Comparative intrafollicular and plasma iron, ferritin, and transferrin concentrations in cycling mares

Vet World Vol.17 October-2024 Article - 20

Research Article

Veterinary World, 17(10): 2370-2375

https://doi.org/10.14202/vetworld.2024.2370-2375

Katiuska Satué¹, Esterina Fazio², Gemma Velasco-Martinez¹, Cristina Cravana², Deborah La Fauci², and Pietro Medica²

1. Department of Animal Medicine and Surgery, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, CEU-Cardenal Herrera University, Tirant lo Blanc, 7, Alfara del Patriarca, 46115 Valencia, Spain.
2. Department of Veterinary Sciences, Veterinary Physiology Unit, University of Messina Polo Universitario Annunziata, Via Palatucci 13, 98168 Messina, Italy.

Background and Aim: In females of various species and experimental animals, iron (Fe) status in follicular fluid (FF) is associated with local physiological reproductive events related to follicle development, steroidogenesis, and oocyte maturation. However, these mechanisms remain unknown. This study aimed to determine and compare the intrafollicular and plasma concentrations of Fe, ferritin (Ferr), and transferrin (TRF) in cycling mares.

Materials and Methods: Sixty ovaries were collected during the breeding season from 30 clinically normal mares raised for slaughterhouse meat production. Blood samples were collected before slaughter. Follicles were classified into three categories according to size: Small (20–30 mm; n = 20), medium (≥31–40 mm; n = 20), and large (≥41 mm; n = 20). The FF samples, after collection, were immediately taken to the laboratory for processing and were centrifuged, and the Fe and Ferr concentrations in the supernatant and plasma were determined by spectrophotometry.

Results: Although intrafollicular Fe and Ferr were similar to plasma, TRF was significantly higher in FF than in systemic circulation (p < 0.05). Follicular development does not modify the status of Fe in the mare.

Conclusion: Based on this evidence, it is possible that the acquisition of this molecule possibly originated from a local de novo source, whereas their diffusion through ultrafiltration does not play a relevant role. These results provide new scientific insights into the status of follicle Fe, suggesting its involvement in normal ovarian functions in mares.

Keywords: ferritin, follicular fluid, iron, mare, transferrin.

How to cite this article: Satué K, Fazio E, Velasco-Martinez G, Cravana C, La Fauci D, and Medica P (2024) Comparative intrafollicular and plasma iron, ferritin, and transferrin concentrations in cycling mares, Veterinary World, 17(10): 2370–2375.

Received: 2024-07-24 Accepted: 2024-09-19 Published online: 2024-10-27

Corresponding author: Pietro Medica E-mail: pmedica@unime.it

DOI: 10.14202/vetworld.2024.2370-2375

Copyright: Satué, et al. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/ publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.