The research study was conducted to identify the breed-specific structural features of the skeletal striated muscle tissue and their effects on beef cattle performance. The research study was performed with the 16-month-old purebred Simmental and Bestuzhev bulls and their crosses with the South Devon breed, raised on farms in the Republic of Bashkortostan. Samples were taken from the longissimus thoracis and loin muscles of three animals (n = 12) in each group. The ultrastructural analysis of skeletal striated muscle tissue was performed with the JEM-100S electron microscope. Crossbred animals have better-developed energy and contractile systems, indicating the more active metabolic processes in muscle fibers. Large accumulations of glycogen granules in the sarcoplasm of muscle fibers of the crossbred Simmental and South Devon bull calves could be observed, while they were significantly less in the Bestuzhev bull calves and the Bestuzhev and Simmental crosses. In the muscle fibers of purebred animals, sarcosomes are arranged in 1–2 rows, while the pattern of 3–5 rows can be observed in the South-Devon and Bestuzhev crosses. The myofibril thickness in purebred Bestuzhev youngstock varies in the range of 1.5–2 μm, while it is within 0.8–1.2 μm in the bull calves of the Simmental breed and its crosses. The meat of crossbred animals contains thinner muscle fibers and insignificant layers of connective tissue, therefore, it is of the higher quality, when compared to that for the purebred animals.
Pea (Pisum sativum) is one of the most important leguminous crops. According to the Priority 2030 program, the main purpose of pea breeding is to create varieties with a high (over 25
The research study was focused on prediction of in-vivo embryo production performance efficiency in the Holstein cows and heifers through identification of serum thyroid hormone and progesterone concentrations associated with the high embryo yield and viability to develop recommendations for optimizing stimulation cycles. The blood hormone profiles of the Holstein cows and heifers after superovulation stimulation and artificial insemination (AI) were analyzed. Overall, 37 and 29 superovulation stimulation cycles in 30 heifers and 16 cows, respectively, were analyzed. On day 0 of AI and 7 days later, the blood was sampled for enzyme immunoassay to measure the levels of total thyroxine (T4), total and reverse triiodothyronine (T3 and rT3), and progesterone (P4). The superovulation cycles were assessed with the two parameters: the total yield of embryos (≥90
The research study was focused on feasibility assessment of usability of the BIO-Diagnost portable gas analyzer (Sensorika—New Technologies LLC, Russia) to differentiate the bovine estrous cycle phases, based on profiling the volatile organic compounds in vaginal mucus. Overall, 66 samples including 13 samples,22 samples, and 31 samples taken from cows in the estrous phase (confirmed by ultrasound and clinical signs), in the luteal phase, and with unknown pregnancy status were collected. The signals from eight sensors were analyzed to estimate the parameters for the maximum response Ai/j ratios (where i and j are the sensor numbers) and the integral Smax/Skinet ratio (the ratio of the maximum sensor signal area to the kinetic area). The statistical analysis included the Mann-Whitney U-test at the significance level of p < 0.001 and the effect size estimates, followed by the principal component analysis. Four clusters were identified. The first two clusters (n = 10) included only estrous samples, cluster 4 included predominantly luteal samples (n = 17) and samples with unknown status (n = 18). Cluster 3 (n = 18) was mixed. Diagnostic thresholds were established using the scatterplot (X-axis—integral Smax/Skinet indicator, Y-axis—a component value). For the estrous phase, the component value > 1 at Smax/Skinet < 2. This condition is characterized by the detection of trimethylamine, phenol, and aliphatic acids. For the luteal phase, the component value < 0 at Smax/Skinet > 1.5. In these samples, the device detects cyclohexane and 3,3,5-trimethyl phosphonic acid, which are absent in estrus. The study-based results and the high-potential automated lab data analysis platforms can provide the further device approvals in the production process.
The ability of various strains of soil bacteria to synthesize and/or destroy plant growth regulators indolyl-3-acetic acid (IAA), cytokinins (CK), and abscisic acid (ABA) has been shown. Bacteria stimulated the growth of shoots and roots of soft wheat under normal conditions of moisture and drought and had a significant effect on the content of phytohormones in shoots and roots of plants. The most promising growth stimulators were strains with an average level of IAA production in combination with the ability to destroy phytohormones: Pseudomonas protegens DA1.2, P. plecoglossicida 2.4D, and the cytokinin-producing strain P. chlororaphis IB-6.
