This study was conducted to establish the normal dimensions of the different segments of the female r eproductive tract of the Black Bengal goats. The reproductive tracts of 56 adult non-gravid, female Black Bengal goat were collected and biometric parameters of different segments of the female reproductive tracts i.e. vulva, vagina, cervix, uterine body, uterine horns, oviducts and ovaries were measured .The lengths of the right and left ovaries were 1.453±0.034 and 1.410±0.026 cm, respectively. Mean weight of left ovary was 0.5944±0.06 gm and that of right ovary was 0.614±0.07 gm in Black Bengal goat. The average numbers of follicle in right and left ovaries were 4.123±0.230 and 3.893±0.229, respectively. The mean lengths of the vulva, vagina, cervix, uterine body, uterine horns and oviduct were 2.671±0.063, 7.132±0.165, 3.348±0.113, 2.50±0.112 and 12.287±0.270 and 10.150±0.228 cm, respectively. The width of the vagina, cervix, uterine body and uterine horn were 3.972±0.098, 1.7551±0.042, 2.739±0.079 and 2.805±0.069 cm, respectively. The average number of curuncle in uterus was 54.714±1.70. A significant difference (p<0.05) between right and left ovaries was found for ovario-bursal adhesion. The mean weight, length and width in the present study were found higher in right ovaries than those of left ovaries.

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) are zoonotically important pathogen which causes hemorrhagic colitis, diarrhea, and hemolytic uremic syndrome in animals and humans. The present study was designed to isolate and identify the STEC from fecal samples of diarrheic cattle. A total of 35 diarrheic fecal samples were collected from Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU) Veterinary Teaching Hospital. The samples were primarily examined for the detection of E. coli by cultural, morphological and biochemical characteristics, followed by confirmation of the isolates by Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) using gene specific primers. Later, the STEC were identified among the isolated E. coli through detection of Stx-1 and Stx-2 genes using duplex PCR. Out of 35 samples, 25 (71.43%) isolates were confirmed to be associated with E. coli, of which only 7 (28%) isolates were shiga toxin producers, and all of them were positive for Stx-1. However, no Stx-2 positive isolate could be detected. From this study, it may be concluded that cattle can act as a reservoir of STEC which may transmit to human or other animals.

Studies on sexual dimorphism of gongota Loach Canthophrys gongota (Local name: Pahari Gutum) was performed capturing them from the Atrai River of Dinajpur district in Bangladesh. Females had light blotches and patches with thick and rounded pectoral and pelvic fins while males having dark blotches and patches with thin and comparatively pointed paired fins. Body size, lengths of the anal fin and distances between the bases of pectoral, pelvic and caudal fins were significantly different (5.62 < F < 11.65, P ˂ 0.05) between the sexes of C. gongota. The expansion factors of mean thin-plate grids and vectors also showed that the head region of males was statistically different from females, whereas abdomen and tail of the females were considerably broader than those of the males. Both PCA (principal component analysis) and DFA (discriminant function analysis) plots showed morphologically little overlapping of landmark points which discriminated the females from the males. These findings are the first records on the sexual dimorphism of this rare species that would be baseline in a future study. Bangladesh J. Sci. Ind. Res.54(2), 187-194, 2019