Analysis of preference for domestic grass‐fed beef in Japanese youths

A questionnaire based on sensory evaluation of completely domestic grass‐fed beef was carried out on 157 Japanese undergraduate students aged between 18 and 22 years in Kitasato University. The sensory evaluation sheet consisted of 10 questions concerning preference for domestic grass‐fed beef, and three demographic/lifestyle questions. Using principal component analysis and cluster analysis, the respondents were divided into four groups (G1–G4). G1 accepted almost all properties. G2 accepted most properties but disliked chewiness. G3 accepted juiciness and flavor but disliked the color and texture of the meat. G4 tended to dislike almost all properties. According to chi‐square test, most G2‐people statistically liked other commercial beef and G4‐people had neutral and negative impressions. G1‐ or G3‐people did not have any significant tendency as regards beef preference. These results indicate that most of the young respondents who preferred domestic grass‐fed beef could not accept its texture, and some respondents could accept its juiciness and flavor. It is also suggested that a part of the people who like commercial beef do not prefer chewiness of grass‐fed beef. Such information will aid grass‐fed beef cattle breeders, producers and packers to improve the quality of beef and its evaluation.     

Expression and characterization of rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss recombinant myoglobin

Fish Physiology and Biochemistry - Recombinant expression system was established for rainbow trout myoglobin (Mb) considering its unique primary structure of having one unusual deletion and two...     

Ethanol Does Not Promote MeIQx-initiated Rat Colon Carcinogenesis Based on Evidence from Analysis of a Colon Cancer Surrogate Marker

Epidemiological studies suggest that alcohol consumption increases the risk of developing colorectal cancer. However, the data are confounded by numerous cosegregating variables. To cast further light on the relationships between alcohol intake and colon cancer development, 21-day-old male F344/DuCrj rats were fed 200 ppm 2-amino-3,8-dimethylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoxaline (MeIQx) in their diet for 8 weeks and doses of 0, 0.1, 0.3, 1, 3, 10 and 20% of ethanol in their drinking water ad libitum for 16 weeks thereafter. The rats were sacrificed after 24 weeks of experiment, and aberrant crypt foci (ACF), surrogate lesions for colon cancer, were examined under a light microscope at low magnification. Ethanol was found not to affect the ACF formation at any dose compared with the initiated-controls. Furthermore, ethanol did not alter colon epithelial cell proliferation. These data, obtained by analysis of a colon cancer surrogate marker lesion, indicate that ethanol lacks promotion activity for MeIQx-initiated rat colon carcinogenesis.     

Effect of SCD and SREBP genotypes on fatty acid composition in adipose tissue of Japanese Black cattle herds

Fatty acid composition of beef adipose tissue is one of important traits because high proportions of monounsaturated fatty acid are related to favorable beef flavor and tenderness. In this study, we investigated effects of genetic factors such as stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD) and sterol regulatory element binding protein (SREBP) on beef carcass traits including fatty acid composition using two cattle populations. Sire effect was significantly related to almost all traits except BMS, suggesting that the trait examined in this study is highly controlled by genetic factors. The effect of SCD genotype on fatty acid composition was detected remarkably in both cattle groups, especially on stearic and oleic acids. This result was consistent with our previous studies and suggests that SCD is associated with fatty acid composition. Unlike SCD genotyping, the effect of SREBP genotype was not identified in this study. Our results suggested that SCD genotype would contribute to improving beef quality in field populations. Further studies about the relationship among these factors will bring an insight into the molecular mechanism of fatty acid metabolism in cattle.     

The evaluation of the curd forming ability of milk replacers

Inadequate milk curd formation in the abomasum of newborn calves causes malnutrition and diarrhea. In order to define the factors of inadequate curd formation, we compared the curd forming ability among 9 kinds of milk replacers, bulk milk (raw milk), and skim milk both in vitro and in vivo . When rennet was added, the raw milk and one milk replacer formed firm curds. The rest of the milk replacers and skim milk did not form any curd. When a solution of HCl was added, raw milk, three milk replacers and skim milk formed the curd at pH 4.5, but the other milk replacers did not. When HCl was added following the rennet, raw milk, one milk replacer and skim milk formed the curd. In vivo , raw milk, two milk replacers and skim milk showed good curd formation whereas the other milk replacers showed poor curd formation inside the abomasums of the calves. This study showed that most of the milk replacers sold in Japan could not form the curd with rennet.     

Effects of feeding level of milk replacer on body growth,plasma metabolite and insulin concentrations,and visceral organ growth of suckling calves

The objective was to evaluate effects of feeding level of milk replacer on body growth, plasma metabolite and insulin concentrations, and allometric growth of visceral organs in suckling calves. Holstein bull calves (n = 8; 3–4 days of age) were fed either a low amount (average 0.63 kgDM/day, LM) or high amount (average 1.15 kgDM/day, HM) of high protein milk replacer until they were slaughtered at 6 weeks of age. Body weight (BW) at 4, 5, and 6 weeks of age, feed intake, average daily gain, and feed efficiency were higher in the HM than LM calves. The HM group had higher plasma glucose at 3 and 4 weeks of age and insulin levels after the age of 4 weeks compared with LM calves whereas no effect was detected on plasma nonesterified fatty acid or urea nitrogen concentrations. The HM calves had greater empty body weight (EBW), viscera‐free BW and most of the organs dissected than LM calves. Relative weights (% of EBW) of liver, spleen, kidneys, and internal fat were higher, whereas head and large intestine was lower in HM than LM calves. The results suggest that increased milk feeding levels would accelerate the growth of the body and specific organs.     

Mutation of alpha-tubulin genes in trifluralin-resistant water foxtail (Alopecurus aequalis)

BACKGROUND: Trifluralin‐resistant biotypes of water foxtail (Alopecurus aequalis) have been identified in wheat fields from northern Kyushu, Japan. Water foxtail is a winter‐annual grassy weed, causing substantial crop losses. This study reports on mutation in α‐tubulin (TUA) genes from water foxtail, the site of action of trifluralin. RESULTS: Two trifluralin‐sensitive (S) Chikugo and Ukiha biotypes and four trifluralin‐resistant (R) Asakura‐1, Asakura‐2, Tamana and Tosu biotypes of water foxtail were used for herbicide resistance analysis. R biotypes showed 5.7–30.7‐fold trifluralin resistance compared with the S biotypes. No differences in the uptake and translocation of ¹⁴C‐trifluralin were observed between Chikugo (S) biotype and Asakura‐1 (R) biotype. Most of the ¹⁴C detected in the plant material was in the root tissue, and no substantial increases were noted in shoot tissues. Comparative TUA sequence analysis revealed two independent single amino acid changes: change of Val into Phe at position 202 in TUA1 and change of Leu into Met at position 125 in TUA3 in Asakura‐1 biotype. In the Tamana (R) biotype, two amino acid changes of Leu to Phe at position 136 and Val to Phe at position 202 were observed in the predicted amino acid sequence of TUA1, compared with Chikugo (S) biotype. CONCLUSION: The results provide preliminary molecular explanation for the resistance of water foxtail to trifluralin, a phenomenon that has arisen as a result of repeated exposure to this class of herbicide. This is the first report of α‐tubulin mutation in water foxtail and for any Alopecurus species reported in the literature. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Effects of food colorants on photooxidation of lipids added to Alaska pollack <Emphasis Type="Italic">Theragra chalcogramma</Emphasis> surimi

Food colorants including rose bengal, erythrosine B, phloxine B and cochineal extracts were added to Alaska pollack Theragra chalcogramma surimi which was previously added with methyl linoleate (MeLe) or ethyl eicosapentaenoate (EPA Et). All the surimi were exposed to a 100-watt light tungsten bulb (4500 lux) in a cold room at 5°C. Four isomeric hydroperoxides, including 13-cis, trans-, 13-trans, trans-, 9-trans,cis- and 9-trans,trans-MeLe hydroperoxides, were generated by oxidation of MeLe added to surimi with and without cochineal extracts after exposure to light for several hours. For the surimi containing rose bengal, erythrosine B and phloxine B, extracted lipids contained not only the above four hydroperoxide isomers but also 12-cis,trans-as well as 10-trans,cis- MeLe hydroperoxides. EPA Et added to surimi which contained rose bengal, erythrosine B and phloxine B generated characteristic isomeric hydroperoxides, including 6-cis,trans- and 17-cis,trans-EPA Et hydroperoxides due to ¹O₂ mediated oxidation. The pro-oxidative potentials of four food colorants in surimi against added EPA Et or MeLe increased as the order of cochineal extracts < phloxine B<erythrosine B<rose bengal. These results clearly demonstrated that the addition of certain food colorants to surimi accelerated ¹O₂ mediated lipid oxidation to result in the generation of characteristic hydroperoxide isomers.     

Leukotoxin family genes in Staphylococcus aureus isolated from domestic animals and prevalence of lukM-lukF-PV genes by bacteriophages in bovine isolates

Leukotoxin family genes in Staphylococcus aureus isolated from domestic animals were examined by polymerase chain reaction. LukS and lukF genes were detected in all 48 avian and 72 porcine isolates of S. aureus. LukE and lukD genes, located in a putative staphylococcal pathogenicity island (Sapln3/Saplm3), were recognized in 44 (91.7%) of 48 avian isolates, but these genes were not detected in porcine isolates. In 297 bovine isolates collected from mastitic cow's milk and bulk milk from dairy farms in two regions, lukM and lukF-PV(P83) genes in addition to lukS-lukF and lukE-lukD genes were detected in 100 (62.5%) of the 160 isolates from Ishikawa and in118 (86.1%) of the 137 isolates from Hokkaido. When the lysogeny of S. aureus bovine isolates was examined by treatment with mitomycin C, clearing of the culture due to cell lysis was observed in 34 (91.9%) of 37 lukM-lukF-PV(P83) genes--positive isolates. In addition, we isolated a novel lukM-lukF-PV(P83)-carrying (designated phiLukM), and revealed that the lukM-lukF-PV(P83) genes were located very close to an amidase gene on the temperate phage genomes. These results suggest horizontal transmission of lukM-lukF-PV(P83) genes by temperate bacteriophages in S. aureus of bovine origin.     

Macroscopic study of the functional significance of the forearm muscles in the giant panda

The extensor and flexor group muscles and their related muscles were functional-morphologically observed in the dead body of the giant panda to clarify the action of the forearm and the palm in the manipulation of the species. The Musculus flexor carpi ulnaris had two developed heads, however, we can conclude that the contraction of this muscle slightly changes the angle of the accessory carpal bone to the ulna. The data pointed out that the accessory carpal bone acts as a supporting post, when the giant panda seizes the object. The M. abductor digiti I longus possessed the well-developed origin in both ulna and radius. These findings suggest that this muscle may function as a supinator of the forearm. We also suggest that the well-developed M. pronator quadratus and M. pronator teres, and the proximal part of the M. abductor digiti I longus and the M. supinator may efficiently contribute to the pronator-spinator action of the forearm, when the giant panda brings the food to its mouth using the manipulation system equipped in the palm region.