The goal of this study was to investigate the single nucleotide polymorphism of the growth hormone gene and its association with growth traits in the Kilakarsal breed of sheep. Polymerase Chain Reaction – Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) of the growth hormone gene (422 bp) with HaeIII restriction enzyme revealed an A781G transition mutation at the exon 2 and the existence of two genotypes, viz., AA (366 bp and 56 bp) and AB (422 bp, 366 bp and 56 bp). The occurrence of the B allele is due to the A781G transition in the exon 2 of the growth hormone gene, which causes an amino acid change from Serine to Glycine. The genotype BB was absent in the Kilakarsal sheep population. The absence of the BB genotype at the A781G locus of the growth hormone gene in the Kilakarsal sheep population indicates that the natural selection process might be acting against this particular genotype through reduced viability or early embryonic death. Further, the statistical analysis revealed the significantly higher yearling weight of the AB than the AA genotype (P=0.038), and an appreciable difference of 1.40 kg in 9-month weight. The highly significant (P<0.001) Chi-square value (29.94) showed that the population is not the under Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. This indicates that molecular markers associated with body weight should be explored for their use in marker assisted selection in Kilakarsal population.

Porcine Circovirus (PCV) includes Porcine Circovirus 1(PCV1), Porcine Circovirus 2 (PCV2) and Porcine Circovirus 3 (PCV3). In recent years, co-infection exists between PCV1, PCV2 and PCV3 serotypes. Therefore, it is particularly necessary to establish a fast, specific and sensitive SYBR Green I real-time quantitative PCR detection method for PCV1, PCV2 and PCV3. In this experiment, specific primers were selected and the reaction conditions were optimized. A real-time quantitative PCR identification method was established. The results showed the detection limits of this assay were 40.3 copies/μl for PCV1, 25.2 copies/μl for PCV2 and22.4 copies/ μl for PCV3. There was no cross-reactivity with swine fever virus (CSFV), porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV), porcine pseudorabies virus (PRV) and porcine parvovirus (PPV). The intra-assay and inter-assay coefficients of variation were less than 1%. The test results of 100 PCV suspected positive samples revealed that the PCV1, PCV2 and PCV3 singular infection rate was 10% (10/100), 64% (64/100) and 52% (52/100), respectively. The PCV1 and PCV2 co-infection rate was 8% (8/100), the PCV1 and PCV3 co-infection rate was 7% (7/100), the PCV2 and PCV3 co-infection rate was 26% (26/100), and the PCV1, PCV2 and PCV3 co-infection rate was 7% (7/100). This method has good specificity, sensitivity and stability. It provides a promising tool for rapid differential detection of PCV1, PCV2 and PCV3.

Bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD) is an important infectious viral disease affecting cattle populations all over the world. In addition to direct loss caused by the disease, the virus causes immunosuppression thereby predisposing the host to other diseases. A cross-sectional study was undertaken to detect the prevalence of BVD in 14 well-organized herds located in different parts of India. A total of 880 serum samples (646 cattle and 234 buffaloes) were screened by a commercial ELISA kit, detecting antibodies towards the p80 (NS3) region of BVDV. The overall true prevalence was 56.67% (95% CI: 53.26-60.02%) and within herds, it ranged from 0-99.99%. The prevalence rate was higher in cattle (65.42%) than in buffaloes (32.49%) and the difference was statistically significant. Further, a significant difference in prevalence among cattle breed types was recorded, with the lowest in indigenous cattle (16.49%) followed by crossbreeds (16,97% and exotic breeds (87.80%). Higher positivity was detected among females (68.87%) than males (48.83%) but this difference was not significant, as revealed by multivariate regression analysis. Of the 10 semen stations studied, the prevalence varied from 9.72% to 72.68%. However, none of the animals from these semen stations turned positive in the antigen ELISA test, suggesting the antibodies detected in this study were from past infections. On the two dairy farms/bull mother farms showing very high positivity, two (one each) persistently infected cows were detected during whole herd screening by antigen ELISA test. One bull mother farm was free of BVD antibodies suggesting it is possible to maintain BVDV-free herds. The present study indicates the endemicity of BVDV in Indian organized herds, and therefore a suitable testing strategy and management should be adopted in response to testing to control the introduction and further transmission of the disease on farms.

Statins are known to affect brain function in a manner not related to their dyslipidemic effects. The purpose of the present study was to assess the behavioral response of a chick model (7-14 days old) after single treatments with the statins atorvastatin, fluvastatin or simvastatin at 100 mg/kg, orally, to a pharmacological challenge with an anesthetic regimen of xylazine (5 mg/kg)-ketamine (20 mg/kg), intramuscularly, and a toxicological challenge with the reversible cholinesterase inhibiting insecticide carbaryl (250 mg/kg, orally). Only simvastatin significantly reduced the duration of xylazine-ketamine anesthesia by 47%. Carbaryl at 250 mg/kg, orally induced signs of cholinergic poisoning (57.1 - 100%) in chicks within 3.14 min, and 57.1% death occurred within 85 min. Toxicological challenge of statin-treated chicks with carbaryl also induced signs of cholinergic poisoning, but with varying percentages of reductions compared to the control (carbaryl) group. The reductions in 4 h carbaryl-induced lethality in chicks pre-treated with atorvastatin, fluvastatin and simvastatin were 43, 57 and 29%, respectively, below that of the control value. Correspondingly, their toxicity scores decreased by 18, 18 and 11%, respectively. These data suggest that statins might modulate the functional status of the brain in a manner that affects the impact of centrally acting drugs or toxicants, and hence the behavioral outcomes in chicks. Further studies are warranted on the behavioral effects of statins after prolonged therapy.

The primary focus of the current study was to determine the potential benefits of supplementing sheep diet with white button mushrooms (WBM) in terms of growth, health and the kinetics of systemic CD4+ CD8+ memory T lymphocytes in lambs. Forty-five female lambs (Lika breed) were divided into three groups: A – the control group fed on a free-range pasture for the 222 days of the experiment, while groups B and C were housed in a separate facility for 42 days and fed either a commercial feed mixture (FM) or a FM supplemented with 15% of freshly prepared WBM, respectively, and ad libitum forage. For the remaining 180 days of the experiment, both groups (B and C) of lambs were kept free-range and fed pasture only. The lambs were monitored daily starting on Day 0 (or 90 days of age) before the treatments, weighed and blood sampled on Days 0, 21, 42 and 222, and were clinically observed for the incidence/severity of diarrhea and/or other signs of disease. In addition to morbidity, mortality was also monitored, and dead lambs were examined for gross pathology changes. The lambs fed FM supplemented with WBM (group C) had significantly higher body weight gain (P<0.05) on Days 42 and 222. They were neither diarrheic nor had any mortality cases throughout the experiment. Also, these lambs had a significantly increased (P<0.05) proportion of CD4+CD8+ T cells on Days 42 and 222. The data obtained supported our assumption of the efficacy of dietary WBM in the immunostimulation of CD4+CD8+ memory T lymphocytes in lambs, resulting in protection against on-farm diarrhea and providing an increased growth rate.

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a ubiquitous environmental pollutant reported to be an endocrine disruptor, is used in many industrial and consumer products. Although the adverse effects of PFOA on the reproductive health of animals and humans have been widely reported, most studies have focused on assessing the anatomical features and conventional histology of adult gonads. Therefore, the molecular mechanisms activated in the hypothalamus and gonads following PFOA exposure during the pre- and postnatal periods are not clear. This study used a mouse model to evaluate the effects of PFOA exposure on the alteration of molecular mechanisms in the hypothalamus and gonads during the prenatal and postpartum periods. Changes in gene and protein expression following PFOA exposure were evaluated by quantitative polymerase chain reaction and Western blotting, respectively. Kisspeptin 1 and gonadotropin-releasing hormone expression in the hypothalamus of female and male mouse pups was significantly decreased. Additionally, Cyp17a1 expression was upregulated in male offspring testes, while Cyp17a1 and Cyp19a1 expression was downregulated in female offspring ovaries. Changes at the molecular level due to PFOA exposure in the early stages of development did not show sex-related differences in the hypothalamus; however, such differences were confirmed in the gonads. These results could be used as basic data to study the molecular mechanisms underlying the reproductive dysfunction caused by PFOA exposure in the early stages of embryonic development.

The hoof diseases of cattle can be managed surgically under intravenous regional anesthesia (IVRA). For routine induction of IVRA, a tourniquet is placed circumferentially at the metacarpus/metatarsus. In the present study, hoof diseases of cattle were corrected using a modified IVRA technique. The cattle with hoof ailments were randomly divided into two groups and a tourniquet was placed just distal to the dew claws instead of at the metacarpus/metatarsus in order to decrease the dose of anesthetic. In group I lidocaine (2mg/kg) and in group II a mixture of lidocaine and ketamine (2mg/kg+1.5mg/kg) was injected into the axial digital vein to induce distal intravenous regional anesthesia (DIVRA). The heart rate, respiration rate, systolic and diastolic pressure were unaffected in both groups. Oxygen saturation was significantly (P<0.05) lower between 5 and 60 minutes in group I and between 15and 40 minutes in group II animals. The sensory and motor block onset time was shorter, and the sensory and motor block recovery time was longer in group II animals as compared to group I animals. It was concluded that the DIVRA technique using lidocaine alone and lidocaine admixed with ketamine are suitable for hoof examination and surgery.

The experiment was conducted to evaluate the anti-oxidant effect of Moringa oleifera meal-supplementation in the total mixed ration, replacing the compounded concentrate mixture for crossbred heifer calves. A total of twenty-one crossbred heifer calves were selected and grouped into three treatments based on body weight and age. The leaves (84%) and soft twigs (16%) of Moringa oleifera were mixed to prepare the Moringa oleifera meal. Compounded concentrate mixture, ground nut straw, hybrid napier grass, mineral mixture and common salt were used at 50, 23, 25, 1 and 1%, respectively to formulate the control total mixed ration (T1). The compounded concentrate mixture was replaced with the Moringa oleifera meal at 5.0 and 7.5 % to formulate total mixed rations T2 and T3. The whole blood was collected from each calves in the morning before feeding and watering at the beginning (0 day), middle (at 60 day) and end (at 126 day) of the experiment. The total leukocyte counts, total erythrocyte counts, haematocrit and platelet count of crossbred heifer calves differed non-significantly (P>0.05) between the treatment groups, and were within normal physiological range. The serum albumin, glucose, creatinine, urea, alkaline phosphatase, alanine amino transaminase, calcium and phosphorus differed non-significantly between the treatment groups. However, feeding with Moringa oleifera resulted in higher (P0.05) higher after feeding with the 5.0 and 7.5% Moringa oleifera meals. Feeding with 5.0 and 7.5% Moringa oleifera meal in the total mixed ration, replacing the high protein compounded concentrate mixture, to growing crossbred heifer calves had no adverse effect on haematological and biochemical constituents, and resulted in a non-significant (P>0.05) higher antioxidant capacity in the crossbred heifer calves.

Optic nerve head drusen are acellular calcified deposits in the optic nerve head reported in humans. A six year old, male, Rottweiler dog with a history of respiratory distress and epistaxis for the previous two months was anaesthetised and a computed tomographic scan of the head was performed. The axial view of the computed tomography scan with a slice thickness of 1mm was viewed in a soft tissue window (380x40 HU). There was an incidental discovery of a characteristic discrete round hyper dense area in the optic nerve head region in both eyes during the routine computed tomographic scan. The Hounsfield Unit of the optic nerve head drusen in the right eye measured 91 HU, of 2 mm2 and in the left eye 131 HU of 1 mm2 confirming the diagnosis of optic nerve head drusen. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first report of optic nerve head drusen in a dog.

The present investigation was carried out to determine the effect of two herbal formulations, AV/LMP/10 (T1) (garlic, Allium sativum) and AV/HLP/16 (T2) (mixture of gugal, Commiphora mukul and fenugreek, Trigonella foenum-graecum with 50:50%), on the carcass characteristics, proximate composition, lipid profile including fatty acids, and meat quality attributes in Vencobb 400 broiler chickens. Broilers fed with the AV/HLP/16 (T2) formulation had significantly (P<0.05) superior carcass characteristics in terms of pre-slaughter weight, head, neck, shank, skin, stomach, intestine, giblet, and wholesale cut yield than the control and broilers supplemented with AV/LMP/10 (T1). Meat obtained from the broilers fed with the T2 formulation had a significantly (P<0.01) higher dressing percentage and lean percentage than the control broilers and the T1 supplemented broilers. Meat obtained from the broilers fed with the T2 formulation had significantly (P<0.01) higher moisture and protein content, and lower fat content than the control birds. Meat obtained from the broilers fed with the T2 formulations had significantly (P<0.01) lower triglycerides and higher phospholipids and cholesterol content than meat obtained from the control birds. A significant (P<0.01) increase was observed in the myristic, palmitic, oleic, palmitoleic, linoleic and behenic acid percentages, and a decrease in the stearic acid percentage in meat obtained from the broilers fed with the T2 formulation. Addition of the T2 formulation significantly (P<0.01) improved the physico-chemical quality and sensory scores of the chicken meat. The results of this study revealed that addition of herbal formulations had a significant effect on the carcass characteristics, proximate composition, fatty acid profile and meat quality attributes in comparison with the control birds.