Evaluation of glycoproteins purified from adult and larval camel ticks (Hyalomma dromedarii) as a candidate vaccine

In order to identify antigens that can help prevent camel tick infestations, three major glycoproteins (GLPs) about 97, 66 and 40 kDa in size were purified from adult and larval Egyptian ticks, Hyalomma (H.) dromedarii, using a single-step purification method with Con-A sepharose. The purified GLPs were evaluated as vaccines against camel tick infestation in rabbits. The rabbits received three intramuscular inoculations of GLPs (20 µg/animal) on days 0, 14, and 28. In the immunoblot analysis, Sera from the immunized rabbits recognized the native GLPs and other proteins from larval and adult H. dromedarii ticks along with those from other tick species such as Rhipicephalus sanguineus but not Ornithodoros moubata. The effects of immunity induced by these GLPs were determined by exposing rabbits to adult H. dromedarii ticks. These results demonstrated that GLP immunization led to a slightly decreased reproductive index and significantly reduced rates of egg hatchability. These results demonstrated that immunization with the purified GLPs can provide protection against infestation by H. dromedarii and some other tick species. Further studies are needed to confirm the effectiveness of immunization with GLPs against other tick species.     

批式与两相高温厌氧消化厨余和杂草废弃物对比研究

以厨余和杂草废弃物混合物为发酵底物进行了批式和两相厌氧发酵试验。经过25 d的批式厌氧消化后,污染负荷(以挥发固体(VS)质量浓度计)为6.5、12.5、16.0和20.0 g/L的沼气产率分别为1 012、863、879和467mL/g,甲烷产率分别为595、442、440和316 mL/g,其中接种污泥对沼气产率和甲烷产率的贡献分别是304和170mL/g。试验结果表明:污染负荷为6.5 g/L时达到最大产气效率,80%的气体在反应的前8 d产生;污染负荷为12.5和16.0 g/L的产气率在统计学上无显著差别;污染负荷在20.0 g/L时出现产甲烷抑制,甲烷体积分数在反应的前2 d为20%左右。两相发酵试验采用厌氧固体床反应系统,包括4个1 L的固体床反应器和1个2.2 L的厌氧批式反应器。经过12 d的消化,沼气和甲烷产率分别为530和351 mL/g,系统总固体(TS)和VS去除率分别为78%和82%。与批式消化比较,该两相系统污染负荷高,产气稳定,周期短,是处理该类型有机废弃物的有效方法。     

Recovery of sperms bearing X chromosomes with different concentrations of magnetic nanoparticles in ram

Pre-conceptual sex selection is still a highly debatable process whereby X and Y chromosome bearing spermatozoa are isolated before oocyte fertilization. Recently, magnetic nanoparticles (MNP) have been used to determine X and Y chromosomes bearing spermatozoa as a result of searching for a cheap, highly efficient method using non-toxic materials. This study aimed to recover the sperm bearing X chromosomes in ram with different concentrations of MNP and then evaluate the success of this method using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Ram sperms were divided into four groups, treated with 0 (control), 50, 100 and 200 μg/ml MNP, respectively. MNP was used to restore sperm cells bearing X chromosomes. Upon recovery, the PCR was performed to identify the X and Y sperms, Methyl ThiazoleTetrazolium (MTT), to assess MNP toxicity and sperm viability and acridine orange (AO) to evaluate sperm DNA integrity. The results of PCR revealed that the treatment of spermatozoa- bearing X chromosomes with 50 μg/ml MNP had the highest effects on the recovery of X sperm rather than the other concentrations of MNP. However, the concentrations of MNP did not have any toxic effects on spermatozoa, sperm viability and, DNA integrity, but the high concentration of MNP (200 μg/ml) significantly reduced DNA integrity. According to MTT and AO results, the concentrations of MNP used in this study had no toxic effects on spermatozoa and did not reduce the sperm viability and DNA integrity, except that 200 μg/ml MNP significantly reduced DNA integrity.     

Apparent metabolizable energy value of whole date palm (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Phoenix dactylifera</Emphasis> L.) and its possible use as a feedstuff for aged laying hens

This study was conducted to evaluate the feeding value of whole date palm (WDP) with and without enzyme supplementation on aged laying hen’s performance. Apparent metabolizable energy value of WDP was determined by the total collection method using ten adult leghorn cockerels. WDP was substituted with a corn-soybean meal basal diet at 40% level, and then the metabolizable energy of this experimental diet and basal diet was determined. After that, a total number of 256 Bovanz 95-week-old hens were randomly allocated into eight groups consisting of four replicates of eight birds each, based on a 4 × 2 factorial arrangement of the treatments. Eight iso-caloric and iso-nitrogenous experimental diets including one corn-soybean meal-based control diet and two, three, and four corn-soybean meal-based diets included 70, 140, and 210 g/kg ground WDP, respectively. Each of the diets supplemented with two levels of an enzyme (0.0 and 0.07 g/kg Natozim Plus). There was no significant difference in feed intake, feed conversion ratio, egg production, egg mass, eggshell thickness, and Haugh unit among the treatments (P > 0.05). However, yolk color score significantly decreased as dietary WDP level increased. The serum biochemical metabolites were not significantly affected by WDP and enzyme supplementation (P > 0.05). There were no significant differences in the relative weight of different organs except for abdominal fat. Our findings show that using WDP up to 21% of the diet was more economic and had no adverse effect on productive performance and serum metabolites of laying hens. However, WDP had an adverse effect on yolk color which can be ameliorated by carotenoid supplementation.     

Preparation of Polyurethane Silicon Oxide Nanomaterials as a Binder in Leather Finishing

Leather finishing processes using toxic organic solvent based produce volatile organic compounds (VOC), chronic exposure to this chemicals effect on workers' health causing many diseases especially lung cancer. So, polyurethane waterbased was synthesized for application in leather finishing instead of organic solvent based because it’s economic and safety for industry and workers. Preparation of water-based polyurethane (PU) depends on the reaction of polyethylene glycol (PEG, 300) with isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI) and the reaction of IPDI-1,4-butanediol (BDO) together with dimethylolpropionic acid (DMPA), was synthesized by poly-addition polymerization reaction. PU was then modified with different amounts of silicon dioxide nanoparticles (1-5 % SiO₂), used as a binder in leather finishing. Leather coated was characterized physically, chemically and thermally by FTIR, GPC, DLS, TEM, SEM and TGA. The results revel that, water vapor permeability (WVP) of leather coated with PU modified with SiO₂ showed improvement due to the existence of SiO₂ particles which increases the interspaces of the polyurethane coating. SEM showed that when the amount of SiO₂ nanoparticles increases, there is uniform nanoparticles accumulated can be observed. EDX prove the presence of Si and O₂ elements and the formation of SiO₂ nanoparticles. Mechanical properties discussed that tensile strength; tear strength and elongation at break % increase with increase SiO₂ concentration until 3 % SiO₂ nanoparticles. TGA showed an improvement of thermal stability of coated leather modified with SiO₂. Therefore, this study succeeded in preparation of safe, ecofriendly of water-based polyurethane binders which modified with SiO₂ for using in leather finishing.     

Determination of Mass Transfer Parameters During Deep Fat Frying of Rice Crackers

The accuracy of the knowledge of mass transfer parameters(effective moisture diffusivity,mass transfer Biot number and mass transfer coefficient) in the case of frying food,is essential and important for designing,modeling and process optimization.This study is undertaken to develop an approach for determining mass transfer parameters during frying of spherical rice cracker in sunflower oil at 150,170 and 190 ℃.These parameters were evaluated from the plots of dimensionless concentration ratios against time of frying.Effective moisture diffusivity,mass transfer Biot number and mass transfer coefficient ranged between 1.24×10-8 to 2.36×10-8 m2/s,1.96 to 2.34 and 5.51×10-6 to 9.70×10-6 m/s,respectively.Effective moisture diffusivity and mass transfer coefficient were found to increase with an increasing frying temperature,whereas mass transfer Biot number decreased.An Arrhenius-type relationship was found between effective diffusivity coefficient and frying temperature.     

Soil Salinization in Some Irrigated Areas of the Kingdom of Bahrain

Monitoring and assessment of agricultural land degradation is of vital importance for better land and water management planning and reclamation. It requires setting baseline information and basic analysis at specific time and space. About 33 geo-referenced soil sampling spots were selected in two agricultural production locations in the Kingdom of Bahrain to assess the status and preliminary causes of land degradation. Soil samples were taken from 13 sites in Diraz location while 19 samples were taken from Budayyi location. The samples were taken to 90 cm depth at 30 cm intervals. Standard procedures were followed to determine soil physiochemical properties. In addition, field observations on farm condition, distance from the sea, method of irrigation and irrigation water source were taken. Some of the soil samples were deliberately taken from outside the irrigated basins among trees compared with samples taken from inside the actively growing area for comparison. The results indicated that the salinity level was significantly （P 〈 0.001） higher at the 0-30 cm soil depth compared with 30-60 cm or 60-90 cm depths in both locations. The distance from the sea did not show clear correlation with surface soil salinity in Budayyi area compared with Diraz. Both locations showed significantly higher salinity levels on samples taken outside the actively growing areas compared with those taken from within. The effect is more prominent at the 0-30 cm depth. The observed variability on salinity levels may be attributed to farm management practices and deteriorating quality of ground water. Thus, agricultural land degradation in Bahrain cannot be attributed to ground water deterioration alone. The use of tertiary treated sewage water （TSE） may ease the pressure on ground water, but the pH of the TSE should be carefully monitored and managed with proper studies on leaching requirements to avoid further salinity complications.     

Chrysin Reduced Acrylamide-Induced Neurotoxicity in Both in vitro and in vivo Assessments

Background: Acrylamide (ACR) is a well-known industrial toxic chemical that produces neurotoxicity, which is characterized by progressive central and peripheral neuronal degeneration. Chrysin is a natural, biologically active flavonoid compound, which is commonly found in many plants. The antioxidant and neuroprotective properties of chrysin have been demonstrated. Methods: In this study, the possible effect of chrysin on ACR-induced toxicity was evaluated in both in vitro and in vivo experiments. PC12 cells were used as a suitable in vitro model. Cells were exposed to chrysin (0.5-5 µM) for 12 and 24 h, and then ACR in IC₅₀ concentration was added to the cells. Finally, cell viability was determined using (4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium assay. For in vivo assay, Wistar rats were treated with ACR (50 mg/kg i.p. for 11 days) alone or in combination with chrysin (12.5, 25, and 50 mg/kg). At the end of treatment, behavioral index was evaluated. Results: ACR decreased cell viability and pre-treatment with chrysin (0.5-5 µM) significantly decreased ACR-induced cytotoxicity in the time- and dose-dependent manner. In Wistar rats, exposure to ACR significantly induced severe gait abnormalities, but treatment with chrysin (50 mg/kg) reduced ACR-induced neurotoxicity in animals. Conclusion: In the current study, chrysin exhibited neuroprotective effect on PC12 cells as an in vitro model and also on Wistar rats. Iran. Key Words: Acrylamide, Chrysin, Neurotoxicity, Antioxidant     

Effects of the dietary protein levels and the protein to energy ratio in sub‐yearling Persian sturgeon,Acipenser persicus (Borodin)

A 3 × 4 factorial design was used to evaluate the dietary protein requirement and to determine the optimum dietary protein to energy (P/DE) ratio in sub‐yearling Persian sturgeon, Acipenser persicus, reared in the indoor system. Twelve experimental diets (₄₀P₁₆, ₄₀P₁₇, ₄₀P₁₈, ₄₀P₁₉, ₄₅P₁₉, ₄₅P₁₇, ₄₅P₁₈, ₄₅P₁₉, ₅₀P₁₆, ₅₀P₁₇, ₅₀P₁₈ and ₅₀P₁₉) were formulated and prepared to contain three protein levels (40%, 45% and 50%) and four digestible energy levels (16, 17, 18 and 19 kJ g^?1 diet) at each protein level. Fish averaging 103.3 ± 3.5 (mean ± SD) were fed one of the experimental diets for 14 weeks. At the end of the experimental period, there were significant energy effects (P < 0.05) on weight gain (WG) and specific growth rate (SGR). Weight gain and SGR tended to decrease, although non‐significantly, with increase in dietary protein levels. Furthermore, there were significant protein and energy interaction effects on WG, SGR, hepatosomatic index and protein efficiency ratio. However, there were no significant dietary protein, energy or their interaction effects on feed efficiency for fish fed all diets. Weight gain and SGR of fish fed ₄₀P₁₉ were significantly higher than those of fish fed ₄₀P₁₆, ₄₅P₁₆, ₄₅P₁₇, ₅₀P₁₆ and ₅₀P₁₇ diets (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in WG and SGR among fish fed ₄₀P₁₇, ₄₀P₁₈, ₄₀P₁₉, ₄₅P₁₈, ₄₅P₁₉, ₅₀P₁₈ and ₅₀P₁₉ diets. These results may indicate that the optimum dietary protein requirement and the P/DE ratio could be 40% protein and 22.0 mg protein kJ^?1 (₄₀P₁₈), respectively, in Persian sturgeon, based on growth performance and feed utilization.