Prevalence of avian influenza (H9N2) in commercial quail,partridge, and turkey farms in Iran, 2014–2015

Tropical Animal Health and Production - Avian influenza virus (AIV) H9N2 subtype is endemic in Iran and causes substantial economic loss to the growing poultry industry within the country. In this...     

Can treatment of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Brachiaria decumbens</Emphasis> (signal grass) improve its utilisation in the diet in small ruminants?—a review

Brachiaria decumbens is an extremely productive tropical grass due to its aggressive growth habit and its adaptation to a varied range of soil types and environments. As a result of the vast availability, treated B. decumbens demonstrates as a promising local material that could be utilised as an improved diet for sheep and goats. Despite the fact that the grass significantly increases weight gains in grazing farm animals, there were many reports of general ill-thrift and sporadic outbreaks of photosensitivity in livestock due to the toxic compound of steroidal saponin found in B. decumbens. Ensiling and haymaking were found to be effective in removing toxin and undesirable compounds in the grass. Biological treatments using urea, activated charcoal, polyethylene glycol, and effective microorganisms were found to be useful in anti-nutritional factor deactivation and improving the nutritive values of feedstuffs. Besides, oral administration of phenobarbitone showed some degree of protection in sheep that fed on B. decumbens pasture. In this review, we aim to determine the effect of B. decumbens toxicity and possible treatment methods on the grass to be used as an improved diet for small ruminant.     

A preliminary study on the protein requirements of Chanos chanos (Forskal) fry in a controlled environment

Milkfish (Chanos chanos) fry with an average weight of 40 mg per fish were stocked in 60-l wooden-glass aquaria filled with 30 l of filtered sea water with a salinity of 32–34 p.p.t. and a temperature of 25–28°C. They were fed diets containing 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60% protein and 2740 kcal of digestible energy per kg at a daily rate of 10% of the biomass for a period of 30 days. Fish which were fed the diet containing 40% protein had the highest weight gain which was significantly higher (P < 0.05) than those of fish receiving the lower dietary levels of protein. Slightly lower weight gains were obtained when fish were fed diets containing 50 and 60% protein. Although feed conversion values were not statistically different (P < 0.05) among all treatments, the value for the 40% protein diet (1.96) was the best. The mean survival rates were low for all treatments but was highest for the 40% protein diet. No significant difference (P < 0.05) was found in the survival rates of fish receiving different treatments. Results show that a dietary level of 40% protein was required by milkfish fry for maximum growth, efficient feed conversion and high survival rate.     

Potential Anti-Aging Substances Derived from Seaweeds

Aging is a major risk factor for many chronic diseases, such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. The exact mechanisms underlying the aging process are not fully elucidated. However, a growing body of evidence suggests that several pathways, such as sirtuin, AMP-activated protein kinase, insulin-like growth factor, autophagy, and nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 play critical roles in regulating aging. Furthermore, genetic or dietary interventions of these pathways can extend lifespan by delaying the aging process. Seaweeds are a food source rich in many nutrients, including fibers, polyunsaturated fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, and other bioactive compounds. The health benefits of seaweeds include, but are not limited to, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-obese activities. Interestingly, a body of studies shows that some seaweed-derived extracts or isolated compounds, can modulate these aging-regulating pathways or even extend lifespans of various animal models. However, few such studies have been conducted on higher animals or even humans. In this review, we focused on potential anti-aging bioactive substances in seaweeds that have been studied in cells and animals mainly based on their anti-aging cellular and molecular mechanisms.     

A typology of agricultural production systems: Capability building trajectories of three Asian economies

Analysing the agricultural sectors of Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore, this paper examines the capability‐building process that encourages productivity and innovation. It describes and explains the origins and subsequent evolution of three forms of agricultural production system, each generating different farming capabilities and distinct forms of competitive advantages. The paper argues that Taiwan's rice‐oriented agricultural production system stimulates both productivity and innovation, helping Taiwanese farmers raise their income level and living standards. The active deployment of state institutions and a malleable labour force, evidenced in the Malaysian palm oil industry, is effective in raising farming productivity but not the ability to innovate. Singapore's aquaculture‐oriented agricultural production system is somewhat useful in stimulating productivity and innovation. Yet the city‐state's inherent lack of space and open international trade regime have circumscribed the potential of its aquaculture industry. It now relies on the regional ethnic Chinese business networks to expand the aquaculture industry's knowledge base and its industrial commons. The principles discussed in this paper provide policy lessons, or at least some initial guidance, for other developing economies aspiring to modernise their agricultural sector.     

Possible applications of modern fish larviculture technology to ornamental fish production

There has been rapid development in the marine foodfishlarviculture technology in Europe since the early eighties,especially in the flat fish, turbot and halibut, and the bass andbream species. The most significant improvements in the eightieswere the introduction of light control, artificial reproductiontechniques, appropriate water treatment and the use of rotifersand Artemia nauplii of specific sizes and in the late eightiesand early nineties the quality enhancement of live food organismsusing specific enrichment techniques. Present research is focusedon the implementation of several microbial techniques to improvethe hygiene of live prey and fish.Many of the modern larviculture techniques being used in marine foodfish could be adapted for application in the ornamental fish industry. For examples, research in the Onamental Fish Section, Primary Production Department, Singapore has demonstrated that the use of freshwater rotifers and Artemia nauplii would enable artificial rearing of Discus in the absence of the parent fish and improve the larval performance of Gouramis and Tetra larvae. The use of such small live food organisms is likely to facilitate breeding of new fish species with small larvae. Research has also indicated that the use of diets containing vitamin C and certain immuno-stimulants improved the stress resistance of guppy. Such techniques would have important application in the fish transport, an important aspect in the ornamental fish industry     

Effects of AMF inoculation on growth of Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer seedlings and on soil structures in mycorrhizosphere

We aimed to investigate the effects of inoculating Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer seedlings with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) by examining the root colonization, plant nutrition uptake, growth characteristics, and soil aggregation of P. ginseng seedlings inoculated at the time of transplantation. At 16 weeks, the AMF spore density per 30 g of fresh mycorrhizosphere in seedlings inoculated with AMF (AMF+ seedlings) was 256.8 and that in seedlings not inoculated with AMF (AMF− seedlings) was 186.3, respectively. The colonization rate of AMF in the lateral roots of AMF+ seedlings was approximately 19% higher than that in the lateral roots of AMF− seedlings. The patterns of AMF colonization in ginseng roots were similar to those of the Paris-type mycorrhizal association. Plant growth characteristics, such as plant height, root length, leaf area, number of lateral roots, fresh weight of shoots and roots, and chlorophyll content, were significantly enhanced in AMF+ seedlings compared to AMF− seedlings. The macronutrient content (P, K, and Ca) and micronutrient content (Cu, Fe, and Zn) of both shoots and roots were also significantly higher in AMF+ seedlings compared to AMF− seedlings. Furthermore, glomalin content and soil aggregation were significantly enhanced in AMF inoculated areas. Our results indicate that AMF inoculation may enhance the growth of ginseng seedlings by improving the uptake of mineral nutrients and the soil structure in mycorrhizosphere.