Summary: This study is a comparative analysis of the biochemical, hormonal, and mineral compositions of follicular fluid in preovulatory and cystic follicles of water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis). In total, reproductive tracts from 215 buffalo along with intact ovaries were collected randomly from an abattoir. The incidence of cystic conditions found in this study was 3.72% (8/215), involving the right ovary in 62.5% of instances and the left ovary in 37.5% of instances during the non-breeding season. Follicular fluid was aspirated from preovulatory follicles (12–15 mm diameter, oestrogen-active, follicular phase or stage IV corpus luteum on one of the two ovaries, n = 10) and cystic follicles (at least 20 mm diameter, no corpus luteum on any one of the two ovaries, n = 8). The follicular fluid samples were assayed for biochemical components (uric acid, creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, cholesterol, total protein, glucose, ascorbic acid, and alkaline phosphatase), hormones (progesterone, estradiol, and insulin), and minerals (calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, copper, zinc, and cobalt). Cystic follicles had greater (P < 0.05) concentrations of creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, cholesterol, progesterone, copper, zinc, and cobalt, and lesser (P < 0.05) concentrations of uric acid, glucose, ascorbic acid, estradiol, insulin, calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus compared with preovulatory follicles. These results indicated the marked differences in follicular fluid composition between preovulatory and cystic follicles in buffalo. Some of the changes were indicative of oxidative stress and disturbed steroidogenesis, two important mechanisms shown to be associated with cystic ovarian disease in various species. Further studies are warranted to investigate whether these differences are directly or indirectly involved in the formation of cystic follicles or are mere manifestations of the condition.

Many agricultural crops at global level are exposed to numerous abiotic stresses such as extremely high or low temperature, salinity, drought, acidic soils, and metal toxicity. Depending on the type of crop, such abiotic stresses result in yield losses in tune of 50 to 82%. It is widely recognized that microbes perform crucial roles in biogeochemical cycling; the impact of microbes on plant productivity and diversity is still need to understand. The role of microbial inoculants in plant growth promotion, nutrient management and disease control is very well studied. These bene?cial microorganisms colonize the rhizosphere /endorhizosphere of plants and promote growth of the plants through various direct and indirect mechanisms. Microorganisms could play a significant role in this respect; if suitably exploit their unique properties of tolerance to extremities. It is therefore, very essential to explore the soil microbial diversity and the various modes of actions involved in direct and indirect plant growth promotion and develop consortium of two or more phyto-beneficial microbes to attain maximum benefits from microbial inoculation. The present review article provides concise updated information on Phyto-beneficial microbial inoculants in food production system especially horticultural crops.

The study aimed to evaluate the effect of antral follicle count (AFC) on follicular and luteal development during the estrous cycle and superovulatory period, as well as on superovulatory response and in vivo embryo quality within the MOET program. A total of 48 estrus-induced (500 μg PGF2α, Single dose, IM) Sahiwal cows (Bos indicus) with a BCS between 3.5 and 4.0 were selected for the study. On the day of wave emergence, the animals were divided into two groups based on the AFC, i.e., low AFC (≤18) and high AFC (>18). Both the groups were monitored daily using B-mode ultrasonography (USG) for one cycle, and the superovulation protocol was initiated on the 9th day of the subsequent estrous cycle. A total of 240 μg of FSH in eight divided doses were given in a tapering sequence for 4 days and simultaneous administration of 500 μg PGF2α, along with the fifth dose of FSH. Donors were inseminated at superovulatory estrus using double straws of high-quality frozen semen thrice at 12-h intervals, and non-surgical flushing was performed on day 7 of the superovulatory estrus followed by embryo searching and evaluation under a stereo zoom microscope. Ovulatory waves of the high-AFC Sahiwal cows have significantly (p ≤ 0.05) larger sizes of preovulatory follicles (POF) (12.06 ± 0.19 mm vs 11.56 ± 0.16 mm) and corpus luteum (CL) (19.57 ± 0.28 mm vs 18.26 ± 0.35 mm), as compared to low AFC. The ovarian size was significantly (p < 0.0001) larger in cows with high AFC during the superovulatory protocol. The number of large, medium, and small follicles was significantly (p < 0.0001) high on the day of superovulatory estrus (SOE), PGF2α administration, and initiation of superovulatory protocol, respectively, in high AFC. Donors with high AFC had a notably greater (p < 0.0001) count of CL and embryos retrieved per flushing, including excellent and fair-quality embryos. A strong association (p < 0.0001) between high AFC and ovarian size (r = 0.9136), superovulatory response (r = 0.9350), and embryo quality (x² = 8.788; p = 0.032) and number (r = 0.9858) were also recorded. Based on these results, AFC is considered a dependable indicator for forecasting reproductive capacity. Bos indicus donors with an average AFC of 30 or higher are recommended.

Summary: The study was conducted on indigenous Tharparkar cow (Bos indicus) to evaluate FSH stimulation on follicular attributes, oocyte recovery and morpho-molecular developmental competence parameters concerning oocyte quality. A total of 20 OPU sessions were performed, which included 10 sessions in each FSH stimulated at the dose of 130 µg divided into four sub-doses and non-stimulated. Findings on the size of follicles having ≥6 mm showed a significantly higher, however an opposite trend was observed in the case of smaller sized follicle (<6 mm) between stimulated and non-stimulated respectively. The stimulated cows had a significantly higher number as well as the percentage of oocytes of Grade A, having a diameter ≥120 µm and BCB^+VE as compared to the non-stimulated cows. The relative mRNA expression profile of GDF9, BMP15, PCNA and BCL-2 genes was higher and BAX was lower in the FSH-stimulated cow. These results indicated that FSH stimulation before OPU in Bos indicus cows has a significant impact on follicle size, oocyte yield, recovery, and their quality with respect to COC’s, diameter and BCB^+VE oocytes. Further, a significant increase in the relative mRNA expression levels of GDF9, BMP15 and PCNA genes in the FSH-stimulated group suggests that FSH plays a key role in modulating the expression of these important candidate genes and thus influencing oocyte quality. The higher mRNA expression of BCL-2 genes and concomitantly lower expression of BAX gene in FSH Stimulated cows indicates the protective role of these genes and preventing programmed cell death and thus promoting cell survival, quality and embryo development.

The study was conducted at the Referral Veterinary Polyclinic (VGO-OPD), ICAR–Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI), Izatnagar, Uttar Pradesh, India during 2023–2024 to determine whether Doppler-based uterine hemodynamic indices can objectively differentiate the vascular alterations associated with clinical metritis in early-postpartum buffaloes and to evaluate their normalization following therapeutic recovery. The study characterized uterine vascular dynamics in pluriparous buffaloes diagnosed with clinical metritis within 21 days postpartum using transrectal color and spectral Doppler ultrasonography. Ten affected animals were evaluated, and Doppler indices of the middle uterine artery viz. resistance index (RI), pulsatility index (PI), time-averaged maximum velocity (TMAX), arterial diameter, and blood flow volume (BFV) were recorded before and after therapeutic intervention consisting of ceftiofur, flunixin meglumine, uterine lavage, and supportive therapy. During the disease phase, RI and PI were significantly reduced (p<0.05), while TMAX, BFV, and arterial diameter were significantly increased (p<0.05), indicating uterine vasodilation and hyper perfusion associated with inflammation. All vascular parameters gradually returned toward baseline values following clinical recovery, reflecting restoration of vascular tone. Correlation analysis revealed a strong positive association between RI and PI (r=0.63, p<0.05) and a negative association between RI and BFV (r=-0.45, p<0.05), consistent with expected hemodynamic responses.