Effects of dietary zinc oxide nanoparticles on growth performance and antioxidative status in broilers.

Broilers in four groups were fed a basal diet supplemented with 60 mg/kg zinc oxide (60-ZnO; control), or 20, 60, or 100 mg/kg ZnO nanoparticles (20-, 60-, and 100-nano-ZnO, respectively). Compared with the controls, after 14 days, birds in the 20- and 60-nano-ZnO groups had significantly greater weight gains and better feed conversion ratios. However, the body weight of birds in the 100-nano-ZnO group was dramatically reduced after 28 days.

5-Hydroxytryptamine levels in the pulmonary arterioles of broilers with induced pulmonary hypertension and its relationship to pulmonary vascular remodelling.

This experiment was performed to explore the relationship between 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) levels in pulmonary arterioles and in pulmonary vascular remodelling in broilers. Pulmonary arterial hypertension was induced by injecting cellulose microparticles intravenously. Pulmonary hypertension syndrome (PHS) morbidity, right ventricle/total ventricle weight ratio (RV/TV), packed cell volume (PCV), haemoglobin concentration (HB), vessel wall area to vessel total area ratio (WA/TA) and mean tunica media thickness in pulmonary arterioles (mMTPA) were measured.

Genetic variation and phylogenetic analysis of hemagglutinin genes of H9 avian influenza viruses isolated in China during 2010-2012.

Genetic variation and phylogenetic relationships of H9 avian influenza viruses (AIVs) were analyzed based on hemagglutinin (HA) gene sequences of 84 Chinese H9 reference viruses recently available in GenBank, 3 widely used vaccine strains and 29 novel isolates. The novel isolates were obtained from vaccinated poultry flocks in 11 provinces of China during 2010 to 2012. The nucleotide homologies of HA genes of these isolates ranged from 87.

Priority in selenium homeostasis involves regulation of SepSecS transcription in the chicken brain.

O-phosphoseryl-tRNA:selenocysteinyl-tRNA synthase (SepSecS) is critical for the biosynthesis and transformation of selenocysteine (Sec) and plays an important role in the biological function of Se through the regulation of selenoprotein synthesis. Selenium (Se) and Selenoprotein play a pivotal role in brain function. However, how intake of the micronutrient Se affects gene expression and how genetic factors influence Se metabolism in the brain is unknown.

Effects of Selenoprotein W gene expression by selenium involves regulation of mRNA stability in chicken embryos neurons.

Selenium (Se) and Selenoprotein W (SelW) plays a pivotal role in the brain development, function, and degeneration and that SelW expression in the brain may be affected by Se. However, the mechanism which Se regulates the SelW gene expression in neurons remains to be unclear. To investigate the effects of the SelW gene expression and mRNA stability induced by Se, primary cultured chicken embryos neurons derived from 8-day-old chick embryo cerebral hemispheres were treated with 10(-9)-10(-5) mol/l Se as selenite for 3, 6, 12, 24 or 48 h, respectively.

Selenoprotein W gene expression in the gastrointestinal tract of chicken is affected by dietary selenium.

Selenoprotein W (SelW) and selenium (Se) plays important roles in gastrointestinal function and that SelW expression in the gastrointestinal system of mammals is sensitive to Se levels. However, little is known about the pattern of SelW expression in the bird gastrointestinal tract. To investigate the distribution of SelW and effects of dietary Se levels on the SelW mRNA expression in the gastrointestinal tract tissues of birds, 1-day-old male chickens were fed either a commercial diet or a Se-supplemented diet containing 1.

Molecular cloning, characterization and mRNA expression analysis of a novel selenoprotein: avian selenoprotein W from chicken.

In this study, a novel avian selenoprotein W (SelW) gene was cloned from chicken cerebral tissue. The complete nucleotide sequence of the gene contained a 258 bp open reading frame encoding 85 amino acids. Bioinformatics approaches identified the chicken SelW protein is characterized by a β-α-β-β-β-α secondary structure pattern, wherein β1 and β2 are parallel strands forming a classical β1-α1-β2 motif, which is also observed in thioredoxin-like fold proteins.

Testicular toxicity induced by dietary cadmium in cocks and ameliorative effect by selenium.

Cadmium (Cd) is an ubiquitous environmental pollutant that has been associated with male reproductive toxicity in animal models. However, little is known about the reproductive toxicity of Cd in birds. To investigate the toxicity of Cd on male reproduction in birds and the protective effects of selenium (Se) against subchronic exposure to dietary Cd, 100-day-old cocks received either Se (as 10 mg Na(2)SeO(3) per kg of diet), Cd (as 150 mg CdCl(2) per kg of diet) or Cd + Se in their diets for 60 days.