Objective: The TYR (Tyrosinase) and MC1R (Melanocortin 1 receptor) genes are recognized as important genes involved in plumage pigmentation in Korean native chickens. Specifically, most color patterns in chicken result from differential expression of the TYR gene. In this study, the co-segregation of the pigmentation and sequence of the TYR and MC1R genes was investigated through intercrosses between red (R1q1), red with black and black plumage color types of native Korean chickens. Materials and Methods: Using DNA, RNA, and tissue by plumage color of each Korean native chickens, the role of major genes in pigmentation of pheomelanin was evaluated. Reverse tran¬scription polymerase chain reaction, sequencing, western blot, and immunohistochemical were performed to determine the effect of TYR and MC1R genes on plumage pigmentation in Korean native chickens. Results: The KCO line (Korean chicken Ogol: Black-line) with an EEC _ genotype exhibited black feathers, whereas red and red mixed with black chicken with EeC genotype exhibited white feathers. There were notable differences between the base sequences of MC1R and TYR in three Korean chicken breeds, with the highest variation in TYR. Perhaps this is the key characteristics of Korean chicken. Further, we analyzed the expression patterns of MC1R and TYR genes in each type of Korea native chicken and observed that TYR expression was high in feather follicle (R1q2) of KCO tissue. However, native red (Korean chicken red) and native red with black (Korean chicken red dark) chickens have increased TYR expression in the tissue. However, the expression of MC1R was much different from that of TYR. Conclusion: In this study, our results suggest that the differences in position and TYR expres¬sion levels exert more influence on plumage pigmentation in native Korean chicken breeds than changes in MC1R expression levels. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2021; 8(2.000): 266-273]

Objectives: The study intended to detect the presence and distribution of avian encephalomyeli¬tis virus (AEV)-specific antibodies in Sonali (cross-bred) parent chickens regarding farm location, flock size, and age in Bogura district of Bangladesh, a Sonali chicken belt. Materials and methods: A total of 275 Sonali parent chickens blood samples were collected ran¬domly from 39 flocks during laying age with a healthy and non-vaccination history against AEV. Blood samples were collected aseptically from the wing veins of chickens using 3-ml syringes and sera were separated. Then, the sera were transferred to the laboratory by maintaining a cool chain. Indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to detect the specific antibodies against AEV present in the sera samples. Results: Overall, 70.18% of the chickens were found seropositive for AEV antibodies. Based on the location, the highest seropositivity was recorded in Bogura Sadar [91.30%, confidence inter¬vals (CI) 79.21%97.58%], and the lowest was in the Adomdighi sub-district (45.45%, CI 29.49% 63.08%). For flock size, AEV seropositivity was significantly (p < 0.05) higher in the large flock (82.22%, CI 72.74%89.48%). Regarding age groups, the seropositivity of AEV was significantly (p < 0.05) increased with chickens age. Higher seropositivity was noted in chickens aged >51 weeks (89.32%, CI 81.69%94.55%). Conclusion: The results indicate that AEV is circulating in the environment, and chickens were exposed to the field strain of AEV. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on AEV in chickens in Bangladesh. Proper vaccination and standard farm biosecurity practice could minimize AEV infection in chickens. A detailed epidemiology study, detection, and characterization of the AEV would be essential for effective AEV infection control. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2021; 8(1.000): 78-83]

Objectives: The experiment was conducted to determine the effect of dietary energy and protein level growth performances of selected indigenous Ethiopian sheep breeds. Materials and Methods: Fifty intact ram lambs, 25 from each breed with 12 months of age and a mean initial body weight (IBW) of 19.31 ± 1.7 kg, were employed for this experiment. Animals were distributed randomly into five dietary treatments, i.e., minimum Energy and Protein (mEmP), medium energy and protein (MEMP), medium Energy and high Protein (MEHP), high energy and medium protein (HEMP), and high Energy and high Protein (HEHP) diets in randomized complete block design with 2 * 5 factorial arrangements. The minimum, medium, and high energy diets were 2.388, 2.866, and 3.344 Mcal/kg dry matter (DM) with the corresponding 10%, 16%, and 20% crude protein (CP) diets, respectively. The diets were formulated in a total mixed ration from wheat bran (WB), maize grain, peanut cake, and pasture hay feed ingredients. Diet offer was at the rate of 3% of lambs live weight and revised biweekly as per the attained body weight changes. Digestibility trial was conducted for 7 days of actual fecal data collection, followed by 90 days of feeding trial. Results: The animals fed on the MEHP diet had a maximum DM and nutrient intakes (CP and organic matter) and the best final body weight (FBW), total gain, gain rate, average daily gains, and feed conversion efficiency (31.3, 12.9 kg, 41.2%, 143.3 gm, and 23.13, respectively), followed by HEMP, HEHP, MEMP, and mEmP diets. Digestibility of DM and nutrients linearly followed similar trends (p < 0.01). Hararghe sheep was heavier (p < 0.01) by 4.3 and 3.1 kg in its FBW and total gain and more efficient in nutrients utilization (22.57 vs. 18.18) as compared to Afar sheep (AS). Conclusion: It is concluded that MEHP and MEMP are superior and optimum diets for sheep breeds, and Hararghe sheep is carried out better than AS in most growth performance parameters. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2021; 8(2.000): 185-194]

Objective: A phylogenetic study was carried out on the avian influenza virus (AIV) isolated from a disease outbreak in Sidenreng Rappang Regency, South Sulawesi, Indonesia, in 2018. Material and Methods: Oropharyngeal swabs and organ samples were obtained from ducks that showed clinical symptoms: torticollis, fascial edema, neurological disorders, the corneas appear cloudy, and death occurs less than 1 day after symptoms appear. In this study, isolate A/duck/ Sidenreng Rappang/07180110-11/2018 from duck was sequenced and characterized. Results: It was found that each gene segment of the virus has the highest nucleotide homology to the Indonesian highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 clade 2.3.2.1c. Multiple alignments of the sample Hemagglutinin (HA) gene with the avian influenza references virus showed that the pattern of amino acid arrangement in the cleavage site PQRERRRK-RGLF is the characteristic of the HPAI virus. In addition, the HA gene contained Q222 (glutamine) and G224 (glycine), signify¬ing a high affinity to avian receptor binding specificity (SA α2,3 Gal). Furthermore, there was no genetic reassortment of this virus based on the phylogenetic analysis of HA, NA, PB1, PB2, PA, NP, M, and NS genes. Conclusion: The HPAI H5N1 clade 2.3.2.1c virus was identified in duck farms in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2021; 8(2.000): 346-354]

Objective: Chicken infectious anemia virus (CIAV) is an economically important emerging infec¬tion of poultry as it causes immunosuppression and reduces egg production. Although it is world¬wide distributed and first reported (single case) in Bangladesh in 2002, no epidemiological and serological investigations have been conducted. The current study aimed to conduct a serologi¬cal investigation on the prevalence of CIAV infection in broiler breeder and layer farms in some selected areas of Bangladesh. Materials and Methods: A total number of 460 sera samples were randomly collected from unvac¬cinated broiler breeder and layer flocks, of which 276 were from 11 broiler breeder farms and 184 from 12 layer farms. The sera samples were subjected to a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit to observe antibodies induced by CIAV. Results: Results demonstrated that the overall prevalence of CIAV was 83.6% among a total of 460 samples. In broiler breeder birds, the prevalence was 89.9%, whereas it was 78.3% in layer birds. A higher number of female birds was found to be seropositive than male birds. However, chickens of all age groups were found to be susceptible to the virus. Conclusions: These results indicate the presence of CIAV in Bangladesh, which may be the sequel of naturally occurring either vertical or horizontal infection in all bird flocks tested without clinical symptoms of the disease. A further epidemiological investigation will be required, followed by molecular isolation and characterization of the virus for suitable vaccine candidate selection and/ or preparation. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2021; 8(2.000): 323-329]

Objective: The efficacy of Salmonella typhimurium-specific bacteriophage STP-1 on S. typhimurium infection in weaning piglets was evaluated in this study. Material and Methods: Twenty-eight weaning piglets were randomly allocated to four groups (Group A: non-challenged/basal; Group B: non-challenged/+phage; Group C: challenged/basal; Group D: challenged/+phage) according to S. typhimurium infection or bacteriophage administration. The total experimental period (14 days) was subdivided in to non-challenged periods (phase I; day 17) and challenged periods (phase II; day 714) based on the challenging date (day 7). Each group was fed with basal feed or feed supplemented with bacteriophage STP-1 [1.0 × 109 plaque-forming unit (PFU)/kg] during the whole period (day 114). Body weights (BW) were measured to evaluate growth performance. Clinical symptoms (rectal temperatures and fecal consistency) induced by S. typhimurium were regularly checked. Bacteria colonization levels in feces and intestinal tissue samples were measured using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). After necropsy, small intestine samples (jejunum) were collected. Villus height and crypt depth (CD) were measured through histological examination with H&E staining. Results: The supplementation of bacteriophage significantly reduced bacterial colonization and intestine damage in the piglets infected with S. typhimurium. In the antigen concentrations of the feces and jejunum, Group C showed 5.8 ± 0.6, 5.7 ± 0.6, and 1.2 ± 2.0 log colony-forming unit (CFU)/ml on 1, 3, and 7 days post-inoculation (DPI) and 2.8 ± 1.3 log CFU/ml, whereas Group D showed 3.5 ± 1.7, 2.2 ± 2.1, and 0.3 ± 0.9 log CFU/ml on 1, 3, and 7 DPI and 5.1 ± 0.9 log CFU/ml. In the villous height, Groups C and D showed 266.3 ± 24.1 and 324.6 ± 18.0 μm, respectively. In the goblet cell density of villi and crypts, Group C showed 10.0 ± 1.8 and 16.0 ± 3.7, while Group D showed 15.0 ± 4.8 and 21.1 ± 5.4. Also, the supplementation of bacteriophage significantly improved the growth performance in the infected piglets. The average daily gains of Groups C and D were 91 ± 24 and 143 ± 23, respectively, during the period after inoculation with S. typhimurium. Conclusion: The dietary supplementation of the phage was effective for alleviating S. typhimurium infection in post-weaning piglets. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2021; 8(3.000): 440-447]

Objective: The research was conducted to study the effect of a complex antimicrobial drug with an anti-inflammatory effect and an antimicrobial drug with an immunostimulating effect on the parameters of nonspecific resistance in calves. Materials and Methods: Two groups (n = 5 each) of sick calves with respiratory pathology were selected for this study. For the treatment of the first experimental group, a complex antimicrobial drug Sulfetrisan® was used. The second experimental group of the calves was intramuscularly injected with the experimental drug gentaaminoseleferon (GIA). To assess the cellular component of immunity in the blood before and after treatment, the number of white blood cells, T-lymphocytes, B-lymphocytes, phagocytic activity of leukocytes, phagocytic number, and phagocytic index (PhI) were determined. In addition, for assessing the humoral component, serum complement activity (SCA), serum lysozyme activity, serum bactericidal activity (SBA), circulating immune complexes (CIC), and total immunoglobulins (total Ig) were measured. The results were compared with the baseline parameters of healthy calves of the control group. Results: When studying the parameters of the humoral and cellular components of nonspecific resistance, it was found that in sick animals, compared with healthy ones, respiratory pathology was accompanied by an imbalance in the immune system. In the process of recovery in animals of the experimental groups under the effect of the drugs, positive changes occurred. However, many of the studied parameters did not reach the values of healthy animals. In the group of calves that received GIA, compared with the calves given Sulfetrisan®, a significant increase in PhI (p < 0.05), SBA (p < 0.006), SCA (p < 0.05), total Ig (p < 0.0005), and CIC (p < 0.05) was observed, which indi¬cated an increase in natural resistance due to the immunostimulating action. Conclusion: The use of GIA in sick animals added to an increase in the general nonspecific cellular and humoral resistance of calves, which made it possible to increase therapeutic efficacy and shorten their recovery time. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2021; 8(3.000): 355-360]

Objectives: The objective of this study was to assess the relationship between pelvic measurements viz pelvic width (PW), pelvic height (PH) and pelvic area (PA), and linear body measurement traits viz body weight (BW), shoulder height (SH), chest depth (CD), Hindquarters width (HW), rump length (RL), hip height (HH), body length (BL) and also calve birth weight (CBW) under different calving ease scores viz no assistance, gently pull and hard pull. Material and methods: A total number of fifty-one first calf Sussex heifers at 24 months old, weighing approximately 450 kg were used for this study. A number of two, two-year-old bulls, weighing approximately 800 kg were used for mating the fifty-one heifers with a bull to cow ratio of (1:30 and 1:21). The fertility of bulls was assessed by a private veterinarian before the mating season. Calving ease was scored as follows: 1 = no assistance during parturition (normal), 2 = heifer assistance as gently pull, 3 = heifer assistance as hard pull, 4 = heifer cannot calf, 5 = heifer calved a dead calf, and 6 = heifer calf with abnormal position. Results: Descriptive statistics indicated that PH (p < 0.01) and RL (p < 0.05) were significant different among calving ease scores. Correlation findings for no assistance score revealed that CBW was positively significantly correlated (p < 0.05) PH and low significant (p < 0.01) with HW, HH, RL, PW, CD and SH, respectively. CART results demonstrated that HH and PH play an important role in predicting calving ease on Sussex heifers. Conclusion: The findings suggest that there is a relationship between pelvic areas and linear body measurements. This study might help farmers during breeding to lower incidents of dystocia during parturition. However, further studies need to be done in CART modelling with the main aim of reducing dystocia in Sussex heifer or larger sample size. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2021; 8(1.000): 164-172]

Objective: The study was carried out for molecular characterization and antibiotic resistance anal¬ysis of Escherichia coli isolated from different turkey farms in Dinajpur, Bangladesh. Materials and methods: A total of 45 samples comprising feces (n = 23) and cloacal swabs (n = 22) were collected randomly from turkeys. The samples were subjected to isolation and identification of E. coli by cultural and biochemical characteristics, followed by polymerase chain reaction and sequencing. An antibiogram of the isolated E. coli isolates was carried out by following the Kirby Bauer disk diffusion method. Results: Out of the 45 samples, 28 (62.21%) were positive for E. coli, of which 16 (35.55%) fecal samples were positive and 12 (26.66%) cloacal swabs were positive. The antibiotic sensitivity analysis revealed that all the E. coli isolates were 100% sensitive to levofloxacin, norfloxacin, neo¬mycin, gentamicin, and nitrofurantoin. On the other hand, all the isolates were 100% resistant to amoxicillin, azithromycin, erythromycin, tetracycline, bacitracin, cephalexin, nalidixic acid, van¬comycin, methicilin, piperacillin, pefloxacin, novobiocin, cefepime, trimethoprim, netilmicin, and aztreonam. Conclusion: This studys results uncover the occurrence and antibiotic resistance pattern of E. coli in the study areas turkeys. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2021; 8(1.000): 64-69]

Objective: Rabbit viral hemorrhagic disease (VHD) is a transmittable and lethal viral illness of rabbits. In this study, genetic identification and genetic analysis of the rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) was made in three governorates in Egypt from 2014 to 2019. Materials and Methods: Livers from 18 freshly dead rabbits, which was guessed to be VHD epidemics in Egypt (Giza, Menofia, and Fayoum governorates) from 2014 to 2019, were examined for RHDV. The examination was based on the hemagglutination assay (HA) test against different mammalian (human O-type and sheep) and avian (chicken and pigeon) erythrocytes, reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and sequencing of the segment of VP60. Results: 33% of the examined samples virus titers were 5 log2 to 8 log2 hemagglutination of human O-type erythrocytes when compared to 28%, 11%, and 28% of sheep, chicken, and pigeon erythrocytes, respectively. Four RHDV isolates out of eight RT-PCR positives were sequenced and phylogenetically analyzed. Sequenced isolates were designed and submitted to GenBank with accession numbers MN904506, MN904507, MN904508, and MN904509. These four RHDV isolates were related to classic G3 (GI.1d/RHDV). Twelve amino acid differences were detected between the vaccine strain sequence (Giza-2006) and RHDV isolates. Amino acid differences at 416, 423, and 476 positions seem interesting as they changed polarity that could change the protein structure and affect host interaction. Conclusions: There is antigenic variation between circulating RHVD strains and the vaccinal strain. This may be the leading cause of vaccination failure and may increase the need to check out the vaccination program against RHVD. [J Adv Vet Anim Res 2021; 8(3.000): 396-403]