Induction of 2n pollen formation in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Begonia</Emphasis> by trifluralin and N<Subscript>2</Subscript>O treatments

In this study, treatments of both trifluralin (at 10, 100 and 1000 μM) and N₂O (in the form of gas under pressure) were applied to Begonia flower buds to induce the formation of 2n pollen. Three male fertile species (B. cucullata, B. subvillosa var. leptotricha and B. fischeri) and two male sterile hybrids (B. schmidtiana × B. cucullata and B. subvillosa var. leptotricha × B. cucullata) were treated. Pollen size, which is related to pollen DNA content, increased after both N₂O and trifluralin treatments, but the induction of large pollen was genotype dependent. Trifluralin induced large pollen only in the male fertile species, while N₂O treatments induced fertile 2n pollen in the male sterile B. schmidtiana × B. cucullata. Cytological studies showed that trifluralin induced multinuclear monads that resulted in 4n gametes in stead of 2n gametes. In general, large pollen obtained after trifluralin treatments showed low germination capability, while large pollen obtained after N₂O treatments retained high germination capability. Seedlings with raised ploidy level could only be obtained after crosses were performed with large pollen obtained from N₂O treatments. Hence, N₂O treatments are preferable to the use of trifluralin to induce 2n gametes in Begonia.     

Gut ecology, feed digestion and performance in weaned piglets fed liquid diets

Gut environment and microflora, digestibility, and performance were studied in weaned piglets in Central Vietnam fed a dry control diet (CO), a naturally fermented liquid diet (FE), and a liquid diet with inclusion of rice distiller's residue (RDR). Digesta samples were collected at the start (day 0) and at the end of experiment (day 42). Diet FE had a lower pH than diet RDR, contained more organic acids, had the lowest counts of E. coli and total coliforms (P < 0.05), and the highest counts of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) (P < 0.05). Piglets fed diets FE and RDR had lower pH (P < 0.05), and higher concentrations of organic acids in the stomach, ileum and mid-colon (P < 0.05) than piglets fed diet CO. Counts of LAB in stomach and ileum were higher in animals fed diets FE and RDR than CO (P < 0.05), while the number of E. coli and total coliforms along the gastrointestinal tract was reduced. The ileal digestibility of crude protein and organic matter was improved in piglets fed diet RDR (P < 0.05) compared with piglets fed diet CO. Piglets fed diet RDR had a higher weight gain (P < 0.05) and a better feed utilization (P < 0.05) than piglets fed the other diets. The present findings support the contention that fermented diets and/or fermented feedstuffs can be used for dietary manipulation to improve gut health and animal performance.     

ULTRASONOGRAPHIC EXAMINATION OF THE THYROID GLAND OF HYPERTHYROID CATS: COMPARISON TO 99mTcO−4 SCINTIGRAPHY

High-resolution ultrasonography was evaluated as an alternative to ^99mTcO^-₄ scintigraphy for examining size and appearance of thyroid glands in hyperthyroid cats. Thyroid ultrasound examinations were performed on 6 normal cats and 14 cats with hyperthyroidism. Thyroid lobe volume was estimated from ultrasound images using the equation for a prolate ellipsoid, π/6 (length * height * width). Total thyroid volume was estimated by adding the volume estimations of the left and right lobes. Thyroid lobes of hyperthyroid cats were considered abnormal if estimated volume exceeded the 99% confidence interval for normal thyroid volume determined from the control group. Scintigraphic examinations performed on hyperthyroid cats were evaluated for unilateral versus bilateral disease and for the presence of ectopic activity. Mean thyroid lobe volume and total thyroid volume for normal cats was 85 and 169 mm³, respectively. Mean thyroid lobe volume and total thyroid volume for hyperthyroid cats was 578 and 889 mm³. There was a significant difference in mean estimated total thyroid volume of normal and hyperthyroid cats. Thyroid lobes with greater than normal TcO^-₄ uptake on scintigraphy were larger and had variable homogeneity, echogenicity, and margination on ultrasound examination. There also was an 85.7% agreement of scintigraphy and ultrasonography in differentiating normal from abnormal thyroid lobes. A fair correlation between estimated total thyroid volume of hyperthyroid cats and most recent pretherapy serum thyroxine values were also found. This preliminary study indicates that thyroid ultrasound examination may provide information that is useful for diagnosis and treatment of feline hyperthyroidism. Although ultrasound provides accurate evaluation of the thyroid glands, it cannot replace ^99mTcO^-₄ scintigraphy for screening of metastatic lesions and ectopic glands.     

Influence of cereal non-starch polysaccharides on ileo-caecal and rectal microbial populations in growing pigs

The effect of cereal non-starch polysaccharides (NSP) on the gut microbial populations was studied in 5 growing pigs between 39-116 kg body weight according to a Latin square design. The diets were composed to contain different NSP levels. The control diet had a normal NSP content (139 g/kg dry matter (DM)), 2 diets had a low total amount of NSP (95 and 107 g/kg DM) and 2 diets had a high amount of total NSP (191 and 199 g/kg DM). Furthermore, one of the diets within each category had a content of insoluble NSP similar to the control diet and one had a high content of insoluble NSP. Samples were collected from the ileum, via intestinal post valve T-caecum (PVTC) cannulas surgically inserted at the ileo-caecal ostium, and from the rectum. The total microbial flora of the ileal samples were analysed for by defining base pair length with terminal restriction fraction length polymorphism (T-RFLP). The microbial diversity of the coliform flora of the ileal and rectal samples were defined by biochemical fingerprinting. It was observed that many terminal restriction fragments (TRFs) disappeared when new diets were introduced and that some characteristic TRFs were found in the high and low NSP diets, respectively. Both the total gut microflora and the coliform flora were influenced by the dietary NSP content.     

A field study on feed supplementation, body weight and selected blood parameters in local pigs in Laos

The aim of the present study was to investigate feed allowances, body weight (BW), haematocrit, haemoglobin, plasma ionised calcium (iCa), sodium, potassium, pH and glucose concentration and faecal K/Na ratio in local growing pigs, sows and piglets kept by small-holder farmers in Laos. Starting hypotheses were that (1) local pigs are under fed, (2) BW is higher in pigs receiving supplementary feed and (3) the blood profile of pigs subjected to very poor nutrition is outside the normal range. On 54 pig-keeping smallholdings in Borikhamxay province, Lao PDR, daily feed allowances were weighed and BW recorded for 27 lactating sows, 54 piglets and 27 growing pigs. Blood samples were collected from the vena jugularis in all pigs. Feed supplementation did not affect BW, but plasma iCa concentration was outside the normal range for all pigs. There was a tendency for lower faecal K/Na ratio in Na-supplemented sows. The results confirm that local pigs in small-scale production systems in Laos suffer from poor nutrition. The most important challenge for farmers appears to be provision of more feed, particularly feed with a high Ca content.