The use of ultrasonography in the reproductive evaluation of boars          下载免费PDF全文

RO Pinho  BS Camilo  DMA Lima  FAC Villadiego  JCM Vergara  HH Shiomi  RE Cardoso  PS Lopes  JD Guimarães 《Reproduction in domestic animals》2018,53(2):393-400

The objective was to study the use of ultrasound as a complementary test in the breeding soundness evaluation in male pigs and study the pattern of echogenicity of the testicular parenchyma in boars of different racial groups. Twenty‐six adult boars from four different racial groups were used, 10 from the Piau breed (group 1), four from the commercial and finishing group (group 2), six Pietrain breed (group 3) and six from the Duroc breed (group 4). All animals were evaluated for breeding soundness evaluation and the ultrasound examination of the testicles. The groups of animals that were evaluated showed no difference in the main semen parameters that were evaluated, except for the sperm volume, concentration of the ejaculated sperm and the supravital staining; the lowest figures were for the animals from the Piau breed (group 1). In relation to the testicular biometrics, Duroc animals (group 4) had a greater scrotal width compared to the other groups. But when we assessed the intensity of pixels of the testicles, there was a difference between groups. The groups 2 (finishing animals), 3 (Pietrain) and 4 had no difference between themselves. Group 3 had greater pixel intensity in relation to group 1. Of the 26 animals studied, five showed an abnormality during ultrasound evaluation, like hydrocele, hyperechoic mass in the testicular parenchyma, cyst in the head of the epididymis and the presence of fluid in the head and tail of the epididymis. The various animal groups studied did not differ in the principal reproductive parameters evaluated, showing that despite the great variability of reproductive traits between breeds and within the same breed, the breeding soundness evaluation, the more complete it is, is essential for the selection of breeders and the ultrasonography of the reproductive system becomes an important addition in this examination.  相似文献   

Oestradiol Induced Inhibition of Neuroendocrine Marker Expression in Leydig Cells of Adult Rats     

HH Ortega  NR Salvetti  C Baravalle  JA Lorente  GA Mira 《Reproduction in domestic animals》2006,41(3):204-209

The objectives of this work were to determine the changes in the expression of neuroendocrine markers in Leydig cell by oestradiol treatment, and to determine whether testosterone is able to recover partially the effects of hormonal suppression induced by oestradiol. Adult male rats were injected daily with either 50 microg of oestradiol or oestradiol plus testosterone propionate (25 mg every 3 days) for 15 days. The animals were sacrificed and testicles were dissected and processed by routine histological protocols. FSH and LH serum levels were determined by radioimmunoassay. The visualization of antigens was achieved by the streptavidin-peroxidase immunohistochemical method. Antibodies against chromogranin A (CrA), S-100 protein (S-100), P substance (PS), synaptofisin (SYN), neurofilament protein (NF), gliofibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and neuron specific enolase (NSE) were used. The mean LH and FSH serum concentrations were consistently suppressed with hormonal treatments. Intermediate filaments (NF and GFAP) showed no difference in their expression. The expression of S-100, NSE and SYN was significantly lower in both hormone-treated groups. In oestradiol-treated rats, the immunoreactivity of CrA and SP decreased significantly but was restored after testosterone supplementation. Although the nature and functions of many of these substances in Leydig cells remain unknown, these results are consistent with the hypothesis that the expression of some neuroendocrine markers is hormonally controlled.  相似文献   

Effects of organic and mineral fertilizer inputs on maize yield and soil chemical properties in a maize cropping system in Meru South District, Kenya     

Monicah Mucheru-Muna  Daniel Mugendi  James Kung’u  Jayne Mugwe  Andre Bationo 《Agroforestry Systems》2007,69(3):189-197

Soil nutrient depletion as a result of continuous cultivation of soils without adequate addition of external inputs is a major challenge in the highlands of Kenya. An experiment was set up in Meru South District, Kenya in 2000 to investigate the effects of different soil-incorporated organic (manure, Tithonia diversifolia, Calliandra calothyrsus, Leucaena leucocephala) and mineral fertilizer inputs on maize yield, and soil chemical properties over seven seasons. On average, tithonia treatments (with or without half recommended rate of mineral fertilizer) gave the highest grain yield (5.5 and 5.4 Mg ha⁻¹ respectively) while the control treatment gave the lowest yield (1.5 Mg ha⁻¹). After 2 years of trial implementation, total soil carbon and nitrogen contents were improved with the application of organic residues, and manure in particular improved soil calcium content. Results of the economic analysis indicated that on average across the seven seasons, tithonia with half recommended rate of mineral fertilizer treatment recorded the highest net benefit (USD 787 ha⁻¹) while the control recorded the lowest (USD 272 ha⁻¹). However, returns to labor or benefit-cost ratios were in most cases not significantly improved when organic materials were used.  相似文献   

Immunohistochemical Expression of Growth Factors in the Follicular Wall of Normal and Cystic Ovaries of Sows          下载免费PDF全文

FJF Sant'Ana  JL Reis Junior  GR Blume  EJ Gimeno  F Rey  HH Ortega 《Reproduction in domestic animals》2015,50(2):327-332

The expression of growth factors was evaluated immunohistochemically in normal and cystic ovaries of sows. The immunohistochemically stained area (IHCSA) was quantified by image analysis to analyse the expression of these proteins in the follicular wall of secondary, tertiary and cystic follicles. IGF‐I immunoreactivity was strong in the granulosa cell layer (GC), moderate in the theca interna (TI) and mild in the theca externa (TE) of the normal follicles. There was severe reduction of the labelling to IGF‐I in the GC of the follicular and luteinized cysts. In the normal follicles, the reactivity for IGF‐II was very similar to pattern noted in IGF‐I. There was reduction of the IHCSAs in the GC of the follicular and luteinized cysts, but the decrease was not significant. The staining of the IGF‐II in the TI and TE of the cysts was increased, in comparison with normal follicles. The IHCSAs for VEGF were higher in the GC and TE of the normal follicles in contrast to TI, but this difference was noted only in the tertiary follicle. The VEGF reactivity increased in the GC of the cysts, in relation to normal follicles. The results of the current study show that the formation of ovarian cysts in sows is associated with alterations in the immunohistochemical expression of some growth factors.  相似文献   

Cryopreservation of Piau‐Breed Wild Boar Sperm: Assessment of Cooling Curves and Centrifugation Regimes          下载免费PDF全文

HH Shiomi  RO Pinho  DMA Lima  JB Siqueira  MCR Santos  EV Costa  PS Lopes  SEF Guimarães  JD Guimarães 《Reproduction in domestic animals》2015,50(4):545-553

This study aimed to assess the effects of different cooling curves and centrifugation regimes used in cryopreservation protocols on the post‐thaw viability of Piau‐breed wild boar (Sus scrofa) sperm using in vitro assessment tests. Two centrifugations (800  g for 10 min and 2400  g for 3 min) and two cooling curves (conventional cooling using nitrogen vapour – freezing 1 and automated cooling using a programmed freezing machine – freezing 2) were tested. Therefore, the treatments were divided into M3 – centrifugation at 2400  g for 3 min and freezing 2; M10 – centrifugation at 800  g for 10 min and freezing 2; R3 – centrifugation at 2400  g for 3 min and freezing 1; and R10 – centrifugation at 800  g for 10 min and freezing 1. No significant differences (p > 0.05) between treatments occurred post‐thawing regarding the total sperm motility means recorded. The mean values of the different treatments were not different from each other regarding the supravital staining (SV), hypo‐osmotic test (HO), sperm–egg binding assay or sperm morphology. This study showed that both the cooling curve and the centrifugation regime affected the quality of post‐thaw sperm, and centrifugation for shorter times and cooling curves using automated cooling are the most suitable for minimizing sperm injury.  相似文献   

Polypeptide composition of fraction 1 protein from parasexual hybrid plants in the genus Nicotiana     

Kung SD  Gray JC  Wildman SG  Carlson PS 《Science (New York, N.Y.)》1975,187(4174):353-355

Analysis of the subunit polypeptide composition of Fraction 1 proteins gives information on the expression of both nuclear and chloroplast genomes; the large subunits of the protein are coded by chloroplast DNA, whereas the small subunits are coded by nuclear DNA. Fraction 1 protein isolated from the leaves of parasexual hybrid plants derived from the fusion of protoplasts of Nicotiana glauca and N. langsdorffii contains the small subunit polypeptides of both parent species and the large subunit polypeptides of only N. glauca. Fraction 1 protein isolated from the leaves of a hybrid plant obtained after the uptake of chloroplasts of N. suaveolens by protoplasts of white tissue of a variegating mutant of N. tabacum contains the large subunit polypeptides of both N. suaveolens and N. tabacum, as well as the small subunit polypeptides of both these species.  相似文献   

Inactivation of TNF signaling by rationally designed dominant-negative TNF variants     

Steed PM  Tansey MG  Zalevsky J  Zhukovsky EA  Desjarlais JR  Szymkowski DE  Abbott C  Carmichael D  Chan C  Cherry L  Cheung P  Chirino AJ  Chung HH  Doberstein SK  Eivazi A  Filikov AV  Gao SX  Hubert RS  Hwang M  Hyun L  Kashi S  Kim A  Kim E  Kung J  Martinez SP  Muchhal US  Nguyen DH  O'Brien C  O'Keefe D  Singer K  Vafa O  Vielmetter J  Yoder SC  Dahiyat BI 《Science (New York, N.Y.)》2003,301(5641):1895-1898

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) is a key regulator of inflammatory responses and has been implicated in many pathological conditions. We used structure-based design to engineer variant TNF proteins that rapidly form heterotrimers with native TNF to give complexes that neither bind to nor stimulate signaling through TNF receptors. Thus, TNF is inactivated by sequestration. Dominant-negative TNFs represent a possible approach to anti-inflammatory biotherapeutics, and experiments in animal models show that the strategy can attenuate TNF-mediated pathology. Similar rational design could be used to engineer inhibitors of additional TNF superfamily cytokines as well as other multimeric ligands.  相似文献   

Design and chemical synthesis of a homogeneous polymer-modified erythropoiesis protein     

Kochendoerfer GG  Chen SY  Mao F  Cressman S  Traviglia S  Shao H  Hunter CL  Low DW  Cagle EN  Carnevali M  Gueriguian V  Keogh PJ  Porter H  Stratton SM  Wiedeke MC  Wilken J  Tang J  Levy JJ  Miranda LP  Crnogorac MM  Kalbag S  Botti P  Schindler-Horvat J  Savatski L  Adamson JW  Kung A  Kent SB  Bradburne JA 《Science (New York, N.Y.)》2003,299(5608):884-887

We report the design and total chemical synthesis of "synthetic erythropoiesis protein" (SEP), a 51-kilodalton protein-polymer construct consisting of a 166-amino-acid polypeptide chain and two covalently attached, branched, and monodisperse polymer moieties that are negatively charged. The ability to control the chemistry allowed us to synthesize a macromolecule of precisely defined covalent structure. SEP was homogeneous as shown by high-resolution analytical techniques, with a mass of 50,825 +/-10 daltons by electrospray mass spectrometry, and with a pI of 5.0. In cell and animal assays for erythropoiesis, SEP displayed potent biological activity and had significantly prolonged duration of action in vivo. These chemical methods are a powerful tool in the rational design of protein constructs with potential therapeutic applications.  相似文献   

Role of T-bet in commitment of TH1 cells before IL-12-dependent selection     

Mullen AC  High FA  Hutchins AS  Lee HW  Villarino AV  Livingston DM  Kung AL  Cereb N  Yao TP  Yang SY  Reiner SL 《Science (New York, N.Y.)》2001,292(5523):1907-1910

How cytokines control differentiation of helper T (TH) cells is controversial. We show that T-bet, without apparent assistance from interleukin 12 (IL-12)/STAT4, specifies TH1 effector fate by targeting chromatin remodeling to individual interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) alleles and by inducing IL-12 receptor beta2 expression. Subsequently, it appears that IL-12/STAT4 serves two essential functions in the development of TH1 cells: as growth signal, inducing survival and cell division; and as trans-activator, prolonging IFN-gamma synthesis through a genetic interaction with the coactivator, CREB-binding protein. These results suggest that a cytokine does not simply induce TH fate choice but instead may act as an essential secondary stimulus that mediates selective survival of a lineage.  相似文献   

Response     

Hoch HC  Kung C  Zhou XL  Stumpf MA 《Science (New York, N.Y.)》1992,256(5061):1336

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