Biochemical Changes in Freshwater Prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii During Larval Development

Abstract.— Quantitative changes in the protein, lipid and carbohydrate were studied in the early larval stages of developing freshwater prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii reared under fed and starved conditions to understand the relative importance of these nutrients in energy metabolism of the growing larvae. Larvae obtained from several females were stocked into three 250-L tanks at a density of 30 larvae/L. The feeding regime consisted of newly hatched Artemia nauplii. Protein was always the major organic constituent followed by lipids and then carbohydrates of both fed and starved larvae. Protein levels of both fed and starved larvae increased during development, suggesting an important role in morphogenesis. The decline of lipid during the larval growth that was more rapid for starved larvae, suggests a probable utilization of lipid as the major metabolic source of energy. Carbohydrates formed less than 5 and 2.4% of the larval dry weight of fed and starved larvae, respectively, suggesting their limited role in larval metabolism.     

Nutritional significance of amino acids,vitamins and minerals as nutraceuticals in poultry production and health – a comprehensive review

Nutraceuticals have gained immense importance in poultry science recently considering the nutritional and beneficial health effects of their constituents. Besides providing nutritional requirements to birds, nutraceuticals have beneficial pharmacological effects, for example, they help in establishing normal physiological health status, prevent diseases and thereby improve production performance. Nutraceuticals include amino acids, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, etc. which are important for preventing oxidative stress, regulating the immune response and maintaining normal physiological, biochemical and homeostatic mechanisms. Nutraceuticals help in supplying nutrients in balanced amounts for supporting the optimal growth performance in modern poultry flocks, and as a dietary supplement can reduce the use of antibiotics. The application of antibiotic growth enhancers in poultry leads to the propagation of antibiotic-resistant microbes and drug residues; therefore, they have been restricted in many countries. Thus, there is a demand for natural feed additives that lead to the same growth enhancement without affecting the health. Nutraceuticals substances have an essential role in the development of the animals’ normal physiological functions and in protecting them against infectious diseases. In this review, the uses of amino acids, vitamins and minerals as well as their mode of action in growth promotion and elevation of immune system are discussed.     

In-vitro Metabolism of a Novel Monocrotophos Derivative by Rat and Japanese Quail

NADPH-dependent inhibition of hepatic microsomal carboxylesterase by a derivative of monocrotophos (coded as RPR-5) was studied in rat and Japanese quail as a measure of monooxygenase-catalysed activation of RPR-5. There was NADPH-dependent inhibition of hepatic microsomal α-naphthyl acetate esterase (carboxylesterase) both in rat and quail, indicating monooxygenase-catalysed formation of an oxon that subsequently phosphorylated α-NaE. The pattern of in-vitro metabolism of ¹⁴C-labelled RPR-5 by 11000g supernatant (11-S), microsomes and 105000g supernatant (105-S) fractions of rat and quail livers suggested the involvement of microsomal monooxygenases and carboxylesterases. A radiolabelled metabolite (M2) was tentatively identified as an acid produced by carboxyl esterase attack. In rat, metabolism by microsomal and cytosolic (105-S) carboxylesterases appeared to predominate with relatively little oxidative metabolism. In quail, putative microsomal carboxylesterase hydrolysis of RPR-5 was much lower than in the rat with almost neglible hydrolysis by cytosolic fractions. Also, production of M₂ by quail microsomes was substantially reduced after addition of NADPH, suggesting inhibition of a carboxyl esterase by the oxon of RPR-5. Differences in this detoxification of RPR-5 between rat and quail may be an important factor in determining selective toxicity and the results underline the importance of relating metabolism to toxicity when selecting animal models for toxicity testing.     

Amino Acid Composition of Developing Larval Freshwater Prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii

Abstract.— Amino acid profiles of freshwater prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii were determined during early larval stages (I-IX) to provide some baseline biochemical information of the growing larvae. The larvae obtained from several females were stocked into three 250-L tanks at a density of 30 larvae/L. The feeding regime consisted of newly hatched Artemia nauplii and egg custard containing 5% cod liver oil. For each developmental stage, larval samples from each experimental tank were pooled, freeze dried and after acid hydrolysis, the quantification of amino acids was done by a reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography ( N = 2). The highest represented of the total amino acids were for glutamic acid and phenylalanine (with cystine) with ranges from 13.4–16.6 and 9.7–11.5%, respectively, whereas tryptophan (1.4–1.6%). methionine (1.4–2.7%) and histidine (2.9–4.2%) were relatively lower. The levels of the following essential amino acids did not significantly change during larval development: arginine, leucine, phenylalanine (plus cystine), threonine, tryptophan and valine. Despite statistically significant changes that were observed in levels of some amino acids, amino acid composition appeared to be relatively unchanged during the larval growth. The results may suggest that the amino acid requirements of the freshwater prawn is relatively constant during larval life and can be satistied by a suitable protein source that resembles the larval amino acid profile.     

Assessment of gut microbiota in different developmental stages of Malaysian Mahseer (Tor tambroides)

Malaysian Mahseer (Tor tambroides) has a good prospect for aquaculture because of its high market demand. However, there is a scarce information on gut microbiota associated with Malaysian Mahseer unlike other fish species. Therefore, we constructed and compared gut microbiota in different developmental stages (larval, juvenile, fingerling, yearling, and adult) using culture dependent and PCR‐DGGE fingerprinting technique for better understanding of gut microbiota composition associated with T. tambroides. Culturable gut microbiota composition in all developmental stages were composed of β‐ and γ‐Proteobacteria, and Bacilli. Biodiversity analysis of culturable gut microbiota showed that larval, juvenile, and adult stages have higher diversity than fingerling and yearling stages. Ward's linkage cluster analysis showed that culturable gut microbiota composition in larval and juvenile stages were close to adult stages, whereas fingerling and yearling stage composed same cluster. PCR‐DGGE fingerprinting technique showed that unculturable gut microbiota were constituted by α‐and γ‐Proteobacteria, and Actinobacteria. Ward's linkage cluster analysis showed that unculturable gut microbiota composition in both larval and juvenile stages were distinct from other developmental stages. Our results revealed that gut microbiota composition were varied in different developmental stages of Malaysian Mahseer and continuous shifts of gut microbiota from larval to adult stages.     

Laboratory Experiments on the Investigation of the Effects of Sulphuric Acid on the Deterioration of Carbonate Stones and Surface Corrosion

In this study, the effect of sulphuric acid, the major constituent of acid rain, on carbonate stones has been investigated. For this purpose, samples from historical buildings of Sivas city have been collected. The minerological composition of the samples has been analysed by X-RD analysis and it was found that the major constituent of these stones was calcite. Loss of material and surface corrosion have been determined for these samples by washing the samples with sulphuric acid to similate the effect of acid rain. Material losses of the samples was 1–4% in the case of sulphuric acid washing. After 24 hr corrosion exposure the crystal boundaries were corroded, the pores were deepened and widened. The results have indicated the impact of the polluted atmospheric and high relative rain on historical buildings in the city.     

Pantoea: a newly identified causative agent for leaf blight disease in rice

Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection - Leaf blight is one of the most serious threats to rice agroecosystems worldwide, and the yield reduction due to this disease can be as high as 70%. For...     

Inhibition of tumorigenesis in ApcMin/+ mice by a combination of (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate and fish oil

The effect of a combination of (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) with fish oil on intestinal tumorigenesis in Apc (Min/+) mice fed a high-fat diet was investigated in the present study. The combined treatment of EGCG and fish oil for 9 weeks reduced the tumor number by 53% as compared to controls while neither agent alone had a significant effect. Apoptosis was significantly increased in all treatment groups. beta-Catenin nuclear positivity in adenomas from the combination group was lower than control mice, implicating the modulation of Wnt signaling by the combination. Fish oil and the combination significantly reduced prostaglandin E 2 (PGE 2) levels in small intestinal tumors as compared to controls, suggesting modulation of aberrant arachidonic acid metabolism by fish oil. Akt phosphorylation in adenomas was significantly reduced in all treatment groups, which may have contributed to the observed increase in apoptosis. The results indicate that a combination of low doses of EGCG and fish oil can inhibit tumor multiplicity in Apc (Min/+) mice.     

Comparison of effectiveness of introduced barn owls,Tyto javanica javanica,and rodenticide treatments on rat control in oil palm plantations

Journal of Pest Science - In Peninsular Malaysia, barn owls (Tyto javanica javanica) have been utilized as biological control of rats since the 1960s. In this study, the impact of introduced barn...