFLAVONES TAKES PLACE IN THE RUMEN RESULTING IN ESTROGENIC RUMEN CONTENTS RUMEN MICROBES BREAKDOWN ALL OTHER ISOFLAVONES INTO THEIR NONESTROGENIC METABOLITES FORMONONETIN EQUOL

15. EFFECTS ON SHEEP EWE INFERTILITY TEMPORARY : DECREASED FIRST SERVICE CONCEPTION IRREGULAR ESTRUS –DECREASED OVARIAN WEIGHTS –EXCESSIVE SMALL AND MEDIUM FOLLICLES DEFICIENT OF ANTRUM FORMATION, EARLY ATRESIA REDUCED OVULATION AND CONCEPTION RATES –REDUCED LAMBING RATES AND MULTIPLE BIRTHS

16. EFFECTS ON SHEEP PERMANENT: REPEATED GRAZING: –DECREASES RESPONSIVENESS TO ESTROGEN –BARRENNESS CERVIX- SERVES AS A RESERVOIR FOR SPERM DURING INSEMINATION AND OVULATION

17. EFFECTS ON SHEEP PROLONGED EXPOSURE TO ESTROGEN LEADS TO DEFEMINIZATION OF CERVIX –BECOMES SHORTER AND BROADER –INAPPROPRIATE MUCUS VISCOSITY UNABLE SPERM TO MIGRATE THROUGH CERVIX –LOSS OF ABILITY TO STORE SPERMATOZOA

18. MEASUREMENTS OF ESTROGENIC FEEDS UDDER DEVELOPMENT AND MILK SECRETION IN UNBRED EWES WETHERS MAY ALSO SECRETE MILK INCREASED TEAT LENGTH –DIRECTLY CORRELATED TO CONCENTRATIONS OF FORMONONETIN IN PASTURE

19. ADDITIONAL PROBLEMS DYSTOCIA UTERINE PROLAPSE ABORTIONS NEONATAL MORTALITY

20. RESEARCH RESEARCH PAPER AREAS OF INTEREST –SUBTERRANEAN CLOVER CAN ACCUMULATE UP TO 5% WEIGHT OF ISOFLAVONES –ISOFLAVONES ARE ONLY PRESENT IN GREEN CLOVER (ADAMS, 1995a) –RAPIDLY DRIED HAY MAY RETAIN ISOFLAVONE CONCENTRATIONS

21. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES –TO DEFINE RAPIDLY DRIED HAY VS. SLOWLY DRIED HAY –TO DETERMINE THE DIFFERENCES IN ISOFLAVONE LEVELS BETWEEN RAPIDLY AND SLOWLY DRIED CLOVER HAY –TO DETERMINE IF CUTTING AND HARVESTING CLOVER FOR EWE FEED HAS A NEGATIVE IMPACT ON REPRODUCTION

22. RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS –FEEDING SLOWLY DRIED CLOVER HAY TO EWES WILL HAVE LOWER CONCENTRATIONS OF ISOFLAVONES AND LESS NEGATIVE REPRODUCTIVE EFFECTS THAN THE SAME GRAZED CULTIVAR

23. EXPECTED OUTCOMES SLOWLY DRIED CLOVER HAY WILL CONTAIN LOWER LEVELS OF ISOFLAVONES THAN RAPIDLY DRIED CLOVER HAY NEGATIVE REPRODUCTIVE EFFECTS ON THE EWE SHOULD BE REDUCED COMPARED TO GRAZED GREEN CLOVER SPECIFIC EVENTS DURING THE DRYING PROCESS THAT REDUCES/ELIMINATE ISOFLAVONE CONCENTRATIONS

24. QUESTIONS? THANK YOU