Enzootic bovine leukosis (EBL) is a notifiable infectious disease with sporadic fre-quency in Albania. EBL is not a zoonotic disease, but it has an important impact on the cattle trade. Diagnosis of this disease can be performed by many diagnostic proce-dures, including agar gel immunodiffusion (AGID), enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests. In some cases, where persis-tent lymphocytosis is present, cell count can turn useful. This study aimed to evaluate serological and hematological tests\' suitability for the diagnosis of EBL and assess the manual and automatic hematological count technique diagnostic parameters com-pared to the serological test. Results suggest that strategic use of hematological and AGID tests in parallel can increase the sensitivity of diagnosis and facilitate the detec-tion of infected animals in different disease stages. Moreover, our results indicate that this approach is feasible in small scale cattle herds size, which properly fits Albanian circumstances

Animal health is the fundamental pre-requisite to secure global food safety and public health. Infectious animal diseases distress societies and damage international trade, and they continue to emerge and re-emerge. Research in veterinary science traditionally focuses on epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment, prevention, control, vaccine development and animal welfare. A better understanding of animal disease\'s nature will improve livestock health and productivity and contribute to the various efforts to foster human health. Thus, collaborative research across countries, agencies, and institutions should be supported by generous funds, a liberal legal framework, and disseminating research results globally

Lighting is a complex management tool in turkey production, controlled by three parameters; daylength, intensity, and chromaticity. As light-emitting diodes (LED) increase in popularity as alternatives to traditional light sources, research regarding LED impacts on commercial-type turkey production is lacking. Therefore, turkey hens of the same strain were reared under experimental brooding and grow-out conditions with six lighting treatments. An environmentally and light controlled facility (ECF) consisted of 5,000 Kelvin (K) LED or 5,000K + far-red LED (639nm) (RED) with either 12h short or 18h long daylength to test LED spectra. In the remaining treatments, hens were exposed to sunlight in a curtain-sided facility (CSF) as two treatments 1) natural decreasing daylength from September to November (NAT) or 2) natural daylight + 5,000 K LED lighting with an 18h long blocked daylength (BLK). The intensity was 9 footcandles in the ECF and naturally fluctuating in the CSF. Hen\'s performance was evaluated at 5, 9, and 14 weeks for eye development and feather coverage. Hens brooded and grown-out under NAT light had significantly increased body weight gain compared to BLK hens for the same period. Hens reared with RED LED spectrum had significantly increased eye anterior-posterior distance than birds raised in the NAT treatment. A significant reduction in red heat signature on the breast tissue in the NAT treatment compared to all other 18h treatments indicated improved feather coverage. However, these same results were not observed during serum thyroid hormone analysis. While turkey hens reared under different lighting programs had similar ending performance, lighting parameters significantly affected bird performance during the growing period, bird\'s eye development, and body feather coverage. Therefore, potential effects on growth patterns and physiology should be considered when choosing a LED lighting program for turkeys.

Histomoniasis is a parasitic disease of poultry with worldwide prevalence, having significant negative impacts on infected turkey health and welfare. A total of 53,000 male fattening turkeys (British United Turkeys, BUT6) of 140-day-old were admitted to the slaughterhouse in central Ukraine. No clinical signs were reported in the turkeys during the production cycle. Slaughtering of the turkeys revealed enlargement of the livers, most of which had a greenish color with alterations in the hepatic tissues (fibrosis). No other gross lesions were noted in other organs of the slaughtered birds. Fresh liver tissues were submitted to the laboratory to measure the concentrations of lead, cadmium, copper, and zinc to detect possible intoxication and/or differential diagnosis. The concentrations of the measured heavy metals in the affected liver tissues were within the recommended normal ranges. Histological examination revealed microscopically proliferative changes in liver sections in different turkeys. Suspected tissue sections were stained with Periodic Acid Schiff and found positive for Histomonas meleagridis trophozoites. Overall, macroscopical or microscopical examinations of turkey livers are essential to confirm infection with histomonads, even if the clinical signs are unapparent. As outbreaks of histomoniasis in turkey flocks are increasing approaches to prevent and treat histomoniasis are urgently needed.

Lumpy skin disease (LSD) is an infectious economically important viral disease of cattle. Lumpy skin disease virus (LSDV) is still circulating in Egypt, despite the annual mass vaccination with sheep pox virus vaccine by the Egyptian authorities. This study was carried out on 2 farms of pregnant Holstein cows vaccinated with Bovivax LSD-N® Vaccine (farm I) and Servac Capri-C vaccine® (farm II). After 40-60 days post-vaccination, mild clinical sings were detected in 3% of farm I cows whereas a more severe clinical infection was developed in 40% of cows in farm II. LSDV was isolated on the chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) of 11 days old emberyonated chicken egg (ECEs) and Madin Darby bovine kidney (MDBK) tissue culture. LSDV was identified in collected skin tissues by Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Histopathological examination. Finally, LSDV was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of 192 base pair (bp) of P32 gene and two samples were selected for DNA sequencing. LSDV developed characteristic pock lesion in inoculated ECEs. MDBK cell culture developed prominent LSDV cytopathic effect at the 3rd passage. Viral particles were detected in the cytoplasm of both epidermal cells and dermal macrophages by TEM. Histopathological examination revealed different lesions correlated with LSDV infection age. LSDV was confirmed in all tested samples by PCR. Our strains (Dakahlia- 2020-1 and Dakahlia- 2020-2) were closely related to other Egyptian LSDV strains on GenBank with 98.2%-100% identity. The present study proved conclusive evidence that live attenuated Sheep Poxvirus vaccine poorly protect Egyptian cattle against LSDV, while LSDV Neethling strain vaccine gave a promising and sufficient protection rate.

Poultry meat is an important source of animal protein in Bangladesh. Small-scale poultry production plays a crucial role in the socio-economic development and nutritional requirements of rural and peri-urban households and provides an income source for resource-poor areas. Therefore, focusing on small-scale poultry production remains important. However, improper management, disease outbreak, market volatility and many other factors are typically responsible for the sustainability of this rising prospect of small-scale poultry production potential. The recent pandemic coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) tremendously influenced the sustainability of the small-scale poultry sector. This review addressed Bangladeshi small-scale poultry production and its market value, identified issues, and suggested potential guidelines to sustain the small-scale sector

The small-scale and backyard-raised poultry are extensively growing in Egypt. However, low biosecurity and/or vaccination practices are adopted. The current study was conducted to investigate and molecularly characterize Newcastle Disease (ND) strains circulating in small-scale and backyard poultry sectors in Giza governorate in Egypt from July 2018 to April 2020. Twelve broiler flocks (6 commercial and 6 backyard flocks) suffering from respiratory and/or nervous signs were included. Virus isolation and molecular characterization were conducted. In the present study, three NDV isolates were isolated from commercial (n=2) and backyards (n=1) flocks. The isolated viruses maintained the multi-basic motif112RRQKRF117 in the fusion protein cleavage site indicative of their virulent nature. Phylogenetically, the viruses are closely related to genotype VII.1.1. ND viruses are genetically different from NDV genotype II vaccine strains. Deduced amino acid sequences of the fusion (F) protein showed an amino acid change of S278P in the heptad repeat (HRb) in the two NDV isolates from commercial farms. Other amino acid substitutions were observed including the change at positions 442 (A/T) in the two commercial flocks isolates and position 317 (A/S) in the backyard ND isolate. Few silent nucleotide mutations were also observed in the F protein of the NDV isolate from the backyard flocks. In conclusion, the current study reports the genetic identification of virulent NDV viruses from commercial or backyard flocks related to genotype VII.1.1. ND circulating in Egypt. The amino acid substitutions and nucleotide changes warrant the need for continuous surveillance of NDV in these growing poultry sectors considering their importance as a spot for extensive NDV circulation and as the main source for live bird markets in Egypt.

This study was carried out to evaluate the effect of different Low Pathogenic Avian Influenza (LPAI) H9N2 vaccines containing different virus strains (vaccine A, vaccine B, and vaccine C) on the productivity and immunity of 10 days-old broiler chickens. Two hundred day-old Cobb broiler chicks were divided into eight groups, 25 chicks in each group. Six groups were vaccinated with Vaccine A, Vaccine B, and Vaccine C (2 groups/each vaccine) at 10 day-old, respectively. Chickens of groups 7 and 8 were kept as control groups. One group from each vaccine was challenged at 28 days old with 106 EID50/0.2ml of A/chicken/Morocco/SF1/2016 (H9N2) virus via the oculonasal route. The remaining groups were kept unchallenged to evaluate the immune response. Chicks were sampled each week individually until 42 days old for zootechnical traits and serological evaluation. Two necropsies were done at 5 and 10 days post-challenge (DPC). Lungs and tracheas were collected for histopathology, and the virus shedding was monitored at 5, 7, 9, and 11 DPC by real-time RT-PCR. Results indicated that vaccine B provides significantly better growth performances (P < 0.05), final body weight gain (2689.6 g ± 73.2), and feed conversion ratio (2.10 ± 0.06) when compared to other vaccinated groups. During the challenge (28th -35th days), vaccine B showed a significant increase in antibody titer (26180 ± 1129.1) than other vaccines. In contrast, the vaccine C group had a similar immune response to that of the control group. Both vaccines A and B were able to stop virus shedding by 11 DPC with higher mean Cq values. However, the vaccine C group continued to shed the virus until 11 DPC. Pathological examination of challenged birds revealed lesions predominantly in the respiratory tract. At 5 DPC, fibrinous sinusitis, tracheitis with fibrin plug, pneumonia, and fibrinous airsacculitis were observed. By 10 DPC, the fibrinous inflammation inceased, and only congestion in the trachea, lungs, and sinuses with thickening of air sacs were observed. Histopathology revealed lymphoplasmacytic tracheitis and congestive pneumonia. Scoring of lesions generally revealed more severe lesions at 5 DPC. Statistical analysis of both macroscopic and microscopic scores showed no significant differences between groups in both necropsies. In conclusion, vaccine B has significantly better seroconversion, better growth performance parameters, and a relatively early stop of viral shedding compared to other vaccines.

Milk quantity, fat, and protein contents are important traits in dairy animals, particu-larly in dairy goats. However, little is known about the genetics and genomics in dairy goats that influence these traits. The diacylglycerol O-acyltransferase (DGAT) genes are considered the most important genes in dairy goats for milk quantity and fat con-tents. The DGAT genes have two isoforms as DGAT1 and DGAT2, that have similar re-actions but no sequence homology in-between. The DGAT1 gene in chromosome 14 is a functional and potential candidate gene for fat content in goats, while DGAT2 is associated with milk yield and fat percentage in goats. The phylogenetic analyses re-vealed similar topologies and evolutionary partitioning of DGAT family proteins into two major clades: DGAT1 and DGAT2. Moreover, DGAT1 proteins were found to play a significant role in the milk yield in dairy goats. In this review, the role of polymor-phisms in DGAT family genes on milk production in dairy goats is discussed

Abstract The commercial turkey of today is a descendant of wild, then domesticated, turkeys from North America originating in regions of old Mexico. The modern commercial turkey enjoys a wide range of acceptance in many countries. Turkey production evolved rapidly from 1950 forward with many changes in production and management. Turkey production changed from range rearing to mostly total confinement. Rearing birds under increased density in confinement facilities has created both opportunities and challenges. Once confined, organic materials have been used as bedding (also referred to as litter). There have been many materials evaluated and used for bedding. Availability, cost, and bird performance were early key considerations. More recently, bird health and welfare are now important considerations as well. Optimal management programs of the modern turkey reared in confinement can be elusive and difficult to define. However, controlling litter moisture which aids in reducing ammonia and footpad dermatitis should be a key management component of confinement rearing. Therefore, bedding choice and litter management in turkey production require thoughtful consideration and active management.