Effect of dietary protein content on episodic growth hormone secretion and on heat production of male broiler chickens.

1. The effect of the crude protein content (200 and 150 g/kg) of isoenergetic diets on episodic growth hormone (GH) release and on heat production was investigated in male broiler chickens. 2. Decreasing the crude protein content of isoenergetic diets from 200 g/kg (HP diet) to 150 g/kg (LP diet) resulted in depressed body weight gain, impaired food conversion efficiency and increased abdominal fat deposition. 3. The pattern of growth hormone secretion was markedly affected by dietary treatment. Broiler chickens fed on the LP diet had higher overall mean, amplitude, baseline and peak frequency than the HP chickens. 4. The LP chickens produced more heat per unit of metabolic body weight than the HP chickens. 5. The hypothesis relating the pattern of GH secretion to protein conversion efficiency was corroborated.     

Identification of Cytokeratins in Bovine Sperm Outer Dense Fibre Fractions

Outer dense fibres (ODF) are important substructures of mammalian sperm tails that are involved in the regulation of sperm motility. In this study, we investigated the identity of several sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS)‐insoluble ODF proteins. Bovine ODF were purified by separating sperm heads and tails using ultrasound and Percoll^® density gradient centrifugation. Sperm flagella were treated with the detergent cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). CTAB‐insoluble material, which reportedly represents the ODF fraction, was collected, and electron microscopy confirmed a highly purified ODF fraction. We found after solubilization of this fraction with SDS that high amounts of insoluble material were retained after centrifugation. SDS‐insoluble material was collected and quantitatively dissolved in 8 M urea. SDS‐gel electrophoresis in the presence of urea revealed polypeptides with apparent molecular masses of approximately 25, 43, and 50 kDa. Subsequent immunoblotting with anti‐cytokeratin antibodies detected two urea‐soluble, SDS‐insoluble proteins with apparent molecular masses of 45 and 66 kDa. The 45‐kDa protein was identified as cytokeratin 19. An antibody reacting with a palette of cytokeratins (CK 1–18 and CK 20), KL1, was the only antibody that reacted with the 66‐kDa polypeptide. We conclude that sperm ODF fractions contain at least one each of type I and type II intermediate filaments. As keratins and intermediate filaments are described as rope‐like structures, we suggest that these intermediate filaments play an important structural or tension‐bearing role in sperm flagella.     

Effects of Confluent, Roscovitine Treatment and Serum Starvation on the Cell-cycle Synchronization of Bovine Foetal Fibroblasts

The present study was designed to examine the effects of cell-cycle synchronization protocols, such as confluent, roscovitine treatment and serum starvation, in bovine foetal fibroblasts on synchronization accuracy at G0/G1, viability, apoptosis, necrosis and ploidy for use as a nuclei donor. The cells in 5-10 passages were randomly allocated into three treated groups. Cells were cultured either in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (DMEM) + 10% foetal bovine serum (FBS) until 90% confluent (group 1, confluent), in DMEM + 10% FBS + 30 microM roscovitine for 12 h (group 2, roscovitine), or in DMEM + 0.5% FBS for 5 days (group 3, serum starvation). Most of the cells (>80%) in all groups were arrested at the G0/G1 stage. Although the rates did not differ, cells in group 1 showed an increased cell population arrested at the G0/G1 phase. Significantly (p < 0.05) higher rates of apoptosis occurred in group 3 than in group 1 and 2 (10% vs 6% and 6%, respectively). No differences in chromosomal abnormality were observed among groups. However, by increasing the number of cell culture passages up to 15, significantly (p < 0.05) higher chromosomal abnormality was observed than in 5 and 10 passages (39% vs 28% and 23%, respectively) in group 1. The results clearly indicated that bovine foetal fibroblasts could be effectively synchronized at G0/G1 stages by all the three different treatments, confluent, roscovitine and serum starvation. However, cells in confluent showed reduced apoptosis and necrosis when they underwent 5-10 passages, exhibiting increased percentage of cells with stable chromosome diversity. Hence, cells in confluent merit further studies before they could be used as nuclear donors.     

Theileria orientalis: a review

Theileria orientalis (also known historically as T. sergenti and T. buffeli) is responsible for benign or non-transforming theileriosis, and exerts its major effect through erythrocyte destruction. The life cycle of T. orientalis is essentially similar to that of other Theileria species, except that the schizonts do not induce transformation and fatal lymphoproliferation. The pathogenesis of anaemia as a result of infection is not clearly established and may be multifaceted. Clinical signs of weakness, reluctance to walk and abortion are early but non-specific indications of disease, particularly if accompanied by a history of cattle being moved. Physical examination may reveal pallor (pale eyes, vaginal mucosa), pyrexia, and elevated heart and respiratory rates. T. orientalis is an economically important parasite of cattle in New Zealand, Australia and Japan, especially where naïve animals are introduced into an endemic area or in animals under stress. Increased awareness of the risks posed by the parasite is required to enable management practices to be implemented to minimise its impact.     

Beneficial effects of alternative lighting schedules on the incidence of ascites and on metabolic parameters of broiler chickens

The beneficial effects of different lighting programmes on the incidence of ascites was investigated in an experiment with 360 three-day-old male broiler chickens. At 3 days of age, chicks were randomly divided over three rooms in a high-altitude farm, 2000 m above sea level. During days 14 to 28 ambient temperature decreased during the night but the minimum temperature did not descend below 15 degrees C. In the first room the continuous lighting schedule (CL, 23L:1D) was maintained and in the second room an intermittent lighting schedule (IL, 1L:3D), repeated six times daily, was imposed from 3 days of age. In the third room, an increasing photoperiod schedule (IP, 4 to 14 days, 6L:18D; 15 to 21 days, 10L:14D; 22 to 28 days, 14L:10D; 29 to 35 days, 18L:6D; 36 to 42 days, 23L:1D) was provided. Mortality associated with right ventricular failure and ascites was numerically lower in birds reared under the IL and IP schedules compared to birds reared under the CL schedule, which can be attributed to the temporary reduction in relative growth and feed intake in IL and IP birds. It was concluded that the beneficial effect of lighting schedules could be due to a reduced metabolic rate as a consequence of the altered growth trajectory, as also reflected in the lower haematocrit and plasma T3 levels of IL and IP birds compared to CL birds.     

Modelling the static and dynamic responses of total heat production of broiler chickens to step changes in air temperature and light intensity

1. The objective of this work was to explore the possibilities of modelling the static and dynamic responses of total heat production of broiler chickens to step changes in temperature and light intensity (light-dark alterations) using compact dynamic model structures. 2. Seventy-seven experiments were performed in an open-circuit respiration chamber to measure the dynamic response of heat production to step variations in temperature and light (on/off). The animal responses were modelled using transfer function model structures. 3. It was demonstrated that the complex process of the dynamic response of heat production of broiler chickens to step changes in air temperature and light-dark alterations can be modelled assuming 1st order dynamics. The coefficient of determination between measured and simulated heat production was on average 0.83 for responses to air temperature and 0.93 for responses to light-dark alterations.     

含莫纳可林K红曲降低鸡蛋胆固醇效果的研究

48只68周龄的海兰褐蛋鸡分成三组，按0.5％和10％比例分别添加含0．4％莫纳可林K红曲于各组日粮内，饲喂22d，观测其对鸡蛋胆固醇变化的影响。结果表明，投药后5—6d，10％添加组和5％添加组蛋黄胆固醇开始下降；15—22d的胆固醇含量与1～5d相比，10％添加组和5％添加组分别下降了9．02％和5．10％，而对照组升高了5．22％。     

The interaction between maternal and post‐hatch n‐3 fatty acid supplementation in broiler diets

This study investigated whether offspring from n‐3‐supplemented breeders have an enhanced performance and immune organ weight when fed a post‐hatch n‐3‐enriched diet in comparison with their control‐fed counterparts and the importance of timing of omega‐3 supplementation. Therefore, 480 Ross‐308 broiler breeder hens were fed one of four different diets (120/treatment). The control diet (CON) was a basal diet, rich in n‐6 fatty acids (FA). The three other diets were enriched in n‐3 FA, formulated to obtain a different EPA/DHA ratio of 1/1 (EPA = DHA), 1/2 (DHA) or 2/1 (EPA). At 33 weeks of age, eggs were incubated to obtain 1440 offspring. They were set up according to their maternal diet and sex in 48 pens of 30 chicks each (12 pens per maternal treatment: six male and six female). Half of the offspring were given a post‐hatch control diet, whereas to other half received an n‐3‐supplemented diet. Zootechnical performance was followed for starter, grower and finisher phase, and at the end of each phase two, chicks per pen were sacrificed to determine the weight of the immune organs. No interaction was found between maternal and post‐hatch n‐3 treatment for zootechnical performance. An interaction arose between the maternal and post‐hatch n‐3 supplementation for proportional bursa weight at day 1 and day 14 and proportional liver weight at day 14, but effects on immune organ weight were rather limited. Offspring post‐hatch n‐3 supplementation did not enhance maternal n‐3 supplementation.