Acid C18 Research Articles

Foraging behaviour of the South American sea lion (Otaria byronia) in two disparate ecosystems assessed through blubber fatty acid analysis

Fatty acids have been widely used as trophic biomarkers in marine mammals. However, for the South American sea lion, the most abundant otariid in the eastern South Pacific, there is no information about blubber fatty acids and their link to diet. Here, we compare fatty acid profiles of sea lions from two distinct oceanographic regions in northern and southern Chile. Their fatty acids vary greatly between regions, suggesting dietary differences at a spatial scale. The fatty acid C22:6ω3 was more abundant in sea lions from the northern region, likely associated with consumption of anchovy, cephalopods, and crustaceans, which are rich in that fatty acid, and have been reported as their main prey items. Sea lions from the southern region were richer in C22:1 and C20:1, characteristic of teleost fish, suggesting a piscivorous diet. Males displayed a more diverse fatty acid composition than females, suggesting a wider trophic niche. Few individual sea lions within the southern region had unusually high levels of C18:2ω6, commonly found in terrestrial environments. This suggests consumption of farmed salmon, whose diet is usually based on terrestrial sources. This demonstrates how human intervention is being reflected in the tissues of a top predator in a natural environment.

Development of a Liquid Chromatography–High Resolution Mass Spectrometry Method for the Determination of Free Fatty Acids in Milk

The determination of free fatty acids (FFAs) in milk is of importance for quality control, legislative purposes, authentication and product development. We present herein a liquid chromatography–high resolution mass spectrometry method for the direct determination of FFAs in milk. The method involves mild sample preparation, avoids time-consuming derivatization and allows the direct quantification of twenty-two FFAs in a 10-min single run. It was validated and applied in thirteen cow milk and seven goat milk samples. Saturated fatty acids C16:0, C18:0 and unsaturated C18:1 (n-9) were found to be the major components of milk FFAs at concentrations of 33.1 ± 8.2 μg/mL, 16.5 ± 5.3 μg/mL and 14.8 ± 3.8 μg/mL, respectively, in cow milk and at concentrations of 22.8 ± 1.8 μg/mL, 12.7 ± 2.8 μg/mL and 13.3 ± 0.3 μg/mL, respectively, in goat milk. Other saturated and unsaturated FFAs were found in significantly lower quantities. Saturated fatty acids C6:0, C8:0 and C10:0 were found in higher quantities in goat milk than in cow milk. The levels of the important (for human health) odd-chain FFAs C15:0 and C17:0 were estimated in cow and goat milk.

The Influence of No-till Farming on Durum Wheat Mycorrhization in a Semi-Arid Region: A Long-Term Field Experiment

Maintaining a reliable and sustainable agricultural production system has become one of the major concerns of producers in arid and semi-arid regions. Simplifying farming techniques and practicing Direct Seedling (DS) could contribute to insure the sustainability of agriculture, preserving the natural resources and the environment. Direct Seedling based on limiting soil plowing has a potential number of benefits, including reduced production costs and soil erosion. Associated with the organic mulch, this technique improves the soil fertility and favors the establishment of root symbioses. Given the importance of the no-till farming techniques, the present research work aims to compare the effects of DS and those of Conventional Seedling (CS) on the evolution of arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis in durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf) roots, cultivated in the field for five years. Soil and root samples were collected during three different cropping stages at two different treatments. The results of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF) root colonization kinetics have shown an increase in the percentage of arbuscules and a decrease in vesicles for plants sampled from a DS field compared to those from CS. Effects of the DS on the mycorrhizal parameters appears clearly in the fourth year of the experiment and continues in the fifth year, with an arbuscule percentage reaching 80% in a DS field and not exceeding 21% in a CS field. Soil phospholipid fatty acids (PLFA) C16:1ω5 (biomarker of AMF) and C18:2ω 6, 9 (biomarker of saprophytic/ectomycorrhizal fungi) demonstrate that no-till practice improves AMF biomass and saprotrophic/ectomycorrhizal fungal biomasses by 52 and 159%, respectively, in comparison with those found in a CS field. In both treatments, no-till farming and CS plots, the AMF biomass is higher than saprotrophic/ectomycorrhizal biomasses. The natural biodiversity of AMF is also enhanced in a no-till field. In addition, an increase in the relative abundance of six families of Glomeromycota (Gigasporaceae, Diversisporaceae, Scutellosporaceae, Entrophosporaceae, Acaulosporaceae, Dentiscutataceae) was observed. To summarize, the present study highlights the importance of no-till practice as an approach to restore the microbiome in soils disturbed by tillage in semi-arid regions.

Determination of Trace Amounts of Aliphatic Acids in Natural Waters Using Liquid‒Liquid Extraction

A procedure is developed and conditions are optimized for the preparation of natural water samples using liquid‒liquid extraction without the preliminary filtration of acidified water and subsequent derivatization for the determination of trace concentrations of aliphatic carboxylic acids C6–C21 by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. It is shown that, at the stage of extraction with hexane, less than one half of free carboxylic acids of this homologous series passes into the extract, while a significant amount is adsorbed on the walls of the extraction vessel, and they must be washed off with a solution of sodium carbonate in an ethanol–water mixture (4 : 1). Liquid–liquid extraction with hexane in combination with the conversion of acids to pentafluorobenzyl esters significantly simplifies the analysis procedure of natural waters containing suspended particles, humic substances and ensures the attainment of a limit of detection of 0.05 μg/L for the analytes.

Hankyongella ginsenosidimutans gen. nov., sp. nov., isolated from mineral water with ginsenoside coverting activity.

In this study, a novel ginsenoside transforming bacterium, strain W1-2-3T, was isolated from mineral water. The 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis showed that strain W1-2-3T shares 93.7-92.2% sequence similarity with the members of the family Sphingomonadaceae and makes a group with Sphingoaurantiacus capsulatus YLT33T (93.7%) and S. polygranulatus MC 3718T (93.4%). The novel isolate efficiently hydrolyses the ginsenoside Rc to Rd. The genome comprises a single circular 2,880,809, bp chromosome with 3211 genes in total, and 1993 protein coding genes. The isolate was observed to grow at 10-37°C and at pH 6-10 on R2A agar medium; maximum growth was found to occur at 25°C and pH 7.0. Strain W1-2-3T was found to contain ubiquinone-10 as the predominant quinone and the fatty acids C16:1, C17:1ω6c, C14:0 2-OH, summed feature 3 (C16:1ω6c/C16:1ω7c) and summed feature 8 (C18:1ω6c/C18:1ω7c). The DNA G+C content was determined to be 65.9mol%. Strain W1-2-3T can be distinguished from the other members of the family Sphingomonadaceae by a number of chemotaxonomic and phenotypic characteristics. The major polar lipids of strain W1-2-3T were identified as phosphatidylethanolamine, an unidentified glycolipid and an unidentified polar lipid. The major poly amine was found to be homospermidine. Based on polyphasic taxonomic analysis, strain W1-2-3T is concluded to represent a novel species within a new genus, for which the name Hankyongella ginsenosidimutans gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain of Hankyongella ginsenosidimutans is W1-2-3T (= KACC 18307T = LMG 28594T).

Simultaneous removal of pollutants and high value biomaterials production by Chlorella variabilis TH03 from domestic wastewater

Cultivation of microalgae in the domestic wastewater is an alternative approach over conventional activated sludge processes for simultaneous pollutants removal and biomaterials production for biorefinery. This study was aimed at growing a Chlorella variabilis TH03 in domestic wastewater using various closed photobioreactors and open-reactor systems for evaluation of the algal growth, pollutants removal efficiency, biomass productivity and characterization of the biomass. Results indicated that the C. variabilis TH03 exhibited an outstanding growth, achieving maximum biomass concentration of 1.52, 1.67, 1.54 and 1.72 g/L, with specific growth rate of 0.32/day, 0.27/day, 0.22/day and 0.34/day in PBR-5-R, PBR-5-S, T-50 and RW-500 reactor systems, respectively. Remarkably, additional supplement of CO2 significantly enhanced areal biomass productivity of C. variabilis TH03 grown in RW-500 from 13.1 to 38.5 g/m2 day. Pollutants in term of COD, total nitrogen and total phosphorous were removed by 74.8–89.8%, 93.8–96.1% and 97.1–99.9%, respectively, during 14–17 days cultivation of the C. variabilis TH03. The fatty acid methyl esters of the algal biomass was determined as 22.55–26.12% with the most abundant fatty acids of C16:0 (26.13–27.67%), C16:3n4 (20.07–22.24%) and C18:3n3 (34.83–36.79%) which were desirable fatty acids for biodiesel and bio-jet fuels synthesis. Moreover, total carbohydrates and proteins in the algal biomass were accumulated up to 31.56–35.23% and 33.67–37.34%, respectively. Our preliminary results demonstrated the cultivation technology of C. variabilis TH03 can sustainably replace the conventional activated sludge technologies for domestic wastewater treatment.

Application of targeted 2D planar chromatography in the control of ginkgolic acids in some herbal drugs and dietary supplements.

Two-step targeted 2D planar chromatographic method (2DTLC) was used in the determination of ginkgolic acids in pharmaceuticals and dietary supplements. The choice of the extraction method and the separation technique was guided by the formulation type (capsule, tablet, tincture) with expected low amounts of ginkgolic acids in the analyzed herbal samples. Separation of ginkgolic acids C15:1 and C17:1 on HPTLC RP18 WF254s was preceded by its separation from the sample matrix on TLC Si60 F254s. Mobile phases consisted of acetonitrile/water/formic acid (80:20:1, V/V/V) and n-heptane/ethyl acetate/formic acid (20:30:1, V/V/V), resp. Identification of separated compounds was based on 2D-TLC co-chromatography with reference substances and off-line 2D-TLC x HPLC-DAD-ESI-MS analysis. Quantification of ginkgolic acids C15:1 and C17:1 was conducted densitometrically. Among the analyzed products, the presence of ginkgolic acids was confirmed only in herbal drugs containing 60 % ethanolic tinctures of Ginkgo biloba leaves. The use of TLC in the quantification of ginkgolic acids C15:1 and C17:1 in ginkgo extracts was described for the first time.

Influence of the maturation process on the sheep's milk of Camembert cheese fatty acid profile change

The aim of this research was to study the fatty acid composition of Camembert cheese fat phase. The object of the research was the sheep’s milk Camembert soft cheese. The Camembert soft cheese was made from sheep’s milk pasteurized at 63∘C for 30 minutes before production, using cultures Penicillium camemberti, Geotrichum candidum, as well as Lactococcus lactis, Lactococcus cremoris, Lactococcus diacetylactis, Leuconostoc mesenteroides ssp. cremoris. The study of the cheese fatty acid composition during maturation was carried out using the gas chromatography method in accordance with the state industry standard of the Russian Federation 32915-2014 ”Milk and dairy products. The determination of fatty acid composition of the fat phase by gas chromatography”. The fatty acids profile in the process of cheese maturation changed significantly. There was an increase in the short chain fatty acids concentration: oil (C4:0) kapron (C6:0), capryl (C8:0). A change in the lauric acid content (C12: 0) and myristic acid (C14: 0) showed a similar trend but with less dynamics. On the 14th day of maturation, the concentration of lauric acid (C12:0) increased by 30%, myristic acid (C14:0) – by 13%. At the beginning of the maturation period, the C18:1n9t isomer consisted about 70% of the total fatty acid trans-isomers. During maturation, the concentration of C18:1n9t decreased by 98%. It was found that, regardless of the maturation period, fatty acids C10: 0, C14: 0, C16: 0, C18: 0, C18: 1 t11 and C18: 1c9 consisted about 73% of the total fatty acids. There was a decrease in the concentration of w-6-polyunsaturated fatty acids with a simultaneous increase in the concentration of w-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. The results can serve as a basis for comparative analysis development tools and strategies aimed at improving the nutritional characteristics of sheep’s milk cheese.

Nutritional Attributes and Nonvolatile Taste Components of Medicinally Important Wild False Earthstar Mushroom, Astraeus hygrometricus (Agaricomycetes), from India.

Fruiting bodies of Astraeus hygrometricus mushroom grown wild in the forests of Jharkhand, India were investigated for their proximate nutritional composition and taste imparting nonvolatile components. Fruiting bodies contained good amount of total carbohydrates (55.76%), reducing sugars (15.98%), protein (16.02%), and dietary fiber (39.78%) but were low in fat (3.5%), ash (3.8%), and energy (159.5 kcal). Fatty acids were represented by monounsaturated C18:1n9c oleic acid (4.59%) and saturated C16:0 palmitic acid (2.63%). In vitro digestibility of protein is an indicator of its availability to human body and A. hygrometricus has 33.2% in vitro digestibility. Among the minerals found (mg/100 g), potassium (K, 1930.0) was major mineral followed by calcium (Ca, 443.0), magnesium (Mg, 434.0), sodium (Na, 155.0), iron (Fe, 127.0), manganese (Mn, 16.0), and selenium (Se, 1.60). Pro-vitamin D2 (ergosterol) was also determined to be 1.09 mg/g. Analysis of soluble sugars indicated that mannitol (11.22 mg/g) was the major sugar alcohol conferring sweetness to the fruiting bodies. Among total free amino acids (8.20 mg/g), seven essential amino acids (3.9) and eight nonessential amino acids (4.3) were detected. Leucine (0.92) and tyrosine (0.98) were the major essential and nonessential amino acids, respectively. Aspartic (0.61) and glutamic acid (0.63) were also present in AH and responsible for its MSG like taste. Thus, A. hygrometricus is a good source of free essential amino acids and selenium, which is not synthesized by humans. Meaty flavor of the fruiting body of A. hygrometricus was mainly due to umami 5'-guanosine monophosphate (2.43 mg/g). Sweet taste and meaty flavor of the mushroom were due to nonvolatile taste components including soluble sugars and polyols, MSG like aspartic and glutamic acid, and umami 5'-nucleotide. Overall A. hygrometricus proved its edibility as a tasty and nutritional food.

Olive oil quality influenced by biostimulant foliar fertilizers

Foliar fertilization has been used as an important tool to meet the tree nutrient demand and to be an environmental beneficial with the use of little quantities. Actually modern fruit trees physiology is focused on the stimulation of plant cell development and fruit production using biostimulants. In olive trees, few products have been used for improving oil quality. For this purpose, two biostimulants products have been tested and used simple or combined with a third product rich in nitrogen. The treatments were classified to: T1 (rich in nitrogen) and biostimulants treatments as following T2 (combination of boron, magnesium, sulfur and manganese associated with seaweed) TNi (biostimulant combining a protein extract with a calcium base), T12 (combined application of T1 and T2) and finally T12Ni (combined application of T1, T2 and TNi) with a control treatment CON (without foliar fertilization). All these foliar nutrients were sprayed during two successive years on trees issued of Chemlali cultivar cultivated in rain-fed conditions of central Tunisia. Biochemical parameters of the olive oil, like physiochemical characteristics, fatty acid profile total polyphenols, ortho-diphenols, chlorophyllic and carotenoids pigments were analyzed annually after the application of these foliar compounds. All the olive oils issued from the treatments were classified as extra virgin and the physiochemical parameters were sensitive to foliar fertilization except for some parameters. Quantitative changes were observed in the pool of the fatty acids composition and the treatment TNi (rich in calcium) increased significantly the percentage of the monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA) C18:1 as well as the ratios C18:1/C18:2 and MUFA/polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) during the first year of experimentation. This treatment induced also an increase in the total polyphenols concentration. An annual variation between treatments has been observed according the polyphenols concentration and othodiphenols which can be influenced by climatic conditions principally in rain-fed conditions. This study highlighted the effect of the nutrient availability cumulated after two years of foliar application on the olive oil quality.

The effects of rapeseed cake intake during the finishing period on the fatty-acid composition of the longissimus muscle of Limousin steers and changes in meat colour and lipid oxidation during storage

Context Cold-pressed rapeseed cake is a by-product of biodiesel manufacturing that can be obtained on-farm after simple mechanical extraction of the oil. It has a high crude fat content and contains significant amounts of linoleic acid, which make it a promising lipid supplement to modulate meat fatty acid profile. However, previous studies have indicated that using unsaturated fats in beef cattle diets could promote lipid oxidation and reduce meat redness. Aims The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of supplementation of intensively fattened beef steers with cold-pressed rapeseed cake on the fatty acid composition of beef fat and changes in measures of meat colour and lipid oxidation during 6 days of aerobic storage. Methods Sixteen Limousin steers were divided into two homogeneous groups and were fed ad libitum with barley straw and a concentrate mixture supplemented with either PROGRAS (PROGRAS at 2.7% of the diet, high in palmitic acid C16:0 from palm oil; CTR, experimental control; n = 8) or cold-pressed rapeseed cake (CPRC at 14.8% of the diet; CPRC treatment; n = 8) for a period of 9 months. The growth performance and carcass traits were assessed. The intramuscular fatty acids were analysed and the colour stability and lipid oxidation were measured in meat stored aerobically at 4°C for 0, 3 or 6 days. Key results Slaughter bodyweight and average daily gain were not affected by the inclusion of CPRC in the diet. Nor were there any changes in carcass weight, conformation or fatness. The longissimus thoracis from CPRC-fed animals depicted a higher UFA–SFA ratio and a lower atherogenic index than did that from animals fed CTR. Feeding CPRC increased the oleic acid , the vaccenic acid and the rumenic acid proportions in the muscle fat without affecting the ratio of C18:1 trans-10 to C18:1 trans-11. The extents of lipid oxidation and colour deterioration during aging were not affected by the dietary treatments. Conclusions The use of cold-pressed rapeseed cake as a lipid supplement in beef-steer diet improved the fatty acid profile of muscle fat without compromising meat oxidative stability, animal growth performance and carcass characteristics. Implications The supplementation of beef-steer diet with cold-pressed rapeseed cake could be an advantageous economical strategy allowing exploitation of an important by-product of small-scale biodiesel manufacturing to provide consumers with healthier meat.

Combined use of milk infrared spectra and genotypes can improve prediction of milk fat composition

It has been shown that milk infrared (IR) spectroscopy can be used to predict detailed milk fat composition. In addition, polymorphisms with substantial effects on milk fat composition have been identified. In this study, we investigated the combined use of milk IR spectroscopy and genotypes of dairy cows on the accuracy of predicting milk fat composition. Milk fat composition data based on gas chromatography and milk IR spectra were available for 1,456 Dutch Holstein Friesian cows. In addition, genotypes for the diacylglycerol acyltransferase 1 (DGAT1) K232A and stearoyl-CoA desaturase 1 (SCD1) A293V polymorphisms and a SNP located in an intron of the fatty acid synthase (FASN) gene were available. Adding SCD1 genotypes to the milk IR spectra resulted in a considerable improvement of the prediction accuracy for the unsaturated fatty acids C10:1, C12:1, C14:1 cis-9, and C16:1 cis-9 and their corresponding unsaturation indices. Adding DGAT1 genotypes to the milk IR spectra resulted in an improvement of the prediction accuracy for C16:1 cis-9 and C16 index. Adding genotypes of the FASN SNP to the IR spectra did not improve prediction of milk fat composition. This study demonstrated the potential of combining milk IR spectra with genotypic information from 3 polymorphisms to predict milk fat composition. We hypothesize that prediction accuracy of milk fat composition can be further improved by combining milk IR spectra with genomic breeding values.

Routine Determination of Milk Fat Composition for Nutritional and Technological Purposes

78 individual milk samples (IS) were taken in the Czech Fleckvieh and Holstein dairy cow herds and 33 bulk milk samples (BS) were taken in 13 Holstein dairy cow herds to compare two methods for the determination of fatty acids (FAs) – routine/indirect (infrared (IR) spectroscopy, MIR-FT) and reference/direct (gas chromatography, GC). The IS results show that the fatty acids C16:0 and C18:1 and the group of saturated (SFA) and unsaturated (UFA) FAs can be determined using routine method with a relatively high reliability (correlations (r) 0.7543, 0.7607, 0.8424 and 0.9492; P < 0.001). In case of polyunsaturated FAs is the r lower (0.2891; P < 0.05). In BS the tightness of relations is stronger in the case of the SFA and UFA (r 0.7094; 0.9389; P < 0.001), while for the group of TFA (trans isomers of unsaturated FAs) and PUFA (polyunsaturated FAs) are lower r (0.5897 and 0.5931; P < 0.001 respectively). Routine method for fatty acids profile determination is efficient for selection of raw milk to guarantee the production of specific dairy products with increased content of healthful fatty acids.

Effect of 2-hydroxy-4-(methylthio) butanoate (HMTBa) supplementation on rumen bacterial populations in dairy cows when exposed to diets with risk for milk fat depression

Diet-induced milk fat depression (MFD) is a condition marked by a reduction in milk fat yield experimentally achieved by increasing dietary unsaturated fatty acids and fermentable carbohydrates. 2-Hydroxy-4-(methylthio) butanoate (HMTBa) is a methionine analog observed to reduce diet-induced MFD in dairy cows. We hypothesize that the reduction in diet-induced MFD by HMTBa is due to changes in the rumen microbiota. To test this, 22 high-producing cannulated Holstein dairy cows were placed into 2 groups using a randomized block design and assigned to either control or HMTBa supplementation (0.1% of diet dry matter). All cows were then exposed to 3 different diets with a low risk (32% neutral detergent fiber, no added oil; fed d 1 to 7), a moderate risk (29% neutral detergent fiber and 0.75% soybean oil; fed d 8 to 24), or a high risk (29% neutral detergent fiber and 1.5% soybean oil; fed d 25 to 28) for diet-induced MFD. Rumen samples were collected on d 0, 14, 24, and 28, extracted for DNA, PCR-amplified for the V1-V2 region of the 16S rRNA gene, sequenced on an Illumina MiSeq (Illumina, San Diego, CA), and subjected to bacterial diversity analysis using the QIIME pipeline. The α diversity estimates (species richness and Shannon diversity) were decreased in the control group compared with the HMTBa group. Bacterial community composition also differed between control and HMTBa groups based on both weighted UniFrac (relative abundance of commonly detected bacteria) and unweighted UniFrac (presence/absence) distances. Within the HMTBa group, no differences were observed in bacterial community composition between d 0 and d 14, 24, and 28; however, in the control group, d 0 samples were different from d 14, 24, and 28. Certain bacterial genera including Dialister, Megasphaera, Lachnospira, and Sharpea were increased in the control group compared with the HMTBa group. Interestingly, these genera were positively correlated with milk fat trans-10,cis-12 conjugated linoleic acid and trans-10 C18:1, fatty acid isomers associated with biohydrogenation-induced MFD. It can be concluded that diet-induced MFD is accompanied by significant alterations in the rumen bacterial community and that HMTBa supplementation reduces these microbial perturbations.

A chicken protein hydrolysate exerts anti-atherosclerotic effect beyond plasma cholesterol-lowering activity in Apoe-/- mice.

Chicken protein hydrolysates (CPHs) generated from rest raw materials through enzymatic hydrolysis using Corolase PP or Alcalase were shown to reduce inflammation and stimulate hepatic mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation in high‐fat‐fed mice. This study investigates the effect of CPH diets in atherosclerosis‐prone apolipoprotein E‐deficient (Apoe−/−) mice. Apoe−/− mice were divided into three groups of 12 animals and fed high‐fat diets with casein (control), Alcalase CPH, or Corolase PP CPH. After 12 weeks, mice were sacrificed, blood samples were collected, and aorta was dissected for subsequent én face analysis. Mice fed Corolase PP CPH but not Alcalase CPH had significantly lower % atherosclerotic plaque area in the aortic arch compared to controls (p = .015 and p = .077, respectively). Plasma and liver cholesterol and triacylglycerol remained constant, but levels of the fatty acid C20:5n‐3 were increased, accompanied by an elevated delta‐5 desaturase index in both CPHs groups. Moreover, a significant reduction of plasma MCP‐1 was detected in Corolase PP CPH compared to control. Overall, our data show that protein hydrolysates from chicken reduced atherosclerosis and attenuated systemic risk factors related to atherosclerotic disorders, not related to changes in the level of plasma cholesterol.

Cardiac-specific LRP6 knockout induces lipid accumulation through Drp1/CPT1b pathway in adult mice.

We recently reported low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 6 (LRP6) decreased in dilated cardiomyopathy hearts, and cardiac-specific knockout mice displayed lethal heart failure through activation of dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp1). We also observed lipid accumulation in LRP6 deficiency hearts, but the detailed molecular mechanisms are unclear. Here, we detected fatty acids components in LRP6 deficiency hearts and explored the potential molecular mechanisms. Fatty acid analysis by GC-FID/MS revealed cardiac-specific LRP6 knockout induced the higher level of total fatty acids and some medium-long-chain fatty acids (C16:0, C18:1n9 and C18:2n6) than in control hearts. Carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1b (CPT1b), a rate-limiting enzyme of mitochondrial β-oxidation in adult heart, was sharply decreased in LRP6 deficiency hearts, coincident with the activation of Drp1. Drp1 inhibitor greatly improved cardiac dysfunction and attenuated the increase in total fatty acids and fatty acids C16:0, C18:1n9 in LRP6 deficiency hearts. It also greatly inhibited the decrease in the cardiac expression of CPT1b and the transcriptional factors CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF) and c-Myc induced by cardiac-specific LRP6 knockout in mice. C-Myc but not CTCF was identified to regulate CPT1b expression and lipid accumulation in cardiomyocytes in vitro. The present study indicated cardiac-specific LRP6 knockout induced lipid accumulation by Drp1/CPT1b pathway in adult mice, and c-Myc is involved in the process. It suggests that LRP6 regulates fatty acid metabolism in adult heart.

Anaerohalosphaera lusitana gen. nov., sp. nov., and Limihaloglobus sulfuriphilus gen. nov., sp. nov., isolated from solar saltern sediments, and proposal of Anaerohalosphaeraceae fam. nov. within the order Sedimentisphaerales.

Two strains of anaerobic, coccoid, saccharolytic, Gram-stain-negative bacteria were isolated from samples of anoxic hypersaline sediments of evaporation ponds in Tavira (Portugal) and Mallorca (Spain). Both isolates were moderately halophilic, neutrophilic and had a temperature optimum at 37 °C. The highest 16S rRNA gene sequence identity values were found with members of the genus Sedimentisphaera (84.9-88.2 %) within the order Sedimentisphaerales, class Phycisphaerae. The strain SM-Chi-D1T could be assigned to the family Sedimentisphaeraceae, while phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA gene sequences and genomic data indicate that strain ST-NAGAB-D1T is both a member of a novel genus and a novel family. SM-Chi-D1T could be distinguished from other cultured members of the Sedimentisphaeraceae mainly by the stimulatory effect of sulfur on growth, lack of ethanol production during fermentation and several differences in the cellular fatty acids and polar lipids patterns. Main differential characteristics of ST-NAGAB-D1T were a polytrichous flagellation, the absence of branched chain fatty acids and presence of large proportions of the unsaturated cellular fatty acids C16 : 1 c9 and C18 : 1 c11. On the basis of genomic, chemotaxonomic, biochemical and physiological data, we propose the novel species and genera Anaerohalosphaera lusitana gen. nov., sp. nov., and Limihaloglobus sulfuriphilus gen. nov., sp. nov., represented by the type strains ST-NAGAB-D1T (=DSM 103484T=JCM 31926T=KCTC 15600T) and SM-Chi-D1T (=DSM 100118T=JCM 31927T=KCTC 15601T), respectively. In addition, we propose the novel family Anaerohalosphaeraceae fam. nov. to accommodate the genus Anaerohalosphaera.

Safflower seeds in the diet of feedlot lambs improved fat carcass, colour, and fatty acid profile of the meat

The aim of this study was to evaluate intake, performance, carcass characteristics and meat quality of lambs fed finishing diets containing 0%, 7.5% and 15% safflower seeds (Carthamus tinctorius) as a replacement for corn and soybean meal. Thirty-six male lambs with mean bodyweight of 17.9 ± 1.8 kg were randomly assigned to one of three treatments: C0: no safflower seeds, C7.5: 7.5%safflower seeds in diet (DM basis), and C15: 15% safflower seeds in diet (DM basis). The lambs were fed in pens of two and thus there were six replicates per treatment. Performance and carcass characteristics were not affected by including safflower seeds in their diet. Animals fed 7.5% safflower seeds had greater dry matter intake. There was a linear effect of increasing the redness (a*) of meat with the amount of safflower, where a mean of 15.77 was found for lambs that received the C15 diet. With increasing levels of safflower, the concentration of fatty acids C14:0, C17:0, and C22:1 increased. However, conjugated linoleic acid (CLA, C18:2) was reduced in lambs fed C15. A concentration of 0.461 g/100 g meat was observed for animals that consumed C7.5. Thus, lambs fed a diet containing 7.5% safflower had the greatest dry matter intake, carcass fat, and concentration of conjugated linoleic acid in their meat, and enhanced meat colour.Key words: conjugated linoleic acid, human health, lipid supplementation, oilseeds

Paraburkholderia pallida sp. nov. and Paraburkholderia silviterrae sp. nov., isolated from forest soil.

Two Gram-stain-negative, aerobic, motile, white-pigmented and rod-shaped bacterial strains, 7MH5T and 4 M-K11T, were isolated from forest soil of Dinghushan Biosphere Reserve, Guangdong Province, PR China. Strain 7MH5T grew at 4-37 °C (optimum, 28-33 °C), pH 3.5-9.0 (pH 4.0-5.5) and in the presence of 0-3 % (w/v) NaCl (0-1.5 w/v); while strain 4 M-K11T grew at 4-42 °C (20-33 °C), pH 3.5-8.5 (pH 4.5-6.0) and in the presence of 0-2.5 % (w/v) NaCl (0-1.5 w/v). Strains 7MH5T and 4 M-K11T have the highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities of 98.6 and 98.7 % to Paraburkholderia peleae PP52-1T, and 98.4 % between themselves. In the 16S rRNA gene sequence phylogram, strains 4 M-K11T and Paraburkholderia ferrariae NBRC 106233T formed a clade while 7MH5T were relatively distinct from other Paraburkholderia species. Based on the UBCG phylogenomic analysis, strains 7MH5T and 4 M-K11T formed a clade with Paraburkholderia oxyphila NBRC 105797T and Paraburkholderia sacchari LMG 19450T in the genus of Paraburkholderia. The DNA G+C contents of strains 7MH5T and 4 M-K11T were 64.2 and 64.3 %, respectively. Digital DNA-DNA hybridization and the average nucleotide identity values of strains 7MH5T, 4 M-K11T and closely related strains were in the ranges of 25.2-63.6 % and 81.0-95.5 %, respectively. The two strains had the same major respiratory quinone: ubiquinone-8. Strain 7MH5T had C16 : 0, C17 : 0cyclo, C19 : 0cyclo ω8c and summed feature 8 (C18 : 1 ω7c/C18 : 1 ω6c) as its major fatty acids, while strain 4 M-K11T had major fatty acids of C16 : 0, C17 : 0cyclo and summed feature 2 (iso-C16 : 1 I/C14 : 0-3OH). The major polar lipids were phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol and diphosphatidylglycerol. On the basis of phenotypic and phylogenetic analyses based on both 16S rRNA gene and whole genome sequences, as well as chemotaxonomic data, strains 7MH5T and 4 M-K11T represent two novel species of the genus Paraburkholderia, for which the names Paraburkholderia pallida sp. nov. (type strain 7MH5T=GDMCC 1.1450T=KACC 19962T) and Paraburkholderia silviterrae sp. nov. (type strain 4 M-K11T=GDMCC 1.1284T=CGMCC 1.15450T=KACC 19961T=LMG 29217T) are proposed.

Growth performance and meat composition of rabbits fed diets supplemented with silkworm pupae meal

Aim of study: To determine the effect of different dietary levels of silkworm pupae meal (SWPM) on the growth performance of broiler rabbits and the chemical composition of their meat.Area of study: Southern Poland, Europe.Material and methods: Ninety Termond White rabbits were divided into three feeding groups. Control group rabbits were fed a diet containing 10% soybean meal (SBM). In the first experimental group, rabbits received a diet containing 5% SBM and 5% SWPM. The diet administered to the second experimental group was supplemented with 10% SWPM.Main results: Both partial and complete replacement of SBM with SWPM in diets contributed to a decrease in the final body weights of rabbits (2416.50 and 2390.78 vs. 2616.78 g), average daily gains (30.23 and 30.52 vs. 33.12 g) and feed intake (5.61 and 5.15 vs. 6.51 kg), but it improved the feed conversion ratio (3.28 and 3.05 vs. 3.41 kg/kg). Rabbits fed diets supplemented with SWPM were characterized by lower values of selected carcass parameters such as carcass weight and dressing percentage. Experimental diets had no significant effect on the proximate chemical composition of meat, but they increased the levels of fatty acids C18:3, C22:5 and C22:6.Research highlights: The results of this study can be put into practice to replace conventional protein and fat sources in rabbit diets with insect meals (SWPM) in the production of rabbit meat for human consumption. Our findings can also contribute to the recycling of sericultural waste.