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Topic:Animal Science
Animal Science and horses encompass the study of equine biology, physiology, and management practices aimed at understanding and improving horse health, welfare, and performance. This field integrates various scientific disciplines, including genetics, nutrition, reproduction, and behavior, to address the needs of horses in diverse contexts such as sports, work, and companionship. Research in this area often focuses on optimizing feeding strategies, enhancing breeding programs, and developing effective health management protocols. Additionally, studies explore the genetic factors influencing traits such as athleticism and disease resistance, as well as the impact of environmental and management conditions on horse behavior and welfare. This page gathers peer-reviewed research and scholarly articles that investigate the scientific principles underpinning equine science and their practical applications in horse care and management.
Reliability of an injury scoring system for horses. The risk of injuries is of major concern when keeping horses in groups and there is a need for a system to record external injuries in a standardised and simple way. The objective of this study, therefore, was to develop and validate a system for injury recording in horses and to test its reliability and feasibility under field conditions. Methods: Injuries were classified into five categories according to severity. The scoring system was tested for intra- and inter-observer agreement as well as agreement with a 'golden standard' (diagnosis established by a veterinarian). The scoring was done ...
Ticks on birds in a forest fragment of Brazilian cerrado (savanna) in the municipality of Uberlândia, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. This is a report of tick species, parasite prevalence and infestation intensity of birds in a forest fragment (18° 56' 57'' S and 48° 12' 14'' W) within the Brazilian cerrado (savanna), in the municipality of Uberlândia, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. A total of 162 birds from 26 species were captured. One adult tick, 296 larvae and 67 nymphs were found on passerine birds. Of these, it was identified 31 larvae and 27 nymphs of Amblyomma longirostre, 17 nymphs of A. nodosum, one A. cajennense larvae and one male of Rhipicephalus sanguineus. All other ticks were identified as Amblyomma sp. la...
Equine disorders of sexual development in 17 mares including XX, SRY-negative, XY, SRY-negative and XY, SRY-positive genotypes. We described the clinical, cytogenetic and molecular findings of 17 clinical equine cases presented for abnormal sexual development and infertility. Six horses with an enlarged clitoris had an XX, SRY-negative genotype, which displayed male-like behavior (adult individuals). Bilateral ovotestes were noted in 2 of those cases, while another case showed increased levels of circulating testosterone. Six horses with a female phenotype, including normal external genitalia, had an XY, SRY-negative genotype. These individuals had small gonads and an underdeveloped internal reproductive tract. Four ho...
Origin and history of mitochondrial DNA lineages in domestic horses. Domestic horses represent a genetic paradox: although they have the greatest number of maternal lineages (mtDNA) of all domestic species, their paternal lineages are extremely homogeneous on the Y-chromosome. In order to address their huge mtDNA variation and the origin and history of maternal lineages in domestic horses, we analyzed 1961 partial d-loop sequences from 207 ancient remains and 1754 modern horses. The sample set ranged from Alaska and North East Siberia to the Iberian Peninsula and from the Late Pleistocene to modern times. We found a panmictic Late Pleistocene horse population r...
Plasma vitamin K concentration in horses supplemented with several vitamin K homologs. The effect of several vitamin K homologs on plasma vitamin K concentration was determined to assess their potential as a vitamin K supplement for adult horses. Sixteen Thoroughbred horses consisting of 8 mares and 8 geldings, aged 8.4 ± 3.6 yr and weighing 520.8 ± 36.1 kg, were allocated to 4 groups (n = 4). Each group was given phylloquinone, menaquinone-4, or menadione at 58 µmol/d, or no vitamin K supplement for 7 d. Plasma samples were collected before feeding, and 2, 4, and 8 h after feeding on d 7, and plasma concentrations of phylloquinone and menaquinone-4 were determined. Plasma ph...
Welfare and health of horses transported for slaughter within the European Union Part 1: Methodology and descriptive data. Anecdotal evidence collected by a variety of organisations has highlighted poor welfare in horses transported long distances to slaughter within the European Union. Objective: To investigate welfare of horses being transported long distances within the EU to slaughter. Methods: Data on transported horses were recorded at 2 assembly centres in Romania and at 4 abattoirs in Italy over an 8 month period in 2008. Results: A total of 1519 horses in 64 separate shipments were observed in Romania prior to transport of which 212 horses were deemed unfit for transport and only 3 shipments (5%) complied...
PRINS detection of 18S rDNA in pig, red fox and Chinese raccoon dog, and centromere DNA in horse. The fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) technique is widely used in animal cytogenetics. Contrary to FISH procedure, primed in situ DNA synthesis (PRINS) does not require the DNA probe preparation (design, synthesis, gel purification of PCR products and labeling). The PRINS method with primers used as 'DNA probes' is both PCR-sensitive and allows for chromosomal localization of DNA sequences. Here, we show the application of PRINS reaction with one unlabeled oligonucleotide pair to identify 18S rDNA loci in three different animal species: domestic pig (Sus scrofa), red fox (Vulpes vulpes...
Recognition of pain and use of analgesia in horses by veterinarians in New Zealand. To explore attitudes towards and use of analgesia in horses by veterinarians in New Zealand. Methods: A postal questionnaire was sent out to 457 veterinarians identified as working with horses in New Zealand. Questions covered demographics and practice data; analgesic drugs available for use and used in practice; analgesic management of specific conditions including assessment of pain, drugs used, and frequency of cases; factors influencing the choice and use of analgesic agents; and attitudes and personal experience. Results: Ninety-seven questionnaires containing useable data were received, ...
Grip and limb force limits to turning performance in competition horses. Manoeuverability is a key requirement for successful terrestrial locomotion, especially on variable terrain, and is a deciding factor in predator-prey interaction. Compared with straight-line running, bend running requires additional leg force to generate centripetal acceleration. In humans, this results in a reduction in maximum speed during bend running and a published model assuming maximum limb force as a constraint accurately predicts how much a sprinter must slow down on a bend given his maximum straight-line speed. In contrast, greyhounds do not slow down or change stride parameters dur...
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in animals. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a critically important human pathogen that is also an emerging concern in veterinary medicine and animal agriculture. It is present in a wide range of animal species, including dogs, cats, rabbits, horses, cattle, pigs, poultry, and exotic species, both as a cause of infection and in healthy carriers. Identification of MRSA in various species and in food has led to concerns about the roles of animals, both pets and livestock, in the epidemiology of MRSA infection and colonization in humans. There is evidence of the role of food animals in h...
Production of calcium maintenance factor Stanniocalcin-1 (STC1) by the equine endometrium during the early pregnant period. A factor responsible for progression to pregnancy establishment in the mare has not been definitively characterized. To identify factors possibly involved in the establishment of equine pregnancy, the endometrium was collected from day 13 (day 0=day of ovulation) cyclic and day 13, 19 and 25 pregnant animals. From initial subtractive hybridization studies, a calcium regulating factor, Stanniocalcin-1 (STC1) mRNA, was found as a candidate molecule expressed uniquely in the pregnant endometrium. Endometrial expression of STC1 mRNA was noted on day 19 and was markedly increased in the day 25 grav...
Accurate determination of phenotypic information from historic thoroughbred horses by single base extension. Historic DNA data have the potential to identify phenotypic information otherwise invisible in the historical, archaeological and palaeontological record. In order to determine whether a single nucleotide polymorphism typing protocol based on single based extension (SNaPshot™) could produce reliable phenotypic data from historic samples, we genotyped three coat colour markers for a sample of historic Thoroughbred horses for which both phenotypic and correct genotypic information were known from pedigree information in the General Stud Book. Experimental results were consistent with the pedig...
Genome-wide SNP association-based localization of a dwarfism gene in Friesian dwarf horses. The recent completion of the horse genome and commercial availability of an equine SNP genotyping array has facilitated the mapping of disease genes. We report putative localization of the gene responsible for dwarfism, a trait in Friesian horses that is thought to have a recessive mode of inheritance, to a 2-MB region of chromosome 14 using just 10 affected animals and 10 controls. We successfully genotyped 34,429 SNPs that were tested for association with dwarfism using chi-square tests. The most significant SNP in our study, BIEC2-239376 (P(2df)=4.54 × 10(-5), P(rec)=7.74 × 10(-6)), is lo...
Genetics of swayback in American Saddlebred horses. Extreme lordosis, also called swayback, lowback or softback, can occur as a congenital trait or as a degenerative trait associated with ageing. In this study, the hereditary aspect of congenital swayback was investigated using whole genome association studies of 20 affected and 20 unaffected American Saddlebred (ASB) Horses for 48,165 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). A statistically significant association was identified on ECA20 (corrected P=0.017) for SNP BIEC2-532523. Of the 20 affected horses, 17 were homozygous for this SNP when compared to seven homozygotes among the unaffected ho...
Mitochondrial DNA insertions in the nuclear horse genome. The insertion of mitochondrial DNA in the nuclear genome generates numts, nuclear sequences of mitochondrial origin. In the horse reference genome, we identified 82 numts and showed that the entire horse mitochondrial DNA is represented as numts without gross bias. Numts were inserted in the horse nuclear genome at random sites and were probably generated during the repair of DNA double-strand breaks. We then analysed 12 numt loci in 20 unrelated horses and found that null alleles, lacking the mitochondrial DNA insertion, were present at six of these loci. At some loci, the null allele is prev...
Morphological variation in the horse: defining complex traits of body size and shape. Horses, like many domesticated species, have been selected for broad variation in skeletal size. This variation is not only an interesting model of rapid evolutionary change during domestication, but is also directly applicable to the horse industry. Breeders select for complex traits like body size and skeletal conformation to improve marketability, function, soundness and performance in the show ring. Using a well-defined set of 35 measurements, we have identified and quantified skeletal variation in the horse species. We collected measurements from 1215 horses representing 65 breeds of dive...
Identification of the myostatin locus (MSTN) as having a major effect on optimum racing distance in the Thoroughbred horse in the USA. One hundred and eighty-nine Thoroughbred horses that had won Graded Stakes races in North America were genotyped with the Illumina Equine SNP50 bead chip. Association tests using PLINK to determine whether any SNPs were associated with optimum racing distance (7 furlongs and under compared to 8-10 furlongs) identified a locus on ECA18 that was statistically significant (-log 10 EMP2=1.63) at the genome-wide level following permutation analysis (10,000 permutations). Bioinformatic analysis revealed that the two ECA18 SNPs with the highest statistical significance spanned the MSTN (myostatin) lo...
A genome-wide association study for racing performances in Thoroughbreds clarifies a candidate region near the MSTN gene. Using 1400 microsatellites, a genome-wide association study (GWAS) was performed to identify genomic regions associated with lifetime earnings and performance ranks, as determined by the Japan Racing Association (JRA). The minimum heritability (h(2) ) was estimated at 7-8% based on the quantitative trait model, suggesting that the racing performance is heritable. Following GWAS with microsatellites, fine mapping led to identification of three SNPs on ECA18, namely, g.65809482T>C (P=1.05E-18), g.65868604G>T (P=6.47E-17), and g.66539967A>G (P=3.35E-14) associated with these performance ...
Linkage disequilibrium and historical effective population size in the Thoroughbred horse. Many genomic methodologies rely on the presence and extent of linkage disequilibrium (LD) between markers and genetic variants underlying traits of interest, but the extent of LD in the horse has yet to be comprehensively characterized. In this study, we evaluate the extent and decay of LD in a sample of 817 Thoroughbreds. Horses were genotyped for over 50,000 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers across the genome, with 34,848 autosomal SNPs used in the final analysis. Linkage disequilibrium, as measured by the squared correlation coefficient (r(2)), was found to be relatively high bet...
Structural annotation of equine protein-coding genes determined by mRNA sequencing. The horse, like the majority of animal species, has a limited amount of species-specific expressed sequence data available in public databases. As a result, structural models for the majority of genes defined in the equine genome are predictions based on ab initio sequence analysis or the projection of gene structures from other mammalian species. The current study used Illumina-based sequencing of messenger RNA (RNA-seq) to help refine structural annotation of equine protein-coding genes and for a preliminary assessment of gene expression patterns. Sequencing of mRNA from eight equine tissues...
Identification of equine major histocompatibility complex haplotypes using polymorphic microsatellites. A system for identifying equine major histocompatibility complex (MHC) haplotypes was developed based on five polymorphic microsatellites located within the MHC region on ECA 20. Molecular signatures for 50 microsatellite haplotypes were recognized from typing 353 horses. Of these, 23 microsatellite haplotypes were associated with 12 established equine leucocyte antigen (ELA) haplotypes in Thoroughbreds and Standardbreds. Five ELA serotypes were associated with multiple microsatellite subhaplotypes, expanding the estimates of diversity in the equine MHC. The strong correlations between serolog...
Interspersed repeats in the horse (Equus caballus); spatial correlations highlight conserved chromosomal domains. The interspersed repeat content of mammalian genomes has been best characterized in human, mouse and cow. In this study, we carried out de novo identification of repeated elements in the equine genome and identified previously unknown elements present at low copy number. The equine genome contains typical eutherian mammal repeats, but also has a significant number of hybrid repeats in addition to clade-specific Long Interspersed Nuclear Elements (LINE). Equus caballus clade specific LINE 1 (L1) repeats can be classified into approximately five subfamilies, three of which have undergone signifi...
Genomic structure, polymorphism and expression of ACCN1 and ACCN3 genes in the horse. A category of cation gate proteins was shown to be present in sensory neurons and act as receptors of protons present in tissues such as muscles. The Amiloride-sensitive Cation Channel, Neuronal (ACCN) gene family is known to play a role in the transmission of pain through specialized pH sensitive neurons. Muscles from horses submitted to strenuous exercises produce lactic acid, which may induce variable pain through ACCN differential properties. The sequences of the equine cDNAs were determined to be 2.6 kb in length with an open reading frame of 1539 bp for ACCN1 and 2.1 kb in length with an...
Fatal epizootic equine herpesvirus 1 infections in new and unnatural hosts. In a zoological collection, four black bears (Ursus americanus) died from neurological disease within six months. Independently in a geographically different zoo, two Thomson's gazelles (Eudorcas thomsoni) and 18 guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus f. dom.) suffered from neurological disorders. In addition, guinea pigs showed abortions and stillbirths. All affected animals displayed a non suppurative meningoencephalitis with intranuclear inclusion bodies. Immunohistology demonstrated equine herpes virus antigen and ultrastructurally herpes viral particles were detected. Virus isolation and molecular ...
Three recently recognized species of cyathostomes (Nematoda: Strongylidae) in equids in Kentucky. Three species of cyathostomes--Cylicocyclus ashworthi, Cylicostephanus bidentatus, and Cylicostephanus hybridus were identified recently in horses in Kentucky. General characteristics and distinguishing description of these species are presented. Distribution of these species and their role in the horse strongylid community are discussed. The importance of examining the entire contents of the large intestine or alternatively a high number of specimens in order to recover and identify species residing in low numbers is stressed.
Genetic diversity and population structure of three Indian horse breeds. The genetic relationships of three Indian horse breeds-Marwari, Spiti, and Kathiawari were studied by genotyping 96 individuals with 20 polymorphic microsatellite markers. A total of 157 alleles were detected across 20 polymorphic loci. The Marwari population showed the highest allelic diversity (A = 5.7 and Ar = 5.14), followed by Spiti (A = 4.9 and Ar = 4.74) and Kathiawari (A = 4.1 and Ar = 3.82). The gene diversity was highest in the Spiti population (He = 0.67), followed by Marwari (He = 0.66) and Kathiawari (He = 0.59). Within population inbreeding estimates (f) in Marwari, Spiti and Kat...
New method to combine molecular and pedigree relationships. Relationship coefficients are traditionally based on pedigree data. Today, with the development of molecular techniques, they are often completely replaced by coefficients calculated from molecular data. Examples are relationships from microsatellites for biodiversity studies but also genomic relationships from SNP as currently used in genomic prediction of breeding values. There are, however, many situations in which optimal combination of both sources would be the best solutions. Obviously, this is the case for incompletely genotyped populations, but also when pedigree information is sparse....
