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Topic:Equine Science

Equine Science encompasses the study of horses and their management, health, and performance. This field integrates various scientific disciplines such as biology, genetics, nutrition, physiology, and veterinary medicine to understand and improve the well-being and capabilities of horses. Areas of focus include equine anatomy, reproduction, behavior, and disease prevention. Research in equine science aims to enhance horse care, optimize training and performance, and address health challenges. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the diverse aspects of equine science, providing insights into the latest advancements and methodologies in the field.
Accuracy of preimplantation genetic diagnosis in equine in vivo-recovered and in vitro-produced blastocysts.
Reproduction, fertility, and development    March 17, 2015   doi: 10.1071/RD14419
Choi YH, Penedo MC, Daftari P, Velez IC, Hinrichs K.Preimplantation genetic diagnosis has great potential in the horse, but information on evaluation of equine embryo biopsy samples is limited. Blastocysts were biopsied using a Piezo drill and methods for whole-genome amplification (WGA) investigated. Results for 33 genetic loci were then compared between biopsy samples from in vitro-produced (IVP) and in vivo-recovered (VIV) blastocysts. Under the experimental conditions described, WGA using the Qiagen Repli-g Midi kit was more accurate than that using the Illustra Genomiphi V2 kit (98.2% vs 25.8%, respectively). Using WGA with the Qiagen kit,...
Effects of acceleration on gait measures in three horse gaits.
The Journal of experimental biology    March 12, 2015   Volume 218, Issue Pt 9 1453-1460 doi: 10.1242/jeb.113225
Nauwelaerts S, Zarski L, Aerts P, Clayton H.Animals switch gaits according to locomotor speed. In terrestrial locomotion, gaits have been defined according to footfall patterns or differences in center of mass (COM) motion, which characterizes mechanisms that are more general and more predictive than footfall patterns. This has generated different variables designed primarily to evaluate steady-speed locomotion, which is easier to standardize in laboratory conditions. However, in the ecology of an animal, steady-state conditions are rare and the ability to accelerate, decelerate and turn is essential. Currently, there are no data availa...
A model for the dynamics of the free-living stages of equine cyathostomins.
Veterinary parasitology    March 11, 2015   Volume 209, Issue 3-4 210-220 doi: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2015.02.031
Leathwick DM, Donecker JM, Nielsen MK.Anthelmintic resistance in strongyle nematode parasites of horses is an expanding global problem and steps need to be taken to slow its development before control becomes more problematic. A move away from traditional deworming programmes, involving frequent whole-herd treatments with broad spectrum anthelmintics, to a more strategic or targeted use of chemicals is required. However, anthelmintic resistance management strategies which also maintain effective control are invariably more complicated and often require a greater understanding of both nematode epidemiology and grazing management, t...
A life of cycles.
The Veterinary record    March 10, 2015   Volume 176, Issue 10 i-ii doi: 10.1136/vr.h1199
Pycock J.Jonathan Pycock is one of three equine claims consultants with the Veterinary Defence Society. His career in equine reproduction, and lecturing on the same topic, has given him the opportunity to work and travel widely, and ensure his work/life balance stays in sync.
Science-in-brief: The 9th Meeting of the International Conference on Equine Exercise Physiology 2014. Biochemistry, nutrition and cardiorespiratory function of athletic horses.
Equine veterinary journal    March 5, 2015   Volume 47, Issue 3 254-256 doi: 10.1111/evj.12381
McKenzie E, Marlin D.No abstract available
Dose-dependent effects of homologous seminal plasma on motility and kinematic characteristics of post-thaw stallion epididymal spermatozoa.
Andrology    March 5, 2015   Volume 3, Issue 3 536-543 doi: 10.1111/andr.12003
Neuhauser S, Dörfel S, Handler J.Preservation of epididymal spermatozoa is important to save genetic material of endangered species and breeds, or in case of unexpected injury, which will end the breeding career of valuable sires. Seminal plasma (SP) influences sperm quality in a dose-dependent manner and its addition to preserved semen immediately before insemination may be beneficial for sperm fertility. Increased plasma membrane stability of epididymal spermatozoa reduces freezing injury of cells, and the addition of SP after freezing and thawing might have activating and protecting effects on spermatozoa within the female...
Quantitative motor unit action potential analysis of supraspinatus, infraspinatus, deltoideus and biceps femoris muscles in adult Royal Dutch sport horses.
Equine veterinary journal    March 4, 2015   Volume 48, Issue 2 234-239 doi: 10.1111/evj.12419
Jose-Cunilleras E, Wijnberg ID.Reference values for quantitative electromyography (QEMG) in shoulder and hindlimb muscles of horses are limited. Objective: To determine normative data on QEMG analysis of supraspinatus (SS), infraspinatus (IS), deltoideus (DT) and biceps femoris (BF) muscles. Methods: Experimental observational study and retrospective case series. Methods: Seven adult healthy Royal Dutch sport horses underwent quantitative motor unit action potential analysis of each muscle using commercial electromyography equipment. Measurements were made according to published methods. One-way ANOVA was used to compare qu...
Characterization of an L-amino acid oxidase in equine spermatozoa.
Biology of reproduction    March 4, 2015   Volume 92, Issue 5 125 doi: 10.1095/biolreprod.114.126052
Aitken JB, Naumovski N, Curry B, Grupen CG, Gibb Z, Aitken RJ.This study demonstrates for the first time the presence of an L-amino acid oxidase (LAAO) enzyme in equine spermatozoa that is able to generate significant amounts of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and create a state of oxidative stress. RT-PCR analysis revealed that the mRNA for this enzyme was present in the equine testis and spermatozoa, while immunocytochemical studies demonstrated that the mature LAAO protein was located in the sperm head, particularly in the acrosomal and postacrosomal domains. Experimental studies demonstrated that the aromatic amino acids (L-phenylalanine > L-tryptop...
Budding equine vets hone their skills and knowledge.
The Veterinary record    February 28, 2015   Volume 176, Issue 9 216-217 doi: 10.1136/vr.h1005
One hundred and fifty 'equine enthusiast' veterinary students gathered at Bristol veterinary school's Langford campus earlier this month for a national student equine veterinary symposium. A wide-ranging programme of lectures, practicals and seminars gave participants an opportunity to learn from some of the most experienced equine clinicians in the UK. Lorna Sowerbutts, vice-president of the Bristol Equine Veterinary Society, reports.
Morphological and genetic characterization of an emerging Azorean horse breed: the Terceira Pony.
Frontiers in genetics    February 27, 2015   Volume 6 62 doi: 10.3389/fgene.2015.00062
Lopes MS, Mendonça D, Rojer H, Cabral V, Bettencourt SX, da Câmara Machado A.The Terceira Pony is a horse indigenous to Terceira Island in the Azores. These horses were very important during the colonization of the island. Due to their very balanced proportions and correct gaits, and with an average withers height of 1.28 m, the Terceira Pony is often confused with a miniature pure-bred Lusitano. This population was officially recognized as the fourth Portuguese equine breed by the national authorities in January, 2014. The aim of this study was to analyze the morphology and the genetic diversity by means of microsatellite markers of this emerging horse breed. The biom...
Horses fail to use social learning when solving spatial detour tasks.
Animal cognition    February 26, 2015   Volume 18, Issue 4 847-854 doi: 10.1007/s10071-015-0852-6
Rørvang MV, Ahrendt LP, Christensen JW.Social animals should have plenty of opportunities to learn from conspecifics, but most studies have failed to document social learning in horses. This study investigates whether young Icelandic horses can learn a spatial detour task through observation of a trained demonstrator horse of either the same age (Experiments 1 and 2, n = 22) or older (Experiment 3, n = 24). Observer horses were allowed to observe the demonstrator being led three times through the detour route immediately before being given the opportunity to solve the task themselves. Controls were allowed only to observe the d...
Does heterozygosity at the DMRT3 gene make French trotters better racers?
Genetics, selection, evolution : GSE    February 26, 2015   Volume 47, Issue 1 10 doi: 10.1186/s12711-015-0095-7
Ricard A.Recently, a mutation was discovered in the DMRT3 gene that controls pacing in horses. The mutant allele A is fixed in the American Standardbred trotter breed, while in the French trotter breed, the frequency of the wild-type allele C is still 24%. This study aimed at measuring the effect of DMRT3 genotypes on the performance of French trotters and explaining why the polymorphism still occurs in this breed. Using a mixed animal model, genetic parameters and environmental effects on performance traits were estimated from data on 173 176 French trotter races. The effect of the DMRT3 gene was then...
Horse welfare is the issue with use of cobalt.
Australian veterinary journal    February 25, 2015   Volume 93, Issue 3 N2 doi: 10.1111/avj.145
Balzer M.No abstract available
Mares prefer the voices of highly fertile stallions.
PloS one    February 25, 2015   Volume 10, Issue 2 e0118468 doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0118468
Lemasson A, Remeuf K, Trabalon M, Cuir F, Hausberger M.We investigated the possibility that stallion whinnies, known to encode caller size, also encoded information about caller arousal and fertility, and the reactions of mares in relation to type of voice. Voice acoustic features are correlated with arousal and reproduction success, the lower-pitched the stallion's voice, the slower his heart beat and the higher his fertility. Females from three study groups preferred playbacks of low-pitched voices. Hence, females are attracted by frequencies encoding for large male size, calmness and high fertility. More work is needed to explore the relative i...
Prospective, retrospective or clinical audit: A label that sticks.
Equine veterinary journal    February 25, 2015   Volume 47, Issue 3 257-259 doi: 10.1111/evj.12409
Wylie CE.No abstract available
Domesticated horses differ in their behavioural and physiological responses to isolated and group housing.
Physiology & behavior    February 25, 2015   Volume 143 51-57 doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2015.02.040
Yarnell K, Hall C, Royle C, Walker SL.The predominant housing system used for domestic horses is individual stabling; however, housing that limits social interaction and requires the horse to live in semi-isolation has been reported to be a concern for equine welfare. The aim of the current study was to compare behavioural and physiological responses of domestic horses in different types of housing design that provided varying levels of social contact. Horses (n = 16) were divided equally into four groups and exposed to each of four housing treatments for a period of five days per treatment in a randomized block design. The four h...
Postcards from the front.
The Veterinary record    February 24, 2015   Volume 176, Issue 8 192-194 doi: 10.1136/vr.h729
Boyd CT, Jones BV.No abstract available
Horse kick related injury: Significance of the line of impact.
Diagnostic and interventional imaging    February 20, 2015   Volume 96, Issue 5 503-505 doi: 10.1016/j.diii.2014.09.004
Saboo SS, Juan YH, Desai NS, Khurana B, Sodickson AD.No abstract available
Genetic conditions of joint Nordic genetic evaluations of lifetime competition performance in warmblood sport horses.
Journal of animal breeding and genetics = Zeitschrift fur Tierzuchtung und Zuchtungsbiologie    February 20, 2015   Volume 132, Issue 4 308-317 doi: 10.1111/jbg.12132
Viklund Å, Furre S, Eriksson S, Vangen O, Philipsson J.Breeding programmes for warmblood sport horses are similar in the Nordic countries Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Norway, and stallions of same origin are used. The aim was to investigate whether a joint Nordic genetic evaluation based on lifetime competition performance is feasible and beneficial for breeding competitive sport horses in the Nordic countries. Results for almost 45,000 horses in show jumping and 30,000 horses in dressage were available. The larger populations in Sweden and Denmark contributed with 85% of the results. Heritabilities and genetic correlations between performances in...
Expression and immunolocalisation of follicle-stimulating hormone receptors in gonads of newborn and adult female horses.
Reproduction, fertility, and development    February 19, 2015   doi: 10.1071/RD14392
Scarlet D, Walter I, Hlavaty J, Aurich C.In mares, FSH and its receptor (FSHR) are essential for ovarian function. The objective of the present study was to analyse FSHR gene expression at the mRNA and protein levels in ovarian tissue from newborn and adult horses. Expression of mRNA was analysed by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, whereas FSHR protein was visualised by immunohistochemistry (IHC), immunofluorescence labelling (IF) and western blot. FSHR mRNA was detected in ovarian follicles and luteal tissue from adult mares, as well as in the ovaries of neonates. Follicular growth up to 4mm in diameter was already p...
Equine sperm-neutrophil binding.
Biology of reproduction    February 18, 2015   Volume 92, Issue 4 94 doi: 10.1095/biolreprod.114.122655
Alghamdi AS, Madill S, Foster DN, Troedsson MH.When mares are inseminated repeatedly, protein molecules from the seminal plasma (SP) prevent sperm-neutrophil binding and reduced fertility. The molecule(s) responsible for sperm-neutrophil binding is not known and the identification of beneficial SP proteins is complicated by their large numbers and abundant variation. We examined several important aspects of sperm-neutrophil binding to ultimately facilitate the identification and isolation of the molecule(s) responsible. First, we raised anti-equine P-selectin antibodies to determine the involvement of this adhesion molecule in sperm-neutro...
Differences in rider movement pattern between different degrees of collection at the trot in high-level dressage horses ridden on a treadmill.
Human movement science    February 18, 2015   Volume 41 1-8 doi: 10.1016/j.humov.2015.01.016
Byström A, Roepstroff L, Geser-von Peinen K, Weishaupt MA, Rhodin M.Collection is a central term in equine dressage, defined as a shortening of the horse's stride length with retained energy and hind limb activity. How collection is induced by the rider has yet not been investigated objectively. The aim of this study was therefore to compare the movement pattern of high-level dressage riders between free trot (loose reins), passage and a range of three speeds in collected trot. Both at higher speed in collected trot and in passage, the rider's pelvis became more caudally rotated and the rider's lumbar back became more flexed. However, in passage there was also...
DMRT3 is associated with gait type in Mangalarga Marchador horses, but does not control gait ability.
Animal genetics    February 18, 2015   Volume 46, Issue 2 213-215 doi: 10.1111/age.12273
Patterson L, Staiger EA, Brooks SA.The Mangalarga Marchador (MM) is a Brazilian horse breed known for a uniquely smooth gait. A recent publication described a mutation in the DMRT3 gene that the authors claim controls the ability to perform lateral patterned gaits (Andersson et al. 2012). We tested 81 MM samples for the DMRT3 mutation using extracted DNA from hair bulbs using a novel RFLP. Horses were phenotypically categorized by their gait type (batida or picada), as recorded by the Brazilian Mangalarga Marchador Breeders Association (ABCCMM). Statistical analysis using the plink toolset (Purcell, 2007) revealed significant a...
A cross-sectional epidemiological study of prevalence and severity of bit-induced oral trauma in polo ponies and race horses.
Journal of applied animal welfare science : JAAWS    February 13, 2015   Volume 18, Issue 3 259-268 doi: 10.1080/10888705.2015.1004407
Mata F, Johnson C, Bishop C.Bit and bridle accessories improperly fitted in ridden horses can cause oral trauma such as bone spurs, commissure ulceration, and tongue lacerations. This study was used to identify, grade, and compare the types of oral traumas commonly found within polo ponies and race horses. Injuries were assessed visually and by palpation on the tongue, lips' commissures, and interdental space. A total of 50 polo ponies and 50 race horses were sampled in the South of England. A Poisson model was successfully fitted to the data (p < .001), and the variables of discipline (p < .001), injury type (p &l...
Rapid detection of equine coronavirus by reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification.
Journal of virological methods    February 12, 2015   Volume 215-216 13-16 doi: 10.1016/j.jviromet.2015.02.001
Nemoto M, Morita Y, Niwa H, Bannai H, Tsujimura K, Yamanaka T, Kondo T.A reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) assay was developed for the rapid detection of equine coronavirus (ECoV). This assay was conducted at 60 °C for 40 min. Specificity of the RT-LAMP assay was confirmed using several equine intestinal and respiratory pathogens in addition to ECoV. The novel assay failed to cross-react with the other pathogens tested, suggesting it is highly specific for ECoV. Using artificially synthesized ECoV RNA, the 50% detection limit of the RT-LAMP assay was 10(1.8)copies/reaction. This is a 50-fold greater sensitivity than conventio...
Characterization of collagen fibrils after equine suspensory ligament injury: an ultrastructural and biochemical approach.
Veterinary journal (London, England : 1997)    February 12, 2015   Volume 204, Issue 1 117-122 doi: 10.1016/j.tvjl.2015.02.011
Shikh Alsook MK, Gabriel A, Salouci M, Piret J, Alzamel N, Moula N, Denoix JM, Antoine N, Baise E.Suspensory ligament (SL) injuries are an important cause of lameness in horses. The mechanical properties of connective tissue in normal and pathological ligaments are mainly related to fibril morphology, as well as collagen content and types. The purpose of this study was to evaluate, using biochemical and ultrastructural approaches, the alterations in collagen fibrils after injury. Eight Warmblood horses with visible signs of injury in only one forelimb SL were selected and specimens were examined by transmission electron microscope (TEM). Collagen types I, III and V were purified by differe...
Pre-analytical stability of adrenocorticotrophic hormone from healthy horses in whole blood, plasma and frozen plasma samples.
Veterinary journal (London, England : 1997)    February 11, 2015   Volume 204, Issue 1 123-124 doi: 10.1016/j.tvjl.2015.02.010
Prutton JS, Kass PH, Watson JL, Pusterla N.The stability of equine adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) in blood samples is not fully known. The study objectives were to determine ACTH stability (1) in whole blood and plasma over 72 h at either 4 or 21 °C, and (2) in plasma frozen at either -20 or -80 °C over 30 days. Nine horses were sampled and ACTH concentration were measured after storage as whole blood or plasma, at 4, 21, -20 and -80 °C for up to 30 days. The ACTH concentration was significantly reduced at 24 h but remained stable when plasma was frozen at -20 and -80 °C for 30 days. Beyond 24 h, samples stored a...
Inactivation of Burkholderia mallei in Equine Serum for Laboratory Use.
Journal of clinical microbiology    February 11, 2015   Volume 53, Issue 4 1456-1457 doi: 10.1128/JCM.03141-14
Perrett L, Mawhinney I.No abstract available
Update on the cause of equine atypical myopathy.
The Veterinary record    February 7, 2015   Volume 176, Issue 6 143-145 doi: 10.1136/vr.h414
Gonzalez-Medina S.No abstract available
Fetal heart rate and fetal heart rate variability in Lipizzaner broodmares.
Acta veterinaria Hungarica    February 7, 2015   Volume 63, Issue 1 89-99 doi: 10.1556/AVet.2015.007
Baska-Vincze B, Baska F, Szenci O.Monitoring fetal heart rate (FHR) and fetal heart rate variability (FHRV) helps to understand and evaluate normal and pathological conditions in the foal. The aim of this study was to establish normal heart rate reference values for the ongoing equine pregnancy and to perform a heart rate variability (HRV) time-domain analysis in Lipizzaner mares. Seventeen middle- and late-term (days 121-333) pregnant Lipizzaner mares were examined using fetomaternal electrocardiography (ECG). The mean FHR (P = 0.004) and the standard deviation of FHR (P = 0.012) significantly decreased during the pregnancy. ...