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Topic:Comparative Study
Comparative studies in equine research involve the systematic analysis of different horse breeds, management practices, or physiological responses to identify variations and similarities. These studies are instrumental in understanding how different factors influence health, performance, and behavior in horses. Common areas of comparison include genetic traits, nutritional requirements, disease resistance, and response to training. By evaluating these differences, researchers can develop targeted strategies for breeding, healthcare, and training. This page aggregates peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that focus on the methodologies, findings, and implications of comparative studies in the context of equine science.
Kinematic characteristics of Andalusian, Arabian and Anglo-Arabian horses: a comparative study. The aim of this study was to compare the kinematic trot characteristics of three different breeds of horse: Andalusian (AN, n = 15), Arabian (AR, n = 7) and Anglo-Arabian (AA, n = 5) using standard computer-assisted videography (25 Hz). Linear, temporal and angular parameters in fore- and hind limbs were analysed in six randomly selected strides per horse. Normalised angle-time diagrams along the complete stride were obtained for all joints angles in each breed and specific kinematic characteristics were detected graphically. AA horses displayed longer swing durations in both limbs ans a short...
An evaluation of two autologous tendon grafting techniques in ponies. To compare the healing and mechanical strength of a multiple split autologous tendon graft (MG) to a whole autologous tendon graft (WG) in the deep digital flexor tendon of ponies. Methods: In vitro evaluation of two different tendon-grafting techniques. Methods: Six ponies of mixed gender and age. Methods: Tenotomies performed in forelimb deep digital flexor tendons (DDFT) distal to the insertion of the accessory ligament (AL-DDFT) were repaired with free autologous grafts from the hindlimb lateral digital extensor tendon (LDET). Grafts were either whole (WG) or split into three longitudinal ...
Characterization of the H- and L-subunit ratios of ferritins by sodium dodecyl sulfate-capillary gel electrophoresis. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-capillary gel electrophoresis (SDS-CGE) was used to characterize the H- and L-subunit ratios of several mammalian ferritins and one bacterioferritin. Traditionally, SDS-PAGE has been used to characterize the H- and L-subunit ratios in ferritin; however, this technique is relatively slow and requires staining, destaining, and scanning before the data can be processed. In addition, the H- and L-subunits of ferritin are fairly close in molecular weight (approximately 21,000 and approximately 20,000, respectively) and are often difficult to resolve in SDS-PAGE slab gels. In ...
Isolation and characterization of two European strains of Ehrlichia phagocytophila of equine origin. We report the isolation and partial genetic characterization of two equine strains of granulocytic Ehrlichia of the genogroup Ehrlichia phagocytophila. Frozen whole-blood samples from two Swedish horses with laboratory-verified granulocytic ehrlichiosis were inoculated into HL-60 cell cultures. Granulocytic Ehrlichia was isolated and propagated from both horses. DNA extracts from the respective strains were amplified by PCR using primers directed towards the 16S rRNA gene, the groESL heat shock operon gene, and the ank gene. The amplified gene fragments were sequenced and compared to known seq...
Prostaglandin E(2) and F(2 alpha) production by equine conceptuses and concentrations in conceptus fluids and uterine flushings recovered from early pregnant and dioestrous mares. A growing equine conceptus must suppress the cyclical release of PGF(2 alpha) from the endometrium to effect maternal recognition of its presence in the uterus. Paradoxically, the conceptus itself secretes PGF(2 alpha), together with other prostaglandins. In this study, the PGF(2 alpha) and PGE(2) content of, and production in vitro by, day 10-32 equine conceptuses were measured and the influence of pregnancy on the concentrations of these prostaglandins in the uterine lumen was examined. In vitro, the release of both prostaglandins per mg conceptus tissue was very high on day 10 after ovulati...
Comparative FISH mapping of 32 loci reveals new homologous regions between donkey and horse karyotypes. A total of 32 loci comprising specific genes, microsatellites and anonymous BAC clones from horse and cattle were mapped on donkey chromosomes. Of these, 13 markers were also mapped for the first time in the horse. This information, together with that previously available in donkey and horse updates the comparative status of the karyotypes of the two species. The findings of the present study for the first time show correlation between eleven equine acrocentric autosomes and the donkey chromosomes and in part enable detection of rearrangements between them. There are still 7-8 pairs of chromos...
Effect of experience on rodeo injury. To document injury rates, severity, and relative risk during five competitive seasons of Canadian professional rodeo, between experienced (saddle bronc [SB], bareback [BB], and bull riders [BR]) and inexperienced (novice saddle bronc [NSB], novice bareback [NBB], and boys' steer riders [BSR]) rough stock competitors. Methods: Prospective cohort study. Methods: Canadian professional rodeo competition. Methods: Experienced competitors included professional cowboys from Australia, Brazil, New Zealand, the United States, and Canada. Inexperienced competitors included cowboys from Canada and the Un...
Treatment of experimental equine osteoarthritis by in vivo delivery of the equine interleukin-1 receptor antagonist gene. Osteoarthritis in horses and in humans is a significant social and economic problem and continued research and improvements in therapy are needed. Because horses have naturally occurring osteoarthritis, which is similar to that of humans, the horse was chosen as a species with which to investigate gene transfer as a potential therapeutic modality for the clinical treatment of osteoarthritis. Using an established model of equine osteoarthritis that mimics clinical osteoarthritis, the therapeutic effects resulting from intra-articular overexpression of the equine interleukin-1 receptor antagonis...
Microanatomic characteristics of the insertion of the distal sesamoidean impar ligament and deep digital flexor tendon on the distal phalanx in healthy feet obtained from horses. To describe microanatomic characteristics of the insertion of the aistal sesamoidean impar ligament (DSIL) and deep digital flexor tendon (DDFT) on the distal phalanx in horses. Methods: Healthy feet obtained from 62 horses of various breeds. Methods: Feet from 23 horses were used to histologically examine the insertion of the DSIL and DDFT (n = 7), its vasculature (10), and neural elements (6). In 39 other horses, the insertion zone was examined for proteoglycan. Results: The insertion of the DSIL and dorsal half of the DDFT contained bundles of collagen fibers with intervening loose connecti...
Evaluation of laparoscopic adhesiolysis for the treatment of experimentally induced adhesions in pony foals. To assess the efficacy of laparoscopic adhesiolysis in the treatment of experimentally induced adhesions in foals. Methods: 8 healthy pony foals. Methods: Celiotomy was performed and adhesions created at the jejunoileal junction and at sites 0.5 and 1 m proximal to this junction, using a serosal abrasion method. Ten days after celiotomy, exploratory laparoscopy was performed. Laparoscopic adhesiolysis was performed in the treatment group only (4 foals, randomly selected). Thirty days after the exploratory laparoscopy, a final laparoscopic examination was performed, and the foals were euthanati...
Serovar distribution of a DNA sequence involved in the antigenic relationship between Leptospira and equine cornea. Horses infected with Leptospira present several clinical disorders, one of them being recurrent uveitis. A common endpoint of equine recurrent uveitis is blindness. Serovar pomona has often been incriminated, although others have also been reported. An antigenic relationship between this bacterium and equine cornea has been described in previous studies. A leptospiral DNA fragment that encodes cross-reacting epitopes was previously cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli. Results: A region of that DNA fragment was subcloned and sequenced. Samples of leptospiral DNA from several sources were a...
Lactobacillus equi sp. nov., a predominant intestinal Lactobacillus species of the horse isolated from faeces of healthy horses. Lactobacillus equi sp. nov. is described on the basis of 18 strains isolated as one of the predominant intestinal lactobacilli from horse faecal specimens. These 18 strains were isolated from 10 horses of 6 different farms out of 20 horses of 10 farms examined. They were gram-positive, facultatively anaerobic, catalase-negative, non-spore-forming, non-motile, lactic-acid-homofermentative rods. The DNA G+C content was 38.9+/-0.8 mol %. DNA-DNA hybridization failed to associate these strains closely with any of the validly described type strains used. Analysis of the 16S rRNA gene sequence of re...
Thyroid-stimulating hormone in adult euthyroid and hypothyroid horses. The purpose of this study was to validate a thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) assay in a model of equine hypothyroidism. Thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) stimulation tests were performed in 12 healthy adult mares and geldings, aged 4 to greater than 20 years. before and during administration of the antithyroid drug propylthiouracil (PTU) for 6 weeks. Serum concentrations of equine TSH, total and free thyroxine (T4), and total and free triiodothyronine (T3) were measured. Before PTU administration, mean +/- standard deviation baseline concentrations of TSH were 0.40 +/- 0.29 ng/mL. TSH incre...
An explanation of a groove found on the nasal process of the equine incisive bone. Thirteen fresh equine heads were dissected in an attempt to determine the cause of a groove frequently found on the dorsal border and medial side of the nasal process of the incisive bone. This groove appeared on both sides in 40 out of 44 equine skulls. The sulcus seems to be caused by the combined action of the lateralis nasi muscle and the medial accessory cartilage of the nose (cartilago nasalis accessoria medialis). Other sulci found on the nasal process of the bone may be explained as impressions caused by nerves.
Urea as a measure of dilution of equine synovial fluid. This paper tests the hypothesis that serum and synovial urea concentrations are similar and that urea concentration can be used as an accurate marker for synovial fluid dilution in normal equine joints. Serum and synovial fluid urea concentrations were compared in 42 horses and were equivalent for individual horses (P<0.0001). Mean +/- s.e. serum concentration was 6.1+/-0.552 mmol/l and synovial concentration 6.0+/-0.459 mmol/l. The normal range for synovial urea concentration was determined as 2.5-7.7 mmol/l. The synovial urea concentration from different synovial structures in individual hor...
Effects of inhaled ipratropium bromide on breathing mechanics and gas exchange in exercising horses with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Six Warmblood horses suffering an acute exacerbation of COPD were tested to investigate whether inhalation of ipratropium bromide (IB) dry powder (2,400 microg) 30 min preexercise would improve their exercise capacity. A cross-over protocol with an inert powder placebo (P) was used. Mechanics of breathing and arterial blood gases were determined before treatment, after treatment but pre-exercise, and during an incremental exercise test. Oxygen consumption (VO2) was also measured before and during exercise, and the time to fatigue recorded. Inhalation of IB reduced total pulmonary resistance (R...
Horse resistance to natural infestations of Anocentor nitens and Amblyomma cajennense (Acari: Ixodidae). The objective of this study was to investigate some aspects of horse resistance to natural infestations of Anocentor nitens and Amblyomma cajennense over a 2-year period. Free-living stages of A. nitens were used to evaluate the influence of season of the year on horse resistance. Every 2 weeks, 10 selected engorged females, weighing 150-329 mg, were removed from naturally infested horses and were individually placed into glass tubes closed with a cotton stopper, and maintained in an incubator. The biological parameters evaluated varied according to the season of the year, i.e., reproductive e...
Daily treatment of horses with equine somatotropin from 4 to 16 months of age. Fourteen foals between 4 and 4.5 mo of age were used to determine the effects of 12 mo of daily treatment with equine somatotropin (eST) on growth, metabolic, and hormonal characteristics. The foals were paired by sex, type, and lineage, and one of each pair was administered eST daily at 20 microg/kg of BW. Body weights, body measurements, and assessments of glucose tolerance and feedback effects on endogenous somatotropin (ST) secretion were made routinely. Treatment with eST did not alter (P > 0.10) BW, height at withers, length of body, widths of chest and rump, heart girth, length of he...
Comparison of pregnancy outcome in mares among methods used to evaluate and select spermatozoa for insemination. An artificial insemination dose for mares consisting of 500 million progressively motile spermatozoa is considered "standard" by most clinicians. However, little information is available directly comparing pregnancy outcome among methods of evaluating and selecting spermatozoa for insemination. The objective of this study was to determine if the method of spermatozoal evaluation and selection influences fertility as measured by pregnancy outcome. Mares were inseminated with 100 or 500 million spermatozoa that were selected for progressive motility, normal morphology, hypoosmotic swelling or ab...
Mammalian lipocalin-type prostaglandin D2 synthase in the fluids of the male genital tract: putative biochemical and physiological functions. Prostaglandin D2 synthase (PGDS) is a major epididymal secretory protein in several species. We quantified PGDS in ram and bull semen using a specific antiserum. Strong variations in PGDS concentration existed between animals. In the bull, the highest concentrations were found preferentially in animals with normal or high fertility, as was previously suggested. However, low concentrations were found in males with all ranges of fertility, suggesting that the function of PGDS either is not necessary for male fertility or can be assumed by other proteins when its concentration is low. In the ram ...
Structure of equine infectious anemia virus matrix protein. The Gag polyprotein is key to the budding of retroviruses from host cells and is cleaved upon virion maturation, the N-terminal membrane-binding domain forming the matrix protein (MA). The 2.8-A resolution crystal structure of MA of equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV), a lentivirus, reveals that, despite showing no sequence similarity, more than half of the molecule can be superimposed on the MAs of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV). However, unlike the structures formed by HIV-1 and SIV MAs, the oligomerization state observed is not trimeric...
IGF -I plasma concentrations in non-treated horses and horses administered with methionyl equine somatotropin. Insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF -I) is likely to be an indicator of somatotropin (ST) administration in the horse. To investigate the different ways ST administration may be detected, the following aspects of IGF -I concentrations in plasma were studied: (i) the daily variation; (ii) variation following a treadmill test; (iii) concentrations at rest and after exercise; and (iv) concentrations in plasma from two young horses and two adults treated with methionyl equine somatotropin (e ST). In the population of horses at rest, IGF -I mean concentration (SEM) was 261 (104) ng ml(-1). In post ra...
Plasma fibrinogen measurement in the horse: comparison of Millar’s technique with a chronometric technique and the QBC-Vet Autoreader. Plasma fibrinogen is widely used in horse practice as an unspecific positive marker of inflammatory diseases; it is also lowered in disseminated intravascular coagulation. Three fibrinogen measurement methods--Millar's heat-denaturation in a microhaematocrit tube, automated reader for heat-denaturation, and chronometric measurement of clot formation after addition of excess thrombin-were compared by means of Passing-Bablock's regression and Bland-Altman difference plots, in blood plasma of 30 clinically healthy and 57 diseased horses. Correlations between the three techniques were excellent (r...
Synovial fluid studies in navicular disease. The purpose of this study was to investigate biochemical changes in synovial fluid in navicular disease, and to establish if synovial fluid from the distal interphalangeal joint (DIP) could be used diagnostically to assess alterations in the synovial fluid of the navicular bursa. Cartilage oligomeric matrix protein (COMP), total glycosaminoglycans (GAG), hyaluronan (HA), metalloproteinases 2 and -9 (MMP-2 and MMP-9) and total protein (TP) levels were determined in synovial fluids obtained from 18 navicular bursae and 35 DIP -joints from animals suffering from navicular disease, and the same sy...
Analysis of non-porcine isolates of Actinobacillus suis. Twenty-four Actinobacillus suis isolates obtained from several species of non-porcine mammals were compared to the representative porcine strains, ATCC 15557 (serotype O1) and H89-1173 (serotype O2), by O serotyping, DNA fingerprinting, PCR amplification of apxICA, apxIICA and apxIIICA toxin genes and by rrs (16S rRNA) gene sequencing. Only two strains, both equine, reacted with O1 antiserum while two others, one canine and the other feline, reacted with O2 antiserum. One equine strain reacted weakly with both antisera. No amplification of apx genes was found with the non-porcine O1 or the "no...
In vitro microelectrode study of the electrical properties of smooth muscle in equine ileum. Intracellular microelectrode recordings were made from smooth muscle cells in cross-sectional preparations of equine ileum, superfused in vitro. Membrane potential oscillations and spike potentials were recorded in all preparations, but recordings were made more readily from cells in the longitudinal muscle layer than from cells in the circular layer. The mean (se) resting membrane potential (RMP) of smooth muscle cells in the longitudinal muscle layer was -51.9 (1.2) mV, and the membrane potential oscillations in this layer had a mean amplitude of 4.8 (0.4) mV, a frequency of 9.0 (0.1) cycles...
[Eight polymorphic blood protein systems in Arab horses from Turkey]. Analysis of the blood protein system was used to study the genetic composition of Arabian horses. Biochemical markers of eight polymorphic loci (Tf, Al, Es, AlB, Gc, Hb, PGD, and PGM) were electrophoretically identified in blood samples. A total of 43 phenotypes were identified for these polymorphic systems. The Tf, Hb, and Es loci appeared to be more polymorphic than the other loci studied. Statistically significant differences between the observed and expected genotypic frequencies were found for the PGD and PGM loci (P < 0.05 and P < 0.01, respectively). Individual allele frequencies,...
Damper for bad vibrations. This research presents the hypothesis and findings that short muscle fibers in horses and other large mammals may protect bones and tendons from damaging vibrations during running, negating the previous […]
