TABLE 3.
Effect of genotype and diet on breeding outcomes
| Female: Elovl2+/+; Male: Elovl2+/+ | Female: Elovl2+/−; Male: Elovl2+/+ | Female: Elovl2+/−; Male: Elovl2+/− | Female: Elovl2−/−; Male: Elovl2+/+ | Female: Elovl2−/−; Male: Elovl2+/− | ||||||
| Parameters | Control | DHA | Control | DHA | Control | DHA | Control | DHA | Control | DHA |
| Successful pregnancies | 100% (4/4) | 100% (5/5) | 85.7% (6/7) | 87.5% (7/8) | 66.7% (4/6) | 83.3% (5/6) | 87.5% (7/8) | 40% (4/10) | 100% (6/6) | 23.8% (5/21) |
| Litter size (average ± SEM) | 7.5 ± 1.0 | 7.2 ± 0.7 | 4.8 ± 1.0 | 5.7 ± 1.1 | 4.0 ± 1.3 | 3.2 ± 1.2 | 4.9 ± 0.9 | 6.8 ± 0.9 | 3.8 ± 1.0 | 2.8 ± 1.0 |
| Pups survival | 96.7% (29/30) | 61.1% (22/36) | 55.2% (16/29) | 80% (32/40) | 81.3% (13/16) | 81.3% (13/16) | 91.2% (31/34) | 63% (17/27) | 87% (20/23) | 71.4% (10/14) |
| Distribution (Elovl2 genotype) | 29 (+/+) | 22 (+/+) | 10 (+/+), 6 (+/−) | 20 (+/+), 12 (+/−) | 6 (+/+), 2 (+/−), 5 (−/−) | 2 (+/+), 8 (+/−), 3 (−/−) | 31 (+/−) | 17 (+/−) | 11 (+/−), 9 (−/−) | 6 (+/−), 4 (−/−) |
Breeding outcomes of mating pairs consisting of Elovl2+/+, Elovl2+/−, and Elovl2−/− females and Elovl2+/+ and Elovl2+/− males presented as percent of successful pregnancies (amount of pregnancies/amount of mating pairs × 100%), litter size (amount of offspring delivered by each pregnant female), offspring survival rate (number of offspring that were euthanized at the end of experiment/number of offspring recorded for the litter size right after delivery × 100%), distribution (genotype of offspring that were euthanized at the end of the experiment).