Nutritive Value Assessment of Four Crop Residues by Proximate Composition and In Vitro Rumen Fermentation Techniques

This study estimated the proximate composition and in vitro gas production parameters of rice husk, bean waste, citrus pulp and maize stover, in a rumen incubation system. The incubation was for 24 h with measurement of gas production volume over incubation periods of 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 21 and 24 hours. The crude protein ranged 1.92 to 11.75% and the crude fibre ranged between 9.68 and 45.09%. The potential gas production (a+b) was rated highest in both citrus pulp and maize stover (48.33 ml), next was bean waste (42.00 ml) and lowest was rice husk (25 ml). The ranges of values of metabolizable energy (ME), organic matter digestibility (OMD) and short chain fatty acids(SCFA) were 6.33 to 9.24 MJ/kg DM, 52.70 to 64.69 % and 0.94 to 1.09 μmol respectively. The values of ME, OMD and SCFA ranked as, citrus pulp > maize stover> bean waste > rice husk. The higher values obtained for the potential gas production (a+b), ME, OMD and SCFA in citrus pulp and maize stover could imply higher nutrient availability for the rumen micro-organisms. The results revealed that citrus pulp and maize stover could be of higher nutritional value in ruminants feed than bean waste, while rice husk was lowest

Effect of Bosentan on Plasma Markers of Endothelial Cell Activity in Patients with Secondary Pulmonary Hypertension Related to Connective Tissue Diseases.

Objective. To evaluate plasma markers of endothelial cell activity in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) induced by connective tissue diseases (CTD) before and after 3-month administration of bosentan. Methods. We quantified E, L and P-selectin (sE-S, sL-S, sP-S), thrombomodulin (TM), monocytechemotactic protein 1 (MCP-1), human soluble CD40 ligand (sCD40L), and nitric oxide (NO) in 18 patients and 18 controls. We evaluated right ventricular systolic pressure (RVSP) and the 6-minute walk test (6-MWT). Results. All plasma markers but sL-S and TM at Time 0 were significantly higher in patients compared with controls. After 3 months of therapy, decreased levels were noted in NO (Time 0 24.05 ± 6.01 mmol/l, Time 1 13.92 ± 3.40 mmol/l; p < 0.001) and sCD40L (Time 0 1685.33 ± 866 pg/ml, Time 1 1055.11 ± 630.6 pg/ml; p = 0.017). In contrast, sP-S was significantly increased (Time 0 88.36 ± 47.76 ng/ml, Time 1 147.21 ± 94.43 ng/ml; p = 0.021). All patients remained stable in WHO class III, and in 9 patients we noted an improvement in 6-MWT. A correlation was found between Δ of RVSP and 6-MWT (r2 = 0.5355, p < 0.001) as well as between Δ-sP-S and both Δ-6-MWT and Δ-RVSP. An increase sP-S level was found in 89% of nonresponder patients, whereas 55% of responders showed a stable or reduced sP-S level (p = 0.016 responder vs nonresponder). Conclusion. Treatment with bosentan for 3 months induced a beneficial effect by restoring endothelial function through a decrease in the markers of endothelial cell activity, leading to stabilization or improvement of severe PAH