Fatty acid profiles of serum lipid fractions change minimally in sled dogs before and after short bouts of exercise

Although emerging data suggests a greater influence of gluconeogenic precursors, endurance sled dogs have long appeared to rely heavily on fatty acid oxidation for sustained energy production. However, much of the research investigating lipid utilization during exercise in sled dogs has been carried out with dogs subjected to extended bouts of endurance exercise. Less is known about changes in fatty acid composition in endurance training sled dogs subjected to short bouts of exercise, and fewer data define how fatty acid composition may change in distinct lipid fractions. As such, the study objective was to assess whether short bouts of submaximal exercise would affect fatty acid profiles of serum lipid fractions in endurance training sled dogs. Fifteen privately-owned Siberian huskies were used (8 females: 4 intact, 4 spayed; 7 males: 2 intact, 5 neutered), with an average age of 4.6 ± 2.5 years and body weight of 24.8 ± 4.2 kg. Throughout the diet acclimation and remainder of the study, all dogs were fed a dry extruded diet that met or exceeded all AAFCO nutrient recommendations. Dogs were weighed weekly and fed to maintain baseline body weight. A 12-week exercise regimen was designed to incorporate weekly increases in running distance, but weather played a role in setting the daily distance. On weeks 2, 5, and 11, an exercise challenge was implemented whereby dogs would run 4 km at 15 km/h in teams of 4. Pre- and post-exercise blood samples were taken, and gas chromatography was used to evaluate fatty acid profiles of all identified serum lipid fractions (cholesterol ester, diacylglycerol, free fatty acid, phospholipids, triglyceride). Data were analyzed using PROC MIXED of SAS, with dog as a random effect and week and sampling time point as fixed effects. Composition of oleic (18:1n9), linoleic (18:2n6), and alpha-linolenic (18:3n3) acids in the free fatty acid fraction decreased by ∼9, 10, and 60%, respectively, following exercise (P ≤ 0.05). The results presented herein suggest that aside from a degree of depletion of these 18-carbon unsaturated fatty acids, short bouts of submaximal exercise do not induce considerable changes to sled dog fatty acid profiles

Goat incubator: can bovine oocytes be matured in the uterine horn of a goat?

Abstract We used a goat as a live incubator, along with associated nonsurgical embryo transfer techniques, to perform ex situ (in vivo) maturation of bovine oocytes. Immature bovine cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) aspirated from 3-8 mm follicles from slaughterhouse ovaries were randomly split into two groups for in vitro (IVM; n = 38) and ex situ maturation (ESM; n = 40). IVM was performed for a period of 24 h at 38.5 ºC and with 5% CO2 in the air of maximum humidity. For ESM, a presynchronized nulliparous goat (12 months old) received 40 immature COCs in the uterine horn apiece, via the transcervical route. After 24 h the structures were retrieved through uterine flushing. Analyses of nuclear maturation and lipid quantification were performed on oocytes from both groups. Fluorescent intensity was compared using the Student?s t-test. Forty-seven percent of the structures were recovered after uterine flushing (19/40). The nuclear maturation rate was 94.5% (18/19) and 81.6% (31/38) for the ESM and IVM groups, respectively. In vitro-matured COCs contained more lipid droplets, expressed as a higher amount (p < 0.05) of emitted fluorescent light than ex situ-matured COCs (858 ± 73 vs. 550 ± 64 arbitrary fluorescence units, respectively). This is the first report to associate nonsurgical embryo transfer techniques and a goat as a live incubator for the maturation of bovine oocytes. We conclude that bovine oocytes can progress meiotically in the uterus horn of a goat and that transcervical transfer of bovine oocytes to a goat?s uterus could present an alternative to nuclear maturation

Playground safety: an introduction to the problem

This study aims to approach the theme of accident prevention in relation to the use of playground toys, which is little explored in national literature. It is estimated that, annually, more than 200,000 accidents with children happen in playgrounds in the United States of America. Besides discussing this problem, we present some general recommendations about safety in these places and a reflection on the need to alert and educate society about the importance of prevention.A finalidade deste estudo é abordar temática pouco explorada na literatura nacional relativa à prevenção de acidentes relacionados ao uso de brinquedos de parques infantis. Nos Estados Unidos da América, estima-se que, anualmente, ocorrem mais de 200.000 acidentes com crianças, em parques infantis. Além de discutir esse problema, apresentamos algumas recomendações gerais sobre segurança nesses locais e a reflexão da necessidade de alertar e educar a sociedade sobre a importância da prevenção.El objetivo de este estudio es abordar un tema poco explotado en la literatura nacional acerca de la prevención de accidentes relacionados con el uso de juegos en parques infantiles. En los Estados Unidos de Norte América se estima que anualmente ocurren más de 200.000 accidentes con niños en parques infantiles. Además de discutir este problema, presentamos algunas recomendaciones generales sobre la seguridad en estos locales y la necesidad de alertar y educar a la sociedad sobre la importancia de la prevención

Algumas características das cultivares de soja Embrapa 48 e BR 16 em diferentes regimes hídricos.

O objetivo foi avaliar a influência do estresse hídrico sobre as cultivares de soja convencionais BR 16 e Embrapa 48, consideradas sensível e tolerante ao estresse hídrico, respectivamente, em resposta a quatro disponibilidades hídricas no camp

Goat incubator: the doe as a life incubator of bovine oocytes - first step.

Despite significant improvements in the in vitro production of cattle embryos, the suboptimal in vitro culture environment still limits the embryo quality and production. Techniques that associate the advantages of in vivo and in vitro systems, such as intrafollicular transfer of immature oocytes, have been proposed mainly to increase the embryo quality. In this context, we tried to use a goat as live incubator and associated nonsurgical embryo transfer techniques in small ruminants to perform ex situ (in vivo) maturation of bovine oocytes. For this, immature bovine cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) of grade 1 and 2 were randomly distributed into two groups for in vitro (IVM; n = 38) and ex situ (ESM; n = 40) maturation. The IVM was performed for a period of 24 h in TCM-199 medium (Gibco Life Technologies, Inc., Grand Island, NY, USA) supplemented with 20 mg/mL of FSH (Pluset, Calier, Barcelona, Spain), 0.36 mM sodium pyruvate (Sigma Chemical, St. Louis, MO, USA), 10 mM sodium bicarbonate (Sigma Chemical, St. Louis, MO, USA) and 50 mg/mL streptomycin/penicillin (Sigma Chemical, St. Louis, MO, USA) at 38.8 ºC in an atmosphere of 5% CO2 in air with maximum humidity. For ESM, a pre-synchronized nulliparous goat (12 months old) received 40 immature COCs in the uterine horn apice by transcervical route (Fonseca et al., 2014 Arq. Bras. Med.vet. Zootec) and 24 h after the procedure the structures were retrieved by the uterine flushing (Fonseca et al., 2013 Small Rumin Res). For analysis of the nuclear maturation rate and lipid quantification, the oocytes were denuded (0.1% hyaluronidase), fixed (4% paraformaldehyde) and stained with 10 ?g/mL Hoechst 33342 and 10 ?g/mL Nile Red (Molecular Probes, Inc., Eugene, OR, USA) dissolved in physiological saline (0.9% NaCl) with 1mg/mL polyvinylpyrrolidone. Oocytes displaying metaphase II plate were considered matured. The lipid amount was inferred by measuring the fluorescence intensity using the ImageJ program and fluorescence intensity were compared by Student's t-test. Forty-seven percent of the structures were recovered after uterine flushing (19/40). The nuclear maturation rate was 94.5% (18/19) and 81.6% (31/38) for ESM and IVM groups, respectively. In vitro-matured oocytes contained more lipid droplets, expressed as a higher (p < 0.05) amount of emitted fluorescence light (858 ± 73 arbitrary fluorescence units) than ex situ-matured oocytes (550 ± 64 arbitrary fluorescence units). This is the first report associating nonsurgical embryo transfer techniques with goat as live incubator for maturation of bovine oocytes. We conclude that transcervical transfer of bovine oocytes to uterine goat may be an alternative to in vitro maturation aiming the reduction of lipids without compromising nuclear maturation. Further studies are required to improve the oocyte recovery rate.Proceedings of the 31st Annual Meeting of the Brazilian Embryo Technology Society (SBTE); Cabo de Santo Agostinho, PE, Brazil, August 17th to 19th, 2017. Abstracts

Use of hCG, eCG or p-FSH on estrus induction of goats and their effects on luteal dynamics and conception rate.

The present study tested the hypothesis that hCG and pFSH stimulate the follicular development and consequently corpora lutea, in a manner equivalent to those induced by eCG in goat. Eighty-five Toggenburg goats, during the seasonal transition period (December, 21ºS), underwent a short-duration estrus induction/synchronization protocol with a sponge impregnated with medroxyprogesterone acetate (60 mg MAP, 6 days). In conclusion, the use of hCG and pFSH in protocol of estrus induction/synchronization in goats induces equivalent luteal dynamics and conception rate, being substitutes for eCG