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Simple SummaryWool is an important raw material in the textile industry. Its fiber fineness is directly related to the wool product quality. Higher quality wool products require finer wool fiber diameters. Therefore, methods for more effectively optimizing the wool fiber diameter have become an important research focus. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are efficient and stable molecular markers which have been extensively used to study wool fiber diameter. The SLIT3 and ZNF280B genes are involved in multiple biological processes and have multiple biological functions. However, the relationship between their polymorphisms and wool fiber diameter remains unreported. This study was conducted to investigate the relationship between different genotypes and wool fiber diameter by typing SNP sites in SLIT3 and ZNF280B. Our results revealed the major genotypes in the SLIT3 and ZNF280B genes which effect wool fiber diameter. These SNP sites may potentially be used as molecular marker sites for optimizing wool fiber diameter.The SLIT3 gene encodes a secreted protein, and the ZNF280B gene is a member of the transcription factor family. Both genes have multiple biological functions. This study was conducted to investigate the association between SLIT3 and ZNF280B gene polymorphisms and wool fiber diameter and to determine potential molecular marker sites for breeding sheep with fine wool. We used Kompetitive Allele-Specific PCR to type the single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) loci in the SLIT3 and ZNF280B genes within 1081 Alpine Merino sheep and associated these SNPs with wool fiber diameter. The results revealed one SNP in SLIT3 and ZNF280B, which were each related to sheep fiber diameter. The wool fiber diameters of sheep with the CC genotype in SLIT3 g.478807C>G and AA genotype in ZNF280B g.677G>A were the smallest and differed significantly from the diameters of other genotypes (p < 0.05). These results suggest potential molecular marker sites for fine-wool sheep breeding.

Sheep breeding is a traditional activity in Romania and wool production has been for a long period the main resource for the farmers’ prosperity. The opportunity of this study was generated by two main aspects: the change of the exploitation directions of sheep towards milk and meat production, which contributed to the lack of interest in selection and breeding for wool and to the reduction of the productive level and quality parameters of the wool; the absence of a national standard for classifying raw wool adapted to the current breeds structure, the conditions of sheep farming and the market requirements for this animal product An extensive study was carried out over 5 years on flocks of sheep belonging to the main local breeds Merinos de Palas, Tsigaie, Tsurcana, the newly created breeds at ICDCOC Palas Constanta respective Palas Meat Breed, Palas Milk Breed, Palas Prolific Breed as well as on some hybrids obtained through crossbreeding of new breeds with imported sheep breeds specialised for meat production (Texel and Rouge de l’ Ouest). The main goals of this study were: to establish the average level of wool production, the limits of variation and the potential for selection for wool quantity, by individual weighing of the wool fleeces harvested during the shearing season; to evaluate the wool quality level in the flocks analysed on the basis of the objective determination, by laboratory analysis on randomly collected samples, of the average fibre diameter, relative length of the staples, individual fibre length, degree of crimp, degree of impurity and the limits of variation of these quality parameters. This paper presents a summary of the values obtained for the quantity of raw wool and the fineness of wool as an essential quality parameter for the classification and valorisation of this natural resource. The results obtained in the study revealed in general a large variability in the productivity level of local sheep breeds and their hybrids with specialised imported breeds. The existence in the analysed herds of a percentage of 40-50 % of sheep performing above the flocks average (plusvariants) shows a potential for selection for the quantitative level of wool production. Thus, for these selected flocks (lines) an additional 10.23 ≈ 24.09 % wool production can be obtained compared to the averages levels. In terms of average fineness the analysis of the data shows that : the Palas Merino sheep, fall into the category of fine wool breeds; the three new sheep breeds created at ICDCOC Palas and the Tsigaie breed belonging to the Reghin - Mures Experimental Base have semi-fine wool (fiber diameter over 25 microns); the flock of White Tsurcana breed from the Bilciuresti - Dambovita Experimental Base falls into the category of sheep with semi coarse - coarse wool. The range of variation in diameter was very wide for all the breeds analysed. Thus in the Palas Merino breed differences of 5-7.5 μm between the maximum and minimum diameter measured represent according to the Bradford classification (English system) a difference of 7 fineness classes . The Tsigai breed has also a large uneveness of this parameter, CV over 20 % in rams and sheep yearlings. The analysis of the data on wool diameter revealed that more than 40% of the studied sheeps had above-average fineness, they could constitute selected flocks (lines) with higher values of the main wool quality parameter that determines the market value. Thus an increase in wool fineness of 3.63 ≈ 11.52 % can be achieved within a selected flock . The results presented showed that, under the current conditions of breeding and exploitation of sheep in the analized flocks, there is a potential of selection for wool production and for fibre diameter as the main quality parameter . Also, on the basis of the analysis carried out on the grading/classing/sorting of wool worldwide and the results obtained within this study, proposals were made to improve the quantity and increase the commercial value of wool production obtained from the sheep breeds reared in Romania.

Follistatin (FST) is involved in hair follicle morphogenesis. However, its effects on hair traits are not clear. This study was designed to investigate the effects of FST gene single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) on wool quality traits in Chinese Merino sheep (Junken Type). We performed gene expression analysis, SNP detection, and association analysis of FST gene with sheep wool quality traits. The real-time RT-PCR analysis showed that FST gene was differentially expressed in adult skin between Chinese Merino sheep (Junken Type) and Suffolk sheep. Immunostaining showed that FST was localized in inner root sheath (IRS) and matrix of hair follicle (HF) in both SF and Suffolk sheep. Sequencing analysis identified a total of seven SNPs (termed SNPs 1–7) in the FST gene in Chinese Merino sheep (Junken Type). Association analysis showed that SNP2 (Chr 16. 25,633,662 G>A) was significantly associated with average wool fiber diameter, wool fineness SD, and wool crimp (P < 0.05). SNP4 (Chr 16. 25,633,569 C>T) was significantly associated with wool fineness SD and CV of fiber diameter (P < 0.05). Similarly, the haplotypes derived from these seven identified SNPs were also significantly associated with average wool fiber diameter, wool fineness SD, CV of fiber diameter, and wool crimp (P < 0.05). Our results suggest that FST influences wool quality traits and its SNPs 2 and 4 might be useful markers for marker-assisted selection and sheep breeding.

Methionine synthase (MTR) plays a crucial role in maintaining homeostasis of intracellular methionine, folate, and homocysteine, and its activity correlates with DNA methylation in many mammalian tissues. Our previous genomewide association study identified that 1 SNP located in the gene was associated with several wool production and quality traits in Chinese Merino. To confirm the potential involvement of the gene in sheep wool production and quality traits, we performed sheep tissue expression profiling, SNP detection, and association analysis with sheep wool production and quality traits. The semiquantitative reverse transcription PCR analysis showed that the gene was differentially expressed in skin from Merino and Kazak sheep. The sequencing analysis identified a total of 13 SNP in the gene from Chinese Merino sheep. Comparison of the allele frequencies revealed that these 13 identified SNP were significantly different among the 6 tested Chinese Merino strains ( < 0.001). Linkage disequilibrium analysis showed that SNP 3 to 11 were strongly linked in a single haplotype block in the tested population. Association analysis showed that SNP 2 to 11 were significantly associated with the average wool fiber diameter and the fineness SD and that SNP 4 to 11 were significantly associated with the CV of fiber diameter trait ( < 0.05). Single nucleotide polymorphism 2 and SNP 5 to 12 were weakly associated with wool crimp. Similarly, the haplotypes derived from these 13 identified SNP were also significantly associated with the average wool fiber diameter, fineness SD, and the CV of fiber diameter ( < 0.05). Our results suggest that is a candidate gene for sheep wool production and quality traits, and the identified SNP might be used in sheep breeding.

Increasing production of animal fibres has increased the need for a portable instrument that measures fibre diameter and associated characteristics with precision and accuracy. This research evaluated a new portable fibre tester (PFT) by measuring the diameter and related characteristics of tops and scoured fibres of wool, alpaca, and vicuña. The PFT was constructed with integrated mechanical, optical, electronic, and informatic components. Textile tops of sheep wool, alpaca fibres, and mohair goat fibres were used as standard references to calibrate the PFT and determine its accuracy and precision. The results were compared with those from a wool industry standard instrument (OFDA2000) that uses similar technology. The PFT had high accuracy (-0.01, -0.12, and -0.01 μm) for average fibre diameter (AFD) of wool, alpaca, and mohair fibres, respectively. Deviations of standard tops (ST) were within industry-accepted tolerance ranges. Standard errors, indicating precision, were low, ranging from 0.07 to 0.25 μm, 0.02 to 0.44 μm, and 0.09 to 0.024 μm, for wool, alpaca, and mohair fibre tops, respectively. The correlations of measurements of AFD from the two instruments were 0.99 for wool, alpaca, and mohair fibres, but lower for vicuña fibres (0.82). No evidence of bias was observed. Therefore, the PFT may be used as an alternative instrument for measuring fibre diameter and quantifying variation in diameter of wool, mohair, and alpaca fibres. The PFT has appeal for use in the field for practical animal selection and fleece classification based on fibre characteristics. Keywords: alpaca, fibre diameter, mohair, vicuña, wool

Ethiopia possesses about 30 million of sheep population which could be taken as a source of raw material for textile industries as a wise strategy to manage their natural fibers scarcity. This work explored the possible wool fiber potentials on selected sheep breeds. Three representative breeds as indigenous (Menz), exotic (Dorper) and crossbreed (50% Dorper/50% Menz) sheep breeds were considered to characterize the wool fiber properties. Samples have been taken from four main body parts for four age categories of each sheep breeds. All samples were allowed to standard laboratory conditioning before testing, and then, properties are measured based on ASTM. The results revealed that the fibers diameter and crimp frequencies of wool fiber of the three sheep breeds in Ethiopia are significantly different from each other. The crossbreeding of the Menz sheep with Dorper provides fine wool fiber. The wool fiber properties particularly the fineness and crimps of Menz, Dorper and 50% Dorper sheep of different parts and age categories are significantly different. Hence, these wool fibers shall be classified and graded based on their breeds to use for different applications, and also it could help to explore more on wool fiber production.

High digestibility and nutrient retention of feed on offer are important indices of protein and energy available for wool fibre synthesis or muscle accretion in sheep. The Australian national flock is predominantly based on Merino crossbreds (Fogarty et al. 2005a) where the prime lamb industry exploits crossbreeding in which 40% of the annual slaughter of about 18 million lambs is first-cross progeny from terminal sire rams mated to Merino ewes (Fogarty et al., 2005b). Utilisation of predictive models based on digestibility of protein and energy in sheep would be useful in estimating valuable quality traits such as fibre diameter since wool is a bonus in the prime lamb production sector whose primary product is meat. Our objective in this study was to investigate the interactions between sire breed and supplement on digestibility and to ascertain its accuracy in predicting wool fibre diameter. Forty first-cross Merino weaner sheep sired by Texel, Coopworth, White Suffolk, East-Friesian and Dorset sires with initial BW range of 22.9 and 31.3 kg (average of 26.8 ± 3.2 kg) were randomly assigned to four treatment groups in a 5 × 2 × 2 x 2 factorial experimental design representing 5 sire breeds, 2 supplementary feeds (canola and lupins), 2 feeding levels (1 and 2% of bodyweight) and 2 sexes (ewes and wethers). The feeding trial lasted for six weeks with an initial 3-week adjustment period and the last 7 days for faecal collection. Factorial ANOVA with orthogonal contrasts in SAS was used for statistical analysis to test for the interactions between sire breed and supplement on digestibility and wool fibre diameter. We also utilised both linear and non-linear regressions in modelling the predictive accuracy of fibre diameter from digestibility coefficients. Our results demonstrated that sire breed x level of feeding interactions significantly influenced digestibility (P<0.01) whereby Coopworth-sired sheep supplemented at 1% of their body weight recorded the highest metabolisable energy (ME) and protein (N) digestibility of 54% and 67% compared to 42% and 62% respectively, in their counterparts fed at 2% of body weight. There was a highly significant (P<0.01) effect of type of supplement x level of feeding interaction on wool fibre diameter at the end of the trial because sheep fed canola supplements at 1% of body weight had finer wool (22.1 microns) than their 2%-fed counterparts (25.4 microns). Regression of wool fibre diameter on digestibility revealed very poor prediction accuracy (R2 = 0.0087-0.169). We concluded that sire breed variation in digestibility is unlikely to be a useful predictor of genetic merit for wool fibre diameter in first cross sheep under the same management.

High-density genomic data analyzed by accurate statistical methods are of potential to enlighten past breeding practices such as selection by unraveling fixed regions. In this study, four native Turkish sheep breeds (80 samples) were genotyped via 296.097 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) detected by double-digest restriction site-associated DNA (ddRADseq) library preparation combined with the Illumina HiSeq X Ten instrument in order to identify genes under selection pressure. A total of 32, 136, 133, and 119 protein-coding genes were detected under selection pressure by runs of homozygosity (ROH), integrated haplotype score (iHS), the ratio of extended haplotype homozygosity (Rsb), and fixation index (FST) approaches, respectively. Of these, a total of 129 genes were identified by at least two statistical models which overlapped with a total of 52 quantitative trait loci (QTL)-associated SNPs, known to be related to fiber diameter, milk content, body weight, carcass traits, some blood parameters, and entropion. A total of six genes under selection pressure were validated by three statistical approaches five of which are of potential to be integrated into animal breeding since they were associated with wool fiber diameter (ZNF208B), behaviors related to neurocognitive development (CBX1 and NFE2L1), adaptation to high-altitude (SDK1), and anxiety causing internal stress (GSG1L). The sixth gene (COPZ1) turned out to play an important role in coping with different types of cancer in mammals. In particular, ROH analysis uncovered significant findings that the Güney Karaman (GKR) had experienced different selection practices than the Akkaraman (AKR) breed. Moreover, some genes specifically under selection in the GKR breed turned out to be associated with olfaction (OR6K6, OR6N1, OR6N2, and OR4C16), survival during the gestation period (PRR15L), and heat stress (CDK5RAP9). The results of this study imply that GKR may become genetically different from the AKR breed at the genome level due to most probably experiencing different adaptation processes occurring in raised climatic conditions. These differences should be conserved to face future challenges, while other native Turkish sheep breeds could be monitored via genome-wide high-density SNP data to obtain deeper knowledge about the effects of natural selection.

Natural plant fibers are outstanding materials in textile industry. The fiber fineness, length and strength are three of the most important indexes to evaluate the fiber quality. Fiber fineness refers to the thickness of the fiber, which is usually expressed by the mass per unit length. The relationship between fiber fineness and fiber diameter is very important for deeper understanding of a new fiber. In this study, three different natural fibers were collected to measure the fiber fineness, diameter, and density. Furthermore, SEM was conducted to detect the fiber cross section, and the correlation equations were constructed between the fiber fineness and diameter. Results showed that vibration method could generate a lower fiber fineness value; all the correlation equations had high accuracy to predict fiber fineness with different diameters, and most of the prediction errors were lower than 10%. In the final equations, the coefficients were 0.825, 0.69, 0.975 of apocynum, ramie, and kenaf fiber, respectively.

Our study of the wool quality in Algerian sheep breeds in western Algeria was based on the analysis of wool fineness which has been conducted by measuring the diameter of wool fibers. The data were collected from 60 samples from the the following breeds: Ouled Djellal, Hamra, Barbarine, Srandi, Daraa and Rembi. The average wool fiber diameter is 48.18 ± 39.49μm which is significantly different (p &lt;0.001) in the breeds studied. The average wool fiber diameter was 48.18 ± 39.49μm which is significantly different (p &lt;0.001) in the breeds studied, it varies from medium wool with a diameter of 28.89 ± 6.009μm in Ouled Djellal breed to coarse wool with a diameter of 74.17 ± 49.44 in Hamrabreed. No significant effect (p&gt; 0.05) of the sex on the wool finesse in different breeds was observed. This study is the initiation of future zootechnical study on the wool performance of different sheep breeds in Algeria by studying the wool quality.

Patterns of wool variations found in modern sheep breeds may shed some light on the history of circum-Mediterranean migrations, which at present are still largely unknown. In this study, the characteristics of wool from five different local European breeds were investigated. Wool samples were taken from the following sheep breeds: Aranese, Roussillon Red, Castillonnais, Levant Red and Majorcan Red. Specimens were collected from 88 animals in different herds for each breed. The following sheep fleece characteristics were investigated: length of long-coarse, short-fine and kemp (medullated) fibres; their proportion within the staple; yield after scouring with isoalcohol; and fibre diameter. The amount of short-fine fibres was lower in the Levant Red and Majorcan Red breeds, with an inversely proportional amount of kemp fibres. Clean yield with isoalcohol was about 80 percent in all these breeds. Fleece characteristics offer a glimpse of possible morphologic relationships between the Levant Red and Majorcan Red that moreover exhibit a similarity in colour and a geographical proximity. Because very little is still known about the nature of the patterns of the fleece of Atlantic West and North African sheep, the importance of the African influence on existing European Mediterranean red sheep breeds remains to be clarified. A plausible hypothesis is that different influences would have left different traces, with a lesser impact on Pyrenean breeds.

Key genes and metabolites that regulate wool fibre diameter identified by combined transcriptome and metabolome analysis

This study was carried out at Private flock in Murtkah District - Erbil Governorate. Samples of wool were taken from mid-side of 72 Arabi ewes during May, 2017. to study the effect of ewes age and the sex of the lambs on the physical wool characteristics The overall means of raw fleece weight, clean fleece, fiber diameter, crimps, staple length and fiber length were 1653.75 g, 79.06%, 28.24 micron, 1.33 cm, 9.36 cm and 16.03 cm respectively. The percentages of the fibers of each of Fine, Coarse and Kemp were 52.42, 38.89 and 8.68% respectively. and S/P ratio 1.27. Age of ewe effects appeared to be significant on raw fleece weight and coarse fiber (p ≤ 0.05), also on fine fiber and (S/P) ratio (p ≤ 0.01) only, while the effects of sex of lamb were non-significant on all physical wool properties except the percentage of kemp fiber (p ≤ 0.05). Although the maximum R-square increased very little gradually in the equation to predict fleece weight depending on body weight and dimensions, the simplest equation includes body weight could be considered the most significant (P<0.01) and more reliable than others to predict fleece weight (The equation is: fleece weight = 353.41 + 31.84 (body weight). The multiple regression equations were calculated to predict clean wool percentage, staple length, fiber length, crimps, fine fiber percentage, coarse fiber percentage, and S/P ratio from fleece weight, body weight and dimensions and the maximum R-square for all characteristics were very small. Fiber diameter could be predicted using the formula of multiple regression includes body weight and length and chest depth according to the maximum R-square (P<0.01). While Kemp fiber percentage could be predicted using the formula includes body weight, fleece weight and Shoulder height. Only the simple regression equation of Fleece weight on body weight was significant (P<0.01) with R-square (0.19). The correlation coefficient was done among all studied characteristics and ranged between -0.69 (p<0.01) (between fine fiber and coarse fibers) and 0.94 (p<0.01) (between fine fiber and S/P ratio). It was concluded that wool properties of Arabi sheep were not at standard level especially in both fine and Kemp properties and need to be improved

ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to investigate the genetic effects of six keratin (KRT) genes on the wool traits of 418 Chinese Merino (Xinjiang type) (CMXT) individuals.MethodsTo explore the effects and association of six KRT genes on sheep wool traits, The polymerase chain reaction-based single-strand conformation polymorphism (PCR-SSCP), DNA sequencing, and the gene pyramiding effect methods were used.ResultsWe report 20 mutation sites (single-nucleotide polymorphisms) within the six KRT genes, in which twelve induced silent mutations; five induced missense mutations and resulted in Ile→Thr, Glu→Asp, Gly→Ala, Ala→Ser, Se→His; two were nonsense mutations and one was a same-sense mutation. Association analysis showed that two genotypes of the KRT31 gene were significantly associated with fiber diameter (p<0.05); three genotypes of the KRT36 gene were significantly associated with wool fineness score and fiber diameter (p<0.05), three genotypes of the KRT38 gene were significantly associated with the number of crimps (p< 0.05); and three genotypes of the KRT85 gene were significantly associated with wool crimps score, body size, and fiber diameter (p<0.05). Analysis of the gene pyramiding effect between the different genotypes of the gene loci KRT36, KRT38, and KRT85, each genotype in a gene locus was combined with all the genotypes of another two gene loci and formed the different three loci combinations, indicated a total of 26 types of possible combined genotypes in the analyzed population. Compared with the other combined genotypes, the combinations CC-GG-II, CC-HH-IJ, CC-HH-JJ, DD-HH-JJ, CC-GH-IJ, and CC-GH-JJ at gene loci KRT36, KRT38, and KRT85, respectively, had a greater effect on wool traits (p<0.05).ConclusionOur results indicate that the mutation loci of KRT31, KRT36, KRT38, and KRT85 genes, as well as the combinations at gene loci KRT36, KRT38, and KRT85 in CMXT have significant effects on wool traits, suggesting that these genes are important candidate genes for wool traits, which will contribute to sheep breeding and provide a molecular basis for improved wool quality in sheep.

Wool is an important textile raw material, and fiber diameter is a major determinant of the economic value and quality of wool products. Analyses of the regulatory mechanisms underlying wool fiber diameter are necessary for the development of strategies to improve wool fineness. Therefore, we used methylationomics to analyze the skin tissue of individuals with different fiber diameters, and analyzed the apparent regulation mechanism of wool fiber diameter. In this study, we jointly analyzed the transcriptome and m6A methylome of skin tissues from individual Alpine Merino sheep with different wool fiber diameters (classified into three groups) to mine key methylated RNAs and explore the significance of m6A methylation in the regulation of this trait. In total, 54,057 methylated peaks, 4,273 differentially methylated genes, 139 differentially methylated lncRNAs, and 2,992 differentially methylated circRNAs were found in the three comparisons. These loci were enriched in the Wnt, Notch, and TGF-β signaling pathways, as determined through GO and KEGG pathway analyses. RNA correlation analyses revealed key RNAs, such as CACNA1E, FOS, CAMK2B, RNF43, circ-0317, circ-4794, TCONS-00020832, and TCONS-00020845, indicating that hypermethylation may be an important factor affecting wool fiber diameter. These findings provide insight into the molecular regulatory mechanism underlying wool fiber diameter and provide a theoretical basis for the development of the wool industry.