Small Ruminant Research最新文献

{"title":"Impact of day length on orexin A levels in blood, cerebrospinal fluid and various brain tissues in seasonally breeding sheep","authors":"Katarzyna Kirsz,&nbsp;Małgorzata Szczęsna,&nbsp;Weronika Biernat,&nbsp;Dorota A. Zięba","doi":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107516","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107516","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Orexin A (OXA) is a key regulator of the sleep-wake cycle and energy homeostasis in mammals. In rodents, OXA synthesis follows a circadian rhythm positively associated with wakefulness. While similar research is lacking in seasonal animals, we previously demonstrated that OXA mediates photoperiodic effects on reproduction and metabolism in seasonally breeding sheep. This study investigated whether circadian and seasonal rhythms in OXA secretion occur in sheep and how they correspond to tissue-specific concentrations under different photoperiods. Ten adult ewes were kept under natural conditions during long-day (LD; May, nonbreeding season; ∼16 h daylight; n = 5) and short-day (SD; November, breeding season; ∼9 h daylight; n = 5) periods. The experiments were conducted separately for each season to distinguish photoperiodic effects. Plasma was collected over 24 hours; cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and brain tissues including the choroid plexus (CP), pineal gland (PG), pituitary gland (PTG), and CA1 region of the hippocampus were collected at midday, when OXA peaks in diurnal species. OXA levels were significantly higher (P &lt; 0.01) in LD compared to SD in the CP (95.83 %), CSF (140.00 %), CA1 (66.70 %), and plasma (38.46 %). Plasma OXA displayed circadian variation in both seasons; daytime levels were 41.38 % higher during SD (P &lt; 0.01) and 17.28 % higher in LD (P &gt; 0.05). No seasonal differences were found in PTG or PG. This study may reveal the role of OXA in mediating or modifying the effects of day length on seasonal physiological processes in sheep. For example, elevated OXA in spring and summer, when forage is abundant, may support energy demands for lactation and reserve accumulation in preparation for winter forage scarcity.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":21758,"journal":{"name":"Small Ruminant Research","volume":"248 ","pages":"Article 107516"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143886542","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":"Supplementation of orally drenched ascorbic acid and injectable α-tocopherol reduces markers of naturally acquired parasites in grazing hair sheep","authors":"Jesus A. Rojas-Reyes ,&nbsp;Taya J. Blad ,&nbsp;Janae S. Bulosan ,&nbsp;Amy S. Wanguba ,&nbsp;Yunuen Bustamante ,&nbsp;Kara J. Thornton ,&nbsp;Jenee S. Odani ,&nbsp;Caleb C. Reichhardt","doi":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107515","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107515","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of exogenous vitamin E and C supplementation in grazing hair sheep on markers of naturally acquired parasites, hypothesizing that supplementing vitamins may be effective as anthelmintics in controlling parasites. Twenty-six lambs and thirty-one ewes were stratified by FAMACHA® scores and placed in one of five treatment groups: (1) control (CON; Lambs: <em>n</em> = 6, Ewes: <em>n</em> = 4), (2) dewormer (DW; Levamed; 0.08 mg/kg; Lambs: <em>n</em> = 5, Ewes: <em>n</em> = 7), (3) vitamin C (VC; Vitamin C;0.56 ml/kg of BW; Lambs: <em>n</em> = 5, Ewes: <em>n</em> = 6), (4) vitamin E (VE; Vitamin E 300; 22 IU/kg of BW; Lambs: <em>n</em> = 6, Ewes: <em>n</em> = 7), and (5) combination of vitamins E and C (E + C; same dosages as vitamins C and E; Lambs: <em>n</em> = 4, Ewes: <em>n</em> = 7). Physiological, parasitology and blood metabolite parameters samples were collected on day 0, 14, 28, 56, and 77. The following parameters and treatments are compared to the CON, unless otherwise mentioned. FAMACHA® scores improved in lambs treated with DW (<em>P</em> = 0.0001), E + C (<em>P</em> = 0.04), VC (<em>P</em> = 0.02), and VE (<em>P</em> = 0.01). Eggs per gram (EPG) decreased in lambs treated with DW (<em>P</em> = 0.001), VC (<em>P</em> = 0.001) and VE (<em>P</em> = 0.008). Alanine transaminase (ALT) decreased (<em>P</em> = 0.04) in lambs treated with DW and VE treated lambs increased (<em>P</em> = 0.02) in ALT compared to the dewormer. Packed cell volume (PCV) in the ewes improved with E + C (<em>P</em> = 0.02) and VE (<em>P</em> = 0.03) compared to DW. The data suggests that vitamin E and C supplementation can be used as a tool to assist in managing parasites in grazing hair sheep.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":21758,"journal":{"name":"Small Ruminant Research","volume":"248 ","pages":"Article 107515"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143886543","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":"Variation due to additive, dominance and imprinting genetic effects in body weight gain of Baluchi sheep","authors":"Farhad Ghafouri-Kesbi ,&nbsp;Mohsen Gholizadeh","doi":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107505","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107505","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;div&gt;&lt;div&gt;The aim was to estimate relative contribution of additive, dominance and imprinting genetic effects to the phenotypic variation of body weight gain in different growth phases, namely from birth to weaning (BWGa), weaning to 9 months of age (BWGb) and weaning to 12 months of age (BWGc) in Baluchi sheep. This was done in a two-step process. In the first step, each trait was analysed with 12 different animal models which included different combinations of additive genetic, dominance genetic and maternal effects. The best model (Model &lt;strong&gt;I&lt;/strong&gt;) was selected with Akaike Information Criterion (&lt;strong&gt;AIC&lt;/strong&gt;). In the second step, three additional models were fitted by adding maternal imprinting, paternal imprinting, or both (models 13–15) to the Model &lt;strong&gt;I&lt;/strong&gt;. Predictive ability of models was measured using the mean squared error of prediction (MSE) and Pearson's correlation coefficient between the real and predicted values of observations (r(&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;mi&gt;y&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;,&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;mover&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mi&gt;y&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mo&gt;ˆ&lt;/mo&gt;&lt;/mover&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;)). Correlations between traits were estimated using bi-variate analyses. In the first step, for all traits studied, including dominance genetic effects in the model resulted to a significantly better data fit and enhanced predictive ability of the model (higher r(&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;mi&gt;y&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;,&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;mover&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mi&gt;y&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mo&gt;ˆ&lt;/mo&gt;&lt;/mover&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;) and lower MSE). Also it resulted to a significant decrease in the residual variance up to 24 %. However, accounting for dominance genetic effects, significantly increased the computing time and required memory. In the second step, for BWGa, adding maternal imprinting effects to the model &lt;strong&gt;I&lt;/strong&gt; resulted to increase in the likelihood and predictive ability of the model as well as 40 % decrease in the additive genetic variance. Estimates of dominance heritability (&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msubsup&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mi&gt;h&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mi&gt;d&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;2&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msubsup&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;), were 0.19, 0.15 and 0.20 for BWGa, BWGb and BWGc, respectively. Additive heritability (&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msubsup&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mi&gt;h&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mi&gt;a&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;2&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msubsup&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;), were 0.08, 0.08 and 0.07 for BWGa, BWGb and BWGc, respectively. For BWGa, maternal imprinting heritability (&lt;span&gt;&lt;math&gt;&lt;msubsup&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mi&gt;h&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mi&gt;mi&lt;/mi&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;mrow&gt;&lt;mn&gt;2&lt;/mn&gt;&lt;/mrow&gt;&lt;/msubsup&gt;&lt;/math&gt;&lt;/span&gt;) was 0.08. While additive genetic correlations were all positive and high, dominance genetic correlation between BWGb and BWGc was positively high and between other pairs of traits was negatively high. For all traits studied, correlation between breeding values obtained from models with/without dominance genetic effect was close to unity (0.99) but between breeding values obtained from models with/without imprinting effects deviated from unity (0.85 for BWGa) indicating change in ranking of top","PeriodicalId":21758,"journal":{"name":"Small Ruminant Research","volume":"248 ","pages":"Article 107505"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143881366","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 heat stress and herbal products supplementation on the immune response related gene expression patterns in Kenguri ewes","authors":"E. Binuni Rebez ,&nbsp;C. Devaraj ,&nbsp;J. Ninan ,&nbsp;M.V. Silpa ,&nbsp;S. Venkatesa Perumal ,&nbsp;Kumar Tej Nikhil ,&nbsp;A. Sahoo ,&nbsp;F.R. Dunshea ,&nbsp;V. Sejian","doi":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107503","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107503","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The study was conducted to establish the impact of heat stress as well as the herbal products supplementation on the expression patterns of immune response related genes in indigenous Kenguri ewes. A sixty days study was carried out in a climate-controlled environment by using 24 adult female Kenguri sheep. The study animals were randomly grouped into four with six animals each, viz., C (n = 6; Control; standard diet), HS (n = 6; Heat Stress; standard diet), CS (n = 6; Control Supplement; standard diet +herbal powder), and HSS (n = 6; Heat Stress Supplement; standard diet + herbal powder). The temperature humidity index (THI) recorded clearly indicated that the HS and HSS group ewes were exposed to severe heat stress while C and CS group ewes were exposed to thermoneutral condition. Further, heat stress increased plasma cortisol concentration while the herbal supplements reduced cortisol concentration (14.72 vs 11.16 ng/ml for HS and HSS, respectively, P &lt; 0.01). Likewise, heat stress (P &lt; 0.05) reduced the expression patterns of <em>Interleukin-2 (IL-2), IL-18, Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), Interferon beta (IFN-β),</em> Interferon gamma (IFN<em>-γ</em>)<em>, superoxide dismutase (SOD)</em> and <em>glutathione peroxidase (GP</em>_<em>X</em><em>).</em> However, heat stress <em>(</em>P &lt; 0.05) upregulated <em>IL-6</em> expression. Therefore, all these cytokines can serve as biomarkers for quantifying heat stress on the immune response in Kenguri ewes. Further, the results also established that the herbal supplementation reduced the heat stress induced increased cortisol concentration and <em>IL-6</em> levels (at day 60), in addition to recovering heat stress induced reduced levels of <em>IL-2, TNF-α, IFN-γ and SOD</em> to normal range. Thus, the herbal supplements used in this study brought beneficial effects in relieving the heat stress in Kenguri ewes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":21758,"journal":{"name":"Small Ruminant Research","volume":"248 ","pages":"Article 107503"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143859078","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":"Prophylactic and therapeutic effects of isolated farm bacteriophages in lamb diarrhea induced by Escherichia coli","authors":"İlyas Mete Boydak ,&nbsp;İlknur Bekdik Karaca ,&nbsp;Rene Van Den Hoven ,&nbsp;Ali Cesur Onmaz","doi":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107502","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107502","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;div&gt;&lt;div&gt;If antimicrobial treatment of infections by multidrug-resistant bacteria fails, the use of bacteriophages comes into focus. This study was a proof of concept (POC) and investigated if carefully selected &lt;em&gt;E.coli&lt;/em&gt; bacteriophages (Φ IA-38) are superior to routine antibiotic post-infection treatment of &lt;em&gt;E. coli&lt;/em&gt;-induced secretory diarrhea in neonatal lambs. Furthermore, the prophylactic application of Φ IA-38 was also investigated in the same trial. For this aim, a Φ IA-38 was isolated from sewage samples from a small sheep farm. The isolate had broad lytic activity against various &lt;em&gt;E. coli&lt;/em&gt; strains, and its genome contains no antibiotic resistance or virulent genes. For the clinical part, 36 Awassi lambs (20 males, 16 females), aged 1–7 days and weighing 3.2–5.7 kg, were randomly allocated to four experimental groups comprising three treatment groups and one control group. Briefly, group 1 was the control group that was not infected nor received bacteriophages; group 2 was infected and treated 24 h later with a combination of procaine penicillin and dihydrostreptomycin; group 3 was treated prophylactically 12 h before infection, and group 4 was infected and treated 1 day after infection. A single dose of &lt;em&gt;E. coli&lt;/em&gt; K99 (0.1 mL; 10⁷ CFU/mL) was given orally for infection. Lambs intramuscularly received 0.1 mL of phage Φ IA-38 (10⁷ PFU/mL; MOI:1) for 3 days for phage therapy. Next to routine hematology and clinical biochemistry, blood concentrations of Serum amyloid A (SAA), Haptoglobin (Hpt), immunoglobulin M (IgM), and immunoglobulin G (IgG) were determined to estimate the magnitude of inflammatory and general immune responses. None of the lambs died. All other lambs had mild to severe diarrhea except for the control group. SAA concentrations in the animals of Group 2 were increased at all time points after day 1, whereas the Hpt levels had decreased on day 10 in Group 4 (P &lt; 0.05). IgM levels on day 7 were higher in phage-treated Groups 3 and 4, compared to the negative control and the pen-strep-treated other groups (P &lt; 0.05). The IgG levels were significantly increased only in the animals of Group 3 on the 7th and 10th days (P &lt;0.05). SAA concentrations in the animals treated with antibiotics (Group 2) were increased at all time points after day 1. In the Φ IA-therapeutically treated animals (Group 4), Hpt levels were already lowest and had significantly (p &lt; 0.05) decreased by day 10. IgM levels on day 7 were higher in the prophylactic (Group 3) and therapeutic Φ IA-38- treated groups (Group 4) compared to the negative control and the pen-strep-treated groups (P &lt; 0.05). The IgG levels were significantly increased only in the animals that had received the bacteriophages prophylactically before infection on the 7th and 10th days (P &lt; 0.05). Prophylactic and therapeutic IA-38 treatment reduced significantly (p &lt; 0.05) &lt;em&gt;E. coli&lt;/em&gt; K99 counts in the feces of infected lambs, similar to th","PeriodicalId":21758,"journal":{"name":"Small Ruminant Research","volume":"248 ","pages":"Article 107502"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143869697","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":"Cashew (Anacardium occidentale L.) nut meal could be a promising alternative protein feedstuff for lambs","authors":"K.M. Rashmi ,&nbsp;T.M. Prabhu ,&nbsp;N.M. Soren ,&nbsp;H.M. Yathish ,&nbsp;M.S. Mahesh","doi":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107501","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107501","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In today’s livestock landscape, amid shortages and fluctuating feed commodity prices, quest for exploring under-utilised and possibly economical agro-industrial by-products remains key for sustainable farming. In this backdrop, notwithstanding the moderate energy and protein values of cashew nut meal (CNM)—a by-product of the cashew nut processing industry—there appears limited research exploration on it as a prospective feedstuff for lambs. Therefore, the present study was conducted to delineate the effect of inclusion of graded levels of CNM on intake, nutrient digestibility, growth performance, rumen fermentation, and economics in lambs fed Napier Pakchong-1 grass hay-based diet. For this, 24 Mandya ram lambs were divided into four similar experimental groups of six animals each in a completely randomised design based on a comparable body weight (7.9 ± 0.65 kg) and age (3–4 months). The treatments involved four isonitrogenous concentrate feed mixtures (CFM) with CNM included at 0 (T0), 100 (T1), 200 (T2), and 300 g/kg (T3), proportionally replacing soya bean meal and wheat bran. The results of the feeding trial spanning 120 days indicated that CNM had no effect on intake (except ether extract) and digestibility of nutrients, nutritive value of diets, and nutrient selection index among the four groups. The same trend was true for final body weight, average daily gain, and feed conversion (feed-to-gain) ratio. Furthermore, there were no significant (P &gt; 0.05) differences in rumen fermentation pattern, including rumen pH, various nitrogen fractions as well as total- and individual volatile fatty acids among the experimental groups. Similarly, blood biochemistry was also unaffected by the inclusion of CNM in the diet. Beneficially, the use of CNM reduced the overall feed cost for growth to the extent of 5.1 % in group T3 than T0, indicating a modest economic advantage. Overall, CNM presents a promising alternative to conventional protein sources like SBM when included up to 300 g/kg CFM, offering comparable nutrient values without causing any discernible negative influence on key performance metrics and health.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":21758,"journal":{"name":"Small Ruminant Research","volume":"248 ","pages":"Article 107501"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143869853","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":"Good management practices and technological heterogeneity: Impacts on technical efficiency in Peruvian sheep farming","authors":"Michael Owusu Ansah ,&nbsp;Theodoros Skevas","doi":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107498","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107498","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This paper examines the effects of adopting Good Management Practices (GMPs) on the technical efficiency (TE) of Peruvian sheep farms, considering the technological heterogeneity resulting from diverse GMP adoption patterns. Using data from the 2022 Peruvian National Agricultural Survey, 943 sheep farmers were classified according to their GMP adoption stages through hierarchical cluster analysis, in line with the Diffusion of Innovation theory. Stochastic meta-frontier analyses were then applied to assess efficiency within each group, comparing them to industry-wide \"best-practice\" standards. The findings reveal a positive relationship between GMP adoption and technical efficiency, with farms in advanced GMP adoption stages showing the highest efficiency levels; however, these farms experienced only marginal efficiency gains, suggesting that adopting more advanced GMPs did not significantly expand the production frontier. The relatively high variability in within-group TE scores among these later adopters may indicate a learning curve, contributing to increased production risks. Moreover, within-group TE scores were found to be the primary drivers of overall (or meta technical) efficiency, implying that inefficiencies stem more from management shortcomings than from technological constraints. This highlights the need to enhance management practices. The study concludes that farms at all stages of GMP adoption have significant room to improve efficiency with current resources and recommends that policymakers and extension services focus on helping farmers better utilize existing GMP technologies while promoting advanced practices to reduce potential adjustment costs.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":21758,"journal":{"name":"Small Ruminant Research","volume":"247 ","pages":"Article 107498"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143829183","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":"Characteristics of indigenous goats and the effects of crossbreeding on goat performance for rural livelihoods sustainability","authors":"Bvirwa Wesly ,&nbsp;Washaya Soul","doi":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107495","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107495","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The study aimed to determine the effects of crossbreeding of Mashona with Boer and Kalahari buck breeds on the growth and efficiency characteristics of goats in Gokwe North District, Zimbabwe. A total of 152 participants already engaged in goat farming were purposively selected. Data on flock structure, management, breeding practices, and performance of goats were assessed in a completely randomized design (CRD) with sire breed (Boer, Kalahari, Mashona), sex (male, female) and damage (12mo, 24 mo) as fixed factors. The results showed that the sex of the kid, dam age and sire breed influenced (P &lt; 0.05) both pre- and post-weaning traits. Crossbreeding increased birth weight (BWT), weaning weight (WWT), weight at six months (WT6), yearling weight (WT12) and weight at first mating (WFM) by 0.5 kg, 7 kg, 13.4 kg, 5.5 kg and 9.9 kg respectively, while improving average daily gains (ADG) from 0 – 3mo (ADG0–3) and 3–6mo (ADG3–6), but ADG from 6 to 12mo (ADG6–12) was lower in crossbred animals than indigenous kids (P &lt; 0.05). The Kleiber ratio (KR) KR1, KR2, gross energy (GE0–3), and GE3–6 improved by 4.8, 2.12, 14, and 17.3, while KR3 and GE6–12 decreased by 2.1 and 34.4 respectively, crossbreeding also reduced the weaning age (WA) by 10 days. Robust positive correlations were observed between BWT and WWT, WT6 and WT12 while WA showed weak but positive correlations with BWT, WFM, WT6 and WT12. Weight at first mating showed the highest positive correlation (r = 0.95) with WT12<strong>.</strong> The Boer x Mashona kids showed higher heterosis values for BWT and WFM while Kalahari x Mashona kids showed superiority for WT6, WWT and WA. The Kalahari × Mashona cross appears to be a more suitable choice for improving productivity under semi-arid and savanna conditions due to its better growth, efficiency, and adaptation traits.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":21758,"journal":{"name":"Small Ruminant Research","volume":"247 ","pages":"Article 107495"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143829184","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":"Genetics underlying phenotypic diversity in South African sheep breeds","authors":"C. Visser ,&nbsp;A. Retief ,&nbsp;A.H. Molotsi","doi":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107499","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107499","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates genetic diversity and morphological trait-associated genes in 897 genotyped animals from 14 African sheep breeds. The breeds include Blackhead Persian (BHP), Damara (DAM), Dorper (DOR), Fat-tail (FTT), Karakul (KAR), Meatmaster (MMR), Merino (MER), Namakwa Afrikaner (NAM), Pedi (PED), White Dorper (WDOR), Zulu (ZUL), Ethiopian Menz (EMZ), Ronderib Afrikaner (RDA), and Red Massai (RMA), with the latter three obtained from the WIDDE platform. Results showed lowest genomic heterozygosity in ZUL (0.308) and highest in MER (0.352). PCA analysis based on genome-wide SNPs revealed clustering mostly according to pre-defined populations. Morphological traits were analysed using pairwise F_ST values and overlapping ROH for tail length, fibre type, coat colour, and horn presence. Coat colour-related genes (<em>ASIP</em>, <em>MC1R</em>, <em>TYRP1</em>) were near regions with the highest F_ST values. In the horned phenotype population, overlapping ROH was found near the <em>HOXD1</em> gene, linked to horn development. For hair phenotypes, two keratin-associated genes (<em>KRTAP6–1</em>, <em>LOC101104027)</em>, and <em>FGF5</em>, which regulates the hair cycle, were identified. The wool phenotype featured <em>DLX3</em>, related to wool quality. Five genes associated with tail growth were identified in the fat-tailed phenotype populations, including <em>PDGFD</em>, identified in both F_ST analyses of long and short fat-tailed phenotypes. High differentiation at the <em>BMP2</em> gene that is linked to tail fat deposition was noted between long fat-tailed and thin-tailed phenotypes. Using SNP genotypes, we clarified the phylogenetic relationships between various indigenous and locally developed sheep breeds and confirmed the conservation of certain genomic areas associated with morphological traits in local populations.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":21758,"journal":{"name":"Small Ruminant Research","volume":"247 ","pages":"Article 107499"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143825007","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":"Conventional and alternative treatment of mastitis in dairy goats","authors":"Magna Coroa Lima ,&nbsp;Richard Costa Polveiro ,&nbsp;David Germano Gonçalves Schwarz ,&nbsp;Ana Julia Silva Moreira ,&nbsp;Isis de Freitas Espeschit Braga ,&nbsp;Mariana de Barros ,&nbsp;José Dantas Ribeiro Filho ,&nbsp;Maria Aparecida Scatamburlo Moreira","doi":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107500","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.smallrumres.2025.107500","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Mastitis, an inflammatory condition of the mammary gland primarily caused by bacterial infections, is one of the most economically significant diseases in dairy goat farming. Despite the global importance of goat breeding, there is a critical lack of medications specifically approved for treating diseases in goats. The limited availability of species-specific veterinary pharmaceuticals has led to the widespread off-label use of cattle medications, raising concerns about their efficacy, safety, and appropriate withdrawal periods for goats, a there are species-specific physiological differences, such as higher somatic cell counts and the tendency for deep-seated infections in goats. This paper compiles the main findings from studies on both conventional and alternative treatments for bacterial mastitis in goats worldwide. Conventional antimicrobial therapies, including intramammary (IMM) and intramuscular (IM) administration, show variable efficacy. Treatment often involves a combination of different antimicrobials, the addition of anti-inflammatory agents, and the use of multiple routes of application (IMM or IM). While homeopathy has not demonstrated significant efficacy in goats, alternative treatments such as phytotherapeutics, bacteriophages, bacteriocins, nanoparticles, and immunotherapeutic approaches offer promising avenues to reduce reliance on antibiotics and combat antimicrobial resistance. However, research on these alternatives remains limited, particularly in goats, highlighting the urgent need for species-specific studies. Both conventional and alternative treatment protocols hold significant potential for further development in goats but require more rigorous scientific exploration. This study underscores the scarcity of information on products specifically designed for mastitis treatment in goats, as well as the limited research available when compared to dairy cattle. The review emphasizes the importance of developing tailored treatment protocols and advancing research on novel therapies to enhance mastitis management in dairy goats, ensuring sustainable production and safeguarding animal and human health.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":21758,"journal":{"name":"Small Ruminant Research","volume":"247 ","pages":"Article 107500"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2025-04-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143821539","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}