effects of in ovo injection of prebiotics and synbiotics on the productive performance and microstructural features of the superficial pectoral muscle in broiler chickens

ABSTRACT The aim of the study was to compare the effects of 2 prebiotics and 2 synbiotics injected in ovo on productivity parameters, quality, and microstructure of the superficial pectoral muscle in 35-day-old broiler chickens. On day 12 of incubation, 9,000 eggs Ross 308 were randomly divided into 5 experimental groups treated with different bioactives in ovo injected: C, control with physiological saline; PI, with 1.760 mg inulin; PB, with 0.528 mg of commercial prebiotic Bi2 tos; SI, with 1.760 mg inulin and 1,000 CFU Lactococcus lactis spp. lactis IBB SL1; SB, with 0.528 mg Bi2 tos and 1,000 CFU Lactococcus lactis spp. cremoris IBB SC1. The synbiotic solution contained 20 μl bacterial suspension and 180 μl prebiotic solution. For productive parameters and further tests ten male birds for each experimental group were used. The birds were slaughtered on day 35 of age. At slaughter, samples of the left pectoral muscles were taken and preserved by freezing in liquid nitrogen. The pH and color of the meat were evaluated at 45 min and 24 h post-mortem. Water holding capacity (WHC) was measured and expressed as the percentage of free water in meat. Microscopic specimens were analysed using MultiScan software for the measurement of the percentage of oxidative and glycolytic fibres and mean diameter of the muscle fibres. In ovo injection of prebiotics Bi2 tos had a positive effect on body weight. In prebiotic group (PI) a negative impact on hatchability was observed. Prebiotics and synbiotics had no influence on the yield of the carcass and pectoral muscle. Bioactive compounds had a significant effect on the quality of meat parameters such as: pH 24 h (PI and PB group), L* 45' (SI and SB group), and WHC (groups PB, SI, and SB). The analysis of the enzymatic profile showed a significant increase in the percentage of glycolytic fibres in the pectoral muscle from chicken treated with a synbiotic with the addition of inulin (group SI)

Analysis of the course and treatment of toxocariasis in children—a long-term observation

Toxocariasis is a helminthozoonotic disease caused by ascarid larvae of Toxocara genus: Toxocara canis and Toxocara cati. In the reported study, the clinical course of toxocariasis and administered therapy were evaluated in 103 children. The majority of the children (68.9%) were from the rural environment, with a prevalence of boys (62.1%). At diagnosis of infection, 36 (35%) children reported recurrent abdominal pain, 19 (18.4%) headache, 6 (5.8%) loss of appetite, 2 subfebrile conditions, and 2 arthralgia, Moreover, 23 (22.3%) children demonstrated symptoms of atopic diseases; in 30 (29.1%) children, moderate enlargement of lymphatic nodes was noted. In five children (4.9%), ophthalmic examination revealed unilateral changes in the eye: in two cases retinitis; in one case fibrotic lesions in the vitreous body, complicated 1 year from diagnosis by retinal detachment; and in other children parafoveal lesions and cataract. Only two children with ocular changes at diagnosis reported visual disorders. In 64.3% of children, eosinophilia was observed. A covert form of the disease was diagnosed in 95.1% of the children and an ocular form in 4.9%. In all the children, antiparasitic treatment was implemented, repeated several times in some of them. After therapy, the mean titer of specific antibodies, the number of children with abdominal pains and enlarged lymphatic nodes were decreased, while headaches maintained at unchanged levels. In approximately one fourth of the children with negative results of antibodies after the therapy, the symptoms of the disease were still reported. Evaluation of the efficacy of treatment is not easy due to non-characteristic symptoms and low kinetics of specific anti Toxocara IgG decrease; however, high IgG titers suggest non-effective treatment of concomitant infection requiring subsequent therapy. Due to risk of ocular form, which may develop in any stage of the disease, irrespectively of specific antibodies concentrations, it seems justified to implement antiparasitic treatment in all children infected with T. canis

Quantifying the fast outflow in the luminous Seyfert galaxy PG1211+143

We report two new XMM-Newton observations of PG1211+143 in December 2007, again finding evidence of the fast outflow of highly ionised gas first detected in 2001. Stacking the new spectra with those from two earlier XMM-Newton observations reveals strong and broad emission lines of FeXXV and OVIII, indicating the fast outflow to be persistent and to have a large covering factor. This finding confirms a high mass rate for the ionised ouflow in PG1211+143 and provides the first direct measurement of a wide angle, sub-relativistic outflow from an AGN transporting mechanical energy with the potential to disrupt the growth of the host galaxy. We suggest PG1211+143 may be typical of an AGN in a rapid super-Eddington growth phase.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS. Extended version with new figures and table

Evolution of the X-ray Emission of Radio-Quiet Quasars

We report new Chandra observations of seven optically faint, z \sim 4 radio-quiet quasars. We have combined these new observations with previous Chandra observations of radio-quiet quasars to create a sample of 174 sources. These sources have 0.1 < z < 4.7, and 10^{44} ergs s^{-1} < nu L_{nu} (2500 \AA) < 10^{48} ergs s^{-1}. The X-ray detection fraction is 90%. We find that the X-ray loudness of radio-quiet quasars decreases with UV luminosity and increases with redshift. The model that is best supported by the data has a linear dependence of optical-to-X-ray ratio, alpha_{ox}, on cosmic time, and a quadratic dependence of alpha_{ox} on log L_{UV}, where alpha_{ox} becomes X-ray quiet more rapidly at higher log L_{UV}. We find no significant evidence for a relationship between the X-ray photon index, Gamma_X, and the UV luminosity, and we find marginally significant evidence that the X-ray continuum flattens with increasing z (2 sigma). The Gamma_X-z anti-correlation may be the result of X-ray spectral curvature, redshifting of a Compton reflection component into the observed Chandra band, and/or redshifting of a soft excess out of the observed Chandra band. Using the results for Gamma_X, we show that the alpha_{ox}-z relationship is unlikely to be a spurious result caused by redshifting of the observable X-ray spectral region. A correlation between alpha_{ox} and z implies evolution of the accretion process. We present a qualitative comparison of these new results with models for accretion disk emission.Comment: Accepted by ApJ, 48 pages, 10 figures, 5 table

Deep Chandra X-ray Imaging of a Nearby Radio Galaxy 4C+29.30: X-ray/Radio Connection

We report results from our deep Chandra X-ray observations of a nearby radio galaxy, 4C+29.30 (z=0.0647). The Chandra image resolves structures on sub-arcsec to arcsec scales, revealing complex X-ray morphology and detecting the main radio features: the nucleus, a jet, hotspots, and lobes. The nucleus is absorbed (N(H)=3.95 (+0.27/-0.33)x10^23 atoms/cm^2) with an unabsorbed luminosity of L(2-10 keV) ~ (5.08 +/-0.52) 10^43 erg/s characteristic of Type 2 AGN. Regions of soft (<2 keV) X-ray emission that trace the hot interstellar medium (ISM) are correlated with radio structures along the main radio axis indicating a strong relation between the two. The X-ray emission beyond the radio source correlates with the morphology of optical line-emitting regions. We measured the ISM temperature in several regions across the galaxy to be kT ~ 0.5 with slightly higher temperatures (of a few keV) in the center and in the vicinity of the radio hotspots. Assuming these regions were heated by weak shocks driven by the expanding radio source, we estimated the corresponding Mach number of 1.6 in the southern regions. The thermal pressure of the X-ray emitting gas in the outermost regions suggest the hot ISM is slightly under-pressured with respect to the cold optical-line emitting gas and radio-emitting plasma, which both seem to be in a rough pressure equilibrium. We conclude that 4C+29.30 displays a complex view of interactions between the jet-driven radio outflow and host galaxy environment, signaling feedback processes closely associated with the central active nucleus.Comment: ApJ in pres

Influence of in ovo prebiotic and synbiotic administration on meat quality of broiler chickens

ABSTRACT A trial was conducted to evaluate the effect of in ovo injection of prebiotic and synbiotics on growth performance, meat quality traits (cholesterol content, intramuscular collagen properties, fiber measurements), and the presence of histopathological changes in the pectoral muscle (PS) of broiler chickens. On d 12 of incubation, 480 eggs were randomly divided into 5 experimental groups treated with different bioactives, in ovo injected: C, control with physiological saline; T1 with 1.9 mg of raffinose family oligosaccharides; T2 and T3 with 1.9 mg of raffinose family oligosaccharides enriched with different probiotic bacteria, specifically 1,000 cfu of Lactococcus lactis ssp. lactis SL1 and Lactococcus lactis ssp. cremoris IBB SC1, respectively; T4 with commercially available synbiotic Duolac, containing 500 cfu of both Lactobacillus acidophilus and Streptococcus faecium with the addition of lactose (0.001 mg/embryo). Among the hatched chickens, 60 males were randomly chosen (12 birds for each group) and were grown to 42 d in collective cages (n = 3 birds in each 4 cages: replications for experimental groups). Broilers were fed ad libitum commercial diets according to age. In ovo prebiotic and synbiotic administration had a low effect on investigated traits, but depend on the kind of bioactives administered. Commercial synbiotic treatment (T4) reduced carcass yield percentage, and the feed conversion ratio was higher in T3 and T4 groups compared with other groups. The abdominal fat, the ultimate pH, and cholesterol of the PS were not affected by treatment. Broiler chickens of the treated groups with both slightly greater PS and fiber diameter had a significantly lower amount of collagen. The greater thickness of muscle fibers (not significant) and the lower fiber density (statistically significant), observed in treated birds in comparison with those of the C group, are not associated with histopathological changes in the PS of broilers. The incidence of histopathological changes in broiler chickens from examined groups was low, which did not affect the deterioration of meat quality obtained from these birds

Variability of X-ray binaries from an oscillating hot corona

The spectral and timing properties of an oscillating hot thermal corona are investigated. This oscillation is assumed to be due to a magneto-acoustic wave propagating within the corona and triggered by an external, non specified, excitation. A cylindrical geometry is adopted and, neglecting the rotation, the wave equation is solved in for different boundary conditions. The resulting X-ray luminosity, through thermal comptonization of embedded soft photons, is then computed, first analytically, assuming linear dependence between the local pressure disturbance and the radiative modulation. These calculations are also compared to Monte-Carlo simulations. The main results of this study are: (1) the corona plays the role of a low band-pass medium, its response to a white noise excitation being a at top noise Power Spectral Density (PSD) at low frequencies and a red noise at high frequency, (2) resonant peaks are present in the PSD. Their powers depend on the boundary conditions chosen and, more specifically, on the impedance adaptation with the external medium at the corona inner boundary. (3) The flat top noise level and break as well as the resonant peak frequencies are inversely proportional to the external radius rj. (4) Computed rms and f-spectra exhibit an overall increase of the variability with energy. Comparison with observed variability features, especially in the hard intermediate states of X-ray binaries are discussed.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA