ISSN 2285-5750, ISSN CD-ROM 2285-5769, ISSN-L 2285-5750, ISSN Online: 2393 – 2260
 

Published in Scientific Papers. Series D. Animal Science, Vol. LXVIII, Issue 2
Written by Andreea-Raluca MOCLEAȘĂ, Horia GROSU

This study investigates milk production traits in dairy cattle from Harghita County, emphasizing heritability and correlations among milk yield, fat content, and protein content. A dataset of 2,823 cows, including detailed pedigree, production records, and environmental factors, was analyzed to estimate genetic and phenotypic variability. Heritability values for milk yield (0.1), fat yield (0.09), and protein yield (0.102) reveal limited genetic influence, indicating that genetic progress will be gradual, requiring multiple generations for substantial improvement. Strong phenotypic and genotypic correlations between milk yield and its compositional traits were observed, supporting simultaneous trait enhancement through targeted breeding. Environmental correlations were relatively low, underscoring that genetic factors predominantly govern these traits, with minimal shared influence from environmental conditions. This study concludes that integrating selective breeding with superior management practices offers the best strategy for optimizing milk production. The findings align with previous research, reinforcing the importance of genetic selection as a long-term solution for sustainable productivity and enhanced quality in dairy farming systems. These insights contribute to designing effective breeding programs for improving milk yield, fat content, and protein yield in dairy cattle.

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Published in Scientific Papers. Series D. Animal Science, Vol. LXVIII, Issue 2
Written by Ana Maria PRUNĂ, Marius MAFTEI, Mihai PRUNĂ, Dorel DRONCA, Marius DOLIȘ, Claudia PÂNZARU, Alexandru Vladimir VÎRGOLICI, Gheorghe Emil MĂRGINEAN

This study is just a part of an ample research which aims to create a monography of the Pure Arabian horses in Romania. At this stage, in this article, we present the results of research on energetic capacity (speed). Unfortunately, the Pure Arabian horses from the Mangalia National Stud do not perform competitive activities on the racetrack (as would be the case). Due to this situation, we had to use the times recorded in the qualifying races on the stud's racetrack. Certainly, if more performances had been recorded for each individual, the situation would have been completely different.73 Pure Arabian horses were studied, including 12 sire stallions and 61 broodmares. These 73 horses represent the entire reproductive nucleus of the Pure Arabian horse breed from the Mangalia stud farm. The results obtained from the statistical analyses were evaluated in accordance with the national criteria for grading and ranking of Purebred Arabian horses. The average performance of individuals from reproductive nucleus of the breed was 1’17”45/km, 1’17”53 for broodmares, amd 1’17 for sire stallions.

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Published in Scientific Papers. Series D. Animal Science, Vol. LXVIII, Issue 2
Written by Mihai PRUNĂ, Marius MAFTEI, Ana Maria PRUNĂ, Livia VIDU, Dorel DRONCA, Marius DOLIȘ, Alexandru Vladimir VÎRGOLICI, Gheorghe Emil MĂRGINEAN

This study represents another stage of a large-scale research regarding improving the racing performances of the Romanian Trotter. Regarding the productive potential (speed) of the Romanian Trotter, the specialty literature presents some results that highlight the inferior level of this breed compared to its competitors. In order to carry out the analysis of the productive potential of the individuals that make up the reproductive nucleus of the Romanian Trotter, only the productive performances of the native individuals were taken into account. It was analyzed career records (the best performance achieved in the career, expressed in minutes, seconds and hundredths/kilometer) of the entire reproductive nucleus of Romanian Trotter (60 individuals). The results obtained in assessing energetic capacity were then analyzed in accordance with the national standards for appreciation and ranking of Romanian Trotter horse, and in comparison with the results of other authors recorded some time ago (in order to demonstrate progress). The average value of the productive performance, in the reproductive nucleus, was 1’25”77/km. This value does not differ much from that calculated by Velea et al., of 1’25”95.

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Published in Scientific Papers. Series D. Animal Science, Vol. LXVIII, Issue 2
Written by Nevyana STANCHEVA, Ivona DIMITROVA, Milena BOZHILOVA-SAKOVA

In sheep, melatonin has a significant effect on the reproductive system, acting through specific receptors - one of which is melatonin receptor 1A (MTNR1A). It regulates reproductive traits such as seasonality and litter size. The aim of this study was to identify polymorphic variants in exon 2 of the MTNR1A gene and to analyze their association with litter size in Awassi sheep breed in Bulgaria. The two alleles (wild C and mutant T) and the three possible genotypes (homozygous CC, heterozygous CT and homozygous TT) were established in the studied group of ewes. The wild allele C and the heterozygous genotype CT showed a higher frequency (0.61 and 0.51, respectively) than the mutant allele T (0.39) and the homozygous genotypes CC (0.36) and TT (0.13). No statistically significant difference in litter size was observed between the different genotypes of the MTNR1A gene – CC (1.35), CT (1.29) and TT (1.24).

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Published in Scientific Papers. Series D. Animal Science, Vol. LXVIII, Issue 2
Written by Ivona DIMITROVA, Nevyana STANCHEVA, Milena BOZHILOVA-SAKOVA, Todor TZONEV, Radena NENOVA

Fertility is of great importance for the profitability of sheep farming as its traits are under the genetic control of several key genes known as fertility genes (Fec) among which is GDF9 (Growth Differentiation Factor 9). The aim of this study is to determine the presence or absence of polymorphism in SNP G1 of the GDF9 gene in rams of two Bulgarian breeds with different productive direction. 43 rams from the Bulgarian dairy synthetic population (breed for milk, with good fertility) and 44 rams from the North-East Bulgarian Merino breed (for wool and meat, with lower fertility) were included in the study. Using the PCR-RFLP method, 462 bp fragments of exon 1 of the gene were amplified and with subsequent treatment with the restriction enzyme Hhal, two alleles were identified in both breeds - wild G and mutant A. All three possible genotypes - GG, AG and AA - were found in rams from the more fertile BDSP breed, while only GG and AG were found in rams from the less fertile NEBM breed.

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Published in Scientific Papers. Series D. Animal Science, Vol. LXVIII, Issue 2
Written by Daniel GRIGORAȘ, Cătălin PĂUN, Cristian-Sorin DANILOV, Dragoș DIACONU, George ȚIGANOV

This study presents the population structure, growth dynamics of the species Rapana venosa (Valenciennes, 1846) with the aim of understanding its response to environmental gradients and anthropogenic pressures, particularly fishing. Data were collected during the 2024 summer expedition, in Romanian coastal area. The sampling depth was between 5 - 35 m and the mean bottom water temperature was 10.81°C. The age composition was formed by 3 to 11 years generations. A total of 3345 specimens were examined, with a mean total length of 63.94 mm and mean total weight of 48.07 g. The length-weight relationship (LWR), characterized by the intercept (a) = 0.00013 and the slope (b) = 3.033, confirmed mostly isometric growth, though some cases showed positive allometry. The high coefficient of determination values (r²) = 0.937 indicate a strong correlation of LWR. The Von Bertalanffy growth model parameters indicate moderate growth potential for the population. Mortality rates, including natural mortality, fishing mortality and total mortality, showed that fishing is the dominant impact factor. High exploitation rates highlighted intense fishing pressure, indicating the need for sustainable management measures.

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Published in Scientific Papers. Series D. Animal Science, Vol. LXVIII, Issue 2
Written by Florinel BÎRCĂ, Horia GROSU

The aim of the present paper is the phenotypic characterization of the varieties of the Tsurcana sheep breed, for exterior and production characters, in order to answer the question of whether or not these herds represent different subpopulations of the same sheep breed. The study was conducted on a flock of 1165 Tsurcana sheep breed, within the DACIA Association located in several farms in the country, structured on four varieties: Oacheșă, Belă/Bălă, Brează, Bucălae, 7 exterior characters (height at withers, average width of chest, average length of rump, oblique length of trunk, chest depth, perimeter of the whistle) and 2 production characters (wool weight and average daily weight gain) were analysed. Simple population statistics (arithmetic mean, standard deviation, coefficient of variability) were used for phenotypic characterization. The results obtained on comparison pairs revealed, in most characters, very significant differences between the four varieties. To the extent that the experimental results will show that the four varieties are also significantly different from the genomic point of view, for the future the possibility of developing separate breeding programs for each variety will be considered.

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Published in Scientific Papers. Series D. Animal Science, Vol. LXVIII, Issue 2
Written by Daniela ALBISORU, Nicoleta RADU, Oksana MULESA, Mihaela BEGEA, Viviana ROMAN

Red yeast rice is currently used in Asia as a dye for meat, fish, and other food products, as well as a food supplement due to its statin content. Reports worldwide have documented adverse effects, particularly in individuals with pre-existing health conditions. In this context, we conducted in vitro tests to assess the cytotoxicity of three red dyes derived from different types of red yeast rice. In our study, a normal human standardized cell line was exposed to these red dyes for 24 and 48 hours. The results obtained during these studies revealed that the red polyketides derived from Monascus ruber and Monascus purpureus display cytotoxicity for the studied cell line after 24 hours of exposure, cytotoxicity that persists after 48 hours of exposure only for Monascus purpureus. Red polyketides obtained from high-productivity Monascus sp do not exhibit cytotoxicity in vitro for the studied cell line.

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Published in Scientific Papers. Series D. Animal Science, Vol. LXVIII, Issue 2
Written by Tsvetelina DIMITROVA, Silviya IVANOVA, Tsvetomira BANCHEVA, Miroslav HRISTOV, Nikolay MARKOV

The studies were pooled sheep milks obtained from Karakachan sheep, pasture-raised without nutrition in the farm of the Research Institute of Mountain Stockbreading and Agriculture (RIMSA)-Troyan, Bulgaria. Samples of raw sheep milk for analysis were taken during the the months of April, May and June. Sheep yoghurt and local product “Katak” were produced from the pooled samples and the fatty acid content of the products was analysed by gas chromatography. Saturated fatty acids were found to decrease from 63.01 g/100 g in raw sheep's milk to 62.28 g/100 g in yoghurt on day 10. Monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids predominated in the local product “Katak” - 29.54 g/100 g;7.0 g/100 g. The ratio of essential omega-6/omega-3 fatty acids is less than 5 according to health recommendations. The atherogenic index (AI) of milk fat is in the range-1.75-1.83, with a decrease from raw milk to dairy products, indicating that the products are healthier in terms of lipid content. Low trans fatty acid content was reported from 0.45 g/100 g in raw milk to 0.73 g/100 g product in sheep's yoghurt at day 10 and 0.92 g/100 g product in local product “katak”.

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Published in Scientific Papers. Series D. Animal Science, Vol. LXVIII, Issue 2
Written by Camelia HODOȘAN, Lucica NISTOR, Sorin Iulius BĂRBUICĂ, Daniela IANIȚCHI, Lovita ADRIANI, Ana-Maria NEGULEI, Raluca Ioana HODOȘAN, Anca ROȘCA

This study aims to assess the technological, organoleptic, and physicochemical quality of two dairy products, Aperitif Cheese and the same type of cheese with curcumin added, manufactured by a production unit in Romania. The research was conducted through a comprehensive evaluation of milk collection, processing, and cheese production techniques. Standard analytical methods were applied to determine moisture, fat, protein, acidity, and salt content. Sensory evaluations provided insights into consumer acceptability. The results highlighted significant differences between the two products in terms of texture, composition, and microbial safety. Aperitif Cheese exhibited a firm consistency due to its thermal processing and lower moisture levels. The addition of curcumin improved organoleptic properties and shelf life, due to its specific colour and antibacterial and antifungal properties. The study confirms the high quality of both products, aligning with national and European dairy standards. These findings support the importance of optimizing production methods to enhance product quality and consumer satisfaction.

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© 2019 SCIENTIFIC PAPERS. SERIES D. ANIMAL SCIENCE. To be cited: SCIENTIFIC PAPERS. SERIES D. ANIMAL SCIENCE.

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