Atypical thymoma in a horse: Diagnostic approach and application of an alternative histological classification system

Thymoma is a rare condition in horses. This case of a 24-year-old Warmblood gelding that was presented with oedema and signs of vascular congestion of the left forelimb caused by a thoracic mass is described. The diagnostic work-up included blood chemistry, cytology of pleural effusion, ultrasonography, radiography and the visualisation and collection of a tissue sample by thoracoscopy. Finally, post-mortem findings and histopathology revealed thymic epithelial neoplasia with histomorphologic features previously unreported in horses. The unique mixture of spindle-shaped and epithelioid tumour cells in combination with clear features of malignancy suggested the application of the Moran and Suster histological classification system for thymomas in humans (Moran and Suster, 2008, Curr. Treat. Options Oncol., 9, 288), which has not been reported in an equine case before and fits well to the present case.     

Do cover crops change the lability of phosphorus in a clayey subtropical soil under different phosphate fertilizers?

Plants have developed different mechanisms to absorb and solubilize phosphorus (P) in the soil, especially in environments with low P availability. This study evaluated the effects of different winter cover crops on soil P availability in a clayey subtropical (Hapludox) soil receiving soluble P fertilizer and a rock phosphate applied to the summer crop, under no‐tillage. The experiment was carried out over 3 yrs (2009–2011) with five different cover crop species: common vetch, fodder radish, ryegrass, black oat, white clover and fallow as control. The soil was sampled after the third year of cover crop cultivation and analysed for inorganic and organic P forms according to the well‐established Hedley fractionation procedure. Phosphate fertilizers promoted accumulation of both labile and nonlabile P pools in soil in the near surface layer, especially under rock phosphate. Fertilizer applications were not able to change P fractions in deeper layers, emphasizing that the Brazilian clayey soils are a sink of P from fertilizer and its mobility is almost nil. Although the cover crops recycled a great amount of P in tissue, in a short‐term evaluation (3 yrs) they only changed the content of moderately labile P in soil, indicating that long‐term studies are needed for more conclusive results.     

Phenological and physiological evaluation of first and second cropping periods of sorghum and maize crops

Environmental conditions influence phenology and physiological processes of plants. It is common for maize and sorghum to be sown at two different periods: the first cropping (spring/summer) and the second cropping (autumn/winter). The phenological cycle of these crops varies greatly according to the planting season, and it is necessary to characterize the growth and development to facilitate the selection of the species best adapted to the environment. The aim of this study was to characterize phenological phases and physiological parameters in sorghum and maize plants as a function of environmental conditions from the first cropping and second cropping periods. Two parallel experiments were conducted with both crops. The phenological characterization was based on growth analyses (plant height, leaf area and photoassimilate partitioning) and gas exchange evaluations (net assimilation rate, stomatal conductance, transpiration and water-use efficiency). It was found that the vegetative stage (VS) for sorghum and maize plants was 7 and 21 days, respectively, longer when cultivated during the second cropping. In the first cropping, the plants were taller than in the second cropping, regardless of the crop. The stomatal conductance of sorghum plants fluctuated in the second cropping during the development period, while maize plants showed decreasing linear behaviour. Water-use efficiency in sorghum plants was higher during the second cropping compared with the first cropping. In maize plants, in the second cropping, the water-use efficiency showed a slight variation in relation to the first cropping. It was concluded that the environmental conditions as degree-days, temperature, photoperiod and pluvial precipitation influence the phenology and physiology of both crops during the first and the second cropping periods, specifically cycle duration, plant height, leaf area, net assimilation rate, stomatal conductance and water-use efficiency, indicating that both crops respond differentially to environmental changes during the growing season.     

基于“一带一路”倡议的中泰渔业协作发展探索

在渔业方面，贯彻落实“一带一路”倡议，实施渔业“走出去，引进来”战略，促进我国水产养殖业和周边国家地区的交流合作，共同推动区域传统渔业向现代渔业转型升级，是现代渔业发展的必然方向。泰国作为“一带一路”之东盟国家，从泰国的渔业资源现状、渔业产业发展、渔业现阶段存在的优势和不足以及中泰渔业协作发展探索等多个方面进行阐述，通过研究泰国渔业现状及探索中泰渔业协作发展之路，提出技术支撑、资源引进、取长补短、共同进步等相对应的策略与建议，为中国-东盟国家在基于“一带一路”倡议的渔业层面战略发展提供样本。      

群井开采对毛乌素沙地地下水位的影响——以榆林市榆阳区昌汗敖包村土地开发项目为例

为探究毛乌素沙地大规模现代化高标准农田地下水开采对地下水位的影响，以榆林市榆阳区昌汗敖包村土地开发项目地下水监测网覆盖区作为研究区，选取分布于研究区的8眼机井进行了为期1年的地下水位埋深动态特征监测。结果表明:在灌溉期间，地下水位埋深呈先减小后增大的趋势；灌溉结束至进入下个灌溉周期之前，地下水位埋深逐渐增大至正常值。因此群井开采并未对项目区地下水位造成实质影响。      

夏季养猪企业关切的繁殖问题调查

当前养猪业进入困难时期，企业运营成本高企。炎热的夏季，种猪繁殖问题较为突出，再加上非洲猪瘟直接或者间接的原因，行业内母猪整体繁殖水平低下。团队近期对53家不同区域、不同规模、不同生产模式的养猪企业进行了调研，发现公猪问题、后备猪问题和哺乳期管理是当前猪场最为关心的3个问题。     

Effects of Feeding Frequency on Apparent Energy and Nutrient Digestibility/Availability of Channel Catfish,Ictalurus punctatus,Reared at Optimal and Suboptimal Temperatures

This study examined the effects of feeding frequency (daily versus every other day [EOD]) on nutrient digestibility/availability of channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, reared at optimal (30 C) and suboptimal (24 C) temperatures. A 28% protein practical diet was used as the test diet, and chromic oxide was used at 0.75% of the diet as a maker. Twenty channel catfish of a mean weight of 141 g/fish were stocked into 12 flow‐through aquaria (110 L). Fish were fed daily or EOD to apparent satiation for 7 d before fecal samples were collected by the dissection method. Fish fed EOD to apparent satiation consumed more diet on days fed than those fed daily, and fish reared at 30 C consumed more diet than those reared at 24 C. Neither feeding frequency nor water temperature significantly affected apparent digestibility coefficients for energy and protein and apparent availability coefficients for total amino acids. Results show no advantage by feeding EOD over feeding daily on nutrient digestibility and diet utilization efficiency.     

围场县马铃薯中典型药物污染特征及健康风险评价

为掌握典型药物在农作物中的污染特征及健康风险,保障农产品质量安全,利用超声萃取-固相萃取-高效液相色谱/串联质谱(LC-MS/MS)技术,对围场县全县马铃薯中5大类(磺胺类、四环素类、氟喹诺酮类、大环内酯类及其他类)25种药物污染水平及富集效果进行了调查,并对健康风险进行了评价。结果表明,有20种目标物被检出,不同目标物检出率差异显著,检出含量范围为0.13～3.67μg·kg-1,单种污染物最高检出含量为17.0μg·kg-1。马铃薯对目标污染物的富集系数范围在0.01～39.6之间,最大富集系数为61.8。畜禽粪便是马铃薯中药物残留的主要来源,尽管整体检出水平和健康风险相对较低,但长期摄入与协同作用引发的潜在健康风险不容忽视。因此,仍需严控污染源头,推进畜禽粪便安全资源化利用,确保农田环境质量及农产品安全品质。     

植物乳杆菌野生质粒分析及其提取方法的优化

乳酸菌质粒提取研究具有很长的历史。目前已有多个有效的乳酸菌质粒提取方法被报道，其中多数以乳酸球菌为研究对象，而植物乳杆菌质粒提取有效方法报道较少。该研究以植物乳杆菌为研究对象，通过对比分析并优化已报道的乳酸菌质粒提取方法，得到了高效且适于平台期植物乳杆菌野生质粒的提取方法。通过该方法进一步分析了植物乳杆菌野生质粒数和高拷贝质粒，为后续构建植物乳杆菌表达系统所需供体质粒和受体菌株提供了重要依据。     

Evaluating the Effects of Dietary Prebiotic Mixture of Mannan Oligosaccharide and Poly‐β‐Hydroxybutyrate on the Growth Performance,Immunity, and Survival of Rainbow Trout,Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum 1792), Fingerlings

This study investigated the effects of dietary poly‐β‐hydroxybutyrate (PHB) and mannan oligosaccharide (MOS) on the growth performance, digestive enzyme activities, and disease resistance of rainbow trout fingerlings. A total of 420 fingerlings, distributed equally into four different groups, each with three replicates, were fed a basal diet (control), 2% PHB (PHB), 0.2% MOS (MOS), or a diet supplemented with a mixture of 2% PHB and 0.2% MOS (PHB+MOS) for 60 d. Results showed that dietary PHB and/or MOS did not cause significant improvement in the growth performance of the fingerlings. The gut pH was markedly reduced; however, the activities of the digestive enzymes (except for pepsin and amylase by dietary PHB) were not significantly improved by the dietary supplements. Results also showed that dietary PHB and/or MOS markedly increased the resistance of the fingerlings toward Yersinia ruckeri infection, while the lowest total antibody was observed in fish fed control and MOS, indicating that MOS exerts its protective effects by modulating other mechanisms. Overall, this study provided a first screening effort to determine the effects of PHB and/or MOS as dietary supplements in rainbow trout fingerlings to develop an optimal prebiotic mix for improving the growth and health status of rainbow trout.