POLIMORPHIC CHARACTERIZATION OF ESR1 AND FOXL2 GENES AND THE ASSOCIATION OF THEIR INTERACTION WITH PRODUCTIVE TRAITS OF BROWN LOCAL IRAQI CHICKENS

The estrogen receptor 1(ESR1) and fork-head box L2 (FOX L2) genes play a pivotal role in regulation of egg formation in poultry. this study aimed to investigate interaction between ESR1 and FOXL2 in the productive performance of brown local Iraqi chickens (BLIC). A total of 104 BLIC represented from the F4th generation of local chicken selected for high egg productions were used. Two novel single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs), one of them in ESR1 (T57198C) intron 3, and another of FOX L2 (C919T) gene within encoding region were identified through PCR-DNA sequencing. Six haplotypes (H1=TTCC, H2=TTCT, H3=TCCC, H4=TCCT, H5=CCCC, H6=CCCT) were obtained due to interaction between these two SNPs. Chi-square analysis showed no significant in genotypic and allelic frequencies for each SNP which revealed that both genes were agreement with Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. Association analysis of haplotypes with production traits revealed that individuals have H4 genotype achieved higher body weight at sexual maturity, at 60 weeks of age and egg weight at 45 and 60 weeks of age, whereas, the higher number of eggs were exhibited in individual with H6 from onset egg till 60 weeks of age. The two haplotypes; H4(TCCT) and H6(CCCT) showed better combination than others with respect to production performance. In conclusion, our findings provided new evidence that the two genes (ESR1 and FOXLl2) with special interaction may have potential effects on productive traits of chickens and beneficial effects in laying breeding programs.

Study on Population Dynamics and Effects of Inbreeding on Performance Traits in Indian Murrah Buffalo

Background: A population is continuously facing the changing environment and its directly influencing the production of animal so to adopt these changes population must be flexible and have sufficient variability to overcome the adverse affects of environment. The evaluation of animals in terms of production performance traits along with impact of inbreeding coefficient is essential to formulate breeding and selection strategies for higher genetic improvement. Methods: Genealogy data of 6429 animals maintained at ICAR-NDRI, Karnal, India was analyzed by web-based POPREP application tool (http:// poprep.tzv.fal.de) and ENDOG V5.8 used to study the population structure and genetic diversity and regression model to study the effect of inbreeding on first lactation productive traits in Murrah buffaloes. Result: The result indicated that 91.91% of the individuals had known pedigree. The maximum generation traced was 13 with mean, full and equivalent complete generation as 5.93, 1.67 and 3.25 respectively. The average generation interval was 8.28 years and longer for the sire-son pathway and 2.16% was average inbreeding in whole population. The average genetic diversity loss was 2.10% indicated that the population has been stable with sufficient diversity. The study also revealed non significant effect of inbreeding on all first lactation traits. The low inbreeding was firstly due to introduction of new genetic variant and culling of animals avoiding mating of related ones and secondly due to incompleteness of pedigree in earlier years. This can be used as a base line information of phenomic needs to be generated before applying genomics tools in particular herd to be used as reference population in future for genomic selection.

Somatic cells count in milk and its relation with productive traits in dairy cows

The aim of the study was to determine the dependence between Test Day (TD) milk productivity traits and somatic cells count (SCC) in milk and also the influence of the factors: farm, parity and TD recording season of Holstein cows. The survey included a total of 484 lactating cows from 8 cattle farms in Bulgaria. A total of 3473 TD records including data on TD milk yield, fat %, protein % and SCC in milk were used. A statistically significant effect of the farm, recording season, and SCC on TD milk yield, fat % and protein % was reported. The highest TD milk yield was reported in spring (22.42 kg), followed by winter (21.95 kg). In winter and autumn were reported higher mean values for TD fat (3.77 and 3.84%) and TD protein (3.38 and 3.40%) content in milk. At the highest SCC – above 999 000 cells/ml, the highest average daily milk yield – 24.1 kg and the lowest fat (3.48%) was reported. With the highest and positive statistically significant value was the phenotypic correlation between TD milk yield and SCC (0.21). The correlation with TD fat % was statistically significant, with negative value (- 0.07).

Realization of the potential of cows of Holstein breed of different generations in terms of productive traits

Breeding work with dairy cattle in the Kurgan region is aimed at breeding animals that combine the adaptive properties and valuable traits of cattle of Black-and-White breed with a high proportion of genes of Holstein breed. Such animals are characterized by high productivity and suitability for intensive technology of their housing. The purpose of the research was to determine the indicators of milk productivity of first-calf heifers of different generations of Holstein breed, imported to the pedigree farms of the Kurgan region, as well as to determine the degree of realization of the genetic potential of animals. Scientific research has been carried out in the herd of CJSC “Glinka” (Kurgan), where highly productive cattle of Black-and-White and Holstein breeds are bred. The subject of research was the first-calf heifers of the imported Holstein breed of German selection of different generations, as well as the herdmates of Black-and-White breed. It has been found that the realization of the genetic potential for milk yield in Holstein cows of German breeding was higher and amounted to 76,4 %, in cows of Black-and-White breed 69,9 %. The highest milk yield for 305 days of lactation has been observed in the second generation of Holstein heifers 8905 kg, which exceeded the milk yield of herdmates of the second and third generations by 113 kg or 1,26 % and 174 kg or 1,95 %, respectively. The mass fraction of fat in German Holsteins of different generations ranged from 3,99 to 4,21 % (P < 0,001), while the mass fraction of protein in the milk of first-calf heifers varied slightly in the range from 3,18 to 3,20 %. In terms of live weight, the animals of the third generation slightly exceeded the herdmates of the 1st and 2nd generations by 19 kg or 3,25 % and 20 kg or 3,43 %, respectively. The largest profit has been received from the first-generation first-calf heifers of Holstein breed of German selection, where the level of profitability of milk production was 50,7 %, which was higher than that of the herdmates of the second and third generations by 3,9 and 7,9 %, respectively.

Effect of different fattening period duration on meat productivity of domestic quails

The study was conducted with 224 domestic quails from the specialized meat-type WG line. The duration of fattening period and sex on productive traits, slaughter traits and meat quality of quails was evaluated. The study has shown that the longer duration of the fattening period in quails from the meat-type line WG was associated with lower production efficiency, with more reduction after the 35th day of life. The production efficiency in male quails was lower compared to that in females. The dispersion analysis demonstrated that the determination of 72.2% and 69.6% of dressed carcass weight and deboned meat weight, respectively, depended on fattening period duration (p<0.001). When fattening increased from 28 to 42 days, the amount of feed necessary for one bird increased by 73% and 87%, corresponding to increased costs by 64.5% and 77%. For production of 1 kg dressed quail carcasses, the necessary feed increased by 42.3-45.8% on a weight basis and by 35-37.7% on a cost basis. For production of 1 kg deboned quail meat, corresponding increases are by 42.1-49.5% and 34.8-41.2%, respectively. The period between 28 and 35 days of age was the most appropriate for planning slaughter of WG quails. During that period, the economic efficiency, although already declining, was still within acceptable limits and the increase in quantitative traits in both sexes – still relevant, making the produce more attractive for consumers. With age, the changes in colour characteristics of M. pectoralis superficialis result in darkening of meat (p<0.001). Thus, it assumes nuances specific rather for game meat. This effect is desirable, as it improves the commercial presentation of domestic quail meat in line with consumers’ attitudes.

Polimorphic Explore of Esr1, Esr2 and Foxl2 Genes and Interaction Effect of Esri and Foxl2 with Productive Traits of Brown Local Iraqi Chickens

The estrogen receptor 1(ESR1) and estrogen receptor 2 (ESR2) plays a crucial role in the growth and development of follicles and ovulation in chickens. Fork-head box L2 (FOX L2) gene and its protein is active in several tissues, such as the ovaries, it has a pivotal role in ovarian development and function, like regulation of egg formation in poultry. This study aimed to detect the polymorphism of ESR1, ESR2 and, FOXL2 genes and investigate interaction between ESR1 and FOXL2 in the productive performance of brown local Iraqi chickens (BLIC). A total of 104 BLIC, at 17 weeks of age. Four novel single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs). Every polymorphism a number had been given according to its location within gene, one of them in ESR1 (T57198C) intron 3 with three genotypes: Wild(TT), Heterozygous(TC),and Homozygous(CC), and two SNPs within ESR2 were assessed, one of the identified SNPsT39565C transition located within intron 7 with two alleles(T and C)and three genotypes were found: Wild(TT), Heterozygous(TC),and Homozygous(CC), another SNPG40100A transition within (3 prime UTR), with two alleles (G and A)and three genotypes were found: Wild(GG), Heterozygous(GA)and Homozygous(AA) and the SNP in FOXL2 (C919T) gene with two genotypes: Wild(CC) and Heterozygous(CT) within encoding region were identified through PCR-DNA sequencing. An interaction between the ESR1 and FOXL2 genes has been proposed, and six haplotypes (H1=TTCC, H2=TTCT, H3=TCCC, H4=TCCT, H5=CCCC, H6=CCCT) were obtained due to interaction between these two SNPs. Chi-square analysis showed no significant in genotypic and allelic frequencies for each SNP which revealed those genes were agreement with Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. Association analysis of haplotypes with production traits revealed that individuals have H4 genotype achieved higher body weight at sexual maturity, at 60 weeks of age and egg weight at 45 and 60 weeks of age, whereas, the higher number of eggs were exhibited to individual with H6 from onset egg till 60 weeks of age. The two genotypes; TCCT and CCCT showed better combination than others with respect to production performance. In conclusion, our findings provided new evidence that the two SNPs (ESR1 and FOXLl2) with special interaction may have potential effects on productive traits of chickens and beneficial effects in laying breeding programs.

The Effect of Adding Different Levels of Turmeric Root Powder and Carnation Flowers to The Diet on Some Productive Traits of Broilers Under Heat Stress Conditions

The current study was carried out on a poultry farm which belongs to the Animal production department - College of Agriculture - University of Kufa,for a period of 35 days, start from October 10 to November 13, 2020, for 5 weeks to find out the effect of adding different levels of turmeric root powder and carnation flowers to the diet on some productive traits of broilers. In this experiment, 360 broiler chicks were used, a one-day-old Ross-308 hybrid. Chicks were divided randomly into 6 treatments (60 chick/treatment). Each treatment had 3 replicates with 20 chicks each.These replicate included 20 chicks with an initial average weight of 40gm and the treatments were as follows: 0, 3, and 5 gm/kg diet of turmeric root powder for T0, T1, T2, as well as 3 and 5 gm/kg diet of carnation flower powder for T3 and T4, respectively, and T5 contained 4 gm/kg diet fodder mix of both turmeric root powder and carnation flowers. Chicks were exposed to Cyclical day temperature. Results showed a significant increase (P<0.01) in the total body weight average in T2 and T5 Compared with T0, T1, and T3. Total weight gain increased significantly in T5 (P<0.01) compared to T0, T1, T2, T3, and T4.Also, results showed a significant increase (P<0.01) in the total feed consumption ratio in T1, T2, T4, and T5 compared to T0 and T3. In addition, thetotal conversion coefficient for the birds showed a significant increase (P<0.01) in T4 and T5 by showing the lowest value 1.58 for both treatments compared to T1 and T3(1.64, and 1.62), respectively.

Beef productivity of steers of Kalmyk breed of different breeding

The success of the development of beef cattle breeding in the Republic of Buryatia mostly depends on the effectiveness of using animals of Kalmyk breed of different origins in order to increase beef production. The study of the productive traits and expediency of using the gene pool of Kalmyk breed from other regions in comparison with the animals of local selection when breeding beef herds has practical and scientifi c significance. The purpose of the research was to study the productive traits of cattle of Kalmyk breed imported from various climatic zones of Russia. For the experiment, 3 groups of newborn calves of Kalmyk breed of different breeding of 15 heads in each have been selected according to the principle of analogues. The 1st group consisted of steers Kalmyk breed of Buryat breeding, the 2nd – of Kalmyk breeding, the 3rd group – of Rostov breeding. During rearing and feeding, the steers were in the same feeding and housing conditions. During the growth process, the largest live weight at the age of 7 months has been observed in the 1st group of steers received from parents of local reproduction. They surpassed the herdmates of the 2nd group by 3,1 kg or 1,7 %, and the 3rd group by 4,8 kg or 2,7 %. With age the differences in live weight increased at 14 and 18 months the steers of Buryat breeding exceeded their herdmates of the 2nd group by 10,6 kg or 3,4 % and 15,7 kg or 3,8 % (P > 0,95) and the 3rd group by 16,8 kg or 5,4 % (P > 0,95) and 23,5 kg or 5,8 % (Р > 0,99), respectively. A comparative study of the beef productivity of steers of Kalmyk breed obtained under the conditions of the Republic of Buryatia and imported from the Republic of Kalmykia and the Rostov region has shown the advantage of the animals of Buryat breeding, while the herdmates of Rostov selection were the worst, and Kalmyk breeding steers occupied an intermediate position.