فصلنامه پژوهشهای علوم دامی ایران
سال هشتم شماره 4 (زمستان 1395)

Introduction Barley is a major cereal grain in Iran. It is the primary constituent of concentrate rations for dairy and beef cattle as sources of energy and protein. The cultivation areas of barley is about 1.68 million ha which normally produce 3.4 million tones of grains. Depending upon local climate condition in Iran, plant breeding experts developed different types of barley (moderate, cold, and dry). Differences in the nutritional characteristics among barley varieties have been reported. Barley cultivars differ in chemical composition and ruminal digestion characteristics. In-vitro gas production results also show there are significant differences in ruminal dry matter disappearance among Iranian barley cultivars. These differences may be attributed to carbohydrate and protein fractions such as rapidly degradable protein and carbohydrate (PA and CA). Little research has been conducted to determine the differences between and within varieties of barley in terms of carbohydrate and protein fractions. This study was carried out to determine protein and carbohydrate fractions of barley cultivars.
Materials and Methods Barley cultivars including: 1- cv. Yousef, 2- cv. Nosrat, 3- cv. CB.79.10, 4- cv. Makooei, 5- cv. Abidar, and 6- cv. Sararood were obtained from Karaj Research Station which is located in central Tehran. Samples were ground using a Retsch ZM200, Rose, Scientific Ltd., Canada through a 0.5 mm screen for starch analysis and through a 1 mm screen for other chemical analyses. Dry matter (DM), ash, crude fat, and crude protein (CP) contents were analyzed according to the procedure of the AOAC. The acid detergent fiber (ADF), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), and acid detergent lignin (ADL) values were analyzed. The starch was analyzed using the Megazyme Total Starch Assay Kit (Megazyme International Ltd., Wicklow, Ireland). The non protein nitrogen content was obtained by precipitation of true protein in the filtrate with trichloroacetic acid and determined as the difference between total N and the N content of the residue after filtration. The amount of CP associated with NDF was determined by analyzing the NDF residues for CP. Soluble crude protein was determined by incubating the sample with bicarbonate-phosphate buffer and filtering through Whatman filter paper. The carbohydrate (CHO) was calculated according to formulas of the NRC dairy. Crude protein and carbohydrate fractions were partitioned according to the Cornell Net Carbohydrate Protein System. The CP fractions are: (1) non protein nitrogen (PA), (2) true protein, and (3) unavailable protein (PC). The true protein fraction is divided into three fractions: (1) rapidly degradable (PB1), (2) intermediately degradable (PB2), and (3) slowly degradable (PB3). The rapidly degradable fraction was determined as the trichloroacetic acid-precipitable fraction. The intermediately degradable fraction of true protein is insoluble in buffer, but soluble in neutral detergent. The slowly degradable fraction is believed to be more slowly degraded in the rumen than fractions rapidly and intermediately degradable because of its association with the plant cell wall; thus, a large proportion of this fraction is believed to escape the rumen. The unavailable protein fraction is the acid detergent insoluble N. Carbohydrate was fractionated into (1) soluble fraction (CA), which is composed of fermentable soluble sugars, (2) intermediately degradable fraction (CB1), which is starch and pectin, (3) slowly degradable fraction (CB2), which is the available cell wall with a slow degradation rate of 0.02-0.10 h-1, and an unfermentable fraction, which is the unavailable cell wall (CC).
Results and Discussion Barley cultivars had 49-55 % of DM starch and 9-14 % of DM crude protein. They differed in crude protein, soluble protein, neutral detergent fiber, non-protein nitrogen, and neutral detergent insoluble protein. Makooei had the greatest amount of crude protein and non-protein nitrogen, and the lowest amount of neutral detergent insoluble protein. Barley cultivars differed in protein and carbohydrate fractions. Makooei had the greatest amount of PA and the lowest amount of PB1and PB3. Abidar had the greatest amount of PB1, NSC and the lowest amount of CB2.
Conclusion Type of cultivar had significant effect on the protein and carbohydrate fractions of barley. Difference in protein and carbohydrate fractions can be influenced the protein and carbohydrate availability in ruminants. Results of the current study can be used to select and improve barley cultivars and accurate ration formulation in ruminants.

Introduction In recent years the use of herbal products to prevent disease-causing agents including viruses, bacteria, fungi Pistaciavera are widely considered. They have a wide range of antimicrobial activity and a willingness to use them escalated. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of bacterial inoculation and essential oils of rosemary, fennel and carum copticum on chemical composition, gas production parameters and fermentation characteristics of corn silage in vitro.
Materials and Methods Whole corn plants were harvested at the medium dough stage of maturity (30% DM) and chopped with a conventional forage harvester under farm conditions to 3-5 cm of lengths. Representative forage samples (3 kg) of inoculated and untreated corn silage were packed manually, in triplicate, into plastic bags. Bacterial inoculants and essential oil diluted in deionized water and applied with a hand held sprayer while forage samples were stirred manually. A similar quantity of deionized water was sprayed on the control forage. The filled silos were stored at ambient temperature and allowed to ensile for 3, 7, 21 and 45 days. After designated ensiling times, silos were opened and the ensiled forage was mixed thoroughly and then were dried at a 60°C in oven for 48 h and then ground to pass through a 2 mm screen for later analysis.
Results and Discussion The chemical composition of samples was affected by different treatments (P

Introduction The increased level of production of dairy cows increased the losses of nitrogen in feces and urine. The first approach to reduce the nitrogen excretion in the urine or feces, or both is the reduction of nitrogen usage in food rations. This approach is achieved when there is no significant effect on the reduction of animals function. Another way to reduce nitrogen excretion in animals is to improve the nitrogen use efficiency. Mathematical models have been used to predict the potential of nitrogen loss in dairy cows. These models are naturally experimental and not based on a specific process. The animal components in these models are based on CNCPS which these systems contain a large number of experimental elements (Empirical models) and are based on some controversial hypothesis. Jonker et al. (1998) presented a model based on the whole animal with a collection of data and showed that this model could predict the excreted nitrogen of urine from ureic nitrogen of milk precisely. However, they showed that when nitrogen loss is due to the quantity of protein, protein degradation, inadequate energy, etc, the model cannot identify and predict. Therefore, there is a need to develop a model to evaluate the biological processes in animals and nutritional changes to determine their exact role in the assessment of environmental pollution. The purpose of Kebreab et al’s model was to develop a dynamic model based on a certain method that has the ability to predict the quantity and nature of nitrogen excretion in dairy cows under different diets, and also the model could be evaluated by other experiments data. The purpose of this study is the evaluation of the model presented by Kebreab et al (2002). The mathematical models have been used to predict the potential for nitrogen excretion in dairy cows.
Materials and methods To evaluate a dynamic model of nitrogen metabolism in dairy cows by Kebreab and et al. (2002), two master's thesis with titles “Effect of NFC on Performance of Holstein Dairy Cow and Expression of its Mathematical Model on Nitrogen Balance” Kamel (2014), and “Effect of cutting time alfalfa hay harvested at early bud with different ratios of forage to concentrate on chemical composition, fermentation Parameters and performance of early lactation Holstein dairy cows” Firuzi (2014) were used. In this study, to evaluate Kebreab et al’s model, 16 Holstein cows in two 4 × 4 Latin square design were used. Cows were fed with 8 different diets. For each experiment, the total of consumed nitrogen and excreted from feces, urine and milk nitrogen were measured. In addition, the concentration of feed component including dry matter, crude protein, NDF, ADF, starch, non-fibrous carbohydrates, ash, calcium, phosphorus, ammonia nitrogen, pH and metabolisable energy were determined.
Results and Discussion Similar to the results obtained by Kebreab et al. (2002), by increasing nitrogen intake, fecal nitrogen excretion also increased linearly. As the result of Kebreab et al. (2002) and Castillo et al (2000), the nitrogen excreted in the urine predictions match better with the observations.
Conclusion In general, the lowest average of percentage error and the difference of RMSPE with its optimum level are for nitrogen excretion of urine and feces, nitrogen secreted in milk, nitrogen excreted in the urine and the nitrogen excreted in the feces, respectively. Therefore it could be concluded that the model presented by Kebrab et al (2002). has the best estimation and prediction in summation of excreted nitrogen from urine and feces while has the least precision in estimation of excreted nitrogen from feces. Although the results did not show a bi-linear relationship between N intake and output, but our results are very similar with Kebreab’s results.

Introduction Today, the citrus industry supplies the large quantities of diversed by-products such as whole citrus fruits, fresh or dried citrus pulp, citrus molasses, and silage as feed for animals. In 2000-2003, global production of citrus was 4.69 MT. Iran has produced 3.5 MT citrus fruits (3.5 % of the world's production) and is known as the world's sixth-largest citrus producing country. Citrus by-product feedstuff can be used as a high energy feed in ruminant rations to support rumen microflora, growth and lactation, with fewer negative effects on rumen fermentation than starch rich feeds (Leiva et al., 2000), andimproves dietary fiber digestion, rumen fermentation and microbial protein synthesis. To increase the usefulness of citrus pulp it can be preserved by drying, but direct drying is difficult because of the slimy consistency of the waste. Citrus pulp may be ensiled alone or in combination with high dry matter cereal crop residues, such as wheat straw to control effluent outputs from silages. Application of wheat straw in silage as an absorbent additive decreases ensiling losses but also decreases quality of silage (. However, using wheat straw and urea in silage citrus pulp silage and their effects on feedlotting lambs has not evaluated. Therefore, this experiment conducted to test the effect of citrus pulp silage on fattening performance of Zel male lambs.
Materials and Methods Sixteen Zel male lambs (BW=25±0.5kg) in 4 treatments with 4 replications over 90 days fed with 4 experimental diets including: 1) basal diet with 14.61% of the citrus pulp silage withowt additives, 2) basal diet with 24.46% of the citrus pulp silage with 40% wheat straw, 3) basal diet with 24.22% of the citrus pulp silage with 38.5% wheat straw and 1.5% urea, and 4) basal diet with 23.76% of the citrus pulp silage with 37% wheat straw and 3% urea when forage to concentrate ratio was 40: 60%. Rations formulated using SRNS® (version 1.9.4208), mixed and fed twice daily at 700 and 1900. The daily gain, feed intake, feed conversion ratios were determined each 15d. Particle size distribution of ration was determined with dry sieving. Digestive kinetics were measured using Cr-mordanted NDF wheat straw a single dose. At 53 th d, rumination and chewing activity animal was measured visually with five-minute intervals over 24 h for all animals.
There were no significant difference in daily weight gain, dry matter intake and feed conversion ratio among treatments. Gado et al (2011) showed that the intake of nutrients was not changed with orange pulp silage without additives or orange pulp silage treated with the enzyme lambs except the fiber fractions (i.e., NDF and ADF) were consistent with the results. Treatment 1 had highest apparent digestibility of nutrients than other experimental treatments therefore, additives significantly decreased digestibility in comparasion to treatment control. Increase dry matter digestibility with orange pulp is two reasons: (1) a large amount of pectin as a major component of orange pulp. 2- highly digestible NDF (Aregheore, 2000). Citrus pulp pectin and increase the surface area of the particle size reduction in treatment 1 increased digestibility (Mertens, 1997). Wheat straw, urea, increasing the diet particles size and physical effective fiber, increased chewing and rumination times in comparasion to treatment control and decreased the resting time. Krause and Combs (2003) reported consuming diets with equal cell wall, with reduce the particle size of corn silage in the ration, dry matter intake increased, rumen fluid pH and chewing activity decreased. Treatment 1 had the highest ruminall particulate passage rate and lowest ruminal mean retention time, but treatment 4 had the lowest ruminall particulate passage rate and the highest ruminal mean retention time. Particle size reduction and fresh citrus pulp in the low quality diet by increasing the digestibility and passage rate improve voluntary feed intake, in treatment 1 This research was observed (Teimouri et al., 2004; Scerra et al., 2001). Addition of urea in treatments 3 and 4 significantly increased ruminal pH and NH3N. Iow pH of fresh orange pulp silage and decreased rumination and chewing activity lead to lower rumen pH treatment 1 (Krause and Combs, 2003).
The results experiment showed that the citrus pulp silage treated with urea, produced suitable alternative from protein source for fattening lambs and reduced costs, also partly resolved the problem of disposal of byproducts in the factories. So that 15% citrus pulp in diet improvements digestibility of nutrients, daily weight gain, feed conversion ratio and fattening lambs performance without negative effect.

Introduction Siris is a tropical legume. It has common names such as silk tree. Compositional studies indicated carbohydrates as major components and potassium was found in the highest amount and copper in the lowest. Siris leaf has high content of N (16 to 23 percent crude protein) and Ca, a low content of tannins and phenolic compounds. Levels of total tannins in the leaf of siris is 4%. The amino acids profile indicated that arginine and lysine are present in large amounts in seeds while glutamic acid and aspartic acid are higher in pods. Siris is an economically important plant for industrial and medicinal uses. This experiment was conducted to investigate the different levels (0, 50 and 100 %) of siris leave or silk tree instead of alfalfa on degradability parameters, fermentative and in vitro digestibility in cows and buffalo Khouzestan.
Materials and methods The leave of siris were collected from shushtar and milled. Levels of 0, 50 and 100% leave replaced alfalfa in the diet. Rumen fluid was collected from fistulated cow and buffalo before the morning feeding. About 500 ± 10 mg experimental samples (1.0 mm screen) incubated with 35 ml buffered rumen fluid under continuous CO2 reflux in 100 ml vials for 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 16, 24, 48, 72 and 96 h, in a water bath maintained at 39°C. Cumulative gas production data were fitted to the exponential equation Y=B (1−e−Ct). Partitioning factor, microbial biomass, actually degradable organic matter was calculated. Digestibility of dry matter and NDF of the samples were determined using an in vitro procedure. Dry matter and crude protein degradability were measured by in situ technique using fistulated animals (fed 60% forage% concentrate). Samples put in the polyester bags and incubated in the rumen for 2, 4, 6, 8, 16, 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours. After the specific incubation periods, the bags immediately were hand-rinsed under cold tap water until clear, and dried in a forced-air oven (60 °C, 48 hour). Disappearance of DM and CP of samples from bags with incubation time were calculated using the equation of, P = a b (1- e -ct), P= fraction degraded in the time t, a= soluble fraction, b= potentially degradable fraction, c= degradation rate and t= incubation time. The effective degradability was calculated using the equation of ED = a (bc/(c). Data were subjected to analysis as a split plot design using the General Linear Model (GLM) procedure of SAS.
Results and Discussion Dry matter digestibility of the diet containing 50% siris leave in Buffalo was 85.70 % and in cows, 82/94 %. Regardless of the type of treatment digestibility of dry matter and NDF was not significant between cow and buffalo. Regardless of the type of animal, the potential of gas production in the diets containing 0, 50 and 100 % siris leave was 175.05, 108.44 and 103.14 ml, respectively. The effect of diets containing leave on pf, microbial biomass, microbial biomass efficiency and organic matter digested was not significant. The efficiency of the microbial biomass in Buffalo (0.7281%) was higher than the cow (0.6308%). Slowly degradable fraction (b), constant degradable rate (c), potential of degradability (PD) and effective degradability (ED) of dry matter at 50 % leaf was the highest. Fraction a rapidly degradable (a) and effective degradability (ED) protein at 50 and 100 % the leave was the highest amount in compared to the control diet. In agreement with results, the researchers reported tropical legumes because of high quantity of protein and carbohydrate and lower fiber can be used as a suitable substrate for rumen microbial growth. Also legumes ability to provide required nitrogen, energy and vitamins for microorganisms. But presence of anti-nutritional factors such as tannin, saponin and oxalate in siris might be reduce fibrolytic enzyme activity and consequently fiber digestibility and fermentation.
According to the results it ccan be concluded siris leaves or silk tree improved fermentation condition in the rumen, therefore can be used instead of alfalfa in the diet of cow and buffalo in vitro.

Introduction By the end of the fourth development plan, annual grain shortages and protein meal for animal feed were 807 and 795 thousand tones, respectively. In the first nine months of 2014, an average of 1187 and 1865 thousand tons of protein meals were imported to the country. In recent years, due to the lack of water, salinity of water and soils, crop production has shown a significant decline. So, one of the suggestions in this regards is creation of new varieties with properties of higher production and resistant to environmental stresses. Fortunately, a lot of efforts in the country and especially in Nuclear Science and Technology Research Institute have been down for introducing different varieties of crop which is resistant against environmental stress. In most of these studies gamma ray has been used as a mutagenesis to create the lines and new varieties. Part of this research has led to introduce of the barley cultivar, Roddasht, and some lines of safflower, cottonseed and other crop species. Unfortunately, nutritional and digestive value of seed of these new cultivar and lines are not known for animals in line with their introduction. The aim of this study was to test the chemical composition, fermentation characteristic, digestible organic matter, metabolisable energy, VFA production and protein properties of barley (variety Roddasht) and mutant lines of safflower and cottonseed.
Materials and Methods Cultivar of barley (Roddasht) and mutant lines of cottonseed and safflower were grown at research field of Nuclear Agriculture Research School. These cultivar and mutant lines were achieved via mutation breeding process of their parent's cultivare (i.e. Valfajr (Barley), Varamin (Cotton) and Zarghan (Safflower), respectively). A 1 kg sample (seed) of each was used in this study. All samples were ground through 2 mm screen (Retsch Cutting Mill, Retschmule, Germany) and used for subsequent analyses. The samples were analyzed in duplicate for crude protein (CP; kjeltel auto 1300, Foss, Denmark), and organic matter (OM). Neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and acid detergent fiber were determined. Gas production (GP) test was performed. Approximately 200 mg of dry matter (DM) of each treatment was placed in 100 ml syringes (four replicates) and 30 ml of incubation medium was then added to them. Gas production (GP) test was performed for three consecutive weeks. Rumen fluid was collected from the three cannulated sheep and squeezed through four layers of cheese cloth. Gas production was measured at 2, 4, 6, 8, 12, 24, 48, 72 and 96 h and a set of appropriate blanks was included. Gas produced from each treatment was calculated by subtracting the produced gas form gas produced in a control blank. Metabolisable energy, digestible organic matter and volatile fatty acids were estimated via available equations. Protein of seeds was extracted using Tris-HCl method. Extracted proteins were run on SDS-Pages and the protein lanes were stained with coomassie blue dye.
Results and Discussion No significant differences were observed in chemical composition of mutant lines of cottonseed and safflower compared to their parental lines. Barley cultivar, Roddasht, had a lower (P

Introduction This experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of different level of whole cotton seed on performance, milk composition, dry matter digestibility and blood parameters of Montebeliard cows at first milking period. Whole cottonseed (WCS) is an unusual feedstuff for ruminants. Due to its high content of fat and protein, it may be defined as a concentrate. On the other hand, its fiber is similar to that of forages in terms of effectiveness in the rumen. The response of dairy cattle milk production to WCS feeding is variable. A large part of the effect of WCS on milk production is related to ruminal effects, which depend upon the basal diet fermentation balance. Montbéliarde cattle are a red and white pied cattle breed from the Montbéliard region of France, used mainly for dairying and particularly for cheese making.
Materials and Methods This research project was conducted at Behkadeh Razavi Corporation, Bojnourd, North province and department Animal Science Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Iran. In this experiment 16 Montebeliard dairy cows were used in a completely random design with 4 treatments and 4 cows per each treatment during 30 days (14 day adaptation and 16 day sampling). Each treatment received whole cottonseed according their group (0 % (control), 7, 14 and 21% respectively). Cows were milking 2 times in each day and sampling of milk was done weekly. The average milk production and body weight cows before experiment were 24.8±3kg day-1 and 840±30kg. Samples were collected from tail vein for blood parameters (glucose, cholesterol, TG and BUN) in last day. Milk production corrected with 4% fat coefficient. The 3 days end experiment collection of samples of feces used for apparent digestibility of dry matter. The AIA content of the feed and the excreta were determined
Results and Discussion Over the experimental periods, production of raw milk in the diets with whole cotton seed were greater significantly than control group (P

Introduction Vermicomposting is the process of composting using various worms to decomposing vegetable, food waste, bedding materials and many organic waste materials. Many wastes and residues have been used to produce vermicompost. Using variety of left over products such as vegetable cuttings, food wastes and manure from cattle and chickens for vermicomposting can inhibit environmental pollution while producing valuable vermicompost. However, worms require specific conditions for activity and composting. Vermicast (worm manure) is the end product of the breakdown of organic matter by earthworms which usually applies as an organic and natural fertilizer. Due to appropriate protein and organic matter of vermicast or vermicompost, it is maybe possible to use vermicompost as a feedstuff in ruminant animals such as low producing cattle, sheep and goats. Then, the aim of the current research was to investigate the possibility of using rumen content which has been enriched with poultry litter as a decomposing material for worms and nutritive value of the produced vermicast for ruminants.
Materials and Methods Rumen content was treated with 0 (T1), 3 (T2), 5 (T3) or 7% (T4) of poultry litter in triplicate samples. Three boxes (65×35×30 cm) were made for each treatment and 8 kg of materials and 80 grams of worms (200 worms) were added to one of them. The boxes were kept for 75 days in a room with 25oC temperature and 65-70% of relative humidity. After 75 d, a sample of each replicated was chosen for pH and dry matter analysis. Another sample from each replicated was grounded and analyzed for chemical composition (crude protein, ash, crude fiber, neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber) and gas production measurement. Gas volume was recorded at 2, 4, 6, 8, 12, 16, 24, 36, 48, 72 and 96 h of incubation. The kinetics of gas production was estimated using model: Y = A (1 – e−ct). Cumulative gas production at 24 h was used for estimation of metabolizable energy, net energy for lactation, short chain fatty acids and digestible organic matter.
Results and Discussion Vermicomposting efficiency was lower in T4 and higher in T2 and T3 treatments when compared with T1. The highest and lowest vermicomposting efficiency was in T3 and T4 treatments, respectively. Moreover, T3 treatment showed the highest crude protein and crude fat concentrations among the treatments. T3 treatment also had the lowest ash, crude fiber, neutral detergent fiber and acid detergent fiber concentrations among the treatments. The values of pH after 75 days were 6.76, 6.73, 7.10 and 6.57, respectively. The concentrations of crude protein for T1 to T4 were 16.50, 17.32, 18.84 and 15.45%, respectively. Also, the concentrations of neutral detergent fiber for T1 to T4 were 41.5, 42.5, 39.6 and 43.9%, respectively. Moreover, the concentrations of acid detergent fiber for T1 to T4 were 27.33, 28.50, 26.40 and 30.33%, respectively. Gas production was higher in T3 treatments compared with other treatments in all incubation hours. The cumulative gas productions for 24 h were 110.96, 116.24, 156.40 and 101.74 ml/g DM for treatments 1 to 4, respectively. Also, the cumulative gas productions for 96 h were 176.80, 210.58, 237.08 and 150.08 ml/g DM for treatments 1 to 4, respectively. T3 and T4 had the highest and the lowest potential of gas production among the treatments. The potential of gas production were 184.44, 225.65, 241.56 and 156.31 ml/g DM for treatments 1 to 4, respectively. The greatest and lowest metabolizable energy, net energy for lactation and organic matter digestibility were in T3 and T4 treatments, respectively. The calculated metabolisable energy values for T1 to T4 were 4.70, 4.87, 6.16 and 4.39 MJ/kg DM, respectively. The calculated net energy for lactation values for T1 to T4 were 2.26, 2.39, 3.33 and 2.04 MJ/kg DM, respectively. Organic matter digestibility values for T1 to T4 were 32.29, 33.33, 41.45 and 30.31%, respectively.
Conclusion The results of this study show that using up to 5% poultry litter in vermicomposting rumen content can produce vermicompost with great nutritive value (higher protein and lower fiber concentration) and high digestibility and energy content, which can be used in ruminants nutrition.

Introduction Supplementation of poultry diets with antioxidant substances seems to be an efficient means for improving the oxidative stability of poultry products. The most important sources of natural antioxidants are plants. The poultry performance parameters generally and positively are affected by the addition of aromatic herbs and their extracts into diets. Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L.), which is herb of the Labiatae family, have been recognized as the plants with the highest antioxidative activity by many authors. The substances associated with the antioxidant activity of rosemary are the phenolic diterpenes, such as carnasol, rosmanol, 7-methylepirosmanol, isorosmanol and carnosic acid. This study examined the effects of dietary supplemented with different levels of dried rosemary leaves on laying hen performance and egg quality in fresh and storage periods.
Materials and methods A total of 200 Hy-Line W36 laying hen aged 26 weeks were housed in cages and randomly allocated to 5 treatment groups each containing 40 birds. Each group was divided into 4 replicates. The birds were kept in the laying cages (48.5 cm wide, 45 cm deep, 44 cm high in front and 38 cm high in the rear, 436 cm2 per each one), and housed there along the experimental period. Feed and water were provided ad libitum. The hens received a basal diet (maize and soya bean based; 16.00% crude protein; 2850 kcal/kg ME) that was formulated to meet the hy-line W36 (2014) requirements recommended for nutrients. The diet did not contain any antibiotics and coccidiostats or growth promoters. Treatments were included 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5 and 2 percent of dried rosemary leaves in basal diet. Experiment was designed in a Completely Randomized Design Block with 5 treatments, 4 replicates/ treatment with 10 hens in each replicate, from 29 until 38 weeks of age. Eggs were collected daily and weighed and egg production was calculated on a bird–day basis. Mortality was recorded as it occurred. Feed intake was recorded weekly and calculated as g/hen/d. The value of feed efficiency was calculated as kg feed per kg egg. Twenty four eggs were collected from each group (6 eggs from each replicate) at last 3 day of the experimental period to determine egg quality parameters. Egg quality analyses were done within 24 h of the eggs being collected and after 21d storage period. Egg shell thickness was measured with an egg shell thickness gauge, the egg weight in and out water, the albumen height, the yolk, albumen and shell weight were determined. By using these values, the Haugh units, egg portion (yolk, albumen and shell) relative weight, shell weight per shell unit area and egg specific gravity were calculated.
Results and Discussion The results showed dietary supplemented with different levels of dried rosemary have significantly effects on some parameters of performance and egg traits in laying hens (p

Introduction A simple and efficient method for producing multi-transgenic animals is required for medical and veterinary applications. The principal technique for the production of transgenic animals is pronuclear microinjection, which has a low efficiency for the generation of transgenic farm animals expressing a single transgene. Recently, nuclear transfer has been used to clone large animals, and could allow multiple genetic manipulations to be undertaken in vitro, prior to a single nuclear transfer, rather than complex and time consuming breeding programs. However, at present the frequency of success in cloning large animals is very low and is very expensive. The production of transgenic livestock by sperm mediated gene transfer (SMGT) has a number of advantages compared to other transgenic techniques such as nuclear transfer and microinjection. Both nuclear transfer and microinjection techniques are technically demanding and labor intensive. In contrast, SMGT requires no sophisticated equipment or technical expertise. Furthermore, bovine genetics are distributed through sperm in the dairy industry consequently making it easy to distribute genetically modified sperm. SMGT is based on the ability of sperm to bind to exogenous DNA molecules and transfer it to the oocyte during fertilization. The major benefits of the SMGT technique were found to be its high efficiency, low cost and ease of use compared to other methods. SMGT was first described in a small animal model, with high efficiency reported in the mouse. Recently the technique has been successfully adapted and optimized for use in large animals. Studies have shown that spermatozoa from numerous species, including bovine, can bind and take up foreign DNA and transfer it to the embryo. In bovine studies, the efficiency of SMGT can vary widely depending on both the transgene and the gene transfer method. Liposomes have been shown to be particularly effective in transferring DNA into bovine sperm. However, not all embryos derived from transfected sperm contain the transgene, suggesting that mechanisms exist, which impede SMGT. The aim of this study was to investigate the possibility of gene transfer to bull spermatozoa by using lipofection.
Materials and Methods Ram testes collected from Meysam abattoir slaughterhouse immediately after slaughter and were brought to the laboratory in an ice chest. In the laboratory, the testes were rinsed twice with normal saline and were then trimmed to remove the extra testicular tissue and washed properly with saline containing 0.1% streptomycin sulphate. Connective tissue covering the cauda epididymis was removed by careful dissection, with care to avoid rupturing blood vessels or the epididymal duct. For detection of transfected spermatozoa, they stained with Rodamine. In order to transfection of sperm, 2 μg of Rodamine labeld DNA and 0.5 μl of TurboFect were diluted in 25 μl of transfection medium separately, and incubated for 5 min at room temperature. Then, the diluted DNA was added to diluted TurboFect (total volume=50 μl) and incubated for 20 min at room temperature. 1×106 sperm were added to 50 μl of DNA- TurboFect complexes and mixed gently by rocking the plate back and forth. To evaluation of transfected spermatozoa motility, acridine orange staining was used. Each experiment was replicated at least three times, and for each replicate, at least 50 ES cell colonies were used. Data were analysed with a statistical software program (SPSS 16). Comparisons between two treatments and multiple numeric datasets were performed using t-test and one-way ANOVA followed by Duncan multiple-range test, respectively. Results are expressed as mean±SEM and statistical significance was accepted at P0.05). The comparison of transfected and normal spermatozoa reveal that, motility of transfected spermatozoa at 60 minutes after transfection was significantly lower than normal ones (p

Introduction Adiponectin, a novel adipocytokine mainly produced from adipocytes, acts through binding to its two functional receptors, AdipoR1 and AdipoR2. Some evidence has already suggested that adiponectin can be involved in the regulation of male reproductive functions. Our purpose was to detect of adiponectin and AdipoR2 mRNA transcripts in the reproductive tissues of growing pre-pubertal male lambs as well as adult rams.
Materials and Methods At first, Afshari prepubertal male lambs (n=20), with no apparent abnormalities, were allocated to four different age groups (n=5/age group) including; 1-2 (Group 1), 2-3 (Group 2), 3-4 (Group 3), and 4-5 (Group 4) months of age, afterward were surgically castrated. At a local slaughterhouse, reproductive tissues from five adult Afshari rams (3-4 years-old), with no evident abnormalities, were also collected within 20 minutes after the rams were slaughtered. Both fresh whole testes for lambs and those for adult rams were instantly transported to the laboratory on ice and were frozen in the liquid nitrogen and stored at −80°C until analysis. Total RNA extracted from each tissue sample, converted to cDNA and finally, the relative expression levels of adiponectin and AdipoR2 transcripts were assessed by Quantitative Real time-PCR. Comparative ΔΔCt method was used for quantification of Real-Time PCR outputs. By GenEx enterprise software, obtained fold changes were statistically analyzed.
Results and Discussion By real-time PCR, local gene expression of adiponectin and AdipoR2 was demonstrated in testis parenchyma and three different parts of epididymis (caput, corpus and cauda) for both immature male lambs and adult rams. The results showed that adiponectin and AdipoR2 levels persistently changed during pre-pubertal and pubertal developmental stages. There were no significant differences in adiponectin, and AdipoR2 mRNA levels among various tissues (p>0.05); but, mRNA quantities significantly varied among different age groups (p

Introduction Dry period is an important factor for milk yield, udder health and also cow's reproduction. Persistency of milk production in high producing dairy cows, increased income from milk production per cow in 305 days. In the other side, in recent decades, much attention to increasing milk production in dairy cows and genetic selection of high producing animals, has been caused many problems such as negative energy balance and reproductive disorders. Shortening or removing the dry period, may to improve health status and reproductive performance of cows. The relationship between energy balance and reproduction is well proven. Body condition score (BCS) at mating, and duration and severity of negative energy balance after calving affect pregnancy rate. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of shortening the dry period and the number of parturition and interaction between them, on health and reproduction and productive performance in Holstein dairy cow.
Materials and Methods 80 Holstein cows were used in a 2 × 2 factorial design from 56 days before to 56 days after calving. Cows (n=20) were randomly assigned to two groups on the basis of dry period length (56 or 28 days) and number of calving (two or three times of calving rate). The animals were fed three times a day. Dairy cattle rations based on the requirements was adjusted in the period before and after calving. Cows were milked three times a day and the amount of milk yield was recorded for six weeks. To determine the composition of milk, a mixture of daily milk was used and evaluated weekly. BCS, based on the system of five numbers was determined. Reproductive records including open days, pregnancy rate in four inseminations and days to first service was determined. The indicators of the uterine health of the cow containing metritis and endometritis incidence was assessed. Blood samples of cattle, on the day of entry into the study (56 days before the expectable calving), 28 and 7 days before calving and day 7, 28 and 56 after calving were measured. The concentrations of glucose, urea, triglycerides, total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, beta-hydroxy butyric acid (BHBA) and non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) in the blood were measured. Data were analyzed by SAS software.
Results Milk yield was tended to be lower in group 28 than that in group 56 (P= 0.06). But milk composition and somatic cells of cows with 28 days dry period, does not have a significant difference with control group (56 days dry period). Means BCS after calving in the 28 days group, was lower than those of 56 day group (P

Introduction Heat stress is one of the environmental stresses in summer. It was showed that decrease digestibility nutrient and impair the function of immune and antioxidant system. Several methods have been suggested to reduce the negative effects of heat stress in broiler chickens including: supplemented antibiotic, probiotic and prebiotic in the various levels of diets. However, extensive usage of antibiotics will cause the increasing resistance of pathogens to antibiotics and the accumulation of antibiotics remain in animal products and the environment. It is becoming increasingly evident that to achieve the aims above and to reduce the use of antibiotics significantly, it is necessary to combine of intervention strategies such as genetic selection of resistant animals, elimination of pathogens from feed and water, vaccinations, and applications of suitable feed and water additives. On the other hand, it was showed that probiotic and prebiotic additives improve the function of immune and antioxidant system. However, to our knowledge, information is lacking on the effects of simultaneous using probiotic and prebiotic on broiler antioxidant and immune system. This experiment was conducted to compare the effect of different levels of probiotic and prebiotic on antioxidant system, immune system, liver enzymes activity and some blood parameters under heat stress in broilers chickens.
Material and Methods Two hundred and fifty six broiler chickens (Ross 308) were used in a completely randomized design with a 4×2 factorial arrangement of treatments and four replicates with 8 chickens in each. Broiler chickens were fed with 2 levels of probiotic (0 and 0.01) % and 4 levels of prebiotic compound (0, 0.025, 0.050 and 0.075) % diet during 29- 42 days of age. Blood sample was collected in order to measure the serum concentration of metabolites (glucose, total protein, globulin and albumin), minerals (Fe, Mg, Ca and P), liver enzymes activity (ALP, ALT, AST), antioxidant system (SOD, GSH-px) and immune system (IgG, IgM). Data from the experiment were analyzed by mixed model procedure of SAS. Cage was the experimental unit. We considered P Results and Discussion During the past decade, some studies have supported the potential health benefits of probiotics, such as improved gastrointestinal microbiota ecosystems, stimulation of the immunological system, anticarcinogenic activities, and reduced oxidative stress. The results of present study indicated that supplemented probiotic in diet was significantly increased the serum concentration of glucose, magnesium and IgG and decreased globulin. The results of several other studies similarly confirmed that treatment of animals with probiotics increase the serum concentration of glucose and reduce or no effect on the serum concentration of albumin, globulin and total protein in broiler chickens. The results this study also showed that treatment of animals with the different levels of prebiotic was caused insignificant change in the serum concentration of metabolites and minerals. Of course, simultaneous using of 0.01% probiotic and prebiotic in the levels of 0.05% and 0.075 % diet was caused to increase of serum glucose significantly. Adding probiotics and prebiotics and their interactions in the diet has insignificant effect on the enzyme activity of serum ALT and ALP broiler chickens under heat stress. Few studies were conducted as to the interaction effect of probiotics and prebiotics on immune and antioxidant system. The results of this experiment showed that addition of 0.01% probiotic and prebiotic in the level of 0.05 % to diet was caused significant increase the enzyme activity of GSH-px. Furthermore, treatment of 0.01% probiotic and prebiotic in the level of 0.075% to diet was caused significant increase the antibodies production against SRBC. The results of previous studies have been showed that the function of immune and antioxidant system impair under heat stress. On the other hand, in agreement with present results, it was indicated that probiotics and prebiotics increase GSH-px and IgG and the antibodies production against SRBC. Thus, both the present experiment and the other reports indicate that dietary supplementation of probiotic and prebiotic improve the immune and antioxidant system of broilers and could be as an alternative to antibiotics
Conclusion In general, by the results of present study, it can be concluded that supplemented probiotic invidually in diet significantly increase the serum concentration of glucose, magnesium and IgG and decreased globulin. Furthermore, using of 0.01% probiotic and 0.05% and/or 0.075% prebiotic in diet indicated that probiotic and synbiotic, can improve the blood parameters, antioxidant system and immune system in broiler chickens under the heat stress.