Timely changes of the circulating concentrations of haptoglobin and leptin in female cattle undergoing fat mobilization : assessment of the relevance of haptoglobin as an adipokine

This study was undertaken to characterize the concentrations of haptoglobin (Hp) and leptin throughout the entire lactation period, to investigate the effect of long-term conjugated linoleic acids (CLA) supplementation on Hp and leptin in dairy cows, to examine the presence of Hp in bovine adipose tissue (AT), and to examine the effect of moderate feed restriction and re-feeding on Hp and leptin in non-lactating heifers. Samples from four different studies were used in this work. The first experiment “CLA-252 days in milk (DIM)” comprised heifers and cows observed from day (d) 21 ante partum (AP) until d 252 post partum (PP), receiving two doses of rumen-protected CLA supplementation (50 and 100 g/d, d 1 - 182 PP) versus a corresponding control group. A further experiment “CLA-post mortem (PM)-105 DIM” was done in heifers observed from d 21 AP until d 105 PP receiving either no CLA or 100 g/d CLA (d 1 - 105 PP). The CLA supplementation included equal proportions of each the t-10, c-12 and the c-9, t-11 isomer. The third experiment “Concentrate-roughage ratio” was conducted (d 21 AP - d 21 PP) using cows that received diets with either a concentrate-to-roughage ratio (dry matter basis (DM)) of 30:70% (low-concentrate group) or 60:40% (high-concentrate group) after calving. The fourth experiment “Fat heifers restriction” was performed using non-lactating heifers fed either grass silage (100%) or grass silage diluted with straw (37:63 on DM basis). The physiological changes of Hp in the CLA-252 DIM experiment were related to parity and parturition. The concentrations of Hp were higher in heifers than in cows during the first week PP. The concentrations of Hp peaked around calving and decreased afterwards in both parity groups and CLA experiments. Long-term feeding of dairy cows with CLA had no effect on the concentrations of serum Hp. The animals in the concentrate-roughage ratio study had lower concentrations of Hp compared to those in the CLA studies. The immunohistochemistry and Western immunoblotting methods indicated the presence of Hp in bovine AT. The physiological changes in the concentrations of leptin in the CLA-252 DIM experiment were limited to parturition. Long-term feeding of dairy cows with CLA left the concentrations of leptin unaffected. The fat heifers restriction study indicated that neither Hp nor leptin concentrations were affected by the change in energy content of the ration fed. In conclusion, long-term feeding of dairy cows with CLA left the concentrations of Hp and leptin unaffected. The presence of Hp in bovine AT indicates that Hp can be classified as an adipokine in cattle. The lack of an evident relation between Hp and body fatness makes Hp irrelevant as an adiposity marker for ruminants.Zeitlicher Verlauf der zirkulierenden Konzentrationen von Haptoglobin und Leptin in weiblichen Rindern, die eine Fettmobilisierung durchleben : Einschätzung der Relevanz von Haptoglobin als Adipokin Diese Studie wurde durchgeführt, um die Blut-konzentrationen von Haptoglobin (Hp) und Leptin über die gesamte Laktation zu charakterisieren, um den Langzeiteffekt der Supplementierung von konjugierten Linolsäuren (CLA) auf Hp und Leptin in Milchkühen zu prüfen und die Anwesenheit von Hp in bovinem Fettgewebe zu untersuchen. Außerdem wurde der Effekt einer moderaten Futterrestriktion mit anschließender Wiederaufnahme der Fütterung auf Hp und Leptin in nicht-laktierenden Färsen ermittelt. Proben aus vier verschiedenen Studien wurden in dieser Arbeit verwendet: Der erste Versuch “CLA-252 DIM” beinhaltete Färsen und Kühe (untersucht von d 21 ante partum (AP) bis d 252 post partum (PP)), die von d 1 - 182 PP mit 0, 50 oder 100 g/d pansengeschützten CLA supplementiert wurden. Ein weiterer Versuch “CLA-post mortem (PM)-105 DIM” wurde mit Färsen durchgeführt; diese wurden von d 21 AP bis d 105 PP untersucht und erhielten 100 g/d CLA oder ein CLA-freies Kontrollsupplement. Die zugefütterten CLA enthielten zu gleichen Teilen das t-10, c-12 und das c-9, t-11 Isomer. Der dritte Versuch “Kraftfutter-Rauhfutter- Verhältnis” (KF:R) (d 21 AP - d 21 PP) wurde mit Kühen durchgeführt, deren Rationen nach der Kalbung, bezogen auf Trockenmasse geringe (KF:R = 30:70%) oder hohe (KF:R = 60:40%) KF-Anteile enthielten. Der vierte Versuch “Fette Färsen” wurde mit nichtlaktierenden Färsen durchgeführt, die entweder mit Grassilage (100%) oder mit durch Stroh verdünnte Grassilage (37:63 bezogen auf Trockenmasse) gefüttert wurden. Die physiologischen Veränderungen von Hp im CLA-252 DIM Versuch standen im Zusammenhang zu Parität und Geburt. Die Hp-Konzentrationen in der ersten Woche nach der Geburt waren bei Färsen höher als bei Kühen. In beiden Paritätsgruppen und CLA-Versuche konnte gezeigt werden, dass die Hp-Konzentration ihr Maximum zum Zeitpunkt der Geburt hatte und anschließend wieder absank. Mit der Langzeitfütterung von CLA konnten keine Veränderungen der Hp-Serum Konzentrationen erkannt werden. Die Tiere des Versuches “KF:R” hatten niedrigere Hp-Konzentrationen im Vergleich zu denen der CLA-Versuche. Durch Immunhistochemie und Western Blot konnte die Anwesenheit von Hp in bovinen Fettgewebe gezeigt werden. Die physiologischen Veränderungen der Leptinkonzentrationen im CLA-252 DIM Versuch waren auf den Zeitraum der Geburt begrenzt. Die CLALangzeitfütterung der Milchkühe ließ die Leptinkonzentration unbeeinflusst. Der Versuch mit fetten Färsen deutete drauf hin, dass weder Hp- noch Leptinkonzentrationen durch die Veränderung des Energiegehaltes des Futters beeinflusst waren. Zusammenfassend konnte gezeigt werden, dass Langzeitfütterung von Milchkühen mit CLA zu keiner Veränderung der Hp- und Leptinkonzentrationen führte. Die Anwesenheit von Hp in bovinem Fettgewebe bestätigt, dass Hp in Wiederkäuern als Adipokin klassifiziert werden kann. Der fehlende Zusammenhang zwischen Hp und Körperfettgehalt disqualifiziert Hp als Marker für den Körperfettgehalt in Wiederkäuern

Prognostic model to predict postoperative acute kidney injury in patients undergoing major gastrointestinal surgery based on a national prospective observational cohort study.

Background: Acute illness, existing co-morbidities and surgical stress response can all contribute to postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients undergoing major gastrointestinal surgery. The aim of this study was prospectively to develop a pragmatic prognostic model to stratify patients according to risk of developing AKI after major gastrointestinal surgery. Methods: This prospective multicentre cohort study included consecutive adults undergoing elective or emergency gastrointestinal resection, liver resection or stoma reversal in 2-week blocks over a continuous 3-month period. The primary outcome was the rate of AKI within 7 days of surgery. Bootstrap stability was used to select clinically plausible risk factors into the model. Internal model validation was carried out by bootstrap validation. Results: A total of 4544 patients were included across 173 centres in the UK and Ireland. The overall rate of AKI was 14·2 per cent (646 of 4544) and the 30-day mortality rate was 1·8 per cent (84 of 4544). Stage 1 AKI was significantly associated with 30-day mortality (unadjusted odds ratio 7·61, 95 per cent c.i. 4·49 to 12·90; P < 0·001), with increasing odds of death with each AKI stage. Six variables were selected for inclusion in the prognostic model: age, sex, ASA grade, preoperative estimated glomerular filtration rate, planned open surgery and preoperative use of either an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or an angiotensin receptor blocker. Internal validation demonstrated good model discrimination (c-statistic 0·65). Discussion: Following major gastrointestinal surgery, AKI occurred in one in seven patients. This preoperative prognostic model identified patients at high risk of postoperative AKI. Validation in an independent data set is required to ensure generalizability

Air Velocity Produced by Different Types of Mixing and Ceiling Fans to Reduce Heat Stress in Poultry Houses

Abstract Poultry sector is still facing many problems due to heat stress during the periods of high temperatures. These include high mortality due to heat stroke, low chicken&apos;s growth rate, body gain, feed consumption and feed efficiency. However, air velocity is a main factor involved in thermoregulation. To overcome high temperature, it is necessary to increase the rate of air movement over the chicken. Fans can play an important role in the ventilation of poultry houses. Therefore, the present study aimed at investigating fan performance and air distribution and velocity by two different types of mixing fans (M4E/40 and M2E/40) and ceiling fans (PV60 and PV36). The effect of fan&apos;s height and tilt angle on air velocity in the bird&apos;s area was presented. The study was conducted in an experimental building at the Institute of Agricultural Engineering, University of Bonn, Germany. The results indicated that air velocity produced by M2E/40 was significantly greater than M4E/40 with a mean of 3.94 m/s vs. 2.18 m/s, respectively (F=1.32; P&lt;0.05). Overall, in all measuring locations the air velocity produced by fans was significantly low, and then increased until the 4 th and 8 th m of distance, and hereafter decreased until the 10 th m for both M2E/40 (F=9.57; P&lt;0.05) and M4E/40 at both tilt angles of 60° and 55° (F=11.77; P&lt;0.05). The air velocity produced by M4E/40 was significantly greater at 60° than 55° with means of 1.11 m/s vs. 0.58 m/s, respectively (F=5.386; P&lt;0.05). The air velocity produced by PV60 was 1.5-fold greater than PV36, but it was not significantly different with means of 1.56 m/s vs. 1.036 m/s for both fans, respectively (F=0.246; P=0.184). It is to be mentioned that an air velocity of 1.5-3.0 m/s is the optimal to achieve an optimal birds&apos; performance under very hot conditions. In the current study, this optimal air velocity was obtained at different distances and measuring locations for all fans tested. In conclusion, agricultural fans used in this study could provide adequate air velocity, which can decrease the effective temperature inside poultry houses. Selection of fan location and modifying of fan&apos;s tilt angle are very important points to be taken into account to obtain the best air distribution and velocity to prevent heat stress effect on birds

Testicular and epididymal sperm reserve evaluations in three Jordanian goat breeds

The study aimed to determine the effect of goat breed (Shami, Mountain Black and Hybrid) on testicular and epididymal sperm reserves. The study was conducted at Mutah University Animal Farm, Jordan in March 2016. The study area lies between Latitude of 31°27″ N, Longitude of 35°74″ W, and an altitude of 960 m. Average temperature and relative humidity recorded during the study were 14.6°C and 59.0%, respectively. Hybrid had the heaviest (P = 0.04) right tail epididymal weight (6.36 ± 0.3 g), the highest (P = 0.03) epididymosomatic index (0.60 ± 0.1 g/kg), and the widest (P = 0.02) testicular width (0.32 ± 0.03 cm/kg) relative to body weight. Epididymal sperm concentrations in the right testicular side were the highest (P = 0.04) in Hybrid (0.530 ± 0.15 × 109 sperm/ml) compared to Shami (0.386 ± 0.04 × 109 sperm/ml) and Mountain Black (0.322 ± 0.10 × 109 sperm/ml). Total testicular-epididymal sperm concentrations in both testes were the highest (P = 0.04) in Hybrid (0.810 ± 0.20 × 10 sperm/ml) compared to Shami (0.764 ± 0.09 × 109 sperm/ml) and Mountain Black (0.716 ± 0.12 × 109 sperm/ml). Furthermore, Hybrid had the highest (P = 0.05) epididymal body sperm concentrations (0.252 ± 0.05 × 109 sperm/ml) in both testes compared to Mountain Black and Shami. Taken together, the outcomes of this work highlighted the testicular and epididymal sperm traits in bucks of three breeds native to the semiarid region of Jordan. Hybrid displayed greater testicular traits than Shami and Mountain Black

The Wolff–Chaikoff effect ameliorates heat stress in rats

Abstract Background The thyroid gland contributes immensely to the basal metabolic rate, and hence, thermogenesis in mammals. Its response to the thermal environment is, however, slow and may require several days to adjust. A rapid thyrosuppressive mechanism (“Wolff–Chaikoff” phenomenon; WC) is inducible by high dietary iodine ingestion. The current study aimed to examine the WC on thermophysiology of rats exposed to acute heat stress (HS). Biotelemetry was used to assess real-time core body temperature (T core), locomotive activity (LA) and heart rate (HR) in rats (N = 12). Animals were randomly assigned to two treatment groups: a control (CN) group had ad libitum access to tap water throughout the trial; a second group (KI) received potassium iodide (0.5%) in drinking water, 3 h before HS. Climatic conditions during the 10-day experimental period were set to 4 days at thermoneutrality (TN; T a = 23.60 ± 0.05 °C), then HS (T a = 33.22 ± 0.25 °C, for 4 h) and finally back to TN until the end of trial. Serum samples were collected right after the HS, to measure free thyroxine (FT4), triiodothyronine (FT3) and total antioxidant capacity (TAO), from 12 other equivalent rats. Results The KI induced the WC, as evidenced with lower FT3 (1.66 and 1.91 ± 0.08 pg/mL) than the CN treatment, respectively. This momentary goitrogenic response by KI mitigated hyperthermia, compared to CN (T core maxima of 38.90 and 39.54 ± 0.09 °C). Furthermore, KI resulted in higher TAO than KI-free rats (238.30 and 198.80 ± 9.10 µM copper reducing equivalents). While instigating an instant suppression in LA, KI caused a delayed 25% elevation in HR along with a rebound in T core, likely due to the “escape phenomenon.” Conclusions The employed WC protocol alleviated HS impact on rats. Research on other mammals awaits further investigation

Resveratrol mitigates hypercholesterolemia exacerbated hyperthermia in chronically heat-stressed rats

Background and Aim: Hypercholesterolemia (HC) is the major leading cause of cardiovascular disease worldwide. Such atherogenic aberration deeply impacts blood circulation. Resveratrol (R) is a polyphenol that has received attention as a hypolipidemic, antioxidant, and vascular agility advocate. Efficient blood redistribution is a key element in mammalian thermoregulation. We hypothesized that R treatment may aid in mitigating hyperthermic responses under both acute and chronic heat stress (HS) conditions in HC male rats. Materials and Methods: All rats were initially fitted with miniaturized thermologgers to measure core body temperature (Tcore). With a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement, four groups were randomly allotted, in which half of the animals ingested an HC diet (C+), while the other half ingested a control (C-) diet, throughout the whole study duration of 35 days. Seven rats from each dietary treatment, however, received R (R+; 13 mg/kg BW/day), while the rest received normal saline (R-) for 5 continuous days. All animals were maintained at thermoneutrality (TN; ambient temperature; Ta=23.15±0.04°C) for a period of 30 continuous days (days 0-29). On day 29, an acute HS (HS; Ta=35.86±0.37°C; for 9 nocturnal h) was imposed. Then, from day 29, a chronic HS protocol (Ta=32.28±1.00°C) was maintained until the past day of the trial (day 34), after which blood samples were drawn for analyses of platelet (PL) count, total antioxidant activity (TAO), total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TGs), and lipid peroxidation (LP). Results: Switching animals from TN to HS resulted in abrupt rises in Tcore. The HC diet induced a significant (p<0.01) hyperlipidemia over the control of diet-consuming rats. Interestingly, the hyperthermic response to acute HS was highly pronounced in the rats consuming the C- diet, while the C+ diet exacerbated the chronic HS-induced hyperthermia. Despite failure to improve TAO in the C+ diet, R+ treatment caused a marked (p<0.05) decline in nighttime - hyperthermia in C+ rats, likely by enhancing blood flow to extremities (for heat dissipation) as delineated by drastic downregulations of C+ related rises in PL, TC, TG, and LP (HC diet by R+ interaction; p<0.03). Conclusion: The hyperthermic response in C- groups was attributed to higher amount of feed intake than those consuming the C+ diet. Yet, the R+ improvement of thermoregulation in the C+ group was likely related to enhancement of vascular hemodynamics. Resveratrol intake mitigated chronic HS-evoked hyperthermia in rats. Such an approach is worthy to follow-up in other mammals and humans

Thermotolerance of Broiler Chicks Ingesting Dietary Betaine and/or Creatine

The present study aimed to assess the effect of dietary betaine (B) and/or creatine (C) on performance and thermoregulatory responses of broiler chicks. Indian River broiler chicks, fitted with compact thermosensors, were reared to market age (five weeks). The chicks were randomly distributed into four treatment groups, in a 2 &times; 2 factorial arrangement of treatments&mdash;basal control diet (Control group: CONT; B&minus;/C&minus;); 1 g betaine/kg feed (Betaine group: BETA; B+/C&minus;), 1.2 g creatine monohydrate/kg feed (Creatine group: CRET; B&minus;/C+), and combination (Betaine and Creatine group: COMB; B+/C+) of both supplements. At 31 days of age, 20 chicks from each group were exposed to acute heat stress (A-HS) for 3 h (34.45 &plusmn; 0.20 &deg;C), and hemogramic profiles were screened before and after. Performance parameters (feed intake, body weight gain, and feed conversion ratio) were reported on a weekly basis, and carcass meat quality was evaluated at the end of experiment. Redness of breast was higher due to B and C treatments separately than the CONT group (B by C interaction; p &lt; 0.05). Compared to the CONT, dietary supplements alleviated hyperthermia responses, with B alone being more efficient than C or COMB treatments. The mitigation of hyperthermia is likely mediated by enhancement of water balance indicators. Although not efficient in improving growth performance, dietary B and/or C are efficient in improving thermophysiological performance and survival of finishing broiler chicks under A-HS

Pancreatic surgery outcomes: multicentre prospective snapshot study in 67 countries

Background: Pancreatic surgery remains associated with high morbidity rates. Although postoperative mortality appears to have improved with specialization, the outcomes reported in the literature reflect the activity of highly specialized centres. The aim of this study was to evaluate the outcomes following pancreatic surgery worldwide.Methods: This was an international, prospective, multicentre, cross-sectional snapshot study of consecutive patients undergoing pancreatic operations worldwide in a 3-month interval in 2021. The primary outcome was postoperative mortality within 90 days of surgery. Multivariable logistic regression was used to explore relationships with Human Development Index (HDI) and other parameters.Results: A total of 4223 patients from 67 countries were analysed. A complication of any severity was detected in 68.7 percent of patients (2901 of 4223). Major complication rates (Clavien-Dindo grade at least IIIa) were 24, 18, and 27 percent, and mortality rates were 10, 5, and 5 per cent in low-to-middle-, high-, and very high-HDI countries respectively. The 90-day postoperative mortality rate was 5.4 per cent (229 of 4223) overall, but was significantly higher in the low-to-middle-HDI group (adjusted OR 2.88, 95 per cent c.i. 1.80 to 4.48). The overall failure-to-rescue rate was 21 percent; however, it was 41 per cent in low-to-middle-compared with 19 per cent in very high-HDI countries.Conclusion: Excess mortality in low-to-middle-HDI countries could be attributable to failure to rescue of patients from severe complications. The authors call for a collaborative response from international and regional associations of pancreatic surgeons to address management related to death from postoperative complications to tackle the global disparities in the outcomes of pancreatic surgery (NCT04652271; ISRCTN95140761)