New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research abstracts
Comparison of fibre diameters measured in the skin and wool of Merino sheep
C. E. McCLOGHRY1
G. H. BROWN2
G. C. UPHILL1
1CSIRO Division of Animal Production
Pastoral Research Laboratory
Private Mail Bag, Armidale
NSW 2350, Australia
2CSIRO Biometrics Unit
P.O. Box 52
North Ryde
NSW 2113, Australia
Abstract This study was undertaken to determine if there is a
relationship between the fibre diameter measurement obtained from a skin
section and that obtained from the corresponding wool fibres. A skin biopsy (1
cm diam.) was taken from the unclipped midside of 29 fine-woolled Merino sheep,
under local anaesthetic. The fibres protruding from the biopsy were severed at
the skin surface and fibre diameter measurements determined at intervals along
their length. Fibre diameter was also measured in the skin sections prepared
from the biopsies. The fibre diameter (mean +/- SEM) from the skin sections
(15.0 +/- 0.2 um) was significantly lower (
P < 0.001) than the mean
wool fibre diameter (19.2 +/- 0.2 um). Fibre diameters measured along the fibre
bundles were highly correlated (0.81-0.88), whereas the correlations between
fibre diameter from skin sections and wool were much lower (0.64). The lower
fibre diameter obtained from skin sections is likely to result from the effect
of sample preparation, though the effect of nutrition can not be dismissed. The
results of this study indicate that fibre diameter obtained from skin sections
can not be used to reflect fibre diameter of wool with a high degree of
accuracy.
Keywords wool fibre diameter; skin; follicle; sheep
New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research, 1997, Vol. 40: 83-85
0028-8233/97/4001-0083 $2.50/0 (c) The Royal Society of New Zealand
1997
Short communication
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