Effect of a probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum TN8 strain on trinitrobenzene sulphonic acid‐induced colitis in rats

This study aimed to investigate the potential effects of an oral treatment by a newly isolated probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum TN8 strain on trinitrobenzene sulphonic acid (TNBS)‐induced colitis in Wistar rats. Thus, 18 rats were divided into three groups (n = 6 per group): group 1 (control) – rats not receiving TNBS application; group 2 – rats receiving an intrarectal TNBS infusion (100 mg/kg TNBS dissolved in ethanol); and group 3 – rats treated with intragastrical TN8 strain once per day (for 5 days before TNBS induction). The performance and the effects of the probiotic treatment were evaluated using a series of histological, biophysical and biochemical analyses. The results have shown that the treatment with the L. plantarum TN8 strain improves the body weight and reduces the diarrhoea, colonic mucosal inflammation and colon shortening. TN8‐treated rats showed a significant decrease in the total cholesterol content from 1.86 (for group 2) to 1.32 mmol/l and in triglyceride (TG) content from 2.09 (for group 2) to 1.23 mmol/l. Furthermore, the findings revealed that the high‐density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol contents increased from 0.95 to 1.02 mmol/l. The histological studies have confirmed that the architecture of the liver and kidney tissues of the TN8‐treated rats were found to be improved. Overall, the results suggest that the L. plantarum TN8 presents promising perspectives for the development of safe and cost‐effective agents for the prevention or alleviation of several intestinal pathologies.     

Fasciola gigantica excretory-secretory products for immunodiagnosis and prevention of sheep fasciolosis

Excretory-secretory products (ESP) products of ex vivo Fasciola gigantica adult worms were used for immunodiagnosis of sheep experimental infection with F. gigantica and natural infection with Fasciola spp. by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and Western blotting. Specific IgG antibody binding to native or denatured ESP was detected as early as 2 weeks after experimental sheep infection with 100 or 200 metacercariae. No specific IgG antibody binding was displayed by sera obtained from 192 sheep considered to be Fasciola- and other parasite-free by microscopic examination of bile and feces. Additionally, sera from 200 apparently Fasciola-free sheep, yet infected with other parasites, were all negative. The data, thus, indicated that ESP-based ELISA reached nearly 100% sensitivity and specificity in immunodiagnosis of sheep fasciolosis. As expected, the ESP molecules were immunogenic in sheep eliciting interleukin-12p40 mRNA response and considerable amounts of antibodies, which were able to bind to the surface of newly excysted juvenile worms as judged by membrane indirect immunofluorescence, and mediate their attrition via antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity. The ESP-induced cellular and humoral immune responses were associated with a modest reduction in worm count, yet with a highly significant (P<0.0001) decrease in size of recovered worms, thus suggesting that ESP immunization might be a safe and cost-effective strategy for reducing transmission of the infection.     

A plant growth promoting rhizobacterium and temperature effects on performance of 18 clones of potato

A survey of genotypic responses to beneficial bacterium (Pseudomonas sp. strain PsJN) was conductedin vitro andex vitro, under two temperature conditions, using eighteen clones of potato of different heat stress tolerance: temperate adapted cultivars Kennebec and Russet Burbank; heat tolerant DTO-2, DTO-28, DTO-33, LT-1, LT-2, LT-5, LT-6, LT-7, LT-8, LT-9, Y84-02, NDD277-2, Désirée, and Maine-47; and heat sensitive abscissic acid (ABA)-deficient mutants 11401-01 and 9120-05. Nodal explants taken from 6-week-old bacterized and non-bacterized control plantlets were culturedin vitro on a hormone-free potato nodal cutting medium, and placed at either 20/15 C or 33/25 C day/night temperature, 12h photoperiod and 250 µE m^?2 s^?1 mixture of fluorescent and incandescent light, for six weeks. The tuberization response was studiedex vitro after two weeks acclimation of 2-week old plantlets at 33/25C. The acclimated plantlets were transplanted to 3L plastic nursery pots containing peat-based Pro-Mix growing medium and placed in growth chambers at either 20/15 or 33/25 C day/night temperature, 12 h photoperiod, 475 μE m^?2 s^?1 light and ≈80% RH, for 12 weeks. Compared to the non-bacterized controls, bacterization significantly increased stem length of 12, shoot biomass of 9, and root biomass of 2 clones at 20/15C; and stem length of 14, shoot biomass of 15, and root biomass of 13 clones at 33/25C. High temperature increased length of internodes and had either no effect or slightly decreased node number. Temperature increase had the most dramatic effect on root development. An average shoot to root ratio decreased from 3.7 at 20/15 C to 1.7 at 33/25 C for non-bacterized plantlets and, respectively, from 4.3 to 1.5 for bacterized. The beneficial effect of bacterization on root biomass was the most pronounced in LT-1 and Maine-47 at 20/15 C and LT-8, Maine 47, DTO-2, Kennebec, NDD277-2 and 11401-01 at 33/25C. The temperature elevation did not significantly affect root biomass of LT-6, DTO-28 and Désirée. Temperature stress caused severe reduction in tuber number and tuber fresh weight. ABA-deficient mutants did not produce any tubers and LT-8, LT-9, Y84-027 and DTO-28 tuberized very poorly at 33/25C. DTO-33, Désirée, LT-1 and Kennebec gave the highest number of tubers per pot and Kennebec, LT-1, Désirée and LT-7 the highest yields at this temperature. There was no significant effect of bacterization on tuberization at 20/15 C but at 33/25 C bacterization significantly enhanced tuber number and weight in LT-7 and reduced tuber weight in DTO-2. Although there was no clear link between thein vitro response of particular clones to bacterization and their heat stress tolerance, improvement ofex vitro performance of heat tolerant LT-7 indicates that rhizosphere bacteria may play a role in clonal adaptation of potato to heat stress.     

Optimal coupling combinations between irrigation frequency and rate for drip-irrigated maize grown on sandy soil

This study was conducted over 2 years (2007 and 2008) to establish the optimal combinations between irrigation frequency and rate for drip-irrigated maize using water production functions and water use-yield relationships. A field experiment was conducted using a randomized complete block split plot design with four irrigation frequencies (F₁, F₂, F₃ and F₄, irrigation events once every 1, 2, 3 or 4 days, respectively) and three drip irrigation rates (I₁: 1.00, I₂: 0.80, and I₃: 0.60 of the estimated evapotranspiration, ET) as the main and split plots, respectively. Our results show that yield variables and water use efficiencies (WUEs) increased with increasing irrigation frequency and rate, with non-significant differences between F₁ and F₂ in yield variables and between I₁ and I₂ in WUEs. Moreover, the combination between various irrigation frequencies and rates had an important effect on yield variables and WUEs, with the highest values being found for F₁I₂ and F₂I₁ and the lowest for F₃I₃ and F₄I₃. The F₁I₃ treatment had grain yield and yield components values similar to those obtained for the F₃I₂ and F₄I₁ treatments and WUEs values similar to those obtained for the F₂I₁ and F₂I₂ treatments. Seasonal yield response factors (k_y) were 1.81 and 1.86 in 2007 and 2008, respectively. Production functions of yield versus seasonal crop ET were linear for all combinations of irrigation frequency and rate and for all irrigation frequency treatments with the exception of the F₁ treatment, which instead showed a second order relationship. The relationship between WUE and grain yield was best represented by a power equation. In conclusion, we identified the optimal coupling combinations between irrigation frequency and water application rate to achieve the maximum yield and WUEs under either sufficient (F₂I₁) or limited irrigation (F₁I₃) water supplies.     

Effect of broomrape (Orobanche cumana Wallr.) on some agro-morphological and biochemical traits of Tunisian and some reference sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) accessions

Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection - Orobanche cumana Wallr. is an important new problem for sunflower crop in Tunisia. Little information is available on the behavior of sunflower to O....     

Effect of chronic lead intoxication on the distribution and elimination of amoxicillin in goats

A study of amoxicillin pharmacokinetics was conducted in healthy goats and goats with chronic lead intoxication. The intoxicated goats had increased serum concentrations of liver enzymes (alanine aminotransferase and γ-glutamyl transferase), blood urea nitrogen, and reactivated δ-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase compared to the controls. Following intravenous amoxicillin (10 mg/kg bw) in control and lead-intoxicated goats, elimination half-lives were 4.14 and 1.26 h, respectively. The volumes of distribution based on the terminal phase were 1.19 and 0.38 L/kg, respectively, and those at steady-state were 0.54 and 0.18 L/kg, respectively. After intramuscular (IM) amoxicillin (10 mg/kg bw) in lead-intoxicated goats and control animals, the absorption, distribution, and elimination of the drug were more rapid in lead-intoxicated goats than the controls. Peak serum concentrations of 21.89 and 12.19 µg/mL were achieved at 1 h and 2 h, respectively, in lead-intoxicated and control goats. Amoxicillin bioavailability in the lead-intoxicated goats decreased 20% compared to the controls. After amoxicillin, more of the drug was excreted in the urine from lead-intoxicated goats than the controls. Our results suggested that lead intoxication in goats increases the rate of amoxicillin absorption after IM administration and distribution and elimination. Thus, lead intoxication may impair the therapeutic effectiveness of amoxicillin.     

芹菜叶斑病病原菌的分离鉴定、生物学特性及其生防菌筛选

为了明确甘肃省定西市芹菜叶斑病的病原,开展了病原菌分离、形态学特征和分子生物学鉴定、生物学特性研究,并初步筛选了该病原菌的生防菌。确定病原菌Q1为细极链格孢(Alternaria tenuissima),该菌菌丝体生长最适碳源和氮源分别为玉米粉和硝酸钾,最适pH为7.5,最适温度为25℃;该菌孢子萌发最适温度为25℃、最适pH为7;光照有利于菌丝体生长,但对孢子萌发无影响;菌丝体和孢子的致死温度均为55℃处理10min。采用对峙法测定了蜡样芽胞杆菌(4-2-1)、贝莱斯芽孢杆菌(F3A)、甲基营养型芽孢杆菌(9-2-1)、解淀粉芽孢杆菌(SL1)及荧光假单胞菌(YG)5种生防细菌菌株对芹菜叶斑病菌Q1的拮抗效果,结果表明这5株生防菌对Q1菌株均具有拮抗作用,其中解淀粉芽孢杆菌(Bacillus amyloliquefaciens)的抑菌率最高,达到69.80%。首次明确了定西市芹菜叶斑病是细极链格孢(A.tenuissima)引起的,解淀粉芽孢杆菌(SL1)具有生防潜力,研究结果为深入开展芹菜链格孢叶斑类病害的生物防治提供了理论依据和技术支撑。     

Dry Atmospheric Contribution to the Plant–Soil System Around a Cement Factory: Spatial Variations and Sources—a Case Study from Oman

The present study determines the source of dust particles and investigates their impact on the chemical compositions of plants and soils around a cement factory in Oman within a radius of 10 km of this disturbed ecosystem. A total number of nine samples of the species of plants (Rhazya stricta), nine samples of soils, and nine samples of dust were collected and analyzed for major ions and trace elements including rare earth elements (REEs). Principal component analysis applied to the major and trace element concentrations in the dust indicated the input of at least two sources to the dust in the study area: ophiolites and cement. The REE distribution in the plants and soils revealed that the most available elements to plants originated dominantly from ophiolites rather than from cement. The contribution of cement industry is significant only in the zone located at about 0.500 to 2 km around the cement factory, whereas the contribution of ophiolites increases with distance from the cement factory.     

Effects of different sources and levels of dietary chromium supplementation on performance of broiler chicks

The current experiment was carried out to evaluate the effect of different dietary chromium supplementation sources, chromium oxide (Cr₂O₃), chromium methionine (Cr‐Met), or chromium yeast (Cr‐yeast), at different levels each (500 or 1,000 ppb) on growth performance, physiological traits, and carcass characteristics of broiler chicks. A total of 490 seven‐day‐old Arbor Acres chicks were randomly distributed into 7 experimental groups each in 10 replicates of 7 birds each. The groups were control, 500 ppb Cr₂O₃, 1,000 ppb Cr₂O₃, 500 ppb Cr‐Met, 1,000 ppb Cr‐Met, 500 ppb Cr‐yeast, and 1,000 ppb Cr‐yeast. The results showed significant superiority of the organic chromium sources (Cr‐Met or Cr‐yeast) concerning body weight and weight gain, the group supplemented with 1,000 ppb Cr‐yeast consumed the lowest feed (3,185 g) and had the best feed conversion ratio (1.60) compared to the control (1.73). The chromium treatments recorded significantly better protein and lipid profile, antioxidant status, and immunological parameters than the control group. Similarly, dietary chromium supplementation increased carcass yield and decreased intestinal pathogenic bacteria. In conclusion, supplementing broiler diets with organic chromium sources at 1,000 ppb promotes growth performance, physiological traits, and carcass characteristics; such chromium treatments enhanced the antioxidant status and immunity levels of broilers.