Live black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens) larvae in feed for laying hens: effects on hen gut microbiota and behavior.

This study examined the effects of including live black soldier fly (BSF, Hermetia illucens) larvae in the diet of laying hens on gut microbiota, and the association between microbiota and fearfulness. A total of 40 Bovans White laying hens were individually housed and fed 1 of 4 dietary treatments that provided 0, 10, 20%, or ad libitum daily dietary portions of live BSF larvae for 12 wk. Cecum microbiota was collected at the end of the experiment and sequenced.

Yeast strains do have an impact on the production of cured cocoa beans, as assessed with Costa Rican Trinitario cocoa fermentation processes and chocolates thereof.

The microbiological and metabolic outcomes of good cocoa fermentation practices can be standardized and influenced through the addition of starter culture mixtures composed of yeast and bacterial strains. The present study performed two spontaneous and 10 starter culture-initiated (SCI) cocoa fermentation processes (CFPs) in Costa Rica with local Trinitario cocoa. The yeast strains IMDO 050523, IMDO 020003, and IMDO 060005 were used to compose starter culture mixtures in combination with the lactic acid bacterium strain IMDO 0611222 and the acetic acid bacterium strain IMDO 0506386.

An in-depth multiphasic analysis of the chocolate production chain, from bean to bar, demonstrates the superiority of Saccharomyces cerevisiae over Hanseniaspora opuntiae as functional starter culture during cocoa fermentation.

Hanseniaspora opuntiae is a commonly found yeast species in naturally fermenting cocoa pulp-bean mass, which needed in-depth investigation. The present study aimed at examining effects of the cocoa isolate H. opuntiae IMDO 040108 as part of three different starter culture mixtures compared with spontaneous fermentation, regarding microbial community, substrate consumption, and metabolite production dynamics, including volatile organic compound (VOC) and phytochemical compositions, as well as compositions of the cocoa beans after fermentation, cocoa liquors, and chocolates.

Resting behavior of broilers reared with or without artificial brooders.

Rest and sleep are important for the welfare of mammals and birds. A large part of the daily time budget of broiler chickens is taken up by resting behavior and the quality of resting is important. However, in intensive broiler production systems, disruptions of resting behaviors are common.

Feeding live Black Soldier Fly larvae (Hermetia illucens) to laying hens: effects on feed consumption, hen health, hen behavior, and egg quality.

The use of insects in animal feed has the potential to reduce the demand for soybean production and reduce the deforestation and loss of natural resources. In particular, the black soldier fly (BSF, Hermetia illucens) larvae have received attention due to their ability to convert organic waste into high-value biomass. Several studies have investigated the effects of providing BSF larvae to both broilers and laying hens.

Curing of Cocoa Beans: Fine-Scale Monitoring of the Starter Cultures Applied and Metabolomics of the Fermentation and Drying Steps.

Starter culture-initiated cocoa fermentation processes can be applied to improve the quality of cured cocoa beans. However, an accurate monitoring of the microbial strains inoculated in fresh cocoa pulp-bean mass to assess their contribution to the cocoa bean curing process is still lacking. In the present study, eight different cocoa fermentation processes were carried out with Trinitario cocoa in vessels in Costa Rica to assess the contribution of two candidate yeast starter culture strains, namely IMDO 050523 and IMDO 020508, inoculated in combination with IMDO 0611222 and IMDO 0506386.

Quality differentiation of cocoa beans: implications for geographical indications.

Geographical indications may stimulate collective actions of governance for quality control, trade and marketing as well as innovation based on the use of local resources and regional biodiversity. Cocoa production, however, dominated by small family agriculture in tropical regions, has rarely made use of such strategies. This review is aimed at understanding major research interests and emerging technologies helpful for the origin differentiation of cocoa quality.

An attention bias test to assess anxiety states in laying hens.

Fear is a response to a known threat, anxiety is a response to a perceived threat. Both of these affective states can be detrimental to animal welfare in modern housing environments. In comparison to the well-validated tests for assessing fear in laying hens, tests for measuring anxiety are less developed.

Individual differences in personality in laying hens are related to learning a colour cue association.

Personality can influence how animals perceive and learn cues. The behaviour and physiological responses animals show during stressful events is indicative of their personality. Acute induced stress prior to a cognitive test are known to affect the judgement of a stimulus, but personality of an individual could also affect learning of a specific cognitive paradigm.

Heavy metals and pesticide exposure from agricultural activities and former agrochemical factory in a Salvadoran rural community.

Pesticide handling in farming activities involves substantial hazards for the rural population and for the environment. In Latin America, it is estimated that the population at risk of being affected by heavy metals is over 4 million. This research describes the different types of exposure to pesticides and heavy metals in a rural population (Loma del Gallo), considering both environmental and occupational exposure.

Assessing Activity and Location of Individual Laying Hens in Large Groups Using Modern Technology.

Tracking individual animals within large groups is increasingly possible, offering an exciting opportunity to researchers. Whereas previously only relatively indistinguishable groups of individual animals could be observed and combined into pen level data, we can now focus on individual actors within these large groups and track their activities across time and space with minimal intervention and disturbance. The development is particularly relevant to the poultry industry as, due to a shift away from battery cages, flock sizes are increasingly becoming larger and environments more complex.

Time lag between peak concentrations of plasma and salivary cortisol following a stressful procedure in dairy cattle.

Background: Measurement of salivary cortisol has been used extensively as a non-invasive alternative to blood sampling to assess adrenal activity in ruminants. However, there is evidence suggesting a considerable delay in the transfer of cortisol from plasma into saliva. Previous studies in cattle have used long sampling intervals making it difficult to characterise the relationship between plasma and salivary cortisol (PLCort and SACort, respectively) concentrations at different time points and determine whether or not such a time lag exist in large ruminants.

Mutation distribution in the NSP4 protein in rotaviruses isolated from Mexican children with moderate to severe gastroenteritis.

The NSP4 protein is a multifunctional protein that plays a role in the morphogenesis and pathogenesis of the rotavirus. Although NSP4 is considered an enterotoxin, the relationship between gastroenteritis severity and amino acid variations in NSP4 of the human rotavirus remains unclear. In this study, we analyzed the sequence diversity of NSP4 and the severity of gastroenteritis of children with moderate to severe gastroenteritis.

Chronic kidney disease and associated risk factors in the Bajo Lempa region of El Salvador: Nefrolempa study, 2009.

Introduction: In El Salvador, end-stage renal disease is the leading cause of hospital deaths in adults, the second cause of death in men and the fifth leading cause of death in adults of both sexes in the general population.

Objective: Identify risk factors for chronic kidney disease and urinary markers of renal and vascular damage, measure kidney function and characterize prevalence of chronic kidney disease in persons aged ≥18 years in the Bajo Lempa region of El Salvador.

Methods: A cross-sectional analytical epidemiological study was carried out using active screening for chronic kidney disease and associated risk factors in individuals aged ≥18 years in the Bajo Lempa Region, a rural, coastal area in El Salvador.

Animal studies of the effects of early nutrition on long-term health.

Small size at birth is associated with increased risk of a variety of common chronic diseases in adulthood. Numerous experimental studies in animals have supported the observations in humans, demonstrating that changes in nutrition in early life can lead to altered long-term health. Importantly, these effects can be independent of size at birth, and can depend on the interaction between nutritional events before and after birth.

Triterpenoids from Angiopteris palmiformis.

Two new fernane triterpenoids, 7alpha-hydroxyfern-8-en-11-one (1) and 11beta-hydroxyfern-8-en-7-one (2), and two new filicane triterpenoids, 3beta-hydroxyfilic-4(23)-ene (3) and filicenol (5), together with one known filicane-type triterpenoid, 3alpha-hydroxyfilic-4(23)-ene (4), were isolated from the methyl alcohol extract of the leaves of Angiopteris palmiformis. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of extensive analyses of their spectroscopic data (NMR, MS, IR) and comparison with spectroscopic data in the literature.

Effects of litter size, sex and periconceptional ewe nutrition on side preference and cognitive flexibility in the offspring.

Maternal undernutrition during pregnancy alters the physiology, behaviour and cognitive abilities of the offspring in sheep. Undernutrition restricted to the time around conception alters the physiology of the offspring, but effects on the behaviour and cognitive abilities are unknown. We studied the effects of mild periconceptional undernutrition in sheep on side preference and cognitive flexibility in the offspring.