Thyroid hormones in donkey blood and milk: correlations with milk yield and environmental temperatures

Thyroid hormones (TH) are the primary endocrine stimulators of non-shivering thermogenesis and are known to stimulate lactation. Triiodothyronine (T3) is the bioactive form, mainly derived by deiodination of thyroxine (T4), and the free quote (unbound to plasma proteins) is immediately bioavailable. This study aimed to evaluate potential relationships among TH in the blood, triiodothyronine in the milk (T3M), milk yield and environmental temperature in March to July for 8 lactating donkeys. Milk yield and blood TH concentrations changed significantly over time, whereas T3M was rather stable among individuals and not affected by time of sampling. Free T3 was not correlated with free T4 or with total TH in the blood, but was weakly correlated with T3M. No relationship was found between blood TH and milk yield, which was negatively correlated with T3M, thus the absolute quantity of bioactive hormone in milk secretion is maintained. Milk yield was positively correlated with the free/total T3 and free T3/free T4 ratios and, thus, with the relative quote of the circulating bioactive hormone. Circulating T3/T4 ratios were negatively correlated with environmental temperature. It is concluded that environmental temperature, in the range of the present study (-2 to 35 °C), does not significantly entrain thyroid gland activity, which is affected more by other factors, such as inter-individual variations and physiological status (i.e., stage of lactation). However, increases in environmental temperature most likely induced decreases in deiodinase activity at the peripheral tissue level, as indicated by the decrease in the T3/T4 ratios in the blood

Short communication: Effects of summer rainfall variations on sheep body state and farming sustainability in sub-Mediterranean pastoral systems

In sub-Mediterranean climate the grassland aboveground phytomass production peaks in late spring and drops in summer, when the decrease of the pasture feed value may lead to the worsening of the animal welfare. Our goal was to define the summer rainfall values leading to a decrease of semi-extensive farming system sustainability in sub-Mediterranean regions. Summer rainfall variations reflect in the aboveground phytomass production and on the sheep body state. Differences of body condition score (BCS) among years were significant in late summer, which is the mating period for sheep. In the driest year the BCS of end August drops down to 2.1, largely below the value considered sufficient to ensure the animal breeding/milking performances (2.5). Reduction of summer rainfall greater than 15–20% compared to the normal average value (thus less than expected by the scenario of climate change) might be detrimental for semi-extensive rearing sustainability in sub-Mediterranean climate

Plant extracts in swine nutrition: Effects on some hematochemical parameters and sensory characteristics

There is an increasing public interest in the use of plant extracts in livestock feed. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of inclusion of oregano (Origanum vulgare L) and chestnut wood (Castanea sativa) extract in pig diets, on some blood parameters, and chemical and sensory characteristics of the meat pork. Ninety Suffolk hybrids pigs were randomly divided into 6 groups (3 indoor and 3 outdoor; 15 animals/group) and, after the adaptation period, both indoor and outdoor pigs were assigned to one of the following iso-nitrogenous and iso-energetic diets: a) control, a commercial pellet diet (16.0% CP, 4.3% CF, 1.0% Lysine produced by Nuovo Molino, in Bastia Umbra, PG); b) control with 0.2% oregano essential oil; c) control with 0.2% oregano + 0.2% natural extract of chestnut wood. Diets were administered for 190 d until slaughter. Blood samples were taken at the beginning (s 1), after 120 (s 2) and at the end of the trial (s 3) to check the health status of animals by some minerals and hematochemical determinations (Ca, P, Zn, Cu, Mg, Fe, total protein, beta-hydroxibutyrate, free fatty acids, tryglicerids, cholesterol, LDLcholesterol) measured with an automatic analyzer (Hitachi 74); whereas the chemical characteristics and sensory quality of the pork were investigated, the first, on a mincemeat separately prepared from carcass (n. 3 animals) of each diet group and on derived matured salami, the second only on the derived matured salami. In conclusion, the diet integrated with plants extracts didn’t interfere with the animal health status or the minerals and hematochemical blood parameters investigated. However, the chemical parameters of the salami showed statistically significant differences especially as regards to the content of lipids and cholesterol, lower in outdoor pigs respectively for 20% and 40%. By contrast, the “consumer test” used to assess whether the consumer perceives sensory differences on the final products showed that the salami made from indoor pigs were significantly more appreciated by consumers (P0,05), regardless of the type of the diet followed by the animal. Then is possible concluded that the consumer “choice” not coincide with the healthy characteristics of meat

How modifications of forage features related to inter-annual rainfall variations affect sheep morpho-physiological characteristics

The sub-Mediterranean climate, mostly characterising the mountain regions sited all around the Mediterranean basin, is a variant of the Temperate bioclimate, characterised by winter cold stress and summer drought stress, the intensity and duration of which depend on the elevation gradient and land form factors. Models for the sub-Mediterranean regions indicate a strong increase of summer dry conditions and a more marked inter-seasonal and interannual variability, with maximum changes in summer and minimum changes in winter. We aimed to assess the interplay among plant community characteristics, inter-annual climatic variations and sheep morpho-physiological features to model the responses of sub- Mediterranean pastoral systems to climate change and management modification. We tested the hypothesis that the inter-annual climatic variability affects grassland productivity and feed value with different intensity (depending on slope angle and aspect) and causes variations in sheep rumen features (epithelium keratinisation degree) and animal body state estimated by means of Body Condition Score (BCS) method. We postulated that there is a significant correlation among grassland features, rumen characteristics and animal body state. Results showed that in the sub-Mediterranean climate increased summer drought stress negatively affects forage quantity and quality, and that type and direction of changes are quite different from those reported for both Mediterranean and Temperate regions. In particular, the most negatively affected plant communities were those of productive habitats, which also undergo a strong decrease of the summer forage re-growth ability. These habitats are foundational for the sustainability of extensive sheep farming in sub- Mediterranean mountains, since those of south-facing slopes are normally fully dry in summer. Grasslands of south-facing slopes are more affected by the decrease of latespring/ summer rainfall variation, and by the seasonal rainfall patterns. Changes in forage features, and in particular the increasing fibre amount led to increase the rumen keratinisation. When the degree of keratinisation increases, the absorptive ability decreases, so we can infer that drought intensification reflects in a sheep's lessened ability to absorb nutrients because of increases in the rumen keratinisation degree, negatively affecting also the animal body state. Differences of BCS among years were significant in late summer, which is the mating period for sheep. In the driest year the end-August BCS drops down largely below the value considered sufficient to ensure the animal breeding/milking performances. Reduction of summer rainfall greater than 15–20% compared to the normal average value might be detrimental for semi-extensive rearing sustainability in sub- Mediterranean climate

Case Report Hepatitis B Reactivation in a HBsAg-Negative, HBcAb-Positive Patient Receiving Fludarabine for the Treatment of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukaemia

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) reactivation is an increasingly recognized cause of morbidity and mortality in patients undergoing chemotherapy. In haematology, the risk of reactivation of B hepatitis among HBsAg-positive patients has been documented; therefore, use of lamivudine prophylaxis is recommended before starting chemotherapy. Differently, for HBsAg-negative patients with markers of previous HBV infection (i.e., presence of isolated anti-HBc positivity) (anticore patients) management strategies are not univocal. We describe a rare case of HBV reactivation in an anticore patient after fludarabine therapy for chronic lymphocytic leukaemia. The patient fully recovered after a 6-month course of lamivudine with persistent HBV-DNA clearance and loss of HBsAg. The most important feature of this case is that fludarabine alone infrequently determines HBV reactivation, especially in anticore patients. Therefore, we suggest that patients candidates to receive fludarabine therapy should be considered for lamivudine prophylaxis, not only if HBsAg-positive, but even if anticore-positive only

A Conceptual Framework for Developing the Next Generation of Marine OBservatories (MOBs) for Science and Society

In the field of ocean observing, the term of “observatory” is often used without a unique meaning. A clear and unified definition of observatory is needed in order to facilitate the communication in a multidisciplinary community, to capitalize on future technological innovations and to support the observatory design based on societal needs. In this paper, we present a general framework to define the next generation Marine OBservatory (MOB), its capabilities and functionalities in an operational context. The MOB consists of four interconnected components or “gears” (observation infrastructure, cyberinfrastructure, support capacity, and knowledge generation engine) that are constantly and adaptively interacting with each other. Therefore, a MOB is a complex infrastructure focused on a specific geographic area with the primary scope to generate knowledge via data synthesis and thereby addressing scientific, societal, or economic challenges. Long-term sustainability is a key MOB feature that should be guaranteed through an appropriate governance. MOBs should be open to innovations and good practices to reduce operational costs and to allow their development in quality and quantity. A deeper biological understanding of the marine ecosystem should be reached with the proliferation of MOBs, thus contributing to effective conservation of ecosystems and management of human activities in the oceans. We provide an actionable model for the upgrade and development of sustained marine observatories producing knowledge to support science-based economic and societal decisions

The ocean sampling day consortium

Ocean Sampling Day was initiated by the EU-funded Micro B3 (Marine Microbial Biodiversity, Bioinformatics, Biotechnology) project to obtain a snapshot of the marine microbial biodiversity and function of the world’s oceans. It is a simultaneous global mega-sequencing campaign aiming to generate the largest standardized microbial data set in a single day. This will be achievable only through the coordinated efforts of an Ocean Sampling Day Consortium, supportive partnerships and networks between sites. This commentary outlines the establishment, function and aims of the Consortium and describes our vision for a sustainable study of marine microbial communities and their embedded functional traits

The Ocean Sampling Day Consortium

Ocean Sampling Day was initiated by the EU-funded Micro B3 (Marine Microbial Biodiversity, Bioinformatics, Biotechnology) project to obtain a snapshot of the marine microbial biodiversity and function of the world’s oceans. It is a simultaneous global mega-sequencing campaign aiming to generate the largest standardized microbial data set in a single day. This will be achievable only through the coordinated efforts of an Ocean Sampling Day Consortium, supportive partnerships and networks between sites. This commentary outlines the establishment, function and aims of the Consortium and describes our vision for a sustainable study of marine microbial communities and their embedded functional traits