ABSTRACT This study aimed to evaluate the effects of adding Moringa oleifera leaf powder (MOLP) to the basal diets of chickens at late laying period on clutch trait, reproductive organs, serum reproductive hormones and reproduction-related genes expression. A total of 350 hens (37 weeks old) with similar laying rate and clutch trait were randomly allocated into five groups, and fed 0 (Control, CON), 2.5 (MOLP2.5), 5, 7.5 and 10% MOLP supplemented diets for 6 weeks. The hens supplemented with 2.5% MLOP had the average clutch length, clutches and clutch intensity close to those in CON. The numbers and weight of hierarchal follicle were significantly increased at the supplementation 2.5% MOLP group. The estrogen concentration was highest in MOLP2.5 group and lowest in MOLP10 group. Expression levels of steroidogenesis-related genes of StAR and Cyp19a1 were higher in MOLP2.5, MOLP5 and MOLP7.5 groups compared with that in the control. These findings suggested that dietary supplementation with 2.5% MOLP effectively increased hierarchal follicle numbers, estrogen level and gene expression of StAR and Cyp19a1, which has a potential beneficial effect on laying performance in laying chicken.

Precipitation, throughfall and stemflow were monitored and collected through the rainy season on a natural forest ecosystem of Pinus densata in the Gongbu Nature Reserve in Tibet. The concentrations of N, P, K, Na, Ca, Mg, Si, Mn, Fe, S, Zn and Cu were analyzed in the precipitation, throughfall and stemflow waters, Thereafter, and according to the amount of water of precipitation, throughfall and stemflow, the net input was calculated for each nutrient in the forest. The results showed that: (1) During the entire rainy season, the average concentration of different nutrients in the precipitation of the Pinus densata forest was ranked in the following order: N>K>Na>Ca>Mg>Si>P>Mn>Fe>S>Zn>Cu. The concentration of N 29.6145 mg/L, and that of Cu was only 0.1017 mg/L. (2) The average concentration of these nutrients in throughfall followed the order: N>Na>Ca>K>Mg>Si>P>Mn>Fe>S>Zn>Cu. The highest concentration was 11.2843 mg/L for N, and the lowest was only 0.0937 mg/L for Cu; the difference between the two was 120.4 times. (3) The order of N>K>Ca>Na>Mg>Zn>P>Si>Mn>Fe>Cu>S was found for the nutrient concentration in stemflow. The concentration of N (20.5096 mg/L) was 105.2 times higher than that of the lowest nutrient (S: 0.1949 mg/L). (4) As a whole, every nutrient was quite different on average for the stemflow, throughfall and precipitation. The concentration of Na, Ca, Mg and Zn followed ste mflow>throughfall>precipitation. During the entire rainy season, the net input (kg/hm²) of nutrients in the Pinus densata forest was Na>Si>Ca>Mg>K>Zn>Fe>S>Cu>P>Mn>N, and the net input of N was negative.

La precipitación, la precipitación que atraviesa y corre por encima del follaje vegetal, y aquella que corre por las ramas y el tronco se juntaron durante la estación lluviosa en un ecosistema de bosque natural de Pinus densata en la reserva natural Gongbu en el Tibet. Las concentraciones de N, P, K, Na, Ca, Mg, Si, Mn, Fe, S, Zn y Cu se analizaron en la precipitación, la precipitación que atraviesa y corre por encima del follaje vegetal, y aquella que corre por las ramas y el tronco. Luego, y de acuerdo a la cantidad de estas tres clases de precipitación se calculó la entrada neta de cada nutriente en el bosque. Los resultados mostraron que: (1) Durante toda la estación lluviosa, la concentración promedio de los diferentes nutrientes en la precipitación en el bosque de P. densata siguió el siguiente orden: N>K>Na>Ca>Mg>Si>P>Mn>Fe>S>Zn>Cu. La concentración de N fue 29,61 mg/L y la de Cu de solo 0,10 mg/L; (2) La concentración promedio de estos nutrientes en la precipitación que atravesó el follaje y corrió sobre el mismo siguió el siguiente orden: N>Na>Ca>K>Mg>Si>P>Mn>Fe>S>Zn>Cu. La concentración más alta fue 11,28 mg/L para N, y la más baja de solo 0,09 mg/L para Cu; la diferencia entre el N y el Cu fue de 120,4 veces; (3) El orden de N>K>Ca>Na>Mg>Zn>P>Si>Mn>Fe>Cu>S fue obtenido en la precipitación que corrió por ramas y tronco. La concentración de N (20,51 mg/L) fue 105,2 veces más alta que aquella del nutriente (S) en menor concentración (0,19 mg/L). (4) En general, cada nutriente fue en promedio bastante diferente en los tres tipos de precipitación. Las concentraciones de Na, Ca, Mg y Zn siguieron el orden de agua que corrió por ramas y tronco > agua que atravesó y corrió por encima del follaje de Pirus densata > agua de precipitación natural. Durante toda la estación de crecimiento, la entrada neta de nutrientes (kg/hm²) en el bosque de P. densata fue Na>Si>Ca>Mg>K>Zn>Fe>S>Cu>S>P>Mn>N; la entrada neta de N fue negativa.

Abstract This experiment was conducted to study the effects of arginine supplementation on organ development, egg quality, blood parameters, and immune status of laying hens. A total of 360 25-week-old brown Leghorn laying hens were randomly divided into three groups with six replicates of 20 birds each and fed diets supplemented with 0, 8.5, or 17 mg of L-arginine/kg for 42 days. Results showed that the weight of proventriculus and duodenum in the treatment supplemented with 17 mg/kg L-arginine was heavier than that of 0 mg L-arginine/kg treatment (p<0.05). The weight of oviduct in the treatments supplemented with 17 mg/kg L-arginine was smaller than that of 0 and 8.5 mg L-arginine/kg treatment (p<0.05), and the small yellow follicle amount in the treatment supplemented with 17 mg/kg L-arginine was less than that of 0 mg L-arginine/kg treatment (p<0.05), while its yolk color was deeper than that of 0 mg L-arginine/kg treatment (p<0.05), and the IgY content showed the same tendency. Total cholesterol and triglyceride levels in the treatment supplemented with 8.5 mg/kg L-arginine were lower than that of 0 mg L-arginine/kg treatment (p<0.05). The concentration of IL-2 in the treatment supplemented with 17 mg/kg L-arginine were more than that of 0 mg L-arginine/kg treatment (p<0.05). The findings of this study show that 17 mg/kg L-arginine supplementation has beneficial effects onlayers' immune status and yolk IgY content, as well as on proventriculus and duodenum weight while no adverse effects were observed on laying performance, egg quality, or blood parameters.

T lymphocytes are important in the pathogenesis of psoriasis, and increasing evidence indicates that B cells also play an important role. The mechanisms of action, however, remain unclear. We evaluated the ratios of CD19+ B cells in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from 157 patients with psoriasis (65 patients with psoriasis vulgaris, 32 patients with erythrodermic psoriasis, 30 patients with arthropathic psoriasis, and 30 patients with pustular psoriasis) and 35 healthy controls (HCs). Ratios of CD19+ B cells in skin lesions were compared with non-lesions in 7 erythrodermic psoriasis patients. The Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) was used to measure disease severity. CD19+ B cell ratios in PBMCs from psoriasis vulgaris (at both the active and stationary stage) and arthropathic psoriasis patients were higher compared with HCs (P<0.01), but ratios were lower in erythrodermic and pustular psoriasis patients (P<0.01). CD19+ B cell ratios in erythrodermic psoriasis skin lesions were higher than in non-lesion areas (P<0.001). Different subsets of CD19+CD40+, CD19+CD44+, CD19+CD80+, CD19+CD86+, CD19+CD11b+, and CD19+HLA-DR+ B cells in PBMCs were observed in different psoriasis clinical subtypes. PASI scores were positively correlated with CD19+ B cell ratios in psoriasis vulgaris and arthropathic psoriasis cases (r=0.871 and r=0.692, respectively, P<0.01), but were negatively correlated in pustular psoriasis (r=-0.569, P<0.01). The results indicated that similar to T cells, B cells activation may also play important roles in different pathological stages of psoriasis.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to explore the chemokine receptor 7 (CCR7) expression of spleen dendritic cells (DCs) and their role in the changes of migration and activity of spleen DCs in multiple-organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS). METHODS: The MODS model of mice was reproduced. The mice were randomly assigned to the following groups: normal, three-hour to six-hour, 24-hour to 48-hour, and 10-day to 12-day postzymosan injection. CD11c and CD205 were analysed by immunohistochemistry; the expressions of CD86 and CCR7 of DCs were studied using flow cytometry analyses. RESULTS: In normal mice, many DCs were found at the margin between the red and white pulp. In the three-hour to six-hour and 24- to 48-hour group, DC effectively upregulated CD86 and CCR7, and they were distributed in T-cell areas. In the 10-day to 12-day group, DCs were distributed at the margin by the immature form. CONCLUSION: The CCR7 expression level of DCs had close correlations with the migration of DCs. Chemokine receptor 7 can be used to evaluate the migration and functional activity of DCs in MODS.

OBJETIVO: Este estudio persigue explorar la expresión del receptor de la quimiocina 7 (CCR7) de células dendríticas del bazo (CD), y su papel en los cambios de la migración y la actividad del las células DC del bazo en el síndrome de disfunción orgánica múltiple (SDOM). MÉTODOS: Se reprodujo el modelo SDOM de los ratones. Los ratones fueron asignados aleatoriamente a los siguientes grupos de inyección de post-zymosan: hora normal, tres a seis horas, 24 horas a 48 horas, y de 10 a 12 días. CD11c y CD205 fueron analizados mediante inmunohistoquímica. Las expresiones de CD86 y CCR7 de CD se estudiaron mediante análisis de citometría de flujo. RESULTADOS: En los ratones normales, muchas células CD fueron encontradas en el margen entre la pulpa roja y la blanca. En el grupo de tres a seis horas y el grupo de 24 a 48 horas, CD86y CCR7 fueron efectivamente sobre-regulados en CD, y distribuidos en las áreas de células T. En el grupo de 10 a 12 días, las CDs fueron distribuidas en el margen por la forma inmadura. CONCLUSIÓN: El nivel de expresión CCR7 de las CDs tuvo estrecha correlación con la migración de las CDs. El receptor de la quimiocina de tipo 7 puede utilizarse para evaluar la migración y la actividad funcional de las CDs en SDOM.

The distal cytoplasmic motifs of leukemia inhibitory factor receptor α-chain (LIFRα-CT3) can independently induce intracellular myeloid differentiation in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells by gene transfection; however, there are significant limitations in the potential clinical use of these motifs due to liposome-derived genetic modifications. To produce a potentially therapeutic LIFRα-CT3 with cell-permeable activity, we constructed a eukaryotic expression pcDNA3.0-TAT-CT3-cMyc plasmid with a signal peptide (ss) inserted into the N-terminal that codes for an ss-TAT-CT3-cMyc fusion protein. The stable transfection of Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells via this vector and subsequent selection by Geneticin resulted in cell lines that express and secrete TAT-CT3-cMyc. The spent medium of pcDNA3.0-TAT-CT3-cMyc-transfected CHO cells could be purified using a cMyc-epitope-tag agarose affinity chromatography column and could be detected via SDS-PAGE, with antibodies against cMyc-tag. The direct administration of TAT-CT3-cMyc to HL-60 cell culture media caused the enrichment of CT3-cMyc in the cytoplasm and nucleus within 30 min and led to a significant reduction of viable cells (P < 0.05) 8 h after exposure. The advantages of using this mammalian expression system include the ease of generating TAT fusion proteins that are adequately transcripted and the potential for a sustained production of such proteins in vitro for future AML therapy.

This paper treats on grindability differences of mineral mixtures to achieve a preliminary selective particle size contrast by comminution in order to improve further sorting operation. Quartz and calcite had been chosen as example of binary system. The theoretical basis for this work was inspired by the optimization study carried out by Ray and Szekely (1973), through an algebraic model based on evolution of log-normal distribution of particle size during comminution. On the other hand, the present work has described grindability differences through the classical Rosin-Rammler size distribution. The study of the evaluation of binary mixture differences was realized by sieving analyses and the estimation of Rosin-Rammler sharpness and median diameter. An objective function was conceived stressing the relationship between the expended energy in the grinding process and the optimum residence time. It is possible to use the results as a background for grinding optimization system, since that the penalty function inside objective function can be adequately calibrated as far as technical and economic impacts on further sorting separations are concerned.

In this paper, we report the stability of the Li(HF)3- molecular anion calculated at the MP2/6-31++G** and CCSD(T)/6-31++G** level of theory. Five possible conformers of Li(HF)3- molecular anions have been determined employing ab initio MP2 method with 6-31++G** basis set. The most stable conformer of five Li(HF)3- anions is in a cyclic ring structure Li(HF)3-(1). From our calculations we show that the molecule is stable towards electron attachment, with an electron adiabatic electron affinity (AEA) of 199.5 meV (233.1 meV with zero point energy correction) and 471.3 meV at the MP2 and CCSD(T) levels, respectively. In addition we present vertical detachment energies of 230.2 meV and 795.8 meV at the MP2, CCSD(T), respectively. The importance of the latter has to do with the ability of experimental detection of this value.