Assessment of the influence on Hypsizygus marmoreus stem waste as a sustainable alternative to corn in Holdobagy geese dietary

The processing of edible mushrooms generates a large amount of mushroom residue. How to handle this mushroom residue in a way that avoids environmental pollution and maximizes effective utilization is a current issue that needs to be explored. This study aimed to investigate the effects of substituting dietary corn with Hypsizygus marmoreus mushroom stem waste (HSW) in the diet of geese. The control group was fed with a basal diet (BD), and the other groups were fed the basal diet to which 12% (HSW12 group), 24% (HSW24 group), or 32% (HSW32 group) of HSW were added to replace the equivalent proportion of corn. The test lasted 28 days. The results showed that the average daily feed intake (ADFI) of the HSW12 and HSW24 groups at 35–49 d, and the HSW12 and HSW32 groups at 35–63 d, was significantly higher compared to the BD group (p<0.05). The average daily gain (ADG) of the HSW12 group was significantly higher than BD at 35–49 d (p<0.05), but there was no significant difference in the feed/gain (F/G) among the groups. The levels of serum total protein (TP), albumin (ALB), globulin (GLOB), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), and catalase (CAT) in HSW24 group were significantly higher than those in the BD group (p<0.05). Total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and malondialdehyde (MDA) decreased significantly, and there were no significant differences in carcass traits and meat quality. As 24% HSW supplementation had the best overall effect on the growth performance, serum biochemical indicators, meat quality, and carcass traits of geese, gut microbiota analysis was only performed on this group. The microbiota α-diversity of the cecum and ileum did not differ significantly between the BD and HSW24 groups. Principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) indicated that the difference in the cecum was significant in the β-diversity (p<0.05). Short chain fatty acid-producing bacteria and decomposing protein and carbohydrate bacteria (Prevotella) were enriched in the cecum in the HSW24 group. Gut immune regulating and nutritional bacteria, Lactococcus and Bacillus, respectively, were enriched in the ileum in HSW24 group. Spearman’s analysis indicated that Bacillus, Prevotella, and Clostridium were positively associated with serum protein and lipid metabolism. These results indicate that 24% HSW substitution of corn could improve goose serum ALB and fat metabolism, and increase serum antioxidant capacity, which may becaused by the improvement of goose cecal microbiota

ABO genotype alters the gut microbiota by regulating GalNAc levels in pigs.

peer reviewedThe composition of the intestinal microbiome varies considerably between individuals and is correlated with health1. Understanding to what extend and how host genetics contributes to this variation is paramount yet has proven difficult as few associations have been replicated, particularly in humans2. We herein study the effect of host genotype on the composition of the intestinal microbiota in a large mosaic pig population. We show that, under conditions of exacerbated genetic diversity and environmental uniformity, microbiota composition and abundance of specific taxa are heritable. We map a quantitative trait locus affecting the abundance of Erysipelotrichaceae species and show that it is caused by a 2.3-Kb deletion in the N-acetyl-galactosaminyl-transferase gene underpinning the ABO blood group in humans. We show that this deletion is a ≥3.5 million years old trans-species polymorphism under balancing selection. We demonstrate that it decreases the concentrations of N-acetyl-galactosamine in the gut thereby reducing the abundance of Erysipelotrichaceae that can import and catabolize N-acetyl-galactosamine. Our results provide very strong evidence for an effect of host genotype on the abundance of specific bacteria in the intestine combined with insights in the molecular mechanisms that underpin this association. They pave the way towards identifying the same effect in human rural populations

The effects of whole-plant silage maize as replacement commercial feed on the growth performance, carcase yield, relatively organ weight, blood biochemical, and economical traits in Holdobaki Goose

AbstractThis study aimed to investigate the effects of replacing commercial feed with varying proportions of whole-plant silage maize in the diet of Holdobaki geese. The study evaluated growth performance, carcass characteristics, relative organ weight, blood biochemical, and economical traits in 192 fifth-week-old geese. The geese were randomly divided into 4 treatments with 8 replicate pens per treatment and 6 geese per replicate pen. The control group (0SM), which received 0% whole-plant silage maize and 100% concentrate; the 15SM group, which received 15% whole-plant silage maize and 85% concentrate; the 30SM group, which received 30% whole-plant silage maize and 70% concentrate; and the 50SM group, which received 50% whole-plant silage maize and 50% concentrate. The results showed that the final body weight (FBW) and average daily gain (ADG) of the 50SM group were significantly reduced (P < 0.01), and Feed conversion ratio (FCR) was significantly increased (P < 0.01). Compared to the 0SM group, the average daily feed intake (ADFI) was significantly increased in the 15SM, 30SM, and 50SM groups. The abdominal fat yield of the 50SM group was significantly reduced (P < 0.05), and the relative weight of goose gizzards was significantly increased in the 15SM, 30SM, and 50SM groups (P < 0.05). Total triglycerides (TG) levels of 30SM and 50SM were significantly lowered, and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels of 15SM and 30SM groups were significantly lowered (P < 0.05). The 30SM group had the highest economic benefit, with an income per goose of $1.92. In conclusion, the findings of this study demonstrate that replacing commercial feed with whole-plant silage maize in the diet of Holdobaki geese has significant effects on their growth performance, carcase yield, relative organ weight, and blood biochemical parameters. The combination of 30% whole-plant silage maize and 70% concentrate improves economic benefits, whereas a substitution rate of 50% has a negative impact on goose growth

Parallel Agent-as-a-Service (P-AaaS) Based Geospatial Service in the Cloud

To optimize the efficiency of the geospatial service in the flood response decision making system, a Parallel Agent-as-a-Service (P-AaaS) method is proposed and implemented in the cloud. The prototype system and comparisons demonstrate the advantages of our approach over existing methods. The P-AaaS method includes both parallel architecture and a mechanism for adjusting the computational resources—the parallel geocomputing mechanism of the P-AaaS method used to execute a geospatial service and the execution algorithm of the P-AaaS based geospatial service chain, respectively. The P-AaaS based method has the following merits: (1) it inherits the advantages of the AaaS-based method (i.e., avoiding transfer of large volumes of remote sensing data or raster terrain data, agent migration, and intelligent conversion into services to improve domain expert collaboration); (2) it optimizes the low performance and the concurrent geoprocessing capability of the AaaS-based method, which is critical for special applications (e.g., highly concurrent applications and emergency response applications); and (3) it adjusts the computing resources dynamically according to the number and the performance requirements of concurrent requests, which allows the geospatial service chain to support a large number of concurrent requests by scaling up the cloud-based clusters in use and optimizes computing resources and costs by reducing the number of virtual machines (VMs) when the number of requests decreases

Case Study of Solid Waste Based Soft Soil Solidifying Materials Applied in Deep Mixing Pile

The research on solid waste based soft soil solidifying materials has received extensive attention in recent years. However, the properties of deep mixing piles are significantly affected by the construction technology. In view of this, this work carried out the systematic study on the influence of materials, the mixing tool and process optimization on the integrity and mechanical properties of deep mixing piles. Factors considered include the shape of the blade (strip and meniscus), the types of solidifying materials (PO 42.5 cement, self-developed soft soil solidifying agent), the content (50 kg/m, 65 kg/m, 80 kg/m and 100 kg/m) and how many times the materials needed to be mixed (two, four and six times). The solidification mechanism was analyzed. The results showed that the utilization of a meniscus blade contributed to the excellent integrity of the deep mixing pile, as well as solved the problems of oozing slurry and wrapped blade during construction. Mixing the materials four times is the most suitable for the construction of deep mixing piles in organic clay. The solidifying agent deep mixing pile showed satisfactory early and late strength. Microscopic analysis showed that more calcium silicate hydrate and ettringite formed in the solidifying agent solidified soil. Organic clay particles were better cemented and pores were fully filled, so that the solidified soil showed an integral and dense structure. The microscopically integral and dense structure contributed to the excellent integrity and mechanical properties of the solidifying agent deep mixing pile

ZnO Twin-Spheres Exposed in ±(001) Facets: Stepwise Self-Assembly Growth and Anisotropic Blue Emission

ZnO twin-spheres topologically exposed in ±(001) polar facets have been successfully produced on a large scale. The fragmentary and hexagonal ±(001) facets of ZnO tilt and assemble gradually for 8–12 generations to form supercrystals. The surfactant effect on the formation of ZnO supercrystals reveals that their structure stepwise evolves from prisms to dumbbells to twin-spheres exposed in ±(001) facets and eventually to twin-spheres covered with dots. A hollow ring around a prism, which connects two hemispheres of the supercrystals, is finally sealed inside each of the twin-spheres. Based on the experimental observations, a stepwise self-assembly mechanism is proposed to understand the formation of the supercrystals. It is also observed that the ZnO twin-spheres exhibit anisotropic blue emission in intensity attributed to their special surfaces exposed in ±(001) facets. Novel devices could be designed and fabricated through carefully tailoring the microstructure of ZnO supercrystals

Factors Influencing FDI Location Choice in China's Inland Areas

Since 1978, the bulk of foreign direct investment (FDI) has gone to the south-eastern coastal areas in China, with only a small portion received inland. With the launch of the Western Development Strategy in 2000 and the Central China Rising Strategy in 2004, the choice of investment locations has expanded to inland areas. Based on panel data covering 98 inland cities from 1999 to 2005, this study identifies location preference variables for FDI invested in China's inland areas, and finds that well-established factors such as natural resources and low labor costs are not important factors in determining FDI locations within China's inland. Instead, policy incentives and industrial agglomeration are the most important factors. The findings of the present study have policy implications for both host country authorities and multinational corporations. Copyright (c) 2008 The Authors.