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Insulin resistance is a prevalent disorder among horses and is associated with abnormal adiposity, laminitis, equine metabolic syndrome, and pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction. The processes leading to equine insulin resistance and associated conditions remain subject for study. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are involved in regulation of many biological processes and diseases. The current study aimed to investigate the circulating miRNA profile of insulin resistant horses and ponies. It was hypothesized that insulin resistant horses would have a different circulating miRNA profile compared to healthy ones. 12 Thoroughbred/ Thoroughbred-cross and 12 Welsh/Dartmoor non-pregnant mares were evaluated for insulin sensitivity using frequent sampling intravenous glucose tolerance test (FSIGTT). Serum samples were collected for miRNA profiling through RT-qPCR analysis. Horses and ponies were divided into insulin sensitive (IS) or insulin resistant (IR) groups and their miRNA profiles compared. Results demonstrated that 13 miRNAs were differently expressed between IR and IS horses, 15 between IR and IS ponies, 17 between horses and ponies, and 10 between IR and IS animals (horses and ponies combined) (p<0.05). Finally, 8 miRNAs were proposed as potential regulators of equine insulin resistance. miRNA profiling is a potential tool to evaluate insulin resistance and associated conditions., Resistência à insulina é um problema prevalente em cavalos associado à adiposidade excessiva, síndrome metabólica, laminite e adenoma da parte intermédia da pituitária. A fisiopatologia que leva à resistência à insulina e doenças associadas é assunto de grande interesse na pesquisa. Micro RNAs (miRNAs) são envolvidos na regulação de diversos processos biológicos e doenças. O presente estudo tem como objetivo avaliar o perfil de miRNAs circulante em cavalos e pôneis com resistência à insulina. Nossa hipótese principal é que cavalos com resistência à insulina tem um perfil circulatório diferente de animais normais. Doze cavalos da raça Puro Sangue Inglês (PSI) e cruza PSI e doze pôneis da raça Welsh e Dartmoor foram avaliados quanto a sua sensibilidade à insulina usando o teste de tolerância à glicose intravenosa de coletas frequentes. Amostras de soro foram coletadas para determinação do perfil de miRNA a partir da análise de RT-qPCR. Cavalos e pôneis foram divididos em grupos de animais sensíveis (IS) e resistentes à insulina (RI). Análise dos resultados demonstraram 13 miRNA tiveram expressão diferente entre cavalos IS e IR, 15 diferentes entre pôneis IS e IR, 17 miRNA diferentes entre pôneis e cavalos, e 10 miRNA diferentes entre animais IS e IR (pôneis e cavalos combinados) (p<0.05). Oito destes miRNA são reguladores de resistência à insulina. O perfil de miRNA pode ser usado como ferramenta para o maior entendimento dos mecanismos que levam a resistência à insulina e patologias associadas

Background Osteochondrosis (OC), simply defined as a failure of endochondral ossification, is a complex disease with both genetic and environmental risk factors that is commonly diagnosed in young horses, as well as other domestic species. Although up to 50 % of the risk for developing OC is reportedly inherited, specific genes and alleles underlying risk are thus far completely unknown. Regions of the genome identified as associated with OC vary across studies in different populations of horses. In this study, we used a cohort of Standardbred horses from the U.S. (n = 182) specifically selected for a shared early environment (to reduce confounding factors) to identify regions of the genome associated with tarsal OC. Subsequently, putative risk variants within these regions were evaluated in both the discovery population and an independently sampled validation population of Norwegian Standardbreds (n = 139) with tarsal OC. Results After genome-wide association analysis of imputed data with information from >200,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms, two regions on equine chromosome 14 were associated with OC in the discovery cohort. Variant discovery in these and 30 additional regions of interest (including 11 from other published studies) was performed via whole-genome sequencing. 240 putative risk variants from 10 chromosomes were subsequently genotyped in both the discovery and validation cohorts. After correction for population structure, gait (trot or pace) and sex, the variants most highly associated with OC status in both populations were located within the chromosome 14 regions of association. Conclusions The association of putative risk alleles from within the same regions with disease status in two independent populations of Standardbreds suggest that these are true risk loci in this breed, although population-specific risk factors may still exist. Evaluation of these loci in other populations will help determine if they are specific to the Standardbred bree

Knowing the parts of the horse and how they function is essential for interacting with the animal. This publication is a Virginia 4-H project unit used to teach elementary school-aged children about the anatomical parts of the horse and to connect the parts of the horse with their function.

Explains different colors and markings of horses.

Describes basic body language of horses.

Horses, just like people, need to eat a variety of things to meet their nutritional requirements. If their diet is out of balance, then problems occur.

Leader's guide for a 4-H project on the parts of a horse.

Discusses benefits of proper grooming of horses and tools used for grooming.