Genetic analysis of six production traits in Peruvian alpacas

In this study a total of 6499 records were obtained for fibre diameter (FD) and coefficient of variation of FD (CV), 3283 records for greasy fleece weight (GFW), staple length (SL) and shearing interval (SI) and 1802 records of textile value index (TV) obtained from an experimental herd of alpacas exploited in the Peruvian Altiplano.The estimated heritabilities were: 0.412 ± 0.015 (FD), 0.321 ± 0.013 (CV), 0.098 ± 0.016 (GFW), 0.070 ± 0.011 (SL), 0.061 ± 0.012 (SI) and 0.163 ± 0.017 (TV). No significant genetic correlation was found for the pairs FD-CV and CV-GFW whilst the pairs FD-GFW, FD-SI and FD-TV had significant genetic correlations of, respectively, 0.405 ± 0.081, − 0.395 ± 0.078 and − 0.746 ± 0.049. No significant correlations were found for SL except for the pair SL-SI (0.397 ± 0.099). The TV index also showed significant genetic correlations with CV of 0.125 ± 0.061 and with GFW of 0.490 ± 0.070. All estimates of permanent environmental effects (c²) associated with the six analysed traits were statistically significant ranging from 0.008 for SI to 0.259 for CV. Total repeatability for the analysed traits was low for SI (0.069) and SL (0.090), moderate for TV (0.299) and GFW (0.316) and high for FD (0.578) and CV (0.579). The permanent environmental effect associated with CV is significantly correlated with those of the other traits except for FD. The permanent environmental effects associated with GFW and SL seemed to be basically the same (estimated correlation of 0.916 ± 0.062). The permanent environmental effect for TV is highly correlated with those associated with GFW (0.498 ± 0.058) and SL (0.750 ± 0.137). Expected selection response for TV was higher when FD was considered as selection goal instead of TV itself.It would, therefore, be more efficient to use FD rather than empirical indices as selection criterion to increase textile value in Peruvian alpacas. The reported genetic parameters and correlation matrices can be useful to implement multitrait breeding value estimations for alpaca selection.     

Estimates of genetic parameters for worm resistance,wool and growth traits in Merino sheep of Uruguay

The genotype of an individual and the environment as the maternal ability of its dam have substantial effects on the phenotype expression of many production traits. The aim of the present study was to estimate the (co)variance components for worm resistance, wool and growth traits in Merino sheep, testing the importance of maternal effects and to determine the most appropriate model for each trait. The traits analyzed were Greasy Fleece Weight (GFW), Clean Fleece Weight (CFW), average Fibre Diameter (FD), Coefficient of Variation of FD (CVFD), Staple Length (SL), Comfort Factor (CF30), Weaning Weight (WWT), Yearling Body Weight (YWT) and Faecal worm Egg Count (FEC). The data were recorded during a 15-year period from 1995 to 2010, from Uruguayan Merino stud flocks. A Bayesian analysis was performed to estimate (co)variance components and genetic parameters. By ignoring or including maternal genetic or environmental effects, five different univariate models were fitted in order to determine the most effective for each trait. For CVFD and YWT, the model fitting the data best included direct additive effects as the only significant random source of variation. For GFW, CFW, FD, SL and CF30 the most appropriate model included direct-maternal covariance; while for FEC included maternal genetics effects with a zero direct-maternal covariance. The most suitable model for WWT included correlated maternal genetic plus maternal permanent environmental effects. The estimates of direct heritability were moderate to high and ranged from 0.15 for log transformed FEC to 0.74 for FD. Most of the direct additive genetic correlation (rg) estimations were in the expected range for Merino breed. However, the estimate of rg between FEC and FD was unfavourable (−0.18±0.03). In conclusion, there is considerable genetic variation in the traits analyzed, indicating the potential to make genetic progress on these traits. This study showed that maternal effects are influencing most of traits analyzed, thus these effects should be considered in Uruguayan Merino breeding programs; since the implementation of an appropriate model of analysis is critical to obtain accurate estimates.     

不同数据结构和动物模型对高山美利奴羊经济性状遗传参数估计的比较

本试验旨在比较不同数据结构和单性状动物模型对高山美利奴羊（14月龄）重要数量性状遗传参数估计的影响，筛选出估计体重、产毛量、净毛率、净毛量、羊毛纤维直径、羊毛纤维直径变异系数和羊毛长度7个重要经济性状遗传参数的最适模型，准确估计遗传力并为下一步遗传评定奠定基础。使用R语言数据整理相关函数将涉及20 720只14月龄高山美利奴羊数据按系谱完整度和数据量分为数据集1和数据集2。采用R语言ANOVA分析检验鉴定年份、出生类型（单胎或双胎）、群别、性别4个非遗传因素在两个数据集中的显著性，将极显著效应（P < 0.01）放入动物模型中作为固定效应。将两个数据集和两个单性状动物模型组合得到4个模型，其中模型1、模型2分别使用数据集1、数据集2，随机效应为个体加性遗传效应、残差效应；模型3、模型4分别使用数据集1、数据集2，随机效应为个体加性遗传效应、个体永久环境效应和残差效应。用ASReml4软件实现方差组分估计。通过AIC准则、BIC准则评价各模型，用LRT检验比较各模型。最后，针对各性状选出最适模型进行遗传力估计。结果显示：①非遗传效应显著性检验得到鉴定年份和群别对数据集1和数据集2中所有性状均极显著（P < 0.01），出生类型对体重和数据集1中产毛量极显著（P < 0.01），性别仅对体重反应极显著（P < 0.01）。②各模型估计的体重遗传力为0.1614~0.2392；产毛量遗传力为0.1958~0.3254；净毛率遗传力为0.4395~0.5539；净毛量遗传力为0.2003~0.2393；羊毛纤维直径遗传力为0.4024~0.5897；羊毛纤维直径变异系数遗传力为0.3174~0.6077；毛长遗传力为0.2960~0.3669。③似然比检验结果表明，模型1和模型3对所有性状差异均不显著（P > 0.05）；模型1和模型4对体重和毛长差异极显著（P < 0.01）；模型2和模型3对净毛量差异极显著（P < 0.01），对其他性状差异不显著（P > 0.05）；模型2和模型4对所有性状差异不显著（P > 0.05）。最终得到对净毛量最适模型为模型1，体重、产毛量、净毛率、羊毛纤维直径、羊毛纤维直径变异系数、毛长的最适模型为模型2。所有性状受个体永久环境影响均不显著（P > 0.05）。基于最适模型估计高山美利奴羊（14月龄）体重、产毛量、净毛率、净毛量、羊毛纤维直径、羊毛纤维直径变异系数、毛长遗传力分别为0.2392、0.3254、0.4394、0.2893、0.4222、0.3175、0.3670。     

Free amino acids in plasma of neonatal calves are influenced by feeding colostrum for different durations or by feeding only milk replacer1

Introduction Newborn development is characterized by high protein synthesis and nitrogen (N) turnover rates in many tissues, especially in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract (G oldspink and K elly 1984; Y oung et al. 1988; S immen et al. 1990; X u 1996). Colostrum provides particularly large amounts of nutrients (especially proteins) and immunoglobulins as well as non-nutrient growth-promoting factors; it therefore plays a major role in the development of the neonatal gut, especially protein synthesis, and other organs, as shown in several species including cattle (B erseth et al. 1983; P atureau M irand et al. 1990; C ampana and B aumrucker 1995; O dle et al. 1996; X u 1996; B urrin et al. 1997). Rates of body protein synthesis and N turnover were greater during enteral than during parenteral feeding, indicating considerable involvement of the GI tract in protein metabolism (D uffy and P encharz 1986). Protein components in colostrum provided about 35% of amino acids (AA) in newborn lambs, suggesting that amounts of ingested protein with colostrum greatly influence the AA status of the neonate (Y von et al. 1993). Glutamine and glutamate are the most abundant AA in bovine milk protein (M eijer et al. 1993) and glutamine is of special interest for postnatal gut development (S ouba 1991; K imura 1996; H eird 1998). The glutamine:glutamate ratio was markedly changed in neonatal calves (D emign & eacute ; and R& eacute ; m & eacute ; sy 1979) after colostrum intake. Recently, we have demonstrated that gut growth and absorptive capacity of the intestine, as well as metabolic and endocrine changes in newborn calves, are greatly dependent on amounts of ingested colostrum (H ammon and B lum 1997, 1998; B& uuml ; hler et al. 1998). Based on that AA absorption, metabolism and status may be influenced by amounts of fed colostrum. Therefore in this study we have tested the hypothesis that feeding colostrum for different durations, or feeding only milk replacer, affects plasma protein and free AA concentrations during the first week of life in calves.     

Estimates of (co)variance components and genetic parameters for body weights and first greasy fleece weight in Malpura sheep

Estimates of (co)variance components and genetic parameters were calculated for birth weight (BWT), weaning weight (WWT), 6 month weight (6WT), 9 month weight (9WT), 12 month weight (12WT) and greasy fleece weight at first clip (GFW) for Malpura sheep. Data were collected over a period of 23 years (1985–2007) for economic traits of Malpura sheep maintained at the Central Sheep & Wool Research Institute, Avikanagar, Rajasthan, India. Analyses were carried out by restricted maximum likelihood procedures (REML), fitting six animal models with various combinations of direct and maternal effects. Direct heritability estimates for BWT, WWT, 6WT, 9WT, 12WT and GFW from the best model (maternal permanent environmental effect in addition to direct additive effect) were 0.19 ± 0.04, 0.18 ± 0.04, 0.27, 0.15 ± 0.04, 0.11 ± 0.04 and 0.30 ± 0.00, respectively. Maternal effects declined as the age of the animal increased. Maternal permanent environmental effects contributed 20% of the total phenotypic variation for BWT, 5% for WWT and 4% for GFW. A moderate rate of genetic progress seems possible in Malpura sheep flock for body weight traits and fleece weight by mass selection. Direct genetic correlations between body weight traits were positive and ranged from 0.40 between BWT and 6WT to 0.96 between 9WT and 12WT. Genetic correlations of GFW with body weights were 0.06, 0.49, 0.41, 0.19 and 0.15 from birth to 12WT. The moderately positive genetic correlation between 6WT and GFW suggests that genetic gain in the first greasy fleece weight will occur if selection is carried out for higher 6WT.     

Inbreeding in populations with incomplete pedigrees

Inbreeding has detrimental effects on a number of economically important traits. W iggans et al. (1995) estimated inbreeding depression of ?29 kg, ?1.08 kg and ?0.97 kg for each 1% increase of inbreeding for the traits milk, fat and protein yield, respectively, across several dairy cattle breeds. For post-weaning gain in Hereford cattle, the depression was ?0.24 kg (G engler et al. 1998). For the number of piglets born alive, 21-day litter weight, and days to 104.5 kg, it was ?0.023, ?0.052 and 0.21, respectively (C ulbertson et al. 1998). Inbreeding also adversely impacts reproductive traits, such as delayed puberty, reduced conception rates, higher likelihood of losing established pregnancies, increased mortality of calves and lowered bull fertility (Y oung et al. 1969). National genetic evaluations involve animals with incomplete pedigrees. Regular inbreeding algorithms (RA) based on the definition of W right (1922), such as those by Q uaas (1976), calculate the inbreeding of animals with at least one parent missing as zero. Even if an animal has both parents known, its inbreeding will be underestimated if some of its ancestors are unidentified. If the proportion of missing parents is large, the inbreeding trend in a population could be seriously underestimated. Subsequently, losses from inbreeding would be underestimated, and steps to slow the increase of inbreeding, such as using sires that are less related to the general population or mating less-related animals (T oro and P erez -E nciso , 1990; G rundy et al. 1994; M euwissen and S onneson 1998; V an R aden and S mith 1999), may be delayed. In particular, use of a mating system can result in matings adjusted for both inbreeding and dominance (M isztal et al. 1999). In populations that use AI substantially, unidentified parents may not differ genetically from identified parents, on average. Therefore the real average inbreeding in animals with unidentified parent(s) may be similar to their contemporaries with both parents known. V an R aden (1992) proposed an algorithm (VRA), where the inbreeding of animals whose parent(s) are unknown is equal to the mean inbreeding of their contemporaries with known parents. Contemporaries are stratified along unknown parent groups (UPG). VRA has been applied to a few US dairy breeds (V an R aden 1992; W iggans et al. 1995). The calculated inbreeding for the youngest Holstein animals was 3.7% with RA and increased to 4.2% with VRA (V an R aden 1992). The increase was small because the number of unidentified animals was small. However, the performance of VRA in recovering inbreeding lost for a range of incomplete pedigrees has not been evaluated. The objectives of this study were (i) to determine average inbreeding coefficients when pedigrees are increasingly more incomplete; (ii) to assess the efficacy of VRA in recovering these inbreeding coefficients; and (iii) to determine the mean inbreeding using the two inbreeding algorithms in a large beef population.     

Lack of evidence for bovine Y-chromosomal variation in beef traits. A Bayesian analysis of Simmental data

Y-chromosomal loci are genetically responsible for some male-specific biological processes. The sex determining region Y (SRY), a protein with DNA-binding activity, is known as the trigger for sex differentiation in mammals. In humans the SRY is encoded by a single exon located on the short arm of the Y chromosome, close to the pseudoautosomal boundary (S inclair et al. 1990). Moreover, the Y chromosome harbours the male-specific histocompatibility antigen (reviewed by S impson et al. 1997) and there are at least two regions of the Y chromosome, which have been shown to be essential for normal spermatogenesis in mice (E lliott and C ooke 1997). The sexual dimorphism of aggression in mice has led to a search for its foundation on the Y chromosome. The existence of Y-chromosomal genetic variation for aggressiveness with genetic factors borne both on the pseudoautosomal (YPAR) and on the nonpseudoautosomal (YNPAR) region of the Y chromosome (S luyter et al. 1996) has been shown. Another example for Y-induced genetic variation in mice is the testis autosomal trait (occurrence of ovaries or ovotestes in XY animals), which is observed when specific Y chromosomes interact with the autosomal background of certain laboratory mouse lines (E isner et al. 1996). A comparison of the resemblance of different types of relatives indicated a nonzero Y-chromosomal variance for body weight in mice (B& uuml ; nger et al. 1995). In cattle the Y chromosomes of the Bos taurus and Bos indicus subspecies can be morphologically distinguished: its shape is submetacentric in B. taurus and acrocentric in B.indicus. This difference is caused by a pericentric inversion (G oldammer et al. 1997) and has frequently been used to investigate the introgression of zebu genes into B. taurus breeds. The polymorphism of the bovine Y chromosome itself and the results of mouse research both direct the scientific curiosity on the possible contribution of the bovine Y chromosome to quantitative genetic variation in cattle, a question which, to the authors’ knowledge, has not been investigated before. In this paper we first discuss the contribution of autosomal, imprinted, and sex-linked genes to the resemblance of full and half sibs and then present a Bayesian estimation of a Y-chromosomal variance component for each of four beef traits in young Simmental bulls using mixed linear and threshold models.     

Isolation of Yersinia Enterocolitica from a Dog with Chronic Enteritis: A Case Report

During recent years, Yersinia enterocolitica has been isolated from humans and various animal species in connection with intestinal disorders, such as acute ileitis and appendicitis. Cases of septicaemia, polyarthritis and erythema nodosum have also been described (Mollaret & Destombes 1964, Nilehn 1969, Winblad 1969, Lassen 1972, Langford 1972). Y. enterocolitica has been isolated most frequently from chinchillas and hares, but sporadic isolations from deer, cow, horse, rabbit, goat and dog have been reported (Langford, Krogstad et al. 1972). In Norway, an outbreak of the disease in a goat herd is the only described case of yersiniosis among animal species (Krogstad et al.). A case of chronic enteritis in a dog from which Y. enterocolitica was isolated is presented in the following.     

Genetic correlations among and between wool, growth and reproduction traits in Merino sheep

Summary Data from seven research resource flocks across Australia were combined to provide accurate estimates of genetic correlations among production traits in Merino sheep. The flocks represented contemporary Australian Merino fine, medium and broad wool strains over the past 30 years. Over 110 000 records were available for analysis for each of the major wool traits, and 50 000 records for reproduction and growth traits with over 2700 sires and 25 000 dams. Individual models developed from the single trait analyses were extended to the various combinations of two-trait models to obtain genetic correlations among six wool traits [clean fleece weight (CFW), greasy fleece weight, fibre diameter (FD), yield, coefficient of variation of fibre diameter and standard deviation of fibre diameter], four growth traits [birth weight, weaning weight, yearling weight (YWT), and hogget weight] and four reproduction traits [fertility, litter size, lambs born per ewe joined, lambs weaned per ewe joined (LW/EJ)]. This study has provided for the first time a comprehensive matrix of genetic correlations among these 14 wool, growth and reproduction traits. The large size of the data set has also provided estimates with very low standard errors. A moderate positive genetic correlation was observed between CFW and FD (0.29 ± 0.02). YWT was positively correlated with CFW (0.23 ± 0.04), FD (0.17 ± 0.04) and LWEJ (0.58 ± 0.06), while LW/EJ was negatively correlated with CFW (−0.26 ± 0.05) and positively correlated with FD (0.06 ± 0.04) and LS (0.68 ± 0.04). These genetic correlations, together with the estimates of heritability and other parameters provide the basis for more accurate prediction of outcomes in complex sheep-breeding programmes designed to improve several traits.     

The effect of an oxidized dietary oil on plasma cholesterol and thyroid hormone concentrations in miniature pigs fed on a hyperlipidaemic diet

Introduction Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are labile compounds which under the promoting effect of oxygen, high temperature or metallic catalysts undergo peroxidative damage. In the course of lipid peroxidation, several primary and secondary products such as peroxides, aldehydes, dimers or polymers are formed. Human western diets are not only generally rich in fats, but also rich in fats that have been subjected to various degrees of processing and heat treatment, particular deep fat frying. The absolute intake of lipid peroxidation products in western countries varies over a wide range, depending on the individual eating habits; however, it can be assumed that on average of the population at least 50% of the fat consumed has been heated during industrial processing of foods or preparing of meals. Therefore, the potential toxic effects of products formed from polyunsaturated fatty acids during heating or frying of fats are of particular interest for human health, particularly in the development of coronary heart disease. In literature, there is one study which reports that the development of atherosclerosis is accelerated by dietary oxidized lipids in cholesterol-fed rabbits (S trapans et al. 1996). The reason for this observation, however, is not clear. The pathogenesis of atherosclerosis is very complex. Undoubtedly, the concentration of cholesterol in plasma and in lipoproteins as well as the susceptibility of low-density lipoproteins to lipid peroxidation are major factors influencing the risk of coronary heart disease (S teinberg et al. 1989; M archioli et al. 1996). In order to clarify a potential relationship between the intake of dietary oxidized lipids and an increased risk of coronary heart disease, this study investigated the effects of feeding oxidized oils on the concentrations of lipids in plasma and lipoproteins and the susceptibility of plasma lipids to peroxidation (S taels et al. 1990; T anis et al. 1996). The concentrations of thyroid hormones in plasma were measured because they are in close relationship with the plasma cholesterol concentration. Miniature pigs that were fed a cholesterol-enriched diet were used in this study because they have been described to be an adequate model for the investigation of the lipid metabolism in humans (B arth et al. 1990). A general problem in the investigation of the effects of dietary oxidized lipids is that the administration of a diet containing highly oxidized fats reduces food intake, food efficiency and the digestibility of fatty acids (C orcos benedetti et al. 1987; Y oshida and K ajimoto 1989; B lanc et al. 1992; H ayam et al. 1993; B orsting et al. 1994; L iu and H uang 1996; H ochgraf et al. 1997). Moreover, because of strong oxidation, highly oxidized oils usually contain significantly less PUFA and tocopherols than the equivalent fresh oils (D& rsquo ; aquino et al. 1985; C orcos benedetti et al. 1987; B lanc et al. 1992; B orsting et al. 1994; H ayam et al. 1995; L iu and H uang 1995; H ochgraf et al. 1997). In order to avoid these problems a controlled feeding system was used in this study and dietary fats were equalized for their fatty acid composition and tocopherol concentrations. Studies from literature reported that dietary oxidized oils reduce tocopherol concentrations and thereby alter the fatty acid composition of tissues and increase the fragility of erythrocyte membranes in animals (C orcos B enedetti et al. 1987; Y oshida and K ajimoto 1989; B lanc et al. 1992; H ayam et al. 1993). However, as mentioned above, in most of the studies reported in literature, the concentration of vitamin E was significantly lower in diets containing oxidized oils than in control diets. In order to find out whether those effects are also observed if diets are adjusted for identical vitamin E activities, this study also measured the tocopherol concentration in plasma, the fatty acid composition of erythrocyte lipids and the osmotic fragility of erythrocytes.     

Histology of the salivary gland of two leukotic cats

Feline leukemia (leukosis, lymphosarcomatosis) is now known to be caused by a virus (Jarrett et al. 1964). The feline leukemia virus antigen has been demonstrated in salivary glands of leukemic cats (Hardy et al. 1969, 1970) and according to Gardner (1971) the C-type virus particles will replicate in the salivary glands of leukotic cats.     

Effects of ractopamine, genotype, and growth phase on finishing performance and carcass value in swine: I. Growth performance and carcass merit

A replicated factorial experiment using 183 individually fed crossbred barrows was conducted. Pigs were fed an 18.5% CP (.95% lysine) diet with 3,594 kcal of ME/kg. The effects of five genotypes (GT): 1) Hampshire (H) x (H x Duroc [D]), 2) synthetic terminal sire line, 3) (H x D) x (Landrace [L] x [Yorkshire (Y) x D]), 4) L x (Y x D), and 5) Y x L; two levels of ractopamine (RAC) treatment: 0 and 20 ppm; and three treatment weight periods (WT): 1) 59 to 100, 2) 73 to 114, and 3) 86 to 127 kg live weight on growth performance and carcass traits were evaluated. Ractopamine increased (P less than .0001) amount (FSL) and percentage (PFSL) of carcass lean standardized to 10% fat content, loin eye area (LEA), and dressing percentage (PDRES) and reduced (P less than .01) amount (DF) and percentage (PDF) of dissected fat. Magnitudes of RAC effects were smaller than those reported by other researchers. Effects of GT and WT on all growth and carcass traits were highly significant (P less than .001) except for those of WT on ADG (P less than .05) and GT on average feed intake (AFI) and backfat thickness at the last rib (BFLR; P less than .05). Genotype 3 performed better for most economically important traits than did GT 1 and 4, suggesting that heterosis existed in GT 3, which essentially was obtained by crossing GT 1 and 4. Among the three treatment periods, WT 2 had the highest ADG. As BW increased from WT 1 to 3, AFI and AFI/ADG ratio (FCR) increased and lean percentage decreased.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

The mechanism of excretion of drugs into milk from untreated glands after intramammary application

It is often maintained that after intramammary application of penicillin the excretion of penicillin via the untreated glands takes place by direct diffusion from treated to untreated glands (vide Hawkins et al. 1962, Jacobs & Pennings 1969, Rollins et al. 1970). Blobel (1960) mentions the possibilities of both direct diffusion from gland to gland and the excretion via the blood.     

Isolation of bovine adenovirus type 1 from a calf with pneumo-enteritis

During the last decade, an increasing number of bovine adenoviruses have been isolated from calves suffering from more, or less, well-defined syndromes. These have consisted of respiratory disorders of varying severity, enteritis, or a combination of both, which in typical cases has been termed “pneumo-enteritis”. These investigations have been reviewed by Darbyshire (1968). Wilcox (1969) isolated adenoviruses from kerato-conjunctivitis (KC) in cattle. Furthermore, strains have been isolated from apparently healthy animals (Darbyshire 1968), and from tissue cultures prepared from various organs from calves such as kidneys (Scho- pov et al. 1968), and testes (Rondhuis 1968, Bartha & Csontos 1969). At the present time 9 serotypes of bovine adenoviruses exist, as determined by neutralization tests, and these have recently been reviewed by Guenov et al. (1970). However, several strains, some from cases of pneumonia (Cole 1970, Lupini et al. 1970) and others from KC (Wilcox 1969) remain to be typed and compared with the known prototypes, thereby enabling possible new serotypes to be identified. So far, serotypes 1 and 2 (Darbyshire et al. 1969), serotype 3 (Darbyshire et al. 1966) and serotypes 4 and 5 (Aldasy et al. 1965) have been shown to cause pneumo-enteritis, and serotype 6 (Rondhuis 1970) a mild respiratory disease in experimentally infected calves. Similarly, KC has been produced experimentally by Wilcox (1970), while the pathogenicity for experimental animals of the other typed and untyped strains remains to be investigated.     

Traumatic pancreatic injury in a cat--a case history

There are few reports of trauma induced ruptured pancreas in the cat, but very little is known about the clinical signs and laboratory findings in these cases (Sutter & Olsson 1969, Lettow et al. 1986).     

Assignment of new loci to river buffalo chromosomes confirms the nature of chromosomes 4 and 5

Introduction Rapid development of the river buffalo physical map can be achieved by coupling its development to that of the cattle gene map. Syntenic conservation between cattle and buffalo has been demonstrated, mainly using somatic cell hybrids (de Hondt et al. 1991; El Nahas et al. 1993, 1996, 1998; de Hondt et al. 1997; El Nahta 1996; Oraby et al. 1977), and by using in situ hybridization as reviewed by Iannuzzi (1997). G- and R-banding comparisons between cattle (2n = 60) and river buffalo (2n = 50) chromosomes have revealed a large number of banding homologies between the two species, both at early-metaphase (Gupta and Ray -Chaudhury 1978; Di Berardino et al. 1981) and prometaphase stages (Iannuzzi et al. 1990). Banding homology indicates that the five river buffalo biarmed pairs originate from centric fusion translocation between two of ten homologous cattle autosomes, which is very supportive of the hypothesis that both species have a common ancestor (Wurster and Benirschke 1968). Based on cytological analysis and banding homology between cattle and buffalo chromosomes, the five biarmed chromosomes of the river buffalo BBU1, BBU2, BBU3, BBU4, BBU5 were thought to originate from fusion of cattle chromosome (BTA) 1/25; 2/23; 8/19; 5/28; and 16/29 respectively (Iannuzzi et al. 1990; Report of the Committee for the Standardization of Banded Karyotopes of the River Buffalo 1994). However, the analysis of synteny between molecular markers assigned to different cattle syntenic groups demonstrated that BBU1 results from fusion of BTA 1 and 27 rather than 1 and 25 (El Nahas et al. 1977). This called for expanding the analysis of syntenic relationships between marker loci to confirm the nature of the other biarmed buffalo chromosomes. The purpose of this study is to test synteny between markers in buffalo and to confirm the nature of the biarmed buffalo chromosomes 4 and 5, using marker loci and somatic cell hybrids.     

Genetic variation of farrowing kinetics traits and their relationships with litter size and perinatal mortality in French Large White sows

Genetic parameters of litter traits and their relationships with farrowing kinetics traits were estimated in a Large White population to examine the impact of selection for litter size on perinatal mortality and one of its main determinants, farrowing kinetics. Data were collected on 2,947 farrowings from 1,267 sows between 1996 and 2004. Litter traits included the number born in total (NBT), number born alive (NBA), and the number (NSB) and proportion (PSB) of stillborn piglets. Four farrowing kinetics traits were considered: farrowing duration (FD), birth interval (BI = FD/NBT), heterogeneity of birth intervals (SDNB = SD of the number of piglets born each one-half hour), and birth assistance (BA) during the farrowing process. Genetic parameters were estimated using restricted maximum likelihood methodology. All traits were analyzed using a mixed linear animal model including year x month and parity as fixed effects; the additive genetic value of each animal and the sow permanent environment were treated as random effects. To normalize their distribution, kinetics traits were Box-Cox-transformed. Low heritability estimates were obtained for litter size and mortality traits, which was in agreement with literature results (i.e., 0.10 +/- 0.02, 0.08 +/- 0.02, 0.19 +/- 0.02, and 0.14 +/- 0.02 for NBT, NBA, NSB, and PSB, respectively). Heritability values were also low for kinetics traits: 0.10 +/- 0.02, 0.08 +/- 0.02, 0.01 +/- 0.01, and 0.05 +/- 0.03 for FD, BI, SDNB, and BA, respectively. The genetic correlation between NBT and NBA was strongly positive (ra = 0.90). On both phenotypic and genetic scales, NBT was positively associated with stillbirth (ra = 0.45 +/- 0.11, rp = 0.38 for NSB; ra = 0.46 +/- 0.13, rp = 0.17 for PSB). Conversely, NBA had low correlations with SB and PSB. Number born in total was moderately correlated to FD (ra = 0.34 +/- 0.15) and BI (ra = -0.37 +/- 0.15). A stronger relationship was found between NBA and BI (ra = -0.49 +/- 0.13), whereas the relationship with FD was lower (ra = 0.16 +/- 0.17). Moreover, FD was strongly correlated with stillbirth (ra = 0.42 +/- 0.12 with NSB), whereas BI was nearly independent of stillbirth. Contrary to selection on NBT, selection on NBA appears to be a good way to limit the negative side effects on stillbirth. Moreover, selection on NBA would lead to a small increase in FD and a faster and more regular birth process than would be obtained by selecting on NBT.     

The activity of enzymes in serum and tissues of clinically normal sheep

Extract

Feline infectious peritonitis was first described as a distinct disease entity in 1966 in the United States (Wolfe and Griesemer, 1966), although it had been observed prior to that date (Holzworth, 1963). The disease is widespread in that country (Disque et al., 1968: Hardy and O'Reilly, 1969; Ward and Pederson, 1969; Colby and Low, 1970; Colgrove and Parker, 1971) and has been recorded in Canada (Stephenson et al., 1971), England (Ingram, 1970), Ireland (Hartigan and Wilson, 1972), Japan (Konishi et at., 1971), the Netherlands (Mieog and Richter, 1971), Switzerland (Stunzi and Grevel, 1973) and most recently in Australia (Watson et al., 1974; Jones and Hogg, 1974). Two cases of feline infectious .peritonitis have, been seen in New Zealand (R. C. Gumbrell, pers. comm.). One experimental cat inoculated with peritoneal fluid from this case developed clinical signs and lesions said to be consistent with feline infectious peritonitis.     

Ovarian Structure in Mice Lines Selected for Weight

Selection for body weight at 49 day of age ( s and h , downward selected lines; s' and h' , upward selected lines) affected reproductive traits in CF1 mice lines. The objective of this study was to compare ovarian structures in females of these lines, as well as in unselected controls (Line t ). The number of ovarian follicles ( N ), follicle diameter (FD), number of corpora lutea (CL), litter size (LS), and body weight ( W ), were recorded. There were significant differences among lines for N , FD, CL, LS and W ; means values for the lines with the greatest difference for post-pubertal females were: N _s  = 19.3 and N _s'  = 32.7; FD _h'   = 161.7 and FD _s'  = 178.2; CL _h  = 10.3 and CL _s'  = 21.9; LS _s  = 6.0 and LS _h'  = 11.1; W _h  = 18.9 and W _s'  = 32.4. There were also differences between positive lines; Line s' had a higher proportion of large follicles in pre-pubertal females, a greater capacity to convert these follicles into CL, but a lower capacity to maintain embryos until term than Line h' . For negative lines, Line h apparently had a reduced incidence of embryonic loss when compared with Line s . In conclusion, selection for body weight modified ovarian structure, as well as reproductive efficiency.