Productive aspects of pigs fed forage cactus silage associated with feed restriction

This study aimed to evaluate the use of silage of forage cactus (Opuntia ficus-indica Mill) in diets for finishing pigs. Two experiments were conducted: the first for digestibility and the second for performance. In the performance trial, the quantitative levels of feed restriction (0%, 10%, 20%, and 30%) were evaluated, which were associated with the supply of forage cactus silage. Forage cactus silage presented 2463.59 and 2456 kcal/kg of digestible and metabolizable energy, respectively. The feed restriction levels associated with the supply of forage cactus silage influenced feed intake, weight gain and final weight negatively, but did not affect feed conversion. Carcass absolute weight was influenced negatively. However, the yield of carcass and cuts and the amount of meat in the carcass were not influenced. With the increase in feed restriction, there was a decrease in duodenal mucosa thickness, intestinal glands, liver glycogen storage and the occurrence of inflammation in the submucosa and intestinal mucosa. Forage cactus silage is not accepted well by animals. The restriction up to 30% of balanced feed did not affect feed conversion, yield of carcass and cuts and economic viability. However, levels over 10% affected intestinal health.Keywords: Alternative feed, feed preservation, intestinal health, Opuntia ficus-indica Mill, pig nutritio

Supplementation of diets for piglets with L-Arginine and powdered whole milk

The objective of this study was to evaluate the supplementation of L-Arginine in diets with and without dairy products for piglets weaned at 21 days old. Thirty-two animals with initial mean weight of 5.16 ± 1.92 kg and from the same commercial lineage were allocated in a randomized block design to four diets. The experimental diets consisted of a corn and soybean meal-based diet (NDD), the same diet supplemented with 0.6% L-Arginine (NDDA), the diet supplemented with powdered whole milk (DD), and the diet supplemented with powdered whole milk and 0.6% of L-Arginine (DDA). At 43 days old, 16 animals were slaughtered. The productive performance, incidence of diarrhoea, serum parameters, relative organ weight, morphometry and intestinal health were evaluated. Supplementation with 0.6% of L-Arginine increased (P <0.05) the daily and final weight gain of the piglets at 32 days old and reduced the incidence of diarrhoea. DDA promoted a higher villi to crypt ratio (P <0.05). There was a lower rate of mitosis and apoptosis in the jejunum of animals fed DD and DDA. The non-dairy diet supplemented with 0.6% arginine (NDDA) increased serum immunoglobulin A (IgA) and Immunoglobulin G (IgG) concentrations compared with NDD (P <0.05). Thus, supplementation with 0.6% L-Arginine increased immunological activity, improved intestinal integrity, and reduced the incidence of diarrhoea

"high Doses Of Riboflavin And The Elimination Of Dietary Red Meat Promote The Recovery Of Some Motor Functions In Parkinson's Disease Patients. C.g. Coimbra And V.b.c. Junqueira. Brazilian Journal Of Medical And Biological Research, 36: 1409-1417, 2003"

[No abstract available]37912971299Coimbra, C.G., Junqueira, V.B.C., High doses of riboflavin and the elimination of dietary red meat promote the recovery of some motor functions in Parkinson's disease patients (2003) Brazilian Journal of Medical and Biological Research, 36, pp. 1409-1417Pare, S., Burr, S.I., Ross, S.E., Effect of day-time protein restriction on nutrient intakes of free-living Parkinson's disease patients (1992) American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 55, pp. 701-707Simon, N., Gantcheva, R., Bruguerolle, B., Viallet, F., The effects of a normal protein diet on levodopa plasma kinetics in advanced Parkinson's disease (2004) Parkinsonism and Related Disorders, 10, pp. 137-142Fahn, S., Elton, R.L., Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (1987) Recent Developments in Parkinson's Disease, 2, pp. 153-164. , Members of the UPDRS Development Committee Fahn S, Marsden CD, Calne DB & Goldstein M (Editors), MacMillan Health Care Information, Florham Park, NJ, USABaldereschi, M., DiCarlo, A., Vanni, P., Ghetti, A., Carbonin, P., Amaducci, L., Inzitani, D., Italian longitudinal study on aging working group. Lifestyle related risk factors for Parkinson's disease: A populational study (2003) Acta Neurologica Scandinavica, 108, pp. 239-244Tsai, C.H., Lo, S.K., See, L.C., Chen, H.Z., Chen, R.S., Weng, Y.H., Chang, F.C., Lu, C.S., Environmental risk factors of young onset Parkinson's disease (2002) Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery, 104, pp. 328-333Tanner, C.M., Epidemiological clues to the cause of Parkinson's disease (1994) Movement Disorders 3, pp. 124-146. , Marsden CD & Fahn S (Editors) Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford, UKGolbe, L.I., Farrel, T.M., Davis, P.H., Case-control study of early life dietary factors in Parkinson's disease (1988) Archives of Neurology, 45, pp. 350-353Abbot, R.D., Ross, G.W., White, C.R., Sanderson, W.T., Burchfiel, C.M., Kashon, M., Sharp, D.S., Petrovitch, H., Environment, lifestyle, and physical precursors of clinical Parkinson's disease: Recent findings from the Honolulu-Asia aging study (2003) Journal of Neurology, 250 (SUPPL. 3), pp. III30-III3