ABSTRACT The current experiment aimed to evaluate the effects of Pancreatin supplementation at different levels on ileal and fecal digestibility in layer-type cockerels. A total of 480-day-old silver brown Hy-Line male chicks were randomly allocated into 5 treatments, 6 replicates (16 birds per pen) arranged in a completely randomized design. Pancreatin enzyme was supplemented on a basal corn-soybean meal-based diet at 0, 250, 500, 750, and 1000 mg/kg and was fed in two growth phases (starter and grower). The results indicated that at the end of the starter stage, except for 1000 mg/kg, dietary Pancreatin supplementation levels increased (p<0.05) the ileal crude protein (CP). Similarly, addition of Pancreatin increased (p< 0.05) apparent ileal amino acids (AA) digestibility (AIAAD) total means of AA (MTAA), means of indispensable AA (MIAA) and dispensable AA (MDAA) with the optimum performance on 250 mg/kg and 500 mg/kg. However, except for histidine and alanine which were negatively affected (p<0.05), and MIAA, MDAA, MTAA which were also positively affected, the addition level at 1000 mg/kg did not affect most of the AIAAD compared to the non-supplemented. Further, Pancreatin supplementation had no effect (p>0.05) on nitrogen digestibility (ND), nitrogen retention (NR), digestible energy (DE), apparent metabolizable energy (AME), dry matter digestibility (DMD), dry matter retention (DMR), and apparent metabolizable energy corrected for nitrogen (AME-n) on fed starter diet. On the other hand, at the end of the grower stage, dietary Pancreatin enzyme supplementation reduced (p<0.05) the ileal CP, MIAA, MDAA, MTAA, AIAAD, AME, AME-n, ND, NR, DE, DMD, and DMR in a dose-dependent manner. The rate of reduction was more marked on Pancreatin addition level 1000 mg/kg. In conclusion, Pancreatin supplementation at 250 mg/kg, 500 mg/kg, and 750 mg/kg improved AIAAD and ileal CP, especially at the young age. The rate of pancreatin enzyme effect was dependent on enzyme supplement level to the ileal CP and individual amino acid.

ABSTRACT We assessed the effect of health sand dietary supplementation with methionine (Met) on White King pigeons. Paired pigeons (n = 180) were fed one of five diets; group T1 received no added Met, while T2, T3, T4 and T5 received 30, 60, 90 and 120 g of supplemental DL-Met/kg, respectively. Each treatment was replicated three times with 24 pairs in each replicate. The results showed that supplementary Met had a minor effect on the length of the fourth primary wing feather in 28-day-old squabs (p>0.05), but the length of 14-day-old squabs in T2 was significantly longer (p=0.010). Dietary Met had a minor effect on Wnt-7a and fibroblast growth factor receptors-2 (FGFR-2) mRNA levels in 28-day-old squabs (p>0.05). The IGF-1 concentration in plasma was highest in T4 and lowest in T2 (p=0.012), but there was no difference between T1, T2 and T5 (p>0.05). In the chest muscle, the expression of IGF-1 in T3 and T4 was higher than in T1 (p=0.172 and 0.015, respectively). In the leg muscle, IGF-1 mRNA level was higher in T4 and T3, and lower in T2 (p>0.05). The results indicate that the optimal Met supplement for increasing fourth primary wing feather length was 30 g/kg Met in health sand, and the feathers were the longest in 14-day-old squabs. Adding 90 g/kg Met to health sand can improve the concentration of IGF-1, which is important for growth performance of pigeon squabs.

ABSTRACT A dose-response experiment with four dietary copper concentrations (4.17, 8.17, 12.17 and 16.17 mg/kg) was conducted to estimate the growth performance, slaughter performance, nutrient content of fecal and liver copper concentrations of growing Goslings from 28 to 70 d of age. Two hundred healthy male Yangzhou geese with similar body weight were randomized to four groups with five replicates per treatment and ten geese per replicate. Average daily feed intake, average daily gain and feed conversion ratio of geese for each pen were measured from 28 to 70 d of age. At 70 d of age, two geese were selected randomly from each pen and slaughtered to evaluate carcass quality. Metabolism experiment was conducted with five male geese from each group (one goose per pen) which body weight was close to the mean weight of the group from 64 to 70 d of age. Significant effects of dietary copper was found on body weight, feed conversion ratio, carcass yield, fecal copper concentrations and liver copper concentrations. Body weight, feed conversion ratio and carcass yield showed significant quadratic response to increase dietary copper concentration, while fecal copper concentration and liver copper concentration showed a significant linear response. The result showed that dietary Cu addition can improve growth by increasing the use of the feeding stuff and improving carcass yield in growing Goslings. Furthermore, taking into consideration, the optimal level of Gosling dietary copper was between 8.77 and 11.6 mg/kg from 28 to 70 days of age.

The synthesis of 3-hydroxy-2-naphthyl hydroxamic acid (H2O5) as a collector for bastnaesite is described. The flotation performance of H2O5 with respect to bastnaesite was investigated by flotation tests, measurements of the surface adsorption capacity, and polarizing microscopy. The results indicated that H2O5 exhibits superior collecting performance compared with direct flotation recovery of bastnaesite, with recoveries above 90% at pH 8-9. The adsorption mechanism of H2O5 on bastnaesite was studied by solution chemistry analysis and Ç-potential tests. The results showed that the adsorption of H2O5 is associated with the types and concentrations of hydrolysis products of rare earth cations on the bastnaesite surface. At pH 8-9, the hydrolysis-dominant components RE(OH)²+ and RE(OH)2+ of the rare earth cations were adsorbed onto the bastnaesite surfaces, which were considered to be the major positive active points and were beneficial to chemical adsorption of the reagents. The pH range of 7-10 was optimum for bastnaesite floatability, and the adsorption of H205 on bastnaesite was by means of chemical adsorption through formation of a five-membered ring chelate.

This study investigated the expression and regulation of IL-6R in hepatitis B-associated moderate hepatic fibrosis and cirrhosis. Liver tissues, peripheral blood monocytes (PBMs) and serum were collected from 26 hepatitis B patients with liver fibrosis and 35 hepatitis B patients with liver cirrhosis. The levels of Il-6r mRNA expression in these samples were examined by quantitative real-time PCR and IL-6R protein levels were analyzed by western blot and ELISA. MiRNAs that regulate IL-6R expression were predicted by bioinformatics analysis, and validated by dual luciferase reporter assay. Compared with the hepatic fibrosis group, IL-6R was significantly upregulated at both mRNA and protein levels in liver tissues, PBMs and serum samples from the hepatic cirrhosis group (P<0.05). The 3′UTR of Il-6r mRNA was predicted to contain a miR-30b binding site and IL-6R was identified as a possible target of miR-30b. MiR-30b expression was significantly downregulated in samples from hepatic cirrhosis patients compared with hepatic fibrosis patients (P<0.05). In conclusion, IL-6R was upregulated while miR-30b was decreased in patients with liver cirrhosis. The miR-30 can directly regulate the expression of IL-6R.

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.

Mining and related activities caused plant productivity and soil carbon content reduced in arid and semi-arid ecosystems. Soil carbon plays an essential role in ecosystem stability. Soil carbon and associated changes in soil property were important drivers and indicators of ecosystem recovery at post-mining areas. We selected 5, 10 and 20 years of restoration lands to examine the effect of artificial grassland on vegetation community and soil property. Results showed that artificial grassland markedly increased the biomass, canopy coverage and soil carbon content, but decreased soil bulk density and soil water content. After 10-year of restoration, both the biomass and soil organic carbon (SOC) content reached the peak, however, soil bulk density and soil water content arrived the lowest at depth of 0-20 cm and got the highest at depth of 20-30 cm. At 20-year of restoration land, the biomass (above- and belowground) and SOC content (0-30 cm) significantly decreased by 46.2 % and 67.0 % with compared to 10-year of restoration land, while soil bulk density of 0-10 cm and 10-20 cm depths increased by 7.8 % and 21.4 %, respectively, soil water content (0-30 cm) increased by 11.6 % . It was evident that artificial grassland as an effective ecological restoration approach could improve soil physic-chemical property, while properly anthropogenic perturbations were also needed to stimulate plant growth.

Dietary salt intake has been linked to hypertension and cardiovascular disease. Accumulating evidence has indicated that salt-sensitive individuals on high salt intake are more likely to develop renal fibrosis. Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) participates in the development and progression of renal fibrosis in humans and animals. The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of a high-salt diet on EMT in Dahl salt-sensitive (SS) rats. Twenty-four male SS and consomic SS-13BN rats were randomized to a normal diet or a high-salt diet. After 4 weeks, systolic blood pressure (SBP) and albuminuria were analyzed, and renal fibrosis was histopathologically evaluated. Tubular EMT was evaluated using immunohistochemistry and real-time PCR with E-cadherin and alpha smooth muscle actin (α-SMA). After 4 weeks, SBP and albuminuria were significantly increased in the SS high-salt group compared with the normal diet group. Dietary salt intake induced renal fibrosis and tubular EMT as identified by reduced expression of E-cadherin and enhanced expression of α-SMA in SS rats. Both blood pressure and renal interstitial fibrosis were negatively correlated with E-cadherin but positively correlated with α-SMA. Salt intake induced tubular EMT and renal injury in SS rats, and this relationship might depend on the increase in blood pressure.