Shujait Ali

Ovulation induction in pre-pubertal Sahiwal-Friesian cross bred heifers by the use of clomiphene citrate and hCG.

In this study, an attempt was made to induce ovulation in crossbred pre-pubertal heifers by the use of clomiphene citrate (an anti-estrogen) and hCG. The hypothesis was that the clomiphene citrate, being anti-estrogen, would remove negative feedback effect of estrogen on the release of pituitary gonadotropins. Elevated gonadotropins would support ovarian follicular growth to a point where hCG would induce ovulation. Six pre-pubertal heifers were given clomiphene citrate orally at 300 mg/heifer for 9 days. At the same time, six control heifers were given placebo tablets. On following day, hCG was given to all heifers at a dose of 2500IU. Blood was collected before, during and after treatment and plasma was assayed for progesterone (P4) and estradiol (E2) concentrations. Five heifers (83.3%) in the experimental group had E2 concentrations above 10 pg/ml compared to one heifer (16.7%) in control group. Due to a wide variation, mean E2 concentration did not differ significantly between experimental and control heifers. The P4 assays showed that four heifers (66.7%) in the experimental group had ovulated (P4>1ng/ml plasma) compared to one heifer (16.7%) in control group, and mean P4 concentration differed (P<0.05) when concentrations were greatest in the clomiphene citrate-treated heifers. In conclusion, clomiphene citrate along with hCG can be used to induce ovulation in pre-pubertal heifers.

Inhibitory effect of ginger and turmeric on Rhizopus stolonifer growth on bread.

The inhibitory effect of ginger and turmeric was studied on the Rhizopus stolonifer growth on bread. Different ratios of ginger and turmeric were incorporated to bread dough formulation. The treatments were BG0 (control), BG1 (3% ginger), BG2 (4% ginger), BG3 (3% turmeric), BG4 (4% turmeric), BG5 (1.5% ginger + 1.5% turmeric) and BG6 (2% ginger + 2% turmeric). All the samples were analyzed physicochemically (moisture, ash, pH and water activity), microbiologically (colony count of Rhizopus stolonifer) and organoleptically (color, texture, flavor and overall acceptability). The results showed that overall moisture decreased (from 27.46 to 26.41), water activity aW (from 0.89 to 0.86), color (from 7.4 to 5.58), texture (from 6.94 to 5.34), flavor (from 7.75 to 5.54) and overall acceptability (from 7.38 to 5.48), while percent ash increased (from 0.84 to 0.86), pH (from 5.95 to 6.20) and microbial count of Rhizopus stolonifer (3.8×101 to 2×102). The highest mean value for ash was recorded for treatment BG4 (0.98), water activity in BG0 (0.91), moisture in BG0 (29.69), pH in BG4 (6.34) Microbial count in BG0 (1.5 × 102cfu/g), color in BG3 (6.98), texture in BG0 (7.04), flavor in BG0 (6.90) and overall acceptability in BG0 and BG3 (6.96). The overall results showed that BG3 gave the best inhibitory results against Rhizopus stolonifer as well as in physicochemical and sensory evaluation, while BG6 also presented better inhibitory results in microbial analysis but it was not satisfactory in terms of sensory characteristics.

Effects of FSH extracted from in vitro cultured anterior pituitary cells of male buffalo calves on body and testes weight, serum FSH and total cholesterol and hematological variables in male rabbits

In this study, anterior pituitary glands were collected from 12 young male buffalo calves after slaughter, cultured with gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) and estrogen stimulus and the extract obtained. Adult male rabbits (n = 15) were divided into three equal groups. Rabbits of Group A served as control; those of Groups B and C were given extract containing 4 and 8 mIU of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), respectively twice daily for 3 weeks. Body weight of rabbits was recorded before and after treatment; blood samples were collected after treatment and analyzed for hemoglobin (Hb), red blood cell (RBC) count, white blood cell (WBC) count, packed cell volume (PCV), platelet counts, mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), while serum samples were analyzed for FSH and total cholesterol. Then, all rabbits were slaughtered, and weight of paired testes was recorded. Results showed that the values for weight gain, RBC count, WBC count, PCV and MCH did not differ among rabbits of three groups. Blood Hb was greater (P < 0.05) in rabbits of Group B than Group C. Testis weight, serum FSH, total cholesterol and blood platelets count were greater in rabbits of Groups B and C, while MCV was less in rabbits of Group C, compared to the control (P < 0.05). In conclusion, in vitro cultured cells of adenohypophysis from male buffalo calves showed FSH activity. This FSH increased testes size, serum FSH, total cholesterol and blood platelets counts and decreased MCV in rabbits. However, it had no effect on weight gain, RBC counts, WBC counts, PCV and MCH.