Introduction: Foot quality is essential to the horse’s movement. The barefoot approach favours the animal’s welfare. Environment and selection determine hoof characteristics. Material and Methods: Hoof characteristics of eight Anglo-Arabian (AA) and nine Haflinger (HA) horses were studied. After a preliminary visual analysis of feet, nail samples were collected after trimming for physico-chemical analysis. The parameters were submitted to analysis of variance. A principal component analysis and a Pearson correlation were used to compare mineral contents. Results: The hooves of both breeds were healthy and solid. The hooves of HA horses were longer than those of AA horses (14.90 ±0.30 cm vs 13.10 ±0.60 cm), while the AA hoof was harder than the HA hoof both in the wall (74.55 ±2.95 H vs 60.18 ±2.67 H) and sole (67.00 ±5.87 H vs 43.0 ±4.76 H). In comparison with the sole, the AA hoof wall also had a lower moisture percentage (12.56 ±0.67% vs 20.64 ±0.76%), while crude protein and ash contents were similar in both regions. The AA hoof showed a higher Se content, while the HA hoof had a higher level of macroelements. The negative correlations of K with Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb, and Zn in the AA hoof may indicate osmoregulation activity. Conclusion: The hoof morphology of AA and HA horses met the literature parameters for mesomorphic horses. Both breeds had healthy and well-conformed hooves, useful for sport and recreation activities.

OBJECTIVE To examine ultrasonographic predictors of ovarian development in European eels (Anguilla anguilla) undergoing hormonal treatment for assisted reproduction. ANIMALS 83 female European eels. PROCEDURES Eels received weekly IM injections of salmon pituitary extract (first injection = week 1). Ultrasonography of the ovaries was performed twice during hormonal treatment (weeks 7 and 11). Eels were identified on the basis of body weight as having an adequate response by weeks 14 to 20 or an inadequate response after injections for 21 weeks. Eels were euthanized at the end of the experiment and classified by use of ovarian histologic examination. Ovarian cross-sectional area and size of eel (ie, length3) were used to classify eels (fast responder, slow responder, or nonresponder) and to calculate an ultrasonographic-derived gonadosomatic index. Gray-level co-occurrence matrices were calculated from ovarian images, and 22 texture features were calculated from these matrices. RESULTS The ultrasonographic-derived gonadosomatic index differed significantly between fast responders and slow responders or nonresponders at both weeks 7 and 11. Principal component analysis revealed a pattern of separation between the groups, and partial least squares discriminant analysis revealed signals in the ovarian texture that discriminated females that responded to treatment from those that did not. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Ovarian texture information in addition to morphometric variables can enhance ultrasonographic applications for assisted reproduction of eels and potentially other fish species. This was a novel, nonlethal method for classifying reproductive response of eels and the first objective texture analysis performed on ultrasonographic images of the gonads of fish.

Objective: This study aimed to examine the diversity of phenotypic characteristics of female Alabio ducks (Anas platyrhynchos Borneo) and their eggs in South Kalimantan, Indonesia. Materials and Methods: A total of 200 18-month-old ducks and 300 eggs were selected using a survey method with multistage random sampling. These samples were obtained from two dis¬tricts in the province of South Kalimantan [Banjar (BJ) districts and Tanah Laut (TL)]. The observed data were analyzed descriptively with variations using the independent t-test for each location. Principal component analysis (PCA) was deployed to assess the overall variance and define vari¬ables with greater discriminatory power between individuals. Results: The observations on the body's physical characteristics and the eggs of Alabio ducks showed significant differences between ducks from BJ and TL areas (p < 0.05) except for yolk diam¬eter, albumen height, albumen index, and Haugh unit (HU) (p > 0.05). Most egg quality traits from BJ were greater than those from TL, which include egg weight, egg length, egg width, yolk weight, albumen weight, shell weight, shell thickness, and egg shape index. The PCA revealed medium-to-high communalities in the phenotypic body characteristics of Alabio ducks and their eggs. Conclusion: Significant physical characteristics and egg quality differences were found between the two locations, except for the albumen index and HU, with substantial variability within each trait. These traits could explain the total variation in the phenotypic characteristics of female Alabio ducks. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2023; 10(2.000): 249-256]

Objectives: The comprehensive in silico study aims to figure out the most effective aromatic phytochemical ligands among a number from a library, considering their pharmacokinetic effi¬cacies in blocking angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptorsevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) S protein complex formation as part of a target-specific drug designing. Materials and Methods: A library of 57 aromatic pharmacophore phytochemical ligands was prepared from where the top five ligands depending on Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, Excretion, and Toxicity (ADMET) and quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR)-based pharmacokinetic properties were considered. The selected ligands were optimized for commenc¬ing molecular docking and dynamic simulation as a complex with the ACE2 receptor to compare their blocking efficacy with the control drug. The ligandreceptor complexes accuracy in prevent¬ing the Spike (S) protein of SARS-CoV-2 penetration inside the host cells has been analyzed through hydrogenhydrophobic bond interactions, principal component analysis (PCA), root mean square deviation (RMSD), root mean square fluctuation (RMSF), and B-Factor. Advanced in silico program¬ming language and bioanalytical software were used for high throughput and authentic results. Results: ADMET and QSAR revealed Rhamnetin, Lactupicrin, Rhinacanthin D, Flemiflavanone D, and Exiguaflavanone A as the ligands of our interest to be compared with the control Cassiarin D. According to the molecular docking binding affinity to block ACE2 receptor, the efficiency mount¬ings were Rhinacanthin D > Flemiflavanone D > Lactupicrin > Exiguaflavanone A > Rhamnetin. The binding affinity of the Cassiarin DACE2 complex was (−10.2 KJ/mol) found inferior to the Rhinacanthin DACE2 complex (−10.8 KJ/mol), referring to Rhinacanthin D as a more stable candi¬date to use as drugs. The RMSD values of proteinligand complexes evaluated according to their structural conformation and stable binding pose ranged between 0.1~2.1 Å. The B-factor showed that very few loops were present in the protein structure. The RMSF peak fluctuation regions ranged 5250, predicting efficient ligandreceptor interactions. Conclusion: The experiment sequentially measures all the parameters required in referring to any pharmacophore as a drug, considering which all aromatic components analyzed in the study can strongly be predicted as target-specific medication against the novel coronavirus 2019 infection. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2021; 8(1.000): 24-35]