Black soldier fly larva fat inclusion in finisher broiler chicken diet as an alternative fat source.

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effects of partial or total replacement of finisher diet soybean oil with black soldier fly (Hermethia illucens L.; HI) larva fat on the growth performance, carcass traits, blood parameters, intestinal morphology and histological features of broiler chickens. At 21 days of age, a total of 120 male broiler chickens (Ross 308) were randomly allocated to three experimental groups (five replicates and eight birds/pen). To a basal control diet (C; 68.7 g/kg as fed of soybean oil), either 50% or 100% of the soybean oil was replaced with HI larva fat (HI50 and HI100 group, respectively). Growth performance was evaluated throughout the trial. At day 48, 15 birds (three birds/pen) per group were slaughtered at a commercial abattoir. Carcass yield and proportions of carcass elements were recorded. Blood samples were taken from each slaughtered chicken for haematochemical index determination. Morphometric analyses were performed on the duodenum, jejunum and ileum. Samples of liver, spleen, thymus, bursa of fabricius, kidney and heart were submitted to histological investigations. Growth performance, carcass traits, haematochemical parameters and gut morphometric indexes were not influenced by the dietary inclusion of HI larva fat. Histopathological alterations developed in the spleen, thymus, bursa of fabricius and liver and were identified in all of the experimental groups, but HI larva fat inclusion did not significantly affect (P>0.05) the severity of the histopathological findings. The present study suggests that 50% or 100% replacement of soybean oil with HI larva fat in broiler chickens diets has no adverse effects on growth performance or blood parameters and had no beneficial effect on gut health.

Rabbit dietary supplementation with pale purple coneflower. 1. Effects on the reproductive performance and immune parameters of does.

Echinacea pallida (EPAL), also known as pale purple coneflower, is a herbaceous flowering plant with immune-enhancement and antioxidative properties. The effect of EPAL on the reproductive performance, serum biochemistry and haematological parameters of rabbit does has been studied here. A total of 100, 21-week-old Grimaud rabbit does, were randomly assigned to two groups. One group was fed a basal diet supplemented with 3 g EPAL/kg diet (Echinacea group, E), while the other was fed the basal diet without the supplementation (control group, C). The reproductive performance of the does was not affected by the treatment (P>0.05). The haematological parameters of pregnant rabbits showed that there was no interaction between gestation day and treatment. The EPAL supplementation induced a reduction (-47.3%) in the basophil cell rate (0.55% and 0.29%, for the control and treatment groups, respectively; P=0.049). The gestation day significantly affected most of the haematological parameters (P<0.05). The white blood cell counts declined progressively after day 14. The mean corpuscular haemoglobin, mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration, red cell distribution width, mean platelet volume and eosinophils increased steadily throughout the study, and reached a maximum value on day 28. The red blood cells, haemoglobin, haematocrit, mean corpuscular volume and neutrophils increased slightly up to day 14, and then subsequently decreased progressively until day 28. The lymphocytes and platelet distribution width decreased until day 14, and then increased to a maximum value on day 28. No significant effect of gestation day or treatment was observed on the blood serum chemistry. As far as the immune parameters are concerned, no significant differences were observed between groups, while a significant effect of gestation day was observed for lysozymes (6.02 v. 7.99 v. 1.91; for 0, 14 and 28 days, respectively; P=0.014). In conclusion, a lack of effect of EPAL has been observed. In fact, no impacts of EPAL have been observed on the reproductive or haematological parameters of the does. The effects of dietary supplementation with EPAL on the performances, bacterial community, blood parameters and immunity in growing rabbits are reported in the second part of this study.

Effects of N,N-dimethylglycine sodium salt on apparent digestibility, vitamin E absorption, and serum proteins in broiler chickens fed a high- or low-fat diet.

The objective of this study was to assess the effect of supplementation with sodium salt of N,N-dimethylglycine (DMG-Na) on apparent digestibility (AD) in broiler chickens fed low- and high-fat diets. Twenty-eight 1-d-old broiler chickens were fed one of the dietary treatments: a low-fat diet (LF) or a high-fat diet (HF) supplemented with or without 1,000 mg/kg of DMG-Na. Body weight and feed consumption were recorded at 14 and 35 d of age. Average daily growth, daily feed intake, and feed conversion ratio were calculated. The AD of DM, organic matter (OM), CP, total fat (TF), and α-tocopheryl-acetate were assessed by 2 digestibility trials (at 18-21 and 32-35 d, respectively). Serum protein and plasma α-tocopherol concentrations were assessed at 35 d of age. Final BW, feed intake, carcass, breast, and spleen weight were higher in groups fed LF than HF diets (P = 0.048, P = 0.002, P = 0.039, P < 0.001, P = 0.007, respectively). Liver weight was increased in DMG-Na-unsupplemented groups (P = 0.011) for both fat levels. During the first digestibility trial (18-21 d), the AD of DM (P = 0.023), OM (P = 0.033), CP (P = 0.030), and α-tocopheryl-acetate (P = 0.036) was higher in the DMG-Na-supplemented group than control. Digestibility of total fat was increased by DMG-Na supplementation in the LF groups (P = 0.038). A trend for improvement of digestibility was observed during the second digestibility trial (32-35 d) for DM (P = 0.089), OM (P = 0.051), and CP (P = 0.063) in DMG-Na groups. Total serum proteins (and relative fractions) were positively influenced by DMG-Na supplementation both in LF and HF diets (P = 0.029). Plasma α-tocopherol concentration was higher in groups fed LF than HF diets (P < 0.001).

Changes in motor cortex excitability in facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy.

Previous studies found that some patients with severe, early onset facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD) present epilepsy and mental retardation. This suggests a functional involvement of central nervous system in severe FSHD. It is unknown whether minor functional changes of central nervous system are also present in less severe forms of FSHD. To investigate this, we examined the excitability of neuronal networks of the motor cortex with a range of transcranial magnetic stimulation paradigms in 20 FSHD patients with heterogeneous clinical severity and compared the data with that from 20 age-matched healthy individuals and from 6 age-matched patients with other muscle diseases. There was significantly less intracortical inhibition in FSHD patients (mean responses +/- SD reduced to 58.1+/-43.5% of the test size) than in controls (mean responses +/- SD reduced to 29.3+/-13.5% of the test size; P=0.025) and in patients with other muscle diseases (mean responses +/-SD, reduced to 30.6+/-11.7% of the test size; P=0.046). No significant difference was found between the control group and patients with other muscle diseases (P=0.970).