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Assessment of the adaptive capacity of Morada Nova ewes with different coat coloration

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Abstract

Coat color is a factor affecting heat tolerance in tropical ruminant and a particular coat color can determine which is more resilient to environmental changes. The aim of this study was to measure the level of adaptation of Morada Nova sheep with different coat color by using an Adaptability Index (AI). Adult ewes were used, including two different coat colors of Morada Nova sheep (red and white) with mean of body weight of 28.02 ± 5.70 kg and 31.47 ± 3.41 kg, respectively. Physiology parameters, hematology, electrolytes, acid–base status, mineral, renal functions, metabolites, enzymes, and proteins were measured. AI was designed using a multivariate approach (principal component analysis) to "weigh" the influence of each variable in the animal responses. The variables more important for adaptive aspects of Red Morada Nova were: haematology, electrolytes and acid–base status. The hemoglobin (HG), mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC), sodium (Na+), oxygen pressure (PO2), glucose (GLU) and albumin (ALB) were significantly higher in Red Morada Nova sheep and hydrogen carbonate (HCO3), base excess (BE), total carbon dioxide concentration (TCO2) and URE were significantly higher in the white phenotype. The variables more important for adaptive aspects of White Morada Nova sheep were: (K+), total protein (TP), PO2, HG, cholesterol (CHO), rectal temperature (RT) and glucose (GLU). Both phenotypes showed a high adaptation level, however, a higher value was generated for the Red Morada Nova sheep (81.97). This study concludes that both phenotypes of the Morada Nova sheep breed are well adapted to the climatic condition of the Brazilian tropical region using different adaptive mechanisms.

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Data Availability

Database used for analysis: https://1drv.ms/x/c/651d44d610bd1ce1/EVNzXV8DJ5FDjmWiCTxTQpoB5EWcAmAwqfgRp5DtZvflow.

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Funding

The Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Ensino Superior (CAPES) located in Brazil, financed the project entitled "Conservação IN SITU de Ruminantes e Biodiversidade do Bioma Caatinga" (“IN SITU Conservation of Ruminants and Caatinga Biome biodiversity”) in partnership with UFERSA.

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Author notes

  1. Josiel Ferreira

    Present address: Centro de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento de Zootecnia Diversificada, Instituto de Zootecnia, Nova Odessa, SP, 13380-011, Brazil

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centro de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento de Zootecnia Diversificada, Instituto de Zootecnia, Nova Odessa, SP, 13380-011, Brazil

    Ricardo Lopes Dias da Costa

  2. Department of Animal Science, Federal Rural University of the Semi-Arid Region (UFERSA), Mossoró, RN, 59625-900, Brazil

    Elisomar André da Silva & José Ernandes Rufino de Sousa

  3. Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture (ESALQ), Department of Animal Science, University of São Paulo (USP), Piracicaba, SP, 13418900, Brazil

    Robson Mateus Freitas Silveira

  4. Rural Development Institute, University of the International Integration of Afro-Brazilian Lusophony (UNILAB), Redenção, CE, 62790-790, Brazil

    Concepta Margaret McManus

  5. Biology Institute, Brasília University (UnB), Brasília, DF, 70910-900, Brazil

    Débora Andréa Evangelista Façanha

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  1. Josiel Ferreira
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Contributions

J. Ferreira and E.A. da Silva Methodological design and conceptualization of the idea, treatment and data analysis, writing and final revision.

J.E.R. de Sousa and D. Façanha: Supervision and administration of the experimental project, writing and final revision.

R.M.F. Silveira, R.L.D. da Costa and C.M. McManus: Final revising the manuscript critically for important intellectual content.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Josiel Ferreira.

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Ethics approval

This experiment was approved by the Ethics Committee of the UFERSA (process number: 23091003895/2014–71).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Additional information

This investigation was carried out as a result of the final exam for Zootecnia graduate of E.A. Silva, student of the UFERSA, Mossoró, RN, Brazil.

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Ferreira, J., da Silva, E.A., Silveira, R.M.F. et al. Assessment of the adaptive capacity of Morada Nova ewes with different coat coloration. Int J Biometeorol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00484-024-02676-8

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