1. The objective of this study was to determine muscle structure and gene expression in pectoralis major (p. major) muscle of broilers in response to deep pectoral myopathy (DPM) induction. 2. A total of 160 chickens from slow- and fast-growing broilers were raised under same conditions. Half of the broilers from each strain were encouraged to wing flap when they reached 2800 g body weight. Pectoralis minor (p. minor) muscle of the broilers was inspected for the occurrence of DPM and p. major samples were collected from broilers with or without DPM. The muscle fibre area and number, capillary number and the signalling pathways of vascular development (vascular endothelial growth factor A, VEGFA) and muscle contraction regulation (actin alpha 1, ACTA1; myosin light chain kinase 2, MYLK2 and ATPase Ca transporting gene 1, ATP2A1) were studied in p. major muscle. 3. DPM induction increased fibre area of p. major muscle with a greater rate in the slow-growing strain compared with fast-growing line. Although the capillary number was higher in slow-growing compared with fast-growing broilers, in the case of DPM induction, the number of capillaries was similar between strains. 4. Expression of VEGFA, MYLK2 and ATP2A1 was greater in slow- than in fast-growing broilers. DPM induction increased expression of ACTA1, VEGFA and ATP2A1 in p. major muscle of broilers from both strains; however, MYLK2 expression was downregulated. 5. Changes in capillary density and expression of VEGFA found in the p. major muscle of broilers with DPM suggest increased blood flow to increase oxygen availability. The upregulation of ATP2A1 by DPM induction could be attributable to alterations in calcium ion transportation from the cytoplasm into the sarcoplasmic reticulum. 6. The results are evidence of changes in muscle structure and gene expression pathways in p. major muscle of broilers with DPM.

The present study was aimed to investigate the genetic diversity among 17 Turkish water buffalo populations. A total of 837 individuals from 17 provincial populations were genotyped, using 20 microsatellites markers. The microsatellite markers analyzed were highly polymorphic with a mean number of alleles of (7.28) ranging from 6 (ILSTS005) to 17 (ETH003). The mean observed and expected heterozygosity values across all polymorphic loci in all studied buffalo populations were 0.61 and 0.70, respectively. Observed heterozygosity varied from 0.55 (Bursa (BUR)) to 0.70 (Muş (MUS)). It was lower than expected heterozygosity in most of the populations indicating a deviation from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. The overall value for the polymorphic information content of noted microsatellite loci was 0.655, indicating their suitability for genetic diversity analysis in buffalo. The mean FIS value was 0.091 and all loci were observed significantly deviated from Hardy–Weinberg Equilibrium (HWE), most likely based on non-random breeding. The 17 buffalo populations were genetically less diverse as indicated by a small mean FST value (0.032 ± 0.018). The analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) analysis indicated that about 2% of the total genetic diversity was clarified by population distinctions and 88 percent corresponded to differences among individuals. The information produced by this study can be used to establish a base of national conservation and breeding strategy of water buffalo population in Turkey.

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This study was conducted to determine the polymorphisms of the POU1F1 gene and their relationships with milk yield and components, litter size, birth weight, and weaning weight in goats. For this purpose, a total of 108 Saanen goats from two different farms (Bornova and Manisa) were used as animal materials. Polymorphisms at the exon 6 and the 3′ flanking region of the POU1F1 gene were determined by using PCR-RFLP with PstI and AluI restriction enzymes and DNA sequencing analyses. Two alleles and three genotypes were identified by AluI or PstI digestions of the POU1F1 gene. The genotypes frequencies of TT, TC, and CC were 64.8 %, 31.5 % and 3.7 % for the PstI locus; 54.6 %, 31.5 % and 13.9 % for the AluI locus, respectively. T allele frequencies (0.56 and 0.88 for the AluI locus, 0.80 and 0.81 for the PstI locus, respectively) were predominant in both loci at the Bornova and Manisa farms. In terms of POU1F1-AluI and POU1F1-PstI loci, two populations were found to be in Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. In the POU1F1-AluI locus, significant associations were found between genotypes and lactation milk yield and litter size. Similarly, a significant relationship between genotypes and birth weight in the POU1F1-PstI locus (p<0.05) was determined. The TC and CC genotypes were observed to be higher than the TT genotype for lactation milk yield and litter size at the POU1F1-AluI locus. Birth weight was found to be higher in animals that have the CC genotype at the POU1F1-PstI locus. In conclusion, the POU1F1 gene can be used as a molecular marker for economic features like reproduction, growth, milk content and yield in Saanen goats.

A detailed morphological and genetic characterization of honey bees from the Thrace and west Anatolian regions of Turkey was surveyed. A total of 1650 worker bee samples (110 colonies) were evaluated with the forty-one morphological characters and 217 honey bee samples were analyzed via DNA sequencing of the tRNAleu-cox2 region. In this study, three different populations, Thrace (Tekirdağ, Kırklareli and Edirne provinces), Island Gökçeada, and western Anatolia were formed based on morphometrics, since the Marmara Sea has taken a very strong barrier role in this formation. The morphological similarity of the Thrace population was supported by the genetic analysis. The sequencing of the tRNAleu-cox2 region revealed twenty-two different haplotypes, sixteen of which are novel. The C2d, macedonica-like haplotype, was the most widely found haplotype (48%) all around the Thrace region. Along with the C2d haplotype, previously published C2s, C2v, C2i, C2j, and C2h haplotypes, and the newly found haplotypes were also observed but less frequently. In this study, Thrace honey bees were found to more similar to A. m. macedonica through the mtDNA sequence analysis, whereas carnica-like honey bees were only found near the Istranca mountain ridges, Kırklareli province and macedonica-like honey bees all around the Thrace region. According to our results, some of the Thrace honey bee populations may be both A. m. carnica and A. m. macedonica but the assignment to the latter subspecies seems more likely due to its geographic range.

In this research, Ovar-DRB1 gene in the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) gene region was surveyed by DNA sequencing in some of the native sheep breeds that are reared in Turkey. A total of 80 samples were collected from eight different Turkish native sheep breeds, and these samples were used for DNA sequencing.The exon 2 region of Ovar-DRB1 in the MHC gene region was polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplified and sequenced. A total of 25 new alleles were revealed in the Ovar-DRB1 gene in Turkish native sheep breeds with 24 variable sites; only 13 sites were parsimony informative. The average pairwise genetic distance was 0.029 % for the Ovar-DRB1 gene exon 2 region. The sequence variations at eight different positions (7026, 7036, 7040, 7053, 7059, 7069, 7131 and 7214) are found in all of the studied samples. G → C transversion at position 7081 is only seen in Akkaraman sheep breed, whereas T → C transition at position 7097 is only seen in one sample from the Akkaraman breed. Overall, two main groups were detected among the 25 alleles from Turkish native sheep breeds. All Daǧliç and Kivircik alleles and one allele from Karayaka, Malya and Sakiz are grouped together while all the other breeds are grouped in the other branch.

In this study, the italicκ-casein (CSN3) and lactoferrin (LTF) genes which were found in association with milk production traits in different animal species were studied firstly in Turkish donkey populations. A total of 108 donkeys from different regions of Turkey were used in order to reveal the different genotypes of CSN3 and LTF genes by using polymerase chain reaction – restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) and DNA sequencing methods. To determine the genetic polymorphism, we attempted to digest a fragment of 235 bp of the CSN3 gene and a fragment of 751 bp of the LTF gene using PstI, and DraII, EagI and MboI restriction enzymes, respectively. Neither the CSN3 gene nor the LTF gene had enzyme recognition sites with the PstI, DraII and MboI restriction enzymes in all of the studied samples. However, the LTF gene was only distinguished with the EagI restriction enzyme. Three genotypes were identified in the LTF gene with the EagI restriction enzyme: GG homozygotes (667, 84 bp), AG heterozygotes (751; 667, 84 bp) and AA homozygotes (751 bp). The transition from guanine to adenine in 89 bp of the LTF gene lacks the restriction site and different genotypes are obtained. This novel single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) has been firstly detected in donkeys. According to the results, the G allele was predominant in the LTF-EagI gene in the studied Turkish donkey populations. In this study, all the genotype distributions of LTF-EagI were not found in Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium (P<0.05). The CSN3 and LTF genes have not been studied before in donkeys, so the results are the preliminary results of these gene regions in donkeys.

Today, the need for quality wool suitable for worsted fabric production in the world is mainly met by Australian merino wool. In Turkey, which has a significant sheep population, in addition to domestic breeds, approximately 10% of the total sheep population (around four million head) is composed of merino cross breeds. However, the fleece quality is far from meeting Australian merino wool standards. Therefore, the aim of this study is to ensure a merino herd with high‐quality wool in Turkey. For this aim, by carrying out field studies in the Thrace region of Turkey where Turkish Merino sheep are widely bred, sheep with fleece that can meet the demands of the worsted industry were determined. As a result of field studies in which thousands of sheep were examined, it was determined that 43 female and 10 male sheep had fleece that would meet these standards. Then the breeders of the sheep, which had quality fleece, were persuaded and these sheep were purchased, and “Turkey's wool‐oriented Turkish (Karacabey) Merino Herd” consisting of 30 sheep and three rams was formed in the farm of Tekirdağ Namık Kemal University. In the second part of this study, a 100% wool fabric produced by using Australian merino was taken as a reference and it was aimed to produce the same fabric from Turkish merino wool. For this aim, the wool‐oriented Turkish Merino herd, which was bred at the university farm for 1 year, was shorn in May 2022. Then, Turkish and Australian merino wools were first converted into worsted yarn and then into woven fabric. The results of mechanical (tensile strength, pilling, abrasion resistance, felting shrinkage, Hofmann dimensional change, bending stiffness) and dyeability (dye‐uptake, CIE L*a*b* and colour yield (K/S) values; washing, rubbing and light fastness values) properties of fabrics produced from Turkish and Australian merino wool is presented.