Using dried orange pulp in the diet of dairy goats: effects on milk yield and composition and blood parameters of dams and growth performance and carcass quality of kids

Although dried orange pulp (DOP) may conveniently replace cereals in ruminant diets, few studies have considered similar diet substitution for goats. We hypothesised that DOP could replace cereal-based concentrate in goat diets without detrimental effects on growth performance and carcass quality of suckling kids and milk performance and blood biochemical parameters of dams in early lactation. We also hypothesised that DOP substitution may increase the levels of antioxidants, such as phenolic compounds and vitamin E, in milk and improve its total antioxidant capacity (TAC). Therefore, 44 primiparous Payoya dairy goats were allocated to three experimental groups, each fed a different diet: control (CD, n = 14) based on a commercial concentrate with alfalfa hay as forage; and DOP40 (n = 16) in which 40% and DOP80 (n = 14) in which 80% of the cereal in the concentrate were replaced by DOP. The experiment lasted from the final month of pregnancy to 55 days postpartum. The DOP diets did not affect suckling kids’ carcass quality, but at 28 days, led to improvement in live weight (LW) and average daily gain (ADG) from birth, although no differences were found between DOP40 and DOP80 (for CD, DOP40 and DOP80, LW at 28 days was 8.00, 8.58 and 8.34 kg and ADG was 184, 199 and 195 g/day, respectively). Diet had no significant effect on milk yield (average daily milk yield and total yield at 55 days were 1.66 l/day and 90.6 l, respectively) and commercial and fatty acid composition. Nevertheless, α-tocopherol, total phenolic compound (TPC) and TAC concentration in milk increased with substitution of cereals by DOP (for CD, DOP40 and DOP80, concentration of α-tocopherol was 21.7, 32.8 and 42.3 μg/100 g, TPCs was 63.5, 84.1 and 102 mg gallic acid equivalents/l, and TAC was 6.63, 11.1 and 12.8 μmol Trolox equivalents/ml, respectively). Every plasma biochemistry parameter considered was within reference values for healthy goats; therefore, no pathological effect was detected for these variables due to dietary treatment. However, DOP diets caused a reduction in plasmatic creatine kinase and aspartate aminotransferase, implying reduced oxidative damage to muscles. In conclusion, DOP may be an interesting alternative to cereals in early lactation goat diets for increasing farmers’ income and the healthy antioxidant capacity of milk

Synthesis and Magnetic Characterization of Graphite-Coated Iron Nanoparticles

Graphite-coated iron nanoparticles were prepared from magnetite nanoparticles by chemical vapour deposition (CVD) under methane and hydrogen atmosphere. After being purified from carbon excess, graphite-coated iron nanoparticles were tested for morphological and magnetic properties. It was found that, during the thermal process, magnetite nanoparticles 6 nm in size coalesce and transform into graphite-coated iron 200 nm in size, as revealed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Raman characterization assessed that high-quality graphite coats the iron core. Magnetic measurements revealed the phase change (magnetite to iron) as an increase in the saturation magnetization from 50 to 165 emu/g after the CVD process

Propuesta de estrategia de negocio para la empresa de Juegos de Mesa Inclusivos ubicada en la Zona Metropolitana de Guadalajara

ITESO, A.C

Modelling the Spatial and Temporal Dynamics of Paralytic Shellfish Toxins (PST) at Different Scales: Implications for Research and Management

Harmful algal blooms, in particular recurrent blooms of the dinoflagellate Alexandrium catenella, associated with paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP), frequently limit commercial shellfish harvests, resulting in serious socio-economic consequences. Although the PSP-inducing species that threaten the most vulnerable commercial species of shellfish are very patchy and spatially heterogeneous in their distribution, the spatial and temporal scales of their effects have largely been ignored in monitoring programs and by researchers. In this study, we examined the spatial and temporal dynamics of PSP toxicity in the clam (Ameghinomya antiqua) in two fishing grounds in southern Chile (Ovalada Island and Low Bay). During the summer of 2009, both were affected by an intense toxic bloom of A. catenella (up to 1.1 × 106 cells L-1). Generalized linear models were used to assess the potential influence of different environmental variables on the field detoxification rates of PSP toxins over a period of 12 months. This was achieved using a four parameter exponential decay model to fit and compare field detoxification rates per sampling site. The results show differences in the spatial variability and temporal dynamics of PSP toxicity, given that greater toxicities (+10-fold) and faster detoxification (20% faster) are observed at the Ovalada Island site, the less oceanic zone, and where higher amounts of clam are annually produced. Our observations support the relevance of considering different spatial and temporal scales to obtain more accurate assessments of PSP accumulation and detoxification dynamics and to improve the efficacy of fisheries management after toxic events.This research was funded by FONDEF Project MR07I1007 from the 2nd Program on Red Tides and the project REDI170575 from the International Cooperation Programme of the Chilean National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research (CONICYT). Patricio A. Díaz is funded by the Centro de Biotecnología y Bioingeniería (CeBiB) (PIA project FB0001, ANID, Chile). Rosa I. Figueroa is funded by a national project from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation and the European Community (FEDER) (Project DIANAS-CTM2017- 86066-R), a grant for Galician Networks of Excellence (GRC-VGO- HAB IN607A-2019/04) from the Innovation Agency of the Xunta de Galicia (GAIN) and the structural IEO-CSIC project CCVIEO-7.Peer reviewe

COVID-19 outbreaks in a transmission control scenario: challenges posed by social and leisure activities, and for workers in vulnerable conditions, Spain, early summer 2020

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 community-wide transmission declined in Spain by early May 2020, being replaced by outbreaks and sporadic cases. From mid-June to 2 August, excluding single household outbreaks, 673 outbreaks were notified nationally, 551 active (>6,200 cases) at the time. More than half of these outbreaks and cases coincided with: (i) social (family/friends’ gatherings or leisure venues) and (ii) occupational (mainly involving workers in vulnerable conditions) settings. Control measures were accordingly applied

Catalases Are NAD(P)H-Dependent Tellurite Reductases

Reactive oxygen species damage intracellular targets and are implicated in cancer, genetic disease, mutagenesis, and aging. Catalases are among the key enzymatic defenses against one of the most physiologically abundant reactive oxygen species, hydrogen peroxide. The well-studied, heme-dependent catalases accelerate the rate of the dismutation of peroxide to molecular oxygen and water with near kinetic perfection. Many catalases also bind the cofactors NADPH and NADH tenaciously, but, surprisingly, NAD(P)H is not required for their dismutase activity. Although NAD(P)H protects bovine catalase against oxidative damage by its peroxide substrate, the catalytic role of the nicotinamide cofactor in the function of this enzyme has remained a biochemical mystery to date. Anions formed by heavy metal oxides are among the most highly reactive, natural oxidizing agents. Here, we show that a natural isolate of Staphylococcus epidermidis resistant to tellurite detoxifies this anion thanks to a novel activity of its catalase, and that a subset of both bacterial and mammalian catalases carry out the NAD(P)H-dependent reduction of soluble tellurite ion (TeO(3) (2−)) to the less toxic, insoluble metal, tellurium (Te°), in vitro. An Escherichia coli mutant defective in the KatG catalase/peroxidase is sensitive to tellurite, and expression of the S. epidermidis catalase gene in a heterologous E. coli host confers increased resistance to tellurite as well as to hydrogen peroxide in vivo, arguing that S. epidermidis catalase provides a physiological line of defense against both of these strong oxidizing agents. Kinetic studies reveal that bovine catalase reduces tellurite with a low Michaelis-Menten constant, a result suggesting that tellurite is among the natural substrates of this enzyme. The reduction of tellurite by bovine catalase occurs at the expense of producing the highly reactive superoxide radical

Influence of the Temperature and the Genotype of the HSP90AA1 Gene over Sperm Chromatin Stability in Manchega Rams

The present study addresses the effect of heat stress on males' reproduction ability. For that, we have evaluated the sperm DNA fragmentation (DFI) by SCSA of ejaculates incubated at 37°C during 0, 24 and 48 hours after its collection, as a way to mimic the temperature circumstances to which spermatozoa will be subject to in the ewe uterus. The effects of temperature and temperature-humidity index (THI) from day 60 prior collection to the date of semen collection on DFI were examined. To better understand the causes determining the sensitivity of spermatozoa to heat, this study was conducted in 60 males with alternative genotypes for the SNP G/C−660 of the HSP90AA1 promoter, which encode for the Hsp90α protein. The Hsp90α protein predominates in the brain and testis, and its role in spermatogenesis has been described in several species. Ridge regression analyses showed that days 29 to 35 and 7 to 14 before sperm collection (bsc) were the most critical regarding the effect of heat stress over DFI values. Mixed model analyses revealed that DFI increases over a threshold of 30°C for maximum temperature and 22 for THI at days 29 to 35 and 7 to 14 bsc only in animals carrying the GG−660 genotype. The period 29–35 bsc coincide with the meiosis I process for which the effect of the Hsp90α has been described in mice. The period 7–14 bsc may correspond with later stages of the meiosis II and early stages of epididymal maturation in which the replacement of histones by protamines occurs. Because of GG−660 genotype has been associated to lower levels of HSP90AA1 expression, suboptimal amounts of HSP90AA1 mRNA in GG−660 animals under heat stress conditions make spermatozoa DNA more susceptible to be fragmented. Thus, selecting against the GG−660 genotype could decrease the DNA fragmentation and spermatozoa thermal susceptibility in the heat season, and its putative subsequent fertility gainsPublishe