Effects of Italian ryegrass silage supplementation on feed intake and behavior of pregnant sows.

This study aimed to assess the behavior and stress status of pregnant sows following supplementation with Italian ryegrass silage (IRS) and the impact of feeding the IRS on feeding costs. Six sows with an initial body weight (BW) of 238.6 ± 5.9 kg were allotted to a 6 × 3 Latin square design with a 5-day acclimatization period followed by a 5-day data collection period. A commercial diet was replaced by IRS on a dry matter (DM) basis up to 0%, 9%, and 13% in the control treatment and the two test treatments, respectively. Apart from collecting data on daily feed intake and BW, urine was collected, and video footage was recorded for the last day of each treatment for analysis of urinary cortisol and behavior. There were no leftovers with all diets and nutrient uptake was unaffected (p > 0.05), while BW gain decreased (p < 0.05) to be a limited range from 1% to 3%, with increased inclusion of IRS. Both the behavior of sows and cortisol concentration were unaffected (p > 0.05). Furthermore, it was estimated that feeding 13% DM of IRS would reduce feed costs by 17%. IRS would be acceptable in replacing up to 13% of the commercial diet and cutting feeding costs.

Effect of feeding Bacillus subtilis on rumen fermentation, blood metabolites, nutrient digestibility, and energy and nitrogen balances in non-lactating crossbred cows.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of feeding Bacillus subtilis on rumen fermentation, blood metabolites, nutrient digestibility, and energy and nitrogen balances in non-lactating crossbred (Holstein-Friesian × Bos indicus) cows. Four cows were assigned to the control and B. subtilis diets in a crossover design, and respiratory and metabolic experiments were conducted. For the B. subtilis diet, B. subtilis DSM15544 spores were added at the rate of 1.0 × 1010  CFU/head/day to the control diet. At 4 hr after feeding, cows fed the B. subtilis diet had increased levels of i-butyric acid in the rumen fluid and tended to have lower concentrations of plasma non-esterified fatty acids when compared with cows fed the control diet. This suggests that feeding B. subtilis could improve energy efficiency. However, there was no effect on energy retention in this study. Although there were no effects on nutrient digestibility, nitrogen balance, or methane production, heat production was significantly higher in cows fed the B. subtilis diet than in those fed the control diet.

Effects of eplerenone, a selective aldosterone blocker, on the progression of left ventricular dysfunction and remodeling in rats with dilated cardiomyopathy.

Aldosterone blockade reduces morbidity and mortality in patients with heart failure. We studied the effects of eplerenone, a novel aldosterone blocker, on the progression of left ventricular dysfunction and remodeling in rats with dilated cardiomyopathy after autoimmune myocarditis. Twenty-eight days after immunization, the surviving Lewis rats were randomized to 1 month's oral treatment with low-dose eplerenone (group L), high-dose eplerenone (group H) or vehicle (group V). Five of 15 (33%) rats in group V and 3 of 15 (20%) rats in group L died during the course of treatment. High-dose eplerenone significantly reduced cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, heart weight and heart weight to body weight ratio. Eplerenone improved left ventricular function in a dose-dependent manner. Central venous pressure and left ventricular end-diastolic pressure were lower, and +/-dP/dt and fractional shortening were higher in group H than group V. Eplerenone also attenuated myocardial fibrosis and reduced left ventricular mRNA expressions of TGF-beta(1) and collagen-III. Our results indicate that treatment with eplerenone improved left ventricular dysfunction and attenuated left ventricular remodeling in rats with heart failure.

Effects of pranidipine, a novel calcium channel antagonist, on the progression of left ventricular dysfunction and remodeling in rats with heart failure.

The cardioprotective properties of pranidipine were studied in a rat model of heart failure after autoimmune myocarditis. Twenty-eight days after immunization the surviving rats were divided into three groups and received oral treatment of 0.03 mg/kg/day (group 0.03) or 0.3 mg/kg/day (group 0.3) of pranidipine or vehicle (group V) for 1 month. High-dose pranidipine (group 0.3) improved the survival rate, and significantly reduced heart weight, heart weight to body weight ratio, myocardial fibrosis, central venous pressure and left ventricular end-diastolic pressure than low-dose pranidipine (group 0.03) and group V. Pranidipine at high dose also decreased the left ventricular systolic and diastolic dimensions, and increased fractional shortening compared with group V. The increase in level of TGF-beta1 and collagen-III mRNA were suppressed by pranidipine in a dose-dependent manner. Our results indicated that pranidipine has cardioprotective effects on heart failure, and that the beneficial effect can be partly explained by attenuation of fibrotic response through suppression of TGF-beta1 and collagen-III mRNA expression, and regression of myocyte hypertrophy.

[Human antibodies to cedar pollen secreted by human peripheral lymphocytes transformed by Epstein-Barr virus].

To establish immortalized human B-cells secreting antibodies to cedar pollen allergens, peripheral blood lymphocytes from 13 donors were transformed with Epstein-Barr virus. Of 5000 micro culture wells with transformed cell growth, supernatants from 88 wells were found to contain antibodies to pollen allergens. Fourteen supernatants reacted with a cedar allergen Cry j1 and 10 reacted with Cry j2. IgM class antibodies were predominant.

Contribution of sympathetic nervous system activity during administration of carvedilol in rats with dilated cardiomyopathy.

We investigated the contribution of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) in maintaining blood pressure during administration of carvedilol in rats with dilated cardiomyopathy, and examined whether SNS hyperactivity induced by high-dose carvedilol is related to severity of heart failure. The hypotensive effect of carvedilol in rats with heart failure (Group F) was not significantly different to that in rats without (Group N). However, enhancement of the plasma norepinephrine concentration during carvedilol administration in Group F was higher than in Group N. The constitutive plasma NE concentration in Group F (562 +/- 146 pg/ml) was significantly higher than in Group N (203 +/- 55 pg/ml) and there was a significant positive correlation between the heart weight to body weight ratio and the plasma norepinephrine concentration. Values for the maximal effect of the norepinephrine hypertensive effect during norepinephrine intravenous infusion (Emax) decreased, and plasma norepinephrine concentrations at half-maximal effect of the norepinephrine hypertensive effect (EC50) increased in Group F compared with Group N (20.8 +/- 6.1 and 28.6 +/- 2.2 mmHg, and 4.5 +/- 1.9 and 1.5 +/- 0.2 ng/ml, respectively). These results suggested that the number of receptors (Emax) and sensitivity (EC50) to the norepinephrine hypertensive effect decreased in Group F. Changes in these parameters in Group F corresponded with the results of a beta-adrenergic receptor binding assay using I-125 iodocyanopindolol (Bmax = 32 +/- 4 in Group F and 53 +/- 2 fmol/mg protein in Group N). These results showed that the SNS (presynaptic) activity increased and the SNS receptor sensitivity in the blood pressure regulation system decreased in heart failure. Therefore, high-dose carvedilol treatment should be used with caution to avoid worsening heart failure.