Benefit of oxytocin released by cervix stimulation in Mexican Holstein cattle

Ricardo Morales; Marco Antonio Criollo; Mirvana Gonzalez; Gerardo Medina; Olga Maritza Manríquez; Victor Manuel Gonzalez; Carlos Villa-Angulo

doi:10.5455/javar.2020.g458

Benefit of oxytocin released by cervix stimulation in Mexican Holstein cattle

J Adv Vet Anim Res. 2020 Oct 1;7(4):608-613. doi: 10.5455/javar.2020.g458. eCollection 2020 Dec.

Authors

Ricardo Morales¹, Marco Antonio Criollo¹, Mirvana Gonzalez², Gerardo Medina³, Olga Maritza Manríquez³, Victor Manuel Gonzalez³, Carlos Villa-Angulo¹

Affiliations

¹ Laboratory of Bioinformatics and Biofotonics, Engineering Institute, Autonomous University of Baja California, Mexicali, B.C., México.
² Laboratory Biomechanics, Faculty of Sports, Autonomous University of Baja California, Mexicali, B.C., México.
³ Institute for Research in Veterinary Science, Autonomous University of Baja California, Mexicali, B.C., México.

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this research is to investigate the relationship level of oxytocin released and the tactile stimulation of the cervix in Holstein cattle from the northwestern arid regions in México.

Materials and methods: The cervixes of 10 Holstein Friesian dairy cows in mid-lactation were manually stimulated for 60 sec. Oxytocin released in the blood was analyzed before and after stimulation. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used in the analysis to make oxytocin detectable by spectrometry techniques and by converting the luminescence absorbance of each sample into pg per mol.

Results: The study revealed that tactile stimulation of the cervix increased oxytocin levels. The highest increase in oxytocin level was 10,940.8222 pg/mol, while the lowest increase in oxytocin level was 1,830.94254 pg/mol. Besides, the milk production by tactile stimulation of the cervix had a higher milk yield and a p-value of 9.4 × 10^-4 (p < 0.05) in comparison to the monthly average without tactile stimulation.

Conclusion: Tactile stimulation of the cervix activates the Ferguson reflex and increases the oxytocin released in the blood and increases the milk released from the alveolar glands.

Keywords: Cervix stimulation; Ferguson; Holstein cattle; milk production; reflex.