Artificial Feeding Method Research Articles

Relationship between the components of mare breast milk and foal gut microbiome: shaping gut microbiome development after birth

The gut microbiota (GM) is essential for mammalian health. Although the association between infant GM and breast milk (BM) composition has been well established in humans, such a relationship has not been investigated in horses. Hence, this study was conducted to analyze the GM formation of foals during lactation and determine the presence of low-molecular-weight metabolites in mares’ BM and their role in shaping foals’ GM. The fecal and BM samples from six pairs of foals and mares were subjected to 16S ribosomal RNA metagenomic and metabolomic analyses, respectively. The composition of foal GM changed during lactation time; hierarchical cluster analysis divided the fetal GM into three groups corresponding to different time points in foal development. The level of most metabolites in milk decreased over time with increasing milk yield, while threonic acid and ascorbic acid increased. Further analyses revealed gut bacteria that correlated with changes in milk metabolites; for instance, there was a positive correlation between Bacteroidaceae in the foal’s gut microbiota and serine/glycine in the mother’s milk. These findings help improve the rearing environment of lactating horses and establish artificial feeding methods for foals.

Effects of Surface Water on Artificial Recharge of Coastal Aquifers by GIS Zoning Maps: A Case Study in Ghaemshahr, Iran

Background: The study aimed to assess surface water resources for potential use during non-irrigation seasons to boost groundwater aquifers. This method also helps reduce aquifer depletion, mitigate land subsidence, and enhance groundwater quality. Methods: In this study, artificial feeding methods were used to determine the appropriate location for the Ghaemshahr plain. Water resources were tested in terms of quantity and quality through field and laboratory studies. Based on the findings, geographic information system (GIS) mapping was utilized to create maps and select the best location and feeding method. Results: The most important source of nutrition for recharging the aquifer in terms of quantity and quality was the Talar River. The study area’s conditions like aquifer thickness, permeability, topographic slope, and land use were analyzed using GIS and thematic maps. The results indicated that by using these methods, it is possible to store 5 million cubic meters of surface water in the aquifer for 6 months. Conclusion: This study demonstrated the feasibility of using surface waters in the area for artificial feeding, employing the pond method1. Additionally, it is recommended to dig measuring wells to monitor the water level rise at the bottom of the pond 1. It also suggests the use of simulation software like PMVIN, Mod flow, and GMS to optimize the artificial replenishment process and select the most suitable approach from the defined scenarios before taking any actions.

A standardised low-cost membrane blood-feeder for Aedes aegypti made using common laboratory materials.

Blood feeding is a necessary part of laboratory studies involving mosquitoes and other hematophagous arthropods of interest in medical and ecological research. However, methods involving hosts may present serious risks, require ethics approvals and can be expensive. Here we describe an insect blood feeder made using common laboratory materials, which is low cost (<US$100) and can be constructed and operated with little technical expertise. We compared the blood feeder containing an artificial blood diet, Skitosnack, to direct human arm feeding for Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae), in terms of engorgement rate, fecundity and hatch rate. No significant difference in fecundity between the two approaches was found, (mean±SD); direct human arm: 56±26 eggs/female, artificial method: 47±25 eggs/female, P=0.569. Engorgement rates (direct human arm: 97.8±4%, artificial: 64.1±23%, P<0.05) and hatch rates (direct human arm: 75±12%, artificial: 59±14%, P<0.05) were lower in the artificially fed mosquitoes. Despite these differences, we maintained a healthy mosquito colony for 10 generations using the artificial feeding approach. Results from this comparison are within the range of other studies which compared direct host feeding with an artificial feeding method. We anticipate that the blood feeder presented here could substantially reduce costs usually required to establish a standardised and effective blood feeding method for maintaining mosquito colonies or conducting experiments, extending the capability of laboratories especially where research resources are limited, but vector-borne diseases common.

The Absence of Abdominal Pigmentation in Livestock Associated Culicoides following Artificial Blood Feeding and the Epidemiological Implication for Arbovirus Surveillance.

Culicoides midges (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae), the vectors of economically important arboviruses such as bluetongue virus and African horse sickness virus, are of global importance. In the absence of transovarial transmission, the parity rate of a Culicoides population provides imperative information regarding the risk of virus dispersal. Abdominal pigmentation, which develops after blood feeding and ovipositioning, is used as an indicator of parity in Culicoides. During oral susceptibility trials over the last three decades, a persistent proportion of blood engorged females did not develop pigment after incubation. The present study, combining a number of feeding trials and different artificial feeding methods, reports on this phenomenon, as observed in various South African and Italian Culicoides species and populations. The absence of pigmentation in artificial blood-fed females was found in at least 23 Culicoides species, including important vectors such as C. imicola, C. bolitinos, C. obsoletus, and C. scoticus. Viruses were repeatedly detected in these unpigmented females after incubation. Blood meal size seems to play a role and this phenomenon could be present in the field and requires consideration, especially regarding the detection of virus in apparent “nulliparous” females and the identification of overwintering mechanisms and seasonally free vector zones.

Effects of Blood Sources and Artificial Blood Feeding Membranes on the Biological Parameters and Hepatitis C Virus Infectivity of Culex pipiens (Diptera: Culicidae)

Culex pipiens (L.) has a wide distribution worldwide and is the main vector of many diseases. Mass rearing of all target vector mosquito species is frequently required for public health research and vector control. Vector mosquito species are anautogenous, they need vertebrate blood for egg production. Therefore, female blood feeding is essential for colonisation. Various artificial feeding methods have been developed over the years but they lack consistency. Thus, we have developed an artificial feeding technique for rearing and infection experiments as an attempt to establish a practical guide for vector research. Culex mosquitoes were fed directly and artificially; four blood sources (human, cattle, rat and pigeon) and three different membranes (chick, sausage casing and Parafilm-M®) were assessed based on feeding rate, fecundity, oviposition, egg hatchability and infectivity. The chick membrane was considerably more efficient than sausage casing and Parafilm-M. Using the chick membrane with different blood sources, feeding rates (FR) were 89.60 %, 86.20 %, 61.60 %, 50.40 % for human, cattle, rat and pigeon blood, respectively. There was statistically no significant difference in FR between cattle and human blood. Hepatitis C virus infection was carried out successfully using the artificial feeding technique with chick membrane. RT-PCR readings proved that Culex pipiens can harbour this virus for five days through the midgut region. Cattle blood with chick membrane in mosquito rearing is a good substitute for human blood and live feeding for its availability and cost effectiveness. Overall, this method could be recommended in mosquito experimental infection, vectorial capacity and pathogen interactions studies.

Community Perspectives During a Lead Contaminated Drinking Water Crisis: Lessons for Lactation and Other Health Providers.

Millions of people today live in contaminated environments. Often, these environments disproportionately affect nonwhite, racialized families who are low-income, pregnant, and/or feeding young children. Despite the overwhelming recognition among scholars and practitioners of these realities, however, few lactation or other health professionals center socially disadvantaged families' perspectives in their work. Community expertise is therefore often absent from the credentialed lactation and associated support that tends to be advanced in contaminated environments. The aims of this study were to: (1) Describe how vulnerable community members experience toxic environments, and (2) Explore the strategies vulnerable community members themselves employ and seek out from professionals to achieve resilience in these environments. The research design for this study was prospective and cross-sectional. We surveyed 62 Milwaukeean African American women of childbearing age and their close networks of support from predominantly low-income census tracts, and we engaged 14 women in a community conversation on their experiences, strategies, and desires generated from living in Milwaukee during a lead contaminated drinking water crisis. Participants were aware and concerned about toxic poisoning in their environment, especially as it affects their children. Nonetheless, societal factors constrained their levels of preparedness and action in response, including around chestfeeding, breastfeeding, expressed milk feeding, and artificial feeding methods. Lactation providers and other health professionals can better support at-risk families by integrating their perspectives into dominant frameworks for information-sharing, preventative resource distribution, and supporting community self-determination.

Optimization of an artificial tick feeding assay for Dermacentor reticulatus

BackgroundThe development of standardized in vitro feeding methods for ixodid ticks has been hampered by their complex feeding behaviour and the long duration of their blood meal. In this study, we aimed to optimize several parameters for the in vitro feeding of adult Dermacentor reticulatus.MethodsTicks were fed on heparinized bovine blood collected at a slaughterhouse, using a modified silicone membrane feeding assay. Effects on tick feeding and fecundity of different blood meal treatments (freezing, irradiation, addition of antibiotics), ambient conditions (increased CO2 concentration) and phagostimulant use (addition of 2 g/l and 4 g/l glucose to the blood meal) were systematically evaluated.ResultsAlthough fungal growth occurred more frequent in feeding units of ticks fed on defrosted blood, the attachment rate, engorgement mass and fecundity of females fed on defrosted blood did not significantly differ from that of ticks fed on fresh blood. A reduction in the fecundity of female D. reticulatus ticks was observed when ticks were fed with gamma-irradiated blood or untreated blood compared to blood treated with gentamycin. Both the engorgement mass and fecundity increased when ticks were fed at a 5% CO2 level. A non-significant increase in the engorgement mass and engorgement rate of D. reticulatus was observed when blood was supplemented with 4 g glucose per litre compared to 2 g/l.ConclusionAn artificial feeding method was adapted for the feeding of adult D. reticulatus ticks. Of all parameters tested, only the artificial feeding at 5% CO2 levels resulted in a significant increase (P < 0.05) in the engorgement mass and fecundity of female D. reticulatus ticks. The supplementation of blood with antibiotics resulted in a significantly higher tick fecundity in comparison to ticks fed with untreated or irradiated blood.

Tentative nil per os leads to poor outcomes in older adults with aspiration pneumonia

Patients with aspiration pneumonia (AP) may experience swallowing function declines during treatment, necessitating artificial feeding methods. Proper AP treatment contributes to maintaining activities of daily living. The aim was to assess the effect of tentative nil per os (NPO) status on the recovery of AP patients and declines in their swallowing abilities. In this retrospective cohort study, 331 patients with AP having oral food intake in premorbid status were included after exclusions for reasons such as vomiting or respiratory insufficiency. We divided subjects into 2 groups: an early oral intake (EOI) group and a tentative NPO group according to the directions by the attending doctors at admission. We created a population model related to groupings from all subjects, which was a homoscedastic model without statistical differences by the inverse probability of treatment weighted (IPTW) method and compared outcomes between the groups. In the IPTW model, tentative NPO status resulted in poorer nutritional intake every day for 1 week from the date of admission (p<0.05), a significantly longer treatment duration (50% treatment length: NPO group, 13 days [95% confidence interval (CI), 12.04-13.96] and EOI group, 8 days [95% CI, 7.69-8.31[log-rank test, p<0.001]) and greater decline in swallowing ability over the course of treatment (p<0.001). Tentative NPO status with AP at hospital admission resulted in adverse effects on patients, including prolonged treatment duration and declines in swallowing ability. Avoiding unnecessary NPO might be another method to treat AP and contribute to the patient's outcomes in addition to medication administration.

Foraging distance of Melipona subnitida Ducke (Hymenoptera: Apidae)

The current study aimed at estimating the maximum foraging distance of the stingless bee Melipona subnitida by comparing the efficacy of two methods: training of workers with an artificial feeding source and the capture-recapture technique, which consisted at marking bees that were released at different distances from the nest, after which the number of bees that returned to the colony was recorded. Under the training method, the mean foraging distance of the three colonies studied was 1,120 m and maximum foraging distance of 1,160 m. Yet the number of recruits and reactivated foragers for each colony were quantified, the average maximum distance unil recruitment occurred was 886,66 m. In the capture-recapture method, the maximum flight distance of captured foragers ranged from 3,600 to 4,000 m, which was 2,700 m farther than the maximum flight distance recorded using the artificial feeding method. Therefore, we verified that M. subnitida is a species that can travel long distances in search for food. Our results also suggest that an abundance of resources near the nest can reduce its foraging area.

Implementation of the Artificial Feeders in Hematophagous Arthropod Research Cooperates to the Vertebrate Animal Use Replacement, Reduction and Refinement (3Rs) Principle

Vector-borne diseases are transmitted to humans by hematophagous arthropods and these blood-sucking organisms are target to researches worldwide. The laboratory colonization of these species is an important factor in the development of innovative strategies to control these vectors. However, this maintenance requires blood to make these invertebrates able to complete their life cycle. Although live vertebrate animals are frequently used for this feeding procedure, artificial feeders are available as potential alternatives to replace the use of live animals in some situations, especially in vector colony maintenance. The aim of this commentary is to discuss the use of artificial feeding methods concerning the 3Rs principle application. The scientific community focused on vector-borne diseases studies needs to strongly consider these artificial feeding options as a bioethical alternative to maintain blood-feeding arthropods in laboratory.

A quantitative analysis of a modified feeding method for rearingCimex lectularius(Hemiptera: Cimicidae) in the laboratory

A modified artificial feeding system was developed for rearing Cimex lectularius and compared with the most widely used artificial feeding method which requires custom-made glassware and a circulating water bath to warm the blood. The petri dish method reduces some of the drawbacks from the current water bath method, such as the possibility of flooding bed bug rearing jars with water or blood and the need for expensive custom-made glassware. Field and lab strain first instar nymphs were given a 15 or 30 min interval to feed for 6-9 weeks. Analysis of bed bugs that fed during a 6 week time period showed that there was no significant difference in the numbers that fed using the petri dish method compared with those that fed using the water bath method. Development of the nymphs also showed that there was no significant difference in the time required to produce adults by either method. The petri dish method is an attractive alternative to the water bath method. Set-up is less complex, quicker, multiple jars of bed bugs can be fed at the same time, petri dishes of blood are disposable for easy clean-up and the potential of fatality due to flooding with blood or water is reduced.

Feeding through artificial membranes reduces fecundity for females of the blood‐feeding insect, Rhodnius prolixus

The blood-feeding insect, Rhodnius prolixus, has been raised in the laboratory for close to 100 years. Various feeding techniques have been employed ranging from the use of warm-blooded hosts, to the use of previously collected blood offered through artificial membranes. This study compared the fecundity in mated and unmated females fed rabbit blood directly from the shaved belly of a rabbit to that of females fed defibrinated rabbit blood through an artificial membrane. These results confirm previous reports that this insect's feeding efficacy is reduced using an artificial membrane. It also demonstrates for the first time that the fecundity index, which measures the efficiency of turning the blood meal into eggs, is significantly reduced. We suggest that the natural feeding on a warm-blooded host may provide cues that have the short-term effect of enhancing the act of feeding and the long-term effect of increasing egg production efficiency. Until an artificial feeding method that does not interfere with feeding and fecundity is devised, experiments on reproduction in R. prolixus warrant the use of a warm-blooded host to emulate feeding in its natural setting.

Succimer treatment and calcium supplementation reduce tissue lead in suckling rats

The effect of combined treatment with meso-2,3-dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) and calcium supplementation in reducing lead absorption and enhancing lead elimination was evaluated in suckling rats under two experimental conditions: during ongoing oral lead exposure (lead acetate, 2 mg Pb kg(-1) day(-1), total dose 16 mg Pb kg(-1)) or after lead exposure (72 h after a 2-day lead exposure, total dose 12 mg Pb kg(-1) s.c.). The artificial feeding method was used for calcium supplementation, with 6% Ca (as CaHPO(4)) suspension in cow's milk to increase the daily calcium intake about three times above control values. Artificial feeding lasted for 7 h a day over eight consecutive days. During this period DMSA was administered on 6 days twice a day (0.5 mmol kg(-1) day(-1) p.o.). At the end of the experiments, Pb, Ca and Zn in the carcass and Pb, Fe and Cu in the liver, kidneys and brain were analysed by atomic absorption spectrometry. Calcium supplementation during lead exposure reduced tissue lead but had no effect when applied after lead exposure, and DMSA administered either during or after lead exposure lowered the tissue lead. Combined treatment during ongoing lead exposure caused a greater reduction in tissue lead than either DMSA or calcium treatment alone. When administered after lead exposure, it had no advantage over DMSA treatment alone but did not impair its efficacy. Combined treatment had no influence on growth and did not seriously disturb essential element status. It is concluded that calcium supplementation could be applied during DMSA therapy, when indicated.

The impact of nutritional support on appetite and food intake

Artificial nutrition (enteral tube feeding and parenteral nutrition) is increasingly being used in hospital and community settings to provide short- and long-term nutritional support to a diverse range of patients with acute and chronic conditions. Despite these methods of feeding being used either in cojunction with diet, or as a sole source of nutrition, the issue of their satiating ability has previously been largely overlooked. The consensus that emerges from this review is that nutrients provided by enteral tube feeding or parenteral nutrition are not as effective as orally ingested nutrients at relieving appetite sensations or suppressing food intake. When artificial nutritional support is used as the sole source of nutrition, distressing appetite sensations may occur, even if full nutrient requirements are met by enteral tube or parenteral feeding. When used as a supplement to ad libitum food intake, enteral tube feeding and parenteral nutrition only partially suppress oral intake, and total energy intake is increased. The mechanisms responsible for the poorer satiating ability of artificial feeding methods, relative to food intake, are not clearly understood, but the bypassing of the upper gastrointestinal tract and associated cephalic phase response by these methods of nutrient delivery may be important.

From the Collection: "An Act of Flagrant Rebellion against Nature"

LONG BEFORE the invention of the india rubber nipple in 1845, women had a number of options when they chose to handraise, or artificially feed, their infants. These ranged from the expensive to the improvised. Various methods of artificial feeding had been known since classical times; one of the earliest and probably most popular types of feeders was an animal horn. Women cut a hole in the tip of the horn, over which a nipple of leather or parchment was placed. Hand-raising became popular in the eighteenth century and took a number of forms.' One of the more intriguing is the silver nursing nipple, an example of which is in the Winterthur collection (fig. 1). The significance of this object will be revealed through an exploration of the other nursing options available and the attitudes toward the use of these artificial feeders during the eighteenth and first half of the nineteenth centuries.

Comparison of three methods of feeding colostrum to dairy calves

Summary Absorption of colostral immunoglobulins by Holstein calves was studied in 3 herds in which 3 methods of colostrum feeding were used. Failure of passive transfer, as determined by calf serum immunoglobulin G1 (IgG1) concentration &lt; 10 mg/ml at 48 hours of age, was diagnosed in 61.4% of calves from a dairy in which calves were nursed by their dams, 19.3% of calves from a dairy using nipple-bottle feeding, and 10.8% of calves from a dairy using tube feeding. The management factor determined to have the greatest influence on the probability of failure of passive transfer in the herds using artificial methods of colostrum feeding (bottle feeding or tube feeding) was the volume of colostrum fed as it affected the amount of IgG1 received by the calf. In dairies that used artificial feeding methods, failure of passive transfer was infrequent in calves fed ≥ 100 g IgG1 in the first colostrum feeding. In the dairy that allowed calves to suckle, prevalence of failure of passive transfer was greater than 50% even among calves nursed by cows with above-average colostral IgG1 concentration. Analysis of the effect of other management factors on calf immunoglobulin absorption revealed small negative effects associated with the use of previously frozen colostrum and the use of colostrum from cows with long nonlactating intervals.

Artificial feeding of Triatoma infestans (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) with defibrinated blood.

An artificial feeding method for Triatoma infestans using defibrinated chicken and bovine blood was developed. The plastic film used (Resinite® RMF-61HY) allows feeding from the 1st nymphal instar and has practical advantages over latex films. Feeding of defibrinated whole blood to bugs through an artificial membrane resulted in development comparable to control groups fed on live chickens. The method was tested for 20 weeks, with data recorded for mortality, molting, oviposition and egg viability; no significant differences (P > 0.05) were found between the artificial feeding method and feeding on live chickens.

Experiments on biting and gorging behaviour in the black fly, Simulium venustum

ABSTRACT. Factors which initiate ‘biting’ (i.e. probing, piercing and tasting collectively) and gorging responses, were studied in the black fly, S. venustum using an artificial feeding method. A positive relationship was found between biting activity and the magnitude of the temperature differential between the feeding surface and the air above it. Although many investigators consider temperature to be a probing stimulus, it is argued that an equally consistent interpretation could regard temperature as only a very short range host‐location cue. The stimulus to probe could be contact with the feeding substrate. Of the compounds tested as gorging stimulants ATP and ADP proved most potent, followed by AMP and adenosine, followed by cAMP. The compounds GTP, CTP and UTP were all on the borderline of statistical significance as gorging stimulants. It is suggested that the host‐location phase, including the biting responses, represents appetitive behaviour leading to the consummatory response of repetitive pumping (gorging) stimulated by ATP, etc.

Beliefs and customs regarding breast feeding among Egyptian women in Alexandria

In Egypt, since the days of the Pharaohs, breast feeding has been the chosen method of infant nutrition. Until recently this was true in most developing countries. Now, with the influx of new ideas from the more developed countries of the world, there is a growing tendency to substitute artificial feeding. Often the results are disastrous. In order to use artificial feeding methods it is necessary to have certain minimal conditions. These include a literate population, an efficient waste disposal system, a source of clean milk or the money to purchase supplies and the availability of milk substitutes or dried milk. These conditions do not yet exist in Egypt, nor indeed in most developing countries. Consequently, the breast feeding of infants must be encouraged, simply for safety, even if one disregards the many other possible values. Fortunately, there are strong cultural factors in Egypt which promote the practice of breast feeding. From ancient days Egyptian women have breast fed their children for long periods of time, up to 3 yr. This practice was considered so important that the papyri contain prescriptions designed to help them. Children are depicted on the walls of the temples and tombs of ancient Egypt being suckled by goddesses and Greek chroniclers commented on the good care given to children in this country (Ghalioungui, 1973). Later, as the Moslem religion grew powerful .in Egypt, their view that breast feeding for two years is the birthright of every infant became an important part of Egyptian belief. These traditions, in combination with the natural love of the Egyptian people for little children, conspire to perpetuate the continuation of breast feeding as the most prevalent method of infant nutrition. Midwives and obstetrics nurses, because of their opportunities for patient teaching, can play a large part4n encouraging and supporting this custom. In order to do this, the nurse should be aware of the beliefs of her patients and prepared to guide them toward good lactation practices. This means that the nurse must understand the physiologic principles *The authors wish to express their appreciation to Project HOPE (The People-to-People Health Foundation,

Artificial Feeding of Infant Rats by Continuous Gastric Infusion

A technique for the artificial feeding of infant rats by continuous gastric infusion is described. Using an infusion pump, a milk diet is continuously conveyed to the stomach of the animal via a gastric cannula which has been surgically implanted by gastrostomy shortly after birth. The method is designed to raise eight rats from birth to the age of weaning. Normal growth rates can be approximated. Because the technique is semiautomatic it has the advantage over other methods of artificial feeding in that it avoids the danger of trauma that accompanies repeated passage of oral-gastric feeding tubes. In addition, it eliminates the need for attendance during the night and can be readily handled by a single investigator.