Effect of somatotropin on nonesterified fatty acid and glycerol metabolism in growing pigs.

Eight crossbred barrows (71 kg initial BW) were allocated to two treatments involving daily i.m. injections of either excipient (control) or recombinantly derived porcine somatotropin (120 micrograms/kg of BW). On d 8 of treatment, beginning 15 h after injection, glycerol and nonesterified fatty acid (NEFA) kinetics were determined using a primed, continuous infusion of [2-3H]glycerol and [9,10(n)-3H]oleic acid. Kinetics were examined under both basal conditions and during a hyperinsulinemic/euglycemic clamp. Plasma concentrations of NEFA and glycerol and their respective entry rates were highly correlated. Insulin had no effect on plasma glycerol or glycerol entry rate, probably due to the very low rates that were observed in both the control and somatotropin-treated pigs. However, both plasma NEFA and oleic acid entry rate were reduced during hyperinsulinemia. Although indices of fat mobilization tended to be higher in pigs treated with somatotropin, the magnitude of the increases were small and would be sufficient to account for only a minor fraction of the decreased lipid accretion observed in somatotropin-treated pigs.     

Proliferation of myogenic cells in the diaphragm of the fetal rabbit.

Diaphragms obtained from 40 fetal rabbits at gestational ages of 20, 22, 25 and 30 days were examined by light and transmission electron microscopes. The percentage of myogenic cells undergoing mitosis was calculated by counting mitotic nuclei in 1 micron sections. At 20 and 22 days gestation, myogenic cells (myoblasts and satellite cells) were actively proliferating with 2.66 +/- 0.41% (n = 15) and 2.18 +/- 0.20% (n = 23), of the cells in division, respectively. The myogenic cells undergoing mitosis appeared to be of both myoblasts and satellite cells at these stages of the development. The myotubes on day 20 of gestation contained a large number of lipid droplets and an abundance of glycogen particles which were reduced by day 22 of gestation. The mitotic rate on day 25 of gestation was reduced to 1.16 +/- 0.11% (n = 28). The muscle fibers were well differentiated at this stage and the majority of the dividing cells were considered to be satellite cells. In diaphragms from the full term fetuses (day 30), the mitotic rate was reduced to 0.31 +/- 0.05% (n = 24). It was suggested that myoblasts of the fetal rabbit diaphragm proliferated for the myotube formation during the earliest stage of the development (day 20 of gestation) and then the number of satellite cells increased after day 22 of gestation. Growth of the organ after day 25 of gestation appeared to be mostly due primarily to the hypertrophy and differentiation of the muscle fibers rather than proliferation of myoblasts.     

Live and carcass values from different cattle types.

Slaughter steers and heifers (n = 345) were selected representing the following cattle types: English steers and heifers, Exotic steers and heifers, less than 50% Bos indicus steers and heifers, greater than or equal to 50% Bos indicus steers, and Holstein steers. Thirty sides representing 30 carcasses from each cattle type were fabricated into boneless subprimals and trimmed to three fat-trim levels: 2.54, 1.27, and .64 cm. Yields of cuts to each trim level were used to calculate values for each carcass component. Live values were calculated after slaughter and fabrication costs and drop credits were considered. Values were calculated for U.S. Choice and U.S. Select grades and the weighted average value accounting for the Choice/Select mix for each cattle type. At a constant quality level, fatter cattle types were more valuable at the 2.54 cm of fat-trim level. As fat was trimmed, the leaner cattle types became more valuable and the fatter types became less valuable. Cattle types with higher percentages of Choice carcasses were more valuable at the 2.54 cm of fat-trim level, but when subprimals were trimmed to .64 cm, the lower-grading carcasses became closer in value due to cutability advantages.     

Effect of oral L-carnitine on its concentration in the plasma of yearling Thoroughbred horses

After an oral dose of 10 g of L-carnitine the plasma concentrations of free and total carnitine increased in five yearling thoroughbred horses, reaching a peak two to four hours after administration, but in two horses there was no increase. In the five which responded, the mean (+/- sd) peak increase in total carnitine concentration was 15.1 +/- 6.9 mumol/litre from a predose mean of 18.8 +/- 3.4 mumol/litre, and the mean peak increase in free carnitine concentration was 13.5 +/- 3.1 mumol/litre from a pre-dose mean concentration of 12.5 +/- 2.2 mumol/litre. These changes were similar to those observed previously in a group of adult thoroughbred horses given 10 g of L-carnitine. There was no consistent pattern of change in the concentration of acetylcarnitine in the seven yearling horses.     

A survey of gastrointestinal helminths of the common helmet guinea fowl (Numida meleagris galeata) in Burkina Faso

Guinea fowls in Burkina Faso (Africa) harbored 13 species of helminth parasites. The two most abundant species were Subulura suctoria and Ascaridia numidae, which comprised 89% of the nematodes. The other nematode species (Gongylonema congolense, Eucoleus annulatus, Synhimantus spiralis, Tetrameres fissispina, and Cyrnea parroti) occurred at low levels. Five species of cestodes and one acanthocephalan were also present. It is likely that guinea fowl act as important reservoir hosts of chicken nematodes.     

Effects of photoperiod on shoot elongation and endogenous gibberellins in the glasshouse carnation

Plants of glasshouse carnation were grown in photoperiodic cycles comprising 8 h natural daylight followed by either 16 h of darkness (short-day treatment) or by 16 h of low-intensity lighting from tungsten filament lamps (continuous-light treatment). When plants were transferred from short days to the continuous-light treatment, rates of shoot elongation were increased and flower initiation was promoted. Shoot tips of plants grown in continuous light yielded greater amounts of diffusible gibberellin-like substances than shoot tips of plants grown in short days. Yields of diffusible gibberellins increased with increases in the duration of the continuous light treatment up to 28 days, by which time flower initials were present. Application of GA₃ to the plants resulted in increased rates of shoot elongation, but no effect on flowering was observed.     

Ontogeny of gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT) in the dogfish Scyliorhinus canicula L

Cartilaginous fish occupy a fundamental position in vertebrate phylogeny and it is likely that this group has retained some of the ancestral immune mechanisms. The ontogeny of GALT has received little attention in elasmobranchs and this study correlates this development with morphological differentiation, development of other lymphoid organs, exposure to seawater and transition from yolk dependence to exogenous food as a source of nutrient. GALT was first represented by individual lymphocyte-like and macrophage-like cells in the lamina propria. In later stages accumulations and intraepithelial leucocytes were recorded prior to hatching. The size of accumulations and the number of lymphocyte and macrophage-like cells infiltrating the lamina propria and epithelium increased in fish as they became dependent upon an exogenous diet. Although GALT developed after the thymus and lymphoid-like tissue in the kidney and at approximately the same time as the epigonal, Leydig and spleen, the source of cells populating the gut is unknown. Plasma cells and granulocytes were not observed in the developing fish until 6 months post-hatch after which the fish had a similar GALT distribution and content to the adult fish.