Barry P. Fitzgerald, PhD
Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center
Department of Veterinary Science
University of Kentucky Lexington, Kentucky 40546-0099
Equine Reproduction
The primary activity of my research laboratory is an investigation of how obesity
and associated insulin resistance disrupts reproductive activity in the mare.
It is now firmly established that in humans and laboratory animals, obesity is associated
with a mild inflammatory response, characterized by elevated circulating concentrations
of inflammatory cytokines. There is now compelling evidence that the increased circulating
concentrations of inflammatory cytokines play a major role in the development of
insulin resistance.
A research goal of my laboratory is to determine whether for the horse, dietary-induced
obesity is similarly characterized by a mild inflammatory state and an associated
insulin resistance. This research has involved the development of new procedures
for the measurement of various cytokines and design of experiments to test the overall
hypothesis. In consideration of the fact that inflammation/immune responses are
known to significantly disrupt reproductive function, information generated from
these studies will impact research in this area.
In addition, we are conducting collaborative research with researchers at Mississippi
State University to determine whether exposure of pregnant mares to fescue pasture
infected with ergot alkaloids leads to pregnancy loss during the first 100 days
of pregnancy. Again the primary focus is whether ergot alkaloids lead to increased
circulating concentrations of inflammatory cytokines which may be causal to early
pregnancy loss.
Projects
- Fescue Toxicosis
- Development of Strategies to Increase Peripheral Insulin Responsiveness in Dietary-Induced
Insulin Resistant Horses
- Investigation of the Equine Molecular Clock in a Fibroblast Cell Line, Adipose Tissue
and Peripheral Blood
- An Investigation of the Role of Inflammation in Obesity-Related Insulin Resistance
- The Role of Insulin on Expression and Activity of MMPs and TIMPs in Equine Follicular
Fluid and Granulosa Cells