IMMUNOCASTRATION IN PIGLETS

Kastracija je postupak koji se primjenjuje na muškim životinjama s ciljem ostva¬rivanja boljeg prirasta tijekom razdoblja tova te mogućnosti kontrole ponašanja ži¬votinja. Jedan od glavnih razloga primjene kirurške kastracije je sprječavanje na¬stanka nerastovskog mirisa. Nerastovsko svojstvo nepoželjan je miris mesa koji se javlja zbog nakupljanja skatola i andosterona u masnom tkivu. Koncentracije ovih hormona moguće je smanjiti i promjenom hranidbe životinja. Nedostaci ki¬rurške kastracije su slabija hranidbena učinkovitost, nakupljanje masnog tkiva, te smanjenje dobrobiti životinja. To je razlog donošenja odluke Europske Unije o za¬brani i prestanku provođenja kirurškog načina kastracije nerastova. Danas se veća pažnja pridaje dobrobiti životinja, te je u skladu s time razvijeno nekoliko metoda koje mogu zamijeniti postupak kirurške kastracije. To su lokalno uništavanje tkiva testisa kemijskim tvarima, down-regulacija hipotalamusno-hipofizne veze i imunokastracija. Imunokastracija se temelji na poticanju imunološkog sustava na lučenje protu¬tijela koja inhibiraju djelovanje GnRH. Komercijalna primjena imunokastracije zapo¬činje 1998. godine na farmama u Australiji i Novom Zelandu. Vakcinacija je usmje¬rena protiv gonadotropnih oslobađajućih hormona, a provodi se u dva tretmana. Istovremeno dolazi do smanjivanja količine hormona u organizmu, prvenstveno folikulo-stimulacijskog (FS) i luteinizirajućeg hormona (LH). IMPROVAC je cjepivo čije je korištenje odobreno 2009. godine u zemljama Europske Unije. Posljedice aplikacije preparata su smanjivanje koncentracije andosterona, broja spermija i reproduktivnih organa. Istraživanja koja su provođena o utjecaju imunokastracije odnosila su se na svojstva rasta svinja i suzbijanje mirisa mesa po nerastu, a manje se pratio utjecaj na svojstva trupa i kvalitetu mesa.Castration is a procedure that is applied on male animals with the aim of achieving better growth during the fattening period and the possibility of controlling the behavior of animals. One of the main reasons for using the surgical castration is preventing the occurrence of boar taint. Boar taint is unwanted smell of meat that occurs during the accumulation of scatol and andosteron in adipose tissue. The concentrations of these hormones can be reduced by changing the feeding of animals. Drawback of surgical castration is lower feed efficiency, accumulation of adipose tissue and decrease of animal welfare. That is one of the reasons for European Union to forbid and cease surgical methods of boar castration. More attention is given to welfare of animals and in accordance with that, few methods have been developed that can replace surgical castration. It is local destruction of testicular tissue with chemical substance, down-regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary bond and immunocastration. Immunocastration is based on stimulating the immune system to produce antibodies against GnRH. Commercial application of immunocastration began in 1998 on farms in Australia and New Zealand. Vaccination was directed against GnRH and it was conducted in two treatments. There was a reduction in the amount of hormones in the body, primarily follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH). IMPROVAC is the vaccine whose use was approved in 2009 in the European Union. An effect of these preparations is decrease of andosteron concentrations, sperm counts and reproductive organs. The studies that have been conducted are related to growth traits and suppression of boar taint, and smaller impact on carcass characteristics and meat quality