Effects of adaptation time and inclusion level of sugar beet pulp on nutrient digestibility and evaluation of ileal amino acid digestibility in pigs

Objective: Two experiments were conducted to determine the effects of adaptation time and inclusion level of sugar beet pulp (SBP) on nutrient digestibility and to evaluate the ileal AA digestibility of SBP fed to pigs. Methods: In Exp. 1, thirty-six crossbred barrows (85.0 ± 2.1 kg) were allotted to 6 diets in a completely randomized design with six replicates per diet. Diets included a corn-soybean meal diet and 5 test diets containing 14.6, 24.4, 34.2, 43.9, or 53.7% SBP, respectively. The adaptation time consisted 7, 14, 21, or 28 d consecutively for each pig followed by 5 d for fecal collection. Feces were collected from d 8 to 13, d 15 to 20, d 22 to 27, and d 29 to 34, respectively. In Exp. 2, six pigs (35.1 ± 1.7 kg) with T-cannulas at the terminal ileum were fed to 3 diets in a replicated 3×3 Latin square design with 3 periods and 2 replicate pigs per diet. Each period consisted 5 d for diet adaptation followed by 2 d for digesta collection. Results: The DE value and the apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of GE, DM, ash, and OM in diets linearly decreased (p<0.05) as the adaptation time increased or as the dietary SBP increased, while the ATTD of NDF and ADF in diets linearly increased (p<0.01) as the dietary SBP increased. The DE value and the ATTD of GE and CP in SBP linearly increased (p<0.05) as the adaptation time increased, while the ATTD of CP in SBP linearly decreased (p<0.01) as the inclusion level increased. The SID of Lys, Met, Thr, and Trp in SBP was 37.03, 51.62, 40.68, and 46.22%, respectively. Conclusion: The results of this study indicated that the ATTD of energy and nutrients were decreased as inclusion rate of SBP increased.

[Design, synthesis and pharmacological investigation of isoindoline derivatives as 5-HT/NE double reuptake inhibitors].

A series of isoindoline derivatives were designed, synthesized, and evaluated for their double inhibitory activities. All of them were new compounds, and their structures were confirmed by 1H NMR and HR-MS. Preliminary in vitro pharmacological tests showed that all compounds exhibited 5-HT or NE reuptake inhibition activity. Among the tested compounds, compound I-3 exhibited potent inhibitory activity against 5-HT and NE reuptake in vitro, and exhibited potent antidepressant activity in vivo. These compounds designed can be further optimized for finding more potent 5-HT/NE dual reuptake inhibitors and antidepressant candidates as well.

Within-litter variation in birth weight: impact of nutritional status in the sow.

Accompanying the beneficial improvement in litter size from genetic selection for high-prolificacy sows, within-litter variation in birth weight has increased with detrimental effects on post-natal growth and survival due to an increase in the proportion of piglets with low birth-weight. Causes of within-litter variation in birth weight include breed characteristics that affect uterine space, ovulation rate, degree of maturation of oocytes, duration of time required for ovulation, interval between ovulation and fertilization, uterine capacity for implantation and placentation, size and efficiency of placental transport of nutrients, communication between conceptus/fetus and maternal systems, as well as nutritional status and environmental influences during gestation. Because these factors contribute to within-litter variation in birth weight, nutritional status of the sow to improve fetal-placental development must focus on the following three important stages in the reproductive cycle: pre-mating or weaning to estrus, early gestation and late gestation. The goal is to increase the homogeneity of development of oocytes and conceptuses, decrease variations in conceptus development during implantation and placentation, and improve birth weights of newborn piglets. Though some progress has been made in nutritional regulation of within-litter variation in the birth weight of piglets, additional studies, with a focus on and insights into molecular mechanisms of reproductive physiology from the aspects of maternal growth and offspring development, as well as their regulation by nutrients provided to the sow, are urgently needed.