ABSTRACT There is a shortage of concentrated feeds for animals in the country and therefore the research focused on developing a diet based on the guidelines of the American Institute of Nutrition (AIN) with endogenous ingredients and testing them in rats in pregnancy, lactation and growth. In Experiment 1, 12 male Sprague Dawley (SD) rats of 5-6 weeks were worked, half of them fed with a control diet and the other half with a non- purified diet based on egg white (EWP) for six weeks. In Experiment 2, 10 pregnant SD rats were subjected to the same diets (control and EWP) to select 14 four-week-old male neonates to continue with the same feeding regimens for five more weeks (7 in control diet and 7 in EWP). In both experiments, an evaluation of clinical-metabolic parameters (body weight, clinical evaluation and metabolic cage study) was carried out. In the second experiment, biological parameters (protein concentration and hematology) were also evaluated. The results show stable clinical-metabolic parameters and normal biological parameters, which allows to conclude that EWP is suitable for the optimal and healthy development of laboratory rats.

RESUMEN Ante la escasez de alimento concentrado para animales en el país, la investigación se centró en elaborar una dieta basada en las directrices del Instituto Americano de Nutrición (AIN) con ingredientes endógenos y probarlos en ratas en gestación, lactancia y crecimiento. En el Experimento 1 se trabajó con 12 ratas Sprague Dawley (SD) machos de 5-6 semanas, la mitad alimentada con dieta control y la otra mitad con dieta no purificada a base de clara de huevo (EWP) durante seis semanas. En el Experimento 2 se trabajó con 10 ratas SD gestantes sometidas a las mismas dietas (control y EWP), para seleccionar 14 crías macho de cuatro semanas de edad para continuar con los mismos regímenes de alimentación por cinco semanas más (7 control y 7 EWP). En ambos experimentos se realizó evaluación de parámetros clínicos-metabólicos (peso corporal, evaluación clínica y estudio en caja metabólica), En el segundo experimento se evaluaron, además, parámetros biológicos (concentración de proteínas y hematología). Los resultados muestran parámetros clínicos-metabólicos estables y parámetros biológicos normales, lo que permite concluir que EWP es adecuada para el desarrollo óptimo y sano de las ratas de laboratorio.

The levels of several chemical elements were determined simultaneously in ten different beers of the Venezuelan market by ICP-OES. With the exception of chromium, beer does not provide important amounts of nutritional oligoelements. The average chromium content found (33 µg/L) is higher than one reported for USA's beer (10 µg/L) but smaller than another reported for Brazilian beer (66 µg/L). The average percentage of chromium RDA by beer consumption found for Venezuela (6.3%) is similar to that reported for Belgium (5%). Regarding toxic elements, one of the samples contained an elevated amount of aluminium, probably dissolved from the aluminium can.

Concentrações de mercúrio e chumbo obtidas pela análise ICP-OAS de amostras de cabelo humano de comunidades ribeirinhas ao longo do rio Orinoco no estado de Amazonas (Venezuela) foram comparadas com outras de Caracas, Venezuela. Levando em consideração as características desses dois ambientes e os valores das concentrações médias de mercúrio e chumbo, foram estabelecidas linhas basais que sugerem que as atividades de minério de ouro próximo ao rio Orinoco são responsáveis pelos altos conteúdos de mercúrio em cabelo no estado de Amazonas. Entretanto, a indústria automotriz é responsável pelo alto conteúdo de chumbo em cabelo em Caracas.

Mercury and Lead concentrations obtained by ICP-OAS analysis of human hair from riverside communities along the Orinoco river in the Amazon state (Venezuela) were compared with those from Caracas, Venezuela. Taking into account the characteristics of these two environments and the values of the average concentrations of Mercury and Lead, baselines were established suggesting that gold mining activity near the Orinoco river is responsible for the high levels of Mercury in hair from the Amazon state, whereas automobile activity is responsible for high levels of Lead in hair in Caracas.