[Assessment of protective effect of ethyl pyruvate on sperm parameters, and trend of embryological development after in vitro fertilization [IVF] in phenylhydrazine treated mice]

Background and Aim: oxidative stress can lead to change in the sperm parameters and cessation of embryological development This study aimed to assess the protective effect of ethylpyruvate [EP] on sperm parameters and trend of in vitro fertilization under oxidative stress conditions produced by phenyl hydrazine [PHZ] induced hemolytic anemia in mice

Material and Method: 40 NMRI mice with the age range of 8-10 weeks and mean weight of 26+/-2gr, were randomly divided into four equally groups. The control group received normal saline [0. 1 ml/day, IP]. Group2 [PHZ group] was treated with initial dose of PHZ [8mg/100gr/b. w, IP] followed by 6mg/100gr/b. w, IP, every 48hr. Group3, [Group PHZ+EP] received the same dose of PHZ and EP [40mg/kg/daily/IP]. Ethyl pyruvate group received only EP [40mg/kg/daily, IP]. Treatment period took 35 days. Then, after euthanasia the sperm were collected from caudal region of epididymis and examined for sperm count, sperm viability, motility and morphology. Testis tissue MDA and serum testosterone levels of all experimental groups were also evaluated

Result: in this study, in PHZ group we found a considerable reduction in the mean percentage of the number of the sperms with damaged DNA and abnormal morphology compared to the control group. After administration of antioxidant these parameters improved significantly [p<0.05]. In PHZ group we found significant decrease in the percentage of fertility, blastocysts, and the number of arrested embryos in comparison to the control group, which after administration of ethylpyruvate these parameters improved significantly

Conclusion: treatment of the mice with PHZ led to improvement of the sperm parameters and trend of embryological development

[Serum protein alterations in goats naturally infected with Babesia ovis]

This study was conducted to determine the electrophoretic pattern of serum protein in goats infected with Babesia ovis. Serum total protein was calculated and serum electrophoresis from 15 goats naturally infected with B. ovis as well as same number of healthy goats was performed. Microscopic examination of Giemsa-stained peripheral blood smears revealed B. ovis infection. The parasitological diagnosis was confirmed using polymerase chain reaction [PCR] assay by using a pair of B. ovis-specific primers. Mean values total protein and alpha and gama globulin fractions in infected goats were significantly higher [P<0.05] than those observed in the healthy group

Prevalence, molecular characterization and serology of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli isolated from buffaloes in West Azerbaijan, Iran

This present study is the first to report the presence of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli [STEC] in buffaloes in Iran. A total of 360 fecal samples were collected from buffaloes from different regions in the west Azerbaijan province of Iran and cultured for the isolation of E. coli using routine biochemical tests. From the fecal samples, 340 E. coli were isolated and, of these, 26 STEC isolates were identified. The STEC isolates were further analyzed for the presence of specific virulence genes. Among the STEC isolates, 11 [42.3%] isolates were positive for the stx[1] gene, nine [34.6%] were positive for the stx[2] gene and six [23%] were positive for both of these genes. Six [23%] STEC isolates harbored the hly gene and two [7.6%] isolates were positive for the eae gene. Based on serotyping, only one [3.8%] isolate was of the O157 serotype, while the other 25 [96.1%] belonged to non-0157 serotypes. The results of the present study provide the first evidence that buffaloes could be a reservoir for STEC in Iran, especially those belonging to non-0157 serotypes

Sheep abomasal phytobezoariasis: the effect of breed, season and age with histopathological observations

The prevalence of the latent form of sheep abomasal phytobezoariasis and the effect of husbandry management on this condition were determined in a survey in and industrial abattoir in Urmia from June 2005 to July 2006. The effect of different age groups and seasons on the prevalence of sheep abomasal phytobezoariasis was also determined. Furthermore, the histological changes in the affected abomasal tissue were also verified. The breeds and ages of the sheep were identified prior to slaughter. In the postmortem, the abomasum was examined for foreign bodies, including bezoars. Tissue specimens were taken from the abomasal body in the affected cases. The annual prevalence of sheep abomasal phytobezoariasis was 1.95%. The prevalence was highest in the Makuei breed and the lowest in Ghezel sheep. The prevalence was higher in winter compared to other seasons. The number of phytobezoars per abomasums ranged from one to four. The histopathological changes in the affected cases included leukocytic infiltration in the mucosal layer, edema, glandular hyperplasia and cystic spaces

Analysis of polymorphism of MHC class II BuLA DRB3 exon 2 gene in north west Iranian populations of the water buffalo [Bubalus bubalis] through PCR-SSCP

The DRB3 gene is a highly polymorphic major histocompatibility complex [MHC] class II gene and plays an important role in variability of immune responsiveness and disease resistance. In the present study, the MHC class II DRB3 gene in water buffalo [Bubalus bubalis] populations from Northwest regions of Iran was investigated through PCR-SSCP. Genomic DNA was extracted from whole blood samples collected from 50 buffaloes. A 284 bp segment of exon 2 of BuLa-DRB3 was amplified by standard PCR, using locus-specific primers. The PCR products were subjected to a non-denaturing gel electrophoresis. A number of 11 different SSCP patterns indicating allelic variation were identified. The three most frequent patterns 1,4 and 10 accounted for 58% of the total patterns. Results indicated that exon 2 of the BuLA-DRB3 gene is highly polymorphic among the examined animals