Influence of dietary energy and postmortem electrical stimulation on meat quality and collagen characteristics of lamb carcasses

Sixty ram lambs, weighing 23.5 kg, were randomly assigned in a 2X3 factorial arrangement of two dietary energy (high; 11.7 and low; 9.0 MJ ME/kg DM) and three levels of poultry offal meal supplementation (0, 5 and 10%). Lambs were fed ad libitum for 120-day before slaughter. At slaughter, half the lambs in each dietary treatment group were randomly selected for electrical stimulation of their undressed carcasses. The M. Biceps femoris pH and temperatures were monitored at 1, 3, 5, 8 and 24 h postmortem, the M. biceps femoris was removed from the right side of each carcass and steaks were obtained for determination of Warner-Bratzler shear force, collagen content and collagen solubility. The results showed that temperature and pH values during the 24-h postmortem were consistently higher (P<0.01) and lower, respectively, for M. biceps femoris from lambs fed high energy diets than for those fed on low energy diets. Muscles from high energy fed lambs had lower (P<0.01) shear force values and higher (P<0.01) percent soluble collagen than for low energy fed lambs; total collagen content was not significantly influenced by dietary energy level. Increased the level of poultry offal meal supplementation in the diet to 10% was associated with concomitant increase

Effect of graded levels of crude protein on nutrient digestibility of rhodesgrass hay or dried salicornia biomass diets in camels

A digestibility trial was conducted with 12 Majaheem male camels (327 kg) to evaluate the effect of dietary inclusion of two sources of roughages and three levels of crude protein (12, 14.5 and 17%) in the diets on nutrient digestibilities of Rhodesgrass hay (chloris gayana) and dried Salicornia biomass (Salicornia bigelovii Torr). This seawater-irrigated halophyte was utilized as a roughage source and incorporated into the diets at the rate of 25% DM. All camels were fitted with bags to collect feces and equally allotted into six dietary groups. The digestibility trial was arranged as 3X3 latin aquare design within each dietary roughage. Except for OM, NFE and ADF the results showed that digestion of all nutriens was improved (P<0.01) as the crude protein increased in the diets from 12 to 14.5%; however, increasing the crude protein in the diets to 17% was not associated with further changes. The average digestibility o ADF, NDF and TDN were 75, 22 and 13% higher (P<0.01) for the diets containing Rhodesgrass hay than diets containing dried Salicornia biomass, respectively. On the other hand, the average digestibility of CP for the dried Salicornia biomass diets was 3.6% higher (P<0.01) than for the Rhodesgrass hay diets

Preconditioning of Human Decidua Basalis Mesenchymal Stem/Stromal Cells with Glucose Increased Their Engraftment and Anti-diabetic Properties

BACKGROUND: Mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) from the decidua basalis (DBMSCs) of the human placenta have important functions that make them potential candidates for cellular therapy. Previously, we showed that DBMSC functions do not change significantly in a high oxidative stress environment, which was induced by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and immune cells. Here, we studied the consequences of glucose, another oxidative stress inducer, on the phenotypic and functional changes in DBMSCs. METHODS: DBMSCs were exposed to a high level of glucose, and its effect on DBMSC phenotypic and functional properties was determined. DBMSC expression of oxidative stress and immune molecules after exposure to glucose were also identified. RESULTS: Conditioning of DBMSCs with glucose improved their adhesion and invasion. Glucose also increased DBMSC expression of genes with survival, proliferation, migration, invasion, anti-inflammatory, anti-chemoattractant and antimicrobial properties. In addition, DBMSC expression of B7H4, an inhibitor of T cell proliferation was also enhanced by glucose. Interestingly, glucose modulated DBMSC expression of genes involved in insulin secretion and prevention of diabetes. CONCLUSION: These data show the potentially beneficial effects of glucose on DBMSC functions. Preconditioning of DBMSCs with glucose may therefore be a rational strategy for increasing their therapeutic potential by enhancing their engraftment efficiency. In addition, glucose may program DBMSCs into insulin producing cells with ability to counteract inflammation and infection associated with diabetes. However, future in vitro and in vivo studies are essential to investigate the findings of this study further

Preconditioning of Human Decidua Basalis Mesenchymal Stem/Stromal Cells with Glucose Increased Their Engraftment and Anti-diabetic Properties (vol 17, pg 209, 2020)

The author would like to correct the names for the below co-authors in the online published article