Usefulness of histological criteria for assessing the adequacy of diets for Panulirus japonicus phyllosoma larvae

Mass seed production depends a great deal on the development of adequate artificial diets, which in turn depends on the development of methods to speedily and reliably assess the nutritional value of experimental diets. This study examined the sensitivity of light histological and ultrastructural criteria to detect differences in the nutritional value of diets for the Japanese spiny lobster, Panulirus japonicus (V. Siebold), phyllosoma larvae. The acceptability of diets, the apparent absorption of lipids and carbohydrates by the midgut gland cells, and the characteristics of various cell types were determined in 43-, 106- and 143-day-old intermoult phyllosoma fed diets of Mytilus edulis (L.) ovary alone (MO) or in combination with Anemia (MO+AR), which so far have given the best results in terms of growth and percentage of metamorphosis into puerulus, and two other diets considered less efficient, viz. Mytilus edulis testis (MT) and Artemia (AR). Acceptability of all diets attained 100% within 10 min of feeding as revealed by observation through the semitransparent cuticle of the larvae. Histological examination of larvae that ingested comparable amounts of food revealed pronounced variation in the absorption of lipids and carbohydrates by the midgut gland cells (AR相似文献   

Characterization of bagasse binderless particleboard manufactured in high-temperature range

This paper describes the features of binderless particleboard manufactured from sugarcane bagasse, under a high pressing temperature of 200–280 °C. Mechanical properties [i.e., modulus of rupture (MOR) and elasticity (MOE) in dry and wet conditions, internal bonding strength (IB)] and dimensional stability [i.e., thickness swelling (TS)] of the board were evaluated to investigate the effect of high pressing temperature. Recycled chip binderless particleboards were manufactured under the same conditions for comparison, and particleboards bonded with polymeric methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (PMDI) resin were manufactured as reference material. The target density was 0.8 g/cm³ for all of the boards. The results showed that the mechanical properties and dimensional stability of both types of binderless boards were improved by increasing the pressing temperature. Bagasse showed better performance than that of recycled chip as a raw material in all evaluations. Bagasse binderless particleboard manufactured at 260 °C had an MOE value of 3.5 GPa, which was equivalent to the PMDI particleboard, and a lower TS value of 3.7 % than that of PMDI particleboard. The MOR retention ratio under the dry and wet conditions was 87.0 %, while the ratio for the PMDI particleboard was only 54.6 %. The obtained results showed the possibility of manufacturing high-durability binderless particleboard, with good dimensional stability and water resistance, which previously were points of weakness for binderless boards. Manufacturing binderless boards under high temperature was effective even when using particles with poor contact area, and it was possible to express acceptable properties to allow the manufacture of particleboards. Further chemical analysis indicated a contribution of a saccharide in the bagasse to the improvement of the board properties.     

Effect of citrus pulp silage feeding on concentration of beta‐cryptoxanthin in plasma and milk of dairy cows

Citrus pulp is known to contain a functional molecule of beta‐cryptoxanthin which is one of the carotenoids showing anti‐oxidative capacity. Influences of citrus pulp silage feeding to dairy cows on beta‐cryptoxanthin concentration in plasma, other blood properties and milking performances were investigated. Four Holstein cows were fed total mixed ration (TMR) containing citrus pulp silage 20% dry matter (DM) for 2 weeks with free access to the TMR. Dry mater intake, milk production and milk components 2 weeks later were not altered compared with those of the control group without citrus pulp silage. Activities of aspartate aminotransferase, alanin aminotransferase and gamma‐glutamyltranspeptidase in plasma were not affected by feeding of citrus pulp silage. Concentrations of protein, albumin, sulfhydryl residue, ascorbic acid, thio‐barbituric acid reactive substance and urea nitrogen in plasma were also not altered by citrus pulp silage feeding. Concentration of beta‐cryptoxanthin in plasma was increased approximately 20‐fold compared with the control group (P < 0.05). Content of beta‐cryptxanthin in pooled milk fat fraction was also increased approximately three times compared with that of the control group. Feeding of TMR containing citrus pulp silage 15% DM for 30 days to eight dairy cows also increased plasma beta‐cryptoxanthin concentration 30‐fold compared with that before feeding.     

Shading of net cage is an effective control measure against skin fluke Neobenedenia girellae infection in chub mackerel Scomber japonicus

The skin fluke Neobenedenia girellae has become a serious problem in Japan since the 1990s. Present control methods focus on the removal of the attached parasite and these post-infection treatments are often labor intensive, time consuming, and/or stressful to fish. Chub mackerel Scomber japonicus are highly susceptible to N. girellae. However, because of their sensitive nature, bath treatments may cause mortality. In this study, we investigated the efficacy of cage shading to reduce skin fluke infection and the frequency of conventional post-infection treatments. Juvenile mackerel were reared in cages with or without shade for 3 months and their skin fluke infections were monitored. We performed either freshwater baths or oral administration of praziquantel if fluke intensity exceeded the given criteria. In unshaded cages, 3 total bath treatments or 6 total drug treatments were conducted. In contrast, no treatment was required for the shaded cage. The overall fluke intensity in the shaded cage was less than half that of the unshaded cages, despite the lack of treatments. This study demonstrated for the first time the practical use of shading in fish farms to reduce skin fluke infection.     

Time‐coordinated prevalence of extracellular HGF,FGF2 and TGF‐β3 in crush‐injured skeletal muscle

Successful regeneration and remodeling of neuromuscular junctions are critical for restoring functional capacities and properties of skeletal muscle after damage, and axon‐guidance molecules may be involved in the signaling that regulates such restoration. Recently, we found that early‐differentiated satellite cells up‐regulate a secreted neural chemorepellent Sema3A upon in vivo muscle‐crush injury. The study also revealed that Sema3A expression is up‐regulated in primary satellite‐cell cultures in response to hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and basic fibroblast growth factor (FGF2) and is prevented by transforming growth factor (TGF)‐β2, 3. In order to verify the physiological significance of this regulation in vitro, the present study was designed to estimate the time‐course of extracellular HGF, FGF2 and TGF‐β3 concentrations after crush‐injury of Gastrocnemius muscle in the rat lower hind‐limb, using a combination of a non‐homogenization/non‐spin extraction of extracellular wound fluids and enhanced chemiluminescence–Western blotting analyses. Results clearly demonstrated that active HGF and FGF2 are prevalent in 2–8 days post‐crush, whereas active TGF‐β3 increases after 12 days, providing a better understanding of the time‐coordinated levels of HGF, FGF2 and TGF‐β3 that drive regulation of Sema3A expression during regenerative intramuscular moto‐neuritogenesis.     

Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry associated global analysis of rice root exudates under aseptical conditions

Components of rice root exudates were surveyed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and the effect of phosphate (P) starvation was investigated. Rice seedlings were aseptically grown in controlled environments under P-supplied (+P) or P-deficient (–P) conditions. Root exudates were collected from the culture solution 4 and 8 days after treatment (D4 and D8, respectively), which contain the first and second 4-day intervals. The collected solution was lyophilized and then eluted with methanol. In the present study, primary metabolites, such as sugars, amino acids, organic acids and fatty acids, were mainly targeted. After derivatization with methoxyamine hydrochloride and N-methyl-N-trifluoroacetamide, the samples were analyzed by GC-MS. Sugars and various amino acids (such as aspartic acid and l -isoleucine) were mainly detected and the components changed with the growth stage rather than the P content in the culture solution. The relative amount of sugars (such as glucose and fructose) and amino acids (such as aspartic acid and l -isoleucine) decreased in the D8 samples. Of the 78 detected compounds, orthogonal partial least-squares discrimination analysis (O-PLS-DA) showed that four compounds were related to the P content of the nutrient solution and 58 were related to the sampling date (days after treatment). The results suggest that the physiological change during seedling development was unexpectedly large and that the response to the environment was rather small.     

Ruminal distribution of the cellulolytic bacterium Fibrobacter succinogenes in relation to its phylogenetic grouping

To investigate the ecological importance of the cellulolytic bacterium Fibrobacter succinogenes in fiber digestion, ruminal distribution of F. succinogenes was determined in relation to its phylogenetic grouping. Rumen digesta from wethers and steers fed orchardgrass hay, rice straw or fresh orchardgrass were employed as the materials for the analyses. Orchardgrass hay stem incubated in the rumen was also used. By using total DNA extracted from these materials, population sizes of total F. succinogenes and of four different phylogenetic groups of this species were quantitated through competitive polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of PCR products targeted the bacterial 16S rDNA. Rumen digesta and ruminally incubated hay stems had a reasonably high population size of F. succinogenes (×10^7?8/g) that was composed of strains belonging to the phylogenetic groups 1 and 3. The relative abundance of each group was different among the samples; group 1 dominated on the ruminally incubated hay stem and in the rumen of wethers fed fresh orchardgrass, while group 3 was major in the rumen of wethers and steers on hay diet. These results suggest that there could be phenotypic differences among the phylogenetic groups of F. succinogenes, and group 1 dominating on hay stem might contribute to rumen fiber digestion more than the other groups.     

Effects of ammonium hydroxide treatment on the in vitro dry matter digestibility and gas production of wheat straw, sugarcane bagasse medium and konara oak rotted by edible basidiomycetes

Wheat straw, sugarcane bagasse medium and konara oak logs used to cultivate edible basidiomycetes were treated with ammonium hydroxide to investigate the relationship between the degree of rotting and the effect of ammonium hydroxide treatment on digestibility. Wheat straw was sampled before inoculation and on days 67 and 97 after inoculation with Pleurotus salmoneostramineus. Similarly, bagasse media were sampled before inoculation and on days 47 and 96 after inoculation with Pleurotus abalonus. Konara oak logs were sampled before inoculation and at 2 and 4 years after inoculation with Lentinula edodes. Aliquots of the samples were treated with ammonium hydroxide (NH₄‐N, 3% dry matter) at 45°C for 10 days. Ammonium hydroxide treatment increased the in vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD) and gas production (IVGP) of all the samples, except the konara oak samples collected before inoculation. The degree of increased digestibility was largest for the samples collected after short cultivation periods, followed by those collected after long cultivation periods and those collected before inoculation. However, the IVDMD and IVGP values after short cultivation periods were lower than those after long cultivation periods. Ammonium hydroxide treatment is effective at improving the digestibility of white‐rotted materials, although the effect is lessened as rotting proceeds.