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The present work aimed to describe and compare both gross and microscopic structure of the oesophagus of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and African catfish (Clarias gariepinus). For this purpose, 60 specimens of oesophagus of Nile tilapia (omnivorous fish) and African catfish (carnivorous fish) were collected and processed. Anatomically, the oesophagus of both species appeared as a short tube with longitudinal mucosal folds. Using scanning electron microscope, the epithelial surface of the esophagus showed primary and secondary mucosal folds in both species while tertiary folds were observed in that of tilapia only. Histologically, the oesophagus consisted of four distinct layers: mucosa, submucosa, muscularis, and serosa. The oesophageal mucosa consisted of stratified epithelium with few mucous secreting cells in catfish and many mucous secreting cells in tilapia. Two types of mucous secreting cells reacted positively with both periodic acid shiff (PAS) and alcian blue (AB); rounded and elongated cells that were recognized in the esophageal epithelium of tilapia and only elongated oval cells were observed in that of catfish. In conclusion, the obtained histomorphological differences in esophagus of both fish species may be attributed to their different feeding habits and type of food.

Available online xxxKeywords: Anatomy Morphology Histology Sheep Goats Interdigital sinus a b s t r a c tThe current study aimed to characterize the gross and microscopic structures of the interdigital sinus in Egyptian native breeds of sheep and goats (Baladi sheep and goats) to aid in conducting farther studies on such sinus and its surgical importance. The study was carried out on the distal fore and hind limb specimens (below the fetlock joint) obtained from healthy mature ten Baladi sheep and ten Baladi goats of both sexes. For sheep, thirty specimens were subjected to gross anatomical investigation and the other ten specimens were used for histological examination. While, the forty goats fore and hind feet specimens were examined grossly. The results obtained revealed the presence of a well-developed interdigital sinus in Baladi sheep, but there was no evidence for the existence of this unique structure in all examined specimens of Baladi goats. Such sinus appeared grossly as a pipe-like, composed of two parts; body (corpus) and neck (column) which opened in the skin of the interdigital area with an external orifice. The body consisted of three distinct parts in the forefeet and a single part in the hind feet. Histologically, the wall in body and neck regions of the interdigital sinus composed of three distinct layers; epidermis, dermis and a fibrous capsule. Many sebaceous glands, hair follicles and sweat glands in addition to the glandular apocrine gland were distributed within the dermis. The secretory adenomers of the interdigital sinus arranged in different lobules and lined with cuboidal cells with bleb-like projections. It reacted positively with Periodic Acid Schiff (PAS), Sudan black and Sudan III stains, on the other hand it negatively reacted with Alcian blue stain (AB).

Simple SummaryThere are limitations for using chemical products in meat production. The use of prebiotics to control Eimeria infections in rabbits may be of value. Prebiotics as a prophylaxis resulted in diminishing adverse effects caused by Eimeria spp. through decreasing fecal oocyst counts, retaining body weight, and reducing the number of parasitic stages in the intestinal tissues when compared with the non-supplemented controls. AbstractThis study was conducted to investigate the effect of prebiotic supplementation against intestinal coccidiosis in rabbits. Fifty male rabbits aged 35–60 days (1–1.5 kg) were divided into prophylactic and therapeutic experiments (five groups, 10 rabbits per group). Prophylactic experiment had prebiotic supplemented (PS-P), non-supplemented infected control (NI-P), and non-supplemented non-infected control (NN-P) groups. Ten days post-prebiotic supplementation (PPS), rabbits in groups PS-P and NI-P were infected orally with 5.0 × 104 sporulated oocysts of mixed Eimeria species. However, therapeutic experiment had prebiotic supplemented (PS-T) and untreated infected (UI-T) groups of naturally infected rabbits with Eimeria species. A significant reduction in oocyst count per gram feces (OPG) (p ≤ 0.05) was reported in the PS-P (57.33 × 103 ± 2.84) and NI-P (130.83 × 103 ± 43.38) groups during the experiment. Additionally, rabbits in groups (PS-P, 970.33 ± 31.79 g and NI-P, 870.66 ± 6.66 g) showed weight loss after infection. However, a significant (p ≤ 0.05) decrease in OPG was observed at day seven PPS in the PS-T group (4 × 103 ± 0.00) when compared with the UI-T group (32 × 103 ± 7.54). Furthermore, the PS-T group had a higher body weight than rabbits in the UI-T group. Histopathological findings of the intestinal tissues (duodenum, jejunum, and ileum) showed that the counts of the endogenous stages were significantly higher in the NI-P and UI-T groups than in the prebiotic-supplemented groups (PS-P and PS-T). Supplementation of the prebiotic did not have any adverse effects on biochemical parameters, such as AST, ALT, creatinine, total protein, and total cholesterol. In conclusion, prebiotic supplementation can be used to minimize the adverse effects of intestinal coccidiosis in rabbits, which in turn limits body weight loss, especially for the prophylaxis of coccidial infection.

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