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The aim of the present study was to investigate the usage of thyme leaves and its effects on performance, some egg quality traits and humoral immunity in laying hens. A total of 108 laying hens aged 36 weeks were randomly assigned to three dietary groups for 16 weeks. Dried and ground (Thymus vulgaris L.) thyme leaves were used at the level of 0, 1 and 2% in the diets of groups. Feed intake, body weight, egg production, egg weight and egg quality characteristics were not affected by dietary thyme supplementation. Thyme supplementation at 2% resulted in beneficial effects in laying hens due to the lowering of yolk cholesterol and total saturated fatty acids concentration while increasing omega-3 fatty acids. Furthermore, the yolk malondialdehyde, blood serum cholesterol and triglycerides levels were reduced and antibody titers against SRBC were increased with 2% thyme supplementation. In conclusion, the results showed the antioxidative and hypolipidemic effects of thyme supplementation in laying hens along with improved humoral immune response without any negative effects on performance and egg quality characteristics.

To date, most urology studies have been obtained with the use of rodents. After today, it is certain that rodents will be used to develop treatment in the biomedical research. Traditional models have several disadvantages. For this reason, many transgenic genetically engineered models have been developed. Owing to these models, more reliable, reproducible and informative research results can be obtained. Especially in the field of urooncology, patient-derived xenograft models are applied. The development of immune deficient mice provided a rapid improvement in this area. With the development of genome editing technologies such as CRISPR-Cas9, more reliable and reproducible animal models will increase.

The aim of this study was conducted to determine the effects of sepiolite usage on pellet production parameters and pellet quality characteristics for dairy cattle concentrate feed under regular industrial conditions. In the experiment, 14 mt pellet feeds for control and two treatment groups with 7 batch each were produced in a commercial feed factory. Each batch was 2 mt. Control group feed produced contained 87.37% dry matter, 18.06% crude protein, 6.95% crude fibre and 5.34% ether extract. For the treatment groups, 1% and 1.5% sepiolite (Exal T) were used as top dressed in the mixer. Pelleting disc having 6.5 mm hole diameter was used in the factory. Energy consumption during pellet manufacturing was decreased with sepiolite supplementation (P

The obesity model is predominantly formed by feeding animals that are prone to obesity with high-fat diets, but this dietary intervention is not standardized. It is very difficult to pellet most high-fat diets, as they become rapidly oxidized due to their high-fat content. This study aimed to use calcium soap (Ca-soap) of beef tallow as a source of fat in high-fat mouse diets and to investigate its effects on pellet quality and its effectiveness in an obesity model. In the experiment, three diets were formed: a control diet (CD), a high-fat diet with beef tallow (HFD), and a high-fat diet containing beef tallow and Ca-soap of beef tallow (Ca-HFD). A total of 36 male C57BL/6 J mice aged six weeks were randomly divided into 3 groups: the Control (C), High-Fat (HF), and High-Fat with Ca-soap (Ca-HF) groups. The experiment lasted 20 weeks. Ca-HFD and HFD had higher hardness and pellet durability index (PDI) values than CD. Ca-HFD had a lower peroxide value than that of the HFD. At the end of the study, average body weight, body weight gain, food consumption, and calorie consumption were found to be the highest in the HF group and the lowest in the C group. The highest epididymal white adipose tissue (eWAT) ratio of the mice was seen in the Ca-HF group. Plasma triglyceride and insulin values ​​were higher in the HF group than in the C group. The highest level of steatosis was observed in the HF group. High body weight gain, fat deposition, hypercholesterolemia, hyperglycemia, glucose tolerance, and hepatic steatosis were observed in C57BL/6 J male mice fed the high-fat diets, but only HFD caused hyperinsulinemia. HFD and Ca-HFD can be used to model obesity, but only HFD can be used in type 2 diabetes modeling.

Bu araştırma, yumurta tavuğu rasyonlarına sepiyolit ilavesinin 22 hafta süreyle performans, yumurta kalitesi ve bazı kan parametreleri üzerine etkilerini belirlemek amacıyla yapılmıştır. Bu amaçla 38 haftalık yaşta 135 adet Lohmann Brown yumurta tavuğu 1 kontrol ve 2 deneme grubuna ayrılmıştır. Sepiyolit kontrol, birinci ve ikinci deneme gruplarının rasyonlarında sırasıyla % 0, 0.5 ve 1 olacak şekilde ilave edilmiştir. Sepiyolit ilavesi yem tüketimi, yumurta verimi, yumurta ağırlığı ve yemden yararlanmayı etkilememiştir. Rasyonlarda %1 düzeyinde sepiyolit kullanılmasıyla yumurta kırılma mukavemeti (p

Nutrition during pregnancy and lactation is a critical factor in the development of the offspring. Both protein content and source in maternal diet affect neonatal health, but the long-term effects of maternal low-quality protein diet on the offspring are less clear. This study aimed to examine the effects of maternal low-quality protein diet on offspring’s growth, development, circulating metabolites and hepatic expression of methyltransferases. Virgin Wistar rats were mated at 11 weeks of age. Dams were then maintained on either a chow diet with 20% casein as the control group (C), or a low-quality protein diet with 20% wheat gluten as the experimental group (WG) throughout gestation and lactation. After weaning, all offspring were fed a control chow diet until the age of 20 weeks. Male WG offspring had significantly lower body weight and energy intake, whereas female WG offspring had significantly higher body weight and energy intake when compared with controls. Early life exposure to WG diet had no significant effect on circulating metabolites. However, fasting insulin concentrations and homoeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance were decreased in WG male and female offspring. Maternal low-quality protein diet increased plasma aspartic acid, glutamic acid, histidine, cystathione and decreased lysine in male WG offspring. Conversely, the same amino acids were reduced in female WG offspring. Adult offspring exposed to WG diet had significantly upregulated hepatic DNMT3a and DNMT3b expressions. Our study showed that there were differential effects of maternal poor-quality protein diet upon adult offspring’s metabolism.

The pathological endpoint of congenital and senile myopathies is chronic muscle degeneration characterized by the atrophy of contractile elements, accompanied by fibrosis and fatty infiltration of the interstitium. Tenotomy is the release of preload that causes abrupt shortening of the muscle and models atrophy and fibrosis without prominent inflammatory response. Fibrosis in the skeletal muscle is known to be triggered by transforming growth factor (TGF)-β, which is activated by inflammatory events. As these were lacking, tenotomy provided an opportunity to investigate transcriptional events on a background without inflammation. An unbiased look at the transcriptome of tenotomy-immobilized soleus muscle revealed that the majority of the transcriptional changes took place in the first 4 wk. Regarding atrophy, proteasomal and lysosomal pathways were actively involved in accompanying cathepsins and calpains in the breakdown of the macromolecular contractile machinery. The transcriptome provided clear-cut evidence for the upregulation of collagens and several extracellular matrix components that define fibrotic remodeling of the skeletal muscle architecture as well as activation of the fibro-adipogenic precursors. Concomitantly, Sfrp2, a Wnt antagonist as well as a procollagen processor, accompanied fibrosis in skeletal muscle with an expression that was stringently confined to the slow-twitch fibers. An interpreted mechanistic scenario construed the kinetic events initiated through the abnormal shortening of the muscle fibers as enough to trigger the resident latent TGF-β in the extracellular matrix, leading to the activation of fibroadipogenic precursors. As in the heart, Sfrp2 shows itself to be a therapeutic target for the prevention of irreversible fibrosis in degenerative skeletal muscle conditions.

This study was designed to investigate the effects of the usage of glycerol from biodiesel production from soybean oil in laying hen diets on laying performance, egg traits, heterophils to lymphocytes ratio (H/L), some blood parameters and antibody production to SRBC. A total of 180 Lohmann Brown laying hens 39 weeks of age were allocated to four dietary treatments with one control group and three treatment groups and fed for 16 weeks. Each group was divided into five replicates as subgroups, comprising of 9 hens each. Glycerol was used at the level of 2.5, 5 and 7.5% in the diets of the first, second and third treatment groups, respectively. The diets were formulated to be isocaloric and isonitrogenous. Dietary treatments did not significantly affect body weight, egg production, egg weight, feed efficiency, mortality, egg albumen index, egg yolk index and egg Haugh unit, yolk weight percentage, exterior egg quality characteristics, excreta moisture, H/L ratio, blood parameters and antibody production to SRBC. Hens fed diets with 7.5% glycerol consumed significantly less feed than those of the other groups. Egg yolk cholesterol concentration was significantly higher for hens fed diets with 5 and 7.5% glycerol as compared to those of the other groups (P

Akyol, Asli/0000-0001-6301-6358 WOS: 000367052200010 PubMed: 26633475 Several studies have indicated the influence of a maternal low protein diet on the fetus. However, the effect of a maternal low quality protein diet on fetal growth and development is largely unknown. Wistar rats (11 weeks old) were mated and maintained on either a chow diet with 20% casein (n = 6) as the control group (C), or a low quality protein diet with 20% wheat gluten (n = 7) as the experimental group (WG) through gestation and lactation. Maternal body weights were similar in both groups throughout the study. Birth weights were not influenced by maternal diet and offspring body weights during lactation were similar between the groups. Offspring's plasma amino acid profiles showed that plasma methionine, glutamine and lysine were significantly lower and aspartic acid, ornithine and glycine-proline were significantly higher in the WG. Plant based protein comprises an important part of protein intake in developing countries. It is well-known that these diets can be inadequate in terms of essential amino acids. The current study shows differential effects of a maternal low quality protein diet on the offspring's plasma amino acids. Future studies will examine further aspects of the influence of maternal low quality protein diets on fetal growth and development. Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK)Turkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Arastirma Kurumu (TUBITAK) [114S812] The present study was funded by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK), Number 114S812.

WOS: 000342266000009, The objective of this study was to determine the effects of dietary yeast cell wall (YCW) on performance, egg quality, some blood parameters and humoral immune response of laying hens during 26 wks period. For this purpose a total of 225 Hyline Brown laying hens, 39 wks of age, were allocated to one control group and four treatment groups. Basal diet was supplemented with YCW derived from bakers yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae (InteMOS) at the level of 1, 2, 3 and 4 g/kg in the diets of the first, second, third and fourth treatment groups, respectively. Dietary treatments did not significantly affect body weight, feed intake, egg production, egg weight, feed conversion, and egg internal and external quality characteristics. YCW supplementation at the level of 1 and 2 g/kg decreased egg yolk cholesterol level as mg per g yolk (P < 0.05). Blood serum levels of cholesterol and triglyceride were decreased with the dietary inclusion of YCW at the level of 2, 3 and 4 g/kg (P < 0.01). Dietary YCW supplementation increased antibody titres to SRBC (P < 0.01). As a result dietary YCW at the level of 1 and 2 g/kg had beneficial effects in the production of low cholesterol eggs and improvement in humoral immunity response., Integro Food and Feed Manufacturing Company (Istanbul, Turkey), This work was supported by Integro Food and Feed Manufacturing Company (Istanbul, Turkey).

The transcriptional events and pathways responsible for the acquisition of the myogenic phenotype during regeneration and myogenesis have been studied extensively. The modulators that shape the extracellular matrix in health and disease, however, are less understood. Understanding the components and pathways of this remodeling will aid the restoration of the architecture and prevent deterioration under pathological conditions such as fibrosis. Periostin, a matricellular protein associated with remodeling of the extracellular matrix and connective tissue architecture, is emerging in pathological conditions associated with fibrosis in adult life. Periostin also complicates fibrosis in degenerative skeletal muscle conditions such as dystrophies. This study primarily addresses the spatial and temporal involvement of periostin along skeletal muscle regeneration. In the acute skeletal muscle injury model that shows recovery without fibrosis, we show that periostin is rapidly disrupted along with the extensive necrosis and periostin mRNA is transiently upregulated during the myotube maturation. This expression is stringently initiated from the newly regenerating fibers. However, this observation is contrasting to a model that displays extensive fibrosis where upregulation of periostin expression is stable and confined to the fibrotic compartments of endomysial and perimysial space. In vitro myoblast differentiation further supports the claim that upregulation of periostin expression is a function of extracellular matrix remodeling during myofiber differentiation and maturation. We further seek to identify the expression kinetics of various periostin isoforms during the differentiation of rat and mouse myoblasts. Results depict that a singular periostin isoform dominated the rat muscle, contrasting to multiple isoforms in C2C12 myoblast cells. This study shows that periostin, a mediator with deleterious impact on conditions exhibiting fibrosis, is also produced and secreted by myoblasts and regenerating myofibers during architectural remodeling in the course of development and regeneration. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Aim of the study: The present study was undertaken to evaluate the wound healing effects of the four chief saponins of Astragalus species (cycloastragenol (CA), astragaloside IV (AG), cyclocephaloside I (CCI) and cyclocanthoside E (CCE)). Material and methods: Effects of cell viability and proliferation of the isolated compounds were evaluated by the MTT assay on human keratinocyte. The wound healing activity was studied by using in vitro wound healing, proliferation and migration scratch assay. In order to see in vivo effectiveness of the compounds, an animal study with Sprague-Dawley male rats at the age of 12 weeks was carried out, and then the main histological outcomes were investigated to observe reepithelization, neovascularization, and presence of inflammatory cells, granulation tissue amount and maturation. Results: All the compounds increased both fibroblast proliferation and migration, but the effects were much superior for CA at 1 ng/ml concentration. Among the compounds, based on the histological findings, 5% CA preparation was found to be the most remarkable in vivo wound healing agent showing greater cell density, more regularly organized dermis and more newly formed blood vessels. Conclusion: Results of this study indicate that the cycloartane-type saponins are the principal constituents responsible for wound healing activities of the roots of Astragalus species substantiating its use in tradi- tional medicine. © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The real time PCR technique requires the normalization of the gene of interest to reference genes that are accepted to be ubiquitously expressed. The choice of the reference gene(s) needs to be determined by researchers according to the particular tissue or model of interest. The best normalization gene is not easy to decide, particularly if the investigated tissue displays architectural changes and structural reorganization. We have investigated the expression of four housekeeping genes that are widely used for the normalization purposes (TATA binding protein, beta actin, hypoxanthine-guanine phosphorybosyl transferase and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase) in a skeletal muscle degeneration model applied by the release of the Achilles tendon which leads to a time-course degeneration of the soleus and gastrocnemius muscles. This study indicates that the TATA binding protein and the beta actin gene to be the least effected in the course of degeneration induced by tenotomy in rat soleus and gastrocnemius muscle. (C) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

This study was conducted to study the effects of dietary garlic powder on laying performance, egg traits and blood serum cholesterol level of quails. A total of three hundred quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica) aged nine weeks were used. They were allocated to 3 dietary treatments. Each treatment comprised 5 replicates of 20 quails. The diets were supplemented with 0, 5 and 10 g/kg garlic powder. The experimental period lasted 21 weeks. The addition of garlic powder did not significantly affect body weight, egg production, feed consumption, feed efficiency, egg shell thickness, egg albumen index, egg yolk index and egg Haugh unit. Adding 5 and 10 g/kg garlic powder to the laying quail diets increased egg weight (p

This study was carried out to determine the effeets of the usage of enzyme and avaparcin alone or ın combinaıionon pcrforınance. carcass yield and same blood parameters of quails. A total of 328 daily Japanese quail chicb (Coııırniı coıumi\jupoııiCil) were used in this experiment. They \'oae divided into 4 groups (I control and 3 treatment groups) eaclı containıng 82chıcb. Each group was divided into 2 replieate groups eontaining 41 ehieks. Experimental diets were suppleınented withroxazyme-G (I 000 ppm) and avaparcin (I 5 ppm) alone or in combination. The experimental period la,ted five weeks. Aı the end ofthe study there were no statistically differenees among the groups in live weight. earcass yield and total protein and total lipid value,of blood serıını. Feed consumption per one kg live weight gain of control group and i..2. and 3. treatment groups during trial \Vercdetermined as 3.06. 3. 18. 3.09 and 3. i()kg, respectively. It is eoncluded that the supplementation of roxazyme-G with or wiıhoutavaparcin to tlıe rations had no important effect on fattening performanee, earcass yield and total protein and total lipid valucs ofblood senım of quai Ls.

Objective: To compare fetal cell microchimerism in normal and immunocompromised gestations. Materials and methods: The study consists of two groups of mature female mice. In the control group and the immunocompromised study group, 5 mg of saline and cyclosporine were injected intraperitoneally, respectively. In the second step, all female mice were mated with “Actine-Luc (+) green fluorescent protein (GFP)” transgenic male mice. Immunohistochemical studies (ALPL-antiluciferase, cytokeratin-antiluciferase, and CD 105-antiluciferase) were carried out on maternal liver, skin, and lung tissues at 6–7th and 14–15th gestational days, and postpartum 3–4th, 12th, and 18–24 months. Results: GFP (+) cells were detected in maternal liver and skin but not in lung tissue. Liver was the most affected tissue. GFP was found to be more intense in the immunocompromised group. Conclusion: Fetal microchimerism was demonstrated in maternal liver and skin and found to be more intensive in the immunocompromised group.