Herbst corpuscles are widely distributed throughout the oropharynx of the ostrich and emu in contrast to the general situation in birds. Knowledge of the comparative distribution of Herbst corpuscles in the oropharynx of these two commercially important ratite species may assist in a better understanding of their feeding habits. Tissue sections representing all parts of the oropharynx of five o...

Th e aim of this study was to observe the microstructure and ultrastructure of the testis, demonstrate testicular cell development and apoptosis, and elucidate regularity of development and apoptosis in ostrich chick testes. By employing light microscopy 3 obvious development characteristics were detected with ostrich age increasing: fi rst, many primordial germ cells and a few spermatogonia we...

Animal species identification is one of the primary duties of official food control. Since ostrich meat is difficult to be differentiated macroscopically from beef, therefore new analytical methods are needed. To enforce labeling regulations for the authentication of ostrich meat, it might be of importance to develop and evaluate a rapid and reliable assay. In the present study, a loop-mediated...

One of ostrich (Struthio camelus) trypsinogen genes was cloned from pancreatic cDNA. Its amino acid sequence compared to known trypsin sequences from other species shows high identity and suggests that it is a member of the phylogenetically anionic trypsinogen I subfamily. After cytoplasmic over expression in Escherichia coli and renaturation, the activation properties of ostrich trypsinogen we...

The rapid outbreak of the highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza virus and its transmission to humans have induced world-wide fears of a new influenza pandemic. The most effective method for the reduction of the impact of such a pandemic would be prophylaxis with a safe and effective vaccine, as well as anti-viral materials. In this study, we generated the specific antibodies 'immunoglobulin yo...

Ostrich fertility is a very important measure of their reproductive efficiency, hence our interest in studying the ostrich oviduct. In our study, we found in fully mature birds a thin walled region between magnum and isthmus free of glands and considered as an area of transition called zona translucent. Also, the uterus was formed from a cranial short tubal part followed by a caudal large sac-l...

BACKGROUND The ostrich (Struthio camelus) is the tallest and heaviest living bird. Ostrich meat is considered a healthy red meat, with an annual worldwide production ranging from 12,000 to 15,000 tons. As part of the avian phylogenomics project, we sequenced the ostrich genome for phylogenetic and comparative genomics analyses. The initial Illumina-based assembly of this genome had a scaffold N...

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of providing a supplement containing polyunsaturated fatty acids and antioxidants (PROSPERM) on the biochemical characteristics of boar semen. Two sexually mature boars were fed a standard diet with PROSPERM (250 g daily) for a 24-week period. Ejaculates collected prior to supplementation were used as the control. Semen quality and biochemical...

In order to study the bacterial flora of dead-in-shell ostrich chicks, twelve unhatched eggs which did nothave external pipping during the hatching period were transferred to the laboratory of microbiology. The eggshells were accurately disinfected and the embryos were removed and placed in a sterile plate. The surface of each embryo was swabbed with a sterile swab which was also plunged throug...