Physiological differences between twin and single-born lambs and kids during the first month of life

Abstract. The effects of time after birth and of twinning on rectal temperature (RT), heart rate (HR), respiratory rate (RR) and body weight (BW) values were evaluated in five singleton Comisana lambs (three males and two females), five singleton Maltese Kids (three males and two females), four couples of twin Comisana lambs (four males and four females) and four couples of twin Maltese kids (four males and four females) during the first month of life. For all kids and lambs, RT, HR, RR and BW were recorded after 1 and 24 h from birth and every 2 days until the 30th day of life. The application of two-way repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed a statistically significant effect of time (P  0.05) on all studied parameters was found in lambs, whereas statistically significant differences in BW, RT and HR values (P < 0.01) were found between twin and singleton kids throughout the first month of life. The results obtained in this study make a contribution to the knowledge of homeostatic, cardiorespiratory and thermoregulatory adaptations occurring in singleton lambs and kids and in twin lambs and kids during the first 30 days of life. Our findings indicate that the BW, RT, HR and RR values, whose homeostasis is still evolving in newborn, should be interpreted dynamically as a function of the period of postnatal adaptation and also of twinning

RT-qPCR Expression Profiles of Selected Oncogenic and Oncosuppressor miRNAs in Formalin-Fixed, Paraffin-Embedded Canine Mammary Tumors

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) can act as oncogenes or oncosuppressor genes, and their involvement in nearly all cancer-associated processes makes these small molecules promising diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers in cancer, as well as specific targets for cancer therapy. This study aimed to investigate the expression of 7 miRNAs (miR-18a, miR-18b, miR-22, miR-124, miR-145, miR-21, miR-146b) in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded canine mammary tumors (CMTs) by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). Twenty-six mammary samples were selected, including 22 CMTs (7 benign; 15 malignant) and 4 control samples (3 normal mammary gland and 1 case of lobular hyperplasia). Oncogenic miR-18a, miR-18b and miR-21 were significantly upregulated in malignant tumors compared with control tissues (p &lt; 0.05). Conversely, oncosuppressor miR-146b was significantly downregulated in benign and malignant mammary tumors compared with control samples (p &lt; 0.05) while, no group-related differences in the expression levels of miR-22, miR-124 and miR-145 were found (p &gt; 0.05). Upregulated miRNAs found here, may regulate genes involved in receptor-mediated carcinogenesis and proteoglycan remodeling in cancer; while miRNA with reduced expression can regulate genes involved in Toll-like receptor and MAPK signaling pathways. According to the results obtained in the current study, the oncogenic and oncosuppressor miRNAs analyzed here are dysregulated in CMTs and the dysregulation of miRNA targets may lead to specific altered cellular processes and key pathways involved in carcinogenesis. Of note, since oncogenic miRNAs predicted to regulate neoplastic cell proliferation and hormonal activities, they may play an active role in neoplastic transformation and/or progression, having mechanistic and prognostic relevance in CMTs

Expression of selected genes related to energy mobilization and insulin resistance in dairy cows

The physiological and metabolic adaptation characterizing the transition period in the dairy cows is developed by a complex modulation of different metabolic pathways as well as the expression of selected tissue-specific gene. The aim of this study was to evaluate the age effect on expression of selected genes in adipose, hepatic and muscle tissues in dairy cows during their dry period using the quantitative Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR). Twenty-two pluriparous dairy cows were divided into 3 groups in relation to the age: Group A (38 \uc2\ub1 2 months); Group B (52 \uc2\ub1 2 months) and Group C (80 \uc2\ub1 8 months). Lower levels of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARG) and higher levels of adiponectin (ADIPOQ) were found in adipose tissue in Group C than Groups A and B (P < 0.05). Higher levels of solute carrier family 2/facilitated glucose transporter member 4 (SLC2A4) were found in muscle in Group C than Group A (P < 0.001) and Group B (P < 0.05). The present study showed in dairy cows that the expression of selected genes associated with mobilization of energy and with insulin resistance are influenced by age demonstrating and highlighting the importance of a genomics approach to assess the metabolic status of dairy cows during the transition period

Quantification of Some Heavy Metals in Hair of Dairy Cows Housed in Different Areas from Sicily as a Bioindicator of Environmental Exposure—A Preliminary Study

Simple Summary: Heavy metals are considered one of the most critical pollutants that contaminate the environment through anthropogenic or natural activities. Animals are very good indicators of environmental pollution as they inhabit the same space as humans and are exposed to the same pollutants. The levels of selected heavy metals in hair samples of Holstein dairy cows are evaluated in this study. The gathered results would emphasize the usefulness of hair samples as possible bioindicators of heavy metal exposure that, in the long term, could be harmful to the final consumer. Moreover, this study gives an overview about the scenario of anthropogenic activity effects on heavy metal accumulation in dairy cows from Ragusa, a peculiar Sicilian province particularly dedicated to cow breeding for milk production. Abstract: The objective of this preliminary study was to evaluate the levels of selected heavy metals in hair samples of Holstein dairy cows reared on agricultural soils characterized by grassland subjected to anthropogenic impacts. Ninety Holstein-Friesian cows were enrolled in the study and divided into six groups according to farm origin. From each animal, hair samples were collected in order to determine the content of aluminum, chromium, iron, copper, zinc, arsenic, cadmium, and lead. One-way analysis of variance was applied to assess statistically significant differences in the studied heavy metals among the six groups. A significant effect of groups (p < 0.05) on all tested heavy metals was observed. In this study, the low concentration of heavy metals in the hair of the studied animals led us to think that the cows were subjected to low levels of these compounds, preventing them from bioaccumulating. Although the current study provides only preliminary results, it highlights the importance of investigating the concentration of heavy metals in cow hair to improve the health and welfare of both humans and animals

Glucose infusion response on some metabolic parameters in dairy cows during transition period

Abstract. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of glucose tolerance test (GTT) on glucose, insulin, non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) and β-Hydroxybutyrate (BHB) concentration in dairy cows during prepartum and postpartum period. Forty Two clinically healthy Holstein cows were enrolled in two high producing dairy farms in the Northeast Italy. All animals were divided into two equal groups on the basis of the farm of origin: Group A (farm located in Vicenza) and Group B (farm located in Padua). Body condition score (BCS) was determined for both groups. GTT was performed 7 ± 5 days before and 7 ± 5 days after calving. Blood samples were collected from each animal before (T0) and after the administration of glucose at different times. Plasma concentration of glucose, insulin, NEFA and BHB was evaluated. Application of two way analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed no significant effect of farm and a significant effect of transition period (prepartum and postpartum) on BCS for both groups. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was applied to determine significant effects of infusion glucose time, transition period and farm on glucose, insulin, NEFA and BHB. No significant difference was observed between Groups A and B and a significant effect of transi tion period and glucose infusion was found on all parameters studied. Results confirm that glucose is an important direct controller of metabolic response in dairy cows during the transition period because of the inappropriate energetic supply that characterizing this physiological phases

Postmortem Electrical Conductivity Changes of Dicentrarchus labrax Skeletal Muscle: Root Mean Square (RMS) Parameter in Estimating Time since Death

Electric impedance spectroscopy techniques have been widely employed to study basic biological processes, and recently explored to estimate postmortem interval (PMI). However, the most-relevant parameter to approximate PMI has not been recognized so far. This study investigated electrical conductivity changes in muscle of 18 sea bass specimens, maintained at different room temperatures (15.0◦C; 20.0◦C; 25.0◦C), during a 24 h postmortem period using an oscilloscope coupled with a signal generator, as innovative technology. The root mean square (RMS) was selected among all measured parameters, and recorded every 15 min for 24 h after death. The RMS(t) time series for each animal were collected and statistically analyzed using MATLAB®. A similar trend in RMS values was observed in all animals over the 24 h study period. After a short period, during which the RMS signal decreased, an increasing trend of the signal was recorded for all fish until it reached a peak. Subsequently, the RMS value gradually decreased over time. A strong linear correlation was observed among the time series, confirming that the above time-behaviour holds for all animals. The time at which maximum value is reached strongly depended on the room temperature during the experiments, ranging from 6 h in fish kept at 25.0◦C to 14 h in animals kept at 15.0◦C. The use of the oscilloscope has proven to be a promising technology in the study of electrical muscle properties during the early postmortem interval, with the advantage of being a fast, non-destructive, and inexpensive method, although more studies will be needed to validate this technology before moving to real-time field investigations

iron metabolism modification during repeated show jumping event in equine athletes

Abstract In athletic horse the evaluation of iron status is of great importance to improve physical performance and health status of animal. The aim of this study was to evaluate the changes of iron indices following show jumping. Ten regularly trained Italian Saddlebred horses aged 7-8 years (mean body weight 467±12 kg) were subjected to three days jumping competition. Blood samples were collected at 5 time points: T0 (the day before competitions), T1 (immediately after exercise at day 1), T2 (immediately after exercise at day 2), T3 (immediately after exercise at day 3) and during the recovery period T4 (24 h after day 3). On each blood sample the values of red blood cell (RBC), hemoglobin concentration (Hb), hematocrit (Hct), serum iron, ferritin, transferrin, total iron-binding capacity (TIBC) and unsaturated iron-binding capacity (UIBC) were assessed. One-way repeated measure analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed a statistical significant effect of exercise (P<0.05) on all studied parameters. The application of Bonferroni's post-hoc comparison showed a statistical significant increase in all studied parameters after exercise. These results provide new information about the changes in iron profile of jumper horse following exercise allowing for better evaluation of the health status and physical performance of this athlete horse

factors affecting the hematological parameters in different goat breeds from italy

AbstractHematological parameters in healthy goats show several variations in relation to breed, age, reproductive status, environmental factors and management conditions. Therefore, there is the need to investigate these factors and how they affect the animal's hematology. The aims of this study were to establish hematological reference values of five Italian goat breeds at different age classes (1–2, 3–4 and over 5 years) considered in autumn and to evaluate the effects of some factors (breed, age and environmental conditions). Ninety-six dried female Aspromontana goats, 102 Girgentana goats, 99 Messinese goats, 96 Maltese goats and 108 Argentata dell'Etna goats, clinically healthy, were used. Blood samples were collected from each animal and analyzed for Red Blood Cell (RBC), White Blood Cell (WBC), Hemoglobin concentration (Hb), Hematocrit (Hct), Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV), Mean Corpuscular Hemoglobin (MCH), Mean Corpuscular Hemoglobin Concentration (MCHC) and Platelets (PLT). Statistical analysis showed the effect of breed (P<0.05) on all studied parameters and the effect of age (P<0.05) on: RBC and Hb in Messinese goats; Hct in Girgentana, Maltese and Argentata dell'Etna goats; MCV and MCHC in Argentata dell'Etna goats; WBC in Aspromontana goats; and PLT in Girgentana and Messinese goats. The findings of the present study may serve as reference values for hematology of Italian goat breeds studied in autumn which could help veterinarians to interpret laboratory data appropriately and to monitor animal health status in order to improve the management and conservation of these breeds

Promjene biokemijskih pokazatelja u preponskih konja za vrijeme simuliranih skokova.

The modifications of some biochemical parameters and serum electrolytes after a simulated show jumping test were evaluated. On seven clinically healthy Italian saddle horses, heart rate (HR), lactate concentration, serum concentrations of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), aspartate amino transferase (AST), alanine amino transferase (ALT), creatine kinase (CK), gamma glutamil transferase (γGT), lactic dehidrogenase (LDH), creatinine, urea, total bilirubin, glucose, chloride (Cl-), potassium (K+) and sodium (Na+) were analysed at rest, after the warm up, immediately after the simulated show jumping and 45 minutes after the end of the exercise. One-way repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed a significant effect of sampling time (P<0.05) on HR, lactate concentration, ALP, AST, ALT, CK, γGT, creatinine, glucose and K+. These results suggest that by knowing the biochemical changes during a simulated jumping test, the veterinarian could better judge the horses with electrolytes and metabolic disturbances in a competition.Prosuđivane su promjene određenih biokemijskih pokazatelja i serumskih elektrolita nakon simuliranog preponskog jahanja u sedam talijanskih jahačkih konja. Izmjerena je frekvencija bila, koncentracija laktata, alkalne fosfataze, aspartat aminotransferaze, alanin aminotranferaze, kreatin kinaze, gama-glutamiltransferaze, laktat dehidrogenaze, zatim kreatinina, ureje, ukupnog bilirubina, glukoze, klorida, kalija i natrija u serumu za vrijeme odmora, nakon zagrijavanja, neposredno nakon simuliranog preponskog skakanja i 45 minuta nakon završetka vježbe. Analiza varijance ponavljanih mjerenja pokazala je znatan utjecaj vremena uzorkovanja (P<0,05) na frekvenciju bila, koncentraciju laktata, alkalne fosfataze, aspartat aminotransferaze, alanin aminotransferaze, kreatin kinaze, gama-glutamiltransferaze, kreatinina, glukoze i kalija. Rezultati upućuju na zaključak da poznavanje biokemijskih promjena za vrijeme simuliranog testa skakanja može pridonijeti boljoj procjeni elektrolitičkih i metaboličkih poremećaja tijekom natjecanja