Energy Metabolites and Indicative Significance of α-Ketoglutarate and α-Ketoglutaramate in Assessing the Progression of Chronic Hepatoencephalopathy.

In the example of a rat model with chronic hepatoencephalopathy (HE), changes in the organ morphology of rats affect the balance of metabolites of the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle and metabolites of the glutamine-glutamate (Gln-Glu) cycle, namely α-ketoglutarate (αKG) and α-ketoglutaramate (αKGM), as well as the enzymes associated with them, ω-amidase (ωA) and glutamine transaminase (GTK). This model of rats was obtained as a result of 2-22 weeks of consumption by animals of hepatotoxin thioacetamide (TAA) added to drinking water at a concentration of 0.4 g/L. The control (n = 26) and TAA-induced (n = 55) groups of rats consisted of 11 cohorts each. The control cohorts consisted of 2-4 rats, and the TAA-induced cohorts consisted of 4-7 individuals. Every two weeks, samples of blood plasma, liver, kidney, and brain tissues were taken from the next cohort of rats (a total of 320 samples). By the end of the experiment, irreversible morphological changes were observed in the organs of rats: the weight of the animals was reduced up to ~45%, the weight of the kidneys up to 5%, the brain up to ~20%, and the weight of the liver increased up to ~20%. The analysis revealed: (i) a decrease in the activity of ωA and GTK in the tissues of the brain, kidneys, and liver of rats with chronic HE (by ~3, 40, and 65% and ~10, 60, and 70%, respectively); and (ii) the appearance of a significant imbalance in the content of metabolites of the Gln-Glu cycle, αKG, and αKGM. It is indicative that a ~1.5-12-fold increase in the level of αKG in the blood plasma and tissues of the organs of rats with chronic HE was accompanied by a synchronous, ~1.2-2.5-fold decrease in the level of αKGM. The data obtained indicate an essential involvement of the Gln-Glu cycle in the regulation of energy metabolism in rats under conditions of chronic HE. Attention is focused on the significance of the αKG/αKGM ratio, which can act as a potential marker for diagnosing the degree of HE development.

The Efficacy of Encapsulated Phytase Based on Recombinant Yarrowia lipolytica on Quails' Zootechnic Features and Phosphorus Assimilation.

In this study, we used the Manchurian golden breed of quails. We assessed the efficacy of the food additives of the phytase from Obesumbacterium proteus encapsulated in the recombinant Yarrowia lipolytica yeast, which was supplied at a concentration of 500 phytase activity units per kg of the feed. One hundred fifty one-day-old quails were distributed into six treatment groups. The results showed that adding the O. proteus encapsulated phytase to the quails' diets improved live weight, body weight gain, and feed conversion compared to those in the control groups and the groups using a commercial phytase from Aspergillus ficuum. The results obtained during the experiments indicate a high degree of assimilation of phytate-containing feeds if the encapsulated phytase was fed by the quails compared to that in the other groups. We can conclude that the class D encapsulated phytase is an expedient additive to the diets possessing better kinetic features compared to the PhyA and PhyC classes phytases when it acts inside the quail's chyme.