Depletion of stored nutrients during fasting in Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) juveniles

We evaluated growth performance and metabolic responses in Nile tilapia (Oreochromic niloticus) juveniles (30.2 ± 0.9 g) subjected to 1 (F1), 2 (F2), or 3 weeks (F3) of fasting and then refed for 10 weeks (10WR) compared to controls (FC), which were fed for the full 13-week trial. Weight gain and specific growth rate (SGR) during fasting were lower in all treatments compared to the FC. However, during refeeding, feed intake/body mass and SGR increased in F1, F2, and F3, inducing partial compensatory growth. The hepatosomatic index (HSI), visceral fat index (VFI), liver glycogen (LG), and carcass lipid levels dropped in all fasted fish compared to FC (P < 0.05), showing a depletion of stored nutrients such as fat and LG. Along with LG, fat reserves were mobilized during fasting to maintain basal metabolism and survival, but these energy constituents returned to control levels at 10WR, at which time HSI was higher in all refed fish compared to FC. Additionally, the variables VFI, LG, and lipid in carcass increased in all refed fish, equaling those of FC at 10WR. The results showed that, in contrast with other protocols that used smaller tilapia juveniles, the feeding strategies utilized for Nile tilapia juveniles in this study (1 to 3 weeks of fasting and 10WR) were able to induce only partial compensatory growth. It can be concluded that in situations that require complete food restriction in juvenile Nile tilapia (30 g), an acceptable strategy is to limit the period of fasting to 1 week or less to minimize losses and to achieve partial compensatory growth.     

Presence of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Ureaplasma diversum</Emphasis> in the genital tracts of female dairy cattle in Mato Grosso State,Brazil

Ureaplasma diversum infection in bovine females may result in various reproductive problems, including granular vulvovaginitis, abortion, weak calves, salpingitis, and spontaneous abortion. The presence of U. diversum in a dairy bovine population from midwestern Brazil has not been established. The aim of this study was to determine whether U. diversum was present in dairy cattle from midwestern Brazil using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Vulvovaginal mucus was analyzed from 203 cows located in six municipalities in the north region of Mato Grosso State, Brazil. A total of 25% of dairy cows with vulvovaginitis were positive for U. diversum. The factors evaluated were included in a multivariable logistic regression model with the presence of at least one positive cow in the herd serving as the dependent variable. Three variables were significantly associated with a U. diversum-positive PCR and were included in the final multivariable model: number of parities, vulvar lesions, and reproductive problems. For each new parity, the chance of U. diversum infection decreased 0.03-fold, indicating that cows with the highest number of parities were more protected. The presence of vulvar lesions was increased 17.6-fold in females positive for U. diversum, suggesting that this bacterium could be related to the red granular lesions in the vulvar mucosa, whereas reproductive problems were increased 7.6-fold. However, further investigations should be conducted to ascertain the effects of U. diversum in association with other mycoplasma species in the herds studied.     

Exudative epidermitis and porcine circovirus-2 infection in a Swedish SPF-herd

An outbreak of exudative epidermitis (EE) among piglets in a Swedish SPF-herd initiated a survey for indications as to the cause of disease.The herd was established by caesarean section and has been closed to all new animal material, with the exception of semen for artificial insemination (AI). The study comprised serum samples from the SPF-herd over a 10-year period (n=109) and a close monitoring of animals in the herd during the period after the EE outbreak. Serum samples from conventional boars at the AI-station servicing the herd were also included (n=9). All serum samples were tested for antibodies to porcine circovirus-2 (PCV-2). In addition, 3-week-old piglets from three litters (n=24) farrowed close after the initial EE outbreak were closely monitored for clinical signs of skin disease, sampled for Staphylococcus hyicus, tested for antibodies to porcine parvovirus and in sequentially collected serum samples tested for interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) and interleukin-6.The PVC-2 serology showed that animals in the herd were sero-negative at least until 2 months prior to the EE outbreak. During the period close after the EE outbreak the animals showed varying levels of antibodies to PCV-2 but all the tested animals had sero-converted 4 months later. The AI boars were also sero-positive to PCV-2 at the time of the EE outbreak. Animals in the SPF-herd remained sero-positive to PCV-2 during the following 7 years. In the monitored litters, one piglet had clinical EE and 15 piglets displayed defined erythemas on the abdomen. Fourteen of the piglets also had IFN-alpha in serum on one or more occasions during the study, indicating viral activity among the animals. S. hyicus was isolated from all of the piglets from the earliest sampling point (3 days of age) and onwards, irrespective of clinical signs. PCV-2 was isolated from lymph node tissue collected from one of the EE affected pigs.Further, increases in the number of stillborn piglets, small litters (<6 piglets) and repeat breeders could be correlated to the time of PCV-2 sero-conversion. Coincidence of active viral infection and sero-conversion to PCV-2 points to the virus as the cause of the EE outbreak and reproductive disturbances.