Effects of L-Arginine Supplementation on Lactating Mares and the Development of Foals

Background: Most animal species are able to produce Arginine (Arg) under normal conditions. However, in some situations, its degradation can be higher than its production. For example, during a period of lactation or disease, there is an increase in the consumption of Arg. In this case, endogenous production is not enough for the animal’s demands. Indeed, Arg supplementation in animals has several benefits for the animal’s body, such as the increase of angiogenesis, improvements in immunity and the reproductive system, as well as the stimulation of lactogenesis. During the early phase of growth, a deficiency of Arg could cause a reduction in the growth rate and metabolic activity of animals. Therefore, this amino acid is considered essential in some phases of the life of animals. However, very few studies of the supplementation of this amino acid in horses have been carried out. The aim of the present study was to characterize the effects of supplementing lactating mares and their foals with Arg.Materials, Methods & Results: Lactating mares (n = 10) were divided into two groups (control group: n = 3 / supplemented group: n = 7) and maintained exclusively under grazing. The supplemented group received 50 g of Arg during the lactation period. Samples of milk and blood from mares and blood from foals were collected at different phases of the lactation period. The following parameters were measured in milk: Glutamine (Gln); Glutamate (Glu); protein; fat; casein; lactose; urea and total solids. The following parameters were measured in blood: Gln; Glu; total plasmatic protein (TPP); albumin; urea; creatinine; uric acid; triglycerides; total cholesterol; calcium (C); phosphorous (P); magnesium (Mg) and ferrous (Fe). In addition, the biometric parameters of Wither Height (WH), Chest Perimeter (CP), Cannon Bone Circumference (CBC) and Fat Percentage (FP) of foals were obtained. A significant increase of Gln was observed in the milk in both groups (P < 0.05). The highest concentration of Gln was detected in the third month of the lactation period in the supplemented group (~ 2.26 mmol/mL), and the control group (~ 1.91 mmol/mL) during the same period. Gln did not alter in the blood (P > 0.05), although Glu was higher in the control group in the first month of the lactation period (~ 0.21 mmol/mL) (P < 0.05). An increase in uric acid (~ 0.19 mmol/L) in both groups on the day of birth (P < 0.05). In the supplemented group, increases in triglycerides (~ 0.60 mmol/L), Ca (~ 2.90 mmol/L) and Mg (~ 0.52 mmol/L) were observed in the first month of the lactation (P < 0.05). At birth, foals exhibited high levels of urea (~ 4.67 mmol/L) and uric acid (~ 0.21 mmol/L), and low levels of P (~ 2.02 mmol/L) (P < 0.05). The levels of Gln in the blood of foals remained between 0.50 and 0.70 mmol/mL throughout the lactation period (P > 0.05). Even when they were added (Gln + Glu), no differences were observed (P > 0.05). However, when the biometric parameters were analyzed, significant variations were detected in almost all characteristics (weight, WH, CP and CBC). In particular, the control group exhibited higher body mass and CP in the fifth month, when compared with the group of foals born from supplemented mares (P < 0.05). The FP did not alter in either of the groups analyzed (P > 0.05).Discussion: The results indicate that the supplementation of lactating mares with Arg produced few alterations in the parameters analyzed for both mares and foals. In addition, the supplementation did not produce side effects among the supplemented animals

Digestible tryptophan:lysine ratio for laying hens

The objective of this study was to evaluate the requirement of digestible tryptophan for white laying hens in the production stage fed diets of different digestible tryptophan: digestible lysine ratios, as well as animal performance and histological alterations in their reproductive and digestive systems. A total of 280 white laying hens at 29 weeks of age were distributed in a completely randomized design with five treatments and seven replications with eight birds in each. The treatments consisted of a base feed, formulated with corn, soybean meal and corn gluten meal, and supplemented with the synthetic amino acids L-lysine, DL-methionine, L-threonine, L-isoleucine, L-arginine, and L-valine, so as to meet the nutritional requirements for laying hens, except for digestible tryptophan. The basal diet was supplemented with 0.00; 0.017; 0.035; 0.052; and 0.069 g/kg of L-tryptophan in substitution for corn starch with the objective of reaching the levels of 0.151; 0.167; 0.183; 0.199; and 0.215 g/kg of digestible tryptophan in the feed. For the ratio between digestible amino acids and lysine, the recommendation of Brazilian Tables for Poultry and Swine was followed, except for the digestible tryptophan: digestible lysine ratios, which were 19, 21, 23, 25 and 27 for each treatment. The variation in the digestible tryptophan: digestible lysine ratio promoted changes in performance and in the histological characteristics, improving the results. The digestible tryptophan: digestible lysine ratio of 24.5% in the feed of white laying hens in production stage promotes better animal performance and histological results.CNPq [141196/2009-2]CNP

ATLANTIC-PRIMATES: a dataset of communities and occurrences of primates in the Atlantic Forests of South America

Primates play an important role in ecosystem functioning and offer critical insights into human evolution, biology, behavior, and emerging infectious diseases. There are 26 primate species in the Atlantic Forests of South America, 19 of them endemic. We compiled a dataset of 5,472 georeferenced locations of 26 native and 1 introduced primate species, as hybrids in the genera Callithrix and Alouatta. The dataset includes 700 primate communities, 8,121 single species occurrences and 714 estimates of primate population sizes, covering most natural forest types of the tropical and subtropical Atlantic Forest of Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina and some other biomes. On average, primate communities of the Atlantic Forest harbor 2 ± 1 species (range = 1–6). However, about 40% of primate communities contain only one species. Alouatta guariba (N = 2,188 records) and Sapajus nigritus (N = 1,127) were the species with the most records. Callicebus barbarabrownae (N = 35), Leontopithecus caissara (N = 38), and Sapajus libidinosus (N = 41) were the species with the least records. Recorded primate densities varied from 0.004 individuals/km 2 (Alouatta guariba at Fragmento do Bugre, Paraná, Brazil) to 400 individuals/km 2 (Alouatta caraya in Santiago, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil). Our dataset reflects disparity between the numerous primate census conducted in the Atlantic Forest, in contrast to the scarcity of estimates of population sizes and densities. With these data, researchers can develop different macroecological and regional level studies, focusing on communities, populations, species co-occurrence and distribution patterns. Moreover, the data can also be used to assess the consequences of fragmentation, defaunation, and disease outbreaks on different ecological processes, such as trophic cascades, species invasion or extinction, and community dynamics. There are no copyright restrictions. Please cite this Data Paper when the data are used in publications. We also request that researchers and teachers inform us of how they are using the data. © 2018 by the The Authors. Ecology © 2018 The Ecological Society of Americ

ATLANTIC EPIPHYTES: a data set of vascular and non-vascular epiphyte plants and lichens from the Atlantic Forest

Epiphytes are hyper-diverse and one of the frequently undervalued life forms in plant surveys and biodiversity inventories. Epiphytes of the Atlantic Forest, one of the most endangered ecosystems in the world, have high endemism and radiated recently in the Pliocene. We aimed to (1) compile an extensive Atlantic Forest data set on vascular, non-vascular plants (including hemiepiphytes), and lichen epiphyte species occurrence and abundance; (2) describe the epiphyte distribution in the Atlantic Forest, in order to indicate future sampling efforts. Our work presents the first epiphyte data set with information on abundance and occurrence of epiphyte phorophyte species. All data compiled here come from three main sources provided by the authors: published sources (comprising peer-reviewed articles, books, and theses), unpublished data, and herbarium data. We compiled a data set composed of 2,095 species, from 89,270 holo/hemiepiphyte records, in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay, recorded from 1824 to early 2018. Most of the records were from qualitative data (occurrence only, 88%), well distributed throughout the Atlantic Forest. For quantitative records, the most common sampling method was individual trees (71%), followed by plot sampling (19%), and transect sampling (10%). Angiosperms (81%) were the most frequently registered group, and Bromeliaceae and Orchidaceae were the families with the greatest number of records (27,272 and 21,945, respectively). Ferns and Lycophytes presented fewer records than Angiosperms, and Polypodiaceae were the most recorded family, and more concentrated in the Southern and Southeastern regions. Data on non-vascular plants and lichens were scarce, with a few disjunct records concentrated in the Northeastern region of the Atlantic Forest. For all non-vascular plant records, Lejeuneaceae, a family of liverworts, was the most recorded family. We hope that our effort to organize scattered epiphyte data help advance the knowledge of epiphyte ecology, as well as our understanding of macroecological and biogeographical patterns in the Atlantic Forest. No copyright restrictions are associated with the data set. Please cite this Ecology Data Paper if the data are used in publication and teaching events. © 2019 The Authors. Ecology © 2019 The Ecological Society of Americ

Ileal digestibility of protein and amino acids of protein feedstuffs determined by the techniques of the simple T canula and of the ileo- rectal anastomosis with pigs

Foram realizados dois ensaios de digestibilidade no Setor de Suinocultura, do Departamento de Zootecnia, da Universidade Federal de Viçosa, MG, com o objetivo de determinar os coeficientes de digestibilidade ileal aparente (CDapPB) e verdadeira (CDvPB) de proteína e os coeficientes de digestibilidade ileal aparente (CDapAA) e verdadeira (CDvAA) de aminoácidos do farelo de soja (FS), glúten de milho (GM), da farinha de carne e ossos (FCO) e farinha de sangue (FSA), utilizando as técnicas da cânula T simples e da anastomose íleo-retal (exceto para FSA), com suínos. Os CDapPB e CDvPB determinados para o FS, GM, FCO e FSA, utilizando-se a técnica da cânula T simples, foram de 72,00 e 88,40%; 73,52 e 89,50%; 53,71 e 70,50%; e 46,58 e 63,20%, respectivamente. Os CDvAA médios determinados para FS, GM, FCO e FSA, utilizando-se a técnica da cânula T simples, foram de 91,12; 90,41; 71,93; e 64,70%, respectivamente. Os CDvAA variaram de 84,70% (alanina) a 96,21% (arginina), para o FS; de 81,45% (triptofano) a 93,98% (histidina), para o GM; 56,64% (ácido aspártico) a 84,00% (arginina), para a FCO; e 63,21% (valina) a 76,80% (isoleucina), para a FSA. Os CDapPB e CDvPB determinados para FS, GM e FCO utilizando-se a técnica da anastomose íleo-retal, foram de 80,93 e 91,32%; 78,4 1 e 88,52%; e 50,65 e 61,26%, respectivamente. Os CDvAA médios determinados para FS, GM e FCO, utilizando-se a técnica da anastomose íleo-retal, foram de 91,70; 88,91 e 61,83%, respectivamente. Os CDvAA variaram de 82,27% (glicina) a 97,97% (tirosina), para o FS; 65,22% (glicina) a 97,27% (arginina), para o GM; e 24,89% (cisteína) a 73,59% (fenilalanina), para a FCO. Os CDapPB, CDvPB, CDapAA, CDvAA dos alimentos de origem vegetal (FS e GM) foram maiores que os coeficientes de digestibilidade dos alimentos de origem animal (FCO e FSA), indicando que o FS e o GM foram alimentos de maior qualidade nutricional. A composição química e os coeficientes de digestibilidade determinados neste trabalho podem ser utilizados como referência da composição protéica e aminoacídica e valores de digestibilidade do FS, GM, FCO e FSA para a formulação de dietas para suínos com base em aminoácidos digestíveis.Two experiments of digestibility were carried out in the swine production sector, of the Department of Zootecnia, in the Universidade Federal de Viçosa, MG, with the objective of determining the coefficients of apparent (CDapPB) and true ileal protein digestibility (CDvPB) and the coefficients of apparent (CDapAA) and true ileal amino acids digestibility (CDvAA) of the soybean meal (FS), corn gluten meal (GM), meat and bone meal (FCO) and blood meal (FSA), using the techniques of the simple T-canula and of the ileo- rectal anastomosis (except for FSA), with pigs. CDapPB and CDvPB determined for FS, GM, FCO and FSA being used the technique of the simple T-canula were of 72,00 and 88,40%; 73,52 and 89,50%; 53,71 and 70,50% and, 46,58 and 63,20%, respectively. The means of CDvAA determined for FS, GM, FCO and FSA being used the technique of the simple T-canula were 91,12; 90,41; 71,93 and 64,70%, respectively. CDvAA ranging of 84,70% (alanine) to 96,21% (arginine), for FS; of 81,45% (tryptophan) to 93,98% (histidine), for GM; of 56,64% (acid aspartic) to 84,00% (arginine), for FCO and 63,21% (valine) to 76,80% (isoleucine), for FSA. CDapPB and CDvPB determined for FS, GM and FCO being used the technique of the ileo-rectal anastomosis were of 80,93 and 91,32%; 78,41 and 88,52% and, 50,65 and 61,26%, respectively. The means of CDvAA determined for FS, GM and FCO being used the technique of the ileo- rectal anastomosis were 91,70; 88,91 and 61,83%, respectively. CDvAA ranging of 82,27% (glycine) to 97,97% (tyrosine), for FS; 65,22% (glycine) to 97,27% (arginine), for GM and 24,89% (cystine) to 73,59% (phenylalanine), for FCO. CDapPB, CDvPB, CDapAA, CDvAA of the feedstufs of plant origin (FS and GM) were larger than the coefficients of digestibility of the feedstufs of animal origin (FCO and FSA), indicating that FS and GM were feedstufs of larger nutritional quality. The chemical composition and the coefficients of digestibility determined in this work can be used like reference of the protein and amino acids composition and values of digestibility of FS, GM, FCO and FSA for the formulation of diets for pigs based in digestibles amino acids.Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerai