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This study was designed to evaluate the effect of different concentrations of conjugated equine estrogens (CEE) on the ovarian epithelium of female CD1 mice.Twenty-four female mice at 7 months with irregular estrus cycles were randomly divided into four groups of 6 mice each. Group one was considered as a control group and received a daily dose of 0.5ml of propylene glycol, for three weeks, while those in the treatment groups received a daily dose of 14μg/kg, 28μg/kg and 56μg/kg conjugated equine estrogens, respectively.The results from this study showed a strong correlation between elevated concentrations of CEE and histological changes in ovarian surface epithelium (OSE). They also showed that administration of high-dose estrogen created the conditions for excessive proliferation of OSE which may progress into the development of cysts in the ovaries.This study concluded that high concentrations of CEE may increase the chances of developing epithelial ovarian cancer.

SUMMARY: In this study the consequences of prenatal exposure to tobacco smokes on the histo-morphological changes of cerebellum was assessed by comparing the smoker mice to the nonsmoker mice. A total of 30 pregnant cd-1 mice were divided into three groups of 10 mice each and with two replicates per group (5 mice each). Following acclimation for five days, the mice were placed in a special modified smoking machine for 2 hours per day over a two- and three-week period for group two and group three, respectively. Group one was considered as a control group. Mice in the control group were exposed simultaneously to fresh air from the room, while those in the treatment groups were exposed to tobacco smoke from six commercial filter cigarettes, containing 0.8 mg of nicotine, 10 mg of tar, and 10 mg of carbon monoxide, for three 1-hour exposure periods every day for three weeks. The mice in the control group were exposed to room air for three 1-hour periods every day for the same period of three weeks. The results from this study showed a correlation between maternal smoking and histological changes in Neuron purkinjense (Purkinje cells) of the cerebellum. They also showed that prenatal smoking period may have caused more damage in the histology and structure of Neuron purkinjense in some juvenile mice. An increased incidence of morphology damage of the cerebellum’s Neuron purkinjense’ structures was also observed in fetuses with prolonged exposure to tobacco smoking. Exposure of in utero maternal smoking may interfere with brain biological development parameters, giving rise to structural abnormalities of the cerebellum. This study concluded that tobacco smoke exposure to pregnant mice may affect neurodevelopment which may induce behavioural changes as a result of reduced cerebellar size and function.

This study was designed to develop a rapid, sensitive, accurate, and inexpensive Fourier Transform Infrared Reflectance (FT-IR) Spectroscopy coupled with Principle Component Analysis (PCA) as a detection technique to evaluate the solubility of 11-Keto-β-Boswellic acid (KBA), from the gum resin extracted from the Omani frankincense, (Boswellia sacra) in the liver of STZ induced diabetic mice. This study also investigated the effect of KBA on the histological changes of hepatocytes of diabetic mice. Liver tissue samples from three groups of mice included normal control group, diabetic control group and diabetic group treated IP with KBA were scanned with FT-IR spectrophotometer in the reflection mode. FT-IR Spectra were collected in the wavenumber range from 400 to 4000cm-1 using ATR accessorry. The results of FT-IR Spectra were analyzed by using multivariate method Principle Component Analysis. The PCA score plot is an exploratory multivariate method indicated that there was a complete segregation among the three groups of liver samples based on change in variation of position of wavenumber in FT-IR spectra, which revealed that there is a clear effect of KBA solubility on treatments. The histological features showed an improvement in the liver tissues with normal structures of hepatocytes with exhibiting mild vacuolations in their cytoplasm. In conclusion, reflectance FT-IR spectroscopy coupled with PCA could be deployed as a new detection method for rapid, low cost and non-destructive method for evaluating of treatment effects in diseased liver tissue based on the solubility of KBA. Histological findings demonstrated the protective effective of KBA on improving the morphology of liver tissue in diabetic mice which resulted in complete recovery to the damage observed in diabetic control group.Summary StatementReflectance FT-IR spectroscopy coupled with PCA has been deployed as a new rapid, inexpensive and non-destructive detection method to examine the solubility of 11-keto-β-Boswellic acid (KBA) in streptozotocin (STZ) induced-diabetes mice liver tissue following intraperitoneal treatment. Moreover, microscopic study of liver tissue histopathology revealed that KBA has a protecting effect against STZ damage.

A factorial experimental design was used to study the effects of transportation during the hot season and low voltage electrical stimulation (90 V) on physiological, and meat quality characteristics of goats. Twenty male Dhofari goats (12-month old) were divided into two treatment groups: transported for 6 h during hot season (42 °C day time temperature) or non-transported. Goats were blood-sampled before loading for transportation and prior to slaughter. Five carcasses from each group were randomly electrically stimulated for 60 s, nearly 20 min postmortem using V1.3-R3B stimulator (7.5 ms duration positive pulses only and an output of 90–95 V, AgResearch, New Zealand). Ultimate pH, shear force, sarcomere length, myofibrillar fragmentation index, expressed juice, cooking loss and CIE L*, a* and b* color were measured on samples from Longissimus dorsi muscles. The transported goats had higher plasma cortisol (P

The dromedary and bactrian camels are good sources of high quality protein especially in areas where the climate adversely affects the survival of other livestock. The camel has unique physiological characteristics, including a great tolerance to high and low temperatures, solar radiation, water scarcity, rough topography and poor vegetation. Camels are mostly produced under traditional systems on poor levels of nutrition and are mostly slaughtered at old ages after completing a career in work, racing or milk production. In general, camel carcasses contain about 57% muscle, 26% bone and 17% fat with fore-quarters (cranial to rib 13) significantly heavier than the hind halves. Camel lean meat contains about 78% water, 19% protein, 3% fat, and 1.2% ash with a small amount of intramuscular fat, which renders it a healthy food for growing human populations. The amino acid and mineral contents of camel meat are often higher than other meat animals, probably due to lower intramuscular fat levels. Camel meat has been processed into burgers, patties, sausages and shawarma to add value. Future research efforts need to focus on exploiting the potential of the camel as a source of meat through multidisciplinary research into efficient production systems and improved meat technology and marketing.

Administration of antibiotics or hormones to broiler chickens for therapeutic and performance-enhancing purposes may lead to deposit of residuals in their carcasses. This could be a potential human health hazard upon exposure to these residues. The objective of this study was to detect residue levels of tetracycline, streptomycin, sulfamethazine, chloramphenicol, trenbolon, estradiol-17s, and testosterone in broiler chicken meat commonly marketed in the Sultanate of Oman. The Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay technique was used to detect residues in 128 broiler chicken breast muscles, representing various poultry processing companies from six countries representing four continents. Generally, samples contained various levels of residues of different antibiotic and hormones. Tetracycline levels ranged between 35 and 56 ng/kg (mean 45.9); streptomycin ranged between 30 and 155 ng/kg (mean 100.0); sulfamethazine levels ranged between 0.079 and 5.60 ng/kg (mean 1.07); trenbolon ranged between 0.70 and 3.12 ng/kg (mean 1.67); estradiol 17-s ranged from 0.06 to 2.00 ng/kg (mean 0.70); chloramphenicol ranged from 5.00 to 74.00 ng/kg (mean 14.38); and testosterone ranged from 4 to 70 ng/kg (mean 25.53). There were significant differences in residue levels of antibiotics and hormones between the companies and countries. There were significant differences in antibiotic and anabolic agents' residues with the exception of trenbolon between continents. This study indicated that broiler chicken meat products available in the local market contained various levels of residues of several antibiotic and anabolic agents. Although levels of some of these residues did not exceed the maximum allowable limits, they still poise a human health hazard. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS There has been an increasing awareness of the widespread drug therapy and the possibility of residues in meat and consequently the potential human health hazards associated with exposure to these residues. Many of these are now classified as carcinogenic, toxic and allergenic, which interfere with human natural physiological functions. The Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) is one of the sophisticate techniques to detect residuals based on enzyme-labeled reagents. Therefore, investigations using ELISA technique to monitor residues of various drugs in meat products should be applicable to insure the safety of animal food products for human consumption.

The effects of transportation and electrical stimulation (90 V) on physiological, histochemical and meat quality characteristics of two breeds of Omani goats were assessed. Twenty 1-year-old male goats from each breed (Batina and Dhofari) were divided into two groups: 3 h transported during the hot season (42 degrees C day time temperature) and non-transported. Animals were blood-sampled before loading and prior to slaughter. Electrical stimulation was applied 20 min postmortem to 50% randomly selected carcasses of both breeds. Temperature and pH decline of the Longissimus was monitored. Ultimate pH, shear force, sarcomere length, myofibrillar fragmentation index, expressed juice, cooking loss and colour were measured from samples of Longissimus dorsi muscles. Electrical stimulation and transportation had a significant effect on most biochemical and meat quality characteristics of Longissimus dorsi. The transported goats had higher plasma cortisol (P < 0.01), adrenaline, nor-adrenaline and dopamine concentrations (P < 0.05) than non-transported goats. Electrical stimulation resulted in a significantly (P < 0.05) more rapid muscle pH fall during the first 12 h after slaughter. Muscles from electrically-stimulated carcasses had significantly (P < 0.05) longer sarcomeres, lower shear force value, a lighter colour (higher L* value), higher expressed juice and myofibrillar fragmentation index than those from non-stimulated ones. Meat from transported goats had significantly higher pH, expressed juice and shear force, but contained significantly lower sarcomere length and L* values than non-transported goats. The proportion of the myosin ATPase staining did not change as a function of stimulation, transportation or breed. These results indicated that subjecting goats to transportation for 3 h under high ambient temperatures can generate major physiological and muscle metabolism responses. Electrical stimulation improved quality characteristics of meat from both groups. This indicates that electrical stimulation may reduce detrimental effects of transportation on meat quality of Omani goats.

The effect of transportation during the hot season (42 °C) and low voltage electrical stimulation on physiological, histochemical and meat quality characteristics of Omani sheep was studied. Forty intact male sheep were divided into two equal groups: 3 h transported or non-transported. The non-transported group remained in holding pens for 48 h prior to slaughter, while the transported group was transported 300 km (approximately 3 h) in an open truck under solar radiation on the day of slaughter. Blood samples were collected from the animals before loading and prior to slaughter. Fifty percent of the carcasses from each group were randomly assigned to low voltage (90 V) at 20 min postmortem . Temperature and pH decline of the left longissimus thoracis muscle were monitored. Ultimate pH, WB-shear force, sarcomere length, myofibrillar fragmentation index (MFI), expressed juice, cooking loss and color L ⁎, a ⁎, b ⁎ were measured on samples from both sides muscles collected at 24 h postmortem at 3–4 °C. The transported sheep had significantly higher plasma cortisol ( P P P P L ⁎ than those from non-stimulated ones. The muscle samples from the transported sheep had significantly ( P

The effects of electrical stimulation on muscle fiber type, meat quality, and composition of Longissimus thoracis muscles from one-humped camels and Dofari Omani cattle of a comparable age range were investigated. A low-voltage electrical stimulation with 90 V, 14 Hz (pulse of 7.5-millisecond duration every 70 milliseconds) 20 min postmortem was applied. Samples from the left muscle were collected from 20 (2 to 3 y) camels and 24 cattle (1 to 3 y). For chemical composition, muscle samples were dried in a freeze dryer, and then ground to determine moisture, protein, fat, and ash. Macro- and micro-minerals were determined using an Inductively Coupled Plasma Emission Spectrometer. Quality characteristics of the meat were evaluated using shear force value, pH, sarcomere, myofibrillar fragmentation index, expressed juice, cooking loss percent, and CIE L*, a*, b* color values. Electrical stimulation resulted in a significantly (P < 0.05) more rapid pH fall in the muscle during the first 24 h after slaughter in both species. Muscles from electrically stimulated carcasses had significantly (P < 0.05) lower ultimate pH, longer sarcomere, and lower shear force values than those from nonstimulated carcasses. Lightness (L*), myofibrillar fragmentation, and expressed juice were significantly (P < 0.05) higher for stimulated than for nonstimulated muscles. Muscles of camels had significantly (P < 0.05) higher expressed juice, cooking loss percent, redness color (a*), and lower fat, Mg, K, and P than those from cattle. Electrical stimulation improved quality characteristics of meat from both species. This indicates that meat quality of local camel and cattle can be improved by electrical stimulation and consequently improves their acceptability to consumers and better marketability.

Differences between muscles in concentrations of proximate composition, minerals, cholesterol, amino acids, fatty acids and vitamins for the Infraspinatus (IS), Triceps brachii (TB), Longissimus thoraces (LT), Biceps femoris (BF), Semitendinosus (ST) and Semimembranosus (SM) muscles of 9 bactrian camels (2–3 years of age) were investigated. The composition of lean bactrian camel was shown to be highly desirable with a high nutrient density for many nutrients. Although lean meat samples from six muscles were similar in most nutrients detected, several significant differences were found. LT muscle had significantly higher dry matter and fat% than other muscles. The IS and LT muscles had significantly (P

This study characterized the chemical composition, quality and histological traits of six muscles from 10 dromedary carcasses. There were significant differences in moisture, fat, protein, mineral, saturated and unsaturated fatty acid contents between muscles. The longissimus thoracis (LT) had the highest cooking loss (33.5%) and triceps brachii (TB) the lowest (29.2%). The shear force value of semitendinosus (ST), semimembranosus (SM) and biceps femoris (BF) were significantly higher than infraspinatus (IS), TB and LT. The LT had significantly higher values for L*, a*, b* than ST. The SM had the lowest MFI (65.3), while IS had the highest value (75.8). The ST significantly had the highest and lowest proportions of Type I and Type IIA muscle fibers, respectively than other muscles. This study indicated that composition, quality, and histochemical parameters varied among camel muscles and the knowledge of this variation allows for better marketing and processing of camel meat.

The effects of transportation and electrical stimulation (90 V) on physiological, histochemical and meat quality characteristics of two breeds of Omani goats were assessed. Twenty 1-year-old male goats from each breed (Batina and Dhofari) were divided into two groups: 3 h transported during the hot season (42 degrees C day time temperature) and non-transported. Animals were blood-sampled before loading and prior to slaughter. Electrical stimulation was applied 20 min postmortem to 50% randomly selected carcasses of both breeds. Temperature and pH decline of the Longissimus was monitored. Ultimate pH, shear force, sarcomere length, myofibrillar fragmentation index, expressed juice, cooking loss and colour were measured from samples of Longissimus dorsi muscles. Electrical stimulation and transportation had a significant effect on most biochemical and meat quality characteristics of Longissimus dorsi. The transported goats had higher plasma cortisol (P0.01), adrenaline, nor-adrenaline and dopamine concentrations (P0.05) than non-transported goats. Electrical stimulation resulted in a significantly (P0.05) more rapid muscle pH fall during the first 12 h after slaughter. Muscles from electrically-stimulated carcasses had significantly (P0.05) longer sarcomeres, lower shear force value, a lighter colour (higher L* value), higher expressed juice and myofibrillar fragmentation index than those from non-stimulated ones. Meat from transported goats had significantly higher pH, expressed juice and shear force, but contained significantly lower sarcomere length and L* values than non-transported goats. The proportion of the myosin ATPase staining did not change as a function of stimulation, transportation or breed. These results indicated that subjecting goats to transportation for 3 h under high ambient temperatures can generate major physiological and muscle metabolism responses. Electrical stimulation improved quality characteristics of meat from both groups. This indicates that electrical stimulation may reduce detrimental effects of transportation on meat quality of Omani goats.

Twenty ten-week-old newly weaned male Batinah goats were randomly assigned to a control (n=10) and a treated (n=10) group and were fed a diet containing 0.1mg/kg DM cobalt (Co). Goats in the treated group received bi-monthly subcutaneous injections of 2000 microg of hydroxycobalamin. The phagocytic function of the polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN) were tested using a luminol-dependent chemiluminescence assay with opsonized zymosan as the phagocytic target. One month after the onset of the experiment PMN from the control group exhibited a significantly (p0.05) lower CL response, which continued for the second month. The results of the present study demonstrated that low levels of dietary cobalt leads to an early impairment of phagocytic function. This may at least in part, be an explanation as to why at the field level in Oman young goats fed diets containing low levels of Co appear to be more susceptible to infections.

The effects of electrical stimulation (90V) 20min post mortem on meat quality and muscle fibre types of four age group camels (1-3, 4-6, 7-9, 10-12 years) camels were assessed. Quality of the Longissimus thoracis at 1 and 7 days post mortem ageing was evaluated using shear force, pH, sarcomere length, myofibrillar fragmentation index, expressed juice, cooking loss and L(∗), a(∗), b(∗) colour values. Age of camel and electrical stimulation had a significant effect on meat quality of L. thoracis. Electrical stimulation resulted in a significantly (P