Synergistic co-utilization of biomass-derived sugars enhances aromatic amino acid production by engineered Escherichia coli.

Efficient co-utilization of mixed sugar feedstocks remains a biomanufacturing challenge, thus motivating ongoing efforts to engineer microbes for improved conversion of glucose-xylose mixtures. This study focuses on enhancing phenylalanine production by engineering Escherichia coli to efficiently co-utilize glucose and xylose. Flux balance analysis identified E4P flux as a bottleneck which could be alleviated by increasing the xylose-to-glucose flux ratio. A mutant copy of the xylose-specific activator (XylR) was then introduced into the phenylalanine-overproducing E. coli NST74, which relieved carbon catabolite repression and enabled efficient glucose-xylose co-utilization. Carbon contribution analysis through 13 C-fingerprinting showed a higher preference for xylose in the engineered strain (NST74X), suggesting superior catabolism of xylose relative to glucose. As a result, NST74X produced 1.76 g/L phenylalanine from a model glucose-xylose mixture; a threefold increase over NST74. Then, using biomass-derived sugars, NST74X produced 1.2 g/L phenylalanine, representing a 1.9-fold increase over NST74. Notably, and consistent with the carbon contribution analysis, the xylR* mutation resulted in a fourfold greater maximum rate of xylose consumption without significantly impeding the maximum rate of total sugar consumption (0.87 vs. 0.70 g/L-h). This study presents a novel strategy for enhancing phenylalanine production through the co-utilization of glucose and xylose in aerobic E. coli cultures, and highlights the potential synergistic benefits associated with using substrate mixtures over single substrates when targeting specific products.

Life table parameters and digestive physiology of Aulacophora lewisii Baly (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) on three Luffa acutangula (L.) Roxb. (Cucurbitaceae) cultivars.

Aulacophora lewisii Baly (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) is an important pest of Luffa acutangula (L.) Roxb. (Cucurbitaceae) in India. Larvae of A. lewisii feed on the roots, while adults consume leaves of L. acutangula. In the current study, effects of three L. acutangula cultivars (Abhiskar, Debsundari, and Jaipur Long) on the life table parameters by age-stage, two-sex approach, and key digestive enzymatic activities (amylolytic, proteolytic, and lipolytic) of the larvae and adults of A. lewisii were determined. Further, nutrients (total carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, amino acids, and nitrogen content) and antinutrients (total phenols, flavonols, and tannins) present in the roots and leaves of three cultivars were estimated. The development time (egg to adult emergence) was fastest and slowest on Jaipur Long (31.80 days) and Abhiskar (40.91 days), respectively. Fecundity was highest and lowest on Jaipur Long (279.91 eggs) and Abhiskar (137.18 eggs), respectively. The intrinsic rate of increase (r) was lowest on Abhiskar (0.0511 day-1) and highest on Jaipur Long (0.0872 day-1). The net reproductive rate (R0) was lowest on Abhiskar (23.32 offspring female-1). The mean generation time (T) was shortest on Jaipur Long (52.59 days) and longest on Abhiskar (61.58 days). The amylolytic, proteolytic, and lipolytic activities of larvae and adults of A. lewisii were highest and lowest on Jaipur Long and Abhiskar, respectively. The lower level of nutrients and higher level of antinutrients influenced higher larval development time and lower fecundity of A. lewisii on Abhiskar than other cultivars. Our results suggest that Abhiskar cultivar could be promoted for cultivation.

Fetal gender prediction by monitoring circulating steroid hormones and some biochemical parameters in maternal dromedary camels.

To predict the sex of the foetus, healthy pregnant dromedary camels (n = 24) were included. Blood samples were collected for measurements of progesterone, estradiol, testosterone, and cortisol as well as total proteins, albumin, glucose, creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium, creatine kinase, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate transaminase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), gamma glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT), calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium. Statistical analysis revealed differences between pregnant camels and pregnant camels in terms of female or male foetuses depending on the actual sex of the born calf. The results revealed that testosterone and ALP concentrations were significantly (P < 0.001) greater in camels given to males than in those given to calves. There were strong positive correlations between male calf birth and testosterone and ALP concentrations (r = 0.864; P < 0.0001 and r = 0.637; P < 0.001, respectively). On the other hand, the cortisol, glucose and creatinine concentrations were significantly lower (P lower in camel calved males than in females). There were significant negative correlations between male calf birth and the cortisol, glucose and creatinine concentrations (r =-0.401; P = 0.052; r =-0.445; P = 0.029 and r =-0.400; P = 0.053, respectively). The concentrations of calcium, phosphorus, calcium/phosphorus ratio, magnesium, and albumin and the albumin/globulin ratio were not significantly different (P > 0.05) between the two groups. In conclusion, testosterone could be used as a biomarker to determine the sex of foetuses in dromedary camels.

Antireproductive changes instigated by efficient drug delivery via papaya seed chloroform extract-based nanoparticles in male rat Bandicota bengalensis.

Anti-reproductive potential of papaya seed chloroform extract-based solid lipid nanoparticles (PSCEN) was investigated for the first time in lesser bandicoot rat, Bandicota bengalensis. Mature male rats (n = 30 per group) were fed bait (loose mixture of cracked wheat, powdered sugar, and groundnut oil in the ratio 88:10:2) containing two different concentrations of PSCEN (5% and 10%) in a bi-choice condition for 15 days with one group as vehicle control. The ingestion of active ingredient in 15 days treatment was significantly (P ≤ 0.05) higher by rats treated with 10% PSCEN (39.17-58.70 g/kg body weight) as compared to rats treated with 5% PSCEN (21.30-33.23 g/kg body weight). A dose dependent significant (P ≤ 0.05) decrease was observed in the level of testosterone, FSH, LH and GnRH in plasma of treated rats. A significant (P ≤ 0.05) decrease was also observed in level of total soluble proteins, total lipids, phospholipids and cholesterol in both plasma and testicular tissue, and level of 17ß-HSD and 3ß-HSD in testicular tissue indicating anti-reproductive effects of PSCEN treatment. There was observed significant (P ≤ 0.05) effect of treatment on histomorphology of testis and cauda epididymis in the form of reduced tubular diameter, germinal epithelial thickness, number of germ cells and dissociation of epithelial cycle in seminiferous tubules, and reduced tubular diameter, increased epithelial thickness, vacuolization, loose contact of principle cells and reduced number of spermatozoa in the cauda epididymal tubules. Maximum antifertility effect was observed with 10% PSCEN treatment, which was not reversed upto 105 days of treatment withdrawal indicating long-term efficacy. The current investigation suggests the use of PSCEN in the management of reproduction of B. bengalensis by exerting influence on testicular and cauda epididymal functions and biochemical parameters.

Suppression of Lignin Repolymerisation to Enhance Cellulose Bioconversion and Lignin Valorisation - A Review.

The recent discovery that the prevention of lignin repolymerisation/condensation in lignocellulosic biomass pretreatment can both enhance the bioconversion of cellulose and the quality of the obtained lignin, has brought a lignocellulose biorefinery closer to reality. In this work, the development of this approach and the last advancements are reviewed. The review reveals the successful implementation for a wide range of lignocellulosic substrates including softwood, hardwood, and agricultural residues. As well, it is shown that the approach can enhance various pretreatment technologies, including steam, acid and organosolv processes. Recent developments involve the discovery of new and greener additives which prevent lignin repolymerisation, the implementation of cellulose saccharification at industrially realistic conditions and high-yield fermentation. In addition, first applications of the lignin obtained in these processes are reviewed, showcasing its enhanced quality for functionalisation and use in polymers, as well as for its depolymerisation to aromatic monomers. The recent progresses bring closer the prospect of a biorefinery that can valorise all fractions of lignocellulosic biomass.

Promoting cell growth for bio-chemicals production via boosting the synthesis of L/D-alanine and D-alanyl-D-alanine in Bacillus licheniformis.

Metabolic engineering is a substantial approach for escalating the production of biochemical products. Cell biomass is lowered by system constraints and toxication carried on by the aggregation of metabolites that serve as inhibitors of product synthesis. In order to increase the production of biochemical products, it is important to trace the relationship between alanine metabolism and biomass. According to our investigation, the appropriate concentration of additional L/D-alanine (0.1 g/L) raised the cell biomass (OD600) in Bacillus licheniformis in contrast to the control strain. Remarkably, it was also determined that high levels of intracellular L/D-alanine and D-alanyl-D-alanine were induced by the overexpression of the ald, dal, and ddl genes to accelerate cell proliferation. Our findings clearly revealed that 0.2 g/L of L-alanine and D-alanine substantially elevated the titer of poly-γ-glutamic acid (γ-PGA) by 14.89% and 6.19%, correspondingly. And the levels of γ-PGA titer were hastened by the overexpression of the ald, dal, and ddl genes by 19.72%, 15.91%, and 16.64%, respectively. Furthermore, overexpression of ald, dal, and ddl genes decreased the by-products (acetoin, 2,3-butanediol, acetic acid and lactic acid) formation by about 14.10%, 8.77%, and 8.84% for augmenting the γ-PGA production. Our results also demonstrated that overexpression of ald gene amplified the production of lichenysin, pulcherrimin and nattokinase by about 18.71%, 19.82% and 21.49%, respectively. This work delineated the importance of the L/D-alanine and D-alanyl-D-alanine synthesis to the cell growth and the high production of bio-products, and provided an effective strategy for producing bio-products.

Biochemical Screening, Fabrication of Green Nanoparticles and Its Antimicrobial, and Antioxidant Studies of Endophytic Fungus Phlebia Species.

Endophytes are organism dwelling totally dynamic and novel biotopes this makes them able to produce novel biochemicals that may become assets to the future. This study aims at understanding the biochemical components of the endophytic fungus Phlebia sp. synthesis of gold and silver nanoparticles from it, and the antimicrobial as well as antioxidant ability of these green synthesised nanoparticles. Aqueous fungal extract was subjected for HRLCMS analysis which revealed 34 biochemicals within the extract. Silver and gold nanoparticles were also produced from the fungal extract. UV-vis analysis revealed a peak at 450 nm for silver nanoparticle and 550 nm for gold nanoparticles. FESEM analysis confirmed the presence of these nanoparticles with its spherical shape. Both of these nanoparticles were able to produce a conspicuous zone of inhibition in the antimicrobial tests against Escherichia coli, Salmonella paratyphi. For both of the organisms under study, a concentration-dependent expansion of the zone of inhibition was discovered in the nanoparticles. However, with silver nanoparticles, a relatively high zone of inhibition and vulnerability of the organism was discovered. Four in vitro free radical scavenging assays, including the DPPH, Hydroxyl, Superoxide, and Nitric oxide radical scavenging assays, were used for antioxidant analysis. The results of every test demonstrated that green synthesised silver nanoparticles had higher activity than gold nanoparticles. All of the tests showed that silver nanoparticles were more active than gold nanoparticles with the maximum value of 86.254 ± 0.296% being discovered at the greatest concentration of superoxide radical scavenging assay.

Applications of synthetic yeast consortia for the production of native and non-native chemicals.

The application of microbial consortia is a new approach in synthetic biology. Synthetic yeast consortia, simple or complex synthetic mixed cultures, have been used for the production of various metabolites. Cooperation between the members of a consortium and cross-feeding can be applied to create stable microbial communication. These consortia can: consume a variety of substrates, perform more complex functions, produce metabolites in high titer, rate, and yield (TRY), and show higher stability during industrial fermentations. Due to the new research context of synthetic consortia, few yeasts were used to build these consortia, including Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Pichia pastoris, and Yarrowia lipolytica. Here, application of the yeasts for design of synthetic microbial consortia and their advantages and bottlenecks for effective and robust production of valuable metabolites from bioresource, including: cellulose, xylose, glycerol and so on, have been reviewed. Key trends and challenges are also discussed for the future development of synthetic yeast consortia.

Unraveling the potential of non-conventional yeasts in biotechnology.

Cost-effective microbial conversion processes of renewable feedstock into biofuels and biochemicals are of utmost importance for the establishment of a robust bioeconomy. Conventional baker's yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, widely employed in biotechnology for decades, lacks many of the desired traits for such bioprocesses like utilization of complex carbon sources or low tolerance towards challenging conditions. Many non-conventional yeasts (NCY) present these capabilities, and they are therefore forecasted to play key roles in future biotechnological production processes. For successful implementation of NCY in biotechnology, several challenges including generation of alternative carbon sources, development of tailored NCY and optimization of the fermentation conditions are crucial for maximizing bioproduct yields and titers. Addressing these challenges requires a multidisciplinary approach that is facilitated through the 'YEAST4BIO' COST action. YEAST4BIO fosters integrative investigations aimed at filling knowledge gaps and excelling research and innovation, which can improve biotechnological conversion processes from renewable resources to mitigate climate change and boost transition towards a circular bioeconomy. In this perspective, the main challenges and research efforts within YEAST4BIO are discussed, highlighting the importance of collaboration and knowledge exchange for progression in this research field.

Effects of lighting source as an environmental strategy for heat stress amelioration in growing Californian rabbits during summer season.

The current work investigated the influences of different light sources on growth performance, carcass characteristics, blood biochemicals, physiological status and health aspects. One hundred and twenty growing California rabbits were assigned into four empirical collections in an experiment of completely randomized design. Rabbits of the first collection were reared under incandescent light bulbs (control), while the second, third and fourth collections were reared under fluorescent, saving light and LED light bulbs, respectively. The results indicated that rabbits reared under incandescent and LED had the heaviest body weight at 16-weeks-old. Rabbits reared under LED recorded the greatest gain during 14-16 weeks of age and 6-16 weeks of age. The lowest feed conversion ratio was observed in rabbits reared under LED lighting, during 14-16 weeks of age, and during the whole period without significant variations. Fat percentage (%) was low in rabbits exposed to fluorescent and LED. Rabbits grown under LED showed the lowest albumin/globulin and the highest glucose concentration. Rabbits kept under LED showed the lowest rectal temperature, mortality and health risks %. Conclusively, LED lighting source might be appropriate for alteration of incandescent and fluorescent light sources in rabbit farms to improve growth performance without compromising rabbit's carcass and welfare.

Kluyveromyces marxianus: a potential biocatalyst of renewable chemicals and lignocellulosic ethanol production.

Kluyveromyces marxianus is an ascomycetous yeast which has shown promising results in cellulosic ethanol and renewable chemicals production. It can survive on a variety of carbon sources under industrially favorable conditions due to its fast growth rate, thermotolerance, and acid tolerance. K. marxianus, is generally regarded as a safe (GRAS) microorganism, is widely recognized as a powerhouse for the production of heterologous proteins and is accepted by the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) for its pharmaceutical and food applications. Since lignocellulosic hydrolysates are comprised of diverse monomeric sugars, oligosaccharides and potential metabolism inhibiting compounds, this microorganism can play a pivotal role as it can grow on lignocellulosic hydrolysates coping with vegetal cell wall derived inhibitors. Furthermore, advancements in synthetic biology, for example CRISPR-Cas9 (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats with Cas9)-mediated genome editing, will enable development of an engineered yeast for the production of biochemicals and biopharmaceuticals having a myriad of industrial applications. Genetic engineering companies such as Cargill, Ginkgo Bioworks, DuPont, Global Yeast, Genomatica, and several others are actively working to develop designer yeasts. Given the important traits and properties of K. marxianus, these companies may find it to be a suitable biocatalyst for renewable chemicals and fuel production on the large scale. This paper reviews the recent progress made with K. marxianus biotechnology for sustainable production of ethanol, and other products utilizing lignocellulosic sugars.

Microfluidics for microalgal biotechnology.

Microalgae have expanded their roles as renewable and sustainable feedstocks for biofuel, smart nutrition, biopharmaceutical, cosmeceutical, biosensing, and space technologies. They accumulate valuable biochemical compounds from protein, carbohydrate, and lipid groups, including pigments and carotenoids. Microalgal biomass, which can be adopted for multivalorization under biorefinery settings, allows not only the production of various biofuels but also other value-added biotechnological products. However, state-of-the-art technologies are required to optimize yield, quality, and the economical aspects of both upstream and downstream processes. As such, the need to use microfluidic-based devices for both fundamental research and industrial applications of microalgae, arises due to their microscale sizes and dilute cultures. Microfluidics-based devices are superior to their competitors through their ability to perform multiple functions such as sorting and analyzing small amounts of samples (nanoliter to picoliter) with higher sensitivities. Here, we review emerging applications of microfluidic technologies on microalgal processes in cell sorting, cultivation, harvesting, and applications in biofuels, biosensing, drug delivery, and nutrition.

Molecular engineering to improve lignocellulosic biomass based applications using filamentous fungi.

Lignocellulosic biomass is an abundant and renewable resource, and its utilization has become the focus of research and biotechnology applications as a very promising raw material for the production of value-added compounds. Filamentous fungi play an important role in the production of various lignocellulolytic enzymes, while some of them have also been used for the production of important metabolites. However, wild type strains have limited efficiency in enzyme production or metabolic conversion, and therefore many efforts have been made to engineer improved strains. Examples of this are the manipulation of transcriptional regulators and/or promoters of enzyme-encoding genes to increase gene expression, and protein engineering to improve the biochemical characteristics of specific enzymes. This review provides and overview of the applications of filamentous fungi in lignocellulosic biomass based processes and the development and current status of various molecular engineering strategies to improve these processes.

The future of high-quality Ceylon tea seems bleak in the face of climate change.

Understanding the interactive effects and relationships between biochemical elements of tea leaves and the related factors, particularly climatic, cultivar, and geographic, is key for high-quality Ceylon tea production. The objectives of this study were to (1) investigate the effects of season × cultivar × agro-ecological regions (AERs) on the four tested biochemicals in fresh tea leaves, total polyphenol content (TPC), free sugar, protein, and theanine; (2) determine the relationships between, and develop a model to estimate, the biochemicals and their related factors; and (3) project the potential concentrations and distributions of four tested biochemicals in tea leaves with respect to the current and future climate. This study primarily uses inferential statistics via the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), cross-validation using R software, and the inverse distance weighting (IDW) approach in ArcGIS. The results demonstrate that the season, cultivar (Ceylon tea cultivars of TRI 2025 and TRI 4053), and AER and their interactions on biochemicals have significant effects (p < 0.05). The models derived in the regression analysis demonstrate the strong relationships between the independent variables and the biochemicals, with multiple correlation coefficients (R) around 0.8 and coefficient of determination (R2) around 0.6. The low standard deviation of error of prediction (SDEP < 0.1) and the high correlation coefficient of leave-one-out cross-validation (Q2) for all four biochemicals ranged from 0.56 to 0.61, which signifies the predictive ability of the models. The future projections show a considerable increase in the thresholds of all tested biochemicals. The distribution category with 'very high' concentrations of TPC and theanine is predicted to increase in the future by averages of 10% and 14%, respectively, while reducing the classes of protein and free sugar by 14% and 12%, respectively. Overall, the changing concentrations of the thresholds of relevant biochemicals and their distribution will negatively affect the final quality of tea, and these variations indicate that climate change has started to diminish Ceylon tea quality.

[Acute and subacute toxicity of Garcinia huillensis Baker, a plant used against urogenital schistosomiasis in Haut-Katanga, DR Congo]. / Toxicité aiguë et subaiguë de Garcinia huillensis Baker, plante utilisée contre la schistosomiase urogénitale dans le Haut-Katanga, RD Congo.

This research evaluated acute and subacute toxicity of aqueous and methanolic extract from stem bark of Garcinia huillensis Baker, a plant used in Congolese traditional medicine against urogenital schistosomiasis. The acute toxicity is evaluated on guinea pigs by single oral administration of 1500, 2000, 2500, 3000 and 3500mg/kg of body weight of extracts based on the method described by protocol 423 of the Organization for Cooperation and Economic Development. Subacute toxicity is assessed after 28 days after daily administration of 4.5, 45, 450 and 1500mg/kg of body weight of extracts. Weight evolution, hematological and biochemical parameters of the guinea pigs that survived were analyzed and compared with those of the controls. Acute oral toxicity data were used to calculate the LD50 of 2717.39 and 2625.00mg/kg bw for the aqueous and methanolic extract, respectively. Some signs of intoxication were noted, and certain haematological and biochemical parameters analyzed in the treated guinea pigs sometimes presented statistically significant differences compared to those of the controls. The minimum tolerated dose (1652.17mg/kg bw) found for the aqueous extract is far greater than the therapeutic dose administered by traditional therapists (4.5mg). Thus, the study shows that the stem bark of G. huillensis would be moderately toxic and would present a good margin of safety under the conditions of our experimentation, which would justify the non-toxic use of the plant under the traditional conditions of preparation and oral administration.

Direct production of commodity chemicals from lignocellulose using Myceliophthora thermophila.

The production of fuels and chemicals from renewable plant biomass has been proposed as a feasible strategy for global sustainable development. However, the economic efficiency of biorefineries is low. Here, through metabolic engineering, Myceliophthora thermophila, a cellulolytic thermophilic fungus, was constructed into a platform that can efficiently convert lignocellulose into important bulk chemicals-four carbon 1, 4-diacids (malic and succinic acid), building blocks for biopolymers-without the need for extra hydrolytic enzymes. Titers of >200 g/L from crystalline cellulose and 110 g/L from plant biomass (corncob) were achieved during fed-batch fermentation. Our study represents a milestone in consolidated bioprocessing technology and offers a new and promising system for the cost-effective production of chemicals and fuels from biomass.

Bacillus subtilis: a universal cell factory for industry, agriculture, biomaterials and medicine.

Due to its clear inherited backgrounds as well as simple and diverse genetic manipulation systems, Bacillus subtilis is the key Gram-positive model bacterium for studies on physiology and metabolism. Furthermore, due to its highly efficient protein secretion system and adaptable metabolism, it has been widely used as a cell factory for microbial production of chemicals, enzymes, and antimicrobial materials for industry, agriculture, and medicine. In this mini-review, we first summarize the basic genetic manipulation tools and expression systems for this bacterium, including traditional methods and novel engineering systems. Secondly, we briefly introduce its applications in the production of chemicals and enzymes, and summarize its advantages, mainly focusing on some noteworthy products and recent progress in the engineering of B. subtilis. Finally, this review also covers applications such as microbial additives and antimicrobials, as well as biofilm systems and spore formation. We hope to provide an overview for novice researchers in this area, offering them a better understanding of B. subtilis and its applications.

Biochar as a catalytic material for the production of 1,4-butanediol and tetrahydrofuran from furan.

Biomass valorization is emerging as a new trend for the synthesis of materials for various environmental applications. In this connection, a biochar resulting from pyrolysis of rice straw was employed as a catalytic material for the conversion of hemicellulose-derived furan into value-added platform chemicals such as 1,4-butanediol (1,4-BD) and tetrahydrofuran (THF). The biochar was used as catalyst support of bifunctional Ru-Re catalyst. Two different catalysts were prepared: a conventional activated carbon (AC)-supported Ru-Re catalyst (Ru-Re/AC) and a biochar-supported Ru-Re catalyst (Ru-Re/biochar). The Ru-Re/biochar had a different form of Re species from the Ru-Re/AC, resulting in different reducibility. The difference of reducibility between the two was attributed to alkali metal present in the biochar such as potassium. The Ru-Re/biochar had a 17 times lower metal dispersion on the surface than the Ru-Re/AC, ascribed to a lower surface area of the biochar than the AC. Catalytic activities of the catalysts with regard to reaction rate per available surface active site for transforming furan to 1,4-BD and THF were measured. The Ru-Re/AC was 3 times less active than the Ru-Re/biochar. This study not only provides a way to efficiently use biomass both for environmental catalysts and for feedstock of producing value-added platform chemicals, but also shows potential of biochar for the replacement of typical catalysts employed in biorefinery.

Effect of quinestrol on body weight, vital organs, biochemicals and genotoxicity in adult male lesser bandicoot rat, Bandicota bengalensis.

The present study was aimed to evaluate the toxic effects of quinestrol (a synthetic estradiol) in male lesser bandicoot rat, Bandicota bengalensis. Effect was studied on body weight, weight of vital organs, changes in level of biochemical parameters and genotoxicity. Feeding of bait containing 0.01% quinestrol in bi-choice and 0.02 and 0.03% quinestrol in no-choice for a period of 10 days resulted in total ingestion of 19.50, 67.60 and 243.30 mg/kg bwt, respectively of the active ingredient. Autopsy of rats after 15 and 30 days of treatment withdrawal revealed no significant effect on body weight and weights of vital organs of rats. A significant decrease in the testicular levels of 17-beta hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase and increase in total soluble proteins was observed in rats treated with 0.02 and 0.03% quinestrol. The plasma levels of lipid peroxidation in the form of malondialdehyde concentration and lactate dehydrogenase increased significantly whereas the level of testosterone decreased significantly in treated rats. The plasma levels of acid and alkaline phosphatases, superoxide dismutase and total proteins differed non-significantly among rats of treated and untreated groups. The effect was found reversed partially in rats autopsied after 60 days of treatment withdrawal. No micronuclei in bone marrow cells, no aberrations in chromosomes and no DNA damage in blood cells during comet assay indicated no genotoxic effect of quinestrol on B. bengalensis at the test doses administered. The results thus revealed that quinestrol causes reversible toxic effects in the form of oxidative stress, increased lytic enzyme activity and decreased steroidogenesis which may further lead to testicular damage thereby inhibiting reproductive function. Also more effect was shown at higher doses ingested in no-choice test as compared to low doses ingested in bi-choice tests.

Beneficial effects of curcumin as a native or nanoparticles form on productive efficiency, liver and kidney functions, antioxidative status and immunity of heat-stressed growing rabbits.

This study aimed to evaluate the influence of dietary supplementation with curcumin in a native (CUR) or solid nanoparticles (CURNPs) form as natural antioxidants on productive traits and some physiological functions of heat-stressed growing rabbits. Total of 100 weaned APRI line rabbits (5 weeks old) was distributed according to body weight (BW) into five treatments (n = 20). Rabbits in the first treatment were fed a basal diet (BD, control), while those in treatments 2, 3, 4 and 5 were fed BD containing CUR (25 or 50 mg) and CURNPs (2.5 or 5 mg) per kg diet up to 13 week of age. The mean of air temperature and relative humidity during the growing period were 32.77°C and 43.23% respectively. Final BW, daily weight gain, feed conversion ratio and viability were positively affected by treatments compared with the control diet. Also, CUR and CURNPs treatments significantly increased total proteins, immunoglobulins, total antioxidants capacity, superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and glutathione in blood serum and hepatic tissues and significantly decreased serum total lipids, total cholesterol, triglycerides, low-density lipoproteins, urea, aspartate transaminases and malondialdehyde (MDA) in hepatic tissues. Albumin and high-density lipoproteins were significantly increased, while alanine transaminases and MDA were significantly decreased by both CURNPs levels. The CUR or CURNPs supplementation may enhance productive performance, lipid profile, liver function, immunity and antioxidant activity, with reducing liver lipid peroxidation of heat-stressed growing rabbits. The best results were obtained by adding 2.5 mg CURNPs/kg diet under the experimental condition of this study.