WPŁYW DODATKU KONCENTRATU BIAŁKOWO-KSANTOFILOWEGO (PX) Z LUCERNY DO MIESZANEK O ZMNIEJSZONYM POZIOMIE BIAŁKA OGÓLNEGO NA WYDALANIE AZOTU, EFEKTY PRODUKCYJNE I JAKOŚĆ MIĘSA TUCZNIKÓW

The infl uence of protein-xanthophyll (PX) concentrate of alfalfa supplement to crude protein-reduced diets was examined in relation to nitrogen excretion, performance parameters and pig meat quality. The investigations included 60 growers (PL x PLW) x Duroc crossbreeds assigned to 3 groups. The conclusion is that there is a large potential to decrease nitrogen emission to the environment by 10% lowering of dietary crude protein intake along with reduced animal growth rate and elevated mixture utilization. Inclusion of a protein-xanthophyll concentrate (PX) of alfalfa to the diet is likely to diminish disadvantageous productive parameters arising from limiting of total crude protein level in relation to the requirements of pigs feeding norms [1993]. At the same time, it improves feed nitrogen utilization and reduces noxious odour emissions from a piggery. The components of a protein-xanthophyll concentrate (PX) contribute to increased liver and kidney weight.Celem badań było określenie wpływu dodatku koncentratu białkowo-ksantofi lowego (PX) do mieszanek o zmniejszonym poziomie białka ogólnego na wzrost i wykorzystanie paszy, bilans azotu oraz cechy fi zyko-chemiczne mięsa wieprzowego. Badania dokonano na 60 warchlakach mieszańcach (pbz x wpb) x Duroc podzielonych na 3 grupy. W podsumowaniu należy podkreślić możliwość ograniczenia wydalania azotu do środowiska poprzez 10% ograniczenie poziomu białka w diecie tuczników przy jednoczesnym spadku tempa wzrostu zwierząt i zwiększonym zużyciu mieszanki. Dodatek koncentratu białkowo-ksantofi lowego (PX) z lucerny może zniwelować niekorzystne efekty produkcyjne związane z ograniczeniem poziomu białka surowego w stosunku do Norm Żywienia Świń [1993] przy jednoczesnej poprawie wykorzystania azotu paszy i zmniejszeniu nieprzyjemnych zapachów odorowych w chlewni. Zawarte w koncentracie białkowo-ksantofi lowym (PX) substancje przyczyniają się do zwiększenia masy wątroby i nerek

Effect of maternal diet and medium chain fatty acids supplementation for piglets on their digestive tract development, structure, and chyme acidity as well as performance and health status

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effect of oils for sows during late pregnancy and lactation on offspring performance. In addition, the effect of caprylic acid (C8) or medium-chain triglyceride oil (MCT) in piglets’ feed on their gut development, performance, and health status was determined. The experiment was conducted on 24 sows allocated to two treatments: diet with rapeseed oil or with coconut oil. Newborn piglets were randomly allocated to three treatments: feed with no supplement or supplemented with 0.3% MCT or with 0.3% C8. The results showed that both oils had no effect on sow reproductive rates; however, fatty acid patterns of milk differed significantly and the number of lost piglets was lower in sow fed with coconut oil. Both caprylic and MCT oil significantly improved piglet performance and villus height. These additives did not change triacylglycerol content in blood, but C8 lowered total cholesterol and MCT increased IgG content. It can be concluded that coconut oil fed to pregnant and lactating sows can markedly reduce the mortality of piglets and that caprylic acid and medium-chain fatty acid oil can be a good supplement in weaned piglet feed

The effect of supplementing of sodium butyrate containing feed with glutamine and/or glucose on the structure of the piglet digestive tract and selected blood indices

The effect of supplementing the standard piglet diet containing sodium butyrate with glutamine and/or glucose on the structure of the piglet digestive tract and the small intestine epithelium, acidity and volatile fatty acid content of its digesta was investigated. The free amino acids level, insulin and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) concentration in the blood were also analysed. The experiment was performed on 156 piglets (15 litters) allocated to 5 experimental groups, 3 litters in each. Group I (C, negative control) received a basal mixture with no supplement. Group II (SB, positive control) was fed the same basal diet containing additionally 3 g of sodium butyrate per kg. Group III and IV, besides sodium butyrate, received additionally 10 g of glutamine (GT) or glucose (GC), respectively. The last group V received all these supplements, i.e. SB+GT+GC (3, 10, 10 g per kg, respectively). At 60 days of age, the piglets (6 animals from each group) were slaughtered and their intestines were measured and weighed. The piglets in group SB+GT+GC receiving all the supplements grew slightly faster than the others, and at the end of the experiment the differences in body weight were significant. The total intestinal mass of the piglets fed with glucose or all the supplements was significantly higher than that of the piglets receiving glutamine but there was no significant difference in the total length of intestines. There was also no significant difference in acidity of chyme along the entire length of the gastrointestinal tract. Digesta in the jejunum of both control groups (C, SB) contained significantly more SCFA than the remaining groups. In the caecum their content in the negative control and the group fed with all supplements was significantly higher when compared to the butyrate and glucose group. In the duodenum villus height was similar in all the groups but in the jejunum it was significantly higher in the group receiving all supplements than in other groups. Free amino acids level was lowest in the piglets receiving glucose but there was no difference between the remaining groups. The lowest level of IGF-1 was found in the same group and this difference was significant when compared with remaining groups, except C. It is concluded that glutamine and glucose, when given together with sodium butyrate, improve the structure of piglet jejunum epithelium and average body weight gains. A supplement of glucose significantly lowers free amino acid content and IGF-1 level in piglet blood

WPŁYW DODATKU KONCENTRATU BIAŁKOWO-KSANTOFILOWEGO (PX) Z LUCERNY DO MIESZANEK O ZMNIEJSZONYM POZIOMIE BIAŁKA OGÓLNEGO NA WYDALANIE AZOTU, EFEKTY PRODUKCYJNE I JAKOŚĆ MIĘSA TUCZNIKÓW

The infl uence of protein-xanthophyll (PX) concentrate of alfalfa supplement to crude protein-reduced diets was examined in relation to nitrogen excretion, performance parameters and pig meat quality. The investigations included 60 growers (PL x PLW) x Duroc crossbreeds assigned to 3 groups. The conclusion is that there is a large potential to decrease nitrogen emission to the environment by 10% lowering of dietary crude protein intake along with reduced animal growth rate and elevated mixture utilization. Inclusion of a protein-xanthophyll concentrate (PX) of alfalfa to the diet is likely to diminish disadvantageous productive parameters arising from limiting of total crude protein level in relation to the requirements of pigs feeding norms [1993]. At the same time, it improves feed nitrogen utilization and reduces noxious odour emissions from a piggery. The components of a protein-xanthophyll concentrate (PX) contribute to increased liver and kidney weight.Celem badań było określenie wpływu dodatku koncentratu białkowo-ksantofi lowego (PX) do mieszanek o zmniejszonym poziomie białka ogólnego na wzrost i wykorzystanie paszy, bilans azotu oraz cechy fi zyko-chemiczne mięsa wieprzowego. Badania dokonano na 60 warchlakach mieszańcach (pbz x wpb) x Duroc podzielonych na 3 grupy. W podsumowaniu należy podkreślić możliwość ograniczenia wydalania azotu do środowiska poprzez 10% ograniczenie poziomu białka w diecie tuczników przy jednoczesnym spadku tempa wzrostu zwierząt i zwiększonym zużyciu mieszanki. Dodatek koncentratu białkowo-ksantofi lowego (PX) z lucerny może zniwelować niekorzystne efekty produkcyjne związane z ograniczeniem poziomu białka surowego w stosunku do Norm Żywienia Świń [1993] przy jednoczesnej poprawie wykorzystania azotu paszy i zmniejszeniu nieprzyjemnych zapachów odorowych w chlewni. Zawarte w koncentracie białkowo-ksantofi lowym (PX) substancje przyczyniają się do zwiększenia masy wątroby i nerek

Sustainable environmental geotechnics practices for a green economy

The revitalisation of the global economy after the Covid-19 era presents environmental geotechnics with the opportunity to reinforce the need for a change in paradigm towards a green, circular economy and to promote aggressively the use and development of sustainable technologies and management practices. This paper aims to assist in this effort by concentrating on several thematic areas where sustainability solutions and future improvements are sought. These include the re-entry of construction and demolition of wastes, excavated materials, industrial wastes and marine sediments into the production cycle and the reuse of existing foundations. Despite the recent trend in advanced countries towards recycling and waste-to-energy thermal treatment, landfills still constitute the most common municipal solid waste management practice, especially in low-and-middle-income countries, and technological solutions to improve their environmental footprint are hereby presented. At the same time, remediation solutions are required to address the multitude of contaminated sites worldwide. Advanced developments that incorporate environmental, economic and social dimensions are expounded by the authors, together with sustainable ground improvement solutions for infrastructure projects conducted in soft and weak soils. The topic of thermo-active geostructures concludes this paper, where, apart from their infrastructure utility, these structures have the potential to contribute to the renewable energy source.Published versionThe second author would like to acknowledge the support of the Office of the Associate Provost for Research and Academic Development at Abu Dhabi University, UAE through grant19300540

Identification of genetic variants associated with Huntington's disease progression: a genome-wide association study

Background Huntington's disease is caused by a CAG repeat expansion in the huntingtin gene, HTT. Age at onset has been used as a quantitative phenotype in genetic analysis looking for Huntington's disease modifiers, but is hard to define and not always available. Therefore, we aimed to generate a novel measure of disease progression and to identify genetic markers associated with this progression measure. Methods We generated a progression score on the basis of principal component analysis of prospectively acquired longitudinal changes in motor, cognitive, and imaging measures in the 218 indivduals in the TRACK-HD cohort of Huntington's disease gene mutation carriers (data collected 2008–11). We generated a parallel progression score using data from 1773 previously genotyped participants from the European Huntington's Disease Network REGISTRY study of Huntington's disease mutation carriers (data collected 2003–13). We did a genome-wide association analyses in terms of progression for 216 TRACK-HD participants and 1773 REGISTRY participants, then a meta-analysis of these results was undertaken. Findings Longitudinal motor, cognitive, and imaging scores were correlated with each other in TRACK-HD participants, justifying use of a single, cross-domain measure of disease progression in both studies. The TRACK-HD and REGISTRY progression measures were correlated with each other (r=0·674), and with age at onset (TRACK-HD, r=0·315; REGISTRY, r=0·234). The meta-analysis of progression in TRACK-HD and REGISTRY gave a genome-wide significant signal (p=1·12 × 10−10) on chromosome 5 spanning three genes: MSH3, DHFR, and MTRNR2L2. The genes in this locus were associated with progression in TRACK-HD (MSH3 p=2·94 × 10−8 DHFR p=8·37 × 10−7 MTRNR2L2 p=2·15 × 10−9) and to a lesser extent in REGISTRY (MSH3 p=9·36 × 10−4 DHFR p=8·45 × 10−4 MTRNR2L2 p=1·20 × 10−3). The lead single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in TRACK-HD (rs557874766) was genome-wide significant in the meta-analysis (p=1·58 × 10−8), and encodes an aminoacid change (Pro67Ala) in MSH3. In TRACK-HD, each copy of the minor allele at this SNP was associated with a 0·4 units per year (95% CI 0·16–0·66) reduction in the rate of change of the Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale (UHDRS) Total Motor Score, and a reduction of 0·12 units per year (95% CI 0·06–0·18) in the rate of change of UHDRS Total Functional Capacity score. These associations remained significant after adjusting for age of onset. Interpretation The multidomain progression measure in TRACK-HD was associated with a functional variant that was genome-wide significant in our meta-analysis. The association in only 216 participants implies that the progression measure is a sensitive reflection of disease burden, that the effect size at this locus is large, or both. Knockout of Msh3 reduces somatic expansion in Huntington's disease mouse models, suggesting this mechanism as an area for future therapeutic investigation

Feed alternative to soybean protein in pigs and poultry nutrition

The best protein feed in monogastric animals nutrition is soybean meal. On the world market, soy is mainly available in genetically modified (GM) form. Researchers and practitioners are increasingly interested in the sources of feed alternative for GM soybeans. Poland has a real chance of becoming independent of the import of GMO products used in animal nutrition. Our domestic protein sources include rapeseed and sunflower meal, legume seeds (peas, lupins), fish and insect meal, yeast and alfalfa concentrate. The cultivation of legumes, including non–GM soybeans, sweet lupins, peas and field beans with low anti–nutritional factors should be increased and popularized. Effective methods should be developed and implemented for the treatment of rapeseed and sunflower meals by fermentation. The aim of this paper was to present the aspects arising from replacing soybeans meal with native sources of protein feeds