Effect of supplementation with organic acids on productive and reproductive parameters in guinea pigs

Guinea pig production systems demand organic alternatives to improve their productivity, due to the increased demands of this type of livestock operations. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of organic acids on the productive and reproductive indices in reproductive Guinea pigs in an intensive breeding farm in Lima. 60 pools were used with 10 Guinea pigs in each one (9 females and one male). They were randomly divided into 4 treatment groups: T1: 1mL/L, T2: 2mL/L, T3: 4mL/L; all with 15 pools in total (5 pools each with dosage of 5, 10 and 15 days, respectively), and T4: Control (15 pools without dosage); the observation period was 3 months. No significant difference was found (p> 0.05) between treatments for weight gain, percentage of maternal mortality, percentage of abortions, percentage of pregnancy, number of offspring born and percentage of viability. For the percentage of mortality of pups and average weight of the offspring, a significant difference was found (p <0.05), demonstrating that T3 reached a higher weight index at birth of offspring (T3: 147.7 / 142.7 / 146.8g) and lower percentage of mortality in rabbits (T3: 0 / 1.8 / 3.0%). No significant difference was found in terms of dosing days. It is concluded that supplementation with organic acids with T3 (4mL/L) improved the weight at birth of the offspring and the mortality percentage in kits

Polyester synthesis in transplastomic tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.): significant contents of polyhydroxybutyrate are associated with growth reduction

Abstract The pathway for synthesis of polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB), a polyester produced by three bacterial enzymes, was transferred to the tobacco plastid genome by the biolistic transformation method. The polycistronic phb operon encoding this biosynthetic pathway was cloned into plastome transformation vectors. Following selection and regeneration, the content and structure of plant-produced hydroxybutyrate was analysed by gas chromatography. Significant PHB synthesis was limited to the early stages of in vitro culture. Within the transformants, PHB synthesis levels were highly variable. In the early regeneration stage, single regenerates reached up to 1.7% PHB in dry weight. At least 70% of plantproduced hydroxybutyric acid was proven to be polymer with a molecular mass of up to 2,500 kDa. PHB synthesis levels of the transplastomic lines were decreasing when grown autotrophically but their phb transcription levels remained stable. Transcription of the three genes is divided into two transcripts with phbB being transcribed separately from phbC and phbA. In mature plants even low amounts of PHB were associated with male sterility. Fertility was only observed in a mutant carrying a defective phb operon. These results prove successful expression of the entire PHB pathway in plastids, concomitant, however, with growth deficiency and male sterility

Effects of B Vitamin Deficiencies on Energy Metabolism of the Chick

Approximately two decades ago Robertson et al. (1948) reported that high-energy diets supported faster growth of young chicks with an improvement in feeding efficiency. This seemed to open an era in poultry nutrition in which much work was conducted in order to establish the quantitative relationships between dietary energy levels and nutrients. With current emphasis on the energy content of the diet, a knowledge of those factors which interfere with the most efficient utilization of energy is important. Nutritional imbalance was shown by Sure (1941) to decrease the net energy or productive energy content of the diet. The B complex vitamins are also associated with growth, efficiency of production and general health of monogastric animals. Various nutritional levels of thiamine, riboflavin, pyridoxine, pantothenic acid and niacin were investigated. The objectives of this study was to determine: if and to what degree each vitamin deficiency depressed the efficiency of metabolizable energy utilizable by the chicks, the relationship between liver vitamin storage and growth, the effects of vitamin deficiency upon the basal metabolism rate, the effect of deutectomy on B vitamin depletion time

Elinor Wylie; a biographical and critical study

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Boston Universit

Variation in monitoring and treatment policies for intracranial hypertension in traumatic brain injury: A survey in 66 neurotrauma centers participating in the CENTER-TBI

Background: No definitive evidence exists on how intracranial hypertension should be treated in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI). It is therefore likely that centers and practitioners individually balance potential benefits and risks of different intracranial pressure (ICP) management strategies, resulting in practice variation. The aim of this study was to examine variation in monitoring and treatment policies for intracranial hypertension in patients with TBI. Methods: A 29-item survey on ICP monitoring and treatment was developed based on literature and expert opinion, and pilot-tested in 16 centers. The questionnaire was sent to 68 neurotrauma centers participating in the Collaborative European Neurotrauma Effectiveness Research (CENTER-TBI) study. Results: The survey was completed by 66 centers (97% response rate). Centers were mainly academic hospitals (n = 60, 91%) and designated level I trauma centers (n = 44, 67%). The Brain Trauma Foundation guidelines were used in 49 (74%) centers. Approximately ninety percent of the participants (n = 58) indicated placing an ICP monitor in patients with severe TBI and computed tomography abnormalities. There was no consensus on other indications or on peri-insertion precautions. We found wide variation in the use of first- and second-tier treatments for elevated ICP. Approximately half of the centers were classified as having a relatively aggressive approach to ICP monitoring and treatment (n = 32, 48%), whereas the others were considered more conservative (n = 34, 52%). Conclusions: Substantial variation was found regarding monitoring and treatment policies in patients with traumatic brain injury and intracranial hypertension. The results of this survey indicate a lack of consensus between European neurotrauma centers and provide an opportunity and necessity for comparative effectiveness research