Effects of rice feeding on growth performance and protein (amino acids) metabolism in weanling piglets

We investigated the effects of rice feeding on growth performance and protein (amino acids) metabolism of weanling piglets. In all, 16 weanling piglets with an average initial weight of 7.5 kg were divided into two groups. One group was fed a corn‐soybean meal‐based diet, and the other was fed a rice‐soybean meal diet, containing around 46% of corn or rice, respectively. A two‐week growth trial was conducted. The average daily gain (p = .025) and feed efficiency (p = .011) in rice‐fed piglets were significantly higher than those in corn‐fed piglets. Liver lysine‐ketoglutarate reductase activity tended to be lower (p = .073) in rice‐fed piglets than in corn‐fed piglets. Plasma urea nitrogen concentration in rice‐fed piglets was significantly lower than that in corn‐fed piglets. Plasma glucose and insulin concentrations were significantly higher in rice‐fed piglets than in corn‐fed piglets. Plasma‐free valine, isoleucine, and tryptophan concentrations were significantly higher in rice‐fed piglets than in corn‐fed piglets. In contrast, plasma histidine concentration was significantly lower in rice‐fed piglets than in corn‐fed piglets. Overall, these results show that rice feeding improves the growth performance and affects the protein (amino acids) metabolism in weanling piglets.     

Ocular Toxicity of Benzalkonium Chloride Homologs Compared with Their Mixtures

This study was performed to assess the in vivo ocular toxicity of benzalkonium chloride (BAK) homologs compared with commercially available BAK (BAK mixture) and to assess the ocular toxicity of BAK homolog after repeated ocular application. Rabbit eyes were examined by ophthalmology and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) after 10 applications of BAK homologs with C12 (C12-BAK) and C14 (C14-BAK) alkyl chain lengths and a BAK mixture at concentrations of 0.001% (w/v), 0.003% (w/v), 0.005% (w/v), 0.01% (w/v) and 0.03% (w/v). The ocular toxicity of C12-BAK to rabbit eyes was examined by ophthalmology and histopathology after repeated ocular application for 39 weeks. In addition, the antimicrobial activities of C12-BAK and C14-BAK against A. niger, S. aureus and P. aeruginosa were assessed. Ocular toxicity of C12-BAK was less than those of the BAK mixture and C14-BAK. No ocular toxicity was noted after ocular application of 0.01% C12-BAK to rabbits for 39 weeks. C12-BAK showed antimicrobial activities at a concentration of 0.003%. These results suggest that the use of C12-BAK to replace BAK mixture as a preservative in ophthalmic solutions should be considered in order to reduce the incidence of the corneal epithelial cell injury induced clinically by BAK.     

Effect of cellulase supplementation in low-crude protein diets on performance, nitrogen excretion, fat deposition, hepatic lipogenic and lipolytic enzyme activity in broilers

1. Two experiments were conducted to investigate the effect of dietary enzyme supplementation of a low-protein diet on performance, nitrogen excretion, fat deposition, hepatic lipogenic and lipolytic enzyme activity in 7-21- (Experiment 1) and 21-42-d-old (Experiment 2) male broiler chicks. 2. Chicks were given diets containing 210 g (Experiment 1) or 170 g (Experiment 2) crude protein (CP)/kg (Control), amino acid-fortified diets 190 g (Experiment 1) and 150 g (Experiment 2) CP/kg (Low-protein), and a low-protein diet supplemented with 1000 U/kg of cellulase. 3. In Experiment 1, growth performance and abdominal fat deposition were not affected by dietary treatments, and birds given low-protein diets excreted less nitrogen. The activities of hepatic lipogenic and lipolytic enzymes were not different among the three dietary groups. 4. In Experiment 2, the dietary treatment did not affect growth performance or abdominal fat weight. Nitrogen excretion was significantly lower in chicks given the 150 g/kg CP diet than those on the 170 g/kg CP diet; however, nitrogen retention was no different among the treatments. Dietary CP and enzyme supplementation did not significantly affect hepatic enzyme activities. 5. These results suggest that CP content in the broiler diet can be reduced by 20 g/kg without lowering performance by the supplementation of crystalline amino acids, and can reduce nitrogen excretion by about 25%. Cellulase supplementation of a low-CP diet slightly lowered abdominal fat deposition; however, it did not significantly affect hepatic lipogenic and lipolytic enzyme activity.     

Genetic analysis of variations in the sugar chain composition at the C-3 position of soybean seed saponins

Saponins are sterols or triterpene glycosides that are widely distributed in plants. The biosynthesis of soybean saponins is thought to involve many kinds of glycosyltransferases, which is reflected in their structural diversity. Here, we performed linkage analyses of the Sg-3 and Sg-4 loci, which may control the sugar chain composition at the C-3 sugar moieties of the soybean saponin aglycones soyasapogenols A and B. The Sg-3 locus, which controls the production of group A saponin Af, was mapped to chromosome (Chr-) 10. The Sg-4 locus, which controls the production of DDMP saponin βa, was mapped to Chr-1. To elucidate the preference of sugar chain formation at the C-3 and C-22 positions, we analyzed the F₂ population derived from a cross between a mutant variety, Kinusayaka (sg-1⁰), for the sugar chain structure at C-22 position, and Mikuriya-ao (sg-3), with respect to the segregation of the composition of the group A saponins, and found that the formation of these sugar chains was independently regulated. Furthermore, a novel saponin, predicted to be A0-γg, 3-O-[β-d-galactopyranosyl (1→2)-β-d-glucuronopyranosyl]-22-O-α-l-arabinopyranosyl-soyasapogenol A, appeared in the hypocotyl of F₂ individuals with genotype sg-1⁰/sg-1⁰ sg-3/sg-3.     

Spontaneous Adenosquamous Carcinoma with Rapid Growth and EMT-like Changes in the Mammary Gland of a Young Adult Female BALB/c Mouse

This study histopathologically and immunohistochemically investigated a spontaneously occurring single mass subcutaneously located in the left lower abdomen of a female BALB/cAJcl−nu/+ mouse at 10 weeks of age. The mass was about 20 × 15 × 10 mm in size after formalin fixation; nevertheless, it was not detected by clinical observations at 9 weeks of age. H&E staining revealed the tumor origin was epithelial and probably arose from the mammary gland, and the tumor cells demonstrated a squamous, acinar or polyhedral/basal pattern. A cell kinetics analysis revealed that many of the tumor cells of the squamous, acinar or polyhedral/basal component were positive for PCNA and cyclin D1, although there were a few of TUNEL-positive tumor cells in all of the components. An epithelial/mesenchymal analysis demonstrated that most of the tumor cells of the squamous and acinar components contained keratin and E-cadherin; however, most of the tumor cells of the polyhedral/basal component were less or very weakly positive for these markers. The tumor cells of the squamous component were negative for vimentin and SMA; however, many of the tumor cells of the polyhedral/basal component exhibited vimentin. In addition, expression of SMA was confirmed in some tumor cells of the acinar and basal components. Based on the microscopic and immunohistochemical characterizations, the tumor was diagnosed to be adenosquamous carcinoma that originated from the mammary gland with rapid growth, and the tumor cells demonstrated epithelial-mesenchymal transition-like changes.     

Effect of melatonin on DNA damage of bovine cumulus cells during in vitro maturation (IVM) and on in vitro embryo development

The effect of melatonin during in vitro maturation (IVM) on DNA damage of cumulus cells (CCs) from bovine cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) and embryo development was evaluated. COCs from abattoir ovaries were cultured in maturation medium (MM) with 0.5μg/ml FSH and 5.0μg/ml LH (FSH-LH); 10(-9)M melatonin (MEL) or FSH-LH+MEL (FSH-LH-MEL). After 24h of in vitro maturation, the CCs surrounding the oocyte were subjected to DNA analysis by Comet assay. After in vitro fertilization and in vitro embryo culture, the embryo development rates were evaluated on day 2 post insemination (cleavage) and days 7-8 (blastocyst). The percentage of CCs with no DNA damage was significantly superior in MEL group (37.6±2.4) than in FSH-LH-MEL (28.0±2.4) and FSH-LH (17.8±2.41) groups. Cleavage and blastocysts rates were similar among groups. Melatonin during IVM protects the CCs from DNA damage but this effect did not influence embryo development in vitro.     

Ecology and epidemiology of anthrax in cattle and humans in Zambia

Anthrax is endemic in Western and North-western Provinces of Zambia. The disease occurs throughout the year and impacts negatively on the economy of the livestock industry and public health in Zambia. During 1989-1995, there were 1626 suspected cases of anthrax in cattle in Western province and of these 51 were confirmed. There were 220 cases of human anthrax cases in 1990 alone and 248 cases during 1991-1998 with 19.1% and 7.7% case fatality rates, respectively. Interplay of the ecology of affected areas and anthropogenic factors seem to trigger anthrax epidemics. Anthrax has drawn considerable attention in recent years due to its potential use as a biological weapon. In this paper, the history, current status and approaches towards the control of the disease in Zambia are discussed. Quarantine measures restrict trade of livestock and exchange of animals for draught power resulting in poor food security at household levels. Challenges of anthrax control are complex and comprise of socio-political, economical, environmental and cultural factors. Inadequate funding, lack of innovative disease control strategies and lack of cooperation from stakeholders are the major constraints to the control of the disease. It is hoped that the information provided here will stimulate continued awareness for the veterinary and medical authorities to maintain their surveillance and capabilities against the disease. This may lead to a culminating positive impact on livestock and human health in the southern African region.     

Effects of olprinone on myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury in dogs

We investigated the effect of olprinone on canine myocardial pump function and myocardial damage after ischemia-reperfusion injury. Three dogs of the experimental group were given olprinone (Olprinone group) and another 3 dogs were served as control (Intact group). All animals were occluded left anterior descending artery for 60 min, followed by 6 hr of reperfusion. In the experiment, hemodynamics, infarct area, creatine kinase and troponin-I were measured. Olprinone infusion induced significantly high cardiac output value and significantly low values in left ventricular end diastolic pressure and systemic vascular resistance index after reperfusion. Also, olprinone tend to attenuate the infarct area, creatine kinase and troponin-I.     

Cutaneous plasmacytoma in three golden hamsters (Mesocrietus auratus)

Spontaneously occurring cutaneous tumours in three golden hamsters were characterized using histological, immunohistochemical and ultrastructural methods. Histologically, the tumours were composed of sheets of round to oval plasmacytoid cells with eccentrically placed nuclei. Tissue sections were weakly positive for anti-B lymphocyte antigen (BLA) staining. Ultrastructurally, large amounts of rough endoplasmic reticulum in the cytoplasm were observed. BLA positivity and characteristics of ultrastructure showed the plasma cell origin.