Publications

towards evenly distributed grazing patterns: including social context in sheep management strategies.	background. a large proportion of natural grasslands around the world is exposed to overgrazing resulting in land degradation and biodiversity loss. although there is an increasing effort in the promotion of sustainable livestock management, rangeland degradation still occurs because animals' foraging behaviour is highly selective at different spatial scales. the assessment of the ecological mechanisms modulating the spatial distribution of grazing and how to control it has critical implications ...	2016	27366650
silicon: potential to promote direct and indirect effects on plant defense against arthropod pests in agriculture.	silicon has generally not been considered essential for plant growth, although it is well recognized that many plants, particularly poaceae, have substantial plant tissue concentrations of this element. recently, however, the international plant nutrition institute [ipni] (2015), georgia, usa has listed it as a "beneficial substance". this reflects that numerous studies have now established that silicon may alleviate both biotic and abiotic stress. this paper explores the existing knowledge and ...	2016	27379104
genome-wide detection of cnvs in chinese indigenous sheep with different types of tails using ovine high-density 600k snp arrays.	chinese indigenous sheep can be classified into three types based on tail morphology: fat-tailed, fat-rumped, and thin-tailed sheep, of which the typical breeds are large-tailed han sheep, altay sheep, and tibetan sheep, respectively. to unravel the genetic mechanisms underlying the phenotypic differences among chinese indigenous sheep with tails of three different types, we used ovine high-density 600k snp arrays to detect genome-wide copy number variation (cnv). in large-tailed han sheep, alta ...	2016	27282145
integrated analysis of the roles of long noncoding rna and coding rna expression in sheep (ovis aries) skin during initiation of secondary hair follicle.	initiation of hair follicle (hf) is the first and most important stage of hf morphogenesis. however the precise molecular mechanism of initiation of hair follicle remains elusive. meanwhile, in previous study, the more attentions had been paid to the function of genes, while the roles of non-coding rnas (such as long noncoding rna and microrna) had not been described. therefore, the roles of long noncoding rna(lncrna) and coding rna in sheep skin during the initiation of sheep secondary hf were ...	2016	27276011
ovarian proteomic study reveals the possible molecular mechanism for hyperprolificacy of small tail han sheep.	small tail han sheep is a widely bred farm animal in china which has attracted lots of attention due to their high prolificacy and year-round estrus. however, the molecular mechanism of its fecundity remains unrevealed. the fecb gene polymorphism has been found to be associated with the ovulation rate and litter size of sheep. in the present study, we constructed an itraq-based quantitative proteomics analysis to compare the ovarian proteomes of fecb+fecb+ genotype small tail han sheep ewes (han ...	2016	27271055
genomic analysis reveals depression due to both individual and maternal inbreeding in a free-living mammal population.	there is ample evidence for inbreeding depression manifested as a reduction in fitness or fitness-related traits in the focal individual. in many organisms, fitness is not only affected by genes carried by the individual, but also by genes carried by their parents, for example if receiving parental care. while maternal effects have been described in many systems, the extent to which inbreeding affects fitness directly through the focal individual, or indirectly through the inbreeding coefficient ...	2016	27135155
timing of population peaks of norway lemming in relation to atmospheric pressure: a hypothesis to explain the spatial synchrony.	herbivore cycles are often synchronized over larger areas than what could be explained by dispersal. in norway, the 3-4 year lemming cycle usually show no more than a one-year time lag between different regions, despite distances of up to 1000 km. if important food plants are forced to reallocate defensive proteins in years with high seed production, spatially synchronized herbivore outbreaks may be due to climate-synchronized peaks in flowering. because lemming peaks are expected to occur one y ...	2016	27249449
conditions during adulthood affect cohort-specific reproductive success in an arctic-nesting goose population.	variation in fitness between individuals in populations may be attributed to differing environmental conditions experienced among birth (or hatch) years (i.e., between cohorts). in this study, we tested whether cohort fitness could also be explained by environmental conditions experienced in years post-hatch, using 736 lifelong resighting histories of greenland white-fronted geese (anser albifrons flavirostris) marked in their first winter. specifically, we tested whether variation in age at fir ...	2016	27257539
erratum: a genome-wide association study identifies a genomic region for the polycerate phenotype in sheep (ovis aries).		2016	27203473
density-dependent diel activity in stream-dwelling arctic charr salvelinus alpinus.	intraspecific competition plays a significant role in shaping how animals use and share habitats in space and time. however, the way individuals may modify their diel activity in response to increased competition has received limited attention. we used juvenile (age 1+) arctic charr salvelinus alpinus to test the prediction that individuals at high population density are more active and distribute their foraging activity over a greater portion of the 24-h cycle than individuals at low population ...	2016	27247761
transcriptome profile of one-month-old lambs' granulosa cells after superstimulation.	superstimulatory treatment of one-month-old lambs can achieve synchronous development of numerous growing follicles. however, these growing follicles cannot complete maturation and ovulation. oocyte maturation and competence are acquired during follicular development, in which granulosa cells play an essential role.	2016	27189640
practical bias correction in aerial surveys of large mammals: validation of hybrid double-observer with sightability method against known abundance of feral horse (equus caballus) populations.	reliably estimating wildlife abundance is fundamental to effective management. aerial surveys are one of the only spatially robust tools for estimating large mammal populations, but statistical sampling methods are required to address detection biases that affect accuracy and precision of the estimates. although various methods for correcting aerial survey bias are employed on large mammal species around the world, these have rarely been rigorously validated. several populations of feral horses ...	2016	27139732
the identification of goat peroxiredoxin-5 and the evaluation and enhancement of its stability by nanoparticle formation.	an anticancer bioactive peptide (acbp), goat peroxiredoxin-5 (gprdx5), was identified from goat-spleen extract after immunizing the goat with gastric cancer-cell lysate. its amino acid sequence was determined by employing 2d nano-lc-esi-ltq-orbitrap ms/ms combined with mascot database search in the goat subset of the uniprot database. the recombinant gprdx5 protein was acquired by heterogeneous expression in escherichia coli. subsequently, the anti-cancer bioactivity of the peptide was measured ...	2016	27074889
conserved genetic architecture underlying individual recombination rate variation in a wild population of soay sheep (ovis aries).	meiotic recombination breaks down linkage disequilibrium (ld) and forms new haplotypes, meaning that it is an important driver of diversity in eukaryotic genomes. understanding the causes of variation in recombination rate is important in interpreting and predicting evolutionary phenomena and in understanding the potential of a population to respond to selection. however, despite attention in model systems, there remains little data on how recombination rate varies at the individual level in nat ...	2016	27029733
interspecific interactions and the scope for parent-offspring conflict: high mite density temporarily changes the trade-off between offspring size and number in the burying beetle, nicrophorus vespilloides.	parents have a limited amount of resources to invest in reproduction and commonly trade-off how much they invest in offspring size (or quality) versus brood size. a negative relationship between offspring size and number has been shown in numerous taxa and it underpins evolutionary conflicts of interest between parents and their young. for example, previous work on vertebrates shows that selection favours mothers that produce more offspring, at the expense of individual offspring size, yet favou ...	2016	26985819
effects of rice straw supplemented with urea and molasses on intermediary metabolism of plasma glucose and leucine in sheep.	an isotope dilution method using [u-(13)c]glucose and [1-(13)c]leucine (leu) was conducted to evaluate the effects of rice straw supplemented with urea and molasses (rsum-diet) on plasma glucose and leu turnover rates in sheep. nitrogen (n) balance, rumen fermentation characteristics and blood metabolite concentrations were also determined. four sheep were fed either mixed hay (mh-diet), or a rsum-diet with a crossover design for two 21 days period. feed allowance was computed on the basis of me ...	2016	26949953
myxoma virus m156 is a specific inhibitor of rabbit pkr but contains a loss-of-function mutation in australian virus isolates.	myxoma virus (myxv) is a rabbit-specific poxvirus, which is highly virulent in european rabbits. the attenuation of myxv and the increased resistance of rabbits following the release of myxv in australia is one of the best-documented examples of host-pathogen coevolution. to elucidate the molecular mechanisms that contribute to the restriction of myxv infection to rabbits and myxv attenuation in the field, we have studied the interaction of the myxv protein m156 with the host antiviral protein k ...	2016	26903626
a genome-wide association study identifies a genomic region for the polycerate phenotype in sheep (ovis aries).	horns are a cranial appendage found exclusively in bovidae, and play important roles in accessing resources and mates. in sheep (ovies aries), horns vary from polled to six-horned, and human have been selecting polled animals in farming and breeding. here, we conducted a genome-wide association study on 24 two-horned versus 22 four-horned phenotypes in a native chinese breed of sishui fur sheep. together with linkage disequilibrium (ld) analyses and haplotype-based association tests, we identifi ...	2016	26883901
impact of parity on ewe vaginal mechanical properties relative to the nonhuman primate and rodent.	parity is the leading risk factor for the development of pelvic organ prolapse. to assess the impact of pregnancy and delivery on vaginal tissue, researchers commonly use nonhuman primate (nhp) and rodent models. the purpose of this study was to evaluate the ewe as an alternative model by investigating the impact of parity on the ewe vaginal mechanical properties and collagen structure.	2016	26872644
cardiotoxicity of senna occidentalis in sheep (ovis aries).	the cardiotoxicity of coffee senna (senna occidentalis) was investigated in sheep that were fed diets containing its seeds, which are recognized as the most poisonous part of such weed. dianthrone, the main toxic component of s. occidentalis, is known to impair mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation, leading to myofiber degeneration. in this study, fifteen ewes were fed 0%, 2% or 4% of seeds of s. occidentalis for 63 days. non-specific markers of myocyte injury and electrocardiograms were under ...	2016	26894038
the effect of weight loss on the muscle proteome in the damara, dorper and australian merino ovine breeds.	seasonal weight loss (swl) is an important constraint, limiting animal production in the tropics and the mediterranean. as a result, the study of physiological and biochemical mechanisms by which domestic animal breeds respond to swl is important to those interested in animal breeding and the improvement thereof. to that end, the study of the proteome has been instrumental in gathering important information on physiological mechanisms, including those underlying swl. in spite of that, little inf ...	2016	26828937
intense selective hunting leads to artificial evolution in horn size.	the potential for selective harvests to induce rapid evolutionary change is an important question for conservation and evolutionary biology, with numerous biological, social and economic implications. we analyze 39 years of phenotypic data on horn size in bighorn sheep (ovis canadensis) subject to intense trophy hunting for 23 years, after which harvests nearly ceased. our analyses revealed a significant decline in genetic value for horn length of rams, consistent with an evolutionary response t ...	2016	27099619
detection and replication of qtl underlying resistance to gastrointestinal nematodes in adult sheep using the ovine 50k snp array.	persistence of gastrointestinal nematode (gin) infection and the related control methods have major impacts on the sheep industry worldwide. based on the information generated with the illumina ovinesnp50 beadchip (50 k chip), this study aims at confirming quantitative trait loci (qtl) that were previously identified by microsatellite-based genome scans and identifying new qtl and allelic variants that are associated with indicator traits of parasite resistance in adult sheep. we used a commerci ...	2016	26791855
the complex relationship between metals and carbonic anhydrase: new insights and perspectives.	carbonic anhydrase is a ubiquitous metalloenzyme, which catalyzes the reversible hydration of co₂ to hco₃(-) and h⁺. metals play a key role in the bioactivity of this metalloenzyme, although their relationships with ca have not been completely clarified to date. the aim of this review is to explore the complexity and multi-aspect nature of these relationships, since metals can be cofactors of ca, but also inhibitors of ca activity and modulators of ca expression. moreover, this work analyzes new ...	2016	26797606
anthelmintic treatment does not change foraging strategies of female eastern grey kangaroos, macropus giganteus.	large mammalian herbivores are commonly infected with gastrointestinal helminths. heavily parasitised hosts are likely to have increased nutritional requirements and would be predicted to increase their food intake to compensate for costs of being parasitised, but experimental tests of the impacts of these parasites on the foraging efficiency of hosts are lacking, particularly in free-ranging wildlife. we conducted a field experiment on a population of free-ranging eastern grey kangaroos (macrop ...	2016	26784582
conservation genetics in chinese sheep: diversity of fourteen indigenous sheep (ovis aries) using microsatellite markers.	the domestic sheep (ovis aries) has been an economically and culturally important farm animal species since its domestication around the world. a wide array of sheep breeds with abundant phenotypic diversity exists including domestication and selection as well as the indigenous breeds may harbor specific features as a result of adaptation to their environment. the objective of this study was to investigate the population structure of indigenous sheep in a large geographic location of the chinese ...	2016	26865968
ovine rumen papillae biopsy via oral endoscopy; a rapid and repeatable method for serial sampling.	to explore and validate the utility of rumen endoscopy for collection of rumen papillae for gene expression measurement.	2016	26642120
vitamin d status predicts reproductive fitness in a wild sheep population.	vitamin d deficiency has been associated with the development of many human diseases, and with poor reproductive performance in laboratory rodents. we currently have no idea how natural selection directly acts on variation in vitamin d metabolism due to a total lack of studies in wild animals. here, we measured serum 25 hydroxyvitamin d (25(oh)d) concentrations in female soay sheep that were part of a long-term field study on st kilda. we found that total 25(oh)d was strongly influenced by age, ...	2016	26757805
melatonin: current status and future perspectives in plant science.	melatonin (n-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine) is a ubiquitous molecule with pleiotropic actions in different organisms. it performs many important functions in human, animals, and plants; these range from regulating circadian rhythms in animals to controlling senescence in plants. in this review, we summarize the available information regarding the presence of melatonin in different plant species, along with highlighting its biosynthesis and mechanisms of action. we also collected the available infor ...	2016	26793210
how fast is fast? eco-evolutionary dynamics and rates of change in populations and phenotypes.	it is increasingly recognized that evolution may occur in ecological time. it is not clear, however, how fast evolution - or phenotypic change more generally - may be in comparison with the associated ecology, or whether systems with fast ecological dynamics generally have relatively fast rates of phenotypic change. we developed a new dataset on standardized rates of change in population size and phenotypic traits for a wide range of species and taxonomic groups. we show that rates of change in ...	2016	26843940
missense mutation in disc1 c-terminal coiled-coil has gsk3β signaling and sex-dependent behavioral effects in mice.	disrupted-in-schizophrenia 1 (disc1) is a risk factor for schizophrenia and affective disorders. the full-length disc1 protein consists of an n-terminal 'head' domain and a c-terminal tail domain that contains several predicted coiled-coils, structural motifs involved in protein-protein interactions. to probe the in vivo effects of missense mutation of disc1's c-terminal tail, we tested mice carrying mutation d453g within a predicted α-helical coiled-coil region. we report that, relative to wild ...	2016	26728762
human expansion precipitates niche expansion for an opportunistic apex predator (puma concolor).	there is growing recognition that developed landscapes are important systems in which to promote ecological complexity and conservation. yet, little is known about processes regulating these novel ecosystems, or behaviours employed by species adapting to them. we evaluated the isotopic niche of an apex carnivore, the cougar (puma concolor), over broad spatiotemporal scales and in a region characterized by rapid landscape change. we detected a shift in resource use, from near complete specializat ...	2016	28008961
in silico identification of essential proteins in corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis based on protein-protein interaction networks.	corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis (cp) is a gram-positive bacterium that is classified into equi and ovis serovars. the serovar ovis is the etiological agent of caseous lymphadenitis, a chronic infection affecting sheep and goats, causing economic losses due to carcass condemnation and decreased production of meat, wool, and milk. current diagnosis or treatment protocols are not fully effective and, thus, require further research of cp pathogenesis.	2016	27814699
three thousand years of continuity in the maternal lineages of ancient sheep (ovis aries) in estonia.	although sheep (ovis aries) have been one of the most exploited domestic animals in estonia since the late bronze age, relatively little is known about their genetic history. here, we explore temporal changes in estonian sheep populations and their mitochondrial genetic diversity over the last 3000 years. we target a 558 base pair fragment of the mitochondrial hypervariable region in 115 ancient sheep from 71 sites in estonia (c. 1200 bc-ad 1900s), 19 ancient samples from latvia, russia, poland ...	2016	27732668
extreme wildlife declines and concurrent increase in livestock numbers in kenya: what are the causes?	there is growing evidence of escalating wildlife losses worldwide. extreme wildlife losses have recently been documented for large parts of africa, including western, central and eastern africa. here, we report extreme declines in wildlife and contemporaneous increase in livestock numbers in kenya rangelands between 1977 and 2016. our analysis uses systematic aerial monitoring survey data collected in rangelands that collectively cover 88% of kenya's land surface. our results show that wildlife ...	2016	27676077
genetic variation of goat interferon regulatory factor 3 gene and its implication in goat evolution.	the immune systems are fundamentally vital for evolution and survival of species; as such, selection patterns in innate immune loci are of special interest in molecular evolutionary research. the interferon regulatory factor (irf) gene family control many different aspects of the innate and adaptive immune responses in vertebrates. among these, irf3 is known to take active part in very many biological processes. we assembled and evaluated 1356 base pairs of the irf3 gene coding region in domesti ...	2016	27598391
prevalence and scanning electron microscopic identification of anoplocephalid cestodes among small ruminants in senegal.	this study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of anoplocephalid cestodes in sheep and goats in senegal. intestines of 462 sheep and 48 goats were examined; 47.4% of sheep and 6.2% of goats were infected. the species identified and their prevalence were, among sheep, avitellina centripunctata 38.7%, moniezia expansa 15.4%, stilesia globipunctata 16.7%, and thysaniezia ovilla 0.4%. among goats, they were m. expansa 6.2% and t. ovilla 2.1%. the prevalence of all species was not statisticall ...	2016	27597893
late pleistocene/early holocene migratory behavior of ungulates using isotopic analysis of tooth enamel and its effects on forager mobility.	zooarchaeological and paleoecological investigations have traditionally been unable to reconstruct the ethology of herd animals, which likely had a significant influence on the mobility and subsistence strategies of prehistoric humans. in this paper, we reconstruct the migratory behavior of red deer (cervus elaphus) and caprids at the pleistocene-holocene transition in the northeastern adriatic region using stable oxygen isotope analysis of tooth enamel. the data show a significant change in δ18 ...	2016	27275784
oxygen isotope in archaeological bioapatites from india: implications to climate change and decline of bronze age harappan civilization.	the antiquity and decline of the bronze age harappan civilization in the indus-ghaggar-hakra river valleys is an enigma in archaeology. weakening of the monsoon after ~5 ka bp (and droughts throughout the asia) is a strong contender for the harappan collapse, although controversy exists about the synchroneity of climate change and collapse of civilization. one reason for this controversy is lack of a continuous record of cultural levels and palaeomonsoon change in close proximity. we report a hi ...	2016	27222033
reasoning by exclusion in the kea (nestor notabilis).	reasoning by exclusion, i.e. the ability to understand that if there are only two possibilities and if it is not a, it must be b, has been a topic of great interest in recent comparative cognition research. many studies have investigated this ability, employing different methods, but rarely exploring concurrent decision processes underlying choice behaviour of non-human animals encountering inconsistent or incomplete information. here, we employed a novel training and test method in order to per ...	2016	27209174
evaluation of risk factors for peste des petits ruminants virus in sheep and goats at the wildlife-livestock interface in punjab province, pakistan.	peste des petits ruminants virus (pprv) is causing infectious disease with high morbidity and mortality rate in domestic and wild small ruminants of pakistan with valuable economical losses. the present study was carried out to investigate risk factors of pprv in domestic small ruminants which were present in the vicinity of wildlife parks. a total of 265 sera samples (27 wild ruminants and 238 domesticated small ruminants) from apparently healthy animals from two different wildlife parks were c ...	2016	27294134
the goat (capra hircus) mammary gland mitochondrial proteome: a study on the effect of weight loss using blue-native page and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis.	seasonal weight loss (swl) is the most important limitation to animal production in the tropical and mediterranean regions, conditioning producer's incomes and the nutritional status of rural communities. it is of importance to produce strategies to oppose adverse effects of swl. breeds that have evolved in harsh climates have acquired tolerance to swl through selection. most of the factors determining such ability are related to changes in biochemical pathways as affected by swl. in this study, ...	2016	27031334
an acute multispecies episode of sheep-associated malignant catarrhal fever in captive wild animals in an italian zoo.	in july 2011, in a zoological garden in rome, italy, malignant catarrhal fever (mcf), a fatal, systemic disease of artiodactyla, was suspected on the basis of neurological signs and gross lesions observed in a banteng, the first animal to die of this infection. an mcf type-specific pcr with subsequent sequencing of the pcr amplicon confirmed the aetiological agent as ovine herpesvirus-2 (ovhv-2). biological samples were collected from the dead animals for gross, histological, bacteriological, vi ...	2016	25598396
history and current status of peste des petits ruminants virus in tanzania.	peste des petits ruminants virus (pprv) causes the acute, highly contagious disease peste des petits ruminants (ppr) that affects small domestic and wild ruminants. ppr is of importance in the small livestock-keeping industry in tanzania, especially in rural areas as it is an important source of livelihood. morbidity and case fatality rate can be as high as 80-100% in naïve herds; however, in endemic areas, morbidity and case fatality range between 10 and 100% where previous immunity, age, and s ...	2016	27770516
rumen ciliate protozoa of domestic sheep (ovis aries) and goat (capra aegagrus hircus) in kyrgyzstan.	species composition and concentration of rumen ciliate protozoa were investigated in the rumen contents of 14 domestic sheep and 1 goat living in bishkek, kyrgyzstan. this is the first report on rumen ciliates from ruminants living in kyrgyzstan. in sheep 12 genera, 28 species and 12 morphotypes were detected, whereas in goat 8 genera, 12 species and 4 morphotypes were detected. the density of ciliates in sheep was (28.1 ± 20.0) × 10(4) cells ml(-1) and in goat was 37.0 × 10(4) cells ml(-1). das ...	2016	26850444
lungworm (nematoda: protostrongylidae) infection in wild and domestic ruminants from małopolska region of poland.	the conducted study has focused on domestic, as well as wild ruminant species. the post mortem examination was carried out on 68 animals, including three wild species: roe deer (capreolus capreolus) (25 indyviduals), red deer (cervus elaphus) (6), fallow deer (dama dama) (5) and two domestic: sheep (ovis aries) (14) and cattle (bos taurus) (18). some of the species have also been investigated in the field by the coproscopical analyses. the faecal samples from roe deer (27), fallow deer (20), red ...	2016	27262959
short communication: antiviral activity of porcine ifn-λ3 against porcine epidemic diarrhea virus in vitro.	a new family of ifns called type iii ifn or ifn-λ has been described, and shown to induce antiviral activity against several viruses in the cell culture. in this study, the molecular cloning, expression, and antiporcine epidemic diarrhea virus (pedv) activity of porcine ifn-λ3 (poifn-λ3) were reported. the full-length poifn-λ3 cdna sequence encoded 196 amino acids with a 23 amino acid signal peptide. sequence alignments showed that poifn-λ3 had an amino acid sequence similarity to ovis aries (78 ...	2016	27470155
spatial and temporal phylogeny of border disease virus in pyrenean chamois (rupicapra p. pyrenaica).	border disease virus (bdv) affects a wide range of ruminants worldwide, mainly domestic sheep and goat. since 2001 several outbreaks of disease associated to bdv infection have been described in pyrenean chamois (rupicapra pyrenaica pyrenaica) in spain, france and andorra. in order to reconstruct the most probable places of origin and pathways of dispersion of bdv among pyrenean chamois, a phylogenetic analysis of 95 bdv 5'untranslated sequences has been performed on chamois and domestic ungulat ...	2016	28033381
ticks threatening lineage of anatolian wild sheep (ovis gmelinii anatolica) and determination of their tick-borne pathogens.	we aimed to determine the ticks of the anatolian wild sheep and to define their tick-borne pathogens while molecularly studying their relationships with those of the domestic sheep. furthermore, another aim of this study is to investigate tick paralysis resulting in the death of the anatolian wild sheep. ticks and blood samples were collected from the wild sheep whilst tick samples were also collected from hares, guinea fowls, chickens, and a turkey living in the anatolian wild sheep breeding ar ...	2016	27692336
bartonella melophagi in blood of domestic sheep (ovis aries) and sheep keds (melophagus ovinus) from the southwestern us: cultures, genetic characterization, and ecological connections.	bartonella melophagi sp. nov. was isolated from domestic sheep blood and from sheep keds (melophagus ovinus) from the southwestern united states. the sequence analyses of the reference strain performed by six molecular markers consistently demonstrated that b. melophagi relates to but differ from other bartonella species isolated from domestic and wild ruminants. presence of 183 genes specific for b. melophagi, being absent in genomes of other bartonella species associated with ruminants also su ...	2016	27283855
fusobacterium necrophorum in north american bighorn sheep ( ovis canadensis ) pneumonia.	fusobacterium necrophorum has been detected in pneumonic bighorn sheep (bhs; ovis canadensis ) lungs, in addition to the aerobic respiratory pathogens mannheimia haemolytica , bibersteinia trehalosi , pasteurella multocida , and mycoplasma ovipneumoniae . similar to m. haemolytica , f. necrophorum produces a leukotoxin. leukotoxin-induced lysis and degranulation of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (pmns) and macrophages are responsible for acute inflammation and lung tissue damage characteristic of ...	2016	27224212
the role of individual traits and environmental factors for diet composition of sheep.	large herbivore consumption of forage is known to affect vegetation composition and thereby ecosystem functions. it is thus important to understand how diet composition arises as a mixture of individual variation in preferences and environmental drivers of availability, but few studies have quantified both. based on 10 years of data on diet composition by aid of microhistological analysis for sheep kept at high and low population density, we analysed how both individual traits (sex, age, body ma ...	2016	26731411
a reappraisal of successive negative contrast in two populations of domestic dogs.	when an anticipated food reward is unexpectedly reduced in quality or quantity, many mammals show a successive negative contrast (snc) effect, i.e. a reduction in instrumental or consummatory responses below the level shown by control animals that have only ever received the lower-value reward. snc effects are believed to reflect an aversive emotional state, caused by the discrepancy between the expected and the actual reward. furthermore, how animals respond to such discrepancy has been suggest ...	2016	26742929
potential foraging decisions by a desert ungulate to balance water and nutrient intake in a water-stressed environment.	arid climates have unpredictable precipitation patterns, and wildlife managers often provide supplemental water to help desert ungulates endure the hottest, driest periods. when surface water is unavailable, the only source of water for ungulates comes from the forage they consume, and they must make resourceful foraging decisions to meet their requirements. we compared two desert bighorn sheep (ovis canadensis nelsoni) populations in arizona, usa: a treatment population with supplemental water ...	2016	26894504
genetic characterization of a novel mutant of peste des petits ruminants virus isolated from capra ibex in china during 2015.	peste des petits ruminants virus (pprv) is the causative agent of peste des petits ruminants (ppr). the spread of ppr often causes severe economic losses. therefore, special attention should be paid to the surveillance of ppr emergence, spread, and geographic distribution. here we describe a novel mutant of pprv china/xjbz/2015 that was isolated from capra ibex in xinjiang province in china 2015. the sequence analysis and phylogenetic assessment indicate that china/xjbz/2015 belongs to lineage i ...	2016	26998489
characterization and comparative analyses of transcriptomes for in vivo and in vitro produced peri-implantation conceptuses and endometria from sheep.	an increasing number of reports indicate that in vitro fertilization (ivf) is highly associated with long‑term side effects on embryonic and postnatal development, and can sometimes result in embryonic implant failure. while high‑throughput gene expression analysis has been used to explore the mechanisms underlying ivf-induced side effects on embryonic development, little is known about the effects of ivf on conceptus-endometrial interactions during the peri-implantation period. using sheep as a ...	2016	26946921
a further cost for the sicker sex? evidence for male-biased parasite-induced vulnerability to predation.	males are typically the sicker sex. data from multiple taxa indicate that they are more likely to be infected with parasites, and are less "tolerant," or less able to mitigate the fitness costs of a given infection, than females. one cost of infection for many animals is an increased probability of being captured by a predator. a clear, hitherto untested, prediction is therefore that this parasite-induced vulnerability to predation is more pronounced among males than females. we tested this pred ...	2016	27066240
zika virus, vectors, reservoirs, amplifying hosts, and their potential to spread worldwide: what we know and what we should investigate urgently.	the widespread epidemic of zika virus infection in south and central america and the caribbean in 2015, along with the increased incidence of microcephaly in fetuses born to mothers infected with zika virus and the potential for worldwide spread, indicate the need to review the current literature regarding vectors, reservoirs, and amplification hosts.	2016	27208633
transcriptome-wide comparative analysis of microrna profiles in the telogen skins of liaoning cashmere goats (capra hircus) and fine-wool sheep (ovis aries) by solexa deep sequencing.	compare the microrna (mirna) trancriptomes of goat and sheep skin using solexa sequencing to understand the development of skin and hair follicles (hfs). mirna expression patterns vary in the two small rna libraries from goat (g library) and sheep (s library) telogen skin samples. analysis of the size distribution of 25.32 million clean reads revealed that most are 21-23 nucleotides. a total of 1910 known mirnas and 2261 novel mature mirnas were identified in this study. among them, 107 novel mi ...	2016	27754706
a structure-function analysis of the left ventricle.	this study presents a structure-function analysis of the mammalian left ventricle and examines the performance of the cardiac capillary network, mitochondria, and myofibrils at rest and during simulated heavy exercise. left ventricular external mechanical work rate was calculated from cardiac output and systemic mean arterial blood pressure in resting sheep (ovis aries; n = 4) and goats (capra hircus; n = 4) under mild sedation, followed by perfusion-fixation of the left ventricle and quantifica ...	2016	27586835
convergent evolution of rumen microbiomes in high-altitude mammals.	studies of genetic adaptation, a central focus of evolutionary biology, most often focus on the host's genome and only rarely on its co-evolved microbiome. the qinghai-tibetan plateau (qtp) offers one of the most extreme environments for the survival of human and other mammalian species. yaks (bos grunniens) and tibetan sheep (t-sheep) (ovis aries) have adaptations for living in this harsh high-altitude environment, where nomadic tibetan people keep them primarily for food and livelihood [1]. ad ...	2016	27321997
maximum penalized likelihood estimation in semiparametric mark-recapture-recovery models.	we discuss the semiparametric modeling of mark-recapture-recovery data where the temporal and/or individual variation of model parameters is explained via covariates. typically, in such analyses a fixed (or mixed) effects parametric model is specified for the relationship between the model parameters and the covariates of interest. in this paper, we discuss the modeling of the relationship via the use of penalized splines, to allow for considerably more flexible functional forms. corresponding m ...	2016	26289495
purification of ovine respiratory complex i results in a highly active and stable preparation.	nadh-ubiquinone oxidoreductase (complex i) is the largest (∼1 mda) and the least characterized complex of the mitochondrial electron transport chain. because of the ease of sample availability, previous work has focused almost exclusively on bovine complex i. however, only medium resolution structural analyses of this complex have been reported. working with other mammalian complex i homologues is a potential approach for overcoming these limitations. due to the inherent difficulty of expressing ...	2016	27672209
rapid screening of bovine milk oligosaccharides in a whey permeate product and domestic animal milks by accurate mass database and tandem mass spectral library.	a bovine milk oligosaccharide (bmo) library, prepared from cow colostrum, with 34 structures was generated and used to rapidly screen oligosaccharides in domestic animal milks and a whey permeate powder. the novel library was entered into a custom personal compound database and library (pcdl) and included accurate mass, retention time, and tandem mass spectra. oligosaccharides in minute-sized samples were separated using nanoliquid chromatography (nanolc) coupled to a high resolution and sensiti ...	2016	27428379
polymorphism analysis of prion protein gene in 11 pakistani goat breeds.	the association between caprine prp gene polymorphisms and its susceptibility to scrapie has been investigated in current years. as the orf of the prp gene is extremely erratic in different breeds of goats, we studied the prp gene polymorphisms in 80 goats which belong to 11 pakistani indigenous goat breeds from all provinces of pakistan. a total of 6 distinct polymorphic sites (one novel) with amino acid substitutions were identified in the prp gene which includes 126 (a -> g), 304 (g -> t), 37 ...	2016	27388702
cloning and sequence analysis of wild argali splunc1 cdna.	the complete coding sequence of wild argali splunc1 cdna was generated by rapid amplification of cdna ends. the splunc1 cdna was 1076 bp with an open reading frame of 768 bp, which encoded a 26.49 kda protein composed of 255 amino acids. its amino acid sequence shared 98.4%, 96.9%, 94.5%, 90.2%, 80.8 %, 78.4%, 78.3%, 72.5%, 72.3%, 68.8% identity with those of splunc1 cdna from ovis aries (accession no. np_001288334.1), capra hircus (accession no. xp_005688516.1), pantholops hodgsonii (accession ...	2016	27620892
identification of latent neosporosis in sheep in tehran, iran by polymerase chain reaction using primers specific for the <i>nc-5</i> gene.	little is known about latent infection and molecular characterisation of neospora caninum in sheep (ovis aries). in this study, 330 sheep samples (180 hearts and 150 brains) were analysed for n. caninum dna by nested polymerase chain reaction (pcr) targeting the nc-5 gene. neospora caninum dna was detected in 3.9% (13/330) of sheep samples. the parasite's dna was detected in 6.7% of heart samples (12/180) and 0.7% (1/150) of brain samples. no clinical signs were recorded from infected or uninfec ...	2016	27543149
integrating immune mechanisms to model nematode worm burden: an example in sheep.	gastrointestinal nematodes represent important sources of economic losses in farmed ruminants, and the increasing frequency of anthelmintic resistance requires an increased ability to explore alternative strategies. theoretical approaches at the crossroads of immunology and epidemiology are valuable tools in that context. in the case of teladorsagia circumcincta in sheep, the immunological mechanisms important for resistance are increasingly well-characterized. however, despite the existence of ...	2016	26283186
seroprevalence of toxoplasma gondii infection and risk factors in domestic sheep in henan province, central china.	sheep are highly susceptible to infections with toxoplasma gondii and play a major role in the transmission of toxoplasmosis to humans. in the present study, 779 serum samples from sheep were collected from henan province, central china from march 2015 to may 2016, and antibodies to t. gondii were detected by modified agglutination test (mat). the overall seroprevalence of t. gondii in sheep was 12.71% (99/779). the risk factors significantly associated with t. gondii seroprevalence were the geo ...	2016	27882868
molecular cloning and mrna expression analysis of sheep myl3 and myl4 genes.	using longissimus dorsi muscles of dorper sheep as the experimental materials, the complete cdnas of ovine myl3 (myosin light chain 3) and myl4 (myosin light chain 4) genes were cloned using rt-pcr, 5' race and 3' race. we obtained 925-bp and 869-bp full-length cdnas and submitted their sequences to genbank as accession numbers of kj710703 and kj768855, respectively. the cdnas contained 600-bp and 582-bp open reading frames (orfs) and encoded proteins comprising 199 and 193 amino acid residues, ...	2016	26656596
computational prediction of secretion systems and secretomes of brucella: identification of novel type iv effectors and their interaction with the host.	brucella spp. are facultative intracellular pathogens that cause brucellosis in various mammals including humans. brucella survive inside the host cells by forming vacuoles and subverting host defence systems. this study was aimed to predict the secretion systems and the secretomes of brucella spp. from 39 complete genome sequences available in the databases. furthermore, an attempt was made to identify the type iv secretion effectors and their interactions with host proteins. we predicted the s ...	2016	26575364
bioinformatic analysis based on the complete coding region of the mstn gene within and among different species.	myostatin, encoded by the mstn gene (previously gdf8), is a member of the transforming growth factor-β superfamily, which normally acts to limit skeletal muscle mass by regulating the number and growth of muscle fibers. in this study, a total of 84 myostatin gene sequences with known complete coding regions (cds) and corresponding amino acid sequences were analyzed from 17 species, and differentiation within and among species was studied using comparative genomics and bioinformatics. characteris ...	2016	27173201
human bloodstains on bone artefacts: an sem intra- and inter-sample comparative study using ratite bird tibiotarsus.	apart from their forensic significance in crime investigation, human bloodstains have an anthropological interest due to their occurrence on certain traditional weapons and ritual objects. previously, a guiding study of erythrocytes in experimental samples including domestic sheep (ovis aries) tibia was carried out using a scanning electron microscope (sem). here, a comparative sem study to reveal the potential differences in bloodstain surface morphology as a function of intra-sample (smear reg ...	2016	27661441
the development of a hexaplex-conventional pcr for identification of six animal and plant species in foodstuffs.	a hexaplex-conventional pcr assay was developed for identification of five meat and one plant species origins in foodstuffs simultaneously. the method merges the use of horse (equus caballus), soybean (glycine max), sheep (ovis aries), poultry (meleagris meleagris), pork (sus scrofa), and cow (bos taurus) specific primers that amplify fragments (horse; 85 bp, soybean; 100 bp, sheep; 119 bp, poultry; 183 bp, pork; 212 bp and cow; 271 bp) of the mitochondrial cyt b, lectin, 12s rrna, 12s rrna, atp ...	2016	26304406
the sheep as a model for healing studies after partial nephrectomy.	the pig has been considered the best model for renal surgery. however, recent research has demonstrated that the kidney of pigs heals differently from that of humans. the objective of this study was to evaluate sheep as an alternative animal model for studying collecting system healing after laparoscopic partial nephrectomy.	2016	26253456
adipose tissue macrophages in non-rodent mammals: a comparative study.	the stromal vascular fraction (svf) of adipose tissue in rodents and primates contains mesenchymal stem cells and immune cells. svf cells have complex metabolic, immune and endocrine functions with biomedical impact. however, in other mammals, the amount of data on svf stem cells is negligible and whether the svf hosts immune cells is unknown. in this study, we show that the svf is rich in immune cells, with a dominance of adipose tissue macrophages (atms) in cattle (bos primigenius taurus), dom ...	2016	26239911
ticks (acari: ixodidae) infesting cattle and some other domestic and wild hosts on the french mediterranean island of corsica.	corsica is a mountainous french island in the north-western mediterranean presenting a large diversity of natural environments where many interactions between domestic animals and wild fauna occur. despite a favourable context for ticks and tick-borne diseases (tbds), the tick fauna of corsica has not systematically been investigated.	2016	27842608
the influence of red deer space use on the distribution of ixodes ricinus ticks in the landscape.	many wingless ectoparasites have a limited capacity for active movement and are therefore primarily dependent on hitchhiking on their hosts for transportation. the distribution of the tick ixodes ricinus is expected to depend mainly on transportation by hosts and tick subsequent survival in areas where they drop off. in europe, the most important hosts of adult female i. ricinus are cervids. the extensive space use of large hosts provides a much larger dispersal potential for i. ricinus than tha ...	2016	27737695
contrasting emergence of lyme disease across ecosystems.	global environmental changes are causing lyme disease to emerge in europe. the life cycle of ixodes ricinus, the tick vector of lyme disease, involves an ontogenetic niche shift, from the larval and nymphal stages utilizing a wide range of hosts, picking up the pathogens causing lyme disease from small vertebrates, to the adult stage depending on larger (non-transmission) hosts, typically deer. because of this complexity the role of different host species for emergence of lyme disease remains co ...	2016	27306947
host-feeding patterns of mosquito species in germany.	mosquito-borne pathogens are of growing importance in many countries of europe including germany. at the same time, the transmission cycles of most mosquito-borne pathogens (e.g. viruses or filarial parasites) are not completely understood. there is especially a lack of knowledge about the vector capacity of the different mosquito species, which is strongly influenced by their host-feeding patterns. while this kind of information is important to identify the relevant vector species, e.g. to dire ...	2016	27259984
dermacentor reticulatus: a vector on the rise.	dermacentor reticulatus is a hard tick species with extraordinary biological features. it has a high reproduction rate, a rapid developmental cycle, and is also able to overcome years of unfavourable conditions. dermacentor reticulatus can survive under water for several months and is cold-hardy even compared to other tick species. it has a wide host range: over 60 different wild and domesticated hosts are known for the three active developmental stages. its high adaptiveness gives an edge to th ...	2016	27251148
exposure to viral and bacterial pathogens among soay sheep (ovis aries) of the st kilda archipelago.	we assessed evidence of exposure to viruses and bacteria in an unmanaged and long-isolated population of soay sheep (ovis aries) inhabiting hirta, in the st kilda archipelago, 65 km west of benbecula in the outer hebrides of scotland. the sheep harbour many metazoan and protozoan parasites but their exposure to viral and bacterial pathogens is unknown. we tested for herpes viral dna in leucocytes and found that 21 of 42 tested sheep were infected with ovine herpesvirus 2 (ohv-2). we also tested ...	2016	26829883
structure and functional diversity of gcn5-related n-acetyltransferases (gnat).	general control non-repressible 5 (gcn5)-related n-acetyltransferases (gnat) catalyze the transfer of an acyl moiety from acyl coenzyme a (acyl-coa) to a diverse group of substrates and are widely distributed in all domains of life. this review of the currently available data acquired on gnat enzymes by a combination of structural, mutagenesis and kinetic methods summarizes the key similarities and differences between several distinctly different families within the gnat superfamily, with an emp ...	2016	27367672
drug target identification and prioritization for treatment of ovine foot rot: an in silico approach.	ovine foot rot is an infection of the feet of sheep, mainly caused by dichelobacter nodosus. in its virulent form, it is highly contagious and debilitating, causing significant losses in the form of decline in wool growth and quality and poor fertility. current methods of treatment are ineffective in complete eradication. effective antibiotic treatment of foot rot is hence necessary to ensure better outcomes during control phases by reduction in culling count and the possibility of carriers of t ...	2016	27379247
time-course study of the transcriptome of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (pbmcs) from sheep infected with fasciola hepatica.	fasciola hepatica is a parasitic trematode that infects a wide range of mammalian hosts, including livestock and humans, in temperate and tropical regions globally. this trematode causes the disease fascioliasis, which consists of an acute phase (≤ 12 weeks) during which juvenile parasites migrate through the host liver tissues, and a chronic phase (> 12 weeks) following the establishment of adult parasites in the liver bile ducts. few studies have explored the progression of the host response o ...	2016	27438474
experimental challenge of atlantic cod (gadus morhua) with a brucella pinnipedialis strain from hooded seal (cystophora cristata).	pathology has not been observed in true seals infected with brucella pinnipedialis. a lack of intracellular survival and multiplication of b. pinnipedialis in hooded seal (cystophora cristata) macrophages in vitro indicates a lack of chronic infection in hooded seals. both epidemiology and bacteriological patterns in the hooded seal point to a transient infection of environmental origin, possibly through the food chain. to analyse the potential role of fish in the transmission of b. pinnipediali ...	2016	27415626
the ancient evolutionary history of polyomaviruses.	polyomaviruses are a family of dna tumor viruses that are known to infect mammals and birds. to investigate the deeper evolutionary history of the family, we used a combination of viral metagenomics, bioinformatics, and structural modeling approaches to identify and characterize polyomavirus sequences associated with fish and arthropods. analyses drawing upon the divergent new sequences indicate that polyomaviruses have been gradually co-evolving with their animal hosts for at least half a billi ...	2016	27093155
force per cross-sectional area from molecules to muscles: a general property of biological motors.	we propose to formally extend the notion of specific tension, i.e. force per cross-sectional area-classically used for muscles, to quantify forces in molecular motors exerting various biological functions. in doing so, we review and compare the maximum tensions exerted by about 265 biological motors operated by about 150 species of different taxonomic groups. the motors considered range from single molecules and motile appendages of microorganisms to whole muscles of large animals. we show that ...	2016	27493785
host associations of mosquitoes at eastern equine encephalitis virus foci in connecticut, usa.	eastern equine encephalitis virus (eeev) is a highly pathogenic mosquito-borne arbovirus, with active transmission foci in freshwater hardwood swamps in eastern north america, where enzootic transmission is maintained between the ornithophilic mosquito, culiseta melanura, and wild passerine birds. the role of other locally abundant mosquito species in virus transmission and their associations with vertebrate hosts as sources of blood meals within these foci are largely unknown but are of importa ...	2016	27577939
animals in the zika virus life cycle: what to expect from megadiverse latin american countries.	zika virus (zikv) was first isolated in 1947 in primates in uganda, west africa. the virus remained confined to the equatorial regions of africa and asia, cycling between infecting monkeys, arboreal mosquitoes, and occasionally humans. the zikv asiatic strain was probably introduced into brazil in or around late 2013. presently, zikv is in contact with the rich biodiversity in all brazilian biomes, bordering on other latin american countries. infections in brazilian primates have been reported r ...	2016	28005902
spatio-temporal trends and risk factors affecting west nile virus and related flavivirus exposure in spanish wild ruminants.	during the last decade, the spread of many flaviviruses (genus flavivirus) has been reported, representing an emerging threat for both animal and human health. to further study utility of wild ruminant samples in west nile virus (wnv) surveillance, we assessed spatio-temporal trends and factors associated with wnv and cross-reacting flaviviruses exposure, particularly usutu virus (usuv) and meaban virus (mbv), in wild ruminants in spain. serum samples from 4693 wild ruminants, including 3073 fre ...	2016	27829427
comparison of rift valley fever virus replication in north american livestock and wildlife cell lines.	rift valley fever virus (rvfv) causes disease outbreaks across africa and the arabian peninsula, resulting in high morbidity and mortality among young domestic livestock, frequent abortions in pregnant animals, and potentially severe or fatal disease in humans. the possibility of rvfv spreading to the united states or other countries worldwide is of significant concern to animal and public health, livestock production, and trade. the mechanism for persistence of rvfv during inter-epidemic period ...	2015	26175725
unraveling host-vector-arbovirus interactions by two-gene high resolution melting mosquito bloodmeal analysis in a kenyan wildlife-livestock interface.	the blood-feeding patterns of mosquitoes are directly linked to the spread of pathogens that they transmit. efficient identification of arthropod vector bloodmeal hosts can identify the diversity of vertebrate species potentially involved in disease transmission cycles. while molecular bloodmeal analyses rely on sequencing of cytochrome b (cyt b) or cytochrome oxidase 1 gene pcr products, recently developed bloodmeal host identification based on high resolution melting (hrm) analyses of cyt b pc ...	2015	26230507
insights into the recent emergence and expansion of eastern equine encephalitis virus in a new focus in the northern new england usa.	eastern equine encephalomyelitis virus (eeev) causes a highly pathogenic zoonosis that circulates in an enzootic cycle involving the ornithophagic mosquito, culiseta melanura, and wild passerine birds in freshwater hardwood swamps in the northeastern u.s. epidemic/epizootic transmission to humans/equines typically occurs towards the end of the transmission season and is generally assumed to be mediated by locally abundant and contiguous mammalophagic "bridge vector" mosquitoes.	2015	26453283
the recent evolution of a maternally-inherited endosymbiont of ticks led to the emergence of the q fever pathogen, coxiella burnetii.	q fever is a highly infectious disease with a worldwide distribution. its causative agent, the intracellular bacterium coxiella burnetii, infects a variety of vertebrate species, including humans. its evolutionary origin remains almost entirely unknown and uncertainty persists regarding the identity and lifestyle of its ancestors. a few tick species were recently found to harbor maternally-inherited coxiella-like organisms engaged in symbiotic interactions, but their relationships to the q fever ...	2015	25978383
the abcedcba-encoded abc transporter and the virb operon-encoded type iv secretion system of brucella ovis are critical for intracellular trafficking and survival in ovine monocyte-derived macrophages.	brucella ovis infection is associated with epididymitis, orchitis and infertility in rams. most of the information available on b. ovis and host cell interaction has been generated using murine macrophages or epithelial cell lines, but the interaction between b. ovis and primary ovine macrophages has not been studied. the aim of this study was to evaluate the role of the b. ovis abcedcba-encoded abc transporter and the virb operon-encoded type iv secretion system (t4ss) during intracellular surv ...	2015	26366863
biological properties of extracellular vesicles and their physiological functions.	in the past decade, extracellular vesicles (evs) have been recognized as potent vehicles of intercellular communication, both in prokaryotes and eukaryotes. this is due to their capacity to transfer proteins, lipids and nucleic acids, thereby influencing various physiological and pathological functions of both recipient and parent cells. while intensive investigation has targeted the role of evs in different pathological processes, for example, in cancer and autoimmune diseases, the ev-mediated ...	2015	25979354
de novo synthesis of a sunscreen compound in vertebrates.	ultraviolet-protective compounds, such as mycosporine-like amino acids (maas) and related gadusols produced by some bacteria, fungi, algae, and marine invertebrates, are critical for the survival of reef-building corals and other marine organisms exposed to high-solar irradiance. these compounds have also been found in marine fish, where their accumulation is thought to be of dietary or symbiont origin. in this study, we report the unexpected discovery that fish can synthesize gadusol de novo an ...	2015	25965179
how genome complexity can explain the difficulty of aligning reads to genomes.	although it is frequently observed that aligning short reads to genomes becomes harder if they contain complex repeat patterns, there has not been much effort to quantify the relationship between complexity of genomes and difficulty of short-read alignment. existing measures of sequence complexity seem unsuitable for the understanding and quantification of this relationship.	2015	26678826
aquaporin10 is a pseudogene in cattle and their relatives.	although aqp10 is mainly expressed in the human gi tract, its physiological role is unclear. in fact, we previously reported that mouse aqp10 is a pseudogene. it is possible that aqp10 is also a pseudogene in other animals.	2015	29124130