Productive and economic parameters of pigs supplemented from weaning to finishing with prebiotic and probiotic feed additives.

Practical evidence suggests possible beneficial effects with the combined use of prebiotics and probiotics which can improve production parameters. The objective of the study was to investigate the addition of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (SC) as prebiotic and the combination of Lactobacillus spp. (L), Bacillus spp.

Prepubertal male rats with high rates of germ-cell apoptosis present exacerbated rates of germ-cell apoptosis after serotonin depletion.

Male germ-cell apoptosis occurs naturally and can be increased by exposure to drugs and toxic chemicals. Individuals may have different rates of apoptosis and are likely to also exhibit differential sensitivity to outside influences. Previously, we reported that p-chloroamphetamine (pCA), a substance that inhibits serotonin synthesis, induced germ-cell apoptosis in prepubertal male rats.

Use of multivariate statistics to identify unreliable data obtained using CASA.

In order to identify unreliable data in a dataset of motility parameters obtained from a pilot study acquired by a veterinarian with experience in boar semen handling, but without experience in the operation of a computer assisted sperm analysis (CASA) system, a multivariate graphical and statistical analysis was performed. Sixteen boar semen samples were aliquoted then incubated with varying concentrations of progesterone from 0 to 3.33 µg/ml and analyzed in a CASA system.

Protection and antibody isotype responses against Fasciola hepatica with specific antibody to pIII-displayed peptide mimotopes of cathepsin L1 in sheep.

Fluke burdens, liver fluke size and biomass, fecal eggs counts, serum levels of hepatic enzymes and immune response were assessed in sheep immunized with peptide mimotopes of cathepsin L1 and challenged with Fasciola hepatica metacercariae. Twenty sheep were randomly allocated to four groups of five animals each; groups 1 and 2 were immunized at weeks 0 and 2 with mimotopes YVYRWVEAECVA and FSPAYLRDAALK, respectively; group 3 was immunized with wild-type M13KE phage and the control group received phosphate-buffered saline (PBS). All groups were challenged with 300 metacercariae at week 6 and slaughtered 16 weeks later.

Effect of climate factors on conception rate of lactating dairy cows in Mexico.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between conception rate (CR) and climate variables. Data consisted of 24,380 inseminations of Holstein dairy herd in Hidalgo, Mexico. Weather records, including daily temperature (T), relative humidity (RH), rainfall, wind speed, and solar radiation, were obtained from a nearby weather station.