Effects of dietary lysozyme levels on growth performance,intestinal morphology,non‐specific immunity and mRNA expression in weanling piglets

The aim of the present study was to determine the effect of dietary lysozyme levels on growth performance, gut health and non‐specific immunity of weanling piglets. A total of 150 weanling piglets were allocated to six treatments. The piglets were fed the same basel diet supplemented with 0, 30, 60, 90 and 120 mg/kg lysozyme as well as antibiotics for 28 days. From day 14 to day 28 of dietary treatment, piglets fed 90 mg/kg lysozyme had greater average daily gain than piglets fed control diet. During the whole experimental period, piglets fed 120 mg/kg lysozyme tended to have greater average daily gain than piglets fed control diet. Compared with piglets fed control diet, piglets fed diets containing antibiotics and 90 mg/kg lysozyme had greater villus height to crypt depth ratio in duodenum and jejunum. Additionally, dietary supplementation of 60 and 90 mg/kg lysozyme as well as antibiotics enhanced the phagocytic activity of peritoneal macrophages in piglets. In conclusion, dietary lysozyme can accelerate the growth of weanling piglets by improving gut health and non‐specific immunity and supplementing 90 mg/kg lysozyme is as effective as antibiotics (20 mg/kg colistin sulphate + 50 mg/kg kitasamycin) in improving the growth performance of weanling piglets.     

Rearing conditions affected responses of weaned pigs to organic acids showing a positive effect on digestibility,microflora and immunity

Three experiments were conducted to assess the response of weaned pigs to organic acid SF3, which contains 34% calcium formate, 16% calcium lactate, 7% citric acid and 13% medium chain fatty acids. Dietary treatments had no effect on growth performance of piglets (21‐day weaning) fed the commercial prestart diet for 1 week before receiving the experimental diets supplemented with SF3 at 0, 3 or 5 g/kg diet (Exp. 1), whereas diarrhea frequency averaged across a week was decreased by SF3 supplementation (5 g/kg diet) in piglets fed the experimental diets immediately after weaning (Exp. 2). In Exp. 3, piglets (28‐day weaning) were fed the control (containing pure colistin sulfate and enramycin, respectively, at 20 mg/kg diet) for 1 week and then were fed the control or SF3‐supplemented (5 g/kg diet) diet for 2 weeks. The SF3‐fed piglets had greater apparent ileal digestibility of calcium and dry matter, while also demonstrating greater overall gross energy, up‐regulated jejunal expression of sodium‐glucose cotransporter‐1 and transforming growth factor‐β, down‐regulated jejunal expression of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐α, higher ileal Lactobacillus, with lower total bacteria content, lower plasma TNF‐α but higher IgG levels than the control‐fed piglets. Collectively, SF3 consumption improved diarrhea resistance of weaned pigs by improving nutrient digestibility, piglet immunity and intestinal bacteria profile. © 2016 Japanese Society of Animal Science     

Prevalence of and intrinsic risk factors for appendicular osteosarcoma in dogs: 179 cases (1996-2005)

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of appendicular osteosarcoma (OSA) in Greyhounds compared with other breeds and identify potential intrinsic risk factors associated with development of OSA. DESIGN: Retrospective case series. ANIMALS: 179 dogs with primary appendicular OSA. PROCEDURES: Medical records of dogs in which primary appendicular OSA had been diagnosed between 1996 and 2005 were reviewed. Prevalence and crude odds ratios for OSA were calculated for various breeds by comparison with a reference population of mixed-breed dogs. Age and sex were examined as potential risk factors for the 3 breeds with highest prevalence. RESULTS: Breed period prevalence of OSA was highest for Greyhounds (21/339 [6.2%]), followed by Rottweilers (51/969 [5.3%]) and Great Danes (13/297 [4.4%]); all 21 Greyhounds with OSA were identified as having retired from racing. Sex was not identified as a risk factor for OSA in these breeds, but in all 3 breeds, risk of OSA increased with age. Greyhounds were significantly older at the time of OSA diagnosis (mean, 9.9 years) than were Rottweilers (8.3 years) and Great Danes (7.8 years). Rottweilers and Great Danes were more likely to have OSA involving the forelimbs than the hind limbs. The most frequent lesion sites for all 3 breeds were the proximal end of the humerus and distal end of the radius. The proximal end of the femur was also a common site for the Greyhounds. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results of the present study suggested that Greyhounds, Rottweilers, and Great Danes had an increased risk of developing OSA, compared with mixed-breed dogs.     

基于无人机影像的冠层光谱和结构特征监测甜菜长势

甜菜是中国北方地区重要的经济作物。快速、准确、高通量的获取甜菜的地上部和块根鲜质量、块根含糖率、叶绿素含量对甜菜生产具有重要意义。该研究采用无人机搭载数码和多光谱相机,获取甜菜叶丛快速生长期、块根及糖分增长期和糖分积累期的数码影像和多光谱影像,提取了冠层的结构特征和光谱特征。选择随机森林回归（Random Forest Regression,RFR）和偏最小二乘回归（Partial Least Squares Regression,PLSR）2种建模方法基于获取的冠层特征,构建甜菜全生育期的地上部和块根鲜质量、块根含糖率和SPAD（Soil and Plant Analyzer Development）值估算模型。研究结果表明,随机森林回归模型和偏最小二乘回归模型对地上部和块根鲜质量、含糖率都做出较好的预测,R2范围分别为0.9～0.94、0.88～0.9,rRMSE范围分别为7.6%～17%、8.8%～20%。对SPAD值的预测均较弱,R2分别为0.66和0.67。为了减小输入变量集的大小以及去掉对预测不敏感的变量,该研究采用置换重要性（Permutation Importance,PIMP）来筛选冠层光谱特征和结构特征中对预测有重要影响的变量。结果表明基于筛选出的重要性特征构建的随机森林回归模型和偏最小二乘回归模型对地上部和块根鲜质量、含糖率都做出较好的预测,R2范围分别为0.89～0.94、0.74～0.91,rRMSE范围分别为7.3%～19%、7.6%～19%。对SPAD值的预测均较弱,R2分别为0.65和0.68。进一步表明随机森林回归模型在精度上略好于偏最小二乘回归模型。同时基于PIMP筛选变量的方法在保持原有精度的同时能实现降低数据收集复杂性的目的。研究结果为基于无人机遥感技术快速、准确监测甜菜长势和估测块根类作物的根部活性物质提供了参考。     

联合收割机稻麦收获边界激光在线识别系统设计与试验

针对联合收割机收获边界在线识别问题,利用激光无损探测技术,开发了联合收割机收获边界在线识别系统。首先介绍了系统组成、激光传感器选型及工作原理,将传感器输出数据极坐标转换为直角坐标,建立稻麦轮廓特征数学模型。由于收获过程会产生大量的灰尘,会对激光探测距离及信号反射产生影响。通过与作物特征阈值比较,对受灰尘影响的错误数据进行有效识别与剔除。采用移动平均数字滤波算法,消除系统测量噪声。通过信号阶跃变化模式识别算法,实现了收获边界的在线检测,准确推算出联合收割机作业割幅,并进行了田间试验研究。试验结果表明,该系统可实现在线监测,收获边界测量误差不大于12 cm,可为联合收割机智能监控系统的实际应用提供参考。     

Nutrient limitations to bacterial and fungal growth during cellulose decomposition in tropical forest soils

Nutrients constrain the soil carbon cycle in tropical forests, but we lack knowledge on how these constraints vary within the soil microbial community. Here, we used in situ fertilization in a montane tropical forest and in two lowland tropical forests on contrasting soil types to test the principal hypothesis that there are different nutrient constraints to different groups of microorganisms during the decomposition of cellulose. We also tested the hypotheses that decomposers shift from nitrogen to phosphorus constraints from montane to lowland forests, respectively, and are further constrained by potassium and sodium deficiency in the western Amazon. Cellulose and nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, and combined) were added to soils in situ, and microbial growth on cellulose (phospholipid fatty acids and ergosterol) and respiration were measured. Microbial growth on cellulose after single nutrient additions was highest following nitrogen addition for fungi, suggesting nitrogen as the primary limiting nutrient for cellulose decomposition. This was observed at all sites, with no clear shift in nutrient constraints to decomposition between lowland and montane sites. We also observed positive respiration and fungal growth responses to sodium and potassium addition at one of the lowland sites. However, when phosphorus was added, and especially when added in combination with other nutrients, bacterial growth was highest, suggesting that bacteria out-compete fungi for nitrogen where phosphorus is abundant. In summary, nitrogen constrains fungal growth and cellulose decomposition in both lowland and montane tropical forest soils, but additional nutrients may also be of critical importance in determining the balance between fungal and bacterial decomposition of cellulose.     

RRR-RRR Ⅱ级杆组的等效系统动力学建模

将等效的思想与有限元的方法结合起来，用等效元素法建立了RRR Ⅱ级杆组的动力学等效模型，给出了其动力学微分方程，将建模的关键归结为二阶张量Tia和三阶张量Tibc的建立以及等效质量阵的组装。对给定的RRR—RRR六杆机构进行了建模和求解，给出了其动力响应曲线。实例表明，此方法与传统方法比较，无论从微分方程的列写，还是由计算机进行的解算，都显示出强大优势，解题效率高。     

甜菜素合成相关基因BvDDC1的克隆与表达分析

甜菜素是一种重要的天然色素,具有广阔的应用前景。为探究调控甜菜素合成关键基因BvDDC1功能,本研究测定了不同生长阶段甜菜‘Yellow chard’的甜菜素含量和BvDDC1的相对表达量,同时采用同源克隆技术获得BvDDC1基因序列,并对其进行生物信息学分析及功能预测。结果表明:甜菜叶片中甜菜素含量随甜菜生长时间的延长呈现上升趋势,且BvDDC1在不同时期甜菜叶片中均有表达,呈现先上升后下降的趋势。甜菜素含量越高,BvDDC1表达量越高。BvDDC1序列全长为1509 bp,编码502个氨基酸,编码蛋白不具有跨膜结构,预测其在膜外发挥作用。系统进化树显示与菠菜亲缘关系较近,同源性最高。本研究结果可为解析甜菜素生物合成提供科学依据。     

Effects of formalin on total haemocytes count and histopathological changes in the shrimp Litopenaeus schmitti (Pérez‐Farfante & Kensley 1997)

Formalin is used in shrimp industry to eliminate ectoparasites and as a disinfectant. However, the effect of formalin on shrimp's defense mechanism is unknown. Several biomarkers were used to assess the immune response of juveniles of the shrimp Litopenaeus schmitti exposed to different concentrations of formalin (10, 25 and 50 mg L^?1) during 24 and 48 h. Formalin concentrations of 25 and 50 mg L^?1 produced a significant reduction in the total haemocyte count at both 24 and 48 h. Peroxidase and phenoloxidase activity did not show variations. The total protein concentration in haemolymph of shrimps was not significantly different between experimental groups. Histological analysis showed hyperplasia in the gills of animals exposed at 10 mg L^?1 for 24 h; however, the exposure at 25 and 50 mg L^?1 caused necrosis in gills, hepathopancreas and the antennal gland.     

Characterization,Pathogenicity and Chemical Control of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Streptomyces acidiscabies</Emphasis> Associated to Potato Common Scab

The pathogenicity of 10 bacterial isolates was investigated on potato, radish, carrot and beet, including sensitivity and pathogen control efficacy. The isolates were identified by morphological, biochemical and molecular methods. All isolates were pathogenic on radish, carrot, and beet, and were highly virulent on potato. Although the isolates were obtained from different locations in the El Fuerte Valley (Sinaloa, Mexico), they were similar in their morphological, physiological and biochemical characteristics. Sequences of the 16S rRNA gene obtained by PCR were identical for all isolates. These results indicate that the bacterial isolates from potato scabby tissue belong to S. acidiscabies. Furthermore, the effectiveness of fluazinam, both in vitro and under greenhouse and field conditions, represents a possibleoption for chemical control of potato common scab disease. While our results suggest that spraying at seeding is effective in controlling common scab, future studies to combine this treatment with seed dressing before planting will be conducted to determine if there is an increase in disease control.