Comparative evaluation of inhibitory activity of Epiphgram from albino and normal skinned giant African land snail (Archachatina marginata) against selected bacteria isolates

A study was conducted on evaluation of inhibitory activity of epiphgram from albino and normal skinned giant African land snail (Archachatina marginata). After aestivation, epiphgram were collected from twenty snails (10, albino and 10 normal skinned). The epiphgram were washed, air dried and ground into powder form. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of epiphgram from both albino and normal skinned species were determined by standard broth micro-dilution method using four (4) clinical bacteria Isolates which include: Eschericia coli, Pasteurella species, Salmonella species and Staphylococcus aureus. Ciproflaxacin antibiotic was used as control. Result showed that epiphgram from both albino and normal skinned snails had higher microbial activity for both Eschericia coli and Salmonella species as shown by minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC: 0.050 and 0.098 vs 0.098 and 0.049) compared to streptomycin (MIC: 78 and 1.95 vs 15.63 and 1.95) which is the control. However, normal skinned epiphgram had higher antimicrobial activity considering the MIC values for Salmonella species, Staphylococcus aureus and Pasteurella species. While MIC value recorded for Eschericia coli showed that albino snail epiphgram had higher antimicrobial activity in the elimination of this bacteria species better than the normal skinned. It can be concluded from this study that substance which eliminate bacteria especially the four bacteria isolates used in this study are present in the epiphgram of both normal and albino snails in varying proportion with the highest amount present in normal skinned snail’s epiphgram except for Eschericia coli.Keyword: Albino snail, Archachatina marginata, Inhibitory activity, Epiphgram, Bacteria isolat

The GTPase Activating Rap/RanGAP Domain-Like 1 Gene Is Associated with Chicken Reproductive Traits

BACKGROUND: Abundant evidence indicates that chicken reproduction is strictly regulated by the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonad (HPG) axis, and the genes included in the HPG axis have been studied extensively. However, the question remains as to whether any other genes outside of the HPG system are involved in regulating chicken reproduction. The present study was aimed to identify, on a genome-wide level, novel genes associated with chicken reproductive traits. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDING: Suppressive subtractive hybridization (SSH), genome-wide association study (GWAS), and gene-centric GWAS were used to identify novel genes underlying chicken reproduction. Single marker-trait association analysis with a large population and allelic frequency spectrum analysis were used to confirm the effects of candidate genes. Using two full-sib Ningdu Sanhuang (NDH) chickens, GARNL1 was identified as a candidate gene involved in chicken broodiness by SSH analysis. Its expression levels in the hypothalamus and pituitary were significantly higher in brooding chickens than in non-brooding chickens. GWAS analysis with a NDH two tail sample showed that 2802 SNPs were significantly associated with egg number at 300 d of age (EN300). Among the 2802 SNPs, 2 SNPs composed a block overlapping the GARNL1 gene. The gene-centric GWAS analysis with another two tail sample of NDH showed that GARNL1 was strongly associated with EN300 and age at first egg (AFE). Single marker-trait association analysis in 1301 female NDH chickens confirmed that variation in this gene was related to EN300 and AFE. The allelic frequency spectrum of the SNP rs15700989 among 5 different populations supported the above associations. Western blotting, RT-PCR, and qPCR were used to analyze alternative splicing of the GARNL1 gene. RT-PCR detected 5 transcripts and revealed that the transcript, which has a 141 bp insertion, was expressed in a tissue-specific manner. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our findings demonstrate that the GARNL1 gene contributes to chicken reproductive traits

Comparative developmental trajectory of four strains of chicken embryo during incubation and their post-hatch growth

This study evaluated egg traits, embryonic growth, and early growth rate in four strains of chicken. A total of 1200 hatching eggs, 300 each from four strains of chicken were used for this study. The strains included Nigerian indigenous chicken (NIC), Arbor acre, Hubbard, and Marshall broiler strains. Embryonic weights, yolk and albumen utilization were monitored throughout the incubation period. The chicks were randomly distributed into four rearing pens for a 28-day assessment of growth rate. Blood samples were collected at hatch (day-old), week 1, 2, 3 and 4 posthatch for thyroxine (T4) level determination. This study showed that the embryos 4 percentage weight gains were similar in the NIC and the broiler strains at embryonic (ED) 18. There was no difference (P>0.05) in the rate of albumen utilization among the strains. At hatching, there was no difference ((P>0.05) in the metabolic rate among the strains of chicken as shown by the levels of plasma T until later in the 4 growth phase. The day-old chick weight and the weights in subsequent weeks posthatch were smaller in the NIC than the broiler strains possibly as a result of low hatching weight and growth rate of the NIC in the first two weeks post-hatch. The early growth difference could not be explained by physiological parameters such as T4 . However, the differences in post-hatch physiological and metabolic parameters 4 may be due partly to genetic differences. It was concluded that embryonic development in the broiler strain was not superior to that of the NIC.Key words: Growth rate, metabolic rate, albumen utilizatio

Effect of TNF-alpha on LH and IGF-I modulated chicken granulosa cell proliferation and progesterone production during follicular development

This study demonstrates the effects of recombinant human tumour necrosis factor a (rhTNF-alpha) and conditioned medium of the HD11-transformed chicken macrophage cell Line on cultured chicken granulosa cells. Effects were studied on basal, IGF-I- and LH-stimulated progesterone production and cell proliferation. Recombinant human TNF-alpha stimulated basal progesterone production in a dose-dependent manner in the granulosa cells of the largest follicle but had no effect on cells from the third largest follicle. TNF-alpha stimulated and sometimes inhibited progesterone production stimulated by IGF-I and LH alone or in combination depending on the size of the follicle and the concentration of LH or IGF-I applied. However, the inhibitory effect of TNF-alpha was significantly more pronounced in cells from the third largest follicle when high concentrations of ICE-I, LH or a combination of both were applied. TNF-alpha had no effect on basal cell proliferation in both the largest and the third largest follicles, but regulated responses to IGF-I and a combination IGF-I and LH in the cells of the third largest follicle but not those of the largest follicle. The data indicate that the normal hierarchy of follicles is maintained in the chicken ovary through the regulation of the activity of IGF-I and its interaction with LH. Conditioned medium of LPS-activated HD11 macrophages mimicked the effects of TNF-alpha and its interaction with IGF-I and LH on progesterone production and cell proliferation. The observation that the HD11-conditioned medium contained TNF-alpha indicates that TNF-alpha produced by macrophages found in chicken follicles modulates granulosa cell growth and differentiation.status: publishe

Effect of Egg Weight on Hatching Weight and Incubation Period in Giant African Land Snail (Archachatina marginata)

An experiment was conducted to determine the effect of egg weight on hatching weight and incubation period in Giant African land snail. A total of 30 Archachatina marginata eggs comprising of four weight range categories (1.24-1.55, 1.56-2.14, 2.15-2.83 and 2.84-3.20 g) were obtained from Dams of different body weight ranges ( 100g-150g, 151-200g, 201- 250g) from Snail Physiology Research Unit of the College of Animal Science and Livestock Production, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria. Eggs were incubated, after which both incubation period and hatching weight after hatching were monitored. Results obtained showed that egg weight group had significant effect (P<0.001) on hatching weight. Egg weight with weight range of 2.84-3.20 had the highest hatching weight, followed by 2.15-2.14 while other two (1.24-1.55 and 1.56-2.14 g) were not significantly different from each other. Furthermore, egg weight had no significant effect (P>0.05) on incubation period. Positive significant correlation was obtained between egg weight and hatching weight, and also dam weight and hatching weight. It was concluded that egg weight had effect on hatching weight of eggs. It was also discovered that egg weight had no meaningful effect on incubation period.Keywords: Egg weight, Incubation period, Hatching weight, Archachatina marginat

Evaluation of supplementary stevia (Stevia rebaudiana, bertoni) leaves and stevioside in broiler diets: effect on feed intake, nutrient metabolism, blood parameters and growth performance

A perennial schrub, stevia, and its extracts are used as a natural sweetener and have been shown to possess antimicrobial properties. Stevia contains high levels of sweetening glycosides including stevioside which is thought to possess antimicrobial and antifungal properties. Little is known about the nutritional value of the schrub in livestock. This study determined the potential use of the shrub as a prebiotic animal feed supplement in light of the recent ban on the use of antibiotics in animal feed and the role of its constituent stevioside in the effects of the shrub. Male Cobb broiler chicks were fed a basal broiler diet without antibiotic but with performance enhancing enzyme mix (positive control), a basal diet without antibiotic and enzymes (negative control), or diets in which 2% of the negative control diet was replaced with either dried ground stevia leaves or 130 ppm pure stevioside during 2 week starter and 2 week grower periods. Body weight gains, feed conversion, abdominal fat deposition, plasma hormone and metabolites and caecal short chain fatty acids (SCFA) were measured in the broilers at 2 and 4 weeks of age. There was no significant effect of the treatments on feed intake during the starter period but birds fed diet supplemented with stevia leaves and stevioside consumed more feed (p < 0.05) than those fed the positive control diet during the grower period. Weight gain by birds fed the positive control and stevioside diets was higher (p < 0.05) than those fed other diets only during the starter period. Feed/gain ratio of birds fed the positive control and stevioside diets was superior (p < 0.05) to others. There was no effect of the treatments on nutrient retention and water content of the excreta. Dietary stevia leave and stevioside decreased total concentration of SCFA and changed their profile in the ceca. There was no effect of the treatments on pancreas weight. Dietary stevia reduced blood levels of glucose, triglycerides and triiodothyronine (T(3)) but had no effect on non-esterified fatty acids. In contrast, stevioside only decreased T(3). Both the stevia leaves and stevioside diets significantly increased abdominal fat content. It is concluded that dietary enzyme growth promoters are beneficial to the broilers only during the starter stage and that inclusion of stevia leaves or stevioside has no beneficial effect on the performance of broilers.status: publishe

Prevalence of coat colour phenotypes and its influence on mange infestation of West African Dwarf goat

Prevalence of coat colour phenotypes and its influence on sarcoptic mange infestation of West African Dwarf (WAD) goats reared extensively by subsistence farmers in South-west Nigeria was investigated from March to October, 2011. The total number of goats randomly sampled from different villages within the same ecological zone were 11,772 consisting of 8,384 females and 3,388 males of different ages. Three basic coat colours were identified, namely black, brown and white accounting for 24%, 9.22% and 4.10% respectively. They probably constituted the underlying base for the caramel (bargerface), agouti and spotting patterns, giving rise to twenty combinations which accounted for the remaining 62.68% in the breed. The distribution pattern was similar for males and females. The number of goats randomly sampled and clinically inspected for presence of mange lesions on different parts of the body was 7,902. Standard parasitological procedure used to confirm the presence of mange mite from skin scrapings revealed that 42 goats (0.53%) were infested by Sarcoptes scabiei var. caprae. Infested cases were ranked according to severity of infestation as localized and mild (1), localized and moderate (2), localized and severe (3), generalized and mild (4), generalized and moderate (5) and generalized and severe (6) based on information from literature. Only five colour phenotypes (black, black with white marking, bargerface, white/brown mixed and white) were infested by mange. Black goats predominated (50%) the infested group, followed by those with black with white marking (23.81%), while white goats were least (4.76%). Least-squares analysis of variance showed that ranked estimate was significantly affected by coat colour (P&lt;0.05). Goats with black and black with white marking were most affected with generalized and mild infestation, ranking 3.97±0.34 and 4.31±0.50, respectively (P&gt;0.05). Those with bargerface and mixture of brown/white had similar (P&gt;0.05) estimates (2.60±0.66 vs 3.52±0.93) while white goats were least affected with localized and mild infestation (0.88±0.18). The effect of age was significant (P&lt;0.01) while sex was not significant. Animals less than one year were more affected with generalized and mild infestation, ranking 4.10 ± 0.58 compared with older animals (&gt;1 year) that ranked 2.23 ± 0.55 with localized and moderate infestation. It is concluded that black goats were most prevalent and more susceptible to mange infestation while white goats were least affected. Selection in favour of other colour combinations that were not infested could further control prevalence of mange in the region.Key words: Goat, coat colour distribution, influence on mange infestatio

Computational identification of fertility functions of bovine Reprimo gene

Improvement in fertility is possible through gene assisted selection. Cattle fertility and genes underlying it should be thoroughly studied and exploited to find solution to declining cattle fertility. Reprimo (RPRM) gene is a pleiotropic gene involved in suppression of cancer, regulation of mitotic cell cycle, cell cycle arrest and regulation of survival. Comparison of protein tertiary structures is important in inferring functional characteristics of new proteins. This study used computational approach to identify some fertility functions of bovine RPRM gene using motif prediction and protein structure comparison. Amino acid sequences of bovine RPRM gene and some other cattle fertility genes were retrieved from GenBank. Motifs in the amino acid sequence of bovine RPRM gene were predicted using PROSITE software. The domain structure of bovine RPRM protein was predicted using simple modular architecture research tool (SMART). Protein tertiary structures (3D structures) of bovine RPRM gene and other cattle fertility genes were predicted with Phyre2 software. To have structural and functional similarity, it has been found that protein structure after superimposition should have Root Mean Square Deviation (RMSD) value less than or equal to 2Å. The protein 3D structures of other cattle fertility genes were superposed against the protein 3D structure of bovine RPRM gene using SuperPose web server and the proteins with RMSD value of 2Å or less were predicted as proteins with similar functions and structures as bovine RPRM gene. The predicted motifs (N-glycosylation site, N-myristoylation site, and cAMP and cGMP-dependent protein kinase phosphorylation site) and protein structure comparison revealed that, bovine RPRM gene and bovine growth hormone gene have the same fertility function with alpha carbon and backbone root mean square deviations of 1.94 Å and 1.81 Å, respectively. It follows therefore that other fertility functions of bovine RPRM gene included sexual maturation, steroidogenesis, gametogenesis, gonadal differentiation and gonadotrophin secretion which are the functions of growth hormone gene.Keywords: Reprimo gene, fertility, growth hormone gene, motifs, root mean squaredeviatio

Indirect effect of IGF2 intron3 g.3072G>A mutation on prolificacy in sows

Summary A QTL located in the paternally expressed insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2) gene is known to increase muscle growth and reduce fat deposition in pigs. This makes the QTL in IGF2 a good marker for use in pig breeding programmes. However, care has to be taken as it is postulated that increased leanness and lowered fat deposition may have a negative effect on the prolificacy and longevity of sows. Selection of sire and dam lines for different alleles of the mutation in the paternally imprinted IGF2 gene could actually provide a solution to this problem. Therefore, in this study, the effect of the IGF2 QTL on prolificacy-related traits in sows was investigated. It was found that the paternal IGF2 wild-type allele was associated with higher reproduction performance in the sow. Moreover, it was also examined whether the difference in prolificacy in sows could be a consequence of differential IGF2 expression in the ovarian follicles of the sow or whether it is mainly a secondary effect caused by differences in fatness traits. Therefore, IGF2 expression was measured in follicles of different sizes from sows with different genotypes for the paternal IGF2 allele. It was observed that, however, while the size of the follicles was associated with follicular IGF2 expression level, the IGF2 genotype was not. It could be concluded that the difference in prolificacy of sows with a different paternal IGF2 genotype could be a secondary effect, resulting from differences in fat deposition.status: publishe