Daily changes in the curved crown-rump length of individual sheep fetuses during the last 60 days of pregnancy and effects of different levels of maternal nutrition.

Abstract

A method is described by which daily changes in the curved crown-rump length (CRL) of individual sheep fetuses were observed during the last 50 to 60 days of pregnancy. The mean discrepancy between the derived value for CRL and the CRL measured directly in eight fetuses aged between 100 and 135 days and in 12 lambs born at 143 to 150 days was 1.5 +/- 0.2 per cent (mean +/- s.e.). In adequately nourished ewes between 100 and 115 days of gestation growth rate showed a between-fetus range of 4.2 to 7.5 mm.day-1 (n=16), remained constant within each fetus until about 132 days and then decreased by about 27 per cent (n=4). Decreases in growth rate of about 30 to 44 per cent occurred within three days of the introduction of maternal undernutrition at 115 or 120 days of gestation (n=6) and in two other fetuses maternal undernutrition effected an almost complete cessation of growth. The relationship between fetal CRL and weight is described and some physiological implications of the results are discussed.