Investigating the efficacy of purified tannin extracts from underutilized temperate forages in reducing enteric methane emissions in vitro.

The study investigated how the concentration and composition of purified tannin extracts, at various inclusion rates, affect the ruminal in vitro fermentation parameters. Tannin extracts were isolated from four different forage species: birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus), sulla (Hedysarum coronarium), big trefoil (Lotus pedunculatus), and salad burnet (Sanguisorba minor). Plants extracts were purified by Sephadex LH-20 gel chromatography and analyzed by UPLC-ESI-MS/MS. The results showed a large variation among the extracts from different species in terms of tannin composition and structural features. The extracts from salad burnet were dominated by hydrolysable tannins, comprising mainly ellagitannins. The extracts derived from sulla and big trefoil contained predominantly proanthocyanidins (PA), primarily composed of prodelphinidins with high mean degree of polymerisation (mDP). Birdsfoot trefoil extracts comprised procyanidin-rich PAs with low mDP. To determine whether the combined presence of tannins and flavonoid together lead to synergistic or antagonistic effects, the tannin extracts were incubated both with or without rutin at concentrations of 10, 20, and 30 g/kg DM, using a base substrate of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne, control). In general, all the tannin extracts decreased methane (CH4) production compared to the control, while no significant effect of rutin was observed on both gas (GP) and CH4 production, neither pure, nor in the simultaneous presence of tannins. The highest CH4 reduction (15%, at 30 g/kg DM) was observed from sulla and big trefoil extracts compared to control, but this was also supplemented with a concomitant reduction in GP (11%) indicating a reduction in feed digestibility. The extracts from birdsfoot trefoil and salad burnet reduced CH4 by up to 12% without significantly reducing GP, indicating the importance of tannin composition on ruminal fermentation.

[Chronic Granulomatous Disease: A Rare Differential Diagnosis in Recurrent Pulmonary Infections in Adults]. / Septische Granulomatose als seltene Differenzialdiagnose rezidivierender pulmonaler Infektionen bei Erwachsenen.

Chronic granulomatous disease (CGD) should be considered as a differential diagnosis in children and adolescents with frequent infections, especially when caused by certain specific pathogens.This case report describes a 64-year-old female with multiple recurrent and complicated bronchopulmonary infections, caused by common, but also rare pathogens, autoimmune phenomena, malignancies and recurrent organizing pneumonia (OP) with granulomas. Finally, the patient was diagnosed with p47phox-deficient chronic granulomatous disease (CGD).Individuals with a primary immunodeficiency may survive multiple complications and may be diagnosed at an advanced age especially if the affected structure shows residual activity. When confronted with patients with recurrent bronchopulmonary infections, especially with certain specific rare pathogens, in combination with organizing pulmonary granulomas as well as autoimmune phenomena, CGD should be considered even in elderly patients. Delayed diagnosis significantly increases mortality and morbidity in such cases.

Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation in intermediate risk acute myeloid leukemia negative for FLT3-ITD, NPM1- or biallelic CEBPA mutations.

BACKGROUND: The value of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT) as postremission treatment is not well defined for patients with intermediate-risk acute myeloid leukemia (AML) without FLT3-ITD, biallelic CEBPA-, or NPM1 mutations (here referred to as NPM1mut-neg/CEBPAdm-neg/FLT3-ITDneg AML) in first complete remission (CR1). PATIENTS AND METHODS: We addressed this question using data from two prospective randomized controlled trials on intensive induction- and risk-stratified postremission therapy. The NPM1mut-neg/CEBPAdm-neg/FLT3-ITDneg AML subgroup comprised 497 patients, aged 18-60 years. RESULTS: In donor versus no-donor analyses, patients with a matched related donor had a longer relapse-free survival (HR 0.5; 95% CI 0.3-0.9, P = 0.02) and a trend toward better overall survival (HR 0.6, 95% CI 0.3-1.1, P = 0.08) compared with patients who received postremission chemotherapy. Notably, only 58% of patients in the donor group were transplanted in CR1. We therefore complemented the donor versus no-donor analysis with multivariable Cox regression analyses, where alloHCT was tested as a time-dependent covariate: overall survival (HR 0.58, 95% CI 0.37-0.9, P = 0.02) and relapse-free survival (HR 0.51, 95% CI 0.34-0.76; P = 0.001) for patients who received alloHCT compared with chemotherapy in CR1 were significantly longer. CONCLUSION: Outside clinical trials, alloHCT should be the preferred postremission treatment of patients with intermediate risk NPM1mut-neg/CEBPAdm-neg/FLT3-ITDneg AML in CR1. CINICALTRIALS.GOV IDENTIFIER: NCT00180115, NCT00180102.

Animal responses to herbage allowance: Forage intake and body weight gain of sheep grazing the Inner Mongolian steppe - Results of a six-year study.

An increasing human population and the growing demand for food of animal origin are leading to an intensification of sheep production and widespread overgrazing of the grassland steppe in Inner Mongolia. The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of herbage allowance (HA) on OM intake (OMI) and BW gain (BWG) of grazing sheep. In July to September 2005 to 2010, a grazing experiment was conducted in the Xilin River Basin using 15-mo-old female Mongolian fat-tailed sheep (31.5 kg BW [SE 0.2]). Six HA classes were tested on 4 experimental plots per HA class that were alternately used for grazing and haymaking each year (i.e., = 2 grazed plots per HA class and year). Mean HA ranged from 15.4 (SD 4.0) to 1.5 kg (SD 0.8) herbage DM/kg BW in HA class 1 to 6, respectively. In 6 sheep per plot (4 sheep in 2009 and 2010), OMI and BWG were determined. Titanium dioxide was used to determine fecal excretion, and digestibility of ingested OM was estimated from CP concentration in feces. Fecal grab samples were collected during 5 d each in July, August, and September. The animals were weighed monthly. Daily OMI of sheep ranged between 68 and 89 g/kg BW and was not affected by HA class ( = 0.373), so that total OMI per hectare was exponentially decreased with increasing HA (root mean square error [RMSE] ≤ 0.31 g/d; ≤ 0.003 for the slope estimates). The BWG of individual sheep increased with increasing HA in 2 of the 6 yr (RMSE 18.4 g/d; ≤ 0.175 for the positive slope estimates). Nevertheless, BWG per hectare strongly decreased with increasing HA (RMSE 0.25 g/d; ≤ 0.006 for the slope estimates). These data support the common practice of farmers to manage the grassland at low HA to allow for greater animal performance per unit of land area.

Deviations of inorganic and organic carbon content in hypomineralised enamel.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to discriminate hypomineralised enamel of permanent first molars from normal enamel by means of spectroscopic methods. METHODS: The present study was conducted using Multi spot Raman Fourier Transform Spectroscopy, Diffuse Reflectance Infrared Fourier Transform Spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). RESULTS: Raman spectroscopy indicated significantly more B-type carbonate and hydrocarbons in hypomineralised enamel diagnosed as MIH (Molar Incisor Hypomineralisation). From XRD analysis, no changes in crystallinity of the enamel apatite could be found. CONCLUSIONS: Using multi spot Raman-spectroscopy, a significant molecular discrimination between normal and hypomineralised enamel could be made. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Detailed surface studies are needed in order to achieve better restorative materials, specifically designed for restoration of hypomineralised enamel, and are also needed in order to understand and predict the clinical consequences of hypomineralised enamel with the condition MIH.

Dietary selection of sheep grazing the semi-arid grasslands of Inner Mongolia, China at different grazing intensities.

The objective of this study was to investigate dietary selection of sheep grazing semi-arid grassland in Inner Mongolia, China, using the difference in organic matter digestibility (OMD) of herbage ingested and herbage on offer as indicator for selection. Faecal N was used as digestibility index for herbage ingested (FOMD), while OMD of herbage on offer (GOMD) was estimated from gas production obtained by the Hohenheim gas test. It was hypothesized that the difference between FOMD and GOMD is high, when grazing animals select against low quality herbage provided that herbage is abundant. In a grazing experiment, six grazing intensities (1.5, 3.0, 4.5, 6.0, 7.5 and 9.0 sheep/ha), representing light to very heavy grazing intensity for the semi-arid grassland, were compared. The amount of herbage on offer decreased with increasing grazing intensity. Independent statistical analysis of FOMD and GOMD showed that the differences between grazing intensities for both OMD determinations (FOMD: 54.0-57.3%, GOMD: 55.2-57.5%) were not significant (p > 0.05). The difference between FOMD and GOMD was not significant for grazing intensities, but varied between sampling periods from -4 to 1 percentage units. In conclusion, the lack of significance for the difference between FOMD and GOMD suggests that for the semi-arid grassland of Inner Mongolia, China, sheep did not select their feed due to a homogeneous nutritional composition of herbage on offer in 2005, regardless of grazing intensity.

Morphological and chemical characterization of tooth enamel exposed to alkaline agents.

OBJECTIVES: In this study, morphological and chemical changes in teeth enamel exposed to alkaline agents, with or without surfactants, have been investigated. In addition, chemical effects of the organic surface layer, i.e. plaque and pellicle, were also investigated. METHODS: The present study was conducted using several techniques: Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). RESULTS: From XPS-measurements, it was found that exposure to alkaline solutions resulted in a massive removal of carbon from the tooth surface, and that the addition of surfactants increased the rate under present conditions. Based on the results from the FTIR-analysis, no substitution reactions between phosphate, carbonate and hydroxide ions in the enamel apatite could be detected. From a minor SEM-analysis, degradation and loss of substance of the enamel surface was found for the exposed samples. From XRD-analysis, no changes in crystallinity of the enamel apatite could be found between the samples. CONCLUSIONS: The findings in this study show that exposure to alkaline solutions results in a degradation of enamel surfaces very dissimilar from acidic erosion. No significant erosion or chemical substitution of the apatite crystals themselves could be discerned. However, significant loss of organic carbon at the enamel surface was found in all exposed samples. The degradation of the protective organic layer at the enamel surface may profoundly increase the risk for caries and dental erosion from acidic foods and beverages.

Rotational and continuous grazing of sheep in the Inner Mongolian steppe of China.

The aim of this study was to compare the effects of rotational and continuous grazing on herbage mass (HM), organic matter digestibility (dOM) and intake (OMI) and live weight gain (LWG) of sheep grazing on the inner Mongolian steppe, China at a stocking rate of 4.5 sheep/ha during the growing season. In the years 2005 and 2006, four 2-ha plots were used of which two were divided into four 0.5 ha paddocks each for rotational grazing, where sheep were moved each 10 days to the next paddock. The dOM was estimated from faecal crude protein concentration and OMI by oral administration of titanium dioxide. Herbage mass was similar in both grazing systems and dOM and OMI were higher (p < 0.05) at continuous grazing than at rotational grazing, but LWG did not differ probably because of extra energy expenditure for grazing and walking in a larger area. The dOM and OMI decreased (p < 0.05) with progress of the growing season and differed between years. Since precipitation during the growing season in both years was lower than the 30 years average which was probably the reason that positive effects of non-grazing periods on herbage regrowth and quality at rotational grazing could not occur, further studies are required in years with average precipitations before a final evaluation of these grazing systems can be made. Moreover, it seems necessary to quantify energy expenditure for physical activity of animals in grazing studies.

[The effects of the primary growth of two ryegrasses on the dynamics of changes in digestibility and feed intake by sheep]. / Untersuchungen am Primäraufwuchs zweier Weidelgräser zur Dynamik der Veränderungen in der Verdaulichkeit und der Futteraufnahme durch Schafe.

Dynamics of changes in digestibility and feed intake by sheep of two ryegrass species during primary growth Environmental impacts can cause short-term variations in chemical composition and feeding value of grass swards during growth and maturation and induce concomitant changes of intake of these grasses by animals. Continuous digestion trials are effective in observing the dynamics of these variations. Therefore this study was conducted to evaluate the effects of maturity-related alterations in the chemical composition of two ryegrass swards during primary growth on nutrient digestibilities and feed intake by sheep. Pure swards of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L., variety Gremie) and Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum Lam., variety Lema) were harvested daily during primary spring growth between 23 April and 19 June 1991 and each grass was offered to a group of five sheep for ad libitum intake. A continuous digestion trial design was employed to measure daily intakes and faecal outputs of organic matter (OM) and OM constituents. Digestibility values were calculated with the assumption that faecal output of day 2 represented the undigested nutrients of the grass eaten at day 0. Based on results of a preliminary study, daily intakes and digestibilities were expressed as rolling 3-day averages. The chemical composition of the grasses varied considerably with growth. Crude protein concentrations declined from 18.3 to 5.9% of dry matter (DM) for perennial ryegrass and from 17.0 to 5.4% of DM for Italian ryegrass, whereas concentrations of some cell-wall fractions markedly increased and partly more than doubled. Fibre content was slightly greater for perennial ryegrass than for Italian ryegrass over the whole growth period. The decline of feeding value with maturity was closely related to increasing concentrations of fibre components and their declining digestibility. Intake by sheep of Italian ryegrass was higher by 3 g/kg of body weight at the beginning and at the end of the primary growth period. Digestibility of the OM was greater than 80% at the start of the experiment and still around 70% after 2 months of grass growth. The decline in DM and metabolizable energy intake was much more pronounced than the decrease of OM digestibility. This could be attributed in part to a decline in feed intake capacity of non-lactating sheep caused by increasing body fat mass. Short-term fluctuations in OM digestibilities were related to alterations of chemical composition of the grasses caused by growth and maturation, in particular variations in water-soluble carbohydrate concentrations. The two ryegrass species differed with regard to nitrogen associated with the cell-wall (NDF) and lignocellulose (ADF). Continuous digestion trials were effective in observing the dynamics of alterations in feeding value and feed intake by sheep as related to growth and maturation of two ryegrass species during primary spring growth.

Comparative lectinhistochemical studies on paraffin- and glycol methacrylate-embedded CNS tissue specimens from AIDS autopsies. Mistletoe lectin I (ML I) as cell-marker.

Brain tissue and spinal cord tissue from 12 patients who had died of AIDS was fixed in neutral formalin; then after the embedment of some of it in paraffin and some of it in glycol methacrylate, it was analyzed lectinhistochemically with mistletoe lectin I (ML I). Mistletoe lectin (ML I) is a reliable marker for microglia cells and macrophages and for special cell forms (polynuclear giant cells, so-called pericytes) belonging to this cell system. In both the embedding procedures used, the representation of the cells is very clear and subtly differentiated so that the preparations are very well suited to the study of AIDS-associated tissue damage in the CNS. Whereas the immunological macrophage markers (CD 68 markers) KPI, PG-M1 produce good results on paraffin-embedded material but are completely useless on material embedded in glycol methacrylate, the cells of the monocyte-macrophage system can be represented very well and reliably after being embedded in glycol methacrylate with mistletoe lectin I (ML I).

[Long-term studies of colonization of the gastric mucosa by Campylobacter pyloridis]. / Langzeitbeobachtungen zur Magenschleimhautbesiedlung durch Campylobacter pyloridis.

Multiple biopsy specimens of gastric mucosa of 15 patients taken at different intervals with an observation period of 4 to 20 years were evaluated. Histological examination revealed superficial gastritis in most cases without radical and progressive destruction of the mucosa and in all but one case the presence of CLO was demonstrated with varying degree of intensity. No evidence was found for causal relationship between bacterial colonization and inflammation.

[Bacterial colonization of the gastric mucosa]. / Untersuchungen zur Frage der bakteriellen Besiedlung der Magenschleimhaut.

In 380 histologically prepared biopsy specimens taken from the mucous membrane of the stomach, the employment of Giemsa staining and Warthin-Starry silver staining has revealed an often surprisingly abundant (i. e., to the extent of 66.1%) bacterial colonization of the surface of the gastric mucous membrane and of the gastric foveolae. The bacteria encountered here involve gram-negative and morphologically uniform flora of thin, S-shaped or slightly curved bacteria designated as campylobacter-like organisms (CLO). Evidence for Campylobacter pyloridis was also obtained in 55.1% of cultures from 49 native, microbiologically prepared gastric biopsy specimens. Bacterial colonization of the gastric mucous membrane by CLO is definitely correlated with inflammatory alterations in gastric membranes. Active forms of gastritis, however, are not more abundantly colonized by bacteria than are dormant forms. The positive correlation between inflammatory gastric alterations of various degrees and bacterial colonization of the gastric mucous membrane, furthermore, is not proof of an etiological relationship. These bacteria, obviously adapted to the mucus in the gastric foveolae and on the surface of stomach lining, are not evidence of an aggressive behavior or of penetration tendencies. Facultatively pathogenetic significance cannot, however, be excluded for bacteria occurring in such abundance in intimate epithelial contact. Pathogenetic influence of abundant colonization by CLO could well develop if additional noxae become effective.