Relative Spleen Weight Research Articles

Effect of terracotta drinker and/or water addition of ASPRO‐C plus on behavior, growth, and physiological response of broiler chickens exposed to high temperature

AbstractThis study aimed to evaluate the effects of a terracotta drinker and/or water supplementation with ASPRO‐C Plus on the zootechnical performance of broiler chickens reared in a hot environment. A total of 160 Cobb 500 broiler chicks of 15 days old (240.2 ± 39.82 g) were divided into four treatment groups in a 2 x 2 factorial arrangement of drinker type (plastic or terracotta) and water with or without ASPRO‐C Plus (1 g/L) supplementation, each consisting of 4 replicate pens. Respiratory rate, water intake, feed intake, and live body weight were recorded weekly. At 49 days old, 12 birds per group were randomly selected, fasted for 12 h, weighed, and slaughtered for carcass evaluation and blood collection. The respiration rate of broilers decreased significantly (p < 0.01) with the terracotta drinker as compared to the plastic drinker. The water intake, the feed intake and the body weight gain increased significantly (p < 0.01) with the terracotta drinker as compared to the plastic drinker. The water addition of ASPRO‐C Plus significantly increased (p < 0.01) the relative weight of abdominal fat and spleen in broilers. The alpha‐amylase activity was significantly decreased (p < 0.01) with the water addition of ASPRO‐C Plus. The serum content of total cholesterol was significantly increased (p < 0.01) with the terracotta drinker. It can be concluded that ASPRO‐C Plus can slightly improve liveability, but using the terracotta drinker can be more efficient in reducing the behavioral response to heat stress and can improve the growth performance.

Therapeutic oligonucleotide ASC1R shows excellent tolerability and remarkable efficacy in reducing SARS-CoV-2 mRNA levels in C57BL/6 mice

The coronavirus pandemic has resulted in over 775 million cases and 7 million deaths worldwide, driving efforts to develop therapeutic strategies to control the viral infection. Therapeutic oligonucleotides have shown promise in treating many pathological conditions, including those of viral origin. The present study assessed the in vivo efficacy and safety of ASC1R, a novel therapeutic oligonucleotide of unconventional design targeting the conserved viral RdRp sequence essential for replication. In functional studies, ASC1R was administered to transfected C57BL/6 mice at doses of 1 and 10 mg/kg. Safety assessments included acute toxicity evaluations at doses ranging from 30 to 100 mg/kg, and subacute toxicity evaluations of repeated doses of 1 and 10 mg/kg. Evaluations included general clinical observations, findings at necropsy, measurements of organ weight, and histopathological examinations of the liver, lungs, spleen, and kidneys. ASC1R effectively reduced RdRp levels >94 % within 24 hours following a single 1 mg/kg dose, with no observed organ toxicity. Acute and subacute toxicity assessments found that mice receiving high (≥30 mg/kg) or repeated (10 mg/kg for 7 days) doses of ASC1R showed an increase in relative spleen weight, without histopathological changes. The marked ability of a single low dose of ASC1R (1 mg/kg) to reduce viral RNA suggests its potential for clinical applications, balancing therapeutic efficacy with minimal side effects. Our findings indicate that ASC1R has promise as a viable treatment option for patients with COVID-19.

PSII-16 Effect of dietary β-mannanase on growth performance, immune organ weight, and intestinal morphology of broiler chickens: A meta-analysis

Abstract Beta-mannan (β-mannan) is commonly found in various feedstuffs and is well-recognized as an anti-nutritional factor for non-ruminant animals. In broiler chickens, dietary β-mannan is known to increase digesta viscosity, which is highly associated with decreased growth performance and intestinal health. Moreover, dietary β-mannan comprises surface components of various pathogens, which are recognized by innate immune systems, leading to an over-stimulation of immune system. This over-expression of immune system by dietary β-mannan is likely considered the reason for decreased performance and health in broiler chickens. One potential solution to mitigate this antinutritional effect of dietary β-mannan is the supplementation of exogenous β-mannanase in broiler diets. Previous studies have demonstrated that dietary supplementation of β-mannanase improves growth performance, immune responses, and intestinal morphology in broiler chickens by improving nutrient digestion and absorption in the gastrointestinal tract. However, existing research on the effect of dietary supplementation of β-mannanase has shown highly variable results, possibly due to large variations in experimental designs such as number of animals, animal genotype, experimental locations, and rearing conditions. Therefore, to obtain a comprehensive understanding of previously reported various results regarding the effect of dietary β-mannanase, it is necessary to integrate them into quantitative analysis through meta-analysis. Subsequently, the objective of this study was to conduct a meta-analysis summarizing the outcomes of the effect of dietary β-mannanase on growth performance, immune organ weight, and intestinal morphology of broiler chickens. A total of 27 eligible studies were identified through a comprehensive literature search conducted on Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar between January 2003 and December 2023. The meta-analysis was performed with the package “metafor” of the R software version 4.1.3. (R Core Team, 2023), and the standardized mean difference (SMD) and its 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated using the random effect model. The results indicated that dietary supplementation of β-mannanase increased body weight gain (SMD = 2.09; 95% CI: 0.77 to 3.41; P = 0.003) and decreased feed conversion ratio (SMD = -2.98; 95% CI: -4.21 to -1.75; P < 0.001) in broiler chickens (Table 1). Regarding intestinal morphology, dietary supplementation of β-mannanase increased jejunal villus height and crypt depth ratio (SMD = 2.07; 95% CI: 0.03 to 4.11; P = 0.048) and ileal villus height (SMD =2.06; 95% CI: 1.13 to 3.00; P = 0.002; Figure 1 and 2). Moreover, dietary supplementation of β-mannanase increased the relative spleen weight (SMD = 1.30; 95% CI: 0.25 to 2.36; P = 0.019) in broiler chickens. In conclusion, the current meta-analysis reveals that dietary supplementation of β-mannanase improves growth performance, intestinal morphology, and the relative spleen weight in broiler chickens.

Dried Chlorella powder supplementation: Impact on broiler chicken growth, health, and intestinal microflora

The use of dried Chlorella as an immune and growth stimulant to enhance nonspecific host defense mechanisms or as an antimicrobial to inhibit bacterial growth has been reported. This study aimed to assess the effects of dried Chlorella powder (DCP) supplementation on the growth, health, and intestinal microflora of commercial broiler chicks, comparing a diet containing DCP with an antibiotic-based diet. A total of 120 pieces day-old Cobb 500 broiler chicks were reared at Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University Poultry Farm, Dhaka, and randomly divided into four experimental groups of three replicates each, with 10 chicks per replication. One group was fed a control diet, while the remaining three groups were fed diets with 0.5% and 1.0% DCP, and antibiotics, respectively. Results indicated significant (P<0.05) improvements in body weight and dressing percentage with DCP inclusion compared to control-fed broilers. A linear increase in body weight was observed with higher DCP levels, with birds on the 1% DCP diet achieving superior body weights (1665.13±8.82) compared to the control and antibiotic groups. Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) and feed consumption were also significantly (P<0.05) improved, with the best FCR at 1% DCP (1.37±0.01) and the highest FCR in the control group (1.45±0.00). The highest feed consumption was noted in the control group. No significant (P>0.05) differences were observed in the relative weight of spleen and bursa among the groups. DCP had no significant (P>0.05) effects on liver, gizzard, intestine, and heart weights. Hematological studies revealed no significant (P>0.05) differences, except for Hemoglobin and Red Blood Cells (RBC), which were significantly (P<0.05) increased by DCP compared to control and antibiotic groups. DCP supplementation significantly (P<0.05) reduced E. coli and Salmonella sp. counts while increasing Lactobacillus sp. counts. Additionally, treatments with DCP significantly (P<0.05) boosted Newcastle disease (ND) titre levels compared to the control group. The study showed that DCP can be effectively replaced antibiotics in broiler diets, enhancing growth, health, and immune response, thereby promoting sustainable and safer poultry production practices.

Effect of feeding chitosan and blend of essential organic acids on growth performance, haematological parameters and innate immunity in early aged male layer chicks.

The use of antibiotics as conventional feed additives in poultry operations have proven useful, however resulted serious health concerns to consumer due to their bio-accumulation, besides rising problem of antimicrobial resistance in microbes, thus, an alternative to antibiotic growth promoter have called for. One of the aim of the experiment was to assess the lone and combined effects of feeding of chitosan oligosaccharide (COS) and blend of organic acids and short chain fatty acids in essential oils on growth performance, haematological parameters, relative lymphoid organ weight and innate immunity in early aged layer chick(male birds). A total of ninety, day-old chicks were randomly allotted into five groups: CO, Control group fed only poultry feed ; AGP, antibiotic growth promoter fed Avilomycin at the dose of 200mg/kg of poultry feed; CH, chitosan oligosaccharide fed at the rate of 100mg/kg feed; OE, blend of organic acids and short chain fatty acids in essential oils contained 1000 to 2000mg/kg feed in a graded dose per week and CH + OE, chitosan oligosaccharide plus blend of organic acids and short chain fatty acids in essential oils at consistent rate and manner as followed for each of given feed additives when fed individually. Data on growth performance, samples for haematological parameters and innate immunity were measured and assayed on 7th, 21st and 42nd day post feeding (dpf) respectively. The results showed that compared with the control group; there is a marginal gain in body weight at 7th and 21st dpf in CH group and the corresponding CH + OE group. Feed conversion ratio in CH group was remarkably good at 7th and 21st dpf. No significant difference was observed in relative organ weights of thymus, spleen and Bursa of Fabricius in treatment groups as compared to control birds; however a significant rise in splenic weight index in OE fed birds at 42nd dpf noted. Haematological changes were inconsequential in treatment groups with an exception to enhancement of heterophil to lymphocyte ratio (H:L ratio) in CH group at 42nd dpf. Serum lysozyme activity proportionately elevated in CH + OE group on 21st and 42nd dpf when measured against control group; on the other hand no detectable augmentation of gut lysozyme activity observed. Both serum bactericidal and gut bactericidal activity boosted in combinatorial group at 42nd dpf. These results indicated that early age feeding of chitosan individually or combination with organic acids and short chain fatty acids in layer chick is beneficial, as it has the potential to enhance body weight gain to some extent and improves systemic and localized innate immunity to offer protection against infectious assaults thus may avoid early chick mortality in farms.

Prenatal exposure to bisphenol AF causes toxicities in liver, spleen, and kidney tissues of SD rats

As a replacement for bisphenol A (BPA), bisphenol AF (BPAF) showed stronger maternal transfer and higher fetal accumulation than BPA. Therefore, concerns should be raised about the health risks of maternal exposure to BPAF during gestation on the offspring. In this study, SD rats were exposed to BPAF (0, 50, and 100 mg/kg/day) during gestation to investigate the bioaccumulation and adverse effects in liver, spleen, and kidney tissues of the offspring at weaning period. Bioaccumulation of BPAF in these tissues with concentrations ranging from 1.56 ng/mg (in spleen of males) to 55.44 ng/mg (in liver of females) led to adverse effects at different biological levels, including increased relative weights of spleen and kidneys, histopathological damage in liver, spleen, and kidney, organ functional damage in liver, spleen, and kidney, upregulated expression of genes related to lipid metabolism (in liver), oxidative stress response (in kidney), immunity and inflammatory (in spleen). Furthermore, dysregulated metabolomics was identified in spleen, with 217 differential metabolites screened and 9 KEGG pathways significantly enriched. This study provides a comprehensive insight into the systemic toxicities of prenatal exposure to BPAF in SD rats. Given the broad applications and widespread occurrence of BPAF, its safety should be re-considered.

Effectiveness of Hydrated Sodium Calcium Aluminosilicates and Discarded Date Pits as Dietary Adsorbents for Aflatoxin B1 in Enhancing Broiler Chicken Productive Performance, Hepatic Function, and Intestinal Health.

The research aimed to evaluate how effective hydrated sodium calcium aluminosilicates (HSCASs) and discarded date pits (DDPs) are as dietary adsorbents for aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) in enhancing the performance and health of broiler chickens aged 16 to 30 days. A total of 240 Ross 308 straight-run broilers were randomly allocated into four dietary groups, each with 10 replicates: a control diet, a control diet with 1000 ppb AFB1, an AFB1-contaminated diet with 0.5% HSCAS, and an AFB1-contaminated diet with 4% DDP. Incorporating HSCASs or DDPs into the AFB1-contaminated diet resulted in significant improvements across various parameters, involving increased body weight, improved feed conversion ratio, higher dressing percentage, decreased relative weights of kidney and spleen, elevated serum levels of total protein, globulin, and glucose, reduced serum alanine aminotransferase activity, and heightened hepatic protein concentration and glutathione peroxidase activity, along with diminished hepatic malondialdehyde content and glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase activity. Moreover, both supplements led to increased ileal villus height and surface area, enhanced apparent nitrogen-corrected metabolizable energy digestibility, and decreased AFB1 residues in the liver and kidney. Moreover, the dietary inclusion of DDPs significantly decreased relative liver weight, raised serum albumin concentration, lowered serum alkaline phosphatase activity, enhanced hepatic total antioxidant capacity level, and augmented ileal villus width. Conversely, the dietary addition of HSCASs significantly heightened apparent crude protein digestibility. In conclusion, the inclusion of HSCASs and DDPs in AFB1-contaminated diets can mitigate the toxic effects of AFB1 on broiler chickens, with DDPs exhibiting additional advantages in optimizing liver function and gut morphology.

Dietary incorporation of brown seaweed spent oyster mushroom substrate alters growth performance, physiological responses and meat quality parameters in Boschveld roosters

Use of brown seaweed (Ecklonia maxima) as a nutraceutical source in indigenous chicken diets is limited by high dietary fibre levels. Inoculating seaweeds with oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) spawn (OMS) could enhance the utility of the spent mushroom substrate (SMS). This study investigated the effect of feeding incremental levels of brown seaweed SMS on growth performance, physiological responses, and meat quality parameters in Boschveld roosters. A total of 324, 4-week-old Boschveld roosters were weighed and randomly allotted to 36 pens (9 birds per pen) to produce six replicates per dietary treatment. The diets were formulated as follows: a standard grower diet (CON); and CON containing 150 g/kg of brown seaweed inoculated with OMS at 0 (SMS0), 20 (SMS20), 30 (SMS30), 40 (SMS40) and 50% (SMS50). Birds fed diet CON had the least feed intake (p < 0.05) than all the other SMS treatment levels in weeks 7, 8, 12, 14 and 15. Diet SMS40 promoted higher (p < 0.05) body weight gain (BWG) than CON in weeks 6, 7, 9 and 14. Gain-to-feed ratio linearly increased in weeks 7 [R2 = 0.288; p = 0.010], 11 [R2 = 0.581, p = 0.0001] and 14 [R2 = 0.389, p = 0.004], respectively. Quadratic responses (p < 0.05) were observed for BWG in week 5, white blood cells, heterophils, platelets, lymphocytes, monocytes, and relative spleen and large intestine weights as OMS levels increased. Linear increases were recorded for slaughter [R2 = 0.197, p = 0.017] and breast weights [R2 = 0.197, p = 0.020] as OMS levels increased. Diet SMS0 promoted higher (p < 0.05) relative caeca weights than the CON and SMS treatment groups. Neither quadratic nor linear responses (p > 0.05) were observed for breast meat quality parameters. In conclusion, feeding brown seaweed SMS improved growth performance and slaughter weight, altered some blood parameters and internal organs, without affecting breast meat quality of Boschveld roosters. Based on the quadratic response for BWG, the optimum OMS level was deduced at 20% in a brown seaweed-based Boschveld rooster diet.

In vivo evaluation of efficacy and safety of Coagulansin-A in treating arthritis

The current study aimed to determine the safety and efficacy of Coag-A through in vivo analysis in CFA induced mice model. Treatment of CFA induced arthritis in mice with Coagulansin-A (10 mg/kg i.p. daily for 28 days), a withanolide obtained from Withania coagulans, as well as standard drug treatment with Dexamethasone (5 mg/kg i.p) was provided. The effect of Coag-A on body weight, relative organ weight, hematology, serum biochemistry, survival rate, oxidative stress markers, and antioxidant enzymes was evaluated. The liver and kidney histopathology were also assessed to ascertain its safety profile. Treatment of arthritic mice with Coag-A considerably improved body weight, relative organ weight of liver, kidney, and spleen, ameliorated hematology and serum biochemistry, and increased survival and antioxidant potential. Coag-A was found to be safer with fewer adverse effects showing hepato-protective, nephroprotective, and anti-inflammatory effect. It also significantly (p < 0.001) improved histopathology of CFA-induced mice when compared with Dexa. In conclusion, compared to dexamethasone, Coag-A has demonstrated a greater therapeutic benefit and fewer side effects in the treatment of arthritis against the CFA-induced model.

Impact of adding zeolite to broilers' diet and litter on growth, blood parameters, immunity, and ammonia emission

This work was designed to assess the impact of varying zeolite concentrations in diet and litter to enhance broiler's growth performance, immunity, and litter quality. A complete random arrangement was used for distributing 525 unsexed "Cobb 500" broiler chicks into seven treatments (75 chick / treatment), each treatment divided into 3 replicates (25 chicks / replicate). The 1st group (control one) received the recommended basal diet. Zeolite has been introduced to the basal diet (ZD) of the second, third, and fourth groups at concentrations of 5, 10, and 15 g/kg, respectively. The 5th, 6th and 7th groups used zeolite mixed with litter (ZL) at 0.5, 1, and 1.5 kg/m2 of litter, respectively. Due to the obtained results, adding zeolite with levels 15 g/kg of diet and 1.5 kg/1 m2 of litter, a significant improvement occurred in live body weight (LBW), body weight gain (BWG), feed intake (FI), feed conversion ratio (FCR) and European production efficiency factor (EPEF). Also, transaminase enzymes (ALT and AST), creatinine, white blood cells (WBCs) and different Immunoglobulins were significantly increased with different zeolite levels, except urea concentrations which showed reduced due to different zeolite treatments. In addition, spleen relative weight hasn't been affected by zeolite treatments, even though thymus and bursa relative weights had been affected significantly. Moreover, the antibodies' production to Newcastle disease virus (NDV) and Avian influenza virus (AIV) had increased significantly with adding zeolite with levels 10 g/kg of diet and 1.5 kg/1m2 of litter. Litter quality traits (NH3 concentration, pH values, and Moisture content) were improved with zeolite addition. So, zeolite could be employed in both feed and litter of broilers to maximize their production, immunity and improve farm's climate.

HISTOMORPHOMETRY OF SPLEEN RED TILAPIA (OREOCHROMIS NILOTICUS) CULTIVATED WITH DIFFERENT AERATIONAND FILTRATION

Cultivation of red tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) requires good water quality. Physiological processes and organ structures can be disrupted when water quality including dissolved oxygen, water temperature, pH, salinity and ammonia exceeds the normal threshold. Aeration and filtration in fish farming can help improve water quality which affects the improvement of physiological processes and spleen function of red tilapia. The study was purposed to analyze the use of aerators, filters and a combination of both on the histomorphometry and structure of the spleen of red tilapia. This study used a completely randomized design with a 2×2 factorial arrangement. Each main factor consists of two levels, such as aeration i.e., single aeration and double aeration and filtration i.e., without filter and with filter. The experimental fish in the study were 24 red tilapia fish which were divided into four treatment groups, which included single aeration without filter, double aeration without filter, single aeration with filter, and double aeration with filter. The results showed that the interaction between aeration and filters had no significant effect (P&gt;0.05) on spleen weight, Relative Spleen Weight (RSW), red pulp diameter, white pulp diameter, melanomacrophage center (MMC) diameter, and MMC cell diameter. The conclusion of this study was that the aeration, filters and combination of aeration and filters could maintain the chemical quality of water so there was no adverse effect on the histomorphometry and structure of the spleen of red tilapia

Sex-dependent responses to high concentration of binge ethanol in spleen of adolescent F344 rats.

We previously reported that binge ethanol induces atrophy of the spleen, a key immune organ, in adolescent male F344 rats. Because there are significant sex effects in immune function, we investigated whether binge ethanol exerts sex-dependent effects on the spleen, including producing splenic atrophy. We gave F344 rats ethanol (4.8 g/kg/day; 52% w/v; i.g.) on postnatal days [PND] 36 ~ 38 and sacrificed them on PND 39 for spleen collection. We performed immunophenotyping analysis of splenic cells and examined the expression of 158 genes related to alcohol metabolism, epigenetic modification, and immune regulation in the spleens of adolescent (PND 39) male and female rats. Following a 3-day ethanol exposure, a loss of body weight, and absolute and relative spleen weight, was seen only in male adolescent rats. Ethanol altered the relative proportions of lymphocyte subtypes in both sexes with different patterns. We also found that 3-day ethanol exposure induced sex-dependent gene expression changes in spleen. Among the 158 genes studied, the expression of only three genes was significantly increased in female rats. However, the expression of 30 genes was significantly increased/decreased in male rats. Female rats had greater expression of alcohol metabolizing enzyme genes in the spleen under physiological conditions and when stimulated by binge ethanol. The genes are involved in epigenetic modification were differentially expressed in a sex-dependent manner. We found that male adolescent rats were more sensitive to binge ethanol than female rats. Differential expression of the genes related to alcohol metabolism and epigenetic modification (of DNA methyltransferase and histone deacetylases) between the sexes could account for the observed sex-dependent responses to binge ethanol in adolescent rats.

Short-term immunotoxicity induced by florpyrauxifen-benzyl herbicide exposure in the spleen of male albino mice.

Florpyrauxifen-benzyl (FPB)is a new arylpicolinate systemic herbicide that has been used to control or suppress the majority of herbicide-resistant biotype weeds in rice. To our knowledge, the impact of FPB on the immune system remains undetected thus far. Hence, this work aimed to address the toxic effects of FPB and the possible related mechanisms on the spleen of exposed mice. Initially, an acute toxicological test was performed to ascertain the median lethal dose (LD50) of FPB for 24 h which was found to be 371.54 mg/kg b.wt. For mechanistic evaluation of FPB toxicity, three sublethal doses (1/20th, 1/10th, and 1/5thLD50) were orally administered to mice for 21 consecutive days. Changes in spleen relative weight, oxidative status, apoptotic and inflammatory markers, histopathological alterations were evaluated. Following the FPB exposure, significant (p < 0.05) decline in spleen index, apoptotic features, histolopathological changes were observed. Additionally, excessive oxidative stress in spleen tissues was monitored by downregulating antioxidant enzymes and upregulating the oxidant parameters. Furthermore, exposure to FPB resulted in notable activation of the NF-қB signaling pathway, accompanied by elevated levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (namely, IL-1βand TNF-α)as well as CD3 and CD19 levels have decreased significantly in spleen tissues. Collectively, FPB exposure exhibited apoptosis, oxidative stress, immunosuppression, and inflammatory response in a dose-dependent manner, leading to spleen tissue damage and immunotoxicity. Further studies on FPB is recommended to outstand its hazards on ecosystems.

Assessment of clinical chemistry and hematological parameters in female Sprague-Dawley rats following a 7-day oral exposure to three different species of Echinacea

Echinacea has grown in popularity due to its broad therapeutic benefits. Despite its popularity, comprehensive safety evaluations for three medicinal species are limited. In this study, female Sprague-Dawley rats received oral doses (0, 25, 50, 100, 200 mg/kg/d) of 75% (v/v) ethanol extract from the aerial parts of 9 Echinacea samples of three species - Echinacea purpurea, Echinacea angustifolia, and Echinacea pallida - over a 7-day period. Blood and serum samples, collected twenty-four hours post the final dose, were analyzed for hematology and clinical chemistry parameters. The results revealed varied effects across the tested samples, with many parameters showing no discernible impacts at administered doses. Subtle alterations were observed in parameters such as relative liver weight, alkaline phosphatase (ALP), and platelet count. Parameters like relative spleen weight, alanine transaminase (ALT), glucose, urea, hematocrit, hemoglobin, and RBC count exhibited effects in only one out of the nine samples tested. These findings emphasize the heterogeneity in the effects of Echinacea. While the results suggest that Echinacea samples might be considered relatively safe, potential clinical implications warrant caution and underscore the importance of extended testing. A comprehensive toxicity profile assessment remains paramount to conclusively ascertain the safety of three Echinacea species.

Preliminary Phytochemical Screening and Acute Toxicity Study of Methanol leaf extracts of Musanga cercropioides

Musanga cercropioides is a plant that is used to treat a variety of ailments in many African countries. However, just a few studies have been conducted to assess the toxicity of the various sections of this plant. The goal of this study was to determine the toxicity profile of Musanga cercropioides methanol leaf extract in albino rats. Lorke's approach was used to conduct an acute toxicity study. In the first phase, nine (9) albino rats were randomly divided into three (3) groups of three (3) animals each. Each of the animals were orally administered 10,100 and 1000 mg/kg body weight of the extract. In the second phase, twelve (12) animals were used, which were divided into four groups of three (3) animals each. The first three groups received single doses of 1500, 3000, and 5000 mg/kg, respectively, while the fourth group which served as a control was given distilled water orally. After observation for 14 days, no signs of mortality were identified. The maximum dose supplied (5000 mg/kg body weight) did not affect the test animals' mortality or general behavior. When the treated groups were compared to the control groups, there was no significant difference (p &gt; 0.05) in biochemical markers, body weight, or relative organ weights of liver, kidney, heart, and spleen. These findings show that oral administration of Musanga cercropioides methanol leaf extract is safe at a dose of up to 5000 mg/kg body weight in Wistar albino rats.

Protective effects of ethanol-water leaf extract of Jatropha gossypiifolia on mouse virus-induced hepatitis (MHV) in male Swiss mice (Mus musculus)

The aim of this study was to evaluate in vivo hepatoprotective activity of the ethanol-water extract of Jatropha gossypiifolia leaves (EJG) against mouse-induced hepatitis (MHV) in Mus musculus mice. This experiment was carried out with 30 male mice, divided into 6 batches, one control non-contaminated and five batches infected with MHV extracted from wild-type mice liver. Four batches of the infected mice were treated with either EJG (75, 150 and 300 mg/kg) or lamivudine (10 mg/kg) used as reference treatment. The fifth infected batch was untreated. The mice of all the batches were monitored every 12 hours for 5 days, including weight measurements and behavioral assessments. After 10 days of the MHV liver extract inoculation, all the subjects were sacrificed, the serum was collected and the biochemical parameters were measured. The results showed that MHV inoculation induced significant increase (p &lt; 0.05) of relative weight of liver, heart, kidney and spleen in negative control, as well as serum values of ASAT, ALAT, C-reactive protein (CRP) and bilirubin compared with the control group. EJG at the concentrations of 75, 150, 300 mg/kg induced a significant reduction (p &lt; 0.05) in relative organ weights, ASAT, ALAT, CRP and bilirubin contents compared with the negative control. In conclusion, EJG could protect the organs and has a potent hepatoprotective effect against MHV-induced liver damage in mice.

Effect of neurotransmitters in drinking water and some medicinal flowers in broiler diet additives on body performances and some immune parameters

This study was conducted to under seek the incidence of some neurotransmitters in drinking water and native medicinal flowers (Alecea Kurdica – Gule Hero and Chamomile) flowers as diet additives on body growth and immune of broiler. 720 one day unsexed hatched chicks will distributed into 12 treatments, each treatment with three replicates (20 chicks), as following: T0 (control -standard diet), [T1 (0.2 g Endorphin), T2 (0.2 g Dopamine) and T3 (0.2 g Serotonin)/ L drinking water], [T4 )0.5 kg Hero flower) and T5) 0.5 kg Chamomile flower)/ 100 kg diet], T6 )0.2 g Endorphin+0.5 kg Hero flower(, T7 (0.2 g Dopamine+0.5 kg Hero flower(, T8 )0.2 g Serotonin+ 0.5 kg Hero flower(, T9 (0.2 g Endorphin+0.5 kg Chamomile flower), T10 (0.2 g/ Dopamine+0.5 kg Chamomile flower), T11= 0.2 g/ L Serotonin/ L drinking water + 0.5 kg Chamomile flower/ 100 kg diet. The addition of neurotransmitters and native flowers additives as immune modulator had significantly affected on body weight, body weight gain and production index and led to to significant increase (P≤ 0.01) in relative weights of spleen, Bursa of fabricius, Thymus and antibodies titer against ND and IB diseases, also decreased the stress ratio which represented by heterophil/ lymphocyte (H/L) especially in T3 and T11.

Investigation of immunomodulatory activity of hericium erinaceus on cyclophosphamide-induced immunosuppression in mice

The study was conducted to assess the immunostimulatory effect of Hericium Erinaceus on cyclophosphamide-induced immunodeficient mice. Animals were administered Hericium Erinaceus orally at 0.72 g/kg b.w and 1.44 g/kg b.w for seven consecutive days. On the 4th day, CP (200 mg/kg) was intraperitoneally injected into mice. The results illustrated that Hericium Erinaceus at 0.72 g/kg b.w only posed an immunostimulating potency in the cyclophosphamide-induced immunosuppression model. Besides, Hericium Erinaceus at 1.44 g/kg b.w ameliorated the effects of CP on delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) response, relative spleen weight, serum IL-2, TNF-α concentration, and micro-histological images of spleen and thymus substantially. This suggested the potential of Hericium Erinaceus to treat immunosuppression diseases in clinical practice.

Physiological, immunological and microbial effects of soybean bioactive peptides and vitamin E supplementing to broiler diet

The physiological, immunological, and microbiological traits of 180 Ross-308 broiler chickens were examined in relation to supplementary soybean bioactive peptide (SBP) levels and vitamin E. Group 1 was the control group, Groups 2, 3, and 4 were given a basal diet along with 2.5, 5, and 7.5 g SBP kg-1 of diet, respectively, and Group 5 was given a basal diet together with 250 mg of vitamin E kg-1 of diet. An improvement in the globulin, albumin-to-globulin ratio, total antioxidant activity (except 7.5 g), SOD, and GSH-PX (except 7.5 g) activities in SBP treatment groups compared to the control. In comparison with control, feeding SBP improved bursa index, IgA, and IgG concentrations in blood serum. Feed supplementation with 5 g SBP significantly increased relative weight of spleen and IgM concentrations. Feeding SBP increased lactic acid bacteria in the ileum and caecum while decreasing E. coli counts in the ileum as compared with control. None of the selected serum biochemical indices, immune-related parameters, and total bacterial count were statistically different between the vitamin E group and the control. Therefore, 5 and 7.5 g of SBP kg-1 in a broiler diet was able to boost antioxidant status, antibacterial activity, and birds' immune response.

Gut development following insulin-like growth factor-1 supplementation to preterm pigs

BackgroundReduced insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) levels may contribute to impaired organ development in preterm infants. Using preterm pigs as a model, we hypothesized that IGF-1 supplementation improves health and gut development during the first three weeks of life.MethodsFirst, clinical and organ endpoints were compared between artificially-reared, cesarean-delivered preterm pigs and vaginally-delivered, sow-reared term pigs at 5, 9 and 19 days. Next, preterm pigs were treated with recombinant human IGF-1 for 19 days (2.25 mg/kg/day, systemically).ResultsRelative to term pigs, preterm pigs had lower body weight, fat, bone contents, relative weights of liver and spleen and a longer and thinner intestine at 19 days. Preterm birth reduced intestinal villi heights and peptidase activities, but only at 5 and 9 days. In preterm pigs, IGF-1 reduced mortality primarily occurring from gastrointestinal complications and with a tendency towards salvaging smaller pigs. IGF-1 supplementation also increased spleen and kidney weights, small intestine length and maltase to lactase activity, reflecting gut maturation.ConclusionPreterm birth affects body composition and gut maturation in the first 1–2 weeks, but differences are marginal thereafter. Supplemental IGF-1 may improve gut health in pigs and infants in the first few weeks after preterm birth.ImpactInsulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) supplementation may improve gut health and development in prematurity, but whether the effects are sustained beyond the immediate postnatal period is unclear.In preterm pigs, the prematurity effects on IGF-1 and gut health deficiencies are most pronounced during the first week of life and diminishes thereafter.In preterm pigs, IGF-1 supplementation beyond the first week of life reduced mortality.The present study provides evidence of a sustained effect of IGF-1 supplementation on the gastrointestinal tract after the immediate postnatal period.