Interaction between the sequence of feeding of hay and concentrate,and boiling of barley on feed intake,the activity of hydrolytic enzymes and fermentation in the hindgut of Arabian mares

The interaction between the sequence of feeding of hay and concentrate and the hydrothermal processing of barley in alleviating concentrate effects on intake, and hindgut fermentation in horses was tested. Six Arabian mares (4–10 years of age, 410 ± 35 kg body weight) were used to evaluate the effects of feeding sequence (FS) and type of barley (TB) on intake, and faecal volatile fatty acids (VFA), activities of α‐amylase (AA: EC 3.2.1.1), carboxymethyl cellulase (CMCase: EC 3.2.1.4), microcrystalline cellulase (MCCase: EC 3.2.1.91) and general filter paper degrading activity (FPD). Mares were offered a ration of air‐dried alfalfa and concentrate (70:30 as‐fed) in four subsequent periods of 14 days including 8 days of adaptation and 6 days of sampling. In each period and each meal, mares received concentrate either 30 min after (HC) or 30 min before (CH) alfalfa hay. Barley was either milled or boiled in water. Rectal samples were grabbed directly from rectum once per period. Mares subjected to CH had higher dry matter intakes than mares under HC regime. The acetate:propionate ratio (A:P ratio) in rectal content was higher with CH than HC. The AA activity was higher under CH than under HC. Mares fed boiled barley had lower rectal concentrations of VFA and propionate and a higher A:P ratio than mares fed milled barley. Furthermore, the rectal content showed a higher MCCase activity but a lower AA activity when mares were fed boiled compared with milled barley. Interactions between FS and TB were observed with respect to CMCase activity, and concentrations of propionate and valerate. In conclusion, the present results suggest that both, feeding concentrate before hay and boiling the barley, might improve the hindgut environment in Arabian mares, and that the two measures were mostly additive and sometimes even synergistic.     

β‐hydroxy‐β‐methyl butyrate promotes leucine metabolism and improves muscle fibre composition in growing pigs

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of excess leucine (Leu) vs. its metabolites α‐ketoisocaproate (KIC) and β‐hydroxy‐β‐methyl butyrate (HMB) on Leu metabolism, muscle fibre composition and muscle growth in growing pigs. Thirty‐two pigs with a similar initial weight (9.55 ± 0.19 kg) were fed 1 of 4 diets for 45 days: basal diet, basal diet + 1.25% L‐Leu, basal diet + 1.25% KIC‐Ca, basal diet + 0.62% HMB‐Ca. Results indicated that relative to the basal diet and HMB groups, Leu and KIC groups exhibited increased Leu concentrations and decreased concentrations of isoleucine, valine and EAAs in selected muscle (p < 0.05) and had lower mRNA levels of MyHC I and higher expression of MyHC IIx/IIb (p < 0.05), and there was no significant difference between the basal and HMB‐supplemented groups. Moreover, the mRNA expression levels of AMPKα and UCP3 were higher but the myostatin mRNA levels were lower in the soleus muscle of the HMB group than those from other groups (p < 0.05). These findings demonstrated that doubling dietary Leu content exerted growth‐depressing effects in growing pigs; dietary KIC supplementation induced muscular branched‐chain amino acid imbalance and promoted muscle toward a more glycolytic phenotype; while dietary HMB supplementation promoted the generation of more oxidative muscle types and increased muscle growth specially in oxidative skeletal muscle, and these effects of HMB might be associated with the AMPKα‐Sirt1‐PGC‐1α axis and mitochondrial biogenesis.     

Diversity in the carotenoid profiles and the expression of genes related to carotenoid accumulation among citrus genotypes

Carotenoids are not only important to the plants themselves but also are beneficial to human health. Since citrus fruit is a good source of carotenoids for the human diet, it is important to study carotenoid profiles and the accumulation mechanism in citrus fruit. Thus, in the present paper, we describe the diversity in the carotenoid profiles of fruit among citrus genotypes. In regard to carotenoids, such as β-cryptoxanthin, violaxanthin, lycopene, and β-citraurin, the relationship between the carotenoid profile and the expression of carotenoid-biosynthetic genes is discussed. Finally, recent results of quantitative trait locus (QTL) analyses of carotenoid contents and expression levels of carotenoid-biosynthetic genes in citrus fruit are shown.     

酸奶营养品质提升的加工工艺研究

牛奶中含有丰富的活性营养物质,包括乳铁蛋白、免疫球蛋白、乳过氧化物酶、α-乳白蛋白、β-乳球蛋白等。传统工艺生产的酸奶经过高温杀菌,活性营养物质几乎完全损失。为了避免这一情况,本文推出一种新的酸奶生产工艺,生产出的酸奶可保留大部分活性营养物质。首先将牛奶的乳脂进行分离,乳脂部分进行125 ℃、5 s杀菌,脱脂牛奶部分进行75 ℃、15 s杀菌,将两部分料液混合后加入菌种发酵至酸度75~85°T,破乳后冷却后熟8 h以上。经测定,新工艺酸奶中α-乳白蛋白、β-乳球蛋白、乳铁蛋白、免疫球蛋白、乳过氧化物酶含量分别为966 mg/L、1 963 mg/L、23.4 mg/L、102 mg/L、1 025 U/L,远高于传统工艺酸奶的68 mg/L、200 mg/L、0.7 mg/L、14 mg/L、0 U/L。通过对比新工艺与传统工艺酸奶保质期内的活菌数、黏度、酸度和口感,并无显著差异。     

Identification and characterization of the enzymes responsible for the metabolism of the non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs,flunixin meglumine and phenylbutazone,in horses

The in vivo metabolism and pharmacokinetics of flunixin meglumine and phenylbutazone have been extensively characterized; however, there are no published reports describing the in vitro metabolism, specifically the enzymes responsible for the biotransformation of these compounds in horses. Due to their widespread use and, therefore, increased potential for drug–drug interactions and widespread differences in drug disposition, this study aims to build on the limited current knowledge regarding P450‐mediated metabolism in horses. Drugs were incubated with equine liver microsomes and a panel of recombinant equine P450s. Incubation of phenylbutazone in microsomes generated oxyphenbutazone and gamma‐hydroxy phenylbutazone. Microsomal incubations with flunixin meglumine generated 5‐OH flunixin, with a kinetic profile suggestive of substrate inhibition. In recombinant P450 assays, equine CYP3A97 was the only enzyme capable of generating oxyphenbutazone while several members of the equine CYP3A family and CYP1A1 were capable of catalyzing the biotransformation of flunixin to 5‐OH flunixin. Flunixin meglumine metabolism by CYP1A1 and CYP3A93 showed a profile characteristic of biphasic kinetics, suggesting two substrate binding sites. The current study identifies specific enzymes responsible for the metabolism of two NSAIDs in horses and provides the basis for future study of drug–drug interactions and identification of reasons for varying pharmacokinetics between horses.     

禽致病性大肠杆菌Hcp2b对雏鸡气管黏膜细胞因子-细胞因子受体相互作用通路的影响

T6SS （type VI secretion system）是革兰阴性菌中常见的一种分泌系统,其效应蛋白Hcp2b作用机制迄今仍未明晰。本研究以禽致病性大肠杆菌（avian pathogenic Escherichia coli,APEC） Hcp2b蛋白为研究主体,旨在探究Hcp2b蛋白在APEC感染鸡气管黏膜过程中发挥的作用及机制。采用Red重组方法以质粒pKD3为模板构建hcp2b缺失株,pSTV-28质粒连接hcp2b目的片段构建重组载体,导入感受态Δhcp2b菌株构建回复株,并对Δhcp2b菌株的生长曲线进行测定。7日龄雏鸡气管感染hcp2b缺失株及野生株,感染后12、24 h收集鸡气管黏膜细胞进行转录组学测序及生物信息学分析。结果表明,hcp2b缺失株及回复株构建成功,hcp2b基因缺失对菌株的生长性能无影响。hcp2b基因缺失株感染气管黏膜后,mRNA的表达谱发生变化,感染后12 h,有144个基因表达量发生变化（上调差异基因87个,下调57个）;感染后24 h,有135个基因表达量发生变化（上调差异基因79个,下调56个）。生物信息学分析发现差异基因富集在Cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction、Protein processing in endoplasmic reticulum等信号通路。hcp2b基因缺失未影响APEC的生长特性,hcp2b基因缺失后影响雏鸡气管黏膜Cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction通路基因mRNA转录水平的变化,IL-1β、IL-12b的表达均上调。该结果为APEC的致病机制研究提供了理论依据。     

Single oral β-cryptoxanthin administration increases its serum concentration and enhances peripheral blood neutrophil function in Holstein cattle

We investigated the effect of oral administration of β-cryptoxanthin (β-CRX) on its serum concentration and peripheral neutrophil functions by the chemiluminescence (CL) response in Holstein cattle. A single oral administration of β-CRX was performed for serum β-CRX concentration (0, 0.05, 0.1, or 0.2 mg/kg body weight [BW]) and for peak CL response of peripheral neutrophils (0.2 mg/kg BW). The serum β-CRX concentration was peaked on 2 days after, similar to peak CL response on 3 days after β-CRX administration. Therefore, a single oral administration of β-CRX (0.2 mg/kg BW) induces higher serum concentration and concurrently enhances bactericidal ability of peripheral neutrophils in Holstein cattle.     

Characterization of a novel nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-cytochrome b5 reductase mutation associated with canine hereditary methemoglobinemia

Hereditary methemoglobinemia associated with nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-cytochrome b5 reductase (b5R) deficiency is a rare autosomal recessive disorder in animals. Recently, nonsynonymous b5R gene (CYB5R3) variants have been reported to be associated with canine and feline hereditary methemoglobinemia. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms of canine and feline methemoglobinemia caused by these nonsynonymous variants have not yet been reported. Previously, we reported a Pomeranian dog family with hereditary methemoglobinemia, carrying CYB5R3 mutation of an A>C transition at codon 194 in exon 7, replacing an isoleucine residue with leucine (p.Ile194Leu). In this study, we investigated the enzymatic and structural properties of the soluble form of wild-type and Ile194Leu canine b5Rs to characterize the effects of this missense mutation. Our results showed that the kinetic properties of the mutant enzyme were not affected by this amino acid substitution. The secondary structure of the wild-type and Ile194Leu b5Rs detected by circular dichroism showed a similar pattern. However, the mutant enzyme exhibited decreased heat stability and increased susceptibility to trypsin hydrolysis. Moreover, the thermostability and unfolding measurements indicated that the mutant enzyme was more sensitive to temperature-dependent denaturation than the wild-type b5R. We concluded from these results that unstable mutant enzyme properties with normal enzymatic activity would be associated with hereditary methemoglobinemia in the Pomeranian dog family.     

Molecular characterization of Ascaridia galli from Bangladesh and development of a PCR method for distinguishing A. galli from Heterakis spp.

We analyzed the nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) 1 and ITS2 sequences for Bangladesh isolates of Ascaridia galli, and we determined that the sequences were unreliable as molecular markers for distinguishing A. galli from other Ascaridia species, because the sequences showed high identity with that of A. columbae. However, the ITS1 sequences were available for designing PCR primers distinguishable between Ascaridia galli and Heterakis spp. Bangladesh isolates of A. galli constituted a monophyletic clade along with other geographical isolates in the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) phylogenetic tree, however, we could not clarify the phylogenetic relationships between A. galli and other Ascaridia spp., because their available sequences in GenBank were very few. The developed PCR method using DNA from A. galli and Heterakis spp. eggs would enable differential diagnosis of the individual infections in the future.