Cellular characteristics of wool follicles and fibres in finewool and strongwool Merinos

Abstract

The genetic differences in the structure and function of wool follicles and their association with wool and fibre production were examined in 6 finewool Merinos (Camden Park) and 6 strongwool Merinos (East Bungaree). The strongwool Merinos produced 2.4 times more wool per unit area of skin and 3.5 times the volume of fibre per follicle than the finewool Merinos, when both groups were maintained under similar environmental conditions. The finewool Merinos had a higher follicle density, but a lower average volume of germinative tissue in the follicle bulb and the skin, than the strongwool Merinos. The number and volume of cells in the bulb, bulb cell production rate, cortical cell size and the proportion of bulb cells entering the fibre tended to be greater in the strongwool Merinos than the finewool Merinos, but were not statistically different between strains due to a high between-sheep, within-strain variation. In a stepwise linear regression, wool production per unit area was best predicted by the volume of germinative tissue in the bulb, together with follicle density. It is concluded that genotype determines the volume of potential mitotically-active tissue in the skin, however the dynamic mechanism of fibre production is not controlled by a single character, but rather a combination of a number of characteristics.