Imipramine and xylazine-induced ex copula ejaculation in stallions.
Abstract: This study is a part of our ongoing work toward developing pharmacological methods for enhancing and inducing ejaculation in stallions with ejaculatory dysfunction. We evaluated a combination treatment of imipramine hydrochloride followed 10 minutes later by xylazine hydrochloride for the induction of ex copula ejaculation. Eight pony stallions each underwent 6 treatment trials conducted at 4-day intervals. The trials were conducted in the animals' stalls, where they were observed for 90 minutes following treatment. To evaluate the effect of pretreatment sexual stimulation on the rate of ejaculation for each of the 8 stallions, 3 of the 6 trials were preceded by exposure to a restrained ovariectomized pony mare. For 7 of the 8 stallions, 1 to 4 of the 6 trials resulted in induced ejaculation, for a total of 16 ejaculations in the 48 trials. Six of the ejaculations occurred with imipramine treatment alone, before the administration of xylazine. All ejaculations were associated with erection and masturbation. Six of 24 trials (25%) preceded by sexual stimulation resulted in ejaculation, while 10 of 24 trials (42%) without sexual prestimulation resulted in ejaculation. These proportions were not different (P = 0.11). Induced ejaculates were collected into a plastic bag positioned over the prepuce by a girth strap for the comparison of semen characteristics with 2 base line ejaculates obtained in copula from these stallions during the week preceding the series of induced ejaculation trials (with similar 4-day intervals from previous ejaculation). The induced ejaculates were of lower total volume, higher concentration, lower gel volume, higher total numbers of spermatozoa, and lower pH (P < 0.05) than the base line in copula ejaculates. Together, these semen characteristics suggest increased emission of the sperm-rich fraction and reduced emission of accessory gland fluids, probably resulting from imipramine treatment.
Publication Date: 1994-01-01 PubMed ID: 16727453DOI: 10.1016/s0093-691x(05)80023-8Google Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
Summary
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The research paper examines the effect of administering a combination of imipramine hydrochloride followed by xylazine hydrochloride on inducing ejaculation in stallions. It found that the two drugs can be some assistance, with several controlled trials yielding ejaculations, though it was also noted that ejaculation’s likelihood wasn’t significantly affected by prior sexual stimulation.
Experimental Method
- As part of the research, eight pony stallions each underwent six trials at four-day intervals.
- The trials took place in the familiar environment of their own stalls where observations were made for 90 minutes after administering the drug treatment.
- The researchers wanted to ascertain the effect of sexual stimulation before the drug treatment. For this, for each of the eight stallions, three out of the six trials involved exposure to a restrained ovariectomized pony mare as a pre-treatment stimulant.
- For seven of the eight stallions, between one to four out of the six trials resulted in induced ejaculation. This yielded a total of 16 ejaculations in 48 trials.
Findings
- Six of these ejaculations occurred from administering imipramine alone, before xylazine was given.
- Every instance of ejaculation was accompanied by masturbation and erection.
- In trials that involved sexual pre-stimulation, ejaculation happened in 25% while the percentage rose to 42% in trials without pre-stimulation. However, these proportions were not found to be statistically significant.
- For the purposes of comparison, the induced ejaculates were collected in a bag attached over the prepuce. These ejaculates had different characteristics than base line in-copula ejaculates taken during the week preceding treatment trials. The induced ejaculates showed lower volume, higher concentration, fewer spermatozoa, and lower pH.
- These characteristics suggest that the drugs increased the emission of the sperm-rich fraction and decreased the emission of accessory gland fluids, likely due to the imipramine treatment.
Conclusion
- The researchers conclude that the combination of imipramine and xylazine can somewhat induce ejaculation in stallions, especially those struggling with ejaculatory dysfunction.
- However, the study also notes that sexual pre-stimulation did not significantly affect the rate of ejaculation, suggesting that the pharmacological action of the drugs was primarily responsible for the ejaculatory response.
- The study lays the groundwork for further research on developing new methods to treat ejaculatory dysfunction in stallions.
Cite This Article
APA
McDonnell SM, Odian MJ.
(1994).
Imipramine and xylazine-induced ex copula ejaculation in stallions.
Theriogenology, 41(5), 1005-1010.
https://doi.org/10.1016/s0093-691x(05)80023-8 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
Citations
This article has been cited 2 times.- Khanam A, Swelum AA, Khan FA. Pharmacologically Induced Ex Copula Ejaculation in Horses and Donkeys. Front Vet Sci 2021;8:669423.
- Card CE, Manning ST, Bowman P, Leibel T. Pregnancies from imipramine and xylazine-induced ex copula ejaculation in a disabled stallion. Can Vet J 1997 Mar;38(3):171-4.
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