澳洲淡水龙虾(Cherax quadricarinatus)商业饲料中鸡肉粉替代鱼粉研究

水产动物红螯螯虾(Cherax quadricarinatus),俗称澳洲淡水龙虾,在热带和亚热带区域养殖发展十分迅速。由于饲料工业处于初级发展期,红螯螯虾营养需求与各种原料消化吸收率数据极其有限,生产饲料一般并未按照螯虾的特殊要求来单独设计配方。考虑到近期鱼粉价格上涨,使用类似鸡肉粉等替代蛋白源显得更为经济。本研究评价螯虾幼虾投喂使用鸡肉粉替代鱼粉的商业饲料生长效果。红螯螯虾幼虾(0.45±0.01) g暂养在户外圆池(容积24 600 L),密度为12.5尾/m2。养殖池水源为水库抽提,养殖期间保持流水。小龙虾投喂6种饲料,蛋白为26%,粗脂肪为7%,每个处理4个重复,在同等环境条件下生长良好。基础饲料中的鱼粉按比例被鸡肉粉替代,鱼粉含量递减为15%、12%、9%、6%、3%和0,而鸡肉粉含量递增为7.8%、10.5%、13.2%、15.8%、18.5%和21.2%,等氮等能饲料。经过56 d养殖试验,小龙虾所有试验组的存活率大于83%,增长11.3 g以上,处理组间没有显著差异。基于以上试验结果,可以得出结论,鸡肉粉适合作为小龙虾饲料中鱼粉的替代物。     

Gastrointestinal parasites presence during the peripartum decreases total milk production in grazing dairy Holstein cows

Parasitism in cattle is known to impair growth and development. Recent findings suggest that productivity of adult animals is also affected, but little is known about the physiological mechanisms involved. Furthermore, development of nematode resistance to drugs makes imperative the search of management practices that avoid whole herd treatment. We undertook an epidemiological and endocrine study in a grass based dairy farm in Argentina to study the effect of parasites on milk production and the underlying mechanisms involved, and identify individual animals that would benefit from antiparasitic treatment. All the cows in the dairy were followed monthly for egg parasite output in feces. Samples were cultured for genera determination. Milk production and reproductive results were recorded and periodical bleedings for hormone determination were performed. Nematode egg output (EPG) was maximal in late Summer and Autumn and minimal in Spring in coincidence with the Ostertagia inhibition-disinhibition cycle as this genus had the highest prevalence in all the study. The highest proportion of positive samples was found in the high producing herd and maximal counts were found in the peripartal period. Milk production did not correlate with EPG mean values but, when cows were grouped by EPG positivity around parturition, a significant difference in total milk production between EPG null and positive cows was observed. Positive cows produced 7%, 12% or 15% less milk than null EPG cows, depending on the sampling month/s chosen for classification. The highest difference was seen when both prepartum and postpartum samples were taken into account. No difference in lactation length and a marginal effect on partum to first service interval were encountered. Endocrine studies revealed a decrease in serum growth hormone (GH), type I insulin-like growth factor (IGF-I) and prolactin during lactation in cows with positive EPG in the first postpartum sample with respect to null EPG cows at that time. GH levels decreased and prolactin and IGF-I levels increased in both groups of cows from month 0 to 6 in milk. Serum insulin levels remained stable throughout lactation and were similar in both groups of cows. In conclusion, EPG around parturition may be a useful tool for identifying cows that will have a decrease in productivity due to parasite effects and would possibly benefit from an antiparasitic treatment. Besides, our results suggest that detrimental effect of parasites on milk production may be mediated by GH, IGF-I and prolactin serum levels.     

Role of wild ruminants in the epidemiology of bluetongue virus serotypes 1, 4 and 8 in Spain

ABSTRACT: Although the importance of wild ruminants as potential reservoirs of bluetongue virus (BTV) has been suggested, the role played by these species in the epidemiology of BT in Europe is still unclear. We carried out a serologic and virologic survey to assess the role of wild ruminants in the transmission and maintenance of BTV in Andalusia (southern Spain) between 2006 and 2010.A total of 473 out of 1339 (35.3%) wild ruminants analyzed showed antibodies against BTV by both ELISA and serum neutralization test (SNT). The presence of neutralizing antibodies to BTV-1 and BTV-4 were detected in the four species analyzed (red deer, roe deer, fallow deer and mouflon), while seropositivity against BTV-8 was found in red deer, fallow deer and mouflon but not in roe deer. Statistically significant differences were found among species, ages and sampling regions. BTV RNA was detected in twenty-one out of 1013 wild ruminants (2.1%) tested. BTV-1 and BTV-4 RNA were confirmed in red deer and mouflon by specific rRT-PCR.BTV-1 and BTV-4 seropositive and RNA positive wild ruminants, including juveniles and sub-adults, were detected years after the last outbreak was reported in livestock. In addition, between the 2008/2009 and the 2010/2011 hunting seasons, the seroprevalence against BTV-1, BTV-4 and BTV-8 increased in the majority of provinces, and these serotypes were detected in many areas where BTV outbreaks were not reported in domestic ruminants. The results indicate that wild ruminants seem to be implicated in the dissemination and persistence of BTV in Spain.     

Aglepristone decreases proliferation in progesterone receptor-positive canine mammary carcinomas

Background: Progesterone receptor (PR) antagonist aglepristone (RU534) has been used successfully for pregnancy termination and therapy of pyometra, vaginal tumors, and mammary hyperplasia in bitches and queens. All of these conditions share with canine mammary carcinomas the expression of PR. Objectives: To study the effect of RU534 on proliferation and apoptosis in canine mammary carcinomas in relation to PR expression. Animals: Twenty‐seven nonspayed bitches with mammary carcinomas were treated with either 2 doses of 20 mg/kg RU534 (n = 22, RU534‐treated group) or oil placebo (n = 5, control group) on days 1 and 8. Methods: Tumor samples were collected before (day 1) and after (day 15) treatment for immunohistochemistry. PR expression, proliferation index (PI), and apoptotic index (AI) were determined using antibodies against PR, Ki67, and cleaved lamin A/C antigens, respectively. The effect of treatment on these parameters was analyzed. Results: Differential expression of PR between day 1 (59.1% PR‐positive tumors) and day 15 (36.4% PR‐positive tumors) was observed in RU534‐treated tumors exclusively. After RU534 treatment, mean PI was significantly decreased in PR‐positive but unchanged in PR‐negative RU534‐treated tumors. A reduction of ≥20% in PI was found in 61.5% of RU534‐treated tumors with PR expression. Conversely, no effect on AI was observed after RU534 treatment. Conclusions and Clinical Importance: Neoadjuvant RU534 treatment had PR expression‐related inhibiting effects on proliferation of canine mammary carcinoma cells.     

Persistence of carotenoid pigments in the blood of concentrate-finished grazing sheep: its significance for the traceability of grass-feeding

Carotenoid pigments are good biomarkers of grass feeding in sheep. However, grazing lambs are often stall-finished because of grass shortage. We investigated the nature of the carotenoids present in sheep blood and their persistence in this tissue. Four treatments were compared: 1) feeding a concentrate-based diet (n = 10 lambs), 2) grazing followed by a long stall-finishing period (n = 10), 3) grazing followed by a short stall-finishing period (n = 10), and 4) grazing to slaughter weight (n = 10). The concentrate supply was regulated to have similar average daily gain for all treatments. The 40 lambs were allocated to either the grazing or the stall treatments on the basis of their birth date, birth weight, and body weight. The 30 grazing lambs were further allocated to long-stall, short-stall, or grass treatment on the basis of their body weight and plasma carotenoid content. Plasma content of total carotenoids was measured by spectrophotometry during the grazing and the stall periods for all lambs and at slaughter weight for the eight heaviest lambs of each treatment. Analysis of the nature and the concentration of individual carotenoids was performed by HPLC on pasture and stall diets and on blood of grazing lambs. The carotenoid content of the stall diet was 2 to 3% that of the pasture diet. Lutein, zeaxanthin, and beta-carotene accounted for 43 to 58%, 3 to 17%, and 0 to 7% of total plasma carotenoids in grazing lambs, respectively. Two unknown polar carotenoids, expressed in lutein equivalent, accounted for 10 to 22% and 0 to 9% of total carotenoids. Plasma carotenoid content during the grazing and the finishing periods varied among animals (P < 0.001). At slaughter weight, plasma carotenoid content was higher for grass-fed than for stall-fed, long-stall finished, or short-stall finished lambs (P < 0.001), and reliably distinguished grass-fed lambs from all the others. Plasma carotenoid content decreased exponentially with the interval from starting on the stall diet (P < 0.005). The deceleration parameter of the model increased linearly with lamb average daily gain during the stall-finishing period, suggesting that the turnover of carotenoids in the blood may depend on the level of intake of the stall-finishing diet. After 4 to 13 d on the stall diet, depending on the initial plasma carotenoid concentration, plasma carotenoid concentration of previously grazed, stall-finished lambs fell to the values of lambs fed a concentrate diet without grazing. Such a low persistence is of interest for discriminating grazing lambs from stall-finished grazing lambs.     

The developmental pattern of c-fos expression in the rat thalamus following open-field stress stimulation

The thalamic nuclei with their defined set of input-output connections are the primary channel for information flow to the cerebral cortex. Several data suggest that neurons of that area are involved in the response to various aversive stimulations. However the pattern of activation seems to depend on the stress model as well as the stage of maturation. In the present study we would like to check which nuclei of the thalamus show expression of c-fos in the response to the "open field test", and how this response pattern changes during the maturation process. 30 rats of age ranged from P0 to P120 (P-postnatal day) were studied. The experimental group was exposed to the "open field test" for 10 minutes. After perfusion and fixation, brains were cut and stained for c-fos with immunohistochemical method. Our results showed that during development the pattern of c-fos activity in the thalamic nuclei after stress stimulation undergoes significant changes. Distinct c-fos expression was observed in the paraventricular nucleus, intergeniculate leaflet and ventral lateral geniculate nucleus. These findings suggest that these nuclei may play a direct role in the stress reaction involved in the response to the "open field test".