Physical characteristics and performance of laying hens caged in different tiers and environmental parameters of each tier

This study was carried out to evaluate the variations in environmental parameters (temperature, relative humidity, lighting intensity, and airflow rate), hen body temperatures, surface temperatures of different body parts (neck, shank, and comb), feed consumption, egg yield, and egg quality parameters of hens caged in different tiers and to investigate the interactions between tiers. Indoor average temperature, relative humidity, lighting intensity, and airflow rate values were determined, respectively, as 10.12°C, 57.65%, 17.67 lux, and 0.21 m s-1 (for tier 1); 11.30°C, 57.21%, 22.36 lux, and 0.21 m s-1 (for tier 2); and 12.14°C, 55.73%, 25.92 lux, and 0.23 m s-1 (for tier 3). Body temperatures of hens in tiers 1, 2, and 3 were measured, respectively, as 41.21°C, 41.30°C, and 41.38°C; neck temperatures as 38.29°C, 39.05°C, and 39.80°C; shank temperatures as 35.88°C, 36.31°C, and 36.58°C; and comb temperatures as 34.10°C, 34.49°C, and 35.13°C. Results revealed increasing temperature and lighting intensity and decreased relative humidity from bottom to top tier. Similarly, surface temperatures of body parts also increased from bottom to top. The differences between tiers were found to be significant (p 0.05). While effects of tiers on egg blood stains were found to be significant (p 0.05). Because of insignificant differences between tiers with regard to performance characteristics and most egg quality parameters, and higher mortality rates in the third tier, the tiers of 1 and 2 were found to be advantageous. © 2013 American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers ISSN 2151-0032

A Rare Devastating Complication of Lasik: Bilateral Fungal Keratitis

Purpose. To report an unusual case of severe bilateral fungal keratitis following laser in situ keratomileusis (LASIK). Method. A 48-year-old man developed bilateral diffuse corneal infiltration two weeks after LASIK. The corneal scrapings revealed fungal filaments but cultures were negative. Results. The corneal ulceration was improved on the left eye whereas spontaneous perforation occurred and finally evisceration was needed on the right eye despite topical and systemic antifungal treatment. Conclusions. Fungal keratitis, especially with bilateral involvement, is a very rare and serious complication of LASIK surgery. Clinical suspicion is crucial because most of fungal keratitis are misdiagnosed as bacterial keratitis and can lead serious visual results, even eye loss

In vitro anticancer activity and antioxidant properties of essential oils from Populus alba L. and Rosmarinus officinalis L. from South Eastern Anatolia of Turkey

Background and Purpose: In recent years, essential oils (EOs) have been reported to possess interesting anti-tumor, anti-mutagenic and anti-carcinogenic activities against various cancer cells. Therefore, we aimed to investigate potential biological activities of EOs from white poplar (Populus alba L., Salicaceae) and rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis L., Lamiaceae). Material and Methods: EOs from P. alba L. and R. officinalis L. were extracted by hydrodistillation. MTT assay was carried out to determine the potential antiproliferative and cytotoxic properties of the essential oils as well as their corresponding IC50, and the inhibition (%) calculated. Antioxidant activity was determined using 2,2-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay, and lipid peroxidation capacity was evaluated using thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) method, and the values were calculated using the standards. Results: The EOs were evaluated for their in vitro cytotoxic, antioxidant and lipid oxidation activities. Regarding cytotoxic activity rosemary essential oil possessed strong inhibition (IC50 = 3.06-7.38 µg/mL) of cell proliferation in comparison to that of P. alba L. (IC50 = 10.53-28.16 µg/mL). Additionally, EO from R. officinalis L. was found to have higher antioxidant and lipid peroxidation capacities with IC50 of 10.08 ± 0.15 and 1.76 ± 0.01, respectively. Conclusion: The results suggest that the EOs of both sources exhibited strong antiproliferative, cytotoxic and potent antioxidant properties and therefore they can have potential applications in the cancer treatment. © 2017, Association of Pharmaceutical Teachers of India. All rights reserved.The authors would like to thank Kilis 7 Aralik University, Central Laboratory for their technical support

Edible Giblets and Bone Mineral Characteristics of Two Slow-Growing Chicken Genotypes Reared in an Organic System (vol 19, pg 1, 2017)

[Abstract Not Available

The Impact of Laying Hen Age, Egg-Laying Time, Cage Tier, and Cage Direction on Egg Quality Traits in Hens in an Enriched Cage System

This study determined the effect of layer age, egg-laying time, cage tier, and cage direction (outward-inward) on egg quality parameters of commercial layer chickens reared in enriched cages. A total of 944 layers (approximately 100 eggs every four weeks, from the 26 to the 58th week) obtained from Lohmann LSL-Classic layers reared at the Nigde Omer Halisdemir University Ayhan & Scedil;ahenk Agricultural Application and Research Centre were analyzed. Laying hen age significantly affected all the egg quality variables (p0.05). Furthermore, it was found that cage direction had a significant effect on egg weight, shell thickness, egg surface area, and all the internal egg quality traits, except for yolk color score (p<0.05; p<0.01). In conclusion, our results highlight significant changes in egg quality traits due to layer age, egg-laying time, cage tier, and cage direction

Anticancer activity of Turkish marine extracts: a purple sponge extract induces apoptosis with multitarget kinase inhibition activity

Marine natural products have drawn a great deal of attention as a vital source of new drugs for the last five decades. However, marine organisms in the seas surrounding Turkey (the Black Sea, the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea) haven't been yet extensively explored. In the present study, three marine organisms (Dysidea avara, Microcosmus sabatieri and Echinaster sepositus) were sampled from the Dardanelles (Turkish Straits System, Western Turkey) by scientific divers, transferred to the laboratory and then were extracted with 70% ethanol. The extracts were tested for their cytotoxic effect against K562, KMS-12PE, A549, and A375 cancer cell lines. The sponge extract elicited the most promising cytotoxic activity, thus it was further evaluated against H929, MCF-7, HeLa, and HCT116 cancer cells. Most of the designated cells showed a considerable sensitivity for the sponge extract particularly H929, K562, KMS-12PE and HeLa cells with IC50 less than 10 mu g/mL. On the contrary, the other two extracts exhibited no cytotoxic activity on all cells at 100 mu g/mL concentration. The sponge extract was tested for its capacity to induce apoptosis in cancer cells and to inhibit a panel of tyrosine kinases showing remarkable results. The outcome of this study represents a platform for discovery of new chemotherapeutic agents of marine natural origin.Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan (MEXT) [221S0001]; Science Farm Ltd.; Izmir Katip Celebi University grants commision [2019-ONAP-SUUF0002]; [24659048]; Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research [20H03365] Funding Source: KAKENWe are grateful to the Screening Committee of Anticancer Drugs supported by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research on Innovative Areas, Scientific Support Programs for Cancer Research (No. 221S0001), from The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan (MEXT), for assistance with the evaluation of compounds. This work was supported by a Grant for Joint Research Project with Science Farm Ltd. The study was also supported in part by a Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research to M.O. (24659048). We are grateful for the support from Izmir Katip Celebi University grants commision (project number: 2019-ONAP-SUUF0002

New cyclotetrapeptides and a new diketopiperzine derivative from the marine sponge-associated fungus Neosartorya glabra KUFA 0702

Two new cyclotetrapeptides, sartoryglabramides A (5) and B (6), and a new analog of fellutanine A (8) were isolated, together with six known compounds including ergosta-4, 6, 8 (14), 22-tetraen-3-one, ergosterol 5, 8-endoperoxide, helvolic acid, aszonalenin (1), (3R)-3-(1H-indol-3-ylmethyl)-3,4-dihydro-1H-1,4-benzodiazepine-2,5-dione (2), takakiamide (3), (11aR)-2,3-dihydro-1H-pyrrolo[2,1-c][1,4]benzodiazepine-5,11(10H,11aH)-dione (4), and fellutanine A (7), from the ethyl acetate extract of the culture of the marine sponge-associated fungus Neosartorya glabra KUFA 0702. The structures of the new compounds were established based on extensive 1D and 2D spectral analysis. X-ray analysis was also used to confirm the relative configuration of the amino acid constituents of sartoryglabramide A (5), and the absolute stereochemistry of the amino acid constituents of sartoryglabramide A (5) and sartoryglabramides B (6) was determined by chiral HPLC analysis of their hydrolysates by co-injection with the D- and L- amino acids standards. Compounds 1-8 were tested for their antibacterial activity against Gram-positive (Escherichia coli ATCC 25922) and Gram-negative (Staphyllococus aureus ATCC 25923) bacteria, as well as for their antifungal activity against filamentous (Aspergillus fumigatus ATCC 46645), dermatophyte (Trichophyton rubrum ATCC FF5) and yeast (Candida albicans ATCC 10231). None of the tested compounds exhibited either antibacterial (MIC > 256 μg/mL) or antifungal activities (MIC > 512 μg/mL). © 2016 by the authors; licensee MDPI.This work was developed in the Natural Products Research Laboratory of the Department of Chemistry, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar (ICBAS) of the University of Porto, and partially supported through national funds provided by FCT - Foundation for Science and Technology and European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and COMPETE, under the projects PEst-C/MAR/LA0015/2013, PTDC/MAR-BIO/4694/2014 as well as by the project INNOVMAR - Innovation and Sustainability in the Management and Exploitation of Marine Resources (reference NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000035, within Research Line NOVELMAR/INSEAFOOD/ECOSERVICES), supported by North Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020), under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)". We thank Michael Lee of the Department of Chemistry, Leicester University (UK) for providing the HRESIMS. War War May Zin thanks the Lotus Unlimited Project under the ERASMUS MUNDUS ACTION 2-EU-Asia Mobility Project for a Ph.D. scholarship. We thank Júlia Bessa for technical support

Chromone derivatives and other constituents from cultures of the marine sponge-associated fungus penicillium erubescens KUFA0220 and their antibacterial activity

A previously unreported chromene derivative, 1-hydroxy-12-methoxycitromycin (1c), and four previously undescribed chromone derivatives, including pyanochromone (3b), spirofuranochromone (4), 7-hydroxy-6-methoxy-4-oxo-3-[(1E)-3-oxobut-1-en-1-yl]-4H-chromene-5-carboxylic acid (5), a pyranochromone dimer (6) were isolated, together with thirteen known compounds: β-sitostenone, ergosterol 5,8-endoperoxide, citromycin (1a), 12-methoxycitromycin (1b), myxotrichin D (1d), 12-methoxycitromycetin (1e), anhydrofulvic acid (2a), myxotrichin C (2b), penialidin D (2c), penialidin F (3a), SPF-3059-30 (7), GKK1032B (8) and secalonic acid A (9), from cultures of the marine sponge- associated fungus Penicillium erubescens KUFA0220. Compounds 1a-e, 2a, 3a, 4, 7-9, were tested for their antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative reference and multidrug-resistant strains isolated from the environment. Only 8 exhibited an in vitro growth inhibition of all Gram-positive bacteria whereas 9 showed growth inhibition of methicillin-resistant Staphyllococus aureus (MRSA). None of the compounds were active against Gram-negative bacteria tested. © 2018 MDPI. All Rights Reserved.Funding: This research was funded by Fundação para a Ciências e Tecnologia (FCT) (grant number POCI-01-0145-FEDER-016790) and North Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020)(grant number NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000035). Acknowledgments: This work was partially supported through national funds provided by FCT/MCTES-Foundation for Science and Technology from the Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education (PIDDAC) and European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the COMPETE—Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade (POFC) programme, under the project PTDC/MAR-BIO/4694/2014 (reference POCI-01-0145-FEDER-016790; Project 3599-Promover a Produção Científica e Desenvolvimento Tecnológico e a Constituição de Redes Temáticas (3599-PPCDT)) in the framework of the programme PT2020 as well as by the project INNOVMAR-Innovation and Sustainability in the Management and Exploitation of Marine Resources (reference NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000035, within Research Line NOVELMAR), supported by North Portugal Regional Operational Programme (NORTE 2020), under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). Decha Kumla thanks the Alfabet Project of the Erasmus Mundus for a PhD’s scholarship. We thank Júlia Bessa and Sara Cravo for technical support

Bis-indolyl benzenoids, hydroxypyrrolidine derivatives and other constituents from cultures of the marine sponge-associated fungus aspergillus candidus KUFA0062

A previously unreported bis-indolyl benzenoid, candidusin D (2e) and a new hydroxypyrrolidine alkaloid, preussin C (5b) were isolated together with fourteen previously described compounds: palmitic acid, clionasterol, ergosterol 5,8-endoperoxides, chrysophanic acid (1a), emodin (1b), six bis-indolyl benzenoids including asterriquinol D dimethyl ether (2a), petromurin C (2b), kumbicin B (2c), kumbicin A (2d), 2”-oxoasterriquinol D methyl ether (3), kumbicin D (4), the hydroxypyrrolidine alkaloid preussin (5a), (3S, 6S)-3,6-dibenzylpiperazine-2,5-dione (6) and 4-(acetylamino) benzoic acid (7), from the cultures of the marine sponge-associated fungus Aspergillus candidus KUFA 0062. Compounds 1a, 2a–e, 3, 4, 5a–b, and 6 were tested for their antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative reference and multidrug-resistant strains isolated from the environment. Only 5a exhibited an inhibitory effect against S. aureus ATCC 29213 and E. faecalis ATCC29212 as well as both methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) strains. Both 1a and 5a also reduced significant biofilm formation in E. coli ATCC 25922. Moreover, 2b and 5a revealed a synergistic effect with oxacillin against MRSA S. aureus 66/1 while 5a exhibited a strong synergistic effect with the antibiotic colistin against E. coli 1410/1. Compound 1a, 2a–e, 3, 4, 5a–b, and 6 were also tested, together with the crude extract, for cytotoxic effect against eight cancer cell lines: HepG2, HT29, HCT116, A549, A 375, MCF-7, U-251, and T98G. Except for 1a, 2a, 2d, 4, and 6, all the compounds showed cytotoxicity against all the cancer cell lines tested. © 2018 by the authorsAcknowledgments: This work was partially supported through national funds provided by the FCT/MCTES-Foundation for Science and Technology from the Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education (PIDDAC) and European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the COMPETE—Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade (POFC) programme, under the project PTDC/MAR-BIO/4694/2014 (reference POCI-01-0145-FEDER-016790; Project 3599-Promover a Produção Científica e Desenvolvimento Tecnológico e a Constituição de Redes Temáticas (3599-PPCDT)) in the framework of the program PT2020 as well as by the project INNOVMAR-Innovation and Sustainability in the Management and Exploitation of Marine Resources (reference NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000035, within Research Line NOVELMAR), supported by North Portugal Regional Operational Program (NORTE 2020), under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). We thank Júlia Bessa and Sara Cravo for technical support