Arab horse is a popular pure breed in Iran and is registered by World Arabian Horse Organization (WAHO). There is no scientific study and research about this breed. In this research 13 conformation traits on a random sample of the Iranian Arab horses studied. The estimate of variance components estimated by Animal Model and Derivative Free Restricted Maximum Likelihood (DF-REML) approach and DF-REML software. Heritability of conformation traits is also evaluated. The range of estimated heritability were (0.050 +/- 0.008) neck length and (0.614 +/- 0.087) croup height. Results indicated that, conformation traits were good traits for selection and horse genetic evaluation.

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This study was done to determine minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the aqueous extracts of garlic (Allium sativum), mint (Menthe spp.) and onion (Allium cepa) in in vitro conditions against the Escherichia coli isolated from broiler chickens. E. coli was isolated from the infected tissues of the chickens which were suspected of Colibacillus infection. In this study, distilled water, phenol phenicol and floxacin antibiotics were used as control. E. coli was sensitive to antibiotics, but distilled water had no inhibitory effect on the activity of E. coli. In this experiment, each of the aqueous extracts was prepared by using distilled water in 6 concentrations: 0.5, 1, 2.5, 5, 10 and 20%, and was poured into the cavities in nutrient agar medium, and then the plates were kept in incubator at 37°C for 24 h. The results indicated that MIC of the garlic aqueous extract was 5%, but E. coli was resistant to the aqueous extracts of onion and mint.

Light is an important environmental factor in poultry farm management. Duration, intensity and colour of light (wavelength) can be affected the poultry performance. The aim of present research was to study the effect of colour and intensity of incandescent bulbs light on the performance traits, hormones, and blood metabolites of broiler chickens. For this, a factorial experiment was used in the form of a completely randomised design for 42 days. The factors were included the colour and intensity of light. The number of treatment and replication was 6 and 4, respectively. Ross 308 male broiler chicken was used. Performance traits, hormones, and blood metabolites were measured and analysed with the Lsmeans procedure by SAS software. The effect of studied factors was significant (p < .05) on the body weight and feed conversion ratio (FCR) at all rearing periods. The best body weight and FCR were observed in the green light with the 50 lux intensity. The light colour effect was significant (p < .05) on the haemoglobin and haematocrit levels. Reducing the blood haemoglobin concentration in red light relative to green light can be due to a decrease in metabolic activity, which leads to a decrease in erythropoiesis and subsequently decreases the oxygen-carrying capacity of blood. Considering the favourable effect of green light (5 and 50 lux) on performance traits, it is suitable for rearing the broiler chickens. HIGHLIGHTS Light is an important environmental factor in the poultry farms. Green light of 50 Lux has desirable effects on the performance traits. The lowest concentration of haemoglobin and haematocrit is observed in red light.

Silkworm, Bombyx mori, is one of the most significant insects in silk production as well as in biological studies. The aim of silkworm breeding is to gradually improve economically valuable traits to increase the profits of the sericulture industry. This article reviews the necessity and achievements of research based on genetics and breeding. Some genetic principles in silkworms, along with the goals and outcomes of breeding are reviewed briefly. Selection under different environmental conditions, calculation of breeding values, quantitative and qualitative traits, consanguinity and heritability are also discussed.