Characterisation of European varieties of triticale with special emphasis on the ability of plant phytase to improve phytate phosphorus availability to chickens

1. A total of 30 varieties and selection lines of triticale grown under similar conditions were characterised. Thousand grain weight, specific weight, Hagberg falling number and N were 50.2 +/- 5.0 g, 72.4 +/- 2.1 kg/hl, 96 +/- 48 s and 16.1 +/- 0.11 g/kg, respectively. 2. Mean phosphorus (P) concentration was 2.86 +/- 0.31 g/kg, of which 77% was of phytic origin. Mean phytase activity was 1018 +/- 319 phytase units (PU)/kg. A genotypic effect on phytase activity was detected amongst 5 varieties studied out of 30. Potential and real applied viscosities were positively correlated and mean values were 3.53 +/- 0.66 and 2.15 +/- 0.31 ml/g, respectively. 3. The efficacy of plant phytase in improving P availability was assessed in chickens up to 3 weeks of age. Growth performance and bone ash concentration were compared in birds given either a maize (450 g/kg) and soybean meal (230 g/kg) phosphorus deficient diet containing 3.5 g P/kg, this basal diet supplemented with 1 or 2 g P/kg as monocalcium phosphate (MCP) or triticale (450 g/kg) and soybean meal (230 g/kg) diets containing 3.2 to 3.8 g P/kg with no MCP. To achieve graded levels of phytase activity, 4 varieties of triticale, intact or in which phytase was denaturated by heat treatment, were used. Estimated metabolisable energy, protein, amino acids and calcium concentrations were similar in all diets. 4. Phytase activity in the triticale-based diets ranged between 135 and 1390 PU/kg. Growth performance and bone ash were responsive to plant phytase and to MCP. Non-linear models of these responses were adjusted with the best fit for bone ash parameters. The values of 250, 500 and 1000 PU of plant phytase were estimated to be equivalent to 0.46, 0.67 and 0.81 g P as MCP, respectively.     

Seasonal and photoperiodic regulation of secretion of hormones associated with reproduction in Magang goose ganders

This study examined the reproductive endocrine profile under natural and artificial photoperiods in Magang goose ganders. Group 1 ganders (n=8) served as non-treated controls and were exposed to natural photoperiod throughout the experiment from 13th January to 17th December 2004. Group 2 ganders (n=8) were exposed to 18 h long daily photoperiod for 60 days from 13 January till 15 March 2004 and again to 16 h photoperiod for 75 days till 10th October 2004, and the 11h short photoperiod in the remainder periods of the experiment. In control ganders, plasma LH concentrations were high in normal breeding seasons (August-March) and decreased to low levels in non-breeding season from April to July. Testosterone concentrations changed similarly to that of LH throughout the seasons. Seasonal pattern of PRL concentrations was opposite to those of LH and testosterone, with low values in breeding season and high values in non-breeding season. In artificial photoperiod treated ganders, increasing photoperiod increased PRL and decreased LH and testosterone concentrations, while decreasing photoperiod reversed these changes. There were no seasonal or photoperiod caused changes in plasma T3 concentrations in both control ganders and artificial photoperiod treated ganders. These results demonstrated that in Magang goose ganders that long photoperiod stimulates PRL secretion and decreases LH secretion, which terminates reproductive season in spring and early summer, and short photoperiod stimulates LH secretion and inhibits PRL secretion rendering ganders enter into reproductive season.     

Helping students learn veterinary physiology through the use of concept maps

Concept maps have become a ubiquitous tool in education in the last 20 years and are used extensively to teach scientific concepts. A concept map is a tool learners can use to organize information about a topic in terms of key concepts and the relationships among them. As a graphical representation, the map provides an overall picture of a particular concept or topic. This article describes how we have used concept maps to teach physiology to veterinary medical and veterinary technician students enrolled in our on-campus and distance-learning programs.     

管理措施对三江源区"黑土滩"土壤肥力及土壤酶活性的影响

对三江源区典型退化草地“黑土滩”采取施肥及种植垂穗披碱草的恢复措施,结果表明,土壤中的全氮与有机质的相关性显著,全磷与有机质的相关性较明显,变化趋势相一致。短期的恢复措施造成了恢复样地20~30 cm土壤层中有机质、全氮和全磷含量的下降,长期的恢复措施使恢复样地中的这3种营养物质的含量得到了上升;人工种植措施使土壤中的全钾含量显著下降(P<0.05)。此外,速效养分的变化不一致,其中速效氮的含量表现为先降低后升高,速效磷和速效钾的含量变化表现出升高趋势。植被恢复对土壤脲酶活性有促进作用,但蔗糖酶活性没表现出规律性变化;这2种酶的活性与速效养分的含量表现出较强的正相关,而与有机质和全价养分的含量相关性不显著。     

Cardiovascular effects of acute pulmonary obstruction in horses with recurrent airway obstruction

BACKGROUND: Recurrent airway obstruction (RAO) is common in horses. Although pulmonary artery (PA) pressure increases during RAO, cardiac function in horses with RAO has received limited attention. HYPOTHESIS: The purpose of this study was to noninvasively determine the cardiovascular effects of acute pulmonary obstruction (APO) in horses with RAO and their reversibility. ANIMALS: Five geldings with RAO, inducible by exposure to moldy hay, were studied. METHODS: Pulmonary mechanics, echocardiography, serum troponin I concentrations, arterial blood gases, and hematocrit were obtained before and after 7 days of APO. Heart rate, PA diameter and flow characteristics, right and left ventricular luminal dimensions and wall thicknesses, global cardiac performance, and evidence of myocardial damage were evaluated. Pulmonary mechanics and echocardiography were reevaluated during remission. RRESULTS: Severe, transient APO did not induce chronic cor pulmonale in horses, because cardiac anatomy and function were normal between episodes. An acute episode of APO produced anatomical and functional cardiac changes in both the right and left heart (including increased PA diameter, abnormal septal motion, and decreased left ventricular diameter and estimated stroke volume), possibly because of the development of pulmonary hypertension, without apparent myocardial damage. The decrease in stroke volume was offset by the increase in heart rate. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: With APO of 7 days' duration, cardiovascular abnormalities and the functional airway changes that produce them are reversible when the offending allergens are removed.     

Synovial fluid analysis and bacterial findings in arthritic joints of juvenile male camel (Camelus dromedarius) calves

Eighteen synovial fluid samples from 11 male dromedarian calves, 9-12 month old, were analysed cytologically and bacteriologically. Calves were lame and all joints were grossly swollen. The mean +/- SD of total nucleated cell count was 7970 +/- 5000 cells/microl (range 2800-20,000 cells/microl). Polymorphonuclear (PMN) leucocytes were the predominant cell type. The mean +/- SD of absolute and percentages of each cell type were as follows: PMN leucocytes 5518 +/- 3600 cells/microl and 68 +/- 19%, monocytes/macrophages 1600 +/- 1120 cells/microl and 26 +/- 17%, lymphocytes 830 +/- 140 cells/microl and 8 +/- 7%, and red blood cell 350 +/- 130 cells/microl. The mean +/- SD of total protein concentration was 3.5 +/- 1 g/dl (range 2.5-5 g/dl). The most commonly isolated bacteria were non-haemolytic streptococci spp., followed by Arcanobacterium pyogenes and Staphylococcus aureus. No bacterial growth was obtained in eight samples and non-revealed Mycoplasma spp.     

Early detection of viral excretion from experimentally infected goats with peste-des-petits ruminants virus

We observed 15 goats for 9 days after subcutaneous infection with 10(3) TCID(50) with isolates of peste-des-petits ruminants virus from Africa and India and five concurrent, uninfected control goats. Typical clinical signs of the infection were present in all 15 infected goats by day 8 and in most by day 6 and some signs were present by day 4. However, 6 out of 15 goats already have detectable virus shedding by day 3 and four more were shedding by day 4 and every goat had virus shedding for at least 1 day before the recognition of clinical signs. This experiment indicates that incubatory carriers therefore might play a role in the transmission of PPRV among small ruminants.     

Magnetic resonance imaging findings of neuroaxonal dystrophy in a papillon puppy

A 3.5-month-old papillon puppy was brought to our clinic with chief complaints of progressive quadriparesis, ataxia and head tremor. Lesions in the cerebellum, brainstem and spinal cord were suspected on the basis of a neurological examination. No abnormality was found in a clinicopathological examination or on magnetic resonance imaging. On the basis of these results differential diagnoses including an inflammatory disease, a degenerative condition or a storage disorder were considered. Subsequently, the signs progressed and glossoplegia and dysphagia developed at six months of age. At a second magnetic resonance imaging, severe atrophy of the entire brain was found. After these examinations, the puppy was euthanased and histopathologically diagnosed with neuroaxonal dystrophy. Because magnetic resonance imaging detected abnormal features that were characteristic of neuroaxonal dystrophy in this case, we speculate that magnetic resonance imaging can assist in the pre-mortem diagnosis of this disease.     

Purinergic control of the quail rectum: modulation of adenosine 5'-triphosphate-mediated contraction with acetylcholine

Electrical field stimulation (EFS) induces frequency-dependent contractions of the longitudinal muscle of isolated quail rectum which were sensitive to tetrodotoxin. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether purinergic neurons are implicated in the response to nerve stimulation. The shape of the EFS-induced contractile response was different depending on stimulus frequency; low frequencies (0.5-2 Hz) induced fast monophasic contractions with a small subsequent relaxation; whereas higher frequencies (5-50 Hz) induced biphasic contractile response that comprised fast initial component (as in case of low frequency) and a slow delayed contractile component in addition to the relaxation that follows the fast contractile component. Prior application of atropine (10 microM) completely abolished the slow delayed component but significantly enhanced the fast initial contractile component. Physostigmine (1-10 microM) significantly enhanced the slow delayed component with an inhibitory effect on the initial fast component. The nonspecific purinergic receptor antagonist, suramin (100-500 microM) significantly inhibited the fast initial contractile component with no significant effect on the slow delayed one. Complete blockade of the fast component was achieved by prior application of a combination consisted of suramin (50 microM) and pyridoxicalphosphate-6-azophenyl 2',4'-disulphonic acid tetrasodium (PPADS; 10 microM). Exogenous applications of adenosine 5'-triphosphate and acetylcholine (10 microM each), produced contractile responses that mimicked those induced by EFS. These data suggest that ATP is the main noncholinergic excitatory transmitter controlling the contractile activity of the quail rectum; and that its action could be modulated by acetylcholine.