Single Chicken Research Articles

Taste Preferences in Broilers: Effect of Age, Delivery Matrix, and Number of Chickens per Pen on Selection and Consumption Behaviour

Due to substantial differences between studies, the understanding of avian taste perception remains incomplete. Also, studies on chicken taste preferences have mainly focused on measuring consumption differences, neglecting consumption behaviour patterns. This study investigated how age, the compound delivery matrix, and the number of birds per pen affect broiler chicken preferences and consumption behaviour, and established their preference values for four taste compounds. Ninety-six one-day-old male broiler chickens (Ross 308) were divided into two age groups (initial: days 7–23; final: days 26–42), with two compound delivery matrices (water or ground wheat) and two numbers of birds (one or two chickens per pen), following a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial design. Four taste compounds (sucrose, monosodium glutamate (MSG), L-lysine, and calcium carbonate) were tested at different concentrations. Preferences were assessed at 2, 4, and 8 h post-test, along with recording various behavioural parameters. Initial-stage birds showed higher (p < 0.001) preference values, time of approach (TA), number of bouts (NB), duration of bouts (DB), and number of pecks (NP) than final-stage birds. Birds exposed to a water matrix also exhibited higher (p < 0.001) preference and NB, while those exposed to a ground wheat matrix showed a higher (p < 0.001) NP. Pens with a pair of birds had a higher (p < 0.003) 2 h preference, TA, NB, DB, and NP, than pens with a single chicken. Chickens showed significant preference values for 100 mM sucrose at 2 h (p = 0.025), 150 mM MSG at 4 h (p = 0.026) and 8 h (p = 0.013), and 300 mM MSG at 2 h (p = 0.013). We concluded that all the variables evaluated influence broilers’ taste preferences and consumption behaviour during selection tests. Future studies should prioritize including chickens in the initial stage of the production cycle, testing them in pairs or groups, and delivering compounds via a liquid matrix.

Antimicrobial residues in meat from chickens in Northeast Vietnam: analytical validation and pilot study for sampling optimisation

Antimicrobials used in chicken farming for therapeutic and/or prophylactic purposes may result in unacceptable levels of edible residues, if withdrawal periods are not respected. To evaluate the risk in Vietnam, we validated an analytical method to detect antimicrobial residues from chicken meat samples and carried out a pilot cross-sectional study to identify optimal sampling strategies. A total of 45 raw meat samples were collected from 4 markets, 1 slaughterhouse and 4 farms (5 per site) in Northern Vietnam, between March and April 2021. Farmers were asked about antimicrobials used during sampled production cycles (5 chickens sampled per batch). Samples were analysed using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for the presence of 68 antimicrobials at a pre-defined validation concentration. 7 compounds were identified from 4 classes (tetracyclines, sulphonamides, macrolides, and fluoroquinolones). In markets, where the source of sampled chickens was unknown, a diverse pool of residual antimicrobials was detected in 20% (4/20) of the meat samples. No residues were detected in samples from the slaughterhouse. No residues were detected in chickens from the one farm that reported using antimicrobials, whereas sulfadimethoxine, doxycycline and tilmicosin residues were identified from the other 3 farms reporting no antimicrobial use. The probability of detecting antimicrobial residues present in a flock based on sampling a single chicken was estimated at 0.93 (highest density interval 0.735–0.997). The preliminary results suggest a disparity between farmers’ reports on antimicrobial drug use and actual usage, and that the analysis of a single sample per farm has a high probability of detecting antimicrobial residues, if present.

A Novel, Efficient Method to Isolate Chicken Primordial Germ Cells from Embryonic Blood Using Cell Culture Inserts.

Primordial germ cells (PGCs) play a crucial role in preserving poultry genetic resources and conducting transgenic research. A system for the rapid isolation of PGCs from single chicken embryonic blood was established in this paper. We found that PGCs can migrate to the lower layer of chicken embryonic fibroblasts (CEFs) through pores smaller than their diameter, while blood cells cannot, when co-cultured with CEFs of passages two to three. Based on the characteristics of PGCs, we developed a new PGC isolation method (cell culture insert/CEF adhesion method) that utilizes a 3 μm cell culture insert and CEFs of passages two to three. Using this method, approximately 700 PGCs can be isolated from the blood of a single chicken embryo at Hamburger and Hamilton (H&H) stage 17 of development. The separation rate achieved was 87.5%, with a separation purity of 95%. The separation rate of this method was 41.4% higher than the common Percoll density gradient centrifugation method and 33.6% higher than lysis with ACK buffer. PGCs isolated from embryonic blood could proliferate 37-fold within 2 weeks when cultured in a feeder-free culture system. They also continued to express the SSEA-1 and DAZL proteins and retained the ability to migrate in vivo. Overall, PGCs separated using cell culture inserts/CEF adhesion method retain their stem cell characteristics and migration ability. PGCs also exhibit good proliferation efficiency, making them suitable for subsequent transgenic experiments or genetic resource preservation.

Bitter taste receptors of the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata).

Despite the important role of bitter taste for the rejection of potentially harmful food sources, birds have long been suspected to exhibit inferior bitter tasting abilities. Although more recent reports on the bitter recognition spectra of several bird species have cast doubt about the validity of this assumption, the bitter taste of avian species is still an understudied field. Previously, we reported the bitter activation profiles of three zebra finch receptors Tas2r5, -r6, and -r7, which represent orthologs of a single chicken bitter taste receptor, Tas2r1. In order to get a better understanding of the bitter tasting capabilities of zebra finches, we selected another Tas2r gene of this species that is similar to another chicken Tas2r. Using functional calcium mobilization experiments, we screened zebra finch Tas2r1 with 72 bitter compounds and observed responses for 7 substances. Interestingly, all but one of the newly identified bitter agonists were different from those previously identified for Tas2r5, -r6, and -r7 suggesting that the newly investigated receptor fills important gaps in the zebra finch bitter recognition profile. The most potent bitter agonist found in our study is cucurbitacin I, a highly toxic natural bitter substance. We conclude that zebra finch exhibits an exquisitely developed bitter taste with pronounced cucurbitacin I sensitivity suggesting a prominent ecological role of this compound for zebra finch.

Study on Poultry Pose Estimation Based on Multi-Parts Detection.

Simple SummaryPoultry farming is an important part of China’s agriculture system. The automatic estimation of poultry posture can help to analyze the movement, behavior, and even health of poultry. In this study, a poultry pose-estimation system was designed, which realized the automatic pose estimation of a single broiler chicken using a multi-part detection method. The experimental results show that this method can obtain better pose-estimation results for a single broiler chicken with respect to precision, recall, and F1 score. The pose-estimation system designed in this study provides a new means to provide help for poultry pose/behavior researchers in the future.Poultry pose estimation is a prerequisite for evaluating abnormal behavior and disease prediction in poultry. Accurate pose-estimation enables poultry producers to better manage their poultry. Because chickens are group-fed, how to achieve automatic poultry pose recognition has become a problematic point for accurate monitoring in large-scale farms. To this end, based on computer vision technology, this paper uses a deep neural network (DNN) technique to estimate the posture of a single broiler chicken. This method compared the pose detection results with the Single Shot MultiBox Detector (SSD) algorithm, You Only Look Once (YOLOV3) algorithm, RetinaNet algorithm, and Faster_R-CNN algorithm. Preliminary tests show that the method proposed in this paper achieves a 0.0128 standard deviation of precision and 0.9218 ± 0.0048 of confidence (95%) and a 0.0266 standard deviation of recall and 0.8996 ± 0.0099 of confidence (95%). By successfully estimating the pose of broiler chickens, it is possible to facilitate the detection of abnormal behavior of poultry. Furthermore, the method can be further improved to increase the overall success rate of verification.

Genetic diversity of extended-spectrum cephalosporin resistance in Salmonella enterica and E. coli isolates in a single broiler chicken

Extended-spectrum cephalosporin (ESC) resistance investigated in Salmonella and E. coli from the same chicken was to improve the understanding of the inter-species transmission of ESC resistance determinants in Salmonella and E. coli from a single chicken individual. Fifteen (13.6%) farms and 44 (8.0%) chicken individuals were positive for ESC-resistant E. coli and/or Salmonella, 8 farms (7.3%) and 12 (2.2%) individuals were simultaneously positive for ESC-resistant E. coli and Salmonella. The genetic diversity of ESC resistance determinants in E. coli and Salmonella was observed. Most E. coli isolates (67.6%) produced CTX-M-type of blaCTX-M-55, and 9 isolates (24.3%) produced CMY-type of blaCMY-2. Most Salmonella isolates (94.1%) produced blaCTX-M-15. Two broiler chicken farms were simultaneously positive for blaCMY-2- and blaCTX-M-15-harboring E. coli and Salmonella isolates. Whole-plasmid sequence for the transferable plasmid harboring blaCMY-2 showed genomic diversity of the plasmids from Salmonella and E. coli sourced from the same chicken. The genetic arrangement of blaCMY-2 in Salmonella was IS1294b-ΔISEcp1-blaCMY-2-blc-sugE and ISEcp1-blaCMY-2-blc-sugE in E. coli located on multi-host plasmids of IncI1-pST-2 and IncI1-pST-12. In conclusion, the study illustrates the genetic diversity of ESC resistance determinants in E. coli and Salmonella in a single chicken. Considering the possibility of transmission of antimicrobial resistance to humans through the food chain, a large reservoir of ESC resistance in chicken which could be co-infected with ESC-resistant E. coli and Salmonella poses a serious risk of potential transmission of ESC-resistant E. coli and Salmonella, and their transferable ESC resistant gene, to human simultaneously.

Influence of lime and chicken mesh on compaction behaviour and strength properties of soil

The primary aim of study is to increase the bearing capacity of the soil and secondly enhance resistance capacity against the weathering process. Insecure soils can make main problems for pavements or structures, in this manner procedures are important to ensure the great steadiness of soil with the goal that it effectively sustain the load of the superstructure particularly if there should be an amount of soil which are exceptionally active, likewise it spares a maximum of duration and huge costing when it is compared with the strategy for removing out and replace the unstable soil. The tests on soil classification, compaction tests and California bearing ratio (CBR) tests should be carried out. The optimum lime content by weight was obtained as 2% against double layers of chicken mesh combination. Standard Proctor tests should perform to calculating OMC and MDD of the soil. For various % of lime content, maximum dry density value increased till 2%, after which it decreased till 6%. Optimum water content value decreased at 1%, increased at 2% and kept on decreasing till 6% of lime. Proctor curve became flatter at 2% whereas for other cases it was found to be normal. In case of chicken mesh, for double layers of chicken mesh, the value of MDD and OMC both decreased as compare to single layer of chicken mesh. For CBR demonstration, out of single layer and double layers of chicken mesh, the optimum value was found at double layers of chicken mesh. It was observed that the CBR value of 2% lime with single layer chicken mesh was found more as compared to CBR value of 2% lime with double layers of chicken mesh.

Study of biting chicken lice and its seasonal fluctuation in Erbil governorate, Iraq

A study of the biting lice on chickens and its seasonal fluctuations of species on local chickens were conducted in four locations in Erbil governorate namely, Baharka, Kusnazan, Koshteba and Kanikurzala. Also the estimation of infesting percentage with lice and its kinds. Results revealed the occurrence of six species of biting lice on chickens, the chickens body lice (Menacanthus stramineus), the feather shift lice (Menopon gallinae), the chicken head lice (Cuclotogaster heterographus), the fluff lice (Goniocotes gallinae), the large chicken head lice (Goniodes gigas), and the wing lice (Lipeurus caponis). The infestation with M. stramineus was heavy in all locations and seasons in comparison with the other species. The highest average number of the lice on a single chicken through all seasons was in Baharka location (340.8 louse) and the highest number of lice on a single chicken was 249.6 louse during winter.

Estimation of the Gender Ratio of Chickens Based on Computer Vision: Dataset and Exploration.

The gender ratio of free-range chickens is considered as a major animal welfare problem in commercial broiler farming. Free-range chicken producers need to identify chicken gender to estimate the economic value of their flock. However, it is challenging for farmers to estimate the gender ratio of chickens efficiently and accurately, since the environmental background is complicated and the chicken number is dynamic. Moreover, manual estimation is likely double counts or missed count and thus is inaccurate and time consuming. Hence, automated methods that can lead to results efficiently and accurately replace the identification abilities of a chicken gender expert, working in a farm environment, are beneficial to the industry. The contributions in this paper include: (1) Building the world’s first chicken gender classification database annotated manually, which comprises 800 chicken flock images captured on a farm and 1000 single chicken images separated from the flock images by an object detection network, labelled with gender information. (2) Training a rooster and hen classifier using a deep neural network and cross entropy in information theory to achieve an average accuracy of 96.85%. The evaluation of the algorithm performance indicates that the proposed automated method is practical for the gender classification of chickens on the farm environment and provides a feasible way of thinking for the estimation of the gender ratio.

PENGARUH KOTORAN AYAM DAN MIKORIZA Glomus aggregatum TERHADAP PERTUMBUHAN KEDELAI (Glycine max) PADA TANAH GAMBUT

Peat soil in West Kalimantan has been contained low of nutrient level so it affects the growth of soybeans. One effort to increase the availability of nutrients in peat soils is by using mycorrhiza and chicken manure fertilizer. This research aims to determine the growth of soybeans by administering chicken manure and mycorrhiza on peat soils. The research was conducted from January to April 2019. The research design used was a Completely Randomized Design Factorial consisting of 2 factors with 4 replications. The first factor is mycorrhiza fungi: M1 (0 gr/polybag), M2 (5 gr/polybag), M3 (10 gr/polybag), M4 (15 gr/polybag) and the second factor is chicken manure fertilizer: P1 (0 tons/ha) , P2 (5 tons/ha), P3 (10 tons/ha), P4 (15 tons/ha). The results showed that the single chicken manure application significantly affected all observed parameters with 15 tons/ha chicken manure fertilizer. Mycorrhiza fungi just a significantly effect on fresh weight and dry weight. Also, the combination of mycorrhiza fungi and chicken manure fertilizer just a significantly affected wet weight and dry weight with combination 5 g mycorrhiza and 5 tons/ha of chicken manure fertilizer.

Within-host heterogeneity and flexibility of mcr-1 transmission in chicken gut

To characterize the colistin-resistant bacterial population in the gut and assess diversity of mcr-1 transmission within a single individual. Large numbers of isolates (>100 colonies/chicken cecum sample) were collected from nine randomly selected mcr-1-positive chickens in China and used for comprehensive microbiological, molecular and comparative genomics analyses. Of 1273 colonies, 968 were mcr-1 positive (962 Escherichia coli, two Escherichia fergusonii, two Klebsiella pneumoniae and two Klebsiella quasipneumoniae). One to six colistin-resistant species and three to 10 E. coli pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) clusters could be identified from each sample. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) analysis of the representative E. coli strains revealed three to nine sequence types observed in a single chicken host. The mcr-1 genes are located in either chromosomes or plasmids of different types, including IncI2 (n=30), IncHI2 (n=14), IncX4 (n=4), p0111(n=2) and IncHI1(n=1). Strikingly, in single cecum samples, one to five Inc type plasmids harbouring mcr-1 could be identified. Great diversity was also observed for the same IncI2 plasmid within a single chicken host. In addition, up to eight genetic contexts of the mcr-1 gene occurred within a single chicken. There is extensive heterogeneity and flexibility of mcr-1 transmission in chicken gut due to bacterial species differences, distant clonal relatedness of isolates, many types and variations of mcr-positive plasmids, and the flexible genetic context of the mcr-1 gene. These compelling findings indicate that the gut is a 'melting pot' for active horizontal transfer of the mcr-1 gene.

Effects of Solid Organic Wastes on Soil Particulate Organic Carbon Structure Under Different Water Conditions

In searching for the optimum method for amelioration of solid organic waste by remedying black soil and tackling rainfall changes, effects of water conditions and solid organic wastes are studied on particulate organic carbon (POC) structure by 13C‐NMR spectroscopic analysis in a 3‐year split‐plot experiment. Experimental plots are under natural rainfall, water deficit, and excess water with single chemical fertilizer, cow manure, chicken manure, crop, or plant residue treatments. The results reveal that solid organic wastes have the potential to improve POC stability. Under natural rainfall conditions, the degressive order by the POC stability is plant residue, crop residue, cow manure, and then chicken manure; under water deficit, it is plant residue, crop residue, chicken manure, and then cow manure; under excess water conditions, it is plant residue, cow manure, chicken manure, and then crop residue. The interchange between aromatic carbon and alkyl or alkoxy carbon gives a remarkable reflection of the effect of water on POC structure. The plant residue increases the aromatic carbon at rates of 4.6, 6.4, and 9.3% under natural rainfall, water deficit, and excess water conditions, respectively. Studying the three water conditions, it could be shown that under a water deficit or excess water condition, both chicken manure and crop residues are unfavorable to POC stability; cow manure is conducive to POC stability only under excess water condition. Leaves, therefore, serve as the optimum amelioration material.

Identification of DNA-Methylated CpG Islands Associated With Gene Silencing in the Adult Body Tissues of the Ogye Chicken Using RNA-Seq and Reduced Representation Bisulfite Sequencing.

DNA methylation is an epigenetic mark that plays an essential role in regulating gene expression. CpG islands are DNA methylations regions in promoters known to regulate gene expression through transcriptional silencing of the corresponding gene. DNA methylation at CpG islands is crucial for gene expression and tissue-specific processes. At the current time, a limited number of studies have reported on gene expression associated with DNA methylation in diverse adult tissues at the genome-wide level. Expression levels are rarely affected by DNA methylation in normal adult tissues; however, statistical differences in gene expression level correlated with DNA methylation have recently been revealed. In this study, we examined 20 pairs of DNA methylomes and transcriptomes from RNA-seq and reduced representation bisulfite sequencing (RRBS) data using adult Ogye chicken tissues. A total of 3,133 CpG islands were identified from 20 tissue data in a single chicken sample which could affect downstream genes. Analyzing these CpG island and gene pairs, 121 significant units were statistically correlated. Among them, six genes (CLDN3, DECR2, EVA1B, NME4, NTSR1, and XPNPEP2) were highly significantly changed by altered DNA methylation. Finally, our data demonstrated how DNA methylation correlated to gene expression in normal adult tissues. Our source codes can be found at https://github.com/wjlim/correlation-between-rna-seq-and-RRBS.

Repeated avian infectious bronchitis virus infections within a single chicken farm.

Genotyping of avian infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) was performed on trachea and kidney samples of six chickens obtained from a single farm in Japan. Using two primer sets targeting the spike (S) protein gene, the S1 and S2 regions of DNA fragments were amplified. Sequences of amplified S1 fragments extracted from both organs were identical among the six chickens, showing a JP-I genotype. Sequences of amplified S2 fragments differed between trachea and kidney samples. The kidney profile showed a group IV genotype, whereas the trachea profile showed an unclassified group. This result showed that two different IBVs infected the six chickens. The first IBV infection induced poor protective immunity in this farm, permitting a second IBV infection to occur.

Isolation and characterization of a novel anti-salbutamol chicken scFv for human doping urinalysis

Anti-salbutamol antibodies remain as important tools for the detection of salbutamol abuse in athletic doping. This study evaluated the feasibility and efficiency of the chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) as an immunization host to generate anti-salbutamol scFv antibodies by phage display. A phage display antibody library was constructed from a single chicken immunized against salbutamol-KLH conjugate. After a stringent biopanning strategy, a novel scFv clone which was inhibited by free salbutamol recorded the highest affinity. This scFv was expressed as soluble and functional protein in Escherichia coli T7 SHuffle Express B (DE3) strain. Cross-reactivity studies of the scFv towards other relevant β2-agonists revealed that the scFv cross-reacted significantly towards clenbuterol. The determined IC50 of the scFv towards the two β2-agonists were; IC50 salbutamol = ∼0.310 μg/ml, IC50 clenbuterol = ∼0.076 μg/ml. The generated scFv demonstrated poor stability based on accelerated stability studies. The scFv was used to develop an competitive indirect ELISA (LOD = 0.125 μg/ml) for detection of parent salbutamol in spiked human urine (n = 18) with ∼83.4% reliability at the cut-off of 1 μg/ml currently implemented by WADA and may be of potential use in human doping urinalysis.

Community Consensus: Don’t Kill the Chickens, Build Community Consensus

President's column What is that smell?! As a small boy, after doing the chores on one sunny summer day, I was happy to have a farm to run around on with lots of distractions. Life was grand, and the farm was my oyster. Suddenly, there was this awful smell like rotten eggs wafting from the field. The nearby drilling rig was in operation but something unexpected had happened, and the crew was reacting to the situation. Dad was not sure what to do but was quite concerned about his 5,000 chickens. Chickens, like canaries in coal mines, are quite fragile when it comes to gases in the air. There was no way he could isolate the barn from the smell, so he gathered up the family and, similar to what you would do in a prairie storm, we went to the safest place in the farmhouse to wait it out: the basement. Now, most of you reading this story know exactly what was going on, and—as I am still alive to relay the story—the worst case did not occur. Not a single chicken died, and more importantly, not a single member of the Spady farm family succumbed to the killer hydrogen sulfide gases gathering in the low spots, such as the basement. Not much was ever said about the incident, and I am not sure if Dad ever followed up with the company man on the rig. We were pretty happy to have the novelty of a drilling rig on our farm, and benefited from the surface payments (royalty in Alberta at the time, as now, was generally held by the government). When I grew up it was a normal sight to see large piles of bright yellow sulfur byproduct at nearby gas plants awaiting shipment for agricultural use. This was all part of the new and exciting world of oil and gas that was eclipsing agriculture as the new provider of local jobs. I still drive the farm equipment around that old wellhead when I help with the crop seeding and harvesting. We have co-existed quite nicely for 50 years.

High Titer Lentivector from a Stable Lenti-Producer Efficiently Corrects CD34+ Hematopoietic Stem Cells from Patients with p47phox-Deficient Chronic Granulomatous Disease

Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) is an inherited immune deficiency due to mutations in the genes for the NADPH subunits (the genes for p47phox, p22phox, p67phox, p40phox autosomal chronic granulomatous disease), or gp91phox (X-linked chronic granulomatous disease). This results in a failure to generate phagocyte-derived superoxide and related reactive oxygen intermediates (ROIs), the major defect in chronic granulomatous disease causing recurrent infections and granulomatous complications. Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) with a suitable donor is potentially curative. However, in the absence of HLA-matched donor, gene therapy using autologous gene-corrected HSC offers potential for significant clinical benefit. To date, despite myeloid conditioning, gene therapy for CGD patients using gamma-retroviral vectors have achieved either minimal long-term gene marking and engraftment, or has been associated with insertional mutagenesis. In contrast, lentivector-mediated gene therapy has successfully treated patients with Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome and Metachromatic Leukodystrophy without any dysregulated clonal expansion.We used a lentivector construct which incorporates an MND internal promoter, a modified self-inactivating MoMuLV LTR U3 region with myeloproliferative sarcoma virus enhancer, and a 650bp single chicken b-globin insulator encoding codon-optimized p47phox gene. Mutations in p47phox accounts for the majority of AR-CGD. The production of large-scale, consistently-high-titer lentivector using a transient 4-plasmid transfection system however, is labor- and cost-prohibitive. To address this, we applied concatemeric array transfection of pCL20cW650 MND-p47-OPT into a stable packaging cell line (GPRTG) for HIV-based lentiviral vectors to create a stable producer of VSV-G pseudotyped pCL20cW650 MND-p47OP. The concatemer array of HIV lentiviral vector construct and bleomycin selectable gene cassette showed 10 copies of lentiviral vector in a stable producer line, capable of producing vector at 10^7 IU/ml.Hematopoietic CD34+ stem cells from p47phox- CGD were transduced with pCL20cW650 MND-p47-OPT vector (MOI 10) with 2 overnight transductions following 24 hours pre-activation with SCF, FLT-3L and TPO (100ng/ml). Following three weeks in vitro culture, non-transduced or transduced p47 CGD HSC versus normal HSC were 0%, 42% and 20% p47phox positive, respectively. To determine functional correction, PMA stimulated oxidant production was measured using the dihydrorhodamine assay, confirmation similar levels of oxidant generation in transduced patient cells compared with normal controls. More than 90% of CFU were vector positive, indicating a high level of gene marking. Transduced and control naïve p47phox-patient CD34+ HSC were transplanted into 20 immunodeficient Nodscid-gc deficient (NSG) mice, and at 13 weeks post-transplant the CD13+ human neutrophils arising in mouse bone marrow were assessed for p47phox expression. Over 40% CD13+ neutrophils expressed p47phox protein from NSG mice transplanted with transduced p47-patient CD34 HSC, compared with 74% or 0% in mice transplanted with normal CD34 or p47 patient naive CD34 cells respectively. Detailed histopathology of each transplanted mice confirmed the absence of vector insertion-related myeloid tumors, and deep sequencing of bone marrow CD45+ human cells from each mouse also demonstrated polyclonal distribution of vector integration sites. In conclusion, we provide preclinical data demonstrating the efficacy and safety of high titer VSVg-pseudotyped lentivector (CL20cW650 MND-p47-OPT) generated by our stable GPTRG p47 lenti-producer for correction of p47phox-deficient human CD34 HSC. DisclosuresNo relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

Parasitic Burden and Its Relation with the Body Weight of Free Range Chicken in Oil Palm Dominated Sandakan District of Malaysian Borneo

An investigation was conducted on 40 free range chicken to figure out their parasitic burden relating to the body weight (BW). The chicken was found to be infested with the ectoparasites; Dermanyssus gallinae (prevalence 78%), Lipeurus caponis (80%) and Menopon gallinae (100%), and endoparasites; Oxyspirura mansoni (68%), Syngamus trachea (5%), Ascaridia galli (30%), Raillietina cesticillus (90%) and Heterakis gallinae (83%). The highest and lowest count of the parasites were 164/chicken for O. mansoni and 14/chicken for S. trachea, respectively. The count of the parasites were not influenced by the categories of the chicken, except L. caponis and R. cesticillus those were significantly influenced by the sex and age of the chicken respectively. BW of the chicken had always negative correlation with their parasitic load and this correlation was statistically significant in the male chicken. However, a single chicken harbored minimum 3 to maximum 8 species of parasites and 38% of the chicken harbored maximum 6 species of parasites simultaneously in their body. Results suggested that the free range chicken in the study area was suffering from strong parasitic problem by the cost of their BW.

Global diversity and genetic contributions of chicken populations from African, Asian and European regions.

Genetic diversity and population structure of 113 chicken populations from Africa, Asia and Europe were studied using 29 microsatellite markers. Among these, three populations of wild chickens and nine commercial purebreds were used as reference populations for comparison. Compared to commercial lines and chickens sampled from the European region, high mean numbers of alleles and a high degree of heterozygosity were found in Asian and African chickens as well as in Red Junglefowl. Population differentiation (FST ) was higher among European breeds and commercial lines than among African, Asian and Red Junglefowl populations. Neighbour-Net genetic clustering and structure analysis revealed two main groups of Asian and north-west European breeds, whereas African populations overlap with other breeds from Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean region. Broilers and brown egg layers were situated between the Asian and north-west European clusters. structure analysis confirmed a lower degree of population stratification in African and Asian chickens than in European breeds. High genetic differentiation and low genetic contributions to global diversity have been observed for single European breeds. Populations with low genetic variability have also shown a low genetic contribution to a core set of diversity in attaining maximum genetic variation present from the total populations. This may indicate that conservation measures in Europe should pay special attention to preserving as many single chicken breeds as possible to maintain maximum genetic diversity given that higher genetic variations come from differentiation between breeds.

Mapping Genes to Chicken Microchromosome 16 and Discovery of Olfactory and Scavenger Receptor Genes Near the Major Histocompatibility Complex

Trisomy mapping is a powerful method for assigning genes to chicken microchromosome 16 (GGA 16). The single chicken nucleolar organizer region (NOR), the 2 major histocompatibility complex regions (MHC-Y and MHC-B), and CD1 genes were all previously assigned to GGA 16 using trisomy mapping. Here, we combined array comparative genomic hybridization with trisomy mapping to screen unassigned genomic scaffolds (consigned temporarily to chrUn_random) for sequences originating from GGA 16. A number of scaffolds mapped to GGA 16. Among these were scaffolds that contain genes for olfactory (OR) and cysteine-rich domain scavenger (SRCR) receptors, along with a number of genes that encode putative immunoglobulin-like receptors and other molecules. We used high-resolution cytogenomic analyses to confirm assignment of OR and SRCR genes to GGA 16 and to pinpoint members of these gene families to the q-arm in partially overlapping regions between the centromere and the NOR. Southern blots revealed sequence polymorphism within the OR/SRCR region and linkage with the MHC-Y region, thereby providing evidence for conserved linkage between OR genes and the MHC within birds. This work localizes OR genes to the vicinity of the chicken MHC and assigns additional genes, including immune defense genes, to GGA 16.