Allelic polymorphism of insulin-like growth factor I gene and its association with production traits in native chickens

Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGFI) is an essential regulator of growth, cell proliferation/differentiation and protein synthesis in a variety of cell types. IGFI is considered as one of the most important can-didate genes controlling production and reproduction traits in chickens. This locus could be linked to the highly effective genes affecting egg production and growth traits. The aim of present study was to investigate the IGFI gene polymorphism and its association with growth and egg production traits in Iranian native chicken. A total of 313 blood samples were collected from the Native poultry breeding centre, Khorasan province, Iran. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of the IGFI 5'-UTR was detected by PCR-RFLP method and PstI restriction endonuclease enzyme. Finally, the SNP was con-firmed by sequencing of RFLP profiles. Association between IGFI alleles and production traits was evaluated using multivariate regression analysis and GLM procedures. Two alleles A (PstI –) and B (PstI +) and three genotypes (A/A, A/B and B/B) were identified for the IGFI gene. Allele B was the most frequent (60.1%) and considered as reference allele for association study. A/B genotype was significantly correlated with lower first egg weight and higher egg laying intensity compared to B/B and A/A genotypes. No significant association was observed between IGFI genotypes and other pro-duction traits including egg weight, weight of sexual maturity and body weight. These results suggest that there is a possibility of IGFI genotypes acting as a genetic marker for selecting some egg produc-tion traits in native chickens

Development of anti-Helicobacter pylori immunoglobulins Y (IgYs) in quail

Summary Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a gram-negative, microaerophilic bacterium that cause the stomach infection in more than 50% of human population worldwide. The aim of this study was to examine the possibility of anti-H. pylori immunoglobulins Y (IgYs) production in quails and evaluate the effect of the different methods of immunization on titers of IgY in egg yolks. Whole cell bacterial antigen was used for immunization of quails. Forty Japanese quails (Coturnix japonica) were divided into four groups. The first group intramuscularly immunized with one dose of antigen (3 × 10 8 inactivated bacteria) whereas the second group injected with half dose. Third group administered orally. Yolk IgY was isolated using precipitation method of water dilution combined with chloroform. Dot-blot and ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) were used for determining the specificity and quantifying the titer of IgY in egg yolks. Results showed that quails as well as chickens are able to produce anti-H. pylori IgY. Quails antibodies have high titer and specificity that can be used in therapeutic and research purposes. This study indicated that higher amounts of antigen can not develop higher titer of IgY and injection is not necessary for efficient immunization of the quail against H. pylori

Production of a Human Recombinant Polyclonal Fab Antivenom against Iranian Viper Echis carinatus

Venomous snakebite is a life-threatening injury in many tropical and subtropical areas including Iran. The gold standard treatment option for human envenomation is the use of antivenoms. Despite the unique effects of horse-derived antivenoms on the treatment of snakebite, they are not fully perfect and need improvements. In this study, human recombinant Fab fragment antivenom was produced in Rosetta-g bacterium using a gene library constructed in the previous study. The prepared Fab was purified in several steps, desalted, and lipopolysaccharide-depleted using ammonium sulfate solution and dialysis against phosphate buffer and Triton X-114 solution, respectively. Subsequently, the product was initially confirmed by the sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), respectively. Finally, the neutralization potency of the product was investigated in laboratory Syrian Mice. The obtained results showed corresponding reduced bands to Fab fragment with the molecular weight of about 28 kDa at a concentration of 3.1 mg/ml. There was a significant difference between the groups in terms of ELISA test (

The genetic architecture of the MHC class II region in British Texel sheep

Understanding the structure of the major histocompatibility complex, especially the number and frequency of alleles, loci and haplotypes, is crucial for efficient investigation of the way in which the MHC influences susceptibility to disease. Nematode infection is one of the most important diseases suffered by sheep, and the class II region has been repeatedly associated with differences in susceptibility and resistance to infection. Texel sheep are widely used in many different countries and are relatively resistant to infection. This study determined the number and frequency of MHC class II genes in a small flock of Texel sheep. There were 18 alleles at DRB1, 9 alleles at DQA1, 13 alleles at DQB1, 8 alleles at DQA2 and 16 alleles at DQB2. Several haplotypes had no detectable gene products at DQA1, DQB1 or DQB2, and these were defined as null alleles. Despite the large numbers of alleles, there were only 21 distinct haplotypes in the population. The relatively small number of observed haplotypes will simplify finding disease associations because common haplotypes provide more statistical power but complicate the discrimination of causative mutations from linked marker loci