In situ and in vitro antioxidant activity of sweetpotato anthocyanins

Anthocyanins from a variety of fruits and vegetables have been shown to possess potent antioxidant activity in vitro, but scavenging of free radicals by anthocyanins has only been demonstrated in situ in the leaves of certain plants. We report on a new sweetpotato that exhibits mottled purple flesh attributable to high concentrations of anthocyanins. By perfusing transverse sweetpotato sections with the reactive oxygen species H(2)O(2), followed by the H(2)O(2) sensitive fluorochrome scopletin, we show that anthocyanins act as antioxidants in situ within the sweetpotato storage roots. We also demonstrate in vitro antioxidant activity by sweetpotato anthocyanins, where an additive effect with hydroxycinnamic acids is observed. Anthocyanic foods have been shown to offer protection against a variety of degenerative disease processes. Given that sweetpotato can be eaten several hundred grams at a time and as a staple, these data are consistent with the possibility of superior health protection by anthocyanic varieties of sweetpotato in comparison to most common fruits and vegetables.     

An Integrated Modeling Approach to Total Watershed Management: Water Quality and Watershed Assessment of Cheney Reservoir, Kansas, USA

Degradation of water quality is the major health concern for lakes and reservoirs in the central regions of the United States as a result of heavily devoted agricultural production. A vital key to the development of a reservoir management strategy is to identify nutrient loading that describes associated water quality conditions in reservoirs. This study integrated AnnAGNPS watershed and BATHTUB lake models to simulate actual lake water quality conditions of Cheney Reservoir, KS, and demonstrated the use of the coupled model for simulating lake response to changes in different watershed land use and management scenarios. The calibrated current-conditions model simulated in-lake reductions as much as 52% for TN, 48% for TP, and 70% for chlorophyll a due to conversion to native grass, and increases as much as 4% for TN, 9% for TP and 6% for chlorophyll a due to conversion of land from the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) to cropland (15.5% of watershed). This model also demonstrated an increase in chlorophyll a (19%) as the lake sediment capacity was reached over the next century.     

Presumed acquired dynamic pectus excavatum in a cat

An 11-year-old, spayed female American domestic shorthair cat was presented with open-mouth breathing and dyspnea due to respiratory tract disease. Radiographically, there was thickening of the retropharyngeal soft tissue and soft palate, focal pulmonary change, and severe pectus excavatum (PE), best seen on the left lateral view. Repeat thoracic radiographs 4 months later showed persistent PE, but only on the right lateral view; PE was absent on the left lateral view. The dynamic component of the observed PE was presumably acquired secondary to chronic upper respiratory disease and/or concurrent increased pliability of the thoracic wall from prolonged prednisolone treatment.     

Suspended sediment load prediction of river systems: An artificial neural network approach

Information on suspended sediment load is crucial to water management and environmental protection. Suspended sediment loads for three major rivers (Mississippi, Missouri and Rio Grande) in USA are estimated using artificial neural network (ANN) modeling approach. A multilayer perceptron (MLP) ANN with an error back propagation algorithm, using historical daily and weekly hydroclimatological data (precipitation P_(t), current discharge Q_(t), antecedent discharge Q_(t−1), and antecedent sediment load SL_(t−1)), is used to predict the suspended sediment load SL_(t) at the selected monitoring stations. Performance of ANN was evaluated using different combinations of input data sets, length of record for training, and temporal resolution (daily and weekly data). Results from ANN model were compared with results from multiple linear regressions (MLR), multiple non-linear regression (MNLR) and Autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) using correlation coefficient (R), mean absolute percent error (MAPE) and model efficiency (E). Comparison of training period length was also made (4, 3 and 2 years of training and 1, 2 and 3 years of testing, respectively). The model efficiency (E) and R² values were slightly higher for the 4 years of training and 1 year of testing (4 * 1) for Mississippi River, indifferent for Missouri and slightly lower for Rio Grande River. Daily simulations using Input 1 (P_(t), Q_(t), Q_(t−1), SL_(t−1)) and three years of training and two years of testing (3 * 2) performed better (R² and E of 0.85 and 0.72, respectively) than the simulation with two years of training and three years of testing (2 * 3) (R² and E of 0.64 and 0.46, respectively). ANN predicted daily values using Input 1 and 3 * 2 architecture for Missouri (R² = 0.97) and Mississippi (R² = 0.96) were better than those of Rio Grande (R² = 0.65). Daily predictions were better compared to weekly predictions for all three rivers due to higher correlation within daily than weekly data. ANN predictions for most simulations were superior compared to predictions using MLR, MNLR and ARIMA. The modeling approach presented in this paper can be potentially used to reduce the frequency of costly operations for sediment measurement where hydrological data is readily available.     

Improved sero-monitoring assay for classical swine fever (CSF) using the recombinant E2 protein of a recent Korean isolate

Classical swine fever (CSF) is a highly contagious disease of pigs that causes fever, diarrhea and paralysis, often resulting in death. E2 is the major structural protein of the CSF virus (CSFV) and mediates the entrance of the virus, subsequently inducing a neutralizing immune response. In this study, the E2 gene of a recent Korean isolate of CSF, SW03, was cloned and the DNA sequence was compared to other strains via phylogenetic analysis. With the purified E2 protein, an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed for the serodiagnosis of CSFV infection. The sensitivity and specificity of the E2-ELISA were 96.1% and 94.8%, respectively. A total of 17 out of 485 field-collected pig sera tested demonstrated conflicting results between two ELISA methods, a commercial kit and the E2-ELISA. Of these sera, 60% were determined to be CSFV positive by a virus neutralization test (VNT), suggesting involvement of different immune responses in the cases of CSFV infection. As the E2-ELISA was developed using a recent Korean isolate, SW03, this assay is capable of rapidly identifying newly emerging CSFV strains.     

Detection of anti-Babesia gibsoni heat shock protein 70 antibody and anti-canine heat shock protein 70 antibody in sera from Babesia gibsoni-infected dogs

Antibodies that recognized either Babesia gibsoni or canine red blood cell (RBC) 70-kilodalton (kDa) protein were detected in serum from acutely and chronically B. gibsoni-infected. In those sera, antibodies that reacted with recombinant B. gibsoni and canine heat shock protein 70 (rBgHsp70 and rcHsp70) were detected; therefore, B. gibsoni and canine RBC 70-kDa proteins seemed to be BgHsp70 and cHsp70, respectively. In infected dogs, the amounts of these antibodies increased after infection. Interestingly, polyclonal antibody raised against rBgHsp70 in two rabbits reacted not only with rBgHsp70 but also with rcHsp70 and native cHsp70 from canine RBCs. Because BgHsp70 showed high homology with cHsp70 (70.8%), anti-rBgHsp70 antibody might cross-react with cHsp70. Additionally, the localizations of both BgHsp70 and cHsp70 were observed by indirect fluorescence assay. As a result, cHsp70 was not found on the membrane surface of erythrocytes, suggesting that erythrocytes would not be targets of anti-cHsp70 antibody. Meanwhile, only exoerythrocytic parasites were stained by anti-rBgHsp70 antibody. This result showed that BgHsp70 would be expressed on the surface of parasites during the exoerythrocytic stage. These results indicated that BgHsp70 was a highly immunogenic protein in canine B. gibsoni infection, and that exoerythrocytic parasites might be targets of anti-BgHsp70 antibody.     

Presumptive migrating gall bladder mucocoele in two dogs with gall bladder rupture

A 10‐year‐old neutered female soft‐coated wheaten terrier and a 10‐year‐old, entire female Pomeranian were presented for vomiting and anorexia. Using ultrasound, an oval structure with a stellate, kiwifruit‐like appearance typical of a gall bladder mucocoele was observed in the caudal abdomen of the soft‐coated wheaten terrier and adjacent to the liver in the Pomeranian. There was also a moderate volume of abdominal effusion in both dogs. Cytology of the peritoneal fluid indicated a sterile exudative process but varied between the two dogs, with an absence of bile pigment in the soft‐coated wheaten terrier and marked bile peritonitis in the Pomeranian. An entire free‐floating ectopic mucocoele was confirmed via exploratory laparotomy with concomitant gall bladder rupture and common bile duct obstruction. Both dogs recovered completely after surgery. This is the first report of cases of gall bladder rupture with entire free‐floating gall bladder mucocoeles in dogs.     

Chemical composition,in vitro gas production,methane production and fatty acid profile of canola silage (Brassica napus) with four levels of molasses

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of four levels of molasses on chemical composition, in vitro digestibility, methane production and fatty acid profile of canola silages. A canola (Brassica napus var. Monty) crop was established in a small-scale agricultural farm and harvested 148 days after sowing. Four levels of molasses were tested with respect to the fresh weight (1.5 kg); these were 1% (CS-1), 2% (CS-2), 3% (CS-3) and 4% (CS-4) molasses, and 0% molasses (CS-0) was included as a control. A total of 45 microsilages were prepared using PVC pipes (4 in. of diameter × 20 cm of length), and the forage was compressed using a manual press. The effects of control and treatments were tested using the general linear model Y?=?μ?+?T_i?+?E_ij. The linolenic acid (C18:3n3), palmitic acid (C16:0) and linoleic acid methyl ester (C18:2n6c) accounted for 30%, 21% and 10.5% of total fatty acids, respectively; the fermentation parameters and in vitro methane production were not affected (P?>?0.05) by treatments; in vitro digestibility decreased significantly (P?<?0.05) as the level of molasses increased. It was concluded that CS-4 improved the DM content by 9% and showed high content of linolenic acid methyl ester. The gross energy of canola silages could favour the oleic acid methyl ester.

     

A new method for assessing foliar uptake of fungicides using Congo Red as a tracer

In order to develop a new method for measuring foliar uptake of fungicides, Congo Red was selected as a tracer, and optimum procedures were established for washing, extracting and analyzing it and fungicides from leaf surfaces. Congo Red, a water‐soluble dye, was not absorbed into cucumber or rice leaf, even in the presence of various surfactants, and was completely washable from leaf surfaces by aqueous acetonitrile solutions. Congo Red and fungicides in washings were quantified to calculate the amount of foliar uptake of the latter, by comparing the ratio to Congo Red. The optimum concentration of Congo Red in a formulation should be established in order to minimize its influence on fungicide uptake. Although Congo Red has proved to be useful with a conventional droplet application method, it will give more realistic and practical results with the spraying method used in the present study. © 2001 Society of Chemical Industry     

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L. cv. Gogu valley) protein as a novel antimicrobial agent in weanling pigs

A total of 280 weaned pigs (Landrace x Yorkshire x Duroc) were used in a 28-d growth study to investigate the effect of feeding different levels of potato proteins on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, immune response, small intestinal morphology, and bacterial populations in feces and large intestine. Pigs (initially 6.42 +/- 0.74 kg of BW and 23 +/- 3 d of age) were randomly allotted to 5 treatments on the basis of BW, each treatment composed of 4 pens, each pen having 14 pigs. Dietary treatments included positive control (PC; basal diet + 150 mg/kg apramycin and 10 mg/ kg colistin sulfate); and potato protein (PP), consisting of the basal diet with 0, 0.25, 0.50, or 0.75% of potato protein. Diets were fed in 2 phases: phase I (d 0 to 14 postweaning) and phase 2 (d 14 to 28 postweaning). Potato protein was extracted from a value-added type of the new potato variety, Solanum tuberosum L. cv. Gogu valley, and was shown to have a minimum inhibitory concentration of 300 to 500 mug/mL. Performance of PC was compared with 0.25 to 0.75% PP, whereas linear and quadratic trends of increasing PP (0 to 0.75% PP) were tested. Over the 28-d trial, pigs fed the PC diets showed improved overall ADG (P < 0.05) and G:F (P = 0.090) compared with pigs fed PP, whereas increasing levels of PP linearly improved ADG (P < 0.05), ADFI (P = 0.052), and G:F (P = 0.098). The digestibility of DM and CP in both the phases was greater in PC than PP, and feeding of PP linearly improved the DM digestibility (P < 0.05) in phase II. The bacterial populations in the feces of pigs fed PC and PP were comparable, except for total bacteria and coliform bacteria in the feces at d 14 and 28, which were decreased in PC; and feeding of PP was effective in linearly reducing the populations of microbes in feces and contents of cecum, colon, and rectum. There was linear increase (P < 0.10) in skin-fold thickness in response to phytohemagglutinin with an increase in PP levels. Haemagglutinin titers on d 21 were greater (P = 0.054) in PC, and at d 28 the haemagglutinin titers were quadratically affected in pigs fed PP (P = 0.070). There was a trend toward a decrease in crypt depth (P = 0.068) and a greater villus height:crypt depth ratio (P = 0.082) of ileum in PC compared with PP. These results suggest that PP may be an alternative to medicated feed with antibiotics because it showed antimicrobial activity by effectively reducing the population of coliform bacteria and also improved the performance of weanling pigs.