DNA in horses refers to the genetic material that carries the hereditary information necessary for the growth, development, functioning, and reproduction of equine species. It consists of sequences of nucleotides that encode the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of horses. DNA analysis in horses can provide insights into genetic diversity, lineage, and breed characteristics. It is also utilized in identifying genetic disorders, understanding hereditary traits, and assisting in selective breeding programs. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the structure, function, and applications of DNA analysis in equine genetics and breeding.
Lawrence WC.Autoradiographic analyses of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) synthesis in randomly growing KB cell cultures infected with equine abortion virus (EAV) suggested that viral DNA synthesis was initiated only at times that coincided with the entry of noninfected control cells into the S phase of the cell cycle. Synchronized cultures of KB cells were infected at different stages of the cell cycle, and rates of synthesis of cellular and viral DNA were measured. When cells were infected at different times within the S phase, viral DNA synthesis was initiated 2 to 3 hr after infection. However, when cells ...
Plummer G, Bowling CP, Goodheart CR.Four equine herpesviruses (equine abortion virus, equine herpesvirus types 2 and 3, and equine cytomegalovirus) were compared. The equine abortion virus did not cross-neutralize with any of the other viruses, but the other three did show varying degrees of cross-neutralization among themselves. Equine abortion virus grew more quickly in tissue cultures than did the others, and attained higher titers of infectivity in the culture fluid; it also formed plaques in a wider range of tissue culture species, although the other three were not specific for one tissue culture system only, in that they w...
O'Callaghan DJ, Hyde JM, Gentry GA, Randall CC.Infection of exponential-phase suspension cultures of mouse fibroblast cells (L-M) with equine abortion virus (EAV) resulted in inhibition of cell growth and marked alterations in host metabolic processes. The synthesis of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid was inhibited within 4 hr after infection and was suppressed by more than 90% by the time of maximal virus replication (14 to 18 hr). The overall rate of protein synthesis, however, was similar in uninfected and virus-producing cells as determined by measurements of net protein and isotope incorporation. The time course of vir...
RANDALL CC, WALKER BM.Randall, Charles C. (University of Mississippi School of Medicine, Jackson) and Barbara M. Walker. Degradation of deoxyribonucleic acid and alteration of nucleic acid metabolism in suspension cultures of L-M cells infected with equine abortion virus. J. Bacteriol. 86:138-146. 1963.-Metabolic alterations in log-phase suspension cultures infected with equine abortion virus (EAV) were determined in L-M cells simultaneously labeled or prelabeled with H(3)- or C(14)-thymidine. Although infection produced an early stimulation of the uptake of labeled thymidine (TdR) into the acid-soluble fraction of...
ALLFREY V, MIRSKY AE.It has been found that many animal tissues contain "acid" desoxyribonucleases with pH optima near 5.2. A chemical method for the determination of this activity is described. The pancreatic desoxyribonuclease crystallized by Kunitz and shown to have a neutral pH optimum occurs in the pancreas together with the "acid" enzyme, but only the "neutral" enzyme occurs in the pancreatic juice. The ratio of "neutral" to "acid" DNAase activities in the pancreas is greater than 200, but in all other tissues examined there is no appreciable concentration of the neutral enzyme. It is concluded that neutral ...
Feral horses in Theodore Roosevelt National Park (TRNP) represent an iconic era of the North Dakota Badlands. Their uncertain history raises management questions regarding origins, genetic diversity, and long-term genetic viability. Hair samples with follicles were collected from 196 horses in the Park and used to sequence the control region of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and to profile 12 autosomal short tandem repeat (STR) markers. Three mtDNA haplotypes found in the TRNP horses belonged to haplogroups L and B. The control region variation was low with haplotype diversity of 0.5271, nucleotide...
Abnaroodheleh F, Mosavari N, Pourbakhsh SA, Tadayon K, Jamshidian M.Burkholderia mallei is the main cause of glanders as a dangerous contagious zoonosis disease that is mostly observed in single-hoofed animals, especially horses. Modern molecular techniques have been recently employed to improve epidemiology for identifying and searching for strains of this bacterium at different times and locations. Due to the unknown number of circulating strains and lack of preventive methods, glanders is still observed in the form of epidemics. The present study aimed to evaluate six field isolates plus two laboratory strains of Borkolderia mallei and Burkholderia pseudoma...
Weckman MJ, Karikoski NP, Raekallio MR, Box JR, Kvist L.Equine metabolic syndrome (EMS) is a common welfare problem in horses worldwide. It is characterized by insulin dysregulation (ID), predisposition to laminitis and often obesity. EMS is multifactorial by nature, with both the environment and genetics contributing to the phenotype. Environmental factors, such as feeding and exercise, can be controlled, thus forming the basis for treatment and prevention. Genetic factors, by contrast, are less well-known and not easily controllable. The aim of this study was to identify potential genetic loci influencing ID/EMS in Finnhorses. A single-breed (Fin...
Asghari A, Yousefi A, Mohammadi MR, Badali R, Shamsi L, Köseoğlu AE, Abbaszadeh A, Shams M, Mohammadi-Ghalehbin B.A total of 500 fecal samples were collected from Equus animals in six different cities (Ardabil, Namin, Nir, Meshginshahr, Germi, and Khalkhal) of Ardabil Province, northwestern Iran, with 200 samples from horses, 200 from donkeys, and 100 from mules. Of the horse samples, 100 were from racing horses under special monitoring and care, while the remaining 100 were from non-racing horses, including those used for herding or in rural areas. All fecal samples were examined for the presence of Blastocystis sp. using PCR amplification of the SSU rRNA gene's barcode region after DNA extraction. The m...
Malaluang P, Niazi A, Guo Y, Nagel C, Guimaraes T, Rocha A, Aurich C, Morrell JM.The microbiome plays a significant role in shaping the health and functioning of the systems it inhabits. The seminal microbiome of stallions has implications for the health of the reproductive tract, sperm quality during preservation and antibiotic use in semen extenders. Diverse bacteria are present on the external genital tract and a mix of commensal microorganisms populates various parts of the reproductive tract, influencing the seminal bacterial content. Other sources of bacteria include the environment, semen collection equipment, and personnel. The bacterial load can adversely affect s...
Otgonsuren D, Amgalanbaatar T, Narantsatsral S, Enkhtaivan B, Munkhgerel D, Zoljargal M, Davkharbayar B, Myagmarsuren P, Battur B, Battsetseg B....Equine piroplasmosis is a tick-borne disease caused by Theileria equi and Babesia caballi in horses. Because of its impact on horse industry, control of this disease is crucial for endemic countries. The control of equine piroplasmosis may be influenced by the genotypic diversity of T. equi and B. caballi. Mongolia, a country with a thriving livestock industry, is endemic for T. equi and B. caballi. However, nationwide epidemiological surveys have not been conducted to determine the current status of infections and genetic diversity of these two parasite species. Therefore, the objective of th...
Amini M, Alamian S, Talebhemmat M, Dadar M.Equine brucellosis significantly impacts the health and functionality of horses, leading to complications such as bursitis infection, septic tenosynovitis, septic arthritis, and non-specific lameness resulting from joint infections. In the present study, we used the Rose Bengal plate agglutination test (RBPT), serum agglutination test (SAT), and the 2-mercaptoethanol (2-ME) assays to find equine brucellosis. From June 2018 to September 2022, 876 blood samples were randomly taken from apparently healthy racing horses in certain parts of Iran, such as Kerman, Isfahan, Tehran, Qom, and Kurdistan....
El-Zayat M, Shemies OA, Mosad SM, El Rahman SA.Equine herpes viruses (EHVs) are considered one of the most important respiratory pathogens in equids, resulting in serious outcomes for equine health worldwide. The objectives of the current research were the detection, molecular characterization, and isolation of EHV-1 and EHV-4 circulating within different equine populations in Egypt, either clinically or in apparently healthy horses. Unassigned: A total of 120 field samples were collected, and DNA was extracted. Screening and typing of extracted DNA were done by consensus and conventional PCR assays for detection of EHV-1 and EHV-4, follow...
Camargo GS, de Barros LD, Oliveira-Filho JP, Bromberger CR, Dias-Melicio LA, Alves Dos Santos L, Bergfelt DR, Ferraz de Andrade ER, Canesin HS....The present study was designed to evaluate equine blastocyst re-expansion rate, quality, and sex following perforation of the blastocoel, collection of blastocoel fluid (BF), and PCR amplification of free DNA. Experiment 1 tested the feasibility of the BF sample collection with a hand-held, small-gauged needle (26g) and subsequent PCR amplification of the TSP-Y gene for males and AMEL-Y gene for males and AMEL-X gene for females. Experiment 2 tested the application of the technique. Equine embryos were collected via uterine flushes 8d after ovulation. Thereafter, embryos (n = 19) were initia...
Mura MC, Carcangiu V, Cosso G, Columbano N, Sanna Passino E, Luridiana S.This study aimed to evaluate the discrepancies between genetic and visual coat color assignment in the Sarcidano Horse and to elucidate potential reasons. Individual DNA from 90 Sarcidano Horses was used for genetic assignment of coat color to explore the correspondence with individual forms containing phenotypical traits. The exon 1 and exon 3 have been genotyped and sequenced to obtain a picture of the coat color distribution in this breed. Surprisingly, once we compared the genetic results with the individual forms reporting the phenotypic data for each subject, a certain degree of non-co...
Quiroga J, Cortes B, Sarmiento J, Morán G, Henríquez C.This study explores Neutrophil Extracellular Trap (NET) formation in equine neutrophils, which is crucial for eliminating infections and is implicated in various equine inflammatory diseases. We investigated the molecular pathways involved in NET release by equine neutrophils in response to stimuli. We use PMA, A23187, LPS, PAF, OZ, and cytokines, observing NET release in response to PMA, PAF, and A23187. In contrast, LPS, OZ, and the cytokines tested did not induce DNA release or did not consistently induce citrullination of histone 4. Peptidyl-arginine deiminase inhibition completely halted ...
Flack N, Hughes L, Cassens J, Enriquez M, Gebeyehu S, Alshagawi M, Hatfield J, Kauffman A, Brown B, Klaeui C, Mabrouk IF, Walls C, Yeater T, Rivas A....The Przewalski's horse ( ) is an endangered equid native to the steppes of central Asia. After becoming extinct in the wild, multiple conservation efforts convened to preserve the species including captive breeding programs, reintroduction and monitoring systems, protected lands, and cloning. Availability of a highly contiguous reference genome is essential to support these continued efforts. We used Oxford Nanopore sequencing to produce a scaffold-level 2.5 Gb nuclear assembly and 16,002 bp mitogenome from a captive Przewalski's mare. All assembly drafts were generated from 111 Gb of sequenc...
Wilkin T, Hamilton NA, Cawley AT, Bhat S, Baoutina A.The term 'gene doping' is used to describe the use of any unauthorized gene therapy techniques. We developed a test for five likely candidate genes for equine gene doping: , , , and . The test is based on real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and includes separate screening and confirmation assays that detect different unique targets in each transgene. For doping material, we used nonviral (plasmid) and viral (recombinant adeno-associated virus) vectors carrying complementary DNA for the targeted genes; the vectors were accurately quantified by digital PCR. To reduce non-specific amplific...
Yuen BP, Wong KS, So YM, Kwok WH, Cheung HW, Wan TSM, Ho EN, Wong WT.Gene doping involves the misuse of genetic materials to alter an athlete's performance, which is banned at all times in both human and equine sports. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assays have been used to control the misuse of transgenes in equine sports. Our laboratory recently developed and implemented duplex as well as multiplex qPCR assays for transgenes detection. To further advance gene doping control, we have developed for the first time a sensitive and definitive PCR-liquid chromatography high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry (PCR-LC-HRMS/MS) method for transgene det...
Catalán J, Yánez-Ortiz I, Torres-Garrido M, Ribas-Maynou J, Llavanera M, Barranco I, Yeste M, Miró J.Cryopreservation is a stressful process for sperm, as it is associated with an increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Elevated ROS levels, which create an imbalance with antioxidant capacity, may result in membrane lipid peroxidation (LPO), protein damage and DNA fragmentation. This study aimed to determine whether the membrane LPO and DNA fragmentation of frozen-thawed horse sperm relies upon antioxidant activity, including enzymes (superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), catalase (CAT) and paraoxonase type 1 (PON1)); non-enzymatic antioxidant capacity (Trolo...
Martins AV, Corrêa LL, Ribeiro MS, de Lima Coelho A, Lobão LF, Palmer JPS, Knackfuss FB, Molento MB, da Silva Barbosa A.The aims of the present study were to identify strongyles in the feces of Thoroughbred horses based on larval morphology; to detect Strongylus vulgaris using molecular diagnosis and compare results to those of feces culture; and to determine the association between the presence of S. vulgaris with corresponding animal information (age range, gender, and anthelmintic use). Feces of horses kept in six Training Centers in Rio de Janeiro State, that showed the presence of ≥500 eggs per gram of feces (EPG) were subjected to strongyle identification. Of the 520 fecal samples collected, 35 had an E...
Chow L, Flaherty E, Pezzanite L, Williams M, Dow S, Wotman K.Ocular surface squamous neoplasia (OSSN) represents the most common conjunctival tumor in horses and frequently results in vision loss and surgical removal of the affected globe. Multiple etiologic factors have been identified as contributing to OSSN progression, including solar radiation exposure, genetic mutations, and a lack of periocular pigmentation. Response to conventional treatments has been highly variable, though our recent work indicates that these tumors are highly responsive to local immunotherapy. In the present study, we extended our investigation of OSSN in horses to better und...
Willis AT, Dahlgren AR, Woolard KD, Ghosh S, Donnelly CG, de la Concha-Bermejillo A, Pacheco A, Watson KD, Berryhill E, Aleman M, Wensley F....In 2020, a novel neurologic disease was observed in juvenile Quarter Horses (QHs) in North America. It was unknown if this was an aberrant manifestation of another previously described neurological disorder in foals, such as equine neuroaxonal dystrophy/equine degenerative myeloencephalopathy (eNAD/EDM). Objective: To describe the clinical findings, outcomes, and postmortem changes with Equine Juvenile Spinocerebellar Ataxia (EJSCA), differentiate the disease from other similar neurological disorders, and determine a mode of inheritance. Methods: Twelve neurologically affected QH foals and the...
Maharana BR, Ganguly A, Potliya S, Kumar B, Singh H, Dash A, Khanna S.Equine piroplasmosis caused by Theileria equi is a febrile, tick-borne disease of equids. However, there is limited literature about the genotyping of T. equi in India. Blood samples were collected from 202 horses and subjected to microscopy and PCR to detect T. equi. Initially, a universal screening primer pair targeting 18S ribosomal RNA genes common for Babesia caballi and T. equi was employed to amplify the DNA of both parasites. Thereafter additional primers were employed for species-specific detection resulting in amplification of approximately 435 bp specific for T. equi. T.equi was de...
