Effects of guanidinoacetic acid on growth performance, creatine and energy metabolism, and carcass characteristics in growing-finishing pigs.

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation with guanidinoacetic acid (GAA) on the growth performance, creatine and energy metabolism, and carcass characteristics in growing-finishing pigs. In Exp. 1, Duroc × Landrace × Yorkshire pigs (n = 180, 33.61 ± 3.91 kg average BW) were blocked by weight and sex, and allotted to 5 treatments with 6 replicates (3 gilts and 3 barrows per replicate pen). Diets were corn-soybean meal-basal diets supplemented with 0, 300, 600, 900, and 1,200 mg/kg of GAA and fed to the pigs for 98 d. From days 1 to 98, G:F increased (linear, P < 0.05) with increasing addition of dietary GAA. Using a broken-line model, the optimum level of dietary GAA was 300 mg/kg during the overall experimental period (days 1 to 98) to maximize G:F. Hot carcass weight, carcass length, and lean percentage showed a tendency to increase (quadratic, 0.05 < P < 0.10) with increasing addition of dietary GAA. On day 98, serum GAA and liver creatine tended to increase (linear, P = 0.10, 0.07) as dietary GAA increased. In addition, serum ATP on day 98 increased linearly (linear, P < 0.01), and muscle ATP and adenosine monophosphate increased quadratically (quadratic, P = 0.05) with incremental GAA supplementation. In Exp. 2, Duroc × Landrace × Yorkshire pigs (n = 180, 53.19 ± 5.63 kg average BW) were blocked by weight and sex, and allotted to 5 treatments with 6 replicates (3 gilts and 3 barrows per replicate pen). Diets were corn-soybean meal-basal diets supplemented with 0, 150, 300, 600, and 1,200 mg/kg of GAA for 35 d. As dietary GAA increased, final BW, ADG, and G:F increased quadratically (quadratic, P < 0.01), and 300 mg/kg of GAA maximized ADG and final BW (P < 0.05).The results indicate that dietary GAA could increase the creatine and ATP load in the tissues of pigs and accordingly improve growth performance. Dietary supplementation with 300 mg/kg of GAA was suitable to maximize the growth performance of growing-finishing pigs.

Tea green leafhopper, Empoasca vitis, chooses suitable host plants by detecting the emission level of (3Z)-hexenyl acetate.

Green leaf volatiles (GLVs) have been reported to play an important role in the host-locating behavior of several folivores that feed on angiosperms. However, next to nothing is known about how the green leafhopper, Empoasca vitis, chooses suitable host plants and whether it detects differing emission levels of GLV components among genetically different tea varieties. Here we found that the constitutive transcript level of the tea hydroperoxide lyase (HPL) gene CsiHPL1, and the amounts of (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate and of total GLV components are significantly higher in tea varieties that are susceptible to E. vitis (Enbiao (EB) and Banzhuyuan (BZY)) than in varieties that are resistant to E. vitis (Changxingzisun (CX) and Juyan (JY)). Moreover, the results of a Y-tube olfactometer bioassay and an oviposition preference assay suggest that (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate and (Z)-3-hexenol offer host and oviposition cues for E. vitis female adults. Taken together, the two GLV components, (Z)-3-hexenol and especially (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate, provide a plausible mechanism by which tea green leafhoppers distinguish among resistant and susceptible varieties. Future research should be carried out to obtain the threshold of the above indices and then assess their reasonableness. The development of practical detection indices would greatly improve our ability to screen and develop tea varieties that are resistant to E. vitis.

Effects of 10-hydroxycamptothecin on differentiation of RAW264.7 cells into osteoclasts.

This study was designed to investigate the effect of 10-hydroxycamptothecin (10-HCPT) on osteoclast formation. RAW264.7 cells were cultured in vitro with 100 ng/ml receptor activator for nuclear factor-κ B ligand (RANKL) and 30 ng/ml recombinant macrophage colony stimulating factor (M-CSF), and 10-HCPT with different solubilities were added. After five-day cultivation, tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) staining was used to observe the number of osteoclasts. mRNA expression of osteoclast-specific genes, such as TRAP, cathepsin K (CTSK) and matrix metalloproteinase protease 9 (MMP-9), was detected by real-time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). The effect of 10-HCPT on the proliferation activity of RAW264.7 cells was detected using Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8). CCK-8 detection showed that 10-HCPT with a certain concentration (1 ng/ml to 5 ng/ml) had no effect on cell proliferation (P>0.05); 10-HCPT could inhibit the generation of osteoclasts. With the increase of the concentration of 10-HCPT, the number of osteoclasts generated from cells cultured with 10-HCPT [1 ng/ml (86±11.14), 2 ng/ml (66.67±7.51), 5ng/ml (27.67±6.51)] was much lower than that of the control group (145±8.19), and the difference was statistically significant (all P=0, P less than 0.05); mRNA expression of osteoclast-specific gene TRAP [1 ng/ml (24.38±0.68), 2 ng/ml (20.09±1.86), 5 ng/ml (6.23±0.53)], CTSK [1 ng/ml (10.08±0.81), 2 ng/ml (7.30±0.30), 5 ng/ml (3.20±0.56)] and MMP-9 [1 ng/ml (43.54±6.96), 2 ng/ml (28.28±5.83), 5 ng/ml (11.07±2.53)] was much lower than that of the groups added with RANKL and M-CSF only (all P=0, P less than 0.05), and with the increase of concentration of 10-HCPT, the expression of osteoclast-specific genes showed a decreasing tendency. All the findings suggest that 10-HCPT can inhibit the formation of osteoclasts by reducing the expression of osteoclast-specific genes such as TRAP, CTSK and MMP-9.

Slow Release of Plant Volatiles Using Sol-Gel Dispensers.

The black citrus aphid, also known as the tea aphid, (Toxoptera aurantii Boyer) attacks economically important crops, including tea (Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze). In the current study, silica sol-gel formulations were screened to find one that could carry and release C. sinensis plant volatiles to lure black citrus aphids in a greenhouse. The common plant volatile trans-2-hexen-1-al was used as a model molecule to screen for suitable sol-gel formulations. A zNose (Electronic Sensor Technology, Newbury Park, CA) transportable gas chromatograph was used to continuously monitor the volatile emissions. A sol-gel formulation containing tetramethyl orthosilicate and methyltrimethoxysilane in an 8:2 (vol:vol) ratio was selected to develop a slow-release dispenser. The half-life of trans-2-hexen-1-al in the sol-gel dispenser increased slightly with the volume of this compound in the dispenser. Ten different volatiles were tested in the sol-gel dispenser. Alcohols of 6-10 carbons had the longest half-lives (3.01-3.77 d), while esters of 6-12 carbons had the shortest (1.53-2.28 d). Release of these volatiles from the dispensers could not be detected by the zNose after 16 d (cis-3-hexenyl acetate) to 26 d (3,7-dimethylocta-1,6-dien-3-ol). In greenhouse experiments, trans-2-hexen-1-al and cis-3-hexen-1-ol released from the sol-gel dispensers attracted aphids for ≍17 d, and release of these volatiles could not be detected by the zNose after ≍24 d. The sol-gel dispensers performed adequately for the slow release of plant volatiles to trap aphids in the greenhouse.

[Comparative analysis of several treatment methods for severe congestive heart failure].

UNLABELLED: Western medicines (WM) and the combining WM-TCM were used to treat congestive heart failure (CHF). The three groups of WM were: Digoxin with dihydro-chlorothiazide, captopril with nifedipium, and dobutamine. The three groups of combining WM-TCM were: the above-mentioned three groups of WM with Jisen Shenqi Pill (JSSQ) respectively. The result observed: Total effective rate was 82%, marked effective rate was 43%, the rates of the WM groups were 77% and 36% respectively, and the groups of combining WM-TCM were 88% and 53%. Total mortality was 8.66% (the WM groups was 11.76%, the groups of combining WM-TCM 5%). Cardio-function indexes observed in the groups of combining WM-TCM were obviously improved, including HR, SV, CI, EF, FS and A/E (P < 0.01). HR, CI and SV in the groups of WM were also significantly improved (P < 0.05) except for EF, FS and A/E (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: (1) The treatment of CHF should depend on various conditions and different symptoms in selecting medicines, so that individual treatment could reach the optimal effects. (2) The treatment method of combining WM-TCM could significantly promote effective rate, reduce toxic and side-effects and lower the rate of mortality. (3) JSSQ could obviously improve the function of ventricular diastole and its mechanism might be that the reduced density of beta-receptor was increased.