Journal of Equine Veterinary Science最新文献

{"title":"Effects of sample storage time and temperature on equine complete blood counts","authors":"E. McGaffigan,&nbsp;M.M. Friend,&nbsp;S.M. Hall,&nbsp;W.B. Staniar,&nbsp;D.N. Smarsh","doi":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105443","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105443","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Routine veterinary care often involves complete blood counts (CBC) to monitor equine health. Blood samples are often collected in unregulated, distant environments and must be stored for later analysis. While impacts of storage methods on CBC parameters have been studied in humans, there is a lack of research in horses. This study aimed to determine how blood sample storage methods influence CBC parameters. The hypothesis of this study was that key factors in hematology sample storage, namely temperature and time elapsed from collection to analysis, affect CBC parameters. Blood samples were collected from 10 healthy Quarter Horse mares (age: 13 ± 4.5 yr) and stored in EDTA tubes at room temperature (22°C), refrigerated (4°C), above ice (8°C), or in contact with ice (2°C). The IDEXX ProcyteDx was used to obtain CBCs at 3, 6, 12, 24, 48, and 72 h after collection. Data were analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis test with Dunn's post hoc analysis and Benjamini-Hochberg correction for multiple comparisons. Significance was set to <em>P</em> &lt; 0.05. Hematocrit increased in all treatments by 2% by 48 h (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01). Mean corpuscular volume increased in all treatments by 2 to 3 fL by 48 h (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01). Red blood cell distribution width increased by 2% to 3% by 48 h in all treatments (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01) and was overall 2% lower at 22°C compared with all other storage temperatures (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01). Platelet count did not change over time at 22°C but increased by 205 to 217 K/µL by 72 h at 8°C (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01), 232 to 259 K/µL by 72 h at 4°C, and 66 to 67 K/µL by 24 h at 2°C (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01). Mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration decreased by 1 to 3 g/dL in all storage conditions by 48 h (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01), and samples kept in 22°C decreased 2 g/dL further by 72 h compared with 48 h (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01). Both the percentage and number of monocytes decreased by 1% and 0.1 K/µL, respectively, by 72 h at 22°C (<em>P</em> = 0.04, <em>P</em> = 0.01, respectively) with no changes across time points observed at other storage temperatures. Both the percentage and number of basophils were 0.3% to 0.4% and 0.03 to 0.04 K/µL higher in samples stored at 22°C compared with all other storage temperatures (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01, <em>P</em> &lt; 0.01, respectively). These findings suggest that blood samples should be processed within 24 h when stored at 8°C, 4°C, or 2°C. However, storing samples at room temperature is recommended if platelet count is of primary interest. This study provides evidence to benefit CBC analysis standards of practice and emphasizes the importance of considering storage conditions when evaluating hematological parameters both in practice and research, allowing for the potential to accurately obtain CBCs in various environments.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15798,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Equine Veterinary Science","volume":"148 ","pages":"Article 105443"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143948335","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Predictors of epistaxis incidence in Thoroughbred racehorses in the United States","authors":"A.N. Boone ,&nbsp;S.C. Silverman ,&nbsp;V. Kulangara-Veettil ,&nbsp;K. Gebrekidan ,&nbsp;K. Kaniyamattam ,&nbsp;S.H. White-Springer","doi":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105455","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105455","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Epistaxis (EP), or bleeding from the nose, may negatively impact racehorse health and performance. To test the hypothesis that a combination of quantifiable factors could predict susceptibility to an EP event, a database of Thoroughbred racehorses experiencing EP unrelated to physical trauma for 2024 in the United States was collated. Data for all horses experiencing EP (n = 202) and all non-EP horses from the same races (n = 1286) were included for analysis. Twenty-five potential risk parameters were extracted from veterinary exams, race data, and environmental factors. The correlations (r) of these risk factors with EP incidence were used to choose predictors for the parsimonious models. Logistic regression modeling was performed using Python due to the binomial distribution of the outcome variable of interest (EP). Weighted logistic regression models with the top 5 (Model 1) and 10 (Model 2) correlated risk factors were compared for model performance (Table 1). Within model 1, EP diagnosis had a positive relationship (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.0001) in the fitted model, whereas off odds had a negative correlation (<em>P</em> = 0.04). Model 1 achieved a high average accuracy score of 84%. For predicting non-EP, precision, recall, and F₁-score of model 1 were all 90%. Predictive EP capability of model 1 was moderate, with precision, recall, and F₁-score values all being 48%. The receiver operating characteristic area under the curve (ROC-AUC) score for this model was 69%, indicating significant utility of model 1 in predicting EP. Within model 2, which had the top 10 strongest correlations, previous EP was the most significant predictor (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.0001), similar to model 1. Precision, recall, and F₁-score for predicting non-EP were all 90% for model 2, as well. For predicting EP, these scores were 46%, 48%, and 47%, respectively. Model 2 had similar model performance statistics as model 1, with an accuracy score of 83% and a ROC-AUC score of 69%. Our analysis favored model 1 to predict EP, due to its parsimonious nature. Further evaluation with advanced models, such as XGBoost and Random Forests, is recommended to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the factors influencing epistaxis.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15798,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Equine Veterinary Science","volume":"148 ","pages":"Article 105455"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143948342","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Impacts of repeated fatiguing exercise on mitochondria in Thoroughbreds","authors":"B.D. Williams ,&nbsp;L.T. Wesolowski ,&nbsp;A.N. DiSilvestro ,&nbsp;M. Barshick ,&nbsp;K. Mogge ,&nbsp;E. Jolley ,&nbsp;K. Kaniyamattam ,&nbsp;A. Logan ,&nbsp;S. Johnson ,&nbsp;S.H. White-Springer","doi":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105456","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105456","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;div&gt;&lt;div&gt;Racehorses are exceptional athletes but may be prone to fatigue-induced injury. Quantification of fatigue remains elusive, posing a significant hurdle to predict injury susceptibility. We hypothesized that gluteus medius mitochondrial metrics would decrease and production of H&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;O&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;, a reactive oxygen species, would increase as horses performed repeated fatiguing exercise. Before (wk 0) and after (wk 9) 8 wk of moderate intensity training, 12 mature, unfit Thoroughbred geldings (mean ± SD 8 ± 2 yr; 510 ± 35 kg) performed standardized exercise-to-fatigue tests (SET) on d 1, 3, and 5. Isolated mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation capacities (P) and production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and H&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;O&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt; were quantified in muscle samples collected on d 0, 2, 4, and 6 of each SET week. Data were analyzed by PROC MIXED with repeated measures in SAS v9.4; fixed effects were day, week, and day &lt;em&gt;×&lt;/em&gt; week. At wk 0, LEAK and maximal P (P&lt;sub&gt;CI+II&lt;/sub&gt;) decreased by d 6 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.02) while P with complex I (P&lt;sub&gt;CI&lt;/sub&gt;) increased on d 2 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.04) but dropped below d 0 at d 6 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.002); P with complex II (P&lt;sub&gt;CII&lt;/sub&gt;) also increased on d 2 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.05) but returned to d 0 levels by d 4. At wk 9, LEAK was unchanged while P&lt;sub&gt;CI&lt;/sub&gt;, P&lt;sub&gt;CI+II&lt;/sub&gt; and P&lt;sub&gt;CII&lt;/sub&gt; were greater on d 4 than 2 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; &lt; 0.04) but no day differed from d 0. LEAK on d 2 was greater at wk 0 than 9 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.01). On d 0 and 2, P&lt;sub&gt;CI&lt;/sub&gt;, P&lt;sub&gt;CI+II&lt;/sub&gt;, and P&lt;sub&gt;CII&lt;/sub&gt; were greater at wk 0 than 9 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; ≤ 0.008). Maximal (CI+II) ATP flux at wk 0 increased from d 0 to 2 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.0007), decreased to d 0 levels at d 4 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.03), and was similar to d 2 and 4 but greater than d 0 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.01) at d 6. ATP flux through CI and CII individually was stable through wk 0. At wk 9, CI ATP flux was greater at d 2 than 4 and 6 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; &lt; 0.007) but none differed from d 0. Maximal ATP flux at wk 9 decreased at d 2 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.0007) but returned to d 0 levels by d 4, and ATP flux through CII was unchanged. Complex I ATP flux on d 2 was greater at wk 9 than 0 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.005) and maximal ATP flux on d 2 and 6 were lower at wk 9 than 0 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; &lt; 0.03). Overall, H&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;O&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt; flux was greater during P&lt;sub&gt;CI+II&lt;/sub&gt; (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.04) and tended to be greater during P&lt;sub&gt;CI&lt;/sub&gt; (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.07) at wk 9 than 0. Across wk 0 and 9, H&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;O&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt; flux relative to O&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt; flux (H&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;O&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;/O&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;) increased on d 4 during LEAK and P&lt;sub&gt;CI+II&lt;/sub&gt; (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; &lt; 0.05) and was greater on d 6 during LEAK, P&lt;sub&gt;CI&lt;/sub&gt;, and P&lt;sub&gt;CI+II&lt;/sub&gt; (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; &lt; 0.05). H&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;O&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt;/O&lt;sub&gt;2&lt;/sub&gt; during P&lt;sub&gt;CII&lt;/sub&gt; increased on d 4 at wk 0 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.01) but returned to d 0 levels on d 6, while decreasing on d 2 at wk 9 (&lt;em&gt;P&lt;/em&gt; = 0.04) but retu","PeriodicalId":15798,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Equine Veterinary Science","volume":"148 ","pages":"Article 105456"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143948343","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Development of a stable isotope method to measure protein fractional synthesis rate in equine skeletal muscle","authors":"A.E. Foliart ,&nbsp;C.M.M. Loos ,&nbsp;K.L. Urschel","doi":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105483","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105483","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Muscle mass is determined by the balance between rates of muscle protein synthesis (MPS) and degradation. The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway regulates the initiation of muscle protein synthesis, and previous work in horses has shown that the activation of mTOR signaling components responds in a dose-dependent manner to protein intake. Whether this translates to rates of muscle protein synthesis has not been explored in horses. The objective of this study was to develop an isotopic method to measure muscle protein fractional synthesis rate (FSR) in horses following the consumption of graded amounts of dietary protein. It was hypothesized that muscle protein FSR would increase in a dose-dependent manner with increasing protein intake. Eight mature Thoroughbred horses (n = 4 mares and n = 4 geldings; age 16.0 ± 3.0 yr old; weight 588 ± 43 kg BW; mean ± SD) were used in a repeated 4 × 4 Latin square design. Horses were studied before and following the consumption of a meal containing each of 4 levels (0 [NO], 0.125 [LOW], 0.25 [MED], and 0.5 [HIGH] g CP/kg BW) of protein, in a randomly determined order. A 4-h primed (8.4 μmol/kg BW), constant (6 μmol/kg BW per hour) intravenous infusion of [ring-²H₅] phenylalanine was used to measure muscle protein FSR. Muscle samples were collected at 1 h and 2 h post-feeding. The isotopic enrichment of the free and protein bound phenylalanine in muscle samples was measured using GC-MS analysis and used to calculate muscle protein FSR. Blood samples were collected from a jugular vein catheter before and every 30 min for 2 h following feeding for the measurement of plasma glucose, insulin, and amino acid concentrations. Data were analyzed using the mixed procedure of SAS. Muscle protein FSR was analyzed with a one-way ANOVA, with treatment as the fixed effect and period and square as random effects, and plasma metabolite concentrations were analyzed using repeated measures, with treatment, time, and their interaction as the fixed effects. Plasma glucose (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.0001), insulin (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.0001), and amino acid concentrations (<em>P</em> = 0.03 to &lt;0.0001) increased following feeding, with higher concentrations in horses receiving LOW, MED, and HIGH compared with NO treatment. There was no effect of treatment on muscle protein FSR (<em>P</em> = 0.96). The developed methodologies allowed for the measurement of isotope incorporation into muscle protein and the calculation of muscle protein FSR. Despite horses clearly being in the postprandial state following meal consumption, higher levels of protein intake did not result in the expected increase in muscle protein FSR between 1 h and 2 h post-feeding.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15798,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Equine Veterinary Science","volume":"148 ","pages":"Article 105483"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143948518","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Integrating biochemical and functional assessments in equine joint research: A study of gait asymmetry and synovial fluid biomarkers","authors":"L. Korac ,&nbsp;L. St. George ,&nbsp;N. Golestani ,&nbsp;J. Souccar-Young ,&nbsp;S. Topfer ,&nbsp;S. Witherspoon ,&nbsp;P. McCrae ,&nbsp;A. Wildish ,&nbsp;J. MacNicol ,&nbsp;W. Pearson","doi":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105486","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105486","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Injection of recombinant interleukin-1β (reIL-1β) is commonly used in equine joint research to evaluate the clinical and biological outcomes of inflammation, often tracking changes over time to assess the effects of the experimental model. Incorporating functional assessments, such as gait asymmetry analysis, in conjunction with biological assessments, is essential for capturing the real-world impact of joint interventions and ensuring findings translate to meaningful improvements in equine health and locomotion. This study aimed to examine the relationship between synovial fluid biochemical changes and symmetry analysis (inertial measurement unit; IMU) following a 75-ng injection of recombinant interleukin-1β (reIL-1β) into the left intercarpal joint of 11 horses Synovial fluid samples were collected at 0 h (pre-injection; control) and at 6 h and 12 h post-injection and analyzed for prostaglandin E₂ (PGE₂), glycosaminoglycan (GAG), nitric oxide (NO), chondroitin sulfate epitope 846 (CS846), and resolvin D1 (RvD1). The IMU data were collected at baseline (hour 0) and 6 and 12 h post-injection to assess poll and pelvic movement during in-hand trot trials, with MinDiff (loading asymmetry) and MaxDiff (push-off asymmetry) values calculated. A linear mixed model was used to assess the association between biochemical outcomes and asymmetry measures with significance set at <em>P</em> ≤ 0.05. Increased synovial PGE₂ significantly contributed to greater poll MinDiff (estimate = 0.007, SE = 0.003, <em>P</em> = 0.006), whereas elevated CS846 was a key contributor to increased poll MaxDiff (estimate = 0.006, SE = 0.003, <em>P</em> = 0.036). Additionally, higher PGE₂ was linked to lower pelvis MaxDiff (estimate = −0.002, SE = 0.001, <em>P</em> = 0.024), whereas increased CS846 was associated with higher pelvis MinDiff (estimate = 0.003, SE = 0.001, <em>P</em> = 0.026). This research emphasizes the value of integrating biochemical and functional data to provide a more comprehensive tool for evaluating interventions for joint health.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15798,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Equine Veterinary Science","volume":"148 ","pages":"Article 105486"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143948521","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Relationship between hair cortisol concentrations and equine personality assessment","authors":"S.M. Rivers,&nbsp;G.A. Robertson,&nbsp;T. Powell,&nbsp;C.A. Porr","doi":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105461","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105461","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Understanding a horse's personality may allow for improved management of the animal. The equine personality assessment (EPT) includes 4 main personality factors: anxiety, trainability, affability, and gate entrance. This tool uses a 1 to 9 scale. For 6 questions, 1 indicates a horse presenting the opposite of a trait (e.g., calm), 5 is neutral, and 9 indicates a trait is fully present (e.g., nervous). The other 13 questions determine the frequency of a trait's presence, with 1 indicating rarely and 9 indicating often. Many personality assessments characterize horse stress. Cortisol concentration, a quantitative measure of stress, is deposited throughout an equine body and is detectable in almost all tissues. Hair cortisol concentration (HCC) allows a long-term assessment of average cortisol. As personality is an ongoing characteristic, analyzing HCC provides a comparison between the 2 tools. The objective of this study was to evaluate potential relationships between EPT results and HCC. It was hypothesized that the personality trait of anxiety would directly correlate to HCC and that personality factors of trainability and affability would be inversely related. Seven workers at the university's Equine Center responded to a modified EPT, which analyzed 32 university horses for 3 personality factors: anxiety, trainability, and affability. Workers evaluated horses with which they had had 2 or more interactions lasting at least 5 min. Interactions ranged from general handling to riding but needed to be one-on-one. Based on this, not every student evaluated every horse. Equine tail hair (1.0 g) was collected in the 2024 Spring and Fall semesters. Samples were split into 0.5 g subsamples and extracted based on previously published methods. Analysis was performed using SAS's General Linear Model and Mixed Model, evaluating the effect of personality traits on HCC. Mean worker assessment scores for anxiety, trainability, and affability scores were 4.49 ± 0.91, 6.19 ± 1.20, and 6.13 ± 1.00, respectively. Log-transformed overall mean HCC was 2.71 ± 0.21 pg/mg. There were no significant differences between personality traits and HCC (<em>P</em> ≥ 0.50). These findings suggest that HCC is not associated with personality traits using the EPT. This study only evaluated one of many equine personality assessment tools, and results should not be extrapolated to other instruments as this may not accurately represent potential personality assessments-HCC relationships.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15798,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Equine Veterinary Science","volume":"148 ","pages":"Article 105461"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143948212","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Assessment of the impact of mycobacterium cell wall fraction (MCWF) on sperm parameters","authors":"R.A. Crook,&nbsp;J.L. Sones,&nbsp;J.H. Shelton,&nbsp;P. Razquin,&nbsp;J.A. Funes,&nbsp;B.A. Klinglesmith,&nbsp;J.N. Hatzel,&nbsp;C.E. Fedorka","doi":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105471","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105471","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Mycobacterium cell wall fraction (MCWF) is a biologic used for the treatment of endometritis. Considerable research has been performed on this therapeutic, but with no consistency regarding treatment protocol. For ease of administration, many practitioners utilize intrauterine MCWF at the time of breeding. Intrauterine treatments should be avoided within 24 h of breeding due to the risk of uterine contamination and initiation of the inflammatory cascade in mares predisposed to endometritis. Therefore, the goal of this study is to evaluate the impact of MCWF on sperm parameters within breeding doses. We hypothesize that MCWF will not detrimentally impact sperm and can be added to breeding doses. To evaluate this, 7 ejaculates (n = 7) were collected and centrifuged at 200 × <em>g</em> for 10 min to reduce the seminal plasma and reconstituted in BotuPharma Gold at a concentration of 20 × 10⁶ spermatozoa/mL. Doses were split into treated (1 mg/mL MCWF) and control (1.5 mL saline). Viability of sperm cells was assessed with a Nucleocounter. Additionally, total and progressive motility were assessed using computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA). Doses were slowly cooled to a resting temperature of 4°C. Following cooling, aliquots were assessed for computer-assisted total and progressive motility, viability, and visually at 24, 48, and 72 h. Statistics were run utilizing SAS 9.4, and semen parameters were assessed using a 2-way ANOVA (MCWF vs. control) for repeated measures (T0, T24, T48, T72). Significance was set to <em>P</em> ≤ 0.05. When assessing viability, samples decreased with time (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01), but no effect of treatment was noted (<em>P</em> = 0.72). When assessing total motility on CASA, there was an overall decrease noted regarding treatment (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01) and time (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.001), and when assessing individual time points, this decrease in total motility was only at T72 (<em>P</em> = 0.02). When assessing progressive motility on CASA, there was an overall decrease relating to time and MCWF treatment (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01), and this was noted at a decrease at all time points evaluated (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01). Due to debris within the treatment, visual assessment of motility was also analyzed, where a reduction in motility was noted at T72 regarding total motility (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01) and progressive motility (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01) when comparing MCWF treated to control. In conclusion, MCWF does not appear to impact sperm viability. CASA was found unreliable in this assessment due to debris. MCWF treatment was only found to impact visual assessment of motility at T72. This product may be considered safe for use with fresh semen, and additional work is needed to investigate its impact on long-term storage of cooled semen.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15798,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Equine Veterinary Science","volume":"148 ","pages":"Article 105471"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143948014","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effect of inulin on in vitro neutral and acid detergent fiber digestibility using equine fecal inoculum in the DaisyII incubator","authors":"A. Lee,&nbsp;A. Endfinger,&nbsp;S. Hayes,&nbsp;L.M. Lawrence","doi":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105498","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105498","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Cool-season grass fructans are a known health risk to grazing horses, but their effects on hindgut digestive processes are not well understood. Inulin is commonly used as the model fructan in many laboratory settings. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of increasing inulin levels on in vitro neutral detergent fiber digestibility (ivNDFD) and in vitro acid detergent fiber digestibility (ivADFD) of an orchardgrass (OG) hay incubated with equine feces in the Ankom Daisy^II Incubator. The hypothesis was that increasing inulin levels would inhibit ivNDFD and ivADFD. The OG hay used was 73% NDF and 46% ADF (% DM). NDF and ADF residues were prepared before incubations according to Ankom official procedures without sodium sulfite or α-amylase. Four inulin treatments were tested: 0 g (control), 4 g, 8 g, and 12 g per 2-L Daisy^II incubation jar. Preliminary experiments were used to determine appropriate inulin inclusion rates. Over a 2-wk period, 4 incubations were conducted with fresh feces collected from mature geldings that were managed similarly across the collection period. Each incubation jar was assigned to an inulin treatment and contained 11 filter bags per incubation (4 containing NDF residue, 4 containing ADF residue, and 3 blanks). Incubation jars were prepared with 2 buffers mixed in a 5:1 ratio, and inulin powder was dissolved in the buffer solution. The pH of each incubation jar was adjusted to 7.2 before fecal inoculum was added, and pH was measured again after inoculation. Daisy^II incubation jars contained a 10:1 buffer and feces solution, and filter bags were incubated at 39°C for 48 h. After incubation, final pH was measured, and filter bags were rinsed, dried, and reweighed to determine ivNDFD and ivADFD. PROC GLM (SAS 9.4) was used to evaluate the main effect of inulin treatment and differences in pH decline, ivNDFD, and ivADFD between treatments. Mean decline in pH during incubations was −0.4, −0.6, −0.9, and −1.1 pH units for the 0-, 4-, 8-, and 12-g inulin treatments, respectively; each inulin treatment resulted in a final pH that was significantly lower than the control (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). The 8-g and 12-g inulin levels resulted in lower ivNDFD compared with the control (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). Differences were not detected in ivADFD across treatments (<em>P</em> = 0.37). No difference was observed between the 4-g inulin and control treatments for ivNDFD (<em>P</em> = 0.38) or ivADFD (<em>P</em> = 0.99). In conclusion, 8-g and 12-g inulin levels inhibited ivNDFD but not ivADFD over 48-h incubations. Additional studies are warranted to investigate the impact of inulin on individual structural carbohydrates.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15798,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Equine Veterinary Science","volume":"148 ","pages":"Article 105498"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143948022","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Clodronate disodium did not impact tuber coxae microarchitecture or bone mineral density in juvenile horses","authors":"B.L. Paris ,&nbsp;J.L. Leatherwood ,&nbsp;J.M. Popovich Jr. ,&nbsp;K.G. Glass ,&nbsp;C.E. Arnold ,&nbsp;N.E. Bray ,&nbsp;M.B. Conrad ,&nbsp;J.M. George ,&nbsp;R.E. Martinez ,&nbsp;F.B. Vergara-Hernandez ,&nbsp;A.C. Colbath ,&nbsp;B.D. Nielsen ,&nbsp;T.H. Welsh Jr. ,&nbsp;A.N. Bradbery","doi":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105515","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105515","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Bisphosphonates, including clodronate disodium (CD), are a class of pharmaceuticals that reduce bone resorption. Despite lack of scientific evidence, anecdotal, extralabel use of CD in young animals occurs, aiming to prevent conditions of bone loss or inflammation during training. The objective of the study was to determine the effects of CD on bone microarchitecture and bone mineral density (BMD) in juvenile horses. The hypotheses were that horses receiving CD would have thicker trabeculae with higher BMD. To test the hypotheses, 32 yearling Quarter Horses were stratified by age (500 ± 13 d), BW (336 ± 26 kg), sex (n = 16 geldings, n = 16 fillies), and initial bone optical density, and randomly allocated to one of 4 treatment groups for a 168-d trial. Treatments groups included control (CON; n = 8), single dose of CD (1X; n = 8; d 84), 2 doses of CD (2X; n = 8; d 0, 84), and 4 doses of CD (4X; n = 8; d 0, 42, 84, 126). On d 0, 42, 84, and 126, horses received either 1.8 mg/kg BW CD (OSPHOS®) or isovolumetric saline according to treatment assignments. Horses were housed in individual stalls (3.7 × 7.3 m), fed 1% BW/d concentrate, and allowed ad libitum coastal Bermudagrass hay and water. Horses exercised 5 d/wk in a freestall exerciser using a phase-based progressive workload to mimic sales prep and early training. Biopsies were performed using an oscillating saw to collect samples of the tuber coxa (TC) from each animal on d 84 (left TC only) and d 168 (left, ipsilateral TC; right, contralateral TC). Samples underwent micro-CT (microCT; Quantum GX, PerkinElmer Inc.). Microarchitecture, including bone volume fraction (BV/TV), trabecular separation (TbSp), trabecular thickness (TbTh), trabecular number (TbN), trabecular connectivity density (ConnD), and BMD, were quantified using Dragonfly software (Comet Technologies Canada Inc.). Data were analyzed using PROC MIXED of SAS for the main effect of treatment within each biopsy site. There were no treatment differences for BMD in any TC samples, and there were no treatment effects on bone microarchitecture on d 84 or in the ipsilateral TC on d 168. In the d 168 contralateral TC, there were tendencies in BV/TV (<em>P</em> = 0.09) and TbTh (<em>P</em> = 0.07), where BV/TV was higher in 1X than CON and 4X, and TbTh was higher in 1X than other groups. The tendencies for BV/TV and TbTh were likely driven by one horse in 1X with higher values and are not likely indicative of true population differences. The results led to rejection of the hypotheses, indicating the administered doses of CD had no effect on TC microarchitecture or BMD in juvenile Quarter Horses.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15798,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Equine Veterinary Science","volume":"148 ","pages":"Article 105515"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143948025","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Accuracy of artificial intelligence platforms on equine topics","authors":"S. Aldworth-Yang,&nbsp;S.J. Coleman,&nbsp;K. O'Reilly,&nbsp;D. Catalano","doi":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105506","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jevs.2025.105506","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming increasingly popular as a resource for information across all topics, including equine-related areas. However, AI models pull information from a variety of sources and do not always discern between fact and opinion. The objective of this study was to evaluate accuracy of AI-generated answers on equine topics from 3 AI platforms. Our hypothesis was that AI platforms could answer basic equine questions well but would not be able to accurately answer more complex questions or topics. The 3 AI platforms (P) evaluated were Chat GPT (CGPT), Microsoft Co-Pilot (MicCP), and Extension Bot (ExtBot). Researchers asked 40 questions on general horse care, facilities management, nutrition, genetics, and reproduction (topics; T). There were 4 levels (L): beginner (beg.), intermediate (int.), advanced (adv.), and “hot topics” (HT, areas of current interest in the industry). Answers were evaluated for accuracy, relevance, thoroughness, and source quality (10 points each, total score [TS] out of 40 points). Accuracy was determined by referencing textbooks and topic experts. Data were analyzed using PROC GLM in SAS (v. 9.4). Both CGPT and MicCP answered 40 of 40 questions, whereas ExtBot answered 33 of 40 questions. Total score was not affected by P (<em>P</em> = 0.197) or T (<em>P</em> = 0.536) but there was an effect of L (<em>P</em> = 0.002). Across platforms, beg. and int. questions had a higher TS compared with adv. or HT, indicating complexity of the topic plays a role in the quality of an answer. Accuracy was affected by P (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.001), L (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.001), and T (<em>P</em> = 0.015). Extension Bot had a lower score than both CGPT and MicCP. HT and Adv. had lower scores than beg. or int. questions. Reproduction had a lower score compared with all other topics. Relevance was affected by P (<em>P</em> = 0.042) and L (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.001) but not T (<em>P</em> = 0.099). Chat GPT answers contained more irrelevant information compared with MicCP and ExtBot, which may indicate a weakness in parsing out only essential information. Answers to HT questions included less relevant information compared with int. answers. Thoroughness was affected by P (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.001) and L (<em>P</em> = 0.002), but not T (<em>P</em> = 0.282). Chat GPT was the most thorough compared with MicCP and then ExtBot. Both beg. and int. answers were more thorough than HT or adv. answers. Source quality was affected by P (<em>P</em> = 0.037) but not L (<em>P</em> = 0.645) or T (<em>P</em> = 0.558), with ExtBot using higher quality sources compared with CGPT and MicCP. Overall, the AI programs struggled with complex topics and were inconsistent in their strengths. This research demonstrates that although AI tools may have potential as resources, they currently fall short of expertise and knowledge that can be offered by equine extension specialists.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":15798,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Equine Veterinary Science","volume":"148 ","pages":"Article 105506"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3,"publicationDate":"2025-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143948087","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}