Effect of different feeds on the growth,survival and reproductive performance of zebrafish,Danio rerio (Hamilton, 1822)

Present experiment was conducted to determine the effect of different feeds with varying protein levels on the growth, survival and reproductive performance of zebrafish, Danio rerio. The control diet (T1) was wild‐collected zooplankton from local fish ponds, while test diets with 350 g kg^?1 protein (T2), 400 g kg^?1 protein (T3) and 450 g kg^?1 protein (T4) were formulated and fed to fish for a period of 210 days. The significantly (P < 0.05) highest mean weight gain and specific growth rate were observed in T1, which were similar with T3 and T4. The significantly (P < 0.05) highest number of egg production per female and relative fecundity were found in T1, followed by T4 and T3 while T2 produced lowest number of eggs. No significant (P > 0.05) differences were observed in brood survival rate, fertilization and hatching rate among the dietary treatments. The highest (P < 0.05) fry survival rate was recorded in T1, followed by T3 and T4. Thus, it is suggested that control diet i.e. mixed zooplankton exhibited better growth, reproductive performance and fry survival rate. However, diet containing 400 g kg^?1 crude protein also gave comparable results in terms of growth, survival and reproductive performance of zebrafish.     

Single nucleotide polymorphisms in the growth hormone gene of Oreochromis niloticus and their association with growth performance

Polymorphisms in the growth hormone (GH) gene that is associated with the growth rate of farmed fish have been the target of many breeding programmes. The present study aimed to identify single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in GH gene regions to evaluate the association of SNP variations with the growth rate of two Nile tilapia: Oreochromis niloticus (Linnaeus, 1758) strains. The targeted regions were amplified, sequenced, aligned and screened for the presence of SNPs; thereafter, performance tests were used to check for the association between SNPs and weight. Allele and genotype frequencies were estimated for each SNP and genotype. Genotype blocks or sets of SNP genotypes and frequencies were also estimated. Association between SNPs and growth rate was statistically evaluated using a univariate linear mixed model that included both fixed and random effects. A total of 10 SNPs were identified, nine in the proximal promoter and one located in the 5′ UTR, forming 10 genotype blocks. In all weight recordings, five genotype blocks were significantly associated with the highest weights. Single nucleotide polymorphisms 6‐10 were also found to be significantly associated with growth (p‐value < .05). Genotypes with higher additive genetic values for weight were identified in the Chitralada strain, suggesting a possible impact of these additive effects of the GH SNP genotype on the growth rate of Nile tilapia. These findings may be used as part of marker‐assisted selection in tilapia breeding programmes.     

Significant improvement of shrimp growth performance by growth hormone‐releasing peptide‐6 immersion treatments

Growth hormone‐releasing peptide‐6 (GHRP‐6) is one of the earliest developed synthetic peptidyl growth hormone secretagogue receptor agonists. These compounds mimic the effect of the endogenous ligand ghrelin. In vertebrates, ghrelin is a potent circulating orexigenic hormone with functional roles in controlling food intake, energy expenditure, adiposity, growth hormone secretion and immunity. Ghrelin has been studied mainly in vertebrates; thus, little is known about its role in invertebrates, including crustaceans. We first evaluated the effect of GHRP‐6 injection over feed intake in shrimp and its effects on shrimp growth when the peptide was administrated by successive immersion baths. GHRP‐6 increased feed intake, body weight and size, the number of rostral spines and gill branches, protein concentration and haemocyte number in treated shrimps. We also evaluated the peptide uptake and clearance in a pharmacokinetics, using [H³]GHRP‐6 administered to postlarvae. Given a limited exposure and efficient clearance of the peptide‐associated radioactivity from larvae, our findings suggested that GHRP‐6‐treated Litopenaeus vannamei can be consumed safely by humans after aquaculture applications. These results propose that GHRP‐6 could be an additional tool to study growth physiology in crustaceans and also a promising candidate for development into a new biotechnology product for improving shrimp growth and quality.     

8个格木天然林种源苗期生长差异与早期选择

为研究格木不同天然种源家系苗的生长差异,选出相对速生的优良种源,本研究对8个格木天然林种源、110个家系1年生的苗高和地径等生长量指标进行测量,结合各家系的种子表型性状进行方差分析、多重比较、相关性分析和聚类分析。结果表明:不同种源的格木苗期生长量差异显著,具备种源选择的基础;不同种源的苗期生长量差异主要来源于种源内,具备从优良种源内选择优良家系的基础;苗期生长量与种子大小、种子厚和千粒重等性状呈极显著正相关关系,大粒、饱满种子可作为优良种源和家系选择的初选参考指标。初步选出浦北、北流种源作为格木优良种源。本研究为格木速生种源及家系的早期选择提供依据。     

油菜生长过程对核桃凋落叶化感作用的响应

为研究农作物白菜型油菜生长过程对核桃凋落叶化感作用的生理响应，采用盆栽试验，通过设置空白对照CK（不添加凋落叶）和3个凋落叶添加剂量水平:L₆₀（60 g·盆^-1）、L₁₂₀（120 g·盆^-1）和L₁₈₀（180 g·盆^-1），测定盆栽油菜生长中后期的营养生长、生殖生长及生理响应相关指标。结果表明:1）核桃凋落叶分解对油菜中期营养生长（地径、株高）有显著抑制，在后期得到明显减弱，可仍对后期油菜生殖生长（开花性状、结实性状和产量）产生抑制影响；但这种抑制效应不会影响油菜结实种子的萌发。2）油菜生长中期（100 d），随核桃凋落叶剂量增大，油菜叶片中超氧化物歧化酶（SOD）、过氧化氢酶（CAT）活性逐步增强，过氧化物酶（POD）活性无显著变化；丙二醛（MDA）含量仅在L₁₈₀处理下显著>CK（P＜0.05），可溶性糖（SS）含量逐步增加，而可溶性蛋白（SP）含量呈逐步下降；到油菜生长后期（140 d）时，各处理下油菜POD、CAT的活性和SS、SP的含量均逐步下降，MDA含量均显著P<0.05）。3）各核桃凋落叶处理对油菜叶片各类叶绿素均有明显抑制作用,随凋落叶添加量增加，油菜叶片净光合速率（P_n）、气孔导度（G_s）和胞间CO₂浓度（C_i）呈先降后增的趋势。综上所述，核桃凋落叶经土壤分解对油菜中后期生长造成强烈的化感胁迫，其主要通过对油菜的细胞膜造成过氧化伤害，使叶绿素合成受到抑制，光合作用受到影响，进而妨碍其生长及产量品质的形成。     

Exogenous xylanase improves growth,protein digestibility and digestive enzymes activities in Nile tilapia,Oreochromis niloticus,fed different ratios of fish meal to sunflower meal

A 3 × 2 factorial experiment was designed to evaluate the effect of different ratios of fish meal (FM): sunflower meal (SFM) with or without exogenous xylanase supplementation on growth, feed utilization, digestive enzymes activities, apparent digestibility, intestinal and liver morphology and chemical composition of Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus. Three isonitrogenous (329.80 g/kg of crude protein) and isoenergetic (18.46 MJ/kg gross energy) experimental diets were formulated as SFM₁ (FM:SFM = 2:1), SFM₂ (FM:SFM = 1:1) and SFM₃ (FM:SFM = 1:2) based on protein content. Each diet was supplemented with 0 or 0.5 g/kg of exogenous xylanase and was fed to triplicate groups of twelve fish (with initial weight, 1.31 ± 0.02 g) for 84 days. After 84 days of feeding period, the highest weight gain, specific growth rate, protein efficiency, protein productive value and the best feed conversion ratio were recorded in fish fed either SFM₁ or SFM₂ supplemented with exogenous xylanase. Whereas lowest growth performance was recorded in fish fed SFM₂ and SFM₃ un‐supplemented with xylanase. The highest activities of chymotrypsin, trypsin, lipase, amylase, alkaline phosphatase and cholecystokinin were observed in fish fed SFM₁ and SFM₂ diets supplemented with xylanase. The highest ADCs of dry matter, protein, lipid and digestible energy were recorded in fish fed SFM₁ and SFM₂ diets supplemented with exogenous xylanase. Supplementation of exogenous xylanase improved muscularis mucosa thickness, height of mucosal folds and enterocytes of intestinal fish. Addition of exogenous xylanase increased the calcium and phosphorus retention. Results of this study indicated that the addition of exogenous xylanase to diet containing high inclusion level of sunflower meal improved growth, digestive enzymes, nutrient digestibility, histological morphometric of liver and intestine and nutrient retention.     

气候变化对中国水稻生产的影响研究进展

水稻生产系统是响应气候变化最敏感的农业生态系统之一,本文综述了当前和未来气候变化对我国水稻生产的影响。气候变化背景下,我国水稻生长季的热量资源增多,辐射资源减少,降水不均一性加大。高温热害、干旱、暴雨和洪涝灾害发生更频繁,这可能降低水、热资源的有效性。气候变化使我国单季稻和双季稻潜在种植边界显著北移,导致单季稻、早稻和晚稻的主要生育期缩短。基于统计模型和水稻生长模型的研究结果表明,如果不考虑品种改良和栽培技术的进步,气候变化使单季稻、早稻和晚稻产量下降,但不同稻作区和方法间存在差异。我国水稻生产重心北移、实测生育期延长和产量增加的变化趋势,反映了水稻生产系统通过种植分布调整、品种改良和技术改进来适应气候变化的能力。未来气候变化将进一步导致水稻生育期缩短和产量下降,对我国水稻生产和粮食安全带来严峻挑战。仍需加强气候变化影响机制的研究及其在影响评估中的应用,减小影响评估的不确定性并增加其系统性,为制定有效的应对策略提供可靠的理论支持。     

垄畦覆膜种行覆土党参种苗移栽机的设计与试验

针对党参覆膜移栽无机可用的问题,结合西北黄土高原旱区党参垄畦覆膜、种行覆土抗逆栽培模式,设计了一种具有开沟、播苗、起垄、整形、覆膜、种行覆土功能的党参种苗移栽机。对样机关键部件进行了分析与设计,确定了尖角长翼型开沟器、整形镇压、膜上覆土等装置的结构及工作参数,解析了核心部件作业机理。田间试验表明,设计的垄畦覆膜、种行覆土党参种苗移栽机埋苗率为4.1%,露苗率为2.6%,栽植合格率为92.0%,栽植深度合格率为87.5%,膜边覆土厚度合格率为95.9%,膜边覆土宽度合格率为96.3%,生产率约为0.14 hm~2·h~(-1)。田间性能试验指标均达到国家和行业标准要求,试验结果满足设计要求。