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.
Sünder U, Moors E, Hagemann K, Gauly M.The aim of this study was to estimate the effects of flying insects (Order Diptera) on the behaviour of grazing horses in relation to the use of insecticide and repellent substances. The investigations were done between June and August in 2008 in 3 periods of 7 days each. As insecticide and repellent two substances were used: "Well-care emulsion" (Co. Essex Tierarznei, München, GER) containing Permethrin and "Bremsen-Frei-Plus" (Co. Dr. Schaette AG, Bad Waldsee, GER) based on etheric oils. Both groups were compared with a non treated control group in a crossover-design. Each group (n = 3-5) w...
Mantovani R, Bailoni L.This study was conducted to estimate the nutritional value of diets given to stallions of different breeds during the reproductive season, and comparing allowances with requirements. The systems compared were the French INRA, the 1989 NRC, and the 2007 NRC. Data on reproductive activity, daily exercise, BW, BCS, feed intake, and feed composition during 4 mo (from March to June) were recorded on 12 stallions used for commercial AI programs. Stallions belonged to 3 different breeds: Italian Haflinger (IH, n=4), Holstein (HOL, n=4), and Italian Heavy Draft horse (IHDH, n=4). Data recorded were us...
Hausberger M, Muller C, Lunel C.It has been repeatedly hypothesized that job characteristics are related to changes in personality in humans, but often personality models still omit effects of life experience. Demonstrating reciprocal relationships between personality and work remains a challenge though, as in humans, many other influential factors may interfere. This study investigates this relationship by comparing the emotional reactivity of horses that differed only by their type of work. Horses are remarkable animal models to investigate this question as they share with humans working activities and their potential diff...
Borjesson DL, Peroni JF.This article focuses on the emerging field of equine regenerative medicine with an emphasis on the use of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for orthopedic diseases. We detail laboratory procedures and protocols for tissue handling and MSC isolation, characterization, expansion, and cryopreservation from bone marrow, fat, and placental tissues. We provide an overview of current clinical uses for equine MSCs and how MSCs function to heal tissues. Current laboratory practices in equine regenerative medicine mirror those in the human field. However, the translational use of autologous and allogeneic M...
Goretti RG, Araújo RR, Filho AN, Araújo GH, Lopes EP, Guimarães JD.The objective was to evaluate the effects of giving prostaglandin F₂(α) (PGF) to donor mares 48 h prior to embryo collection. Non-lactating donor mares (n = 20 estrous cycles in 10 mares), ranging from 2.5 to 10 y of age and 400 to 500 kg of body weight were used from September 2004 to February 2005 in the southern hemisphere (Brazil). Donor mares were randomly assigned in a cross-over design study. During a Treated cycle, 7.5 mg PGF was given 48 h prior to embryo collection, whereas in the Control cycle, 7.5 mg PGF was given at embryo collection. In Treated Cycles, serum progesterone conce...
Contri A, De Amicis I, Molinari A, Faustini M, Gramenzi A, Robbe D, Carluccio A.In this study, the effect of dietary supplementation of organic selenium, vitamin E, and zinc on raw semen characteristics was evaluated. Ten stallions with normal fertility were divided into two groups: a control group (CG), in which standard diet was provided, and a treated group (TG), in which the standard diet was supplemented with 1500 mg of α-tocopherol acetate, 360 mg of zinc, and 2.5 mg of organic selenium on a daily basis. Semen parameters on fresh semen were evaluated three times in all stallions before antioxidant supplementation (T0) and 30 (T1), 60 (T2), and 90 (T3) d after suppl...
Mangal D, Uboh CE, Soma LR.Oxidative metabolites of arachidonic acid (AA) are implicated in inflammation. Thus, we evaluated cycloxygenases (COXs) and lipoxygenases (LOs) mediated metabolism of AA to eicosanoids in equine plasma. Eicosanoids were extracted from plasma by two liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) steps; first was by chloroform/isopropanol and second by methyl-tert-butyl ether. For identification and quantification of 25 eicosanoids, a highly specific, selective and sensitive stable isotope dilution liquid chromatography (LC) multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) mass spectrometric (MS) method was developed. To avo...
Cocchia N, Pasolini MP, Mancini R, Petrazzuolo O, Cristofaro I, Rosapane I, Sica A, Tortora G, Lorizio R, Paraggio G, Mancini A.New studies are underway to find new methods for supporting longer storage of cooled stallion semen. It is known that high concentrations of reactive oxygen species (ROS) cause sperm pathology. The metalloprotein superoxide dismutase (SOD) is responsible for H(2)O(2) and O(2) production, by dismutation of superoxide radicals. The aim of this study is to assess the quality of chilled stallion semen processed with extenders containing SOD at different concentrations as antioxidant additives. A total of 80 ejaculates collected from 5 standardbred stallions was divided into 5 aliquots treated as: ...
Gray BP, Teale P, Pearce CM.Analysis of equine plasma samples to detect the abuse of anabolic steroids can be complicated when the parent steroid is endogenous to the animal. Anabolic steroids are usually administered intramuscularly as synthetic esters and therefore detection of the exogenous esters provides unequivocal proof of illegal administration. An ultra high performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometric (UPLC-MSMS) method for the analysis of esters of testosterone (propionate, phenylpropionate, isocaproate, and decanoate) and boldenone (undecylenate) in equine plasma has been developed. Esters were...
Textor JA, Norris JW, Tablin F.To test the hypotheses that preparation method, exposure to shear force, and exposure to collagen affect the release of growth factors from equine platelet-rich plasma (PRP). Methods: PRP obtained from 6 horses. Methods: PRP was prepared via 2 preparation methods (tube and automated) and subjected to 6 treatment conditions (resting, detergent, exposure to shear via 21- and 25-gauge needles, and exposure to collagen [10 and 20 μg/mL]). Concentrations of platelet-derived growth factor, isoform BB (PDGF-BB); transforming growth factor β, isoform 1 (TGFβ₁); and insulin-like growth factor, iso...
Gramm M, Marksteiner R.Using a dataset of 274 male Thoroughbred racehorses in the United States, we study the effect of age on racing performance. Beyer speed figures, which are uniform measures of racing performance across distance and racing surface, are utilized in this study. A system of equations is estimated to determine quadratic improvement and decline in racing performance. We find that a typical horse's peak racing age is 4.45 years. The rate of improvement from age 2 to 4 1/2 is greater than the rate of decline after age 4 1/2. A typical horse will improve by 10 (horse) lengths in sprints (less than 1 mil...
Gille C, Kayser M, Spiller A.Whereas in former times horses were reserved primarily for people involved in agriculture, elite equestrians or the military, nowadays equestrian sport has become an activity for people with a wide variety of backgrounds. However, as more and more people become involved with equestrian sport today, the knowledge concerning animal husbandry in general is diminishing due to an alienation from agricultural themes in modern societies. As a consequence, this development affects both riding ability and the appraisal of horses, especially with respect to the purchase of horses. In order to analyse wh...
Yamano S, Kawai M, Minami Y, Hiraga A, Miyata H.We evaluated differences in muscle fiber recruitment patterns between continuous and interval training to develop an optimal training program for Thoroughbred horses. Five well trained female thoroughbred horses (3-4 years old) were used. The horses performed two different exercises on a 10% inclined treadmill: 90%VO2 max for 4 min (continuous) and 90% VO2 max for 2 min × 2 times with 10-min interval (interval). Muscle samples were obtained from the middle gluteal muscle before and immediately after the exercises. Four muscle fiber types (type I, IIA, IIA/X, and IIX) were immunohistochemicall...
Gramm M, Marksteiner R.Using a dataset of 274 male Thoroughbred racehorses in the United States, we study the effect of age on racing performance. Beyer speed figures, which are uniform measures of racing performance across distance and racing surface, are utilized in this study. A system of equations is estimated to determine quadratic improvement and decline in racing performance. We find that a typical horse's peak racing age is 4.45 years. The rate of improvement from age 2 to 4 1/2 is greater than the rate of decline after age 4 1/2. A typical horse will improve by 10 (horse) lengths in sprints (less than 1 mil...
Baumann C, Daly CM, McDonnell SM, Viveiros MM, De La Fuente R.Pairing of the sex chromosomes during mammalian meiosis is characterized by the formation of a unique heterochromatin structure at the XY body. The mechanisms underlying the formation of this nuclear domain are reportedly highly conserved from marsupials to mammals. In this study, we demonstrate that in contrast to all eutherian species studied to date, partial synapsis of the heterologous sex chromosomes during pachytene stage in the horse is not associated with the formation of a typical macrochromatin domain at the XY body. While phosphorylated histone H2AX (γH2AX) and macroH2A1.2 are pres...
Evans D, McGreevy P.Concerns have been expressed concerning animal-welfare issues associated with whip use during Thoroughbred races. However, there have been no studies of relationships between performance and use of whips in Thoroughbred racing. Our aim was to describe whip use and the horses' performance during races, and to investigate associations between whip use and racing performance. Under the Australian Racing Board (ARB) rules, only horses that are in contention can be whipped, so we expected that whippings would be associated with superior performance, and those superior performances would be explaine...
Baird JD, Valberg SJ, Anderson SM, McCue ME, Mickelson JR.The purpose of this study was to determine which continental European draught horse breeds harbour a mutation in the glycogen synthase 1 gene (GYS1) that is known to be responsible for type 1 polysaccharide storage myopathy in quarter horses and North American draught horses. Of a non-random selection of continental European draught horses belonging to 13 breeds, 62 per cent (250 of 403) tested were found to carry the mutant allele. The horses were located in Belgium, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Spain and Sweden. The mutation was identified in animals from each of the breeds examined. In...
Lu Z, Kasaragod DK, Matcher SJ.We describe a fibre-based variable-incidence angle (VIA) polarization-sensitive swept-source optical coherence tomography (PS-SS-OCT) system to determine the 3D optical axis of birefringent biological tissues. Single-plane VIA-PS-OCT is also explored which requires measurement of the absolute fast-axis orientation. A state-of-the-art PS-SS-OCT system with some improvements both in hardware and software was used to determine the apparent optical birefringence of equine tendon for a number of different illumination directions. Polar and azimuthal angles of cut equine tendon were produced by the ...
Goyache F, Alvarez I, Fernández I, Pérez-Pardal L, Royo LJ, Lorenzo L.Empirical evidence of the usefulness of different molecular-based methods to estimate the effective population size (N(e)) for conservation purposes in endangered livestock populations is reported. The black-coated Asturcón pony pedigree (1,981 individuals) was available. Additionally, a total of 267 Asturcón individuals born in 1998, 2002, and 2008 were typed for 15 microsatellites. These yearly cohorts (cohort(1998, 2002, 2008)) included almost all individuals kept for reproduction at the end of the corresponding foaling season. The genealogical realized N(e) was estimated for each cohort ...
Capomaccio S, Cappelli K, Spinsanti G, Mencarelli M, Muscettola M, Felicetti M, Verini Supplizi A, Bonifazi M.Horses and humans share a natural proclivity for athletic performance. In this respect, horses can be considered a reference species in studies designed to optimize physical training and disease prevention. In both species, interleukin-6 (IL-6) plays a major role in regulating the inflammatory process induced during exercise as part of an integrated metabolic regulatory network. The aim of this study was to compare IL-6 and IL-6 receptor (IL-6R) mRNA expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in trained and untrained humans and horses. Results: Nine highly trained male swimmers (...
Wilsher S, Allen WR.An opportunity to monitor equine chorionic gonadotrophin (eCG) production during 61 pregnancies in 25 Thoroughbred mares mated to the same Thoroughbred stallion was utilised in order to further knowledge regarding factors involved in the production of this hormone. Objective: To examine the effects of maternal body condition, exercise and parity on eCG production. Methods: In the first experiment, maiden mares were fed either a moderate (n = 9) or an excessive (n = 10) food intake throughout gestation. In the second experiment, 5 mares were exercised daily during pregnancy and eCG production r...
Zoppa AL, Santoni B, Puttlitz CM, Cochran K, Hendrickson DA.To compare the biomechanical characteristics of 2 arthrodesis techniques for the equine proximal interphalangeal joint (PIP) using either a 3-hole 4.5 mm locking compression plate (LCP) or 3-hole 4.5 mm narrow dynamic compression plate (DCP), both with 2 transarticular 5.5 mm cortex screws. Methods: Experimental. Methods: Cadaveric adult equine forelimbs (*n=6 pairs). Methods: For each forelimb pair, 1 limb was randomly assigned to 1 of 2 treatment groups and the contralateral limb by default to the other treatment group. Construct stiffness, gap formation across the PIP joint, and rotation ab...
Tevell Aberg A, Olsson C, Bondesson U, Hedeland M.This paper describes a study where the metabolism of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug meloxicam was investigated in six horses and in the filamentous fungus Cunninghamella elegans. The metabolites identified were compared between the species, and then the fungus was used to produce larger amounts of the metabolites for future use as reference material. C. elegans proved to be a good model of phase I meloxicam metabolism in horses since all four metabolites found were the same in both species. Apart from the two main metabolites, 5'-hydroxymethylmeloxicam and 5'-carboxymeloxicam, a seco...
Bradbery AN, Coverdale JA, Hammer CJ, Dunlap KA, Leatherwood JL, Satterfield MC.Skeletal muscle plays an integral role in the ability of a horse to perform at high levels. Shifts in skeletal muscle development in response to maternal plane of nutrition may have substantial and lasting impacts on athletic performance and whole-body metabolism. Therefore, sixteen Quarter Horse mares were used in a completely randomized design and maintained at a body condition score (BCS) 6 until start of third trimester. On d 235 of gestation, mares were randomly assigned to receive one of two dietary treatments with a diet formulated to meet requirements during late gestation (CON; n = ...
Yuan Z, Gault EA, Campo MS, Nasir L.Equine sarcoids represent the most common skin tumours in equids worldwide, characterized by extensive invasion and infiltration of lymphatics, rare regression and high recurrence after surgical intervention. Bovine papillomavirus type-1 (BPV-1) and less commonly BPV-2 are the causative agents of the diseases. It has been demonstrated that BPV-1 viral gene expression is necessary for maintaining the transformation phenotype. However, the underlying mechanism for BPV-1 transformation remains largely unknown, and the cellular factors involved in transformation are not fully understood. Previousl...
Singer ER, Saxby F, French NP.Serious injuries to horses and riders in horse trials (HT) and three-day events (3DE) are usually associated with falls of horses, which invariably involve falls of the riders. Many potential causes for these falls have been discussed. Objective: The aim of this case-control study was to investigate the risk factors for horse falls on the cross-country phase of horse trials and three-day events. Methods: Using retrospective data, significant risk factors identified with unvariable analysis (P value <0.2) were entered into a multivariable logistic regression model. Significant risk factors (...
Smith RM, Bhoora RV, Kotzé A, Grobler JP, Lee Dalton D.Translocation of animals in fragmented habitats is an important means of dispersal and gene flow, however, the movement of animals has led to the spread of various diseases globally and wildlife are often the reservoirs of these diseases. Currently, Cape mountain zebra are translocated within South Africa as a management method for augmentation of isolated and fragmented populations. The movement of pathogens due to translocations in local regions have gone largely unchecked, particularly where there may still be isolated regions that can be negatively affected. Equine piroplasmosis is a tick-...
McCutcheon LJ, Geor RJ, Shen H.The objective of this study was to determine the effects of 10 consecutive days of moderate intensity training on 1) the concentration of middle gluteal muscle Na(+)-K(+)-ATPase as determined by vanadate-facilitated 3H[ouabain binding; and 2) plasma potassium regulation before, during and after exercise at 100% of the pre-training maximum rate of oxygen consumption (VO2max). Six mature, unfit Thoroughbred horses completed both incremental (for determination of VO2max) and high-intensity exercise protocols before (HI1) and after (HI2) training. There additional horses undertook no training or e...
Peham C, Licka T, Mayr A, Scheidl M.Using a system for motion analysis, linear correlation of speed and forelimb lameness was measured in 16 horses trotting on a treadmill at a minimum of three different trotting speeds. Forelimb lameness was determined as asymmetry of vertical head motion during left and right forelimb stance. In seven horses with a moderate forelimb lameness (head motion asymmetry >40%), lameness increased significantly with trotting speed. In a further seven horses with mild or subclinical forelimb lameness (head motion asymmetry <40%) and in two horses with a moderate forelimb lameness, no significant ...
Foster AP, Cunningham FM.The tachykinin, substance P (SP), affects eosinophil function by direct and indirect mechanisms and has been shown to cause equine eosinophils to adhere to vascular endothelium and to release cytokines that increase cell adherence. The aim of this study was to determine whether SP could act directly on equine eosinophils in vitro. Eosinophil activation was also compared in cells from normal ponies and those with insect hypersensitivity as SP may be released in the skin of hypersensitive animals. SP caused equine eosinophils to adhere, migrate and produce superoxide, although high concentration...
Gromadzka-Ostrowska J, Zalewska B, Jakubów K, Gozlinski H.Changes in some trace minerals concentrations (calcium, inorganic phosphorus, magnesium, zinc, iron, copper, sodium and potassium) in blood plasma were investigated during a three-year period in Shetland pony mares. Blood plasma mineral concentrations were determined by the atomic absorption method and colorimetric method. The three-year averages were in micrograms/ml; Na 4630 +/- 168; K 277 +/- 3.8; Ca 171 +/- 3.8; P 31.5 +/- 0.74; Fe 1.92 +/- 0.14; Zn 1.07 +/- 0.04 and Cu 1.06 +/- 0.02. Two trace minerals (magnesium in inorganic phosphorus) showed only long-term tendency changes--upward or d...
Flethøj M, Kanters JK, Pedersen PJ, Haugaard MM, Carstensen H, Olsen LH, Buhl R.Although premature beats are a matter of concern in horses, the interpretation of equine ECG recordings is complicated by a lack of standardized analysis criteria and a limited knowledge of the normal beat-to-beat variation of equine cardiac rhythm. The purpose of this study was to determine the appropriate threshold levels of maximum acceptable deviation of RR intervals in equine ECG analysis, and to evaluate a novel two-step timing algorithm by quantifying the frequency of arrhythmias in a cohort of healthy adult endurance horses. Results: Beat-to-beat variation differed considerably with he...
Freese S, Sheats MK.A 20-year-old Paint gelding was evaluated for fever of unknown origin. History and clinical signs were consistent with potential tick-borne disease. Samples were collected and submitted for tick-borne disease panel, herpes virus, complete blood count, and serum biochemistry. Based on physical examination findings and vaccination history, the gelding was treated for suspected tick-borne disease with oxytetracycline (8 mg/kg intravenously BID) for 5 days, followed by doxycycline (10 mg/kg PO BID) for an additional 5 days. Although titers to Borrelia burgdorferi, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, an...
Raeside JI, Renaud RL.Isolation of 3 beta-hydroxy-5,7-androstadien-17-one, as a major component of steroids extracted from vein blood of the fetal gonads of the horse, supports the proposed role for the compound as a precursor for equilin formation in the placenta of the mare. The 5,7-diene was extracted from blood collected from gonadal veins of fetal ovaries and testes in situ, and from a fetal testis connected to an artery in the neck region of the mare. Perfusion of fetal gonads in the laboratory was carried out to allow longer periods of collection. In addition, isolated cell preparations from a fetal testis w...
Smyth PA, Rifkin RE, Jackson RL, Hanson RR.The naturally occurring structure of articular cartilage has proven to be an effective means for the facilitation of motion and load support in equine and other animal joints. For this reason, cartilage has been extensively studied for many years. Although the roughness of cartilage has been determined from atomic force microscopy (AFM) and other methods in multiple studies, a comparison of roughness to joint function has not be completed. It is hypothesized that various joint types with different motions and regimes of lubrication have altered demands on the articular surface that may affect ...
Ing NH, Konganti K, Ghaffari N, Johnson CD, Forrest DW, Love CC, Varner DD.It is not unusual for stallions to have fertility problems. For many, artificial insemination with more dense spermatozoa (isolated by density gradient centrifugation) results in greater pregnancy rates compared with the rates when using unfractionated spermatozoa. RNAs in spermatozoa delivered to the oocyte at conception are required for embryo development. Novel molecular assays of spermatozoa that reflect function are needed to predict the fertility of stallions. To describe and compare the RNA populations in more dense and less dense spermatozoa from stallions. Spermatozoa from five stalli...
Nylund LE, Sinclair PJ, McLean AN, Cobley S.Cross-country eventing is one of the highest-risk sporting activities for serious injury outcomes. This study investigated relationships between fall characteristics and high-risk falls at jumps in cross-country eventing. A video analysis protocol was systematically developed to analyze 87 video recordings of high-risk rider falls; defined as when the rider's head impacted the ground and/or where there was potential horse impact with the rider. Falls were classified according to competition type, jump type, horse-related, and rider-related factors. At least one high-risk fall characteristic wa...
Hinrichs K, DiGiorgio LM.A technique was developed in which immature horse oocytes, obtained from slaughterhouse specimens, were transferred to the pre-ovulatory follicle of a mare in vivo, with resulting oocyte maturation, ovulation, fertilization and embryo development. Oocytes were collected from all follicles greater than 3 mm, and were classified as immature, maturing, expanded or denuded. The transfers were performed in the standing, tranquilized mare. The ovary containing the pre-ovulatory follicle was grasped per rectum. A trochar and cannula were placed through the abdominal wall in the flank area, ipsilatera...
Vackova I, Czernekova V, Tomanek M, Navratil J, Mosko T, Novakova Z.This study aimed to determine whether maternal cell contamination exists in cells derived from equine umbilical cord tissue, a perspective material for cell-based therapies in veterinary medicine. Potential maternal cell contamination was analyzed at DNA level via a set of 16 microsatellite markers in cells originating from the cord tissue of 22 foals. In these cells no maternal cell contamination was detected at a sensitivity level of 0.01%. Our results suggest that equine umbilical cord tissue-derived cells are entirely of fetal origin.
Jezierski T, Jaworski Z, Sobczyńska M, Ensminger J, Górecka-Bruzda A.The aim of the study was to assess whether adult stallions differentiate their olfactory and marking behaviour towards the excreta of their potential male rivals and mares. Four Konik polski stallions were individually exposed simultaneously to their own and each others' faeces as well as faeces of mares in oestrus vs. dioestrus. Five series of 30min observation sessions were conducted in a round pen each on two consecutive days from March to July, totaling in 5h observation per stallion. Stallions sniffed and displayed flehmen reaction towards mares' faeces significantly longer (P<0.01) th...
Benson TJ, Nerem RM, Pedley TJ.Time dependent wall shear rates cannot be directly or accurately measured in arteries using presently available techniques. Here a simple method is presented for calculating them from a single measured velocity waveform (either centreline or cross-sectionally averaged velocity). The method involves only Fourier analysis and the application of given formulae, and it is expected to be approximately valid in any segment of artery which has no branches or sharp curves for a distance of several diameters. It is shown, however, that a frequency response of 30 Hz is required in the velocity measuring...
Rochais C, Lerch N, Gueguen L, Schmidlin M, Bonamy O, Grandgeorge M, Hausberger M.Tactile perception in humans varies between individuals and could depend on extrinsic factors such as working activity. In animals, there is no study relating the influence of animals' work and their tactile reactivity . We investigated horses' tactile reactivity using von Frey filament in different body areas and compared horses working only in equine-assisted interventions (EAI), in riding school (RS) lessons, and in both activities (EAI-RS). We further compared tactile actions by people with or without mental and/or developmental disorders during brushing sessions. The results indicated tha...
Shikh Alsook MK, Antoine N, Piret J, Moula N, Busoni V, Denoix JM, Gabriel A.The third interosseous muscle (suspensory ligament, TIOM) is composed of connective tissue (CT) with a variable proportion of muscle (MT) and adipose tissue (AT). The aim of our study is to quantify the CT, MT and AT within the body and the branches of right thoracic and pelvic limbs TIOM in sound horses to determine whether there are differences in CT, MT and AT between age, sex, limbs and levels. Right limbs from 11 sound horses were collected. Samples from 6 levels of the TIOM were embedded in paraffin or in Tissue-Tek(®) . Most of the paraffin sections were shredded. Using the cryosection...
Gastal EL, Pastorello M, Godoi DB, Gastal MO.This comparative study between postpartum lactating (PP Lactating) and non-postpartum cycling (N-PP Cycling) mares aimed to characterize reproductive patterns, types and frequencies of follicular waves, corpus luteum and endometrial echotexture dynamics, and the influence of season and body condition. Mares from each group were paired considering the day of parturition of a PP Lactating mare. The partum-ovulation interval (POI) and the postpartum interovulatory interval (PPIOI) were evaluated for PP Lactating mares, and 2 IOIs were evaluated for N-PP Cycling mares. The following observations w...
Jasko DJ, Lein DH, Foote RH.Two commercially available computer-automate semen analysis instruments (CellSoft Automated Semen Analyzer and HTM-2000 Motion Analyzer) were compared for their ability to report similar results based on the analysis of pre-recorded video tapes of extended, motile stallion semen. The determinations of the percentage of motile cells by these instruments were more similar than the comparisons between subjective estimates and either instrument. However, mean values obtained from the same sample may still differ by as much as 30 percentage units between instruments. Instruments varied with regard ...
Puhakka PH, Te Moller NC, Tanska P, Saarakkala S, Tiitu V, Korhonen RK, Brommer H, Virén T, Jurvelin JS, Töyräs J.Background and purpose - Arthroscopic estimation of articular cartilage thickness is important for scoring of lesion severity, and measurement of cartilage speed of sound (SOS)-a sensitive index of changes in cartilage composition. We investigated the accuracy of optical coherence tomography (OCT) in measurements of cartilage thickness and determined SOS by combining OCT thickness and ultrasound (US) time-of-flight (TOF) measurements. Material and methods - Cartilage thickness measurements from OCT and microscopy images of 94 equine osteochondral samples were compared. Then, SOS in cartilage w...
Holtan DW, Nett TM, Estergreen VL.Peripheral plasma progestagens were quantified by a competitive protein-binding assay throughout pregnancy. The level of progesterone increased significantly between Days 0 and 8 (P less than 0-05) and again between Days 28 and 44 and reached a maximum on Day 64. Subsequently, it fell slowly until about Day 300 and then rose again during the last 30 days before reaching a minimum on the day after foaling. Very low concentrations of 17alpha-hydroxyprogesterone were found except between Days 40 and 120 and during the last 30 days before birth. Two unidentified compounds, one eluting slightly bef...
Dyson S, Greve L.Several studies have shown that there is a high prevalence of ill-fitting saddles. Many riders do not have saddle fit professionally assessed on at least an annual basis. Back dimensions can change considerably over the period of a year and therefore saddle fit should be assessed several times yearly, especially if work intensity has been altered. Saddle fit should be evaluated before and after exercise because back dimensions can change during work. Ideally, horses should be ridden in individual purpose-fitted saddles, rather than the same saddle being used on several horses. There remains li...
Clayton HM.Time magnification in motion photography allows the observation of events in the stride cycle that normally are beyond the resolution of the human eye. Quantitative analysis goes a stage further by measuring the stride in terms of timing, distance, and angular variables. Motion analysis is a good technique for detecting left-right asymmetries of gait, and the nature of the asymmetries has some value in locating the site of a lameness. Repeated analyses of the same horse allow an objective assessment of the effects of local anesthesia, surgical treatment, or medication. It is anticipated that t...
Tou K, Cawley A, Bowen C, Sornalingam K, Fu S.The conventional detection of exogenous drugs in equine doping samples has been used for confirmation and subsequent prosecution of participants responsible. In recent years, alternative methods using indirect detection have been investigated due to the expanding number of pharmaceutical agents available with the potential of misuse. The monitoring of endogenous biomarkers such as hydrocortisone (HC) has been studied in equine urine with an international threshold of 1 μg/ml established; however, there is no current threshold for equine plasma. The aim of this research was to investigate pl...
Gleadhill A, Marlin D, Harris PA, Michell AR.Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and extracellular volume (ECFV) were measured before, during and after treadmill exercise in 5 trained Thoroughbred horses (mean weight 483 kg). GFR/ECFV was determined by plasma disappearance of Tc-DTPA and ECFV was measured independently as thiocyanate space. Resting GFR averaged 1.6 l/min (3.3 ml/kg/min) and fell by over 40% during exercise, moreover the fall was severe even during the first walk, prior to trotting. The results suggest that rather than being protected, GFR is allowed to fall, even with mild exercise and that this is probably an adaptation to...
Carnevale EM, Maclellan LJ.Assisted reproductive techniques have been developed to obtain pregnancies from subfertile mares and stallions and to salvage gametes after death. In recent years, these procedures have been used for clinical cases with repeated success. Although new developments occur, the basis for the success and future development of assisted reproductive techniques is our ability to collect and handle the equine oocyte successfully. This article focuses on important clinical aspects of oocyte collection and evaluation and briefly discusses the clinical use of assisted reproductive procedures in the horse....
