North Africa has a great diversity of indigenous sheep breeds whose origin is linked to its environmental characteristics and to certain historical events that took place in the region. To date, few genome-wide studies have been conducted to investigate the population structure of North African indigenous sheep. The objective of the present study was to provide a detailed assessment of the genetic structure and admixture patterns of six Maghreb sheep populations using the Illumina 50K Ovine BeadChip and comparisons with 22 global populations of sheep and mouflon. Regardless of the method of analysis used, patterns of multiple hybridization events were observed within all North African populations, leading to a heterogeneous genetic architecture that varies according to the breed. The Barbarine population showed the lowest genetic heterogeneity and major southwest Asian ancestry, providing additional support to the Asian origin of the North African fat-tailed sheep. All other breeds presented substantial Merino introgression ranging from 15% for D'man to 31% for Black Thibar. We highlighted several signals of ancestral introgression between North African and southern European sheep. In addition, we identified two opposite gradients of ancestry, southwest Asian and central European, occurring between North Africa and central Europe. Our results provide further evidence of the weak global population structure of sheep resulting from high levels of gene flow among breeds occurring worldwide. At the regional level, signs of recent admixture among North African populations, resulting in a change of the original genomic architecture of minority breeds, were also detected.
Ibrahim Eldaghayes(8-2019)

The transcriptional changes that occurred in Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis during colonization of the alimentary tract of newly hatched chickens were studied. A whole genome oligonucleotide microarray was used to compare the expression pattern with that from bacteria cultured in nutrient broth in vitro. Amongst other changes Salmonella Pathogenicity Island (SPI)-1, SPI-2 and SPI-5 genes were up-regulated in vivo suggesting a close association with the mucosa during colonization. Particular attention was paid to genes associated with metabolism of dicarboxylic acids and to responses to high osmolarity. Association between the colonization phenotype and gene mutations indicated that the latter was more important as a contribution to the colonization phenotype. arabic 12 English 89
Abdulgader Dhawi, Elazomi A, Jones M A, Lovell M A, Li H, Emes R D, Barrow P A(7-2011)

Background: Patellar luxation (PL) is a common orthopedic affection among farm and pet animals with mostly congenital (environmental and/or genetic) background. Aim: We report here the first observation of lateral PL in Hejazi goats bred in Libya. Methods: Five Hejazi goats aged between 4 months and 2 years with severe hind limb lameness were admitted to Al-Sorouh veterinary clinic in Tripoli during the period from 2016 to 2018. The goats were thoroughly examined clinically and radiographically. Two goats were surgically treated, and the other three cases were not because of either the cost limitation or expected poor prognosis. The surgical intervention involved femoral trochlear sulcoplasty, medial joint capsule imbrication, and tibial tuberosity transposition. Results: The clinical examination showed grade III–IV lateral PL. Radiologically, there were unilateral or bilateral, ventrocaudal, and dorsal PLs. Two cases were referred to surgical correction. One case almost restored the normal movement of stifle joint together with a good general status 1 year postsurgery. However, the surgical treatment was not effective in correcting the luxated patella in the second case. Conclusion: Lateral PL is common among orthopedic affections in Hejazi goats in Libya, and its surgical treatment provided a quite convenient approach. An association between inbreeding and the PL was suggested in those cases. Keywords: Clinical and radiological findings, Hejazi goat breed, Inbreeding, Patellar luxation, Surgical treatment.
Mohamed Hamrouni S. Abushhiwa, Abdulrhman Mohamed Salah Alrtib, Taher N. Elmeshreghi, Mouna Abdunnabi Abdunnabi Abdunnabi, Mansur Ennuri Moftah Shmela, Emad M R Bennour(3-2021)