Comparative stomach contents and growth of the juvenile black seabream, Acanthopagrus schlegeli, reared in illuminated and unilluminated cages

The present study was designed to determine the positive effects of artificial illumination on the juvenile black seabream, Acanthopagrus schlegeli , by comparing stomach contents and growth between juveniles exposed to light and those maintained in the absence of light. The major prey items for juvenile black seabream reared in illuminated cages were amphipods (IRI%=50.5), copepods (IRI%=44.7) and polychaetes (IRI%=3.0), whereas those for the juveniles maintained in unilluminated cages were copepods (IRI%=96.0), amphipods (IRI%=3.4) and polychaetes (IRI%=0.6). The specific growth rates (SGR) of the juveniles reared in illuminated cages (0.99%) were significantly higher than those of the juveniles maintained in unilluminated cages (0.78%).     

Dietary eicosapentaenoic acid requirement of juvenile rock bream,Oplegnathus fasciatus

A feeding trial was conducted to evaluate the optimum dietary level of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5n‐3) based on growth and non‐specific immune responses in juvenile rock bream. A basal diet without EPA supplementation was used as a control, and six other diets were prepared by supplementing with 4, 8, 12, 16, 20 or 40 g of EPA per kg diet. The actual EPA concentrations of the diets were 0.5, 4.3, 8.5, 13.0, 16.8, 21.0 and 41.2 g of EPA per kg diet, and the diets were abbreviated as EPA_0.5, EPA_4.3, EPA_8.5, EPA_13.0, EPA_16.8, EPA_21.0 and EPA_41.2, respectively. Triplicate groups of fish averaging 1.06 ± 0.01 g (mean ± SD) were fed one of the seven experimental diets at the apparent satiation for 8 weeks. At the end of the feeding trial, weight gain, specific growth rate and feed efficiency of fish fed EPA_16.8, EPA_21.0 and EPA_41.2 diets were significantly higher than those of fish fed EPA_0.5, EPA_4.3, EPA_8.5 and EPA_13.0 diets (p < .05). Superoxide dismutase activity of fish fed EPA_16.8, EPA_21.0 and EPA_41.2 diets were significantly higher than those of fish fed EPA_0.5, EPA_4.3 and EPA_8.5 diets. Fish fed EPA_21.0 and EPA_41.2 diets showed significantly higher lysozyme activity than did fish fed EPA_0.5, EPA_4.3, EPA_8.5 and EPA_13.0 diets. The broken‐line analysis of weight gain indicated that the optimum dietary EPA level was 16.7 g/kg diet. These results suggested that the optimum dietary EPA level in juvenile rock bream could be greater than 16.7 g/kg diet but less than or equal to 16.8 g/kg diet based on the broken‐line analysis and the ANOVA test of weight gain.     

Apparent ileal digestibility of nutrients and amino acids in soybean meal,fish meal,spray‐dried plasma protein and fermented soybean meal to weaned pigs

This study sought to determine whether fermentation could increase apparent ileal digestibility (AID) of dry matter (DM), nitrogen (N), energy (E) and amino acids (AA) in fermented soybean meal (FSBM) greater than that of soybean meal (SBM) in weaned pigs. Four weaned pigs (10.00 ± 0.30 kg) were surgically equipped with T‐cannulas and randomly followed a 4 × 4 Latin square design of treatments (SBM, FSBM, fish meal and spray‐dried plasma protein). Overall, the fermentation process was able to reduce the amount of anti‐nutritional factors (ANF), including trypsin inhibitors, raffinose and stachyose, in the FSBM diet, which were significantly reduced by 39.4, 92.2, and 92.9%, respectively, as compared to the SBM diet. As a consequence of ANF reduction in FSBM, the AID of DM, N and E as well as AA was significantly greater with FSBM than SBM. Taken all together, the fermentation process improved the nutritional quality of SBM, due to ANF reduction, leading to improvement of digestibility of AA. As such, FSBM can be potentially used as a specialized feed ingredient, especially for young animal diets in an attempt to reduce diet costs.     

Evaluation of a regimen using a progesterone releasing intravaginal device (CIDR) and PMSG as a treatment for post partum anoestrus in dairy cattle

Anoestrous dairy cows in seasonally calving herds in the Macalister Irrigation District of Gippsland, Victoria were treated at the start of the mating period with a progesterone releasing intravaginal device (CIDR). The CIDR was inserted for 7 days and 400 IU of PMSG was injected intramuscularly at removal. There was no clinically useful difference among cows receiving the CIDR, a placebo and untreated cows in the interval from treatment to either first oestrus or conception, the conception rate to first service or percent pregnant by the end of mating. Analyses of data from 2-year-old cows, older cattle, cows calved at least 45 days or cows calved at least 55 days and cows treated 3 weeks after the start of mating did not show improved reproductive performance following treatment with the CIDR.     

Program of vaccination and antibiotic treatment to control polyserositis caused by Haemophilus parasuis under field conditions

The present study investigated the effects of vaccinating sows and piglets or piglets alone against Haemophilus parasuis on the prevalence of H. parasuis in nasal swabs, on the humoral and cellular immune responses, and on the production parameters of piglets at 3 Korean farms with a clinical history of polyserositis caused by H. parasuis. Piglets born to vaccinated or non-vaccinated sows were subdivided into 3 groups: vaccinated sows and vaccinated pigs (VS-VP), non-vaccinated sows and vaccinated pigs (NVS-VP), and non-vaccinated sows and non-vaccinated pigs (NVS-NVP). The proportion of piglets with positive nasal swabs was significantly lower (P < 0.05) in the vaccinated animals (VS-VP and NVS-VP groups) than in the non-vaccinated animals (NVS-NVP group) at 35 and 60 d of age at the 3 farms. The overall growth performance (from 7 to 60 d of age) of the vaccinated piglets was significantly better (P < 0.05) than that of the non-vaccinated piglets at the 3 farms. Piglets in the VS-VP group had significantly higher levels (P < 0.05) of H. parasuis-specific IgG antibodies, lymphocyte proliferation, and interferon-γ-secreting cells than piglets in the NVS-VP and NVS-NVP groups on days 1, 7, 21, 35, and 60 after birth at the 3 farms.     

Spectroscopic Analyses on Chain Structure and Thermal Stabilization Behavior of Acrylonitrile/Methyl Acrylate/Itaconic Acid-based Copolymers Synthesized by Aqueous Suspension Polymerization

We have synthesized a series of copolymers with different compositions of acrylonitrile (AN, 80–100 wt%), methyl acrylate (MA, 4–20 wt%) and itaconic acid (IA, 0–3 wt%) by using an efficient aqueous suspension polymerization, and have investigated the molecular structure and thermal stabilization behavior of PAN homopolymer, AN/MA-based bipolymers, and AN/MA/IA-based terpolymers by adopting ¹H/¹³C-NMR and thermal FT-IR analyses. The viscosity-average molecular weight of the synthesized polymers were measured to be ~263,000 g/mol. The reactivity ratios of AN and MA for all the copolymers were evaluated to be 0.99 and 1.05, respectively. Accordingly, the output compositions of the synthesized copolymers were quite consistent with the input monomer compositions. The ¹³C NMR analysis revealed that all the synthesized polymers have an atactic chain configuration, regardless of the feed composition. The structural evolutions during the thermal stabilization process of the copolymers in air environment were characterized by monitoring the temperature-dependent changes of characteristic absorbance bands at 2240 cm^-1 (C≡N), 1595 cm^-1 (C=N) and 1660 cm^-1 (C=O) with aid of thermal FT-IR spectroscopy. It was found that the IA unit in the terpolymers accelerated the oxidation and cyclization reactions, unlike the retarding effect of MA unit, and that the onset temperatures of the oxidation reaction of the copolymers with IA unit was lower than that of the cyclization reaction.     

The Effects of Omega-3 Fatty Acid on Vitamin D Activation in Hemodialysis Patients: A Pilot Study

The high incidence of cardiovascular disease and vitamin D deficiency in chronic kidney disease patients is well known. Vitamin D activation by omega-3 fatty acid (FA) supplementation may explain the cardioprotective effects exerted by omega-3 FA. We hypothesized that omega-3 FA and 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) supplementation may increase 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25(OH)₂D) levels compared to 25(OH)D supplementation alone in hemodialysis (HD) patients that have insufficient or deficient 25(OH)D levels. We enrolled patients that were treated for at least six months with 25(OH)D < 30 ng/mL ({"type":"clinical-trial","attrs":{"text":"NCT01596842","term_id":"NCT01596842"}}NCT01596842). Patients were randomized to treatment for 12 weeks with cholecalciferol supplemented with omega-3 FA or a placebo. Levels of 25(OH)D and 1,25(OH)₂D were measured after 12 weeks. The erythrocyte membrane FA contents were also measured. Levels of 25(OH)D were increased in both groups at 12 weeks compared to baseline. The 1,25(OH)₂D levels at 12 weeks compared to baseline showed a tendency to increase in the omega-3 FA group. The oleic acid and monounsaturated FA content decreased, while the omega-3 index increased in the omega-3 FA group. Omega-3 FA supplementation may be partly associated with vitamin D activation, although increased 25(OH)D levels caused by short-term cholecalciferol supplementation were not associated with vitamin D activation in HD patients.     

Supramolecular composite of single-walled carbon nanotubes with oligo(p-phenyleneethynylene)s-graft-poly(ethyleneoxide)s

Poly(p-phenyleneethynylene)s, composed of a rigid backbone with alternating arylenes and ethynylenes, exhibit high conductivity and chemical stability, and thus they have huge potentials for various applications, including chemosensors, electronic and photonic devices. In spite of numerous interesting applications to date, not many researches concerning oligo(p-phenyleneethynylene)s-graft-poly(ethylene oxide)s (OPEs-g-PEOs) have been carried out, let alone their complexation behaviors with carbon nanomaterials. In this article, we present the synthesis of OPEs-g-PEOs and characterize its morphological and spectral properties by various characterization techniques. We have investigated the interaction of OPEs-g-PEOs with single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) using various characterization techniques, such as UV-visible, photoluminescence, and Raman spectroscopy, along with SEM, TEM, and POM. In this way, we have successfully demonstrated that OPEs-g-PEOs provide a useful means to modify the physical properties of CNTs, especially in terms of their solubility in common organic solvents.     

Nutrient Enhanced Biodegradation of Crude Oil in Tropical Salt Marshes

Tropical salt marshes in Louisiana are at risks ofaccidental oil spills and remediation of these ecosystemsis mainly limited to natural biodegradation due tophysical sensitivity of the ecosystems. This studyinvestigated both intrinsic and nutrient enhanced ratesof crude oil degradation in core studies. In addition,loading rates of nitrogen and optimal porewater nitrogenconcentrations were determined. Nitrogen additionsincreased biodegradation rates of some alkanes andpolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Addition ofNH₄ ⁺-N increased zero-order mineralizationconstants of labeled hexadecane and phenanthrene up to15.4–19.2% (Fourchon marsh) and 56.2% (Ugly Shack Bayoumarsh) and rates of total carbon dioxide production up to14.0–33.1% (Fourchon marsh) and 3.0% (Ugly Shack Bayoumarsh), respectively. Efficient biodegradation of crudeoil was achieved when NH₄ ⁺ was applied at theloading rate of 28.3–56.6 g N m^-2 producing porewaterconcentration at the level of 80–450 mg NH₄ ⁺-N L^-1. No significant lag time was observed indicating thatnitrogen application directly stimulates biodegradationof crude oil in tropical salt marshes in Louisiana.