Separating component parts of soil respiration under <Emphasis Type="Italic">Robinia pseudoacacia</Emphasis> plantation in the Taihang Mountains,China

Partitioning the respiratory components of soil surface CO₂ efflux is important in understanding carbon turnover and in identifying the soil carbon sink/source function in response to land-use change. The sensitivities of soil respiration components on changing climate patterns are currently not fully understood. We used trench and isotopic methods to separate total soil respiration into autotrophic (R _A ) and heterotrophic components (R _H ). This study was undertaken on a Robinia pseudoacacia L. plantation in the southern Taihang Mountains, China. The fractionation of soil ¹³CO₂ was analyzed by comparing the δ¹³C of soil CO₂ extracted from buried steel tubes with results from Gas Vapor Probe Kits at a depth of 50 cm at the preliminary test (2.03‰). The results showed that the contribution of autotrophic respiration (fR _A ) increased with increasing soil depth. The contribution of heterotrophic respiration (fR _H ) declined with increasing soil depth. The contribution of autotrophic respiration was similar whether estimated by the trench method (fR _A , 23.50%) or by the isotopic method in which a difference in value of ¹³C between soil and plant prevailed in the natural state (RC, 21.03%). The experimental error produced by the trench method was insignificant as compared with that produced by the isotopic method, providing a technical basis for further investigations.     

Effects of Amino Acids on Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Its Signaling Pathways

The intestine is the primary organ responsible for digestion and absorption of nutrients and is frequently subjected to external environmental stimulations leading to the development of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which can cause serious harm to intestinal health in animals. Dietary amino acids play important roles in promoting intestinal development and maintaining intestinal health and exert diverse effects through multiple signaling pathways on the prevention and treatment of IBD, including affecting the physiological activities of intestinal epithelial cells, improving intestinal barrier function, reducing intestinal oxidative damage, regulating the production of inflammatory cytokines, and promoting the expression of endogenous antimicrobial peptides, and involved in main signaling pathways including AMP-activated kinase (AMPK), mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), Toll-like receptors (TLRs), nucleotide binding oligomerization domain (NOD)/nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-κB). In this review, basic characteristics of IBD, effects and involved signaling pathways of the amino acids on IBD, and effects and applications of amino acids in maintaining intestinal health in livestock and poultry production were reviewed, so as to provide effective clues and strategies for dietary nutrients in the prevention and treatment of IBD.     

Village poultry consumption and marketing in relation to gender,religious festivals and market access

This study aimed to examine village poultry consumption and marketing in Ethiopia in relation to gender, socio-cultural events and market access. The main objects of the research were producers, poultry markets, producer-sellers, and intermediary sellers in three locations representing different levels of market access in Tigray. About 3000 farm records were collected over a period of 12 months from 131 producers to obtain quantitative data on sales and consumption. Ninety-three semi-structured interviews with 58 producer-sellers and 35 intermediaries and 12 group discussions with these market actors were conducted to explore organization, price dynamics and socio-cultural aspects of poultry marketing. In total, 928 producer-sellers and 225 intermediaries were monitored monthly to examine participation by gender in poultry marketing. Better market access was associated with a shorter market chain and higher prices for the producers. Female-headed households had smaller poultry sales and consumption per household but sale and consumption per family member were 25% and 66% higher, respectively, than in male-headed households. While women dominated in the producer-sellers group, intermediaries were mainly men. Religious festivals periodically shifted local demand and prices of poultry. To improve the benefit of poultry keeping, poverty-stricken households may profit from better market access through better market information, infrastructure, market group formation and careful planning to match the dynamics in demand.     

PCR检测感染早期小鼠血液中旋毛虫幼虫的研究

为了研究PCR检测感染小鼠血液中旋毛虫DNA的敏感性,应用旋毛虫1.6 kb重复序列为扩增靶序列对旋毛虫(T1)、乡土旋毛虫(T2)、布氏旋毛虫(T3)、伪旋毛虫(T4)和南方旋毛虫(T7)肌幼虫DNA进行PCR扩增,并检测小鼠感染20、100、300条T1肌幼虫后不同时间的外周血.结果表明,T1、T4和T7肌幼虫可扩增出特异性目的条带(510 bp),而T2和T3无扩增产物;1、0.04和0.02条T1、T4和T7肌幼虫均能扩增到清晰的目的条带(510 bp).20条幼虫感染小鼠后5 d～6 d,PCR阳性率均为7.69%;100条幼虫感染小鼠后5 d～12 d可检出旋毛虫DNA,其中感染后5 d～7 d的阳性率分别为30.77%、38.46%及30.77%;300条幼虫感染小鼠后5 d～15 d可检出旋毛虫DNA,感染后7 d的阳性率为61.54%,感染后6 d与8 d～10 d的阳性率均为53.85%. 3组旋毛虫感染小鼠PCR阳性率间的差异有统计学意义(p<0.01),PCR阳性率随感染剂量的增加而升高(p<0.01),100条与300条感染小鼠感染后不同时间的PCR阳性率与检测时间有相关性(p<0.01).以上实验结果表明PCR检测感染小鼠血液中旋毛虫DNA的敏感性与感染程度和检测时间有关,对感染早期旋毛虫抗体阴性宿主有一定诊断价值.     

贵州省羊口疮病例分子生物学诊断

为了更好地鉴别诊断疑似羊口疮病例,采用PCR技术、分子克隆技术和生物信息技术对毕节地区羊口疮疑似病例进行实验室诊断。结果显示,从疑似病例组织病料中扩增出与预期大小相符的1137bp的B2L基因片断,且该基因核苷酸同源性与GenBank中已发表羊口疮病毒序列间的同源性为97．1％～99．1％。试验结果表明,该病例为羊口疮...     

Effect of herbicides with different modes of action on physiological and cellular traits of Anabaena fertilissima

Cyanobacteria are important components of the lowland rice ecosystem. Therefore, it is important to examine the effect of herbicides (commonly used against weeds of rice crop) on the performance of cyanobacteria. We studied the toxic effects of three herbicides often used in rice field, viz. propanil, pretilachlor and glyphosate, on the performance traits of Anabaena fertilissima C.B. Rao. Pretilachlor [0–40 active ingredient (ai) mg/L] and glyphosate (0–80 ai mg/L) exhibited toxicity to A. fertilissima at higher doses than propanil (0–1.5 mg/L). Propanil had severe damaging effects on cellular characteristics of A. fertilissima when compared to pretilachlor or glyphosate. Propanil treatment of A. fertilissima resulted in the leakage of protoplast from the heterocyst due to the breakage of the plasma membrane and surrounding wall. Our study shows that photosystem II herbicides such as propanil could have deleterious effects on phototrophic (cyanobacterial) communities, which are an integral part of the rice ecosystem.     

Ethnoveterinary health management practices using medicinal plants in South Asia – a review

Animal rearing is the major occupation of most population of South Asian countries. Due to lack of resources and limited approach to modern medicine, most of the livestock raisers prefer to use plant-based traditional medicine also referred to as ethnoveterinary medicine (EVM). Indeed, the use of medicinal plants in South Asia dates back to several centuries with documented evidences. However, there is currently a dearth of documentation and compilation of use of medicinal plants for animal diseases in this part of the world. This review aims to provide an up-to-date compilation of common medicinal plants used for the treatment and/or management of common animal diseases in South Asian countries. Extensive literature search was conducted online and relevant data was retrieved from well-known scientific databases. A total of 276 plants belonging to 95 families have been documented to be in common use for managing 14 different categories of animal diseases. Solanaceae, Lamiaceae, Fabaceae, and Leguminosae were most common plant families in terms of their plant species used for EVM. Gastric diseases were commonly reported and accounted for 72 species of plants used for its treatment followed by the miscellaneous disorders category and skin diseases comprising of 65 and 39 plant species respectively. Herbs accounted for 46% of the total plant species, followed by trees (33%), and shrubs (18%). The EVM were applied through different routes of administration; oral administration accounted for 72% followed by topical application 27%, while burning of plant parts to create smoke around animals to repel insects was less common (1%). It is anticipated that the present review will stimulate further ethnoveterinary research among livestock disease management practices in South Asia.     

Tenogenic induction of equine mesenchymal stem cells by means of growth factors and low-level laser technology

Tendons regenerate poorly due to a dense extracellular matrix and low cellularity. Cellular therapies aim to improve tendon repair using mesenchymal stem cells and tenocytes; however, a current limitation is the low proliferative potential of tenocytes in cases of severe trauma. The purpose of this study was to develop a method useful in veterinary medicine to improve the differentiation of Peripheral Blood equine mesenchymal stem cells (PB-MSCs) into tenocytes. PB-MSCs were used to study the effects of the addition of some growth factors (GFs) as TGFβ3 (transforming growth factor), EGF2 (Epidermal growth factor), bFGF2 (Fibroblast growth factor) and IGF-1 (insulin-like growth factor) in presence or without Low Level Laser Technology (LLLT) on the mRNA expression levels of genes important in the tenogenic induction as Early Growth Response Protein-1 (EGR1), Tenascin (TNC) and Decorin (DCN). The singular addition of GFs did not show any influence on the mRNA expression of tenogenic genes whereas the specific combinations that arrested cell proliferation in favour of differentiation were the following: bFGF2 + TGFβ3 and bFGF2 + TGFβ3 + LLLT. Indeed, the supplement of bFGF2 and TGFβ3 significantly upregulated the expression of Early Growth Response Protein-1 and Decorin, while the use of LLLT induced a significant increase of Tenascin C levels. In conclusion, the present study might furnish significant suggestions for developing an efficient approach for tenocyte induction since the external administration of bFGF2 and TGFβ3, along with LLLT, influences the differentiation of PB-MSCs towards the tenogenic fate.     

Effect of FMD vaccination on semen quality parameters in Karan Fries and Murrah buffalo bulls

Effect of Foot and Mouth disease (FMD) vaccination was studied on semen quality parameters of 19 Karan Fries (KF) and eight Murrah (MU) breeding bulls during the period 2002 to 2004 at Artificial Breeding Complex, NDRI, Karnal. A total of non-vaccinated 155 KF and 72 MU bulls' ejaculates were taken as control, while 169 KF and 51 MU bulls' ejaculates, collected after vaccination, were used to study the effect of vaccination stress. The results showed that FMD vaccination had no significant (P > 0.05) effect on ejaculate volume and total volume per day of semen in both KF and MU bulls. Volume of semen increased slightly during post-vaccination period in both the breeds. After FMD vaccination, there was significant (P < 0.01) decrease in mass activity (2.27 ± 0.06 vs. 1.67 ± 0.07 and 2.49 ± 0.09. vs. 1.75 ± 0.10, for KF and MU, respectively), initial motility (56.89 ± 0.03% vs. 44.62 ± 0.02% and 62.26 ± 0.04% vs. 47.08 ± 0.05%, for KF and MU, respectively), sperm concentration (754.19 ± 23.96 vs. 554.14 ± 22.95 × 10⁶/ml and 848.61 ± 33.65 vs. 571.57 ± 39.99 × 10⁶/ml, for KF and MU, respectively), and total sperm output per ejaculate (3,685.94 ± 158.40 vs. 2,781.54 ± 151.70 × 10⁶ and 2,218.75 ± 133.14 vs. 1,582.84 ± 158.20 × 10⁶, for KF and MU, respectively). Application of FMD vaccine had significantly (P < 0.05) adverse effect on most of the seminal attributes during post-vaccination in KF and MU buffalo bulls. So, the spermiograms affected following vaccination suggest that in bovines, the semen collection and preservation should be suspended till normal fertility of sperm is restored to avoid the failure of conception from artificial insemination using such semen.