Equine biomechanics involves the study of the mechanical principles that govern the movement and structure of horses. This field examines the anatomical and physiological aspects that contribute to locomotion, including gait patterns, joint function, and muscle dynamics. Researchers utilize advanced technologies such as motion capture and force plate analysis to assess the efficiency and performance of equine movement. Understanding biomechanics aids in optimizing training regimens, improving performance, and preventing injuries. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the mechanics of equine movement, its applications in sports and rehabilitation, and its impact on overall equine health.
Komosa M, Frackowiak H, Purzyc H, Wojnowska M, Gramacki A, Gramacki J.The study included 249 horses belonging to 3 horse breeds. Konik horses, comprising the first group, is an example of a breed similar to the extinct Tarpan. In our study, these horses were taken to be a primitive anatomical model of the horse body. The other groups comprised the Polish Half-bred horse and Thoroughbred horse. The biometric characteristics of the horses were compared based on 24 indices. The aim of the paper was to find a reduced set of indices that can be used to determine group membership of the horses. To do this, we used statistical methods to find the most important indices...
Haag KT, Magalhães-Padilha DM, Fonseca GR, Wischral A, Gastal MO, King SS, Jones KL, Figueiredo JR, Gastal EL.The aims of this study in mares were to: (1) compare preantral follicle parameters between in vitro Biopsy Pick-Up (BPU) and scalpel blade collection methods and between histological and mechanical isolation processing (experiment 1); (2) histologically evaluate preantral follicles (experiment 2); and (3) compare histological analysis with a previously established mechanical isolation technique using a tissue chopper (experiment 3) for ovarian cortical fragments obtained in vivo using a BPU instrument. In experiment 1, preantral follicles were analyzed (N = 220; 90% primordial and 10% primary)...
Human movement scienceJanuary 4, 2013
Volume 32, Issue 1 157-170 doi: 10.1016/j.humov.2012.11.002
Wolframm IA, Bosga J, Meulenbroek RG.The sport of equestrianism is defined through close horse-rider interaction. However, no consistent baseline parameters currently exist describing the coordination dynamics of horse-rider movement across different equine gaits. The study aims to employ accelerometers to investigate and describe patterns of motor coordination between horse and rider across the equine gaits of walk, rising trot, sitting trot and canter. Eighteen female (N=18; mean age±SD: 37.57±13.04) Dutch horse-rider combinations were recruited to participate in the study. Horse-rider coordination was recorded using two tri-...
Osthaus B, Proops L, Hocking I, Burden F.We investigated perseveration and detour behaviour in 36 equids (Equus caballus, E. asinus, E. caballus × E. asinus) and compared these data to those of a previous study on domestic dogs (Canis familiaris). The animals were required to make a detour through a gap at one end of a straight barrier in order to reach a visible target. After one, two, three or four repeats (A trials), the gap was moved to the opposite end of the barrier (B trials). We recorded initial deviations from the correct solution path and the latency to crossing the barrier. In the A trials, mules crossed the barrier signi...
Adams AA, Horohov DW.The weaning process of foals involves a period of considerable stress which likely contributes to an increased risk of infectious disease in these young horses. Mechanisms responsible for this heightened risk of infection remain unknown, although likely due to compromised cell-mediated immunity. Parapoxvirus ovis (PPVO), an immmunomodulator, has been shown to limit the severity of infectious disease outbreaks among horses and has been shown to enhance CMI responses. Thus, an objective of this study was to investigate the effect of PPVO therapy on cell-mediated immune (CMI) responses of abruptl...
Lucidi P, Bacco G, Sticco M, Mazzoleni G, Benvenuti M, Bernabò N, Trentini R.The conflicting results regarding the study of motor laterality in horses may indicate that there does not exist a proper method to assess the degree and the direction of motor bias in these animals. Unfortunately, even less is known about the development of laterality in horses, and to what extent early manipulations can still exert their effects in adulthood. We propose a new method that can be easily applied at a very early age thus avoiding testing adult horses eventually biased by human handling and/or training. Forty-six horses (29 nine-month-old foals and 17 two-year old horses) were ha...
Preston SA, Brown MP, Chmielewski TL, Trumble TN, Zimmel DN, Hernandez JA.To determine the effects of yearling sale purchase price, exercise history, lameness, and athletic performance (speed) on purchase price of 2-year-old in-training Thoroughbreds and to compare the distance exercised within 60 days prior to 2-year-old in-training sales between horses with high yearling sale purchase prices versus those with low yearling sale purchase prices and between horses with lameness during training and those without lameness during training. Methods: Prospective study. Methods: 51 Thoroughbreds. Methods: Thoroughbreds purchased at a yearling sale were trained prior to res...
Amann B, Hirmer S, Hauck SM, Kremmer E, Ueffing M, Deeg CA.Colour vision in animals is an interesting, fascinating subject. In this study, we examined a wide variety of species for expression of S-opsin (blue sensitive) and M-/L-opsin (green-red sensitive) in retinal cones using two novel monoclonal antibodies specific for peptides from human opsins. Mouse, rat and hare did not express one of the investigated epitopes, but we could clearly prove existence of cones through peanut agglutinin labelling. Retinas of guinea pig, dog, wolf, marten, cat, roe deer, pig and horse were positive for S-opsin, but not for M-/L-opsin. Nevertheless all these species ...
Sayasith K, Lussier J, Doré M, Sirois J.Little is known about the expression and regulation of epiregulin (EREG) and amphiregulin (AREG) in ovarian follicles of large monoovulatory animal species. To characterize the gonadotropin-dependent regulation of EREG and AREG mRNAs in equine follicles prior to ovulation, extracts were prepared from equine follicles collected during estrus between 0 and 39h post-hCG and corpora lutea obtained on day 8 of the estrous cycle (day 0=day of ovulation). Results from RT-PCR/Southern blot analyses showed that levels of EREG and AREG mRNAs were very low in follicles obtained at 0h but increased therea...
Nielsen BD, Vick MM, Dennis PM.Iron overload disorder afflicts captive rhinoceros but has not been documented in the wild. The specific cause for the disorder has not been identified but is likely associated with diet and management. Compared with wild counterparts, captive rhinoceros eat diets containing more iron, have greater fat stores, and exercise less. It has been suggested that the problem may be linked to development of insulin resistance in the captive population. Given that controlled experiments with sufficient numbers of rhinoceros are logistically not possible, an equine model was used to look for a relationsh...
Valberg SJ, Sponseller BT, Hegeman AD, Earing J, Bender JB, Martinson KL, Patterson SE, Sweetman L.We hypothesised that seasonal pasture myopathy (SPM), which closely resembles atypical myopathy (AM), was caused by ingestion of a seed-bearing plant abundant in autumn pastures. Objective: To identify a common seed-bearing plant among autumn pastures of horses with SPM, and to determine whether the toxic amino acid hypoglycin A was present in the seeds and whether hypoglycin metabolites were present in SPM horse serum or urine. Methods: Twelve SPM cases, 11 SPM pastures and 23 control farms were visited to identify a plant common to all SPM farms in autumn. A common seed was analysed for amin...
Henselek Y, Fischer J, Schloegl C.The ability to understand the relation between quantities has been documented in a wide range of species. Such quantity discrimination competences are commonly demonstrated by a choice of the larger quantity or numerosity in a two-choice task. However, despite their overall success, many subjects commit a surprisingly large number of errors even in simple discriminations such as 1 vs. 3. Recently, it had been suggested that this is a result of the testing procedure. When monkeys could choose between different quantities of edible rewards, they showed low-level success. If, however, they chose ...
Luciani M, Di Pancrazio C, Di Febo T, Tittarelli M, Podaliri Vulpiani M, Puglielli MO, Naessens J, Sacchini F.Diagnosis and control of dourine is strongly based on serological evidence, but knowledge of the humoral response of horses during infection is limited. In this study we developed a chemiluminescent immunoblotting (cIB) assay to characterise the Trypanosoma equiperdum antigen pattern recognised by IgGs from naturally or experimentally dourine-infected horses and analyse the kinetics of IgG humoral response following the infection. One compounding factor is that sera from uninfected animals often cross-react with T. equiperdum antigens. Development of the cIB assay was based on the hypothesis t...
BMC research notesNovember 8, 2012
Volume 5 626 doi: 10.1186/1756-0500-5-626
Boudko SP, Ishikawa Y, Lerch TF, Nix J, Chapman MS, Bächinger HP.Hyperelastosis cutis is an inherited autosomal recessive connective tissue disorder. Affected horses are characterized by hyperextensible skin, scarring, and severe lesions along the back. The disorder is caused by a mutation in cyclophilin B. Results: The crystal structures of both wild-type and mutated (Gly6->Arg) horse cyclophilin B are presented. The mutation neither affects the overall fold of the enzyme nor impairs the catalytic site structure. Instead, it locally rearranges the flexible N-terminal end of the polypeptide chain and also makes it more rigid. Conclusions: Interactions of th...
Skedros JG, Keenan KE, Williams TJ, Kiser CJ.In bone, matrix slippage that occurs at cement lines of secondary osteons during loading is an important toughening mechanism. Toughness can also be enhanced by modifications in osteon cross-sectional size (diameter) for specific load environments; for example, smaller osteons in more highly strained "compression" regions vs. larger osteons in less strained "tension" regions. Additional osteon characteristics that enhance toughness are distinctive variations in collagen/lamellar organization (i.e., "osteon morphotypes"). Interactions might exist between osteon diameter and morphotype that repr...
Adams AP, Navarro-Lopez R, Ramirez-Aguilar FJ, Lopez-Gonzalez I, Leal G, Flores-Mayorga JM, Travassos da Rosa AP, Saxton-Shaw KD, Singh AJ....Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) has been the causative agent for sporadic epidemics and equine epizootics throughout the Americas since the 1930s. In 1969, an outbreak of Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) spread rapidly from Guatemala and through the Gulf Coast region of Mexico, reaching Texas in 1971. Since this outbreak, there have been very few studies to determine the northward extent of endemic VEEV in this region. This study reports the findings of serologic surveillance in the Gulf Coast region of Mexico from 2003-2010. Phylogenetic analysis was also performed on viral is...
Franklin SH, Van Erck-Westergren E, Bayly WM.Horses are elite athletes when compared with other mammalian species. In the latter, performance is limited by cardiovascular or musculoskeletal performance whereas in athletic horses it is the respiratory system that appears to be rate limiting and virtually all horses exercising at high intensities become hypoxaemic and hypercapnoeic. This is due to both diffusion limitation and a level of ventilation inadequate for the metabolic level that enables horses to exercise at these intensities. In conjunction with these blood gas changes, total pulmonary resistance increases and the work of breath...
Contasti AL, Tissier EJ, Johnstone JF, McLoughlin PD.Fine-scale spatial variation in genetic relatedness and inbreeding occur across continuous distributions of several populations of vertebrates; however, the basis of observed variation is often left untested. Here we test the hypothesis that prior observations of spatial patterns in genetics for an island population of feral horses (Sable Island, Canada) were the result of spatial variation in population dynamics, itself based in spatial heterogeneity in underlying habitat quality. In order to assess how genetic and population structuring related to habitat, we used hierarchical cluster analys...
Bellenzani MC, Merritt JS, Clarke S, Davies HM.To investigate forelimb hoof wall strains and shape changes in unshod horses undergoing regular moderate exercise on a treadmill at selected speeds and gaits. Methods: 6 horses of various body types. Methods: Each horse was exercised on a treadmill (walking, trotting, and cantering, with or without galloping at 12.5 m/s) 3 times a week for 4 consecutive weeks; duration of each exercise session ranged from 10 to 14 minutes. During the 4-week period, the proximal hoof circumference (PHC) and toe angle (TA) of each forelimb hoof were measured weekly with a flexible measuring tape and a hoof gauge...
Hampson BA, de Laat MA, Mills PC, Pollitt CC.To better understand the morphology of, and the effect of different travel patterns and varying substrate environments on, the feral horse foot to better manage the feet of domestic horses. Methods: The left forefeet of 20 adult feral horses from each of five geographically separated populations in Australia (n = 100) were investigated. Populations were selected on the basis of substrate hardness under foot and the amount of travel typical for the population. Feet were radiographed and photographed and 40 morphometric measurements of each foot were obtained. Results: Of the 40 parameters, 37 d...
Walker VA, Walters JM, Griffith L, Murray RC.A recent epidemiological study indicated that various factors may be related to injury in dressage horses, but the mechanism by which these injuries occur has yet to be determined. The suspensory ligament (SL) is a frequent site of injury, and it is assumed that greatest strain is placed on this structure in collected trot; this has yet to be proved conclusively. The study aimed to investigate the effect of collected and extended trot on the hindlimb movement pattern. Four dressage horses were fitted with markers and inertial motion sensors (IMS). High-speed video was obtained for 2 strides on...
Centoducati P, Maggiolino A, De Palo P, Tateo A.The aim of this work was to study, using Wood's model, the lactation curve in Italian Heavy Draft horse (IHDH) mares, both for milk yield and composition. Interest in mare's milk has grown for use in human nutrition, as a substitute for human and cow milk for premature newborns and allergic children. For this study, 7 IHDH mares were used. Milk yield was evaluated from d 15 to 180 postpartum (every 15 d). Wood's lactation model was used to describe milk yield, fat, protein, and lactose lactation curves in the first 180 d in milk (DIM), with a prediction to 210 DIM. Mean values recorded across ...
Harrison SM, Whitton RC, King M, Haussler KK, Kawcak CE, Stover SM, Pandy MG.Few quantitative data exist to describe the activity of the distal muscles of the equine forelimb during locomotion, and there is an incomplete understanding of the functional roles of the majority of the forelimb muscles. Based on morphology alone it would appear that the larger proximal muscles perform the majority of work in the forelimb, whereas the smaller distal muscles fulfil supplementary roles such as stabilizing the joints and positioning the limb for impact with the ground. We measured the timing and amplitude of the electromyographic activity of the intrinsic muscles of the forelim...
Smits K, Hoogewijs M, Woelders H, Daels P, Van Soom A.Many wild equids are at present endangered in the wild. Concurrently, increased mechanization has pushed back the numbers of some old native horse breeds to levels that are no longer compatible with survival of the breed. Strong concerns arose in the last decade to preserve animal biodiversity, including that of rare horse breeds. Genome Resource Banking refers to the cryostorage of genetic material and is an approach for ex situ conservation, which should be applied in combination with in situ conservation programmes. In this review, we propose that, owing to the great reproductive similarity...
Steiner CC, Mitelberg A, Tursi R, Ryder OA.Short divergence times and processes such as incomplete lineage sorting and species hybridization are known to hinder the inference of species-level phylogenies due to the lack of sufficient informative genetic variation or the presence of shared but incongruent polymorphism among taxa. Extant equids (horses, zebras, and asses) are an example of a recently evolved group of mammals with an unresolved phylogeny, despite a large number of molecular studies. Previous surveys have proposed trees with rather poorly supported nodes, and the bias caused by genetic introgression or ancestral polymorphi...
Stolz I, Tillmann V, Anneken V, Froboese I.Scientific investigation and documentation of equine-assisted therapy has increased over the past several years. Yet there are no standardized and validated tools for evidence-based measurement of processes and outcomes to assess equine-assisted interventions. Objective: The objective of this cross-sectional survey study was to develop a standardized assessment tool for the effective measurement of equine-assisted therapy based on the common language of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) framework of the World Health Organization (WHO). Methods: Cross-...
Draper ACE, Cahalan SD, Goodwin D, Perkins J, Piercy RJ.Equine recurrent laryngeal neuropathy (RLN) is a naturally occurring model of length-dependent axonopathy characterized by asymmetrical degeneration of recurrent laryngeal nerve axons (RLn). Distal RLn degeneration is marked, but it is unclear whether degeneration extends to include cell bodies (consistent with a neuronopathy). With examiners blinded to RLN severity, brainstem location, and side, we examined correlations between RLN severity (assessed using left distal RLn myelinated axon count) and histopathological features (including chromatolysis and glial responses) in the nucleus ambiguu...
van Dorland HA, Zanoni R, Gerber V, Jeannerat E, Wiederkehr D, Burger D.Bio-Strath is a plasmolyzed yeast product enriched with herbs, malt, honey and orange juice. In this study, the effect of Equi-Strath , the adapted product for horses, on the equine immune system was evaluated. A routine influenza booster vaccination was used as a model to study the effects of Equi-Strath supplementation on the immune response. Twenty healthy Franches-Montagnes stallions with pre-existing antibody levels were randomly divided into a study group (SG, n = 10) receiving 0.06 mL/kg bodyweight of Equi-Strath , and a control group (CG, n = 10), receiving the same amount of plac...
Fitzharris LE, Hezzell MJ, McConnell AK, Allen KJ.Little is known about the response of the equine respiratory muscles to training. Objective: To measure an index of inspiratory muscle strength (IMSi) before and after a period of conventional exercise training (phase 1) and inspiratory muscle training (IMT), comparing high-load (treatment) and low-load (control) groups (phase 2). Methods: Prospective randomised controlled trial. Methods: Phase 1: Twenty National Hunt Thoroughbred racehorses performed an inspiratory muscle strength test (IMST) twice on two occasions; when unfit at timepoint A (July), and when race fit at timepoint B (October)....
Cozzi MC, Valiati P, Longeri M, Ferreira C, Abreu Ferreira S.The Lusitano Horse (LH) originates from Portugal, but is reared worldwide. Since 1994, the University of Milan has routinely tested the LHs bred in Italy for parentage control. This study aims to assess the genetic variability of the LH reared in Italy using 16 microsatellites markers. Moreover, the genetic variability changes over the years in the total population (n.384) and in unrelated horses (n.47) were evaluated. Horses were grouped according to their date of birth (1975-1990, 1991-2000, 2001-2010, 2010-2019). Standard genetic diversity parameters, including observed (Ho) and expected (H...
Back W, van den Bogert AJ, van Weeren PR, Bruin G, Barneveld A.To get an in-depth insight into the ontogeny of the equine locomotor apparatus, the locomotion of 28 Dutch Warmblood foals was recorded at the walk, trot and canter on a treadmill using a CODA-3 apparatus. A great similarity in joint angle-time diagrams was found, although considerable differences in kinematic gait parameters of individual foals could be detected. These results contribute to an objective comparison of the locomotor performance of foals.
Pearson RA, Lawrence PR, Smith AJ.Draught animal research carried out by scientists at the Centre for Topical Veterinary Medicine (CTVM) in Edinburgh and overseas is reviewed and the major findings are reported. The remit for the work has been to provide basic information on draught animals which can be applied by researchers and extension workers to their own geographic situations. Instrumentation is described which has been designed and manufactured to assist in the measurement of draught animal performance, particularly work output and energy consumption. Energy requirements of cattle, buffaloes and equids for work and ways...
Juneja RK, Andersson L, Sandberg K, Gahne B, Adalsteinsson S, Gunnarsson E.Two-dimensional agarose gel (pH 8.6)-horizontal polyacrylamide gel (pH 9.0) electrophoresis of horse serum proteins revealed genetic polymorphism of ceruloplasmin (Cp) and two unidentified serum proteins tentatively designated serum protein 1 (SP1) and serum protein 2 (SP2). Family data were consistent with the hypothesis that the observed Cp and SP1 phenotypes were each controlled by two codominant, autosomal alleles. The three common SP2 phenotypes were shown to be controlled by two codominant, autosomal alleles. Population data and limited family data indicated the occurrence of two additio...
Hawkes J, Hedges M, Daniluk P, Hintz HF, Schryver HF.Preference trials were conducted with mature ponies. In Trial 1, oats were compared with oats plus sucrose. Four of six pony geldings selected oats plus sucrose, but one pony demonstrated a dislike for sucrose and one selected from the bucket on the right side regardless of content. Oats, maize, barley, rye and wheat were compared in Trial 2 using six mature pony mares. Oats were the preferred grain, with maize and barley ranking second and third respectively. Wheat and rye were the least preferred. Even though the ponies demonstrated preference, the total intake at a given meal was not greatl...
Elce YA, Southwood LL, Nutt JN, Nunamaker DM.Distal radial fractures in adult horses are examples of long-bone fractures that are not always amenable to internal fixation. These fractures are often open, contaminated, severely comminuted, and located adjacent to the antebrachiocarpal joint. There have been few studies to improve upon the methods of stabilization of this type of fracture. External coaptation incorporating transfixation pins is one method that has been used to stabilize distal radial fractures in horses (1-3). The purpose of this preliminary study was to compare the load to failure in simulated weight-bearing of a novel ta...
Toscano MJ, Friend TH.Several studies have attempted to determine the effects of orientation on a horse's ability to maintain balance during transportation. The results have often been contradictory because of differences in trailer design and lack of simultaneous comparisons. In this study, three replications of two forward-facing and two rear-facing horses were transported at the same time over a standardized course to allow for simultaneous comparisons. Each animal's total forward and backward motion during transport was calculated to estimate the effect of orientation on the horses' ability to maintain balance....
Fuchs R, Militz H, Hoffmann M.The ascertainment of the digestibility of crude nutrients in rations for horses requires the inclusion of movement-based performance as influencing factor. Under the consideration of this requirement, indicator methods gain significance in comparison with the standard method of collecting faeces completely. In two experiments the digestion of the crude nutrients in rations for horses was tested according to the standard method (complete collection of faeces) and the indicator method 4 N HCl-insoluble ash). According to the indicator method the digestibility of crude nutrients was slightly high...
Nunamaker DM, Richardson DW, Butterweck DM.Plate luting, a technique that uses polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) interposed between the plate and the bone, as well as between the screw heads and the plate, to improve the stability of internal fixation was tested in vitro using 20 paired equine third metacarpal bones with mid-diaphyseal osteotomies plated with six-hole broad ASIF compression plates. One of each pair was luted and all specimens were tested in static overload or cyclic loading at 75% of the ultimate breaking strength using four-point bending. Although no differences were measured in static overload tests between luted and non...
Stapley ED, Stutzman BE, Manfredi JM.The stirrup iron has the potential to modify the forces experienced by a horse and rider during ridden exercise. A range of stirrup designs are available, but no previous studies have investigated if these modifications influence riders' position and interaction with the horse. Novel flexible (F) or flexible and rotatable (FR) irons versus traditional (T) stirrups may positively impact the welfare and performance of the horse and rider. Four riders rode using the three stirrup types (T, F, and FR). Hip, knee, and ankle angles and toe position from film, and the normal force exerted bilaterally...
Westermann CM, de Bie AG, Olave C, de Grauw JC, Teske E, Couetil LL.Equine bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) is usually performed with 250-500 mL of isotonic saline at pH 5.5. The acidic pH of saline may cause an increase in airway neutrophil count 48 h after BAL. Other isotonic solutions such as Ringer's solution, phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) or Plasma-Lyte 148 have a neutral pH of 7.4 and might be a better choice for BAL by not provoking inflammation and the influx of neutrophils into airways. BAL was performed in four healthy horses in four different lung lobes using four different solutions in a randomized crossover design. In each lobe, BAL was performed tw...
Ničová K, Bartošová J.This study aimed to identify factors that can influence show-jumping performance during top level competitions in the Western European League (2017/2018, CSI5*). The performance data of 144 riders and 222 horses were obtained from video records (FEI TV/ website). Riders with horses achieved a total of 9114 jumping-efforts over 320 obstacles including oxers (n = 142), oxers with water (n = 15), triple bars (n = 6), verticals (n = 136), verticals with water (n = 14) and walls (n = 7). Obstacles in the first round (FR) or in jump off (JO) were standing either as single (n = 6290) or as a combinat...
Rutberg AT, Turner JW, Herman K.To be effective and publicly acceptable, management of free-roaming horses and burros in the United States and elsewhere needs a consistent ethical framing of the animals and the land they occupy. In the U.S., the two laws that largely govern wild horse and burro management, the 1971 Wild Free-Roaming Horse and Burro Act and the 1976 Federal Land Policy and Management Act ("FLPMA"), rest on conflicting foundations, the former based on an ethic of care and the latter on largely utilitarian principles. These conflicts specifically fuel debates over the selection of appropriate fertility control ...
Sakamoto T, Fawcett JA, Innan H.Horses have substantial variation in coat color, and the genetic loci responsible for the coat color variations have been well investigated. It has been believed that some color variations should follow a single-locus Mendelian law. Examples include the Gray locus that causes the gray phenotype and the Extension locus that specifies the chestnut phenotype. We reevaluated the roles of the Gray and Extension loci by using a large number of mating records of Thoroughbred racing horses. We showed that the data indeed fits the Mendelian law extremely well for the two loci. Furthermore, we demonstra...
da Silva Inácio DF, de Rezende ASC, Melo MM, Quintão Lana ÂM, Prado Silva RH, de Jesus Mendes L, de Paula Gonçalves Reis L, Maruch S, Ralston SL.Young horses reach nearly 90% of their final height in the first year of life. However, to achieve their genetic potential, it is necessary to receive adequate nutrition during this period of rapid growth. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of supplementation of sorghum silage during a period of limited pasture forage availability, on the body development, and health of Mangalarga Marchador (MM) weanling fillies. Fourteen healthy MM 6-month-old fillies were randomly assigned to one of two groups: GS (consuming silage) and GH (consuming grass hay (Cynodon spp) in addition to...
Antonioli ML, Canola PA, de Carvalho JRG, Fonseca MG, Ferraz GC.It is important to understand the effects of hoof trimming on hoof and limb conformation to maximize its benefits on the health of the appendicular skeleton of horses, thus promoting improvements in athletic performance and sporting longevity with regard to athletic horses. There is little information on possible changes in the angulation of the thoracic limb joints after hoof trimming and correlations between the angulation of the thoracic limb joints with hoof measurements. To that purpose, nineteen Mangalarga mares received routine hoof trimming. Visual recordings (photographs) were taken b...
Read JE, Cabrera-Sharp V, Offord V, Mirczuk SM, Allen SP, Fowkes RC, de Mestre AM.Equine chorionic girdle trophoblast cells play important endocrine and immune functions critical in supporting pregnancy. Very little is known about the genes and pathways that regulate chorionic girdle trophoblast development. Our aim was to identify genes and signalling pathways active in vivo in equine chorionic girdle trophoblast within a critical 7-days window. We exploited the late implantation of the equine conceptus to obtain trophoblast tissue. An Agilent equine 44K microarray was performed using RNA extracted from chorionic girdle and chorion (control) from equine pregnancy days 27, ...
Mlodawska W, Okólski A.From the ovaries of 256 slaughtered mares a total of 1713 follicles were isolated from which 1641 (95.8%) oocytes were recovered (6.4/mare). A total of 564 follicles and oocytes were evaluated for the degree of vascularisation of the follicle wall, the appearance of the follicular fluid and the location and morphology of the cumulus-oocyte-complex. Follicles with a diameter of >10 mm displayed more numerous, well branched and more pronounced blood vessels than the smaller ones (4-10 mm diameter) and most of them contained clear, yellowish fluid with few granulosa cells. The percentage of oo...
MacFadden BJ.The dispersal of Equus into South America during the Great American Biotic Interchange (GABI) represented a major event for Pleistocene land-mammal age chronology on that continent. It has been argued that this dispersal occurred during the late Pleistocene, ∼0.125 Ma, and it defines the base of the Lujanian South American Land Mammal Age (SALMA). In this scenario, Equus dispersed during the fourth and latest recognized phase of the interchange, i.e., GABI 4. Although Equus was widely distributed in South America during the Pleistocene, only a few localities are calibrated by independent chr...
Amaral A, Cebola N, Szóstek-Mioduchowska A, Rebordão MR, Kordowitzki P, Skarzynski D, Ferreira-Dias G.Myeloperoxidase is an enzyme released by neutrophils when neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) are formed. Besides myeloperoxidase activity against pathogens, it was also linked to many diseases, including inflammatory and fibrotic ones. Endometrosis is a fibrotic disease of the mare endometrium, with a large impact on their fertility, where myeloperoxidase was shown to induce fibrosis. Noscapine is an alkaloid with a low toxicity, that has been studied as an anti-cancer drug, and more recently as an anti-fibrotic molecule. This work aims to evaluate noscapine inhibition of collagen type 1 (C...
Druml T, Grilz-Seger G, Neuditschko M, Brem G.The aim of this study was to determine the allele frequency of the glycogen synthase 1 (GYS1) mutation associated with polysaccharide storage myopathy type 1 in the Austrian Noriker horse. Furthermore, we examined the influence of population substructures on the allele distribution. The study was based upon a comprehensive population sample (208 breeding stallions and 309 mares) and a complete cohort of unselected offspring from the year 2014 (1553 foals). The mean proportion of GYS1 carrier animals in the foal cohort was 33%, ranging from 15% to 50% according to population substructures based...
Paradis MR, Breeze RG, Bayly WM, Counts DF, Laegreid WW.The hematologic and pathologic effects of orally administered L-tryptophan and indoleactic acid and of L-tryptophan administered IV were studied in ponies. Sixteen adult Shetland ponies were allotted into 4 experimental groups. Group 1 consisted of 5 ponies (1-5) given 0.6 g of tryptophan/kg of body weight in a water slurry via stomach tube. Group 2 included 4 ponies (6-9) given 0.35 g of tryptophan/kg orally. Group-3 ponies (10-13) were given 0.35 g of indoleacetic acid/kg orally. Group 4 consisted of 3 ponies (14-16) given a single 4-hour IV infusion of 0.1 g of tryptophan/kg. Restlessness, ...
Rijckaert J, Pardon B, Van Ham L, Joosten P, van Loon G, Deprez P.When surgical treatment of cervical vertebral malformation is considered, precise localization of compression sites is essential, but remains challenging. Magnetic motor evoked potentials (mMEP) from paravertebral muscles are useful in localizing spinal cord lesions, but no information about cervical muscle mMEP in horses is available yet. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the possibility, normal values, inter- and intra-observer agreement and factors that have an effect on cervical mMEP in healthy horses. Methods: Transcranial magnetic stimulation was performed on 50 normal ho...
Rodríguez MB, Gambini A, Clérico G, Ynsaurralde-Rivolta AE, Briski O, Largel H, Sansinena M, Salamone DF.Assisted reproduction techniques (ARTs) have become widespread in the equine breeding industry. In particular, the combination of oocyte recovery from live mares followed by IVM and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) has increased markedly among the ARTs used with valuable or low-fertility animals. There is currently no consensus among research groups regarding the optimal oocyte maturation period to produce high-quality embryos. In this study, we report the maturation dynamics of equine oocytes at different time points, from 20 to 40h (Experiment 1). In addition, in Experiment 2, equine ...
Palme R, Entenfellner U, Hoi H, Möstl E.Non-invasive pregnancy diagnosis in mares by measuring faecal oestrogens has been performed over years with great accuracy. However, results have indicated breed-related differences in the amount of excreted steroids during late pregnancy. Therefore faecal samples were collected during the last 4 months of pregnancy of Thoroughbred (n = 10), New Forest pony (n = 9), Shetland pony (n = 10) and Iceland pony mares (n = 11). Concentrations of oestrogens, 20alpha-hydroxy- and 20-oxopregnanes were measured using enzyme immunoassays. Breed differences concerning both levels (though significant only i...
Rehbein G, Heidrich-Joswig S.Eight ponies infected with Babesia equi were investigated for their serological response to B. equi schizont and piroplasm antigen with the indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) and complement fixation test (CFT). Piroplasm antigen was prepared from an infected splenectomized pony, while schizont antigen was produced from cultured lymphoid cells which contained B. equi macroschizonts. The IFAT detected a rise in antibody titres to schizont antigen as well as to piroplasm antigen, but differences were obtained in the duration of antibody detection. Significant antibody titres to piroplasm a...
