Browsing by Author "Salako, Adebowale E."

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    Comparative multivariate analysis of biometric traits of West African Dwarf and Red Sokoto goats
    (Department of Animal Science, Nasarawa State University, Keffi., 2011-06-14) Yakubu, Abdulmojeed; Salako, Adebowale E.; Imumorin, I.G
    The population structure of 302 randomly selected West African Dwarf (WAD) and Red Sokoto (RS) goats was examined using multivariate morphometric analyses. This was to make the case for conservation, rational management and genetic improvement of these two most important Nigerian goat breeds. Fifteen morphometric measurements were made on each individual animal. RS goats were superior (P<0.05) to the WAD for the body size and skeletal proportions investigated. The phenotypic variability between the two breeds was revealed by their mutual responses in the principal components. While four principal components were extracted for WAD goats, three components were obtained for their RS counterparts with variation in the loading traits of each component for each breed. The Mahalanobis distance of 72.28 indicated a high degree of spatial racial separation in morphology between the genotypes. The Ward’s option of the cluster analysis consolidated the morphometric distinctness of the two breeds. Application of selective breeding to genetic improvement would benefit from the detected phenotypic differentiation. Other implications for management and conservation of the goats are highlighted.
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    Genetic Diversity in Exon 2 of the Major Histocompatibility Complex Class II DQB1 Locus in Nigerian Goats
    (Department of Animal Science, Nasarawa State University, Keffi., 2013-04-12) Yakubu, Abdulmojeed; Salako, Adebowale E.; Donato, Marcos De; Takeet, Michael I.; Peters, S.O; Adefenwa, Mufliat A; Okpeku, Moses; Wheto, Mathew; Agaviezor, Brilliant O.; Sanni, Timothy M; Ajayi, Oyeyemi O.; Onasanya, Gbolabo O; Ekundayo, Oludotun J; Ilori, Babatunde M; Amusan, Samuel A; Imumorin, I.G
    The DQB1 locus is located in the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II region and involved in immune response. We identified 20 polymorphic sites in a 228 bp fragment of exon 2, one of the most critical regions of the MHC DQB1 gene, in 60 Nigerian goats. Four sites are located in the peptide binding region, and 10 amino acid substitutions are peculiar to Nigerian goats, compared with published sequences. A significantly higher ratio of nonsynonymous/synonymous substitutions (dN/dS) suggests that allelic sequence evolution is driven by balancing selection (P\0.01). In silico functional analysis using PANTHER predicted that substitution P56R, with a subPSEC score of -4.00629 (Pdeleterious = 0.73229), is harmful to protein function. The phylogenetic tree from consensus sequences placed the two northern breeds closer to each other than either was to the southern goats. This first report of sequence diversity at the DQB1 locus for any African goat breed may be useful in the search for disease-resistant genotypes
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    STRAIN AND PLACEMENT DENSITY EFFECTS ON WELFARE, HAEMATOLOGICAL AND SERUM BIOCHEMICAL INDICES OF BROILERS IN NORTH CENTRAL NIGERIA
    (Department of Animal Science, Nasarawa State University, Keffi., 2009-04-17) Yakubu, Abdulmojeed; GWASKA, Jafaru Ari; Salako, Adebowale E.
    NigeriaTh is study aimed at evaluating the influence of strain and stocking density on welfare, haematological and serum biochemical indices of broilers in a 28-day trial. Two hundred and seven 4-week old birds each of Anak Titan and Arbor Acre genetic provenience were randomly allocated to three housing densities of 8.3, 11.1 and 14.3 birds/m2.These corresponded to 17, 22 and 30 birds per pen ( 2.01 × 1.00 m ) in a 2x3 factorial experiment. Each treatment group was replicated three times. The welfare parameters estimated were gait score, feather score, foot and hock burns, pecking, pushes, chases, fights and mortality. Blood samples were tested for packed cell volume (PCV), red blood cells (RBC), white blood cells (WBC), haemoglobin (Hb), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), mean corpuscular haemoglobin (MCH) and mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration (MCHC). Similarly, sera were utilized for the determination of total protein, albumin, globulin, glucose, cholesterol, and creatinine contents. There were no genotype-associated differences (P > 0.05) in the welfare indicators examined. However, placement density significantly (P < 0.05) influenced incidence of pushes, chases and fights, with higher values in most cases recorded for birds housed at the highest density. The strains and population densities were similar (P > 0.05) in haematological profile. Strain and stocking density also exerted no influence (P > 0.05) on serum biochemical components. Strain × stocking density interaction effects were not observed in all the parameters. Consequently, the two strains could be reared at a density of 14.3 birds/m2 since density did not lead to a great degree of stress.