Reproduction in domestic ruminants

ISBN13: 9781899043637

Every four years there is a conference on reproduction in domestic ruminants. The latest was held this August at Obihiro, which is on Hokkaido, the North Island of Japan. The accompanying book (details here) is a useful collection of reviews covering most aspects of male and female reproductive biology.

The opening chapter Ruminant phylogenetics: a reproductive biological perspective by William J. Silvia is an excellent overview that integrates molecular phylogenetics with morphology including various aspects of placentation.

There are several chapters on placentation including Early placentation and local immune regulation by Kazuhiko Imakawa and colleagues. This deals with transcriptional regulation of IFNT the gene coding for interferon-tau, which is secreted by the trophectoderm at the blastocyst stage and results in maternal regulation of pregnancy. Another topic is syncytins (previous post) in ruminants. In addition, I have contributed a chapter on Evolution of placental structure and function in ruminants.

Previous volumes in this series have appeared under the imprint of the journal Reproduction. Although the current volume conforms to that journal's format, it has been published in book form by Context. As far as I can make out, it is not possible to purchase individual chapters.