A total of 75,206 blood serum samples from dairy cattle and quarantined heifers was collected between 2001 and 2007 and analyzed for bovine leptospirosis by the microscopic agglutination test (MAT). Serovar Hardjo was used for testing of all sera, with the addition of 2 or 3 randomly chosen other serovars (Grippotyphosa, Icterohaemorrhagiae, Pomona, Bataviae, Canicola, and/or Saxcoebing). From the total number of sera tested, 1197 (1.59%) were serologically positive, with a decreasing tendency over the years of research. The most prevalent serovar was Pomona (1.32%), followed by Hardjo (0.52%) and Grippotyphosa (0.37%). The differences among the studied regions in terms of the distribution of serovars and seroprevalence values may be attributed to different farm management approaches and climatic conditions. It is believed that the decrease in seroprevalence toward the last years of investigation may be due to the application of permanent control strategies against leptospirosis and antibiotic therapy for all seropositive animals with an antibody titer equal to or higher than 1:100.

Kocaeli University, Arslanbey Agricultural Vocational School, TR-41285 Kartepe, Kocaeli, Turkey. TUBITAK, Research Institute for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, TR-41470 Gebze, Kocaeli, Turkey. Institute for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Gajev trg 4/1 BH-71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovnia. Istanbul University, Molecular Biology and Genetics Department, TR-34118 Vezneciler, Istanbul, Turkey. Marmara University, Biology Department, TR-34472 Goztepe, Istanbul, Turkey.

This paper gives the main characteristics of animal production in Croatia and analyzes its competitiveness as a basis for possible collaboration between the countries of Quadrilateral in the field of animal production. It describes the current state and recent trends in milk and meat production and their perspective after Croatian accession to EU. Particular emphasis is put on the analysis of trade relations with countries of the Quadrilateral. The main characteristic of Croatian livestock production is the small average farm size and low productivity what could be the main reasons for a general inefficient domestic livestock production and dependence on import of both live animals and animal products (milk and meat). In order to increase the competitiveness of Croatian farmers’ and meet the increasing for milk and meat additional farm concentration and the cooperation of small holders as well as a more effective use of local resources such as land, labour and livestock tradition is necessary. In addition, after EU accession Croatian livestock sector can expect further integration in international trade and better opportunities for export (e.g. elimination of protective tariffs) on common EU market, especially with regard to products that are lacking in EU (e.g. beef). In this way collaboration between countries of Quadrilateral through development and implementation of new technologies can contribute to a better use of specific national resources and better production efficiency.

Cilj rada je utvrditi utjecaj polimorfizma MC4R gena na svojstva kakvoce polovica i klasa prema SEUROP sustavu ocjene. Tovljenici (n=130) bili su križanci pasmina ♂P x (♂VJ x ♀SL), a utovljeni su po konvencionalnoj tehnologiji velikih farmi do prosjecne žive mase 110, 3±15, 66 kg. Nakon klanja utvrđene su mase trupova, metodom “dvije tocke” izmjerena je debljina slanine, promjer MLD, postotak misicne mase i SEUROP trgovacke klase. Genomska DNA je izolirana iz uzoraka krvi (venae jugularis), te je potom izvrsena genotipizacija na poziciji 1426 (G/A) nukleotidne sekvence MC4R gena koristeci PCR-RFLP TaqI test. U populaciji tovljenika utvrđene frekvencije genotipova AA, AG i GG su bile redom 0, 09, 0, 43 i 0, 48 te su se znacajno razlikovale (p<0, 05) od ocekivanog prosjeka prema Hardy Weinbergovom zakonu. Utjecaj polimorfizma MC4R gena utvrđen je kroz razlike između tovljenika genotipova AA, AG i GG za debljinu slanine (p<0, 05) i razlicite distribucije klasa trupova ocijenjenih prema SEUROP sustavu.