Dominance genetic and maternal effects for genetic evaluation of egg production traits in dual-purpose chickens

• 1.?A study was conducted to study direct dominance genetic and maternal effects on genetic evaluation of production traits in dual-purpose chickens. The data set consisted of records of body weight and egg production of 49 749 Mazandaran fowls from 19 consecutive generations. Based on combinations of different random effects, including direct additive and dominance genetic and maternal additive genetic and environmental effects, 8 different models were compared.

• 2.?Inclusion of a maternal genetic effect in the models noticeably improved goodness of fit for all traits. Direct dominance genetic effect did not have noticeable effects on goodness of fit but simultaneous inclusion of both direct dominance and maternal additive genetic effects improved fitting criteria and accuracies of genetic parameter estimates for hatching body weight and egg production traits.

• 3.?Estimates of heritability (h²) for body weights at hatch, 8 weeks and 12 weeks of age (BW0, BW8 and BW12, respectively), age at sexual maturity (ASM), average egg weights at 28–32 weeks of laying period (AEW), egg number (EN) and egg production intensity (EI) were 0.08, 0.21, 0.22, 0.22, 0.21, 0.09 and 0.10, respectively. For BW0, BW8, BW12, ASM, AEW, EN and EI, proportion of dominance genetic to total phenotypic variance (d²) were 0.06, 0.08, 0.01, 0.06, 0.06, 0.08 and 0.07 and maternal heritability estimates (m²) were 0.05, 0.04, 0.03, 0.13, 0.21, 0.07 and 0.03, respectively. Negligible coefficients of maternal environmental effect (c²) from 0.01 to 0.08 were estimated for all traits, other than BW0, which had an estimate of 0.30.

• 4.?Breeding values (BVs) estimated for body weights at early ages (BW0 and BW8) were considerably affected by components of the models, but almost similar BVs were estimated by different models for higher age body weight (BW12) and egg production traits (ASM, AEW, EN and EI). Generally, it could be concluded that inclusion of maternal effects (both genetic and environmental) and, to a lesser extent, direct dominance genetic effect would improve the accuracy of genetic evaluation for early age body weights in dual-purpose chickens.

     

The Effects of Cold Plasma Application on Quality and Chemical Spoilage of Pacific White Shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) during Refrigerated Storage

Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) is an important species in aquaculture worldwide. Post-mortem changes during cold storage reduce the quality of shrimp and shorten its shelf life. Cold plasma (CP) was applied for 45, 90, and 150s as T₁, T₂, and T₃, respectively, to fresh harvested shrimp. The biochemical parameters and melanosis were analyzed in comparison to metabisulphite treated (T_M) and control during 12 days of refrigerated storage. The results highlighted lower rate of increase in pH, total volatile base nitrogen (TVB-N) content, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), free fatty acid (FFA), peroxide value (PV), and fluorescent compounds (FC) in shrimp exposed to CP and metabisulphite compared to control (P < 0.05). Although CP lowered biochemical changes in T₁ and T₃ shrimp, T₂ was the most effective treatment in reducing undesirable changes and improving quality of shrimp. In all storage periods, melanosis was significantly lower in T₂, T₃, and T_M samples. Results demonstrate that CP exposure effectively decreases relative activity of polyphenol oxidase (PPO) enzyme, and prolonging the exposure to CP for 150 s resulted in 50% reduction in enzyme activity. We conclude that application of CP for 90 s was the most efficient circumstance to extend shelf life of white shrimp during cold storage.     

Differential expression of zinc accumulation during two growing seasons of Acacia victoriae

It is important to understand seasonal heavy metal accumulation in different parts of plants in order to develop the best phytoremediation practices for con-taminated soils. For this purpose we exposed...     

Association Study of rs1333040 and rs1004638 Polymorphisms in the 9p21 Locus with Coronary Artery Disease in Southwest of Iran

Background:

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a multifactorial and heterogenic disease. Recently, genome-wide association studies have reported that rs1333040 (C/T) and rs1004638 (A/T) single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the 9p21 locus have very strong association with CAD. This study aimed to examine these associations in Southwest of Iran.

Methods:

Blood samples were collected from 200 CAD patients and 110 healthy individuals with no CAD. The association of two SNPs with CAD was evaluated by PCR and restriction fragment length polymorphism.

Results:

Chi-square test showed no association between rs1333040 SNP and CAD (X²: 4.66, df: 2, P=0.09). Also, there was no association between rs1004638 SNP and CAD (X²: 0.27, df: 2, P=0.88).

Conclusion:

No association was observed between rs1333040 and rs1004638 SNPs in the 9P21 region and CAD in Southwest of Iran. Key Words: Coronary artery disease, Single nucleotide polymorphisms, Genetic association study, Iran     

Intestinal histology and stereology in rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) administrated with nanochitosan/zeolite and chitosan/zeolite composites

In previous study, the effects of synthesized chitosan/zeolite and nanochitosan/zeolite composites on rainbow trout growth, digestive enzyme activities and some biochemical parameters were shown. In this study, the effects of experimental diets based on the previous study on the rainbow trout intestinal histology and stereology were assessed: control diet (no zeolite and composite), T1 diet (14.28 g/kg zeolite), T2 diet (0.05 g/kg chitosan included in zeolite), T3 diet (0.5 g/kg chitosan included in zeolite), T4 diet (5 g/kg chitosan included in zeolite), T5 diet (0.05 g/kg nanochitosan included in zeolite), T6 diet (0.5 g/kg nanochitosan included in zeolite), T7 diet (5 g/kg nanochitosan included in zeolite). The experiment was conducted for 60 days. Results showed that supplemental diets did not have side effect on the normal structure of intestinal segments but administration of T1 and T4 diets had slight negative effects on structural maintenance in the middle part of intestine. Acidic mucin producing goblet cell percentage was also higher in nanocomposites‐administrated groups in comparison with the control group. Enhanced villus height, density and finally absorption surface area in different parts of rainbow trout intestine were mainly shown in T7 group. Meanwhile, higher thickness of tunica mascularis in different regions were noted in treatment groups especially in T7 group. The number of intraepithelial mononuclear leukocytes in fish intestine received treatment diets was also higher than control group. In conclusion, nanochitosan/zeolite composites in comparison with zeolite and chitosan/zeolite composites were more effective to improve histological structure of rainbow trout intestine.     

Is it necessary to adjust nitrogen recommendations for tillage and wheat residue management in irrigated sweet corn?

ABSTRACT

Conservation tillage practices have gained interests. A 2-year field study (2014–2015) was conducted to evaluate four N rates (0, 69, 138, and 207 kg N ha^?1) effects on irrigated sweet corn (Zea mays L.) grown with or without wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) residue removal and conventional (CT), reduced (RT), or no-tillage (NT) practices near Shiraz, Iran. After 2 years, maximum marketable yield occurred at 156 and 159 kg N ha^?1 under CT and NT, respectively, while yield was tended to be increased with increasing N rates under RT. Increasing N rate increased total plant N uptake, shoot, and grain N accumulation. The lowest nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) was obtained under NT, while RT and CT either showed similar effects or RT was superior over CT. Soil total N was greater under CT and residue retention showed 18% and 14% higher N concentration than residue removal in 2014 and 2015, respectively. Soil organic matter was the highest (2.59%) under RT with residue retention and 138 kg N ha^?1. Conservation tillage needs more N rather than CT during transition from conventional to conservation agriculture practices, but it is based on the short-term results and evaluation of long-term experiment is highly recommended.     

Anti-Proliferative Properties,Biocompatibility, and Chemical Composition of Different Extracts of Plantago major Medicinal Plant

Background:To study the anticancer activity of Plantago major, we assessed the effect of ethanolic, methanolic and acetonic extracts of this plant on HCT-116, SW-480, and HEK-293 cell lines as control. Methods:The cytotoxic activity, biocompatibility, and toxicity were evaluated by MTT assay, hemolysis, and Artemia salina-LD₅₀ (on mice) tests, respectively. The analysis of the extracts was performed by GC-MS analysis. Results:The results showed that all the extracts had the most antiproliferative properties on the HCT-116 cell line. The P. major root extract was more effective than the aerial parts, and IC₅₀ values for ethanolic, methanolic and acetonic root extracts were 405.59, 470.16, and 82.26 µg/mL, respectively on HCT-116 cell line at 72 h. Hemolysis degree of the ethanolic extract of aerial and root parts were approximately 1% at 400 μg/mL.. Using the ethanolic extracts, the Artemia survived every concentration, and no toxicity was observed. One week after the oral administration of different parts of P. major extracts, none of the mice died, even those were administered 2000 mg/kg. The results of GC/MS analysis showed that P. major extracts contain potential anticancer compounds, such as stearic acid (8.61%) in aerial parts of methanolic extract and 1,2- Benzenedicarboxylic acid, mono(2-ethylhexyl)ester (88.07% and 40.63%) in aerial and root parts of acetonic extract of P. major. Conclusions:Our findings suggest that the P. major is a source of potential compounds with antiproliferative properties. Key Words: Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, HCT-116 cells, Hemolysis, Lethal dose 50     

Effects of flushing and hormonal treatment on reproductive performance of Iranian Markhoz goats

Forty‐eight Iranian Markhoz goats were allocated to six groups (n = 8) to study the effect of flushing and hormonal treatments on reproductive performance. Treatments were divided into two categories including, hormonal treatments and flushing. The goats in each group were fed the same basal ration and received one of the following treatments: Groups A and B – injection of GnRH and equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG) respectively; Groups C, D and E – a supplement of barley grain, soybean oil and sunflower oil in flushing diets, respectively, were offered and Group F – control (only received basal diet). In the flushing treatments, only the source of energy was different between rations. Both hormonal treatments and flushing treatments improved fertility and kidding rates. Treatment B with 16 and control with seven kids represented the highest and the lowest number of progeny respectively. Among flushing treatments, group C resulted in the highest number of kids being 15. Oestrogen levels in follicular phase increased with the injection of eCG and consumption of barley grain. GnRH injection and consumption of oil sources in the diet increased blood progesterone levels during ovulation and post‐ovulation periods. Under current market conditions, using hormone or flushing can be profitable for Markhoz goats farmers.