مهدی وفای واله

The bovine rumen is the suitable growth medium to many of the bacteria responsible for converting food into energy. In recent years, many rumen microbes have been identified and isolated using 16sRNA gene sequencing. Some microbes are suggested as food additives to promote the growth and production of animals. The use of probiotics as feed additive has been induced by stimulating the positive effects on the host by creating a favorable balance of intestinal microflora. Therefore, is study aimed to isolate, identify and select lactic acid bacteria to produce probiotics from the rumen and feces of Sistani cows.

In this experiment, samples were taken from the rumen of 12 and the feces of 4 Sistani cows in the industrial slaughterhouse of Zabol city. The samples were transferred to test tubes containing liquid MRS culture medium and incubated at 39 ° C for 48 hours. After growing from the mentioned medium, the plates containing MRS agar were linearly cultured and the plates were incubated in aerobic conditions at 39 ° C for 48 hours. The emerged colonies were examined for growth characteristics and morphology as well as purity. Gram-positive, spore-free, spherical negative catalase, and rod-shaped bacteria that did not produce beta hemolysis were tested for antimicrobial, acid, bile salt, and antibiotic susceptibility testing.

Of the initial 158 isolates of lactic acid bacteria, 84 isolates were tested for antimicrobial activity against four species of Salmonella and one species of E. coli. Then the isolates obtained from the antimicrobial test were examined for pH resistance test. Thirteen samples selected from this experiment were studied for bile resistance test, of which five isolates were examined for antibiotic susceptibility testing and entered the final stage for genetic and molecular testing.There were only two isolates that were obtained by molecular testing and after sequencing and using NCBI software had a high genetic affinity with two bacteria Streptoccos infantarius (isolate A) and Entrococcos faecium isolate B. These two isolates were observed as potential probiotics in Sistani cows.

The general results of the study showed that isolates A and B have suitable properties for the use of probiotics. . These characteristics are high survival rate at low pH and 3% bile concentration and inhibition of pathogenic bacteria such as E. coli and Salmonella, as well as antibiotic resistance. Therefore, isolates A and B will later be used as probiotics the ruminants feed.

The aim of this study was to estimate genetic parameters of humoral immune responses (antibody titers against sheep red blood cells (SRBC) and Newcastle Disease Virus (NDV)) and residual feed intake from 20 to 45 days of age in Japanese quail. For this purpose, a total of 2492 records of residual feed intake traits and 5238 records of immune traits were used. The analyses of Genetic parameters of traits were estimated through single and bivariate animal models via Gibbs sampling method. Heritability estimates of total antibody titer (AbT), titer of immunoglobulin Y (IgY), titer of immunoglobulin M (IgM) and titer of immunoglobulin F (IgF) against SRBC were 0.08, 0.14, 0.02 and 0.24, respectively, however, heritability of antibody titer against NDV was lower than estimated of SRBC antigen (h2= 0.05). heritability of RFI in different ages were in ranges of 0.04 to 0.07. genetic correlations estimate between total antibody and IgY were positive and high and was 0.92. The negative genetic correlations were related to IgM with RFI and genetic correlations estimates between RFI and other immunoglobulins (IgY, AbT, IgF) and NDV were positive. As a conclusion, selection for IgF due to its heritability (0.24) and negative genetic correlation (-0.23) with RFI, cause improve in RFI and reduce costs, related mainly to feeding and selecting of animals with phenotyping. On the other hand, due to moderate to high positive genetic correlations (0.34-0.80) were found between IgF and other immunoglobulins, selection of it didn’t lead to decline of humoral immune responses in quail.

The present study was carried out to estimate levels of genomic inbreeding based on ROH (FROH) analysis in the two Iranian native cattle populations including Sarabi and Najdi, as well as comparing the FROH estimates with other inbreeding estimates obtained based on the genomic relationship matrix (FGRM), percentage of homozygous SNPs (FHOM) and pedigree information (FPed). To do this, 213 and 211 samples were randomly selected from Sarabi and Najdi populations, respectively. The samples were genotyped using the Illumina BeadChip40K v2 microchip. In addition, 30 samples of Holstein dairy cattle of Iran provided by Animal Breeding Center of Iran, were included in the analysis . Genomic analysis was performed using CFC, Excel, Plink, SNeP programs. A total of 2030 haplo-blocks were identified in the populations. The highest and lowest number of ROH segments (ROHs) was observed within Najdi and Sarabi Population, respectively. Furthermore, ROH length were found to be significantly different among breeds (p < 0.05). Najdi population had the highest number of ROH across different categories of ROH length (4-8Mb, 8-16Mb and >16Mb). Maximum correlation coefficient among the estimated inbreeding coefficients was obtained between FPed and FROH>4Mb (0.592) in the Sarabi population (p < 0.001). The results of this study indicate that presence of inbreeding at least in the five early generations of the studied native populations and the conservation programs must be taken to manage the inbreeding levels in both populations.

It has been shown that the occurrence of any changes in the function of DNMTs genes has a significant effect on both the embryo development and birth weight in mammals; therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the presence of DNA polymorphisms in the members of DNA methyl transferase superfamily and its relationship with birth weight in Sistani cattle’s. Blood sampling was done randomly from 60 Sistani cows. DNA extraction was performed using phenol chloroform method. Candidate region for the presence of functional polymorphism within the DNMTs gene including the 114-bp fragment of the exon 33 of the DNMT1 gene, the 176-bp fragment of the intron 4 of the DNMT3a gene, and the 207-bp fragment in intron 3 of the DNMT3b gene were amplified by polymerase chain reaction. PCR-SSCP followed by polyacrylamide gels silver stain analysis was done to evaluate the presence of candidate mutations in target gens. The result analysis of all analyzed region did not show any mutations in the investigated DNMTs genes. Based on the results of this study, it seems that the lack of observation of genetic diversity in the studied regions could be related to the evolutionary selection against occurrence of specific mutations in the analyzed population. In general, based on the results of this study, analysis of genetic diversity in the studied genomic region may not be effective in identifying effective markers for breeding programs in Sistani cows.

The optimization of the reference population in genomic evaluation plays an important role in livestock breeding, because of its potential impact on the accuracy of estimating the marker effects and genomic breeding values. In the present study, seven different train set selection methods including selection of all, selection of the highest and lowest performances, random selection, selection of individuals with the most and least marker and QTL similarity were evaluated. In genome wide association study selection of all as train set detected common SNPs which make a high variation on the trait. However selective train set was just reported rare SNPs with a major effect on the trait. In genomic selection simultaneous use of high-density markers and selective train set in comparison with low-density and selection of all as train set reduced accuracy, but did not change the ranking of animals. There was also an interaction between train set selection method and generation (P≤0.0134) as well as the linkage disequilibrium (P≤ 2e-16). In general, selection of all animals as a train set resulted in higher accuracy compared to six selective train set methods. There were no differences between the methods of selecting train set in populations with a low effective size (r2 = 0.255, Ne =100), but in populations with a high effective size (r2 = 0.086, Ne =400) methods, with different accuracy predicted genomic breeding values. The highest and lowest accuracy were respectively belonged to most QTL and marker similarity methods.

This study was done in order to estimate genetic parameters of growth and feed efficiency traits in Japanese quail. The data set consisted of 7762 records for feed efficiency traits and 12113 records for body weight gain traits were collected at Research Center of Special Domestic Animals, University of Zabol. The following traits including body weight gain from 20 to 25, 25-30, 30-35, 35-40, 40-45 and from 0 to 45 days of age, feed intake, feed conversion ratio and residual feed intake from 20 to 45 days of age were evaluated. The genetic parameters were estimated through single and bivariate animal models via Gibbs sampling method. Heritability estimates for body weight gain varied from 0.02 to 0.23 and for feed intake, feed conversion ratio, residual feed intake was in ranges of 0.04 to 0.11. Genetic correlations estimates between body weight gain and feed conversion ratio 20-25, body weight gain and feed conversion ratio 25-30, body weight gain and feed conversion ratio 30-35, body weight gain and feed conversion ratio 35-40, body weight gain and feed conversion ratio 40-45 were -0.56, -0.49, -0.57, -0.70 and 0.25 respectively. Considering estimated genetic correlations of this study, we recommend that selection for body weight gain and decrease feed efficiency have potential to improve feed efficiency traits in Japanese quail. It is expected that by selecting for these traits the costs of breeding programs such as feeding and phenotyping would be reduced.

Due to their roles in regulating embryonic growth and development  members of DNA Methyltransferases (DNMTs) family have been shown to play fundamental parts in  embryonic fertilization to postnatal life; through regulating the establishment and/or maintenance of specific epigenetic marks. The present study was conducted to identify potential reported mutations within the exon 33 of DNMT-1, introns 4 of DNMT-3a and introns 3 DNMT-3a genes and their relationship with birth weight in Iranian Holstein cows. A total of 60 blood samples from Holstein dairy cattle with records of weight from birth to adult age were randomly collected from industrial dairy cattle farm located in Kerman province. Genomic DNA samples was extracted using Phenol-Chloroform method and target sequence was amplified with PCR using specific primers. Polymerase chain reaction-single stranded conformational polymorphism (PCR-SSCP) and silver nitrate staining methods was used for screening potential mutation in target sequences. According to results of this study, in all cases, no mutation in target sequence were identified as all samples had the same specific SSCP pattern with respect to their size. The lack of polymorphism may imply that these region may be attributable to a relative inefficiency of PCR-SSCP for mutation detection, small sample size, stochastic effects of genetic drift and/or conserved nature of these genes due to either natural or artificial selection. According to the results of this study, analyzed sequence may not be informative as molecular marker for birth weight in Holstein cattle.

 So far, various methods have been used to investigate the structure of the population using the markers available in the whole genome (single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)), each of which has Weakness and strength. In the present study, an unsupervised network clustering (SPC), a data-mining method, was used to survey the population structure of the Sarabi and Najdi cows. The study population 424 cattle consisted of 213sarabi cattle and 211 Najdi cattle, sequenced with Illumina Bead Chip 40 K v 2 for single nucleotide markers. SORTING POINTS INTO NEIGHBORHOOD(SPIN) was used to analyze population structure. After editing data, 27859 autosomal markers were analyzed. Clustering results based on the similarities and differences between nucleotides led to the classification of two base populations and nine clusters. Comparison the number of samples and other existing methods for population layering, the use of the SPIN method with high computational efficiency and the needn`t for prior assumptions makes it possible to analyze the structure of populations.

Maintaining genomic diversity in goat populations in different parts of Iran is essential for breeding programs, increasing production, survival, resistance to diseases, and various environmental changing conditions. The aim of the present study was to determine the sequence of HVR1 from the mitochondrial genome of Iranian native goats including Sistani, Pakistani, Black and Lorry ecotypes (each of 4 heads), examine the probable variation in these populations, and plotting their phylogen relationship in comparison with some animal species. Total DNA extraction was performed using phenol-chloroform method. The extracted DNA was used as template for proliferation of HVR1 region of mitochondrial genome was used and the obtained bands were sequenced by Sanger method. The nucleotide sequences with 30 sequences from the same region of the mitochondrial genome related to other animal species derived from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) were used for genetic analysis and phylogenetic tree mapping. The average of haplotype diversity and nucleotide diversity among species were 0.994 and 0.12891, and, in the ecotypes were 1 and 0.09299, respectively. The numerical value of the replacement rate of dn/ds for the studied ecotypes and other species was calculated at 1.17 and 1.12, respectively, which indicates a positive selection in the process of evolution of this gene. The results of phylogenic tree of nucleotide sequence of HVR1 region were estimated from two major branches and 7 subspaces. Among the studied species, goat ecotypes were similar to sheep species. The genetic and phylogenic analysis of the studied species indicates the distinction and evolutionary path of each species and the HVR1 region can lead to the proper grouping of the species and sub-species that are split from them.

Fatty acid synthase (FASN), a multifunctional protein that carries out the synthesis of fatty acids, is coded by FASN gene which is known as major candied gene and plays a central role in de novo lipogenesis in mammals. This study was conducted to detect single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the FASN gene and explore their relationships with three economically important traits including milk production (M), calving interval (CI) and conception rate (CR) in Holstein cows of Kerman province. The whole blood samples corresponding to the 38 Holstein cows with high and low estimate breeding values were collected. Genomic DNA was extracted from blood samples of the cows using a genomic DNA kit according to the manufacturer’s instructions. The genetic material was used for polymerase chain reaction amplification of selected gene fragments (750bp length from exon 37 to 39). All of PCR products were subsequently used directly for sequencing. Analysis of the target sequence followed by multiple regression of average allele substitution effects on M, CI, and CR traits revealed 58 SNP markers, among which 8 SNPs were totally associated with productive and reproductive traits. (M), (CI) and (CR) were affected by three (g.16593A>G, g.16670C>A and g.16776C>T), three (g.16524G,C,T>A, g.16830G,C,T>A, g.16833A,T>G) and two (g.16594A,C>G and g.16811A,T>G) SNPs respectively (P<0.05). Association between polymorphism in FASN gene and traits could be used as molecular markers for determination of animal's genetic potential as well as breeding strategies in Holstein population.

In this study, effects of the in ovo injection of Khazak egg yolk into the yolk of the Ross 308 eggs on some of offspring's inflammatory and immune indices as well as on the relative expression of intestinal and hepatic TNF-α and/or Zo-1 genes, were investigated. For this purpose, 250 fertile Ross 308 eggs were randomly assigned into two equal experimental groups including test (In ovo injection of Khazak yolk) and control (In ovo injection of Ross yolk) group. After hatching, chickens were reared for six weeks under the same standard environmental conditions with exposure to some certain inflammatory stimuli between 21-28 days of age. Chicken’s blood and/or tissues samples were collected on days 10 and 42, and the samples were analyzed for the target traits. Results showed that Khazak yolk component caused a reduction in the levels of pro-inflammatory TNF-α cytokine in both offspring's liver and intestinal tissue (P<0.05). Compared to the control group, khazak yolk injection was found to enhance the titer of IgA natural antibodyas well as primary and secondary antibody titer response against sheep red blood cells (SRBC) and reduces both serum levels of offspring's CRP protein and liver ALT enzyme (P<0.05). According to the results of the present study, injection of Khazak native hen egg-yolk into the yolk of eggs from Ross 308 commercial broiler breeder can effectively suppress the expression of TNF-α inflammatory cytokine in the offspring's liver and intestinal tissue.

Heat stress is one of the most important environmental stressors challenging poultry production worldwide, especially in warm regions such as Sistan and Baluchestan province of Iran. Heat stress increases the production of free radicals in the chicken’s body. Glutathione peroxidase plays important roles as cellular antioxidants in heat stress. The aim of this study was to conduct an analysis of the evolutionary and phylogenetic of GPX-1 in Ross 308 and Khazak populations. Boold samples were collected from 10 birds selected randomly from two stocks of Khazak and Ross 308 population (5 Ross 308 and 5 Khazak birds). DNA was extracted from whole blood. PCR amplification of 800 bp of GPX-1 was performed using one pairs of special primers. Then, PCR product sent for DNA sequencing. Sequence alignment of the GPX-1 fragment revealed a total of 9 haplotypes and 13 variable sites. Out of 13 polymorphic sites, 5 were singletons. Dendrogram of phylogenetic showing genetic similarity between the two populations, but probably diversity within populations indicate the possibility to improve genetic changes and increase the resistance to environmental stresses using selection. The results of genetic distance and polymorphic site of GPX-1 in different species approved phylogenetic tree findings. Study of positive- selection process showed that selection and evolution are playing major roles in understanding the biological function of this gene

To determine of MEG9 gene polymorphism and its association with birth weight in Sistani cattle, the blood sample of 130 calves (male and female) were randomly collected belonging to Sistani cattle Research Center. The DNA extraction from whole blood was performed using phenol-chloroform procedure. Polymerase chain reaction was performed for amplification of 210-bp segments of exon 3 of MEG9 gene using specific primers. Detection of mutations were carried out by electrophoresis of poly-acrylamide gel 8% and silver staining using SSCP method. Association study of allele patterns with birth weight was done with fixed linear model and comparison of means was conducted by Tukey-kramer method. Results showed that three allele patterns including q1, q2 and q3 in PCR product of MEG9 gene in Sistani cattle with frequency of 37, 34 and 29 % respectively. The genetic diversity in MEG9 gene had significant correlation with birth weight (P

To examine the possible role of maternal effect on progeny immune system development, the injection effects of the khazak yolk into the yolk of the commercial Ross egg on the performance, immunity and expression of TLR4 was determined in the commercial Ross chicken. For this purpose, 150 ROSS fertile eggs were randomly assigned to two experimental groups including group I (control-in ovo Ross yolk injection) and group II (in ovo khazak yolk injection) and were kept in incubator for 3 weeks. After incubation period, newly hatched chickens were fed with balanced ration for six weeks. Three Chickens from each experimental group were respectively killed at 27- and 42-d posthatch for analysis of immune organs weight (liver, burs and thymus), The HI anti- body titer levels and liver TLR4 mRNA expression levels. The results of Statistical analysis demonstrated that the in-ovo injection of khazak yolk into the Ross eggs not only significantly enhances growth rate and immune function but also decreases expression of TLR4 mRNA in the liver of treated group compared with the control group (P˂0.05). On the basis of these results it's possible that injection of khazak yolk into the Ross eggs at the first day of embryonic development enhances the chicken immune response at older ages.

In the this research, 38 Holstein dairy cows (18 heads low production and 20 heads high-production) were selected randomly and blood samples were taken their from tail vein. DNA was extracted from whole blood with phenol-chloroform. PCR amplification of 750bp from 37 to 39 exons of FASN gene was performed using one pairs of special primers. Sequencing of the amplified region was performed by the Sanger method. Sequence data of other species was achieved and aligned by searching its genome database (NCBI). The nucleotide substitution rate of the sequences and molecular evolution of the FASN were calculated by maximum likelihood and neighbor-joining method, respectively and phylogenetic tree was constructed. Evolutionary and phylogenetic tree analysis was performed using MEGA6 and Dnasp5.1 softwares. Bioinformatics analysis results showed that the substitution percentage of purines was more than pyrimidine nucleotides. The numerical value of dN/dS in two groups of dairy cow and in comparison with that of other species were 1.16 and 1.12, respectively which indicating positive selection during evolution of this gene. Phylogenetic tree for the FASN gene in mammals shows close relationship between Buffalo and Bison, as well as Cats and Cheetahs (%98 and %57, respectively).The results show that over the years segregation and selection of new varieties, resulted in the development of new varieties, new proteins and also stabilizes their performance during the evolution and advance progress toward their performance has been purified.

Sistani beef cattle is a native breed of east of Iran that as a valuable genetic resource in the ýtropical area could be good a candidate to produce high quantity of muscularþ þcarcass portions ýwith highþ þefficiency. In order to explore the Mitochondrial transcription factor A gene ýý(TFAM) polymorphisms using PCR-RFLP, 150 Sistani cows were randomly selected and ýthen blood samples were taken from the jugular vein of each animal individually. ýThereafter, blood samples wereþ þsalting-out and electrophoresed with 1% agarose gel. The ýposition of the TFAM promoter region amplified by PCR and PCR products with 801bp ýlength were sliced byþ þBsuRI enzyme. Digestion products on 3% agarose gel were shown by ýelectrophoresis and staining with ethidium bromide. The patterns of digestion in AA ýhomozygotes, CC homozygotes, and AC heterozygotes were as follows: three bands with ýý152, 187, and 462bp; four bands with 83, 104, 152, and 462bp; and five bands with 83, 104, ýý152, 187, and 462bp, respectively. The results showed that the position of TFAM population ýdeviated from the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (P

The objective of the present study was to determine the extent of BOLA-DRB3 locus polymorphism in a herd of Sistani Cattle and their associations with body weight traits including birth weight, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months, and blood serum biochemical such as total protein, albumin and globulin. For this, blood samples collected randomly from 143 Sistani Cattle in a research herd at the Sistani Cattle Research Centre. DNA extraction from complete blood samples was performed with optimized saline method. The amplification of the 284-bp fragment of the BoLA-DRB3 gene was performed in two steps. In the first step, the HLO30 and HLO31 primers were used and in the second step the HLO30 and HLO32 primers were used. Then, the amplified fragment was digested by HaeIII enzyme. The digestion products were resolved on electrophoresis of 3% gel agarose. Population and genetic structure was calculated with POPGENE software and probable genotype patterns association with body weight traits and blood biochemistry traits were implemented by fixed linear model. The results of this study revealed two alleles and three genotypes as aa, bb and ab in locus of BOLA-DRB3.2 in Sistani cattle. Genotype frequencies of aa, bb and ab were 30, 41 and 28%, respectively, and alleles frequencies of a and b were calculated 44 and 56%, respectively. In this experiment, the Shannon index (I), Nei's index, heterozygosity was observed and the expected heterozygosity were calculated 69, 49, 28 and 50 respectively. The analysis of likelihood ratio test and X2 in BOLA-DRB3.2 showed that the population of Sistani cattle studied in this study was beyond the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. Also, the correlation of different genotypes with body weight traits including birth, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months, and biochemical characteristics of serum were not significant.

Twinning is one of the most important economic traits in goat production, which is influenced by either small or major gene effects. In recent decades, it has been recognized that two members of growth factors originated from oocytes namely GDF9 and BMP15 are essential for follicular development and ovulation. The aim of the current study was to survey the polymorphism of two GDF9 and BMP15 genes and their genotype patterns association with twining rate in Markhoz goat. Blood samples were randomly taken from 50 Markhoz goats and DNA extraction was performed by a salting-out modified method. Polymerase chain reactions (PCR) were employed to amplify a fragment with 862 base pairs from exon 2 of BMP15 gene and 995 base pairs fragment from exon 2 of GDF9 gene. The PCR products after digestion by Hinf1 enzyme were electrophoresed on 3% agarose gel and the animal's genotypes were determined by banding patterns. In the BMP15 gene, the frequencies of B and b alleles were 0.96 and 0.04, respectively; and the frequencies of BB, Bb and bb genotypes were 0.94, 0.04 and 0.02, respectively. Also, the frequencies of A and a alleles in GDF9 gene were 0.68 and 0.32, respectively; and the frequencies of AA, Aa and aa genotypes were 0.60, 0.16 and 0.24, respectively. The Nei’s index, Polymorphism information content and expected heterozygosity in the BMP15 gene were 0.47, 0.077 and 0.08, respectively; and corresponding values in the GDF9 gene were 0.34, 0.4 and 0.43, respectively. The results showed that the effects of BMP15, GDF9 and interaction of two loci genotypes on twinning trait were significant indicating that although the GDF9 and BMP15 genes in Markhoz goats have low to moderate polymorphism, they play an important role in twining rate. The present information may be useful in breeding programs of Markhoz goats and could be used in selection strategies.

The genetic structure, diversity and population kinship of four strains of ornamental barb, Puntius tetrazona, viz. tiger, green, albino and rose barb, was studied through microsatellite markers. Genomic DNA was extracted from dorsal fin tissue of 160 individuals (40 per strain) using kit and its protocol from Denazist Co. PCR amplification was performed using four pairs of microsatellite primers (Sm17, Sm25, Ma106 and Ma109). PCR products were electrophoresed on 8% acrylamide gel and stained with silver nitrate. The results showed that all loci were polymorphic. A total of 21 alleles for four markers in four strains was found. The mean number of alleles per locus at the population level was 5.25, and the number of alleles per polymorphic locus varied between 3 and 6. Average number of the observed alleles in tiger, green, albino and rose barb strains were 3.25, 3.25, 4 and 3.25, respectively. The observed and expected heterozygosity averages were 0.24 and 0.49, respectively. Most cases significantly deviated from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (p≤0.01). The analyses of molecular variance showed high genetic diversity (97%) within populations. The Fst value was 0.03 which indicates the low genetic differentiation between populations. UPGMA cluster analysis based on Nei genetic distance showed two different populations inhabiting the regions. Therefore, the microsatellite markers used in this study were found suitable for the different strains, and the degree of diversity was very low between strains, indicating a high degree of kinship.

The polymorphism in exon 3 of FABP4 gene and its association with growth traits of 45 Sistani (n=30) and Dashtiari (n=15) cattle were investigated. DNA extraction from the whole blood was performed and its quality was determined by electrophoresis of one percent agarose gel. Animal genotypes were determined based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) products and their band size electrophoresed on agarose 2. 8 percent resulted from enzyme digestion by NlaIII. The pattern of bands gave three genotypes including AA، AB and BB in two Sistani and Dashtiari breeds with frequency of 67، 30، and 3 percent and 73، 27 and 0 percent، respectively. The frequency of A and B alleles in exon 3 of FABP4 in Sistani and Dashtiari breeds were 82 and 18 percent and 86. 5 and 13. 5 percent، respectively. Heterozygosity indices including Shannon index (I)، Nei’s index، observed and expected heterozygosity in Sistani and Dashtiari population were 48، 30، 30 and 30 percent and 39، 11، 27 and 24 percent، respectively. The association between genotypes and growth-related traits were significant for body weights in 6، 9 and 12 months of age. Therefore، this locus can be considered as a candidate gene in breeding programs for describing the variation of growth traits after weaning age in calves.

Inbreeding and Heat stress have negative effects on reproductive performance of dairy cattle. Two suggested strategies to overcome to these factors are to use crossbreeding and crossbreeding with thermo tolerant genotype, respectively. The aims of present study were to determine the effects of inbreeding and crossbreeding on cleavage and blastocyst rates at early stages of in vitro development in inbreed (Holstein) and crossbreds (Sistani-Holstein) embryos during normal and heat shock stress. In vitro-matured (IVM) Holstein oocytes (n=623) were inseminated with either Holstein or Sistani spermatozoa, and after incubation period, presumptive embryos were collected and assigned to control (38.5°C) or heat shock at 96 h post insemination (hpi; 41°C for 12 h) treatments. The presumptive embryos were cultured in vitro for 8 days and evaluated for cleavage and blastocyst formation rates per cleaved embryo. Data were analyzed using logistic regression. The results indicated a cleavage at 48 hpi was influenced by the species of the sperm (embryo) genotypes, where percentage of Holstein oocytes cleaving after insemination with Holstein spermatozoa were significantly higher than Holstein oocytes inseminated with Sistani spermatozoa (207/314; 66% vs. 130/309; 42%), (P≤0.05); respectively. moreover, the overall blastocyst production rate during heat shock stress was clearly affected by the crossbreeding, with Holstein oocytes were inseminated with Sistani spermatozoa having a greater blastocyst yield in comparison with Holstein inbreed embryos during heat shock stress (4/49; 8.1% vs. 1/84; 1.1%), (P≤0.05) respectively. In conclusion, the present results indicate that Sistani-Holstein crossbreed embryos are more resistant to heat shock than purebred Holstein at early stages of in vitro development. Moreover, according to this criterion, crossbreeding with Sistani spermatozoa may result in higher pregnancy rates in Holstein cows during heat stress condition.