Publications

taxonomy and phylogeny of trichuris globulosa von linstow, 1901 from camels. a review of trichuris species parasitizing herbivorous.	at the present work, we carried out a morph-biometrical and molecular study of trichuris species isolated from camelus dromedarius from iran and from ovis aries from south africa comparatively with other species of trichuris from different herbivorous hosts and geographical regions. the population from camels from iran was identified as trichuris globulosa. two different morphometrically populations of trichuris sp. from sheep from south africa were identified: trichuris ovis and trichuris skrja ...	2015	26070887
experimental infection by trypanosoma evansi in sheep: occurrence of transplacental transmission and mice infection by parasite present in the colostrum and milk of infected ewes.	the aims of this study were to evaluate vertical transmission of trypanosoma evansi in sheep experimentally infected, in addition to the mammary transmission by colostrum or milk of these infected sheep to mice. three pregnant sheep were used: one uninfected, four months pregnant (sheep a); and two (sheep b and c) infected intravenously by t. evansi trypomastigotes (4.6×10(6) per animal) on the third (sheep c) and fourth (sheep b) month of pregnancy. both infected sheep developed low and oscilla ...	2015	26223153
cloning, expression, purification and crystallographic studies of galectin-11 from domestic sheep (ovis aries).	galectins are an evolutionarily conserved family of proteins that translate glycan recognition into cellular effects. galectin-11 is a unique member of the galectin family that is only expressed in ruminants such as sheep, goat and cattle and that plays a critical role in several important biological processes, such as reproduction and parasite-mediated innate immune responses. currently, these two areas are of major importance for the sustainability of ruminant livestock production. despite the ...	2015	26249688
beta-globin gene evolution in the ruminants: evidence for an ancient origin of sheep haplotype b.	domestic sheep (ovis aries) can be divided into two groups with significantly different responses to hypoxic environments, determined by two allelic beta-globin haplotypes. haplotype a is very similar to the goat beta-globin locus, whereas haplotype b has a deletion spanning four globin genes, including beta-c globin, which encodes a globin with high oxygen affinity. we surveyed the beta-globin locus using resequencing data from 70 domestic sheep from 42 worldwide breeds and three ovis canadensi ...	2015	26096044
molecular cloning and expression analysis of the stat1 gene in the water buffalo (bubalus bubalis).	signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (stat1) is a critical component of the transcription factor complex in the interferon (ifn) signaling pathways. of the seven stat isoforms, stat1 is a key mediator of type i and type iii ifn signaling, but limited information is available for the stat genes in the water buffalo. here, we amplified and identified the complete coding sequence (cds) of the buffalo stat1 gene by using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (rt-pcr). sequenc ...	2015	25336386
variation of meiotic recombination rates and mlh1 foci distribution in spermatocytes of cattle, sheep and goats.	despite similar genome sizes, a great variability in recombination rates is observed in mammals. we used antibodies against sycp3, mlh1 and centromeres to compare crossover frequency, position along chromosome arms and the effect of crossover interference in spermatocytes of 4 species from the family bovidae (bos taurus, 2n = 60, tribe bovini; ovis aries, 2n = 54, capra hircus, 2n = 60 and ammotragus lervia, 2n = 58, tribe caprini). despite significant individual variability, our results also sh ...	2015	26406935
differentiated evolutionary relationships among chordates from comparative alignments of multiple sequences of myod and myog myogenic regulatory factors.	myod and myog are transcription factors that have essential roles in myogenic lineage determination and muscle differentiation. the purpose of this study was to compare multiple amino acid sequences of myogenic regulatory proteins to infer evolutionary relationships among chordates. protein sequences from mus musculus (p10085 and p12979), human homo sapiens (p15172 and p15173), bovine bos taurus (q7ys82 and q7ys81), wild pig sus scrofa (p49811 and p49812), quail coturnix coturnix (p21572 and p34 ...	2015	26505406
molecular cloning and evolutionary analysis of captive forest musk deer bitter taste receptor gene t2r16.	sensing bitter tastes is crucial for most animals because it can prevent them from ingesting harmful food. this process is mainly mediated by the bitter taste receptors (t2r) that are largely expressed in the taste buds. previous studies have identified some t2r gene repertoires. marked variation in repertoire size has been noted among species. however, research on t2rs is still limited and the mechanisms underlying the evolution of vertebrate t2rs remain poorly understood. in the present study, ...	2015	26662411
cloning, molecular characterization, and expression pattern of fgf5 in cashmere goat (capra hircus).	fibroblast growth factor 5 (fgf5) is a secreted signaling protein that belongs to the fgf family, and was found to be associated with hair growth in humans and other animals. the inner mongolia cashmere goat (capra hircus) is a goat breed that provides superior cashmere; this breed was formed by spontaneous mutation in china. here, we report the cloning, molecular characterization, and expression pattern of the cashmere goat fgf5. the cloned fgf5 cdna was 813 base pairs (km596772), including an ...	2015	26400346
fatal injury caused by a ram (ovis aries) attack.	animal-inflicted injuries to humans are a major public health problem around the world resulting in great morbidity, money loss, and mortality. they are related to wild and domestic animals alike. animals can cause injuries by various mechanisms--biting, stinging, crushing, goring, stomping, butting, kicking, pecking, etc. we present a case of a ram's attack with fatal consequences. a 4-year-old, 120 kg jezersko-solčava breed ram with prior history of aggressive behavior inflicted multiple injur ...	2015	26258770
direct effect of chronic hypoxia in suppressing large conductance ca(2+)-activated k(+) channel activity in ovine uterine arteries via increasing oxidative stress.	chronic hypoxia has a direct effect in down-regulating the bkca channel β1 subunit and inhibiting the bkca channel activity in uterine arteries of pregnant sheep. oxidative stress plays a causal role in hypoxia-mediated suppression of bkca channel function. the steroid hormone-induced effect on bkca channels is a target of hypoxia-mediated oxidative stress. inhibition of oxidative stress ameliorates the adverse effect of hypoxia both ex vivo and in vivo in pregnant sheep exposed to long-term hig ...	2015	26613808
characterization and comparative analysis of the milk transcriptome in two dairy sheep breeds using rna sequencing.	this study presents a dynamic characterization of the sheep milk transcriptome aiming at achieving a better understanding of the sheep lactating mammary gland. transcriptome sequencing (rna-seq) was performed on total rna extracted from milk somatic cells from ewes on days 10, 50, 120 and 150 after lambing. the experiment was performed in spanish churra and assaf breeds, which differ in their milk production traits. nearly 67% of the annotated genes in the reference genome (oar_v3.1) were expres ...	2015	26677795
a unique gcn5-related glucosamine n-acetyltransferase region exist in the fungal multi-domain glycoside hydrolase family 3 β-n-acetylglucosaminidase.	glycoside hydrolase (gh) family 3 β-n-acetylglucosaminidases widely exist in the filamentous fungi, which may play a key role in chitin metabolism of fungi. a multi-domain gh family 3 β-n-acetylglucosaminidase from rhizomucor miehei (rmnag), exhibiting a potential n-acetyltransferase region, has been recently reported to show great potential in industrial applications. in this study, the crystal structure of rmnag was determined at 2.80 å resolution. the three-dimensional structure of rmnag show ...	2015	26669854
molecular evolution of aralkylamine n-acetyltransferase in fish: a genomic survey.	all living organisms synchronize biological functions with environmental changes; melatonin plays a vital role in regulating daily and seasonal variations. due to rhythmic activity of the timezyme aralkylamine n-acetyltransferase (aanat), the blood level of melatonin increases at night and decreases during daytime. whereas other vertebrates have a single form of aanat, bony fishes possess various isoforms of aanat genes, though the reasons are still unclear. here, we have taken advantage of mult ...	2015	26729109
effect of inorganic dietary selenium supplementation on selenoprotein and lipid metabolism gene expression patterns in liver and loin muscle of growing lambs.	effect of selenium (se) supplementation on the selenoprotein and lipid metabolism gene expression patterns in ruminants, especially in lambs is not yet fully understood. the aim of study was to evaluate the effect of se supplementation on the messenger rna (mrna) expression patterns of selected selenoproteins and genes related to lipid metabolism in growing lambs. the experiment was conducted on 48 polish merino lambs divided into two groups (n = 24): control (c)-lambs fed with a basal diet (bd) ...	2015	26701332
maternal oxytocin is linked to close mother-infant proximity in grey seals (halichoerus grypus).	maternal behaviour is a crucial component of reproduction in all mammals; however the quality of care that mothers give to infants can vary greatly. it is vital to document variation in maternal behaviour caused by the physiological processes controlling its expression. this underlying physiology should be conserved throughout reproductive events and should be replicated across all individuals of a species; therefore, any correlates to maternal care quality may be present across many individuals ...	2015	26698856
full-length cdna cloning, molecular characterization and differential expression analysis of peroxiredoxin 6 from ovis aries.	peroxiredoxin 6 (prdx6), an important antioxidant enzyme that can eliminate reactive oxygen species (ros) to maintain homeostasis, is a bifunctional protein that possesses the activities of both glutathione peroxidase and phospholipase a2. in this study, a novel full-length prdx6 cdna (oaprdx6) was cloned from sheep (ovis aries) using rapid amplification of cdna ends (race). the full-length cdna of oaprdx6 was 1753bp containing a 5'-untranslated region (utr) of 93bp, a 3'-utr of 985bp with a pol ...	2015	25712755
outbreak of severe foot rot associated with benign dichelobacter nodosus in an alpine ibex colony in the swiss prealps.	an outbreak of foot rot occurred in the ibex colony "vanil noir" in switzerland from may to december 2014. this article describes field observations and the analyses carried out on the limbs of 3 animals submitted for postmortem examination. disease signs observed in the field included lameness, poor body condition and overgrown hooves. macroscopic examination of selected limbs revealed severe lesions in all of them, including interdigital inflammation with ulceration and malodorous exudation. h ...	2015	26753343
molecular cloning, expression and characterization of programmed cell death 10 from sheep (ovis aries).	programmed cell death 10 (pdcd10) is a highly conserved adaptor protein. its mutations result in cerebral cavernous malformations (ccms). in this study, pdcd10 cdna from the buffy coat of small tail han sheep (ovis aries) was cloned from a suppression subtractive hybridization cdna library, named oapdcd10. the full-length cdna of oapdcd10 was 1343bp with a 639bp open reading frame (orf) encoding 212 amino acid residues. tissue distribution of oapdcd10 mrna determined that it was ubiquitously exp ...	2015	25541025
bluetongue in europe and the role of wildlife in the epidemiology of disease.	the article reviews a current bluetongue (bt) epidemiological situation in europe, bt restricted zones and the role of wild ungulates as a reservoir for bluetongue virus (btv) and its transmission. bt has been eradicated from central and northern europe, however it is still circulating in some regions of southern and south-eastern europe. according to the recent information of the directoriate general for health and consumer affairs (dg sanco) disease caused by btv1 was spreading at the beginnin ...	2015	26172200
the placenta shed from goats with classical scrapie is infectious to goat kids and lambs.	the placenta of domestic sheep plays a key role in horizontal transmission of classical scrapie. domestic goats are frequently raised with sheep and are susceptible to classical scrapie, yet potential routes of transmission from goats to sheep are not fully defined. sparse accumulation of disease-associated prion protein in cotyledons casts doubt about the role of the goat's placenta. thus, relevant to mixed-herd management and scrapie-eradication efforts worldwide, we determined if the goat's p ...	2015	25888622
epidemiology and molecular characterization of cryptosporidium spp. in humans, wild primates, and domesticated animals in the greater gombe ecosystem, tanzania.	cryptosporidium is an important zoonotic parasite globally. few studies have examined the ecology and epidemiology of this pathogen in rural tropical systems characterized by high rates of overlap among humans, domesticated animals, and wildlife. we investigated risk factors for cryptosporidium infection and assessed cross-species transmission potential among people, non-human primates, and domestic animals in the gombe ecosystem, kigoma district, tanzania. a cross-sectional survey was designed ...	2015	25700265
assessing the potential threat landscape of a proposed reintroduction site for carnivores.	this study provides a framework to assess the feasibility of reintroducing carnivores into an area, using african wild dogs (lycaon pictus) as an example. the great fish river nature reserve in the eastern cape province, south africa, has been identified as a potential reserve to reintroduce wild dogs, and we applied this framework to provide a threat assessment of the surrounding area to determine potential levels of human-wildlife conflict. although 56% of neighbouring landowners and local com ...	2015	25822468
validation of pde9a gene identified in gwas showing strong association with milk production traits in chinese holstein.	phosphodiesterase9a (pde9a) is a cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cgmp)-specific enzyme widely expressed among the tissues, which is important in activating cgmp-dependent signaling pathways. in our previous genome-wide association study, a single nucleotide polymorphism (snp) (bta-55340-no-rs(b)) located in the intron 14 of pde9a, was found to be significantly associated with protein yield. in addition, we found that pde9a was highly expressed in mammary gland by analyzing its mrna expression in ...	2015	26556348
mechanism of enhanced antiosteoporosis effect of circinal-icaritin by self-assembled nanomicelles in vivo with suet oil and sodium deoxycholate.	circinal-icaritin (cit), one new active aglycone of epimedium, can exert a beneficial effect on osteoporotic bone. however, its low bioavailability limits its clinical efficacy for the treatment of osteoporosis.	2015	25848257
inference by exclusion in goffin cockatoos (cacatua goffini).	inference by exclusion, the ability to base choices on the systematic exclusion of alternatives, has been studied in many nonhuman species over the past decade. however, the majority of methodologies employed so far are hard to integrate into a comparative framework as they rarely use controls for the effect of neophilia. here, we present an improved approach that takes neophilia into account, using an abstract two-choice task on a touch screen, which is equally feasible for a large variety of s ...	2015	26244692
application of overall dynamic body acceleration as a proxy for estimating the energy expenditure of grazing farm animals: relationship with heart rate.	estimating the energy expenditure of farm animals at pasture is important for efficient animal management. in recent years, an alternative technique for estimating energy expenditure by measuring body acceleration has been widely performed in wildlife and human studies, but the availability of the technique in farm animals has not yet been examined. in the present study, we tested the potential use of an acceleration index, overall dynamic body acceleration (odba), as a new proxy for estimating ...	2015	26030931
comparative pharmacokinetics and bioavailability of albendazole sulfoxide in sheep and goats, and dose-dependent plasma disposition in goats.	the aims of this study were to compare the pharmacokinetics of albendazole sulfoxide (abz-so, ricobendazole) in goats and sheep at a dose of 5 g/kg bodyweight (bw), after intravenous (iv) and subcutaneous (sc) administrations, and to investigate the effects of increased doses (10 and 15 mg/kg bw) on the plasma disposition of abz-so in goats following sc administration. a total of 16 goats (capra aegagrus hircus, eight males and eight females) and 8 sheep (ovis aries, four males and four females) ...	2015	26012791
whole mitochondrial genomes unveil the impact of domestication on goat matrilineal variability.	the current extensive use of the domestic goat (capra hircus) is the result of its medium size and high adaptability as multiple breeds. the extent to which its genetic variability was influenced by early domestication practices is largely unknown. a common standard by which to analyze maternally-inherited variability of livestock species is through complete sequencing of the entire mitogenome (mitochondrial dna, mtdna).	2015	26714643
cross-reactivity of neutralizing antibodies among malignant catarrhal fever viruses.	some members of the gamma herpesvirus genus macavirus are maintained in nature as subclinical infections in well-adapted ungulate hosts. transmission of these viruses to poorly adapted hosts, such as american bison and cattle, can result in the frequently fatal disease malignant catarrhal fever (mcf). based on phylogenetic analysis, the mcf viruses (mcfv) cluster into two subgroups corresponding to the reservoir hosts' subfamilies: alcelaphinae/hippotraginae and caprinae. antibody cross-reactivi ...	2015	26658281
genotyping of major histocompatibility complex class ii drb gene in rohilkhandi goats by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism and dna sequencing.	to study the major histocompatibility complex (mhc) class ii drb1 gene polymorphism in rohilkhandi goat using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (pcr-rflp) and nucleotide sequencing techniques.	2015	27047015
density-dependent spacing behaviour and activity budget in pregnant, domestic goats (capra hircus).	very little is known about the spacing behaviour in social groups of domestic goats (capra hircus) in the farm environment. in this experiment, we studied interindividual distances, movement patterns and activity budgets in pregnant goats housed at three different densities. norwegian dairy goats were kept in stable social groups of six animals throughout pregnancy at 1, 2 or 3 m2 per individual and their spacing behaviours (i.e., distance travelled, nearest and furthest neighbour distance) and ...	2015	26657240
profiling of fatty acids composition in suet oil based on gc-ei-qms and chemometrics analysis.	fatty acid (fa) composition of suet oil (so) was measured by precolumn methylesterification (pme) optimized using a box-behnken design (bbd) and gas chromatography/electron ionization-quadrupole mass spectrometry (gc-ei-qms). a spectral library (nist 08) and standard compounds were used to identify fas in so representing 90.89% of the total peak area. the ten most abundant fas were derivatized into fa methyl esters (fames) and quantified by gc-ei-qms; the correlation coefficient of each fame was ...	2015	25636032
the power of oral and nasal calls to discriminate individual mothers and offspring in red deer, cervus elaphus.	in most species, acoustical cues are crucial for mother-offspring recognition. studies of a few species of ungulates showed that potential for individual recognition may differ between nasal and oral contact calls.	2015	25610491
biocuration of functional annotation at the european nucleotide archive.	the european nucleotide archive (ena; http://www.ebi.ac.uk/ena) is a repository for the submission, maintenance and presentation of nucleotide sequence data and related sample and experimental information. in this article we report on ena in 2015 regarding general activity, notable published data sets and major achievements. this is followed by a focus on sustainable biocuration of functional annotation, an area which has particularly felt the pressure of sequencing growth. the importance of fun ...	2015	26615190
markedly elevated antibody responses in wild versus captive spotted hyenas show that environmental and ecological factors are important modulators of immunity.	evolutionary processes have shaped the vertebrate immune system over time, but proximal mechanisms control the onset, duration, and intensity of immune responses. based on testing of the hygiene hypothesis, it is now well known that microbial exposure is important for proper development and regulation of the immune system. however, few studies have examined the differences between wild animals in their natural environments, in which they are typically exposed to a wide array of potential pathoge ...	2015	26444876
genome-wide linkage disequilibrium and genetic diversity in five populations of australian domestic sheep.	knowledge of the genetic structure and overall diversity of livestock species is important to maximise the potential of genome-wide association studies and genomic prediction. commonly used measures such as linkage disequilibrium (ld), effective population size (n e ), heterozygosity, fixation index (f st) and runs of homozygosity (roh) are widely used and help to improve our knowledge about genetic diversity in animal populations. the development of high-density single nucleotide polymorphism ( ...	2015	26602211
widespread natural occurrence of hydroxyurea in animals.	here we report the widespread natural occurrence of a known antibiotic and antineoplastic compound, hydroxyurea in animals from many taxonomic groups. hydroxyurea occurs in all the organisms we have examined including invertebrates (molluscs and crustaceans), fishes from several major groups, amphibians and mammals. the species with highest concentrations was an elasmobranch (sharks, skates and rays), the little skate leucoraja erinacea with levels up to 250 μm, high enough to have antiviral, an ...	2015	26600157
the hox cluster microrna mir-615: a case study of intronic microrna evolution.	introns represent a potentially rich source of existing transcription for the evolution of novel micrornas (mirnas). within the hox gene clusters, a mirna gene, mir-615, is located within the intron of the hoxc5 gene. this mirna has a restricted phylogenetic distribution, providing an opportunity to examine the origin and evolution of a new mirna within the intron of a developmentally-important homeobox gene.	2015	26451238
functional development of the adult ovine mammary gland--insights from gene expression profiling.	the mammary gland is a dynamic organ that undergoes dramatic physiological adaptations during the transition from late pregnancy to lactation. investigation of the molecular basis of mammary development and function will provide fundamental insights into tissue remodelling as well as a better understanding of milk production and mammary disease. this is important to livestock production systems and human health. here we use rna-seq to identify differences in gene expression in the ovine mammary ...	2015	26437771
m233i mutation in the β-tubulin of botrytis cinerea confers resistance to zoxamide.	three phenotypes were detected in 161 botrytis cinerea field isolates, including zox(s)car(s) (sensitive to zoxamide and carbendazim), zox(s)car(r) (sensitive to zoxamide and resistant to carbendazim), and zox(r)car(r) (resistant to zoxamide and carbendazim), but not zox(r)car(s) (resistant to zoxamide and sensitive to carbendazim). the baseline sensitivity to zoxamide was determined with a mean ec50 of 0.76 μg/ml. two stable zox(r)car(s) isolates were obtained with a resistance factor of 13.28 ...	2015	26596626
draft genome sequences of two south african bacillus anthracis strains.	bacillus anthracis is a gram-positive bacterium that causes anthrax, mainly in herbivores through exotoxins and capsule produced on plasmids, pxo1 and pxo2. this paper compares the whole-genome sequences of two b. anthracis strains from an endemic region and a sporadic outbreak in south africa. sequencing was done using next-generation sequencing technologies.	2015	26586878
state-space modelling of the drivers of movement behaviour in sympatric species.	understanding animal movement behaviour is key to furthering our knowledge on intra- and inter-specific competition, group cohesion, energy expenditure, habitat use, the spread of zoonotic diseases or species management. we used a radial basis function surface approximation subject to minimum description length constraint to uncover the state-space dynamical systems from time series data. this approximation allowed us to infer structure from a mathematical model of the movement behaviour of shee ...	2015	26580801
single base-resolution methylome of the dizygotic sheep.	sheep is an important livestock in the world for meat, dairy and wool production. the third version of sheep reference genome has been recently assembled, but sheep dna methylome has not been profiled yet. in this study, we report the comprehensive sheep methylome with 94.38% cytosine coverage at single base resolution by sequencing dna samples from longissimus dorsi of dizygotic sunit sheep, which were bred in different habitats. we also compared methylomes between the twin sheep. dna methylati ...	2015	26536671
the relevance of piroxicam for the prevention and treatment of nonmelanoma skin cancer and its precursors.	piroxicam (pxm), a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, is an enolic benzothiazine and a potent member of the oxicam series. the drug suppresses the synthesis of proinflammatory enzymes, such as cyclo-oxygenases-1 and -2 (cox-1 and 2), downregulates the production of prostaglandins (pgs) and tromboxanes, and inhibits polyamines production by blocking ornithine decarboxylase induction involved in nonmelanoma skin carcinogenesis. in addition, pxm is able to induce tumor cell apoptosis and suppress ...	2015	26604686
common features in diverse insect clocks.	this review describes common features among diverse biological clocks in insects, including circadian, circatidal, circalunar/circasemilunar, and circannual clocks. these clocks control various behaviors, physiological functions, and developmental events, enabling adaptation to periodic environmental changes. circadian clocks also function in time-compensation for celestial navigation and in the measurement of day or night length for photoperiodism. phase response curves for such clocks reported ...	2015	26605055
data for in-depth characterisation of the lamb meat proteome from longissimus lumborum.	this data article provides supplementary data related to the research article titled "in-depth characterisation of the lamb meat proteome from longissimus lumborum" by yu et al. [1]. this research article reports the proteome catalogue of the 48 h post-mortem lamb longissimus lumborum. a list of 388 ovine-specific proteins were identified and characterised after separating the samples into sarcoplasmic, myofibrillar and insoluble fractions, followed by an in-depth shotgun proteomic evaluation an ...	2015	26217735
evidence and implications of higher-order scaling in the environmental variation of animal population growth.	environmental stochasticity is an important concept in population dynamics, providing a quantitative model of the extrinsic fluctuations driving population abundances. it is typically formulated as a stochastic perturbation to the maximum reproductive rate, leading to a population variance that scales quadratically with abundance. however, environmental fluctuations may also drive changes in the strength of density dependence. very few studies have examined the consequences of this alternative m ...	2015	25730852
towards the identification of the loci of adaptive evolution.	1. establishing the genetic and molecular basis underlying adaptive traits is one of the major goals of evolutionary geneticists in order to understand the connection between genotype and phenotype and elucidate the mechanisms of evolutionary change. despite considerable effort to address this question, there remain relatively few systems in which the genes shaping adaptations have been identified. 2. here, we review the experimental tools that have been applied to document the molecular basis u ...	2015	25937885
selective brain cooling reduces water turnover in dehydrated sheep.	in artiodactyls, arterial blood destined for the brain can be cooled through counter-current heat exchange within the cavernous sinus via a process called selective brain cooling. we test the hypothesis that selective brain cooling, which results in lowered hypothalamic temperature, contributes to water conservation in sheep. nine dorper sheep, instrumented to provide measurements of carotid blood and brain temperature, were dosed with deuterium oxide (d2o), exposed to heat for 8 days (40 ◦c for ...	2015	25675092
differences in the ovine hsp90aa1 gene expression rates caused by two linked polymorphisms at its promoter affect rams sperm dna fragmentation under environmental heat stress conditions.	heat shock (hs) is one of the best-studied exogenous cellular stresses. almost all tissues, cell types, metabolic pathways and biochemical reactions are affected in greater or lesser extent by hs. however, there are some especially thermo sensible cellular types such as the mammalian male germ cells. the present study examined the role of three indels in conjunction with the -660g/c polymorphism located at the hsp90aa1 promoter region over the gene expression rate under hs. specially, the -668in ...	2015	25671615
biochemical insight into the prion protein family.	prion protein family comprises proteins, which share not only similarity in their primary structure, but also similarity in their fold. these two groups of similarity presume a parceling in their respective biological function through the common biochemical properties. in this review, biochemical and structural similarities of prp and two other proteins, doppel and shadoo, are evocated. some evidence demonstrating respectively similarity between prp n-terminal and c-terminal domain with respecti ...	2015	25717473
definition of sampling units begets conclusions in ecology: the case of habitats for plant communities.	in ecology, expert knowledge on habitat characteristics is often used to define sampling units such as study sites. ecologists are especially prone to such approaches when prior sampling frames are not accessible. here we ask to what extent can different approaches to the definition of sampling units influence the conclusions that are drawn from an ecological study? we do this by comparing a formal versus a subjective definition of sampling units within a study design which is based on well-arti ...	2015	25780767
offspring size at weaning affects survival to recruitment and reproductive performance of primiparous gray seals.	offspring size affects survival and subsequent reproduction in many organisms. however, studies of offspring size in large mammals are often limited to effects on juveniles because of the difficulty of following individuals to maturity. we used data from a long-term study of individually marked gray seals (halichoerus grypus; fabricius, 1791) to test the hypothesis that larger offspring have higher survival to recruitment and are larger and more successful primiparous mothers than smaller offspr ...	2015	25897381
the non-octarepeat copper binding site of the prion protein is a key regulator of prion conversion.	the conversion of the prion protein (prp(c)) into prions plays a key role in transmissible spongiform encephalopathies. despite the importance for pathogenesis, the mechanism of prion formation has escaped detailed characterization due to the insoluble nature of prions. prp(c) interacts with copper through octarepeat and non-octarepeat binding sites. copper coordination to the non-octarepeat region has garnered interest due to the possibility that this interaction may impact prion conversion. we ...	2015	26482532
convergent capture of retroviral superantigens by mammalian herpesviruses.	horizontal gene transfer from retroviruses to mammals is well documented and extensive, but is rare between unrelated viruses with distinct genome types. three herpesviruses encode a gene with similarity to a retroviral superantigen gene (sag) of the unrelated mouse mammary tumour virus (mmtv). we uncover ancient retroviral sags in over 20 mammals to reconstruct their shared history with herpesviral sags, revealing that the acquisition is a convergent evolutionary event. a retrovirus circulating ...	2015	26400439
sheep (ovis aries) t cell receptor alpha (tra) and delta (trd) genes and genomic organization of the tra/trd locus.	in mammals, t cells develop along two discrete pathways characterized by expression of either the αβ or the γδ t cell receptors. human and mouse display a low peripheral blood γδ t cell percentage ("γδ low species") while sheep, bovine and pig accounts for a high proportion of γδ t lymphocytes ("γδ high species"). while the t cell receptor alpha (tra) and delta (trd) genes and the genomic organization of the tra/trd locus has been determined in human and mouse, this information is still poorly k ...	2015	26383271
plasma markers of oxidative stress are uncorrelated in a wild mammal.	oxidative stress, which results from an imbalance between the production of potentially damaging reactive oxygen species versus antioxidant defenses and repair mechanisms, has been proposed as an important mediator of life-history trade-offs. a plethora of biomarkers associated with oxidative stress exist, but few ecological studies have examined the relationships among different markers in organisms experiencing natural conditions or tested whether those relationships are stable across differen ...	2015	26640685
dna methylation landscape of body size variation in sheep.	sub-populations of chinese mongolian sheep exhibit significant variance in body mass. in the present study, we sequenced the whole genome dna methylation in these breeds to detect whether dna methylation plays a role in determining the body mass of sheep by methylated dna immunoprecipitation - sequencing method. a high quality methylation map of chinese mongolian sheep was obtained in this study. we identified 399 different methylated regions located in 93 human orthologs, which were previously ...	2015	26472088
fecal antibody levels as a noninvasive method for measuring immunity to gastrointestinal nematodes in ecological studies.	among-individual variation in antibody-associated immunity to gastrointestinal nematode parasites (gin) is known be associated with life-history traits and vital rates in wild vertebrate systems. to date, measurement of levels of antibodies against gin antigens in natural populations has exclusively been based on invasive blood sampling techniques. previous work in laboratory rodents and ruminant livestock suggests that antibody measures from feces may provide a viable noninvasive approach. we m ...	2015	26811774
the haemonchus contortus kinome--a resource for fundamental molecular investigations and drug discovery.	protein kinases regulate a plethora of essential signalling and other biological pathways in all eukaryotic organisms, but very little is known about them in most parasitic nematodes.	2015	26644012
mrna levels of imprinted genes in bovine in vivo oocytes, embryos and cross species comparisons with humans, mice and pigs.	twenty-six imprinted genes were quantified in bovine in vivo produced oocytes and embryos using rna-seq. eighteen were detectable and their transcriptional patterns were: largely decreased (mest and plagl1); first decreased and then increased (cdkn1c and igf2r); peaked at a specific stage (phlda2, sgce, peg10, peg3, gnas, meg3, dgat1, ascl2, nnat, and nap1l5); or constantly low (diras3, igf2, h19 and rtl1). these patterns reflect mrnas that are primarily degraded, important at a specific stage, ...	2015	26638780
complete mitochondrial genome sequences of chinese indigenous sheep with different tail types and an analysis of phylogenetic evolution in domestic sheep.	china has a long history of sheep (ovis aries [o. aries]) breeding and an abundance of sheep genetic resources. knowledge of the complete o. aries mitogenome should facilitate the study of the evolutionary history of the species. therefore, the complete mitogenome of o. aries was sequenced and annotated. in order to characterize the mitogenomes of 3 chinese sheep breeds (altay sheep [al], shandong large-tailed sheep [sd], and small-tailed hulun buir sheep [shl]), 19 sets of primers were employed ...	2015	26954183
lifelong leukocyte telomere dynamics and survival in a free-living mammal.	telomeres play a fundamental role in the maintenance of genomic integrity at a cellular level, and average leukocyte telomere length (ltl) has been proposed as a biomarker of organismal aging. however, studies tracking ltl across the entire life course of individuals are lacking. here, we examined lifelong patterns of variation in ltl among four birth cohorts of female soay sheep (ovis aries) that were longitudinally monitored and sampled from birth to death. over the first 4 months of life, the ...	2015	26521726
asynchrony of senescence among phenotypic traits in a wild mammal population.	the degree to which changes in lifespan are coupled to changes in senescence in different physiological systems and phenotypic traits is a central question in biogerontology. it is underpinned by deeper biological questions about whether or not senescence is a synchronised process, or whether levels of synchrony depend on species or environmental context. understanding how natural selection shapes patterns of synchrony in senescence across physiological systems and phenotypic traits demands the ...	2015	26277618
a significance test for inferring affiliation networks from spatio-temporal data.	scientists have long been interested in studying social structures within groups of gregarious animals. however, obtaining evidence about interactions between members of a group is difficult. recent technologies, such as global positioning system technology, have made it possible to obtain a vast wealth of animal movement data, but inferring the underlying (latent) social structure of the group from such data remains an important open problem. while intuitively appealing measures of social inter ...	2015	26192280
decline in an atlantic puffin population: evaluation of magnitude and mechanisms.	determining which demographic and ecological parameters contribute to variation in population growth rate is crucial to understanding the dynamics of declining populations. this study aimed to evaluate the magnitude and mechanisms of an apparent major decline in an atlantic puffin fratercula arctica population. this was achieved using a 27-year dataset to estimate changes in population size and in two key demographic rates: adult survival and breeding success. estimated demographic variation was ...	2015	26177461
exploring differentially expressed genes and natural antisense transcripts in sheep (ovis aries) skin with different wool fiber diameters by digital gene expression profiling.	wool fiber diameter (wfd) is the most important economic trait of wool. however, the genes specifically controlling wfd remain elusive. in this study, the expression profiles of skin from two groups of gansu alpine merino sheep with different wfd (a super-fine wool group [fd = 18.0 ± 0.5 μm, n=3] and a fine wool group [fd=23.0 ± 0.5 μm, n=3]) were analyzed using next-generation sequencing-based digital gene expression profiling. a total of 40 significant differentially expressed genes (degs) wer ...	2015	26076016
collective movement in the tibetan macaques (macaca thibetana): early joiners write the rule of the game.	collective behavior has recently attracted a great deal of interest in both natural and social sciences. while the role of leadership has been closely scrutinized, the rules used by joiners in collective decision making have received far less attention. two main hypotheses have been proposed concerning these rules: mimetism and quorum. mimetism predicts that individuals are increasingly likely to join collective behavior as the number of participants increases. it can be further divided into sel ...	2015	25992882
genome-wide association study of footrot in texel sheep.	this is the first study based on a genome-wide association approach that investigates the links between ovine footrot scores and molecular polymorphisms in texel sheep using the ovine 50 k snp array (42 883 snps (single nucleotide polymorphisms) after quality control). our aim was to identify molecular predictors of footrot resistance.	2015	25926335
integrating evolution in the management of captive zoo populations.	both natural animal populations and those in captivity are subject to evolutionary forces. evolutionary changes to captive populations may be an important, but poorly understood, factor that can affect the sustainability of these populations. the importance of maintaining the evolutionary integrity of zoo populations, especially those that are used for conservation efforts including reintroductions, is critical for the conservation of biodiversity. here, we propose that a greater appreciation fo ...	2015	26029256
measurement of free glucocorticoids: quantifying corticosteroid-binding globulin binding affinity and its variation within and among mammalian species.	plasma glucocorticoids (gcs) are commonly used as measures of stress in wildlife. a great deal of evidence indicates that only free gc (gc not bound by the specific binding protein, corticosteroid-binding globulin, cbg) leaves the circulation and exerts biological effects on gc-sensitive tissues. free hormone concentrations are difficult to measure directly, so researchers estimate free gc using two measures: the binding affinity and the binding capacity in plasma. we provide an inexpensive satu ...	2015	27293705
different donor cell culture methods can influence the developmental ability of cloned sheep embryos.	it was proposed that arresting nuclear donor cells in g0/g1 phase facilitates the development of embryos that are derived from somatic cell nuclear transfer (scnt). full confluency or serum starvation is commonly used to arrest in vitro cultured somatic cells in g0/g1 phase. however, it is controversial as to whether these two methods have the same efficiency in arresting somatic cells in g0/g1 phase. moreover, it is unclear whether the cloned embryos have comparable developmental ability after ...	2015	26291536
data from a proteomic baseline study of assemblage a in giardia duodenalis.	eight assemblage a strains from the protozoan parasite giardia duodenalis were analysed using label-free quantitative shotgun proteomics, to evaluate inter- and intra-assemblage variation and complement available genetic and transcriptomic data. isolates were grown in biological triplicate in axenic culture, and protein extracts were subjected to in-solution digest and online fractionation using gas phase fractionation (gpf). recent reclassification of genome databases for subassemblages was eva ...	2015	26380841
inhibition of haemonchus contortus larval development by fungal lectins.	lectins are carbohydrate-binding proteins that are involved in fundamental intra- and extracellular biological processes. they occur ubiquitously in nature and are especially abundant in plants and fungi. it has been well established that certain higher fungi produce lectins in their fruiting bodies and/or sclerotia as a part of their natural resistance against free-living fungivorous nematodes and other pests. despite relatively high diversity of the glycan structures in nature, many of the gly ...	2015	26283415
explanatory judgment, moral offense and value-free science.	a popular view in philosophy of science contends that scientific reasoning is objective to the extent that the appraisal of scientific hypotheses is not influenced by moral, political, economic, or social values, but only by the available evidence. a large body of results in the psychology of motivated-reasoning has put pressure on the empirical adequacy of this view. the present study extends this body of results by providing direct evidence that the moral offensiveness of a scientific hypothes ...	2015	27917248
identification of a novel mirna from the ovine ovary by a combinatorial approach of bioinformatics and experiments.	micrornas (mirnas) are a class of short endogenous, single-stranded, non-coding small rna molecules, about 19-25 nucleotides in length that regulate gene expression at the translation level and influence many physiological process, such apoptosis, metabolism, signal transduction, and occurrence and development of diseases. in this study, we constructed a library from the ovine luteal phase ovary by using next-generation sequencing technology (solexa high-throughput sequencing technique) and iden ...	2015	26268666
ovine hsp90aa1 gene promoter: functional study and epigenetic modifications.	when environmental temperatures exceed a certain threshold, the upregulation of the ovine hsp90aa1 gene is produced to cope with cellular injuries caused by heat stress. it has been previously pointed out that several polymorphisms located at the promoter region of this gene seem to be the main responsible for the differences in the heat stress response observed among alternative genotypes in terms of gene expression rate. the present study, focused on the functional study of those candidate pol ...	2015	26253285
quantitative genetics of the aging of reproductive traits in the houbara bustard.	do all traits within an organism age for the same reason? evolutionary theories of aging share a common assumption: the strength of natural selection declines with age. a corollary is that additive genetic variance should increase with age. however, not all senescent traits display such increases suggesting that other mechanisms may be at play. using longitudinal data collected from more than 5400 houbara bustards (chlamydotis undulata) with an exhaustive recorded pedigree, we investigated the g ...	2015	26218735
herbivory and competition of tibetan steppe vegetation in winter pasture: effects of livestock exclosure and plateau pika reduction.	rangeland degradation has been identified as a serious concern in alpine regions of western china on the qinghai-tibetan plateau (qtp). numerous government-sponsored programs have been initiated, including many that feature long-term grazing prohibitions and some that call for eliminating pastoralism altogether. as well, government programs have long favored eliminating plateau pikas (ochotona curzoniae), assumed to contribute to degraded conditions. however, vegetation on the qtp evolved in the ...	2015	26208005
combining gwas and rna-seq approaches for detection of the causal mutation for hereditary junctional epidermolysis bullosa in sheep.	in this study, we demonstrate the use of a genome-wide association mapping together with rna-seq in a reduced number of samples, as an efficient approach to detect the causal mutation for a mendelian disease. junctional epidermolysis bullosa is a recessive genodermatosis that manifests with neonatal mechanical fragility of the skin, blistering confined to the lamina lucida of the basement membrane and severe alteration of the hemidesmosomal junctions. in spanish churra sheep, junctional epidermo ...	2015	25955497
a study on use of animals as traditional medicine by sukuma tribe of busega district in north-western tanzania.	faunal resources have played an extensive range of roles in human life from the initial days of recorded history. in addition to their importance, animals have been acknowledged in religion, art, music and literature and several other different cultural manifestations of mankind. human beings are acquainted with use of animals for foodstuff, cloth, medicine, etc. since ancient times. huge work has been carried out on ethnobotany and traditional medicine. animal and their products are also holdin ...	2015	25947365
d-amino acid inhibits biofilm but not new bone formation in an ovine model.	infectious complications of musculoskeletal trauma are an important factor contributing to patient morbidity. biofilm-dispersive bone grafts augmented with d-amino acids (d-aas) prevent biofilm formation in vitro and in vivo, but the effects of d-aas on osteocompatibility and new bone formation have not been investigated.	2015	26201421
opportunities for the application of advanced remotely-sensed data in ecological studies of terrestrial animal movement.	animal movement patterns in space and time are a central aspect of animal ecology. remotely-sensed environmental indices can play a key role in understanding movement patterns by providing contiguous, relatively fine-scale data that link animal movements to their environment. still, implementation of newly available remotely-sensed data is often delayed in studies of animal movement, calling for a better flow of information to researchers less familiar with remotely-sensed data applications. her ...	2015	25941571
echinococcus multilocularis detection in live eurasian beavers (castor fiber) using a combination of laparoscopy and abdominal ultrasound under field conditions.	echinococcus multilocularis is an important pathogenic zoonotic parasite of health concern, though absent in the united kingdom. eurasian beavers (castor fiber) may act as a rare intermediate host, and so unscreened wild caught individuals may pose a potential risk of introducing this parasite to disease-free countries through translocation programs. there is currently no single definitive ante-mortem diagnostic test in intermediate hosts. an effective non-lethal diagnostic, feasible under field ...	2015	26167927
timing of cardiomyocyte growth, maturation, and attrition in perinatal sheep.	studies in altricial rodents attribute dramatic changes in perinatal cardiomyocyte growth, maturation, and attrition to stimuli associated with birth. our purpose was to determine whether birth is a critical trigger controlling perinatal cardiomyocyte growth, maturation and attrition in a precocial large mammal, sheep (ovis aries). hearts from 0-61 d postnatal lambs were dissected or enzymatically dissociated. cardiomyocytes were measured by micromorphometry, cell cycle activity assessed by immu ...	2015	26139099
mitogenomic meta-analysis identifies two phases of migration in the history of eastern eurasian sheep.	despite much attention, history of sheep (ovis aries) evolution, including its dating, demographic trajectory and geographic spread, remains controversial. to address these questions, we generated 45 complete and 875 partial mitogenomic sequences, and performed a meta-analysis of these and published ovine mitochondrial dna sequences (n = 3,229) across eurasia. we inferred that o. orientalis and o. musimon share the most recent female ancestor with o. aries at approximately 0.790 ma (95% ci: 0.63 ...	2015	26085518
spatio-temporal variation in european starling reproductive success at multiple small spatial scales.	understanding population dynamics requires spatio-temporal variation in demography to be measured across appropriate spatial and temporal scales. however, the most appropriate spatial scale(s) may not be obvious, few datasets cover sufficient time periods, and key demographic rates are often incompletely measured. consequently, it is often assumed that demography will be spatially homogeneous within populations that lack obvious subdivision. here, we quantify small-scale spatial and temporal var ...	2015	26380670
a stereotaxic, population-averaged t1w ovine brain atlas including cerebral morphology and tissue volumes.	standard stereotaxic reference systems play a key role in human brain studies. stereotaxic coordinate systems have also been developed for experimental animals including non-human primates, dogs, and rodents. however, they are lacking for other species being relevant in experimental neuroscience including sheep. here, we present a spatial, unbiased ovine brain template with tissue probability maps (tpm) that offer a detailed stereotaxic reference frame for anatomical features and localization of ...	2015	26089780
effects of grazing and precipitation on herbage biomass, herbage nutritive value, and yak performance in an alpine meadow on the qinghai-tibetan plateau.	the qinghai-tibetan plateau is a very large land unit and an important terrestrial ecosystem within the eurasian continent. because of the harsh climate associated with the high altitude, alpine meadows on the plateau are susceptible to degradation from overgrazing. for this region, and for other alpine meadow pastures internationally, there is a need to define the sustainable stocking rate, to develop sound policy pertaining to future land use. here we report biomass and liveweight gain per ani ...	2015	26039322
roles of small rnas in the effects of nutrition on apoptosis and spermatogenesis in the adult testis.	we tested whether reductions in spermatozoal quality induced by under-nutrition are associated with increased germ cell apoptosis and disrupted spermatogenesis, and whether these effects are mediated by small rnas. groups of 8 male sheep were fed for a 10% increase or 10% decrease in body mass over 65 days. underfeeding increased the number of apoptotic germ cells (p < 0.05) and increased the expression of apoptosis-related genes (p < 0.05) in testicular tissue. we identified 44 mirnas and 35 pu ...	2015	25996545
a 90-day toxicology study of meat from genetically modified sheep overexpressing tlr4 in sprague-dawley rats.	genetic modification offers alternative strategies to traditional animal breeding. however, the food safety of genetically modified (gm) animals has attracted increasing levels of concern. in this study, we produced gm sheep overexpressing tlr4, and the transgene-positive offsprings (f1) were confirmed using the polymerase chain reaction (pcr) and southern blot. the expression of tlr4 was 2.5-fold compared with that of the wild-type (wt) sheep samples. during the 90-day safety study, sprague-daw ...	2015	25874566
differential gene expression in ovaries of qira black sheep and hetian sheep using rna-seq technique.	the qira black sheep and the hetian sheep are two local breeds in the northwest of china, which are characterized by high-fecundity and low-fecundity breed respectively. the elucidation of mrna expression profiles in the ovaries among different sheep breeds representing fecundity extremes will helpful for identification and utilization of major prolificacy genes in sheep. in the present study, we performed rna-seq technology to compare the difference in ovarian mrna expression profiles between q ...	2015	25790350
genome-wide analysis reveals population structure and selection in chinese indigenous sheep breeds.	traditionally, chinese indigenous sheep were classified geographically and morphologically into three groups: mongolian, kazakh and tibetan. herein, we aimed to evaluate the population structure and genome selection among 140 individuals from ten representative chinese indigenous sheep breeds: ujimqin, hu, tong, large-tailed han and lop breed (mongolian group); duolang and kazakh (kazakh group); and diqing, plateau-type tibetan, and valley-type tibetan breed (tibetan group).	2015	25888314
molecular characterization of echinococcus granulosus sensu lato from farm animals in egypt.	little is known on the diversity and public health significance of echinococcus species in livestock in egypt. in this study, 37 individual hydatid cysts were collected from dromedary camels (n=28), sheep (n=7) and buffalos (n=2). dna was extracted from protoscoleces/germinal layer of individual cysts and amplified by pcr targeting nuclear (actin ii) and mitochondrial (cox1 and nad1) genes. direct sequencing of amplicons indicated the presence of echinococcus canadenesis (g6 genotype) in 26 of 2 ...	2015	25760944
b cell variable genes have evolved their codon usage to focus the targeted patterns of somatic mutation on the complementarity determining regions.	the exceptional ability of b cells to diversify through somatic mutation and improve affinity of the repertoire toward the antigens is the cornerstone of adaptive immunity. somatic mutation is not evenly distributed and exhibits certain micro-sequence specificities. we show here that the combination of somatic mutation targeting and the codon usage in human b cell receptor (bcr) variable (v) genes create expected patterns of mutation and post mutation changes that are focused on their complement ...	2015	25660968
proteomics-driven analysis of ovine whey colostrum.	the aim of this study was to shed light in to the complexity of the ovine colostrum proteome, with a specific focus on the low abundance proteins. the ovine colostrum is characterized by a few dominating proteins, as the immunoglobulins, but it also contains less represented protein species, equally important for the correct development of neonates. ovine colostrum, collected immediately after lambing, was separated by 1d sds-page. proteins bands were digested with trypsin and the resulting pept ...	2015	25643159
osteosynthesis-screw augmentation by ultrasound-activated biopolymer--an ovine in vivo study assessing biocompatibility and bone-to-implant contact.	screw fixation and fragment anchoring in osteoporotic bones is often difficult. problems like the cut out phenomenon and implant migration in osteoporotic bones have been reported. one possibility of improving the anchoring force of screws is augmentation of the screw. cement-augmented screws in spinal surgery could exhibit a better anchoring in osteoporotic bones.	2015	25628015
neural mechanisms controlling seasonal reproduction: principles derived from the sheep model and its comparison with hamsters.	seasonal reproduction is a common adaptive strategy among mammals that allows for breeding to occur at times of the year when it is most advantageous for the subsequent survival and growth of offspring. a major mechanism responsible for seasonal reproduction is a striking increase in the responsiveness of gonadotropin-releasing hormone (gnrh) neurons to the negative feedback effects of estradiol. the neural and neuroendocrine circuitry responsible for mammalian seasonal reproduction has been pri ...	2015	25582913
endoparasites in a norwegian moose (alces alces) population - faunal diversity, abundance and body condition.	many health surveillance programs for wild cervids do not include routine parasite screening despite evidence that gastrointestinal parasites can affect wildlife population dynamics by influencing host fecundity and survival. slaughter weights of moose in some regions of norway have been decreasing over recent decades but any role of parasites has not yet been considered. we investigated parasite faunal diversity of moose in hedmark, se norway, by faecal analysis and identification of adult abom ...	2015	25830105