Abstract This study aimed to evaluate the antioxidant potential of the Coffea arabica Lineu (L.) leaf extract and its effects on platelet aggregation of dyslipidemic rats. The extract was obtained by the percolation of C. arabica L. leaves in hydroethanolic solution 70% (v/v). The mass spectrometry FIA-ESI-MS² suggested the presence of chlorogenic acid, rutin acid, and quinic acid. The DPPH• radicals scavenging capacity was demonstrated (IC50 = 0.06 mg/mL). The extract was administered to rats by gavage (300 mg/kg/day) for 56 days. Dyslipidemia was induced by administering Triton WR-1339 (300 mg/kg body weight) on the 54th day. On day 56, blood was collected by puncturing the abdominal aorta artery and the aortic artery was removed. Lipid profile, markers of renal and hepatic injury, lipid peroxidation, and platelet aggregation tests were carried out. The ingestion of extract reduced the lipid peroxidation (aorta and plasma) and platelet aggregation in dyslipidemic rats. The extract did not affect markers of renal and hepatic function as analyzed in this study, suggesting neither impaired liver nor kidney function in these animals. Therefore, our results demonstrate that the extract of leaves of C. arabica L. show antioxidant potential in vitro and in vivo as well as anti-platelet aggregation in dyslipidemic animals.

ABSTRACT Plant size and clonality are important traits for explaining the reproductive effort of clonal plants. Larger plants can invest more resources into reproduction, and clonality is known to increase reproductive effort. Moreover, reproductive effort is influenced by environmental variation, and so the spatial distribution of plants may affect plant reproductive effort. We investigated the effect of plant size, clonality and spatial distribution on the reproductive effort of Vriesea carinata in the Atlantic Forest in the state of Paraná, Brazil. We marked twenty individual plants and measured their rosette size, biomass and number, as well as rosette reproductive effort (number of flowers, fruits and seeds). We also evaluated the relationship between reproductive effort and spatial distribution of plants. Reproductive effort did not correlate with size, whereas greater clonal growth contributed to a lower reproductive effort because rosettes within clones that had more rosettes set fewer flowers. We found that plants growing closer to each other exhibited similar reproductive efforts independently of vegetative traits, because reproductive traits were spatially autocorrelated. In Vriesea carinata, the main drivers of reproductive effort are clonality, which decreases flower production, and spatial factors, which result in greater similarity in reproductive efforts among more proximate plants.

Inflammatory bowel diseases are characterized by a chronic clinical course of relapse and remission associated with self-destructive inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract. Active extracts from plants have emerged as natural potential candidates for its treatment. Abarema cochliacarpos (Gomes) Barneby & Grimes, Fabaceae (Barbatimão), is a native medicinal plant in to Brazil. Previously we have demonstrated in an acute colitis model a marked protective effect of a butanolic extract, so we decided to assess its anti-inflammatory effect in a chronic ulcerative colitis model induced by trinitrobenzensulfonic acid (TNBS). Abarema cochliacarpos (150 mg/day, v.o.) was administered for fourteen consecutive days. This treatment decreased significantly macroscopic damage as compared with TNBS. Histological analysis showed that the extract improved the microscopic structure. Myeloperoxidase activity (MPO) was significantly decreased. Study of cytokines showed that TNF-α was diminished and IL-10 level was increased after Abarema cochliacarpos treatment. In order to elucidate inflammatory mechanisms, expression of cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 and nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) were studied showing a significant downregulation. In addition, there was reduction in the JNK and p-38 activation. Finally, IκB degradation was blocked by Abarema cochliacarpos treatment being consistent with an up-regulation of the NF-kappaB-binding activity. These results reinforce the anti-inflammatory effects described previously suggesting that Abarema cochliacarpos could provide a source for the search for new anti-inflammatory compounds useful in ulcerative colitis treatment.

Foi realizado um estudo para determinar a variabilidade de características químicas e valores energéticos de farelos de soja (FS) do oeste e sudoeste do Paraná. Foram estudadas 40 amostras colhidas em 10 processadores e distribuidores durante quatro meses consecutivos. Houve diferenças (P<0,05) entre os teores de matéria seca (MS) dos farelos de soja (FS) analisados. O FS 10 apresentou menor (P<0,05) teor de MS (86,72%) em relação aos FS 2, 4, 5, 6 e 9 (88,96, 90,60, 89,19, 89,08 e 88,72%, respectivamente). O FS 4 teve menor conteúdo de Ca (0,31%), enquanto os FS 5 e 7 mostraram os maiores teores de Ca (0,36 e 0,36%, respectivamente). Ocorreram diferenças (P<0,05) entre os valores de energia metabolizável verdadeira (EMVn) calculados, com o FS 8 apresentando a maior concentração (2,65Mcal kg-1) e os FS 5 e 10 os menores teores de energia calculados (2,51 e 2,50Mcal kg-1, respectivamente). Pode-se concluir que a composição química dos farelos de soja das regiões oeste e sudoeste do Paraná apresenta pouca variação e, exceto para a fibra em detergente neutro, fibra em detergente ácido, ferro e manganês, os valores encontrados são próximos daqueles citados na literatura.

A study was conducted to determine the variability on chemical and nutritional characteristics of soybean meal from the West and Southwest Paraná state. Forty samples of soybean meal were collected in ten different processors and distributors during four months consecutively. There were differences (P<0.05) among the dry matter (DM) in samples of soybean meal analyzed. The soybean meal 10 had less (P<0.05) level of DM (86.72%) compared with soybean meals 2, 4, 5, 6 and 9 (88.96, 90.60, 89.19, 89.08 and 88.72%, respectively). The soybean meal 4 showed less content of Ca (0.31%), while the soybean meals 5 and 7 had higher levels of Ca (0.36 and 0.36, respectively). The calculated TMEn value of soybean meal 8 was higher (P<0.05) than soybean meals 5 and 10 (2.65 versus 2.51 and 2.50Mcal kg-1, respectively). The chemical composition of soybean meal from the West and Southwest Paraná state is homogenous and near that found in scientific literature, except for neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber, iron and manganese.

High-speed counter-current chromatography (HSCCC) is a major tool for the fast separation of natural products from plants. It was used for the preparative isolation of the flavonoid monoglucosides present in the aerial parts of the Davilla elliptica St. Hill. (Dilleniaceae). This species is used in Brazilian folk medicine for the treatment of gastric disorders. The optimum solvent system used was composed of a mixture of ethyl acetate-n-propanol-water (140:8:80, v/v/v) and led to a successful separation of quercetin-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranoside and myricetin-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranoside in approximately 3.0 hours with purity higher than 95%. Identification was performed by ¹H NMR, 13C NMR and HPLC-UV-DAD analyses.

Foram realizados quatro experimentos, dois com aves leves e dois com aves semipesadas, em duas diferentes fases - crescimento (7 a 12 semanas de idade) - e produção de ovos (20 a 28 semanas de idade) , com o objetivo de determinar as exigências e os efeitos dos níveis de cálcio e de fósforo disponível na produção. Durante a fase de 13 a 19 semanas, as aves foram identificadas por tratamento e submetidas à ração comercial única. Utilizou-se para cada experimento um delineamento inteiramente ao acaso, com cinco níveis de cálcio (0,60; 0,70; 0,80; 0,90 e 1,00%) ou cinco níveis de fósforo disponível (0,25; 0,30; 0,35; 0,40 e 0,45%), quatro repetições e 16 aves/ UE para a fase de crescimento e 8 aves/ UE para a fase de produção. As características avaliadas para a fase de crescimento foram ganho de peso, consumo de ração, conversão alimentar, resistência óssea, cinza e cálcio (experimentos de cálcio) ou fósforo ósseo (experimentos de fósforo disponível), enquanto para a fase de produção de ovos foram avaliados consumo de ração, produção de ovos, peso médio dos ovos, massa de ovo e conversão alimentar (g de ração/g de ovo e kg de ração/dúzia de ovo). Foram estimadas exigências de cálcio de 0,834% ou 406 mg/ ave/ dia para aves leves e de 0,815% ou 440 mg/ave/dia para aves semipesadas e para fósforo disponível, de 0,411% ou 200 mg/ave/dia para aves leves e de 0,361% ou 184 mg/ave/dia para aves semipesadas.

Four experiments were carried out using white-egg pullets and brown-egg pullets in two different phases, growth phase (7 to 12 age weeks) and production phase (20 to 28 age weeks), with objective to determine requirements of calcium and available phosphorus and the effects of levels calcium e available phosphorus in production. Chickens from 13 to 19 weeks age were identified for treatment and fed only commercial diet. For each experiment, the chickens were allotted in a completely randomized design with five calcium levels (0.60, 0.70, 0.80, 0.90, and 1.00%) or five level available phosphorus (0.25, 0.30, 0.35, 0.40, and 0.45%), four replicates and 16 pullets/EU for the growth phase and 8 chickens/EU for the production phase. The characteristics evaluated for the growth phase were weight gain, feed intake, feed: gain ratio, bone resistance, ash and bone calcium (calcium experiments) or bone phosphorus (experiments phosphorus), while for the egg production phase were evaluated ration consumption, eggs production, egg weight, egg mass and feed conversion (g ration/g egg and kg of ration/dozen of egg). Calcium requirements of 0.834% or 406 mg/pullets/day for white egg pullets and 0.815% or 440 mg/pullets/day for brown eggs pullets were estimated and for available phosphorus, requirements of 0.411% or 200 mg/pullets/day for white egg pullets and 0.361% or 184 mg/pullets/day for brown eggs pullets were estimated.

Foi realizado um experimento com 1120 aves da linhagem Hubbard para estudar a restrição alimentar sobre o desempenho e as características de carcaça de frangos de corte. Quatro níveis de restrição alimentar foram testados (0,0; 15,0; 30,0; e 45,0%) dois sexos e dois períodos (8 a 14 e 8 a 17 dias de idade). Foi usado delineamento experimental, com quatro repetições e 20 aves por unidade experimental. Peso corporal, ganho de peso, consumo de ração, vísceras não-comestíveis, gordura abdominal e rendimento de carcaça, perna e peito diminuíram nos maiores níveis de restrição alimentar, porém houve melhora da conversão alimentar. O peso de vísceras comestíveis aumentou até o nível de 22,29% de restrição alimentar e o de filé de peito reduziu somente em altos níveis de restrição alimentar, o que indica a pouca viabilidade da aplicação de programas de restrição alimentar.

An experiment was conducted with 1120 Hubbard broiler to study the use of feed restriction on the performance and the carcass characteristics of the broiler chickens. Four levels of feed restriction (0.0, 15.0, 30.0 and 45%), two sex, and two periods (from 8 to 14 and from 8 to 17 days of age) were tested. A completely randomized design with four replicates and 20 birds per experimental unit was used. Body weight, weight gain, diet intake, non-edible viscera, abdominal fat, carcass yield, legs and breast yield reduced in the higher levels of feed restriction, however there was improvement in the feed:gain ratio. The edible viscera increased up to level of 22.29%of feed restriction and the breast meat reduced only in the higher levels of feed restriction, which indicates the small viability of the application of the feed restriction programs.