Influence of lairage time on some welfare and meat quality parameters in pigs

A total of 150 Large White cross Landrace pigs (110-120 kg) of both sexes were used to investigate the effects of three different lairage times (0 h, 3 h, 9 h). Blood samples were collected at exanguination and cortisol, glucose, lactate, muscle enzymes and haematological parameters were determined. Post-mortem measurements of muscle pH were taken at 20 min, 2 h and 24 h from Longissimus thoracis and Semimembranosus. Lairage time showed a significant effect on pH24, internal muscle reflectance using the fibre optic probe (FOP24), red blood cells, neutrophils and lymphocytes, glucose and enzymatic activities. Changes in blood profile and meat quality parameters indicated that three hours of lairage in Spanish commercial conditions may reduce the amount of stress exhibited by pigs at slaughter and better meat quality can be obtained. No lairage or an excessively long lairage period without food may compromise animal welfare and meat quality.     

Fish immunity and parasite infections: from innate immunity to immunoprophylactic prospects

The increasing economic importance of fish parasitoses for aquaculture and fisheries has enhanced the interest in the defence mechanisms against these infections. Both innate and adaptive immune responses are mounted by fish to control parasite infections, and several mechanisms described for mammalian parasitoses have also been demonstrated in teleosts. Innate immune initiation relies on the recognition of pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) by pathogen recognizing receptors (PRRs). A number of PRRs, mainly Toll-like receptors (TLRs), have been characterized in fish, and some molecules susceptible of functioning as PAMPs are known for some fish parasites. A lectin-carbohydrate interaction has also been described in some host fish-parasite systems, thus probably involving C-type lectin receptors. Inflammatory reactions involving cellular reactions, as phagocytosis and phagocyte activity (including oxidative mechanisms), as well as complement activity, are modulated by many fish parasites, including mainly ciliates, flagellates and myxozoans. Besides complement, a number of humoral immune factors (peroxidases, lysozyme, acute-phase proteins) are also implicated in the response to some parasites. Among adaptive responses, most data deal with the presence of B lymphocytes and the production of specific antibodies (Abs). Although an increasing number of T-cell markers have been described for teleosts, the specific characterization of those involved in their response is far from being obtained. Gene expression studies have demonstrated the involvement of other mediators of the innate and adaptive responses, i.e., cytokines [interleukins (IL-1, IL-8), tumor necrosis factor (TNF), interferon (IFN)], chemokines (CXC, CC), as well as several oxidative enzymes [inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclo-oxygenase 2 (COX-2)]. Information is scarcer for factors more directly linked to adaptive responses, such as major histocompatibility (MH) receptors, T cell receptors (TCRs) and IgM. Expression of some immune genes varied according to the phase of infection, and proinflammatory cytokines were mainly activated in the early stages. Gene expression was generally higher in the target tissues for some skin and gill parasites, as Ichthyophthirius multifiliis, Neoparamoeba spp. and Lepeophtheirus salmonis, thus confirming the relevance of mucosal immunity in these infections. The existence of protective responses has been demonstrated for several fish parasites, both in natural infections and in immunization studies. Most information on the mechanisms involved in protection deals with the production of specific Abs. Nevertheless, their levels are not always correlated to protection, and the precise involvement of immune mechanisms in the response is unknown in many cases. No commercial vaccine is currently available for piscine parasitoses, although experimental vaccines have been assayed against I. multifiliis, Cryptobia salmositica and scuticociliates. The known information points to the need for integrated studies of the mechanisms involved in protection, in order to choose the optimum antigen candidates, adjuvants and formulations.     

Economic impacts of TAC regulation: A supply-driven SAM approach

The Galician fishing fleet is one of the most important of all the European fleets that fish in European Union waters and hake is its vital species. The aim of this article is to estimate some of the economic impacts that a reduction in the TAC of hake during the period 1999–2003 have on the entire Galician economy. We use a “supply-driven” Social Accounting Matrix (SDSAM) model for the Galician fishing sector that takes hake production as exogenously given. In this respect, the present work constitutes a first attempt at applying a SDSAM model to fisheries. It also presents both the traditional backward linkage effects as well as the lesser known forward linkage effects. The SDSAM model allows us not only to compute impacts on production but also to estimate the impact distribution on household incomes and production factors. Impacts on employment have also been calculated. These results may be useful to policy makers as they provide some perceptions into the consequences of one of the measures of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) and may help to design policy initiatives.     

A comparative study of the effects of high pressure on proteolytic degradation of sardine and blue whiting muscle

ABSTRACT:   High-pressure technology is used as an alternative to heat processing because of its inactivating effect on microorganisms and enzymes. However, it can also alter the structure of other muscle proteins. The present study compares the effects of high pressure (300 MPa, 7°C, 20 min) on the proteolytic degradation and alterations in the myofibrillar proteins of sardine and blue whiting muscle. Also, muscle homogenates and enzyme extracts were pressurized in order to evaluate the high-pressure effects on unprotected proteolytic enzymes outside the whole muscle structure. Peak proteolytic activity was found to occur at 55°C in both species. The peak activity pH was pH 3 for the sardine and pH 8 for the blue whiting; the main enzyme families being aspartic proteases in the former and alkaline serine proteases in the latter. Pressurization lowered activity levels at the peak activity pH and temperature in the fish muscle (by 30.8% in the sardine and by 9.5% in the blue whiting) and also slightly in the enzyme extracts (by 16.8% in the sardine and by 19.4% in the blue whiting). The electrophoretic profiles disclosed higher protein degradation in the pressurized muscle. Overall, the observed changes in proteolytic activity can be attributed not only to the effect of high pressure on the enzymes, but also and mainly, to the effect on other muscle proteins.     

Morphine-induced delay of normal cell death in the avian ciliary ganglion

Repeated administration of morphine in increasing doses delayed normal cell death in the ciliary ganglion of the chick embryo; the effect was completely blocked by naloxone. Survival of spinal motoneurons was not affected. Morphine also inhibited potassium-stimulated synthesis of acetylcholine in ganglion cells cultured with muscle, suggesting that morphine can influence neurotransmission. Morphine's effect on cell death may be due to an inhibition of transmission at the neuromuscular junction, but opiates may also directly affect cell death. Although it is now known whether the endogenous opiates in the ciliary ganglion influence neuronal survival during embryogenesis, exogenous opiates can affect normal cell death in the autonomic nervous system.     

Hidden degrees of freedom in aperiodic materials

Numerous crystalline materials, including those of bioorganic origin, comprise incommensurate sublattices whose mutual arrangement is described in a superspace framework exceeding three dimensions. We report direct observation by neutron diffraction of superspace symmetry breaking in a solid-solid phase transition of an incommensurate host-guest system: the channel inclusion compound of nonadecane/urea. Strikingly, this phase transition generates a unit cell doubling that concerns only the modulation of one substructure by the other-an internal variable available only in superspace. This unanticipated pathway for degrees of freedom to rearrange leads to a second phase transition, which again is controlled by the higher dimensionality of superspace. These results reveal nature's capacity to explore the increased number of phases allowed in aperiodic crystals.     

An Exceptional Rainfall Event in the Central Western Pyrenees: Spatial Patterns in Discharge and Impact

An exceptional rainfall and hydrological event occurred on 19–21 October 2012 in the central western Pyrenees and was particularly significant in the Upper Aragón River basin and its tributaries, mainly the Irati River. Analysis of historical records showed that, considered separately, the event of 19 and 20 October ranked between the second and fifth highest most extreme daily precipitation events. For the two days combined (with a total between 200 and 260 mm), the precipitation event was the most extreme 2‐day event among all observation stations but one. The consequent flood destroyed part of an urban area, and a long stretch of a national road triggered landslides, enlarged the alluvial plain and caused generalised soil erosion in cultivated fields cropped with winter cereals. Badlands in the marls of the Inner Depression yielded high volumes of sediment. The floods in the tributaries were relatively moderate (return periods of 14–42 years), whereas in the Upper Aragón River, the flood corresponded to a return period of approximately 400–500 years and to 142 years at the end of the Yesa reservoir, although difficulties in estimating the discharge increased the uncertainty of these values. The Yesa and Itoiz reservoirs considerably reduced the intensity of the flood in the middle and lower Aragón River and confirmed the importance of the water level in the reservoirs when such rainfall events occur. The water storage in the Yesa reservoir increased from 16% to 53% as a consequence of the event. More integrated studies are necessary to decrease the risks associated with flood hazards. This is particularly the case in mountain areas, where the steep slopes and longitudinal gradients of the rivers shorten the concentration time of floods and increase the energy that erodes channels and riverbanks. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The effect of pig slurry on exchangeable potassium in calcareous soils

Pig slurry in quantities of 200, 400, 500, 600, 800, and 1000 m³ ha^-1 year^-1 was added to two calcareous soils, which differed in concentration and type of clay minerals. The soils were cultivated with two successive crops of pepper and tomatoes grown in containers. A control was given no slurry. The soils were analysed after harvesting for exchangeable K⁺. Differences in exchangeable K⁺ were studied in relation to the concentration and type of clay minerals. The soil with the higher clay content and of the illite type retained K in the exchangeable form to a much greater extent than the soil with the low clay content. In the soil with the lower clay content, of the interstratified illitic — montmorillonite type, very little K was incorporated into the exchange complex. The exchange capacity being low, the amount of K added had little effect on the level of exchangeable K⁺.     

Liquid chromatographic analysis of riboflavin vitamers in foods using fluorescence detection

The analysis of free riboflavin (RF) and its two coenzymes, flavin mononucleotide (FMN) and flavin-adenine dinucleotide (FAD), is optimized using reversed phase liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection. The stationary phase was amide-based and endcapped with trimethylsilyl, and the isocratic mobile phase consisted of a 10:90 v/v acetonitrile/phosphate buffer (pH 5). Peaks were identified by the retention characteristics and fluorescence spectra. Detection limits were 0.03, 0.05, and 0.24 ng for RF, FMN, and FAD, respectively. The vitamins were extracted using acetonitrile and the phosphate buffer. The procedure was applied to the determination of B2 vitamers in different types of food such as milk and soy-based infant formulas, beer, fruit juices, and honey of different types. Most B2 vitamin appeared as RF, while the coenzymes were present in lower amounts. The method was validated using two certified reference materials, and results within the certified range were obtained.     

Role of olive seed in the biogenesis of virgin olive oil aroma

Results obtained in a set of experiments point to an effective participation of olive seeds in the biosynthesis of olive oil aroma through the lipoxygenase pathway during the extraction process to produce virgin olive oil. Data showed that olive seeds should contain enzymatic activities metabolizing 13-hydroperoxides other than hydroperoxide lyase, giving rise to a net decrease in the content of C6 unsaturated aldehydes during the olive oil extraction process. Olive seeds seem also to supply this process with alcohol dehydrogenase activity, being more specific for saturated C6 aldehydes and not acting on C5 alcohols. Moreover, olive seeds would be responsible for the biosynthesis of 30-50% esters during the olive oil extraction process of intact fruits. Thus, olive seeds would afford a load of alcohol acyltransferase activity that might be quite unspecific in terms of substrate, producing any kind of esters.