Indian Horse Research Articles

Advancing equine genomics: the development of a high density Axiom_Ashwa SNP chip for Indian horses and ponies.

The unique horse and pony breeds of India are declining at an alarming rate. These horses have been integral to the Indian culture and customs for centuries and represent a valuable genetic resource. It is imperative to harness the potential of this equine genetic resource that urgently needs conservation. The study highlights the design and development of a high density SNP array, the Axiom_Ashwa to aid in the genetic analysis and conservation efforts for Indian horse and pony breeds. With 613,950 SNPs, this chip offers extensive genome coverage having an average inter-marker distance of 4kb. The Axiom_Ashwa has been validated on a larger set of diverse indigenous samples as well as Thoroughbreds, demonstrating a high call rate of 99.4% and robustness for genotyping indigenous breeds. Linkage disequilibrium (LD) analysis showed higher average LD in Indian breeds compared to exotic breeds, suggesting a limited effective population size and recent bottlenecks. Phylogenetic and population stratification analyses using PCA and DAPC clearly distinguished horses, ponies and Thoroughbreds, confirming the efficacy of the Axiom_Ashwa chip. These findings underscore the urgent need for conservation efforts for Indian horse breeds, which have experienced significant drop in population size. The Axiom_Ashwa SNP chip offers advantages such as cost-effectiveness and high throughput, providing a more accurate genetic representation of Indian horses.

Characterization of extruded whole grain cereals enriched with Indian horse chestnut flour

Characterization of extruded whole grain cereals enriched with Indian horse chestnut flour

Indian Horse and Finding Place and Belonging in Sport History

<i>Indian Horse</i> and Finding Place and Belonging in Sport History

Impact of moisture content on microstructural, thermal, and techno-functional characteristics of extruded whole-grain-based breakfast cereal enriched with Indian horse chestnut flour

The use of non-conventional seed flour is of interest in obtaining healthy breakfast cereals. The research aimed to study the physico-functional, bioactive, microstructure, and thermal characteristics of breakfast cereals using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffractometry, and differential scanning calorimeter. The increase in feed moisture content (16 %) enhanced the bulk density (5.24 g/mL), water absorption index (7.76 g/g), total phenolic content (9.03 mg GAE/g), and antioxidant activity (30.36 %) having desirable expansion rate (2.84 mm), water solubility index (48 %), and color attributes. The microstructure showed dense inner structures with closed air cells in extruded flours.Extrusion treatment rearranged the crystalline structure from A-type to V-type by disrupting the granular structure of starch, reducing its crystallinity, and promoting the formation of an amylose–lipid complex network. Increasing conditioning moisture enhanced the degree of gelatinization (%), peak gelatinization temperature (Tp), and starch crystallinity (%) and reduced the gelatinization enthalpy (ΔHG) and gelatinization temperature ranges. The results reported in this study will help industries to develop innovative and novel food products containing functional ingredients.

Indian horse chestnut [Aesculus indica (Wall. ex Cambress.) Hook. Hippocastanaceae]: a wild forest tree used for food and medicine by the tribes of Chamba, Himachal Pradesh, India

Indian horse chestnut [Aesculus indica (Wall. ex Cambress.) Hook. Hippocastanaceae]: a wild forest tree used for food and medicine by the tribes of Chamba, Himachal Pradesh, India

Characterization of bacteriocin produced by Brevibacillus laterosporus Tk3 isolated from ‘tatwakhar’ – a flour prepared from seeds of Aesculus indica in remote areas of Himachal Pradesh India

Bacteriocin producing strain Brevibacillus laterosporus TK3, was isolated from ‘Tatwakhar’- a flour prepared from seeds of Indian Horse Chestnut (Aesculus indica). Bacterial strain Brevibacillus laterosporus TK3 identified by morphological, biochemical techniques followed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The 16S rRNA sequence of bacteriocin producer was deposited in NCBI GenBank under accession no. KP861913.1. Bacteriocin of Brevibacillus laterosporus TK3 showed strong antagonistic activity against food spoiling/pathogenic bacteria viz. Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus and Clostridium perfringens. Bacteriocin production by Brevibacillus laterosporus TK3 was enhanced by optimizing production time, pH of the medium, inoculum size and incubation temperature. Maximum bacteriocin activity (6000 AU/ml) was recorded/obtained in basal salt medium of pH 5.5 with an inoculum size of 1.5 OD at 10% and incubation period of 24h at 35 °C. The bacteriocin was purified by single step gel exclusion chromatography. Molecular weight of active bacteriocin from Brevibacillus laterosporous TK3 was found to be 6 kDa according to SDS PAGE. The molecular mass of purified bacteriocin was confirmed as 5953.89 Da by MALDI TOF analysis. The purified bacteriocin was found desirable/suitable for food preservation as it showed wide spectrum of antimicrobial activity, resistance to high temperature, wide pH range and sensitivity to proteolytic enzymes thus, making it safe for human consumption.

Child Abuse Suffered by Saul in Richard Wagamese’s Indian Horse

This study investigates the child abuse suffered by the protagonist, Saul, in Richard Wagamese's novel "Indian Horse." The study explores the different forms of abuse Saul faced and examines how these experiences influenced his life, as portrayed in the novel. This study adopts literary criticism and employs a psychological approach and McCabe and Murphy's theory of child abuse. The data used in this study consists of words, phrases, and sentences extracted from Richard Wagamese's novel "Indian Horse," published by Douglas &amp; McIntyre in 2012. The findings reveal that while residing in St. Jerome, Saul suffered abuse from both his teacher and caregiver. The forms of abuse encompass physical, emotional, sexual, and neglectful mistreatment. Physical abuse involved the act of rough objects being scratched against Saul's body. Emotional abuse included instances of rejection, terrorization, and isolation. Additionally, Saul endured sexual abuse from his teacher. Neglect also played a part, encompassing physical, educational, and emotional neglect. The significant impact of these childhood traumas on Saul's adult life is evident in the results. Saul's coping mechanisms led to alcoholism and aggressive behavior. He withdrew from his surroundings, experiencing profound trauma, depression, and low self-esteem due to the abuse he suffered during his formative years.

Identification and characterization of single nucleotide polymorphisms in DMRT3 gene in Indian horse (Equus caballus) and donkey (Equus asinus) populations

Equines’ ability in racing and riding as well as gaitedness have influenced the human civilization. Aim of this study was to identify and characterize the novel polymorphisms or SNPs in DMRT3 gene in Indian horse and donkey breeds. In this study, the DMRT3 gene was sequenced and characterized in 72 Indian horses’ and 33 Indian donkeys’ samples. One SNP (A > C) at 878 was found in studied horses while identical SNPs (A > C) at two different nucleotide positions i.e., 878 and 942 in DMRT3 gene (chromosome 23) were observed in studied Indian donkey breeds. Horses and donkeys both have a non-synonymous mutation (A > C) at nucleotide 878 (codon 61) that converts a Stop codon (TAG > TCG) to coding codon Serine, whereas donkeys have a synonymous mutation at nucleotide 942 (codon 82) that converts Serine (TCA > TCC) into Serine. A phylogenetic tree indicated that the DMRT3 gene was equally distributed among the equine breeds. Most of the donkey breeds have been shown high levels of genetic diversity while horse breeds and Halari donkey showed the least genetic diversity. Mutation in DMRT3 has a major impact on gaitedness in horses and is presented at a high frequency in gaited breeds and in horses breed for harness racing.

Resistant Starch as a Novel Carrier for Delivery of Probiotics Exploring Effectiveness of Two Different Strategies of Encapsulation

AbstractIn the present study, three probiotic strains viz. Bifidobacterim bifidum, Lactobacillus casei, and Lactobacillus plantarum were encapsulated in resistant starch derived from Indian horse chestnut (HRS) and rice (RRS) by using freeze drying and emulsification techniques. Encapsulation yield for probiotics was found to be in the range of 71.9%–73.3% and 70.2.2%–73.4% using emulsification and freeze drying techniques. ATR‐FTIR spectral analysis of all the microcapsules reveals peaks in the range of 1332–1371 cm−1 and 2910–2925 cm−1 confirming the presence of encapsulated probiotics. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) shows granules with size ranging from 4 to 25 µm having different shapes. Cells encapsulated via emulsification show significantly better survivability during storage for a period of 3 months. Moreover, the survival rate of all the three microencapsulated probiotic cells remains comparably better under simulated gastrointestinal conditions than the free cells with minimal difference between the two techniques of encapsulation.

Basic reproductive parameters of Kathiawari horses reared under arid zone region

The current study was undertaken with an aim to record and analyse the data related to basic reproductive parameters such as length of estrus cycle, estrus duration, pre-ovulatory follicle size at ovulation, day of ovulation, length of gestation and days of occurrence of foal heat in respect of Kathiawari mares for a period of thirteen consecutive breeding seasons (2010-2023). The mares were monitored closely for their estrus signs, examined with transrectal ultrasonography for the size of the follicle variation and to determine the size of the follicle at ovulation. The mares were inseminated with the frozen thawed semen collected from Kathiawari stallions at appropriate time. This is the first time ever report that live foals have been obtained using frozen semen via artificial insemination in kathiawari horses. The data on reproductive indices of the mares of Kathiawari breed in India are scanty and there are no available reports on reproductive characteristics of Kathiawari breed until today in the literature. The results of the present findings are of much useful and may serve as a ready reckoner for the reproductive traits of Kathiawari breed reared under arid region. The differences in the reproductive parameters observed in relation to other breeds of Indian horses may be attributed to breed differences and other environmental factors.

Effect of extrusion processing conditions on the techno-functional, antioxidant, textural properties and storage stability of wholegrain-based breakfast cereal incorporated with Indian horse chestnut flour

The central composite rotatable design was used to plan the experiments using feed moisture (FM) content, barrel temperature (BT), screw speed (SS), and concentration of Indian horse chestnut flour (IHCF) as process variables varied between 10–18%, 70–150°C, 290–380 rpm and 1.75–4.75%, respectively. Surface mechanical energy, water holding capacity, swelling volume, piece density, longitudinal expansion, water activity and colour attributes were used as response variables. The whole grain flours added with 2.5% IHCF and extruded at 12% FM, 130°C BT and 380 rpm SS produced optimum quality breakfast cereals with 0.713 desirability. Extrudates packed in aluminum pouches were found to be suitable packaging materials and were shelf-stable for 6 months with better quality retention.

Characterization of Partial Sequence of Myostatin Gene Exon 2 along with SNP detection in Indian Horse Breeds (Equus caballus)

India has well documented horse and pony breeds; however, the population is well diversified in different geographical regions. The Myostatin gene is one of the most profoundly studied genetic components for the detection of SNP's for the performance analysis in horses. In the present study, the MSTN exon 2 partial cds were amplified, sequenced and characterized in about 60 samples of eight different breeds of Indian horses. The results indicated the transition of Thymine to Cytosine (T>C) as single nucleotide polymorphisms in the partial sequence of exon 2 of the MSTN gene at two different codon positions (T12C, T13C) on chromosome 18. The haplotypes and phylogeny of the MSTN gene in the selected horse population were also analyzed. The overall and singleton haplotype are two different entities, indicating the variation among breeds is unique while the gene is equally distributed throughout the population. The phylogeny suggests that all the breeds are somehow equally distributed in their specific geographical tracts. It is the first study of MSTN gene variations in Indian horse breeds, which provides insight into predicting athletic performance as well as phylogeny. This study provides useful genetic information on Indian horses that can be used to model the racing performances of the breeds.

Nighttime Invasions, Colonial Dispossession, and Indigenous Resilience in Richard Wagamese’sIndian Horse

AbstractThis essay demonstrates how Richard Wagamese employs oral storytelling techniques to make the complex idea of Indigenous dispossession sensually and intellectually accessible to readers of his novel,Indian Horse. The Wabseemoong First Nation writer depicts the devastating effects of white entitlement when rendering character Saul Indian Horse’s experiences in Canada’s residential schools and the effect those schools had on his subsequent life. Using narrative analysis, it will be shown how Saul loses his ability to perceive places as being alive and resonant, and is thereby dispossessed on an individual, social, and spiritual level. Furthermore, Wagamese’s descriptions of the physical, emotional, and sexual abuse of Indigenous children draw attention to the harrowing histories of Canada’s residential schools, thus laying bare the necropolitical potential of settler-colonial dispossession. This essay links Wagamese’s narrative to recent arguments brought forward in Indigenous studies. It aims to demonstrate that Indigenous dispossession in settler colonial states is part of modernity, and its overarching political economy, that is capitalism.i

Breakfast cereals from whole grain and Indian horse chestnut flours obtained through extrusion: Physical, mechanical and functional characteristics

The objective of this research was to optimize feed composition (whole wheat flour (WWF), whole barley flour (WBF), whole corn flour (WCF) and Indian horse chestnut flour (IHCF)) and evaluating the effects of different ratios of feed composition on the functional, physical and mechanical characteristics of extrudates. Response Surface Methodology was used to optimize the ingredients. Results found that breakfast cereals with 8.3% of WWF, 8.75% of WBF and 3.75% of IHCF had higher rehydration ratios and desirable hardness, porosity, bulk density and color as compared to other treatment samples. Increasing the whole-grain reduced water solubility index, water absorption index and surface mechanical energy. The optimum processing conditions obtained by numerical optimization for the development of breakfast cereals were 10% WWF, 10% WBF, 2.5% IHCF, and 77.5% WCF at 14% of moisture, 110ºC temperature and screw speed of 380 rpm. Therefore, the development of breakfast cereals through extrusion cooking of mixture of whole-grains and IHCF is feasible, providing the base for fiber rich healthier snack food products.

Development of Protein Rich Pregelatinized Whole Grain Cereal Bar Enriched With Nontraditional Ingredient: Nutritional, Phytochemical, Textural, and Sensory Characterization.

This study was aimed to use extrusion cooking as a pretreatment for non-conventional seeds (Indian horse chestnut flour) to blend them with whole grain flours (whole wheat flour, whole barley flour, and whole corn flour) for the development of a pregelatinized cereal bar (PCB). In this study, date paste (7.5–17.5%) and walnut grits (2.5–12.5%) were incorporated at varying levels to prepare PCB. The PCB was evaluated for its nutritional, color, textural (both three-point bending test and TPA), antioxidant activity, and sensory attributes. The flexural modulus, rupture stress, and fracture strain of PCB increased with the incorporation of a higher proportion of date paste. The protein and fiber content in PCB increased from 7.74 to 9.13% and 4.81 to 5.59% with the incorporation of walnut grits and date paste, respectively. The DPPH, total phenolic content, and water activity of PCB were determined, which progressively enhanced with increased levels of walnut grits and date paste. The correlation between sensory attributes and instrumental texture on PCB was also investigated. The correlation results showed a significant (p < 0.05) positive correlation between texture analysis and sensory hardness, springiness, adhesiveness, and negatively correlated to instrumental and sensory cohesiveness. For sensorial attributes, all PCB samples presented average scores of 7/10 and 4/5 for buying intention. Therefore, whole grain extrudates, date paste, and walnut grits can be efficiently used to develop PCB with improved nutritional, nutraceutical, and economic values.

Land and storytelling: Indigenous pathways towards healing, spiritual regeneration, and resurgence

This article aims to contribute to discourses of healing, Indigenous resurgence and spiritual regeneration within the context of the Indian Residential School Truth and Reconciliation Commission that took place in Canada between 2008 and 2015. First, it considers to what extent the TRC’s restorative justice process can relate to Indigenous ways of conceptualising healing. Secondly, it reflects on the Commission’s exclusive focus on the Indian Residential School system and its legacies, which, according to many Indigenous scholars, overlooks a much broader and more complex history of colonisation, political domination, and land dispossession still ongoing. I underline that, from an Indigenous perspective, land plays a fundamental role to achieve healing, spiritual regeneration, and resurgence. In the last section, I move the discussion to the literary dimension as I explore Richard Wagamese’s 2012 novel Indian Horse. In particular, I argue that fiction, especially that fiction produced during the years of the Commission’s work, can be a crucial site for challenging the TRC’s restorative process and for bringing out the significance of storytelling and of an Indigenous deep sense of connection to the land as a source of learning, spiritual reclaiming, and healing.

Physico-Chemical Properties of Indian Horse Chestnut (Aesculus indica) Starch Films as Affected by γ-Irradiation

Physico-Chemical Properties of Indian Horse Chestnut (Aesculus indica) Starch Films as Affected by γ-Irradiation

Truth and reconciliationcinema: an ethico-political study of residential school imagery in contemporary Indigenous film

This article explores an important facet of the New Wave of Indigenous filmmaking in Canada: residential school system history and imagery, its place in the historical archive, and the way it is being retold and reclaimed in films like Rhymes for Young Ghouls (2013), Savage (2009), Sisters &amp; Brothers (2015), Indian Horse (2017), and The Grizzlies (2018). While researching this topic, one unanswered question has left me feeling sometimes frustrated and often troubled: Is there a risk of producing pan-Indigenous readings, or worse, repeating the original propagandistic intentions of the original residential school photographs when they are used in new media?

Reproductive indices of Manipuri horses reared under arid zone region

The current study was undertaken with an object to record and analyse the data related to reproductive indices such as estrus cycle length, duration of estrus, size of the follicle at ovulation, day of ovulation, gestation length and estrus after foaling (foal heat) in respect of Manipuri mares. The mares were closely monitored for their estrus exhibition, examined with transrectal ultrasonography for the size of the follicle variation and to determine the size of the follicle at ovulation. The mares were inseminated with the frozen thawed semen collected from Manipuri stallions at appropriate time. This is the first time ever report that Manipuri stallion semen was cryopreserved successfully and live foals have been obtained using frozen semen via artificial insemination. The data on reproductive characteristics of the mares of Manipuri breed in India are scanty and there are no available reports on reproductive parameters of Manipuri breed until today in the literature. The results of the present findings are of much useful as a ready reckoner for the reproductive parameters and traits of Manipuri breed as well as indigenous horses reared under arid region. The differences observed in various parameters in relation to other breeds of Indian horses may be caused by breed effect and other environmental factors.

Evaluation of Diagnostic, Prognostic Indicators and Surgical Outcome in 20 Cases Treated for Equine Intestinal Colic

Background: Colic is one of the most common and challenging problem encountered by equine practitioners. In practise majority of horses suffering from colic can be treated with medical management but around 10% of horses with colic require surgical intervention in an effort to save the life of animal. In India, equine abdominal surgery is not popular because there is lack of infrastructure, manpower and expertise therefore, there is a need to conduct clinical studies to document outcome of equine colic cases managed surgically. The present report describes diagnostic, prognostic indicators and post-operative outcome of exploratory celiotomy performed to manage various cases of colic surgical outcome of colic surgery in Indian horse breeds.Methods: The present study was conducted on 20 horses having intestinal colic (n=20). The affected patients were selected for exploratory celiotomy on an emergency basis having moderate to severe persistent abdominal pain, lack of response to medicinal treatment with absence of intestinal borborygmi. Preoperative physical assessment, biochemical analysis and peritoneal fluid analysis were done in all the clinical cases. The preoperative physical assessment and various blood parameter estimation helped in decision making.Conclusion: The result of intestinal colic cases showed that mean heart rate and respiration rate (mean±SE) were significantly higher in non-survivors as compared to survivors. Blood lactate level was significantly higher in non survivors than survivors. Large colon affectation (n=8) were the primary cause of the colic, followed by small colon (n=6), cecum (n=3) and small intestine (n=3). Postoperative complications were peritonitis and ileus (n=6), subcutaneous seroma (n=7), pyrexia (n=4), diarrhoea (n=6). Short term survivability in intestinal colic patients was 55% and long term survivability was 50%.