L-Carnitine Supports the In Vitro Growth of Buffalo Oocytes.

This study aimed to determine the effect of L-carnitine on the growth and subsequent nuclear maturation of buffalo small growing oocytes (92−108 µm in diameter) in vitro. Oocyte-granulosa cell complexes (OGCs) were dissected from early antral follicles of slaughtered buffaloes and cultured in in vitro growth (IVG) medium with the supplementation of different concentrations (0, 1.25, 1.875 or 2.5 mM) of L-carnitine for 6 days. The results revealed that L-carnitine increased the diameter of buffalo oocytes in vitro. The degeneration rate was significantly (p < 0.05) lower in 2.5 mM of L-carnitine-treated oocytes (10%) than others (55%, 45% and 32.5% in 0, 1.25 and 1.875 mM of L-carnitine-supplemented groups, respectively). The OGCs showed antrum-like structures significantly (p < 0.05) higher in the 2.5 mM of L-carnitine group (74.0%) than the 0- and 1.25-mM groups (34.6% and 38.1%, respectively). Furthermore, in vitro grown oocytes were placed in in vitro maturation (IVM) medium for 24 h to examine meiotic competence of in vitro grown oocytes with L-carnitine. The L-carnitine (1.875 and 2.5 mM) treated oocytes showed a higher rate of nuclear maturation up to the metaphase II (MII) stage and a lower rate of degeneration. In conclusion, L-carnitine enhances the growth, prevents degeneration, promotes the formation of antrum-like structures and supports nuclear maturation of buffalo oocytes in vitro.

Role of steroid growth promoter on growth performance and meat quality traits in broiler.

Growth promoters are added with broiler feed to boost the overall feed efficiency and growth rate. The current study investigated the effect of dexamethasone (DEX)-a commonly used growth promoter-on the broiler growth rate, meat quality, and muscle biology. Four homogenous groups (20 chicks/group) of broiler one-day-old chicks were fed commercial broiler feed where the treatment groups received 3, 5, and 7 mg/kg of DEX with their diet for 28 d. Feed consumption and body weight were monitored on a daily basis. Muscle samples were collected on 7, 14, 21, and 28 d of the experiment to investigate meat quality and muscular biology. The residue of DEX in meat was detected using thin-layer chromatography. We observed that DEX had substantially decreased (P < 0.05) feed intake, feed efficiency, and overall weight gain in the broiler. While the weight of breast and thigh meat was decreased, the relative meat weight (meat/body weight) was increased significantly in chicks fed DEX. Simultaneously, body fat decreased while the percentage of fat increased significantly (P < 0.05) in the DEX groups. Contrariwise, DEX improved the investigated meat quality parameters with the potential threat of accumulation of DEX residue in the meat at a high dose (7 mg/kg). We also observed that DEX significantly increased the number of myofibers and decreased the cross-sectional area of myofibers. Based on these findings, we conclude that DEX reduces feed intake, feed efficiency, and growth rate, but might improve meat quality with a potential risk of residual DEX accumulation if fed at a high dose.

Goatskin preservation with plant oil: significant chloride reduction in tannery wastewater.

Preservation of raw hide/skin is the prime technique to stop bacterial deterioration. Universally, salt curing is the most prevalent technique for hide/skin preservation. In this study, extracted oil from Aphanamixis polystachya seed was evaluated for the preservation of goatskin to reduce the chloride in tannery wastewater. The oil-induced goatskin preservation method was assessed observing diverse factors, e.g., hair slip, odor, moisture content, bacterial colony counting, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, and hydrothermal stability in evaluation to the conventional salt curing method. Results indicate that 15% oil-induced preservation technique could preserve the goatskin for 30 days. A small-scale experiment was performed for the preservation of goatskins. The preserved goatskins both monitoring and study samples were processed for shoe upper leather. The leather quality was evaluated by examining physical properties and fiber structure by a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Pollution load generated during leather making was determined in terms of total dissolved solids (TDS), chloride (Cl-), chemical oxygen demand (COD), and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD). The proposed oil-induced preservation method reduced Cl-, TDS, and BOD by 98.3%, 82.3%, and 86.8%, respectively, in the soaking liquor. The leather readied from the empirical goatskin shows the equipotential properties of leather from conventional goatskin. The oil-induced preservation method is substantiated to be favorable nonconventional preservation instead of conventional wet-salting for the contraction of pollution from soaking operation.

A rapid and sensitive screening system for human type I collagen with the aim of discovering potent anti-aging or anti-fibrotic compounds.

This study was undertaken with the aim of developing an easy and quick means of analyzing the effect of various compounds on the synthesis and secretion of human type I collagen at the protein level. A modification of the ELISA method was used on HFF-1 cells. For the proof of concept, we used thirteen compounds most of which are known to be antioxidants. Each compound was tested at concentrations of 0, 10 and 100 microM on HFF-1 cells for 24 h. Thirteen sets of experiments for each compound were performed in ANOVA with three replicates. Duncan multiple range test (DMRT) was used to compare the mean values obtained from the treatment groups. From the results it was concluded that Vitamin C, undecylenic acid, conjugated linoleic acid, glycolic acid, and citric acid at 100 microM concentration could be used for anti-wrinkling or protection from premature aging, which requires enhancement of collagen synthesis. Lactic acid, EGCG, resveratrol, and retinol that can inhibit collagen synthesis effectively in a dose-dependent manner may be used for anti-fibrosis treatment purposes.

Temporal effects of alpha-tocopherol and L-ascorbic acid on in vitro fertilized porcine embryo development.

The susceptibility of embryos to reactive oxygen species (ROS) varies in different stages of embryo development. The present study evaluated temporal effects of alpha-tocopherol and L-ascorbic acid on the porcine embryo development, and investigated whether a single or twice supplements of these two antioxidants at a divided concentrations favors the embryo development. In order to determine temporal effects of alpha-tocopherol and/or L-ascorbic acid, 100 microM alpha-tocopherol or 200 microM L-ascorbic acid were supplemented to the North Carolina State University (NCSU)-23 embryo culture media at 0, 48, 96 and 120 h of culture. In another set of experiments, the concentration was divided into two equal halves, i.e., 50 microM alpha-tocopherol and 100 microM L-ascorbic acid, and supplemented twice at 0 and 48, 0 and 96, or 48 and 96 h of culture. Supplementing culture media with 100 microM alpha-tocopherol for the entire culture period of 168 h or starting from the 48 h of culture yielded higher blastocyst percentage compared with the control or starting from the 96 or 120 h of culture. L-Ascorbic acid (200 microM) alone or together with alpha-tocopherol (100 microM) with a single supplement did not affect the frequency of blastocyst formation or number of cells in blastocyst. L-ascorbic acid with a divided supplements yielded higher blastocyst percentage compared with the control. No synergistic effect was observed on embryo development at a single supplement of these antioxidants. Although, at divided supplements higher blastocyst percentage was observed compared with control group, no further beneficial effect was observed compared with alpha-tocopherol or L-ascorbic acid alone. Our results demonstrated that the embryotrophic effects of alpha-tocopherol and/or L-ascorbic acid, in terms of frequency of blastocyst formation and number of cells in blastocyst, depends on the concentration and supplementation timing.