Dietary integration with oregano (Origanum vulgare L.) essential oil improves growth rate and oxidative status in outdoor-reared, but not indoor-reared, pigs.

The effects of a diet supplemented with oregano essential oil on performance, oxidative status, pork quality traits and sensorial properties were evaluated. In two studies, 72 pigs in indoor or outdoor conditions were assigned to either a control diet or an identical diet supplemented with 0.2% oregano essential oil. Pigs reared outdoor showed lower live weight, average daily gain and average gain:feed ratio compared to indoor pigs. The oregano supplementation improved the growth performance of the outdoor- but not the indoor-reared animals. The serum oxidative status was influenced by the diet. A higher oxidative stability was observed in the oregano-supplemented groups. As for the rearing conditions, the data suggest that after an initial adapting period, the free-range farming systems could be better tolerated by pigs. Meat derived from pigs reared outdoor showed higher pH and a* values. Lightness was influenced by both the diet and the rearing conditions. The control group reared indoor showed shear force values higher than both supplemented groups, while no differences were detected with the control group reared outdoor. In the consumer test performed under blind conditions, the oregano groups achieved higher consistency scores compared with the control. Under informed conditions, the meat derived from the oregano-supplemented pigs reared outdoor received the highest scores for consistency and overall liking regardless of the rearing system. The same result for the overall liking score was obtained in the expectation test. The data obtained showed that dietary oregano essential oil can be effective in reducing performance losses due to the outdoor-rearing system, increasing the oxidative status of the animal and oxidative stability of the meat, without modifying the meat quality traits and improving consumer perceptions of the meat quality.

Emergency laparoscopic ileo-colic resection and primary intracorporeal anastomosis for Crohn's acute ileitis with free perforation and faecal peritonitis: first ever reported laparoscopic treatment.

INTRODUCTION: Laparoscopy for abdominal surgical emergencies is gaining increasing acceptance given the spreading of advanced laparoscopic skills among modern surgeons, as it may allow at the same time an accurate diagnosis and appropriate treatment of acute abdomen. The use of the laparoscopic approach also in case of diffuse peritonitis is now becoming accepted provided hemodynamic stability, despite the common belief in the past decades that such severe condition represented an indication for conversion to open surgery or an immediate contraindication to continue laparoscopy. Crohn's Disease (CD) is a rare cause of acute abdomen and peritonitis, only a few cases of CD acute perforations are reported in the published literature; these cases have always been approached and treated by open laparotomy. CASE DESCRIPTION: We report on a case of a faecal peritonitis due to an acute perforation caused by a terminal ileitis in an undiagnosed CD. The patient underwent diagnostic laparoscopy followed by a laparoscopic ileo-colic resection and primary intracorporeal anastomosis, with a successful postoperative outcome. CONCLUSIONS: Complicated CD has to be considered within the possible causes of small bowel non-traumatic perforation. Emergency laparoscopy with resection and primary intra-corporeal anastomosis can be feasible and may be a safe and effective minimally invasive alternative to open surgery even in case of faecal peritonitis, in selected stable patients and in presence of appropriate laparoscopic colorectal surgical skills and experience. To the best of our knowledge the present experience is the first ever reported case managed with a totally laparoscopic extended ileocecal resection with intracorporeal anastomosis in case of acutely perforated CD and diffuse peritonitis.

Dietary effects of a mix derived from oregano (Origanum vulgare L.) essential oil and sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa Mill.) wood extract on pig performance, oxidative status and pork quality traits.

The effects of a pre-formulated commercial plant extract mix, composed of equal parts of oregano essential oil and sweet chestnut wood extract, on performance, oxidative status and pork quality traits were evaluated. In two 155-d studies, 60 pigs (mean liveweight: 42.9 kg) were assigned to either a control diet (CTR) or an identical diet supplemented (0.2%) with the plant extract mix (OC). No differences in the growth rate were observed. Glutathione peroxidase and glutathione reductase activities in the OC muscles (Longissimus lumborum) were higher than in CTR muscles. The lipid oxidation of meat was lower in the OC group. In the cooked meat samples, OC animals had the lowest L* and H° values and the highest a* values. The OC meat received higher scores for colour, taste and overall liking in both the blind and the labelled consumer tests.

IL-17-producing double-negative T cells are expanded in the peripheral blood, infiltrate the salivary gland and are partially resistant to corticosteroid therapy in patients with Sjögren's syndrome.

A small CD3+ T-cell population, that lacks both CD4 and CD8 molecules, defined as double negative (DN), is expanded in the peripheral blood of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, produces IL-17 and accumulates in the kidney during lupus nephritis. Since IL-17 production is enhanced in salivary gland infiltrates of patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS), we aimed to investigate whether DN T cells may be involved in the pathogenesis of salivary gland damage. Fifteen patients with SS and 15 normal controls (NC) were enrolled. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were stimulated with anti-CD3 antibody and cultured in presence or absence of dexamethasone (Dex). Phenotypic characterization was performed by flow cytometry in freshly isolated cells and after culture. Minor salivary glands (MSG) from pSS were processed for immunofluorescence staining. Total circulating DN T cells were increased in pSS compared to NC (4.7±0.4% vs 2.6±0.4%). NC and pSS freshly isolated DN T cells produce consistent amounts of IL-17 (67.7±5.6 in NC vs 69.2±3.3 in pSS). Notably, DN T cells were found in the pSS-MSG infiltrate. Dex was able to down-regulate IL-17 in vitro production in NC (29±2.6% vs 15.2±1.9% vs 13±1.6%) and pSS (49±4.8% vs 16±3.8% vs 10.2±0.8%) conventional Th17 cells and in DN T cells of NC (80±2.8% vs 3.8±2.1% vs 4.2±1.8%), but not of pSS (81±1.5% vs 85.4±0.8% vs 86.2±1.7%). DN T cells are expanded in pSS PB, produce IL-17 and infiltrate pSS MSG. In pSS, conventional Th17 cells are inhibited by Dex, but DN T cells appear to be resistant to this effect. Taken together, these data suggest a key role of this T-cell subset in the perpetuation of chronic sialoadenitis and eventually in pSS prognosis.

Physical and chemical characteristics of donkey meat from Martina Franca breed.

The rheological and chemical characteristics of meat obtained from 12 Martina Franca donkey males, slaughtered at 14months of age and a mean final body weight of 169kg were determined. Meat samples were taken four days post mortem from muscles Longissimus thoracis et lumborum and Biceps femoris, colorimetric parameters were measured to determine L(∗) (lightness), a(∗) (redness), b(∗) (yellowness) and chroma. The Longissimus was significantly lighter (P<0.05) compared to the Biceps femoris, with L(∗) indexes of 35.86 and 31.34, respectively. Fatty acid composition of the intramuscular fat showed a high content of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in both muscles, respectively 25.16g/100g total fatty acids in the Longissimus and 24.97g/100g total fatty acids in the Biceps femoris; oleic acid and palmitic acid were the two most abundant fatty acids in both muscles. The percentages of essential amino acids were higher in both muscles compared with the total amino acid content, respectively 52.88% in the Longissimus, and 51.26% in the Biceps femoris. The high level of unsaturation of the intramuscular fat resulted in a high ratio of unsaturated to saturated fat, and the total amount of essential amino acids, exceeding 50% of the total amino acids showed that donkey meat from a health point of view is a good alternative to traditional red meats.

Quality of donkey meat and carcass characteristics.

A study based on 15 entire donkey males was carried out to evaluate carcass quality and nutritional characteristics of meat obtained by these animals slaughtered at 15 months of age and a mean final body weight of 181kg. The meat had a low (2.02g/100g) fat content, an appreciable (22.8g/100g) protein content, and cholesterol content was 68.7mg/100g. Glycogen was also determined (0.45g/100g) within 12h of sampling. Potassium was the mineral with the highest content (343mg/100g), followed by phosphorus (212mg/100g), sodium (52mg/100g) and magnesium (24mg/100g). Donkey meat obtained from young animals can be considered a good alternative to other red meats and not only for the production salami, or other fermented meat products.

Tenderness evaluation and mineral levels of llama (Lama glama) and alpaca (Lama pacos) meat.

Tenderness and mineral levels were determined in the Longissimus thoracis taken from 20 llama and 30 alpaca males reared in Peru and slaughtered at 25 months of age. Mineral contents were determined using an inductively coupled plasma emission spectrometer. Tenderness evaluation was determined two and seven days post slaughter using a Warner-Bratzler shear force device. Potassium is the mineral with the highest content, with a significant difference (P<0.05) between the two species of camelids. The other mineral contents were, in decreasing order, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium and calcium, in addition to smaller percentages of zinc and iron. Shear force values determined seven days post slaughter were significantly (P<0.01) lower in both the species compared with the results obtained two days post slaughter.

Effect of administration of vitamin E and selenium during the dry period on mammary health and milk cell counts in dairy ewes.

The effect of parenteral administration of two subcutaneous injections of vitamin E and Se (5 mg and 0.1 mg/kg of body weight, respectively) during the dry period on the mammary health and milk somatic cell counts of 25 dairy ewes was investigated. Supplementation reduced somatic cell counts (5.4 vs. 6.0 log10) during the subsequent lactation but had no effect on the incidence of clinical mastitis (4% vs. 6%) and intramammary infections (9.0% vs. 11.3%). Furthermore, the administration of vitamin E and Se was associated with differences in differential cell counts of milk samples (macrophages, 48.8% vs. 38.4%; polymorphonuclear neutrophils, 40.1% vs. 50.7%; and eosinophils, 0.7% vs. 1.4% for control ewes and ewes receiving supplements, respectively). The administration of these supplements also increased erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase activity (139.5 vs. 86.3 U/ml of packed cell volume) and the percentage of blood neutrophils that reduced nitroblue tetrazolium after bacterial extract stimulation (48.6% vs. 38.7%). Parenteral administration of vitamin E and Se to ewes during the dry period appeared to have influenced mammary gland status during the subsequent lactation and particularly total and differential milk cell counts.

Total and differential cell count by direct microscopic method on ewe milk.

On 700 milk samples from single half udders of Comisana ewes, somatic cell count (SCC) and differential cell count (DCC) were determined, using a Fossomatic 90 cell counter (Foss Electric, Denmark) (SCCF) and milk smears stained with May Grünwald-Giemsa (DCCS). SCC and DCC were also determined with modified KOVAH SYSTEM (Hicor Biomedical Inc. Irvine, CA, USA) (SCCK and DCCK, respectively). Out of 665 milk samples from half udders without clinical signs of mastitis, 640 (Class I) were sterile, while 25 (Class II) were bacteriologically positive. Out of 35 milk samples (Class III) from half udders with clinical signs of mastitis, 25 were bacteriologically positive. Mean results (after logarithmic transformation of cells/ml/10(3)) of SCCF and SCCK for all the 700 milk samples were 1.89 +/- 0.58 and 1.86 +/- 0.60 with linear correlation coefficient (r) of 0.960, while least squares means for Class I, II and III were 1.78, 2.23 and 3.73 respectively and 1.75, 2.19 and 3.74 with r of 0.894, 0.979 and 0.987. Mean results of DCCS and DCCK were 38.1 +/- 23.3, 34.9, 52.1, and 82.2 PMNL% and 41.8 +/- 21.7, 38.6, 60.2, and 87.3 PMNL% with r of 0.855, 0.812, 0.697 and 0.805. The results showed high correlation coefficients and a good reliability between SCCK and SCCF and high correlation coefficients for DCC methods. In conclusion, it could be suggested that the possibility of routine use of the KOVAH SYSTEM method is particularly useful in detecting if an abnormal SCC is due to a polymorphonuclear neutrophil leukocytes increase.