Effects of Beta Vinasse Supplementation on Performance, Meat Quality and Ilio-Caecal Microflora in Quail Rations

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of Beta (?)-vinasse supplementation on the live weight (LW), live weight gain (LWG), feed intake (FI), feed conversion ratio (FCR), carcass yield, meat quality, and ilio-caecal bacteriological flora of quails. A total of 240 5-d-old Japanese (Coturnix coturnix Japonica) quails, including both males and females, were divided into 3 groups 80 quails and treated as follow: a control group (1) with 0 g ?-vinasse/ kg ration; (2) 15 g/kg ?-vinasse and (3) 30 g/kg ?-vinasse. The study lasted for 6 weeks. At the end of the experiment, supplementation with ?-vinasse did not have a significant effect on FI and FCR. Dietary supplementation with 30 g/ kg ?-vinasse significantly (P < 0.05) increased LW (21 d)and LWG (5 to 21 d). The dietary treatment of quails with different levels of ?-vinasse did not affect hot carcass weight, cold carcass weights, hot and cold carcass yields, and breast and thigh pH.The lightness (L*) and yellowness (b*) of breast values were significantly (P<0.05) increased by 30 g/kg supplementation. Different levels of ?-vinasse significantly increased Lactobacillus spp. in faeces. As a result, it was concluded that ?-vinasse (by-product obtained from molasses) can be used in quail diets as an alternative feed source that will meet the nutritional needs of the animal and have positive effects on the digestive system, especially on the intestinal health (an increase in Lactobacillus spp. counts). © 2023, Derya Yesilbag YeşilbağThe authors thank Integro for supplying the feed additive supplement

Two different macaviruses, ovine herpesvirus-2 and caprine herpesvirus-2, behave differently in water buffaloes than in cattle or in their respective reservoir species

The ongoing global spread of “exotic” farm animals, such as water buffaloes, which carry their native sets of viruses, may bear unknown risks for the animals, into whose ecological niches the former are introduced and vice versa. Here, we report on the occurrence of malignant catarrhal fever (MCF) on Swiss farms, where “exotic” water buffaloes were kept together with “native” animals, i.e. cattle, sheep, and goats. In the first farm with 56 water buffaloes, eight cases of MCF due to ovine herpesvirus-2 (OvHV-2) were noted, whereas additional ten water buffaloes were subclinically infected with either OvHV-2 or caprine herpesvirus-2 (CpHV-2). On the second farm, 13 water buffaloes were infected with CpHV-2 and two of those succumbed to MCF. In neither farm, any of the two viruses were detected in cattle, but the Macaviruses were present at high prevalence among their original host species, sheep and goats, respectively. On the third farm, sheep were kept well separated from water buffaloes and OvHV-2 was not transmitted to the buffaloes, despite of high prevalence of the virus among the sheep. Macavirus DNA was frequently detected in the nasal secretions of virus-positive animals and in one instance OvHV-2 was transmitted vertically to an unborn water buffalo calf. Thus, water buffaloes seem to be more susceptible than cattle to infection with either Macavirus; however, MCF did not develop as frequently. Therefore, water buffaloes seem to represent an interesting intermediate-type host for Macaviruses. Consequently, water buffaloes in their native, tropic environments may be vulnerable and endangered to viruses that originate from seemingly healthy, imported sheep and goats

Genome Sequence of Canine Herpesvirus

Canine herpesvirus is a widespread alphaherpesvirus that causes a fatal haemorrhagic disease of neonatal puppies. We have used high-throughput methods to determine the genome sequences of three viral strains (0194, V777 and V1154) isolated in the United Kingdom between 1985 and 2000. The sequences are very closely related to each other. The canine herpesvirus genome is estimated to be 125 kbp in size and consists of a unique long sequence (97.5 kbp) and a unique short sequence (7.7 kbp) that are each flanked by terminal and internal inverted repeats (38 bp and 10.0 kbp, respectively). The overall nucleotide composition is 31.6% G+C, which is the lowest among the completely sequenced alphaherpesviruses. The genome contains 76 open reading frames predicted to encode functional proteins, all of which have counterparts in other alphaherpesviruses. The availability of the sequences will facilitate future research on the diagnosis and treatment of canine herpesvirus-associated disease