Protein requirements of collared peccary (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Pecari tajacu</Emphasis>)

A nitrogen (N) balance digestion trial was conducted to determine the protein requirement of collared peccaries (Pecari tajacu). In a 4 × 4 Latin square design, four captive adult male peccaries were fed four isoenergy diets containing four different levels of N (11.7, 16.3, 22.8, and 26.7 g N/kg of dry matter—DM). After 15 days of adaptation, a total collection of feces and urine was carried out for five consecutive days. Regression analyses between N intake and N in feces and urine allowed to calculate the metabolic fecal nitrogen (MFN = 2.3 g N/kg of dry matter intake—DMI) and daily endogenous urinary N (EUN = 185 mg N/kg^0.75). Likewise, by regression analyses between consumption of nitrogen and the nitrogen balance (NB = N ingested ? N excreted, mg N/kg^0.75), a daily requirement of 514 mg N/kg^0.75 was calculated. Therefore, if food intake is unrestricted, collared peccaries require a minimum in their diet of about 5.4% crude protein on DM basis. These values are almost as low as those found for browsing and frugivorous wild ruminants, which reinforce the proposition that peccaries’ digestive physiology is nearer to that of domestic and wild ruminants than domestic pigs. This relatively low protein requirement of collared peccary and its great ability to digest protein reveal the relevance of the forestomach for the species on nitrogen/protein metabolism and allow the use of diets with lower crude protein levels than the commercial ones used for the domestic pig, which reduces feed costs.     

Effects of exogenous amylase on the in vitro digestion kinetics of whole-crop maize silages made from flint or dent grain type at different phenological stages grown in tropical condition

The effect of exogenous amylase on the in vitro rumen digestion kinetics of whole-crop maize silage made from dent (RB9004) or flint grain type (RB9308) was evaluated at different phenological stages: soft dough (SOD), early dent (EAD), ½ milkline (½M) and ¾ milkline (¾M). Forage was harvested from 70 to 110 days after sowing. Two rumen-cannulated cows receiving or not exogenous amylase (0.7 g/kg dry matter—DM, provided to achieve 396 kilo Novo units of amylase activity/kg of TMR DM) were used as donor of ruminal fluid. The in vitro gas production kinetics was evaluated according to a dual-pool logistic model. The chemical composition and gas production kinetics were affected by the hybrid and phenological stages. The flint hybrid had lower range for chemical analysis among physiological stages. Harvesting at ½M and ¾M improved DM content, bromatological composition and silage quality parameters compared to dent or flint types. Amylase (i) increased methane (CH₄) production and in vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD) in ½M stage, (ii) improved digestion kinetics by reducing lag time and increasing total gas production and fermentation rates of non-fibrous carbohydrates (NFC) and fibrous carbohydrates (FC), and (iii) increased extent and fermentation rate of NFC and increased fermentation rate of FC fraction in whole-crop maize silages produced from dent or flint types in all phenological stages. Harvesting between ½M and ¾M is the best phenological stage to improve chemical composition and silage quality parameters. Exogenous amylase showed improvements on fibre digestion of silages at ½M and ¾M phenological stages in both grain types of corn.     

Novel derivatives of ent-17,19-dihydroxy-16betaH-kaurane obtained by biotransformation with Verticillium lecanii

In the search for new routes in the synthesis of hydroxylated kaurane diterpenoids, Verticillium lecanii, grown in a mineral liquid medium for 48 h, was fed with ent-17,19-dihydroxy-16betaH-kaurane, obtained by hydroboration/oxidation of kaurenoic acid, a natural product easily isolated from plants of the genera Xylopia (Annonaceae) and Wedelia (Asteraceae). After 14 days, the culture medium was extracted with ethyl acetate, and the metabolites were purified by column chromatography on silica gel. The results show that V. lecanii biotransformed the starting material into three novel compounds: ent-11alpha,17,19-trihydroxy-16betaH-kaurane; ent-7alpha,17,19-trihydroxy-16betaH-kaurane; and ent-7beta,17,19-trihydroxy-16betaH-kaurane, the structures of which were fully elucidated by using classical and modern two-dimensional NMR techniques.     

Molecular tracing of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bradyrhizobium </Emphasis>strains helps to correctly interpret <Emphasis Type="Italic">Acacia mangium </Emphasis>response to inoculation in a reforestation experiment in Madagascar

A field inoculation experiment using two Bradyrhizobium sp. strains was set up in Madagascar to test the growth response of Acacia mangium and to follow up the survival of inoculant strains using molecular tools. Three months after inoculation, one of the inoculant strains, AUST13c, exhibited a marked growth-promoting effect with a shoot height about 40% higher than that of the uninoculated control plants or TEL8-inoculated plants. The positive effect on tree growth initially observed with AUST13c was no more significant 6 months after transfer to the field and disappeared completely at 13 and 19 months. Analyses of nodule bacterial rRNA by PCR/RFLP displayed an early contamination of the different inoculation treatments by AUST13c 3 months after inoculation, spreading to almost all nodules of the trial 6 months later. This work clearly demonstrated that the progressive reduction of the positive effect of AUST13c inoculation on tree growth after field transplanting was not due to a progressive disappearance of this introduced strain but, on the contrary, was related to the widening spreading of AUST13c in all the plots. This was attributed to a higher competitiveness and effectiveness of AUST13c over the local strains and TEL8.     

Historical Contaminated Sediments and Soils at the River Basin Scale

Background, Aims, and Scope  

Data from the Elbe River and its tributaries indicate, despite extensive improvement in water quality during the last 15 years, that the respective sediment situation of many priority pollutants has not reached an acceptable level. For the coming decades, risks for downstream sites and stakeholders will persist, mainly due to secondary sources originating from historical pollution of soils and sediments in the catchment area. In practice, a catchment-wide assessment of historical contaminated soil and sediment should apply a three-step approach: (i) Identification of substances of concern (s.o.c.) and their classification into ’hazard classes of compounds’; (ii) identification of areas of concern (a.o.c.) and their classification into ‘hazard classes of sites’; (iii) identification of areas of risk (a.o.r.) and their assessment relative to each other with regard to the probability of polluting the sediments in the downstream reaches. The conversion of this concept has to consider the underlying philosophy of the EU Water Framework Directive, particularly with respect to the analysis and monitoring of priority substances in solid matrices. However, major deficiencies are still in the assessment and prognosis of resuspension processes, and potential approaches to fill this gap are described both in theory and from examples of the Elbe River.     

Freezing of stallion semen with addition of glycine betaine

The effect of addition of glycine betaine to a lactose-EDTA freezing medium on the post-thaw motility of stallion semen was determined. The first three semen-rich fractions of nine stallions were collected with an open-end Krakow artificial vagina on consecutive weekdays. Semen was frozen using the Hannover method with freezing media containing glycine betaine in various concentrations from 0 to 5%. After thawing, sperm motility was analysed both by a light microscope and by a Hamilton-Thorn Motility Analyser. Total and progressive post-thaw motilities of semen containing 0.25-3% glycine betaine did not differ significantly from the total and progressive post-thaw motilities of semen frozen without glycine betaine. The total and progressive post-thaw motilities of semen containing 4 or 5% glycine betaine were significantly lower (P < 0.001) than those of semen without glycine betaine. In conclusion, glycine betaine did not show any beneficial effect on the post-thaw motility of stallion semen when semen was frozen using the Hannover method.     

Hepatic encephalomyelopathy in a calf with congenital portosystemic shunt (CPSS)

A 4-month-old female Holstein Friesian calf was referred to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, University of Berne, Switzerland for evaluation of ataxia, weakness, apathy and stunted growth. Clinical examination revealed generalized ataxia, propioceptive deficits, decreased menace response and sensibility. Postmortem examination did not reveal macroscopic changes of major organs. Histologically, the brain and the spinal cord lesions were characterized by polymicrocavitation, preferentially affecting the white matter fibers at the junction of grey and white matter and by the presence of Alzheimer type II cells. The liver revealed lesions consistent with a congenital portosystemic shunt, characterized by increased numbers of arteriolar profiles and hypoplasia to absence of portal veins. The pathological investigations along with the animal history and clinical signs indicated a hepatic encephalomyelopathy due to a congenital portosystemic shunt.     

Mapping of B-cell epitopes in the N-terminal repeated peptides of Anaplasma marginale major surface protein 1a and characterization of the humoral immune response of cattle immunized with recombinant and whole organism antigens

Major surface protein (MSP) 1a of the genus type species Anaplasma marginale (Rickettsiales: Anaplasmataceae) together with MSP1b forms the MSP1 complex. MSP1a has been shown to be involved in adhesion, infection and tick transmission of A. marginale, as well as to contribute to protective immunity in cattle. A differential antibody response to MSP1a and MSP1b was observed in cattle immunized with A. marginale derived from bovine erythrocytes (anti-MSP1a response) or cultured tick cells (anti-MSP1b response). In this study, we further characterized the MSP1a antibody response of cattle using several immunogens, including recombinant MSP1a (rMSP1a) protein, erythrocyte- or tick cell culture-derived A. marginale, or a combination of tick cell culture-derived A. marginale and rMSP1a. The MSP1a antibody response to all these immunogens was directed primarily against the N-terminal region of MSP1a that contains tandemly repeated peptides, whereas low antibody levels were detected against the C-terminal portion. Linear B-cell epitopes of MSP1a were mapped using synthetic peptides representing the entire sequence of the protein that were prepared by SPOT synthesis technology. Only two peptides in the N-terminal repeats were recognized by sera from immunized cattle. These peptides shared the sequence SSAGGQQQESS, which is likely to contain the linear B-cell epitope that was recognized by the pools of bovine sera. The average differential of antibody titers against MSP1a minus those against MSP1b correlated with lower percent reductions in PCV. A preferential antibody response to MSP1a was observed in cattle immunized with erythrocyte-derived, cell culture-derived plus rMSP1a or rMSP1a alone, and the percent reduction PCV was significantly lower in these cattle as compared with the other immunization groups. These results provide insight into the bovine antibody response against A. marginale and the role of MSP1a in protection of cattle against A. marginale infection.