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Effects of Thermal Manipulation During the Second Half of Incubation on Embryo Physiology, Hatching Parameters, and Quality of Broiler Chickens in Tropical Climate of Togo
No full textChickens are sensitive to environmental challenges caused by temperature. The current study aimed to determine the effects of heat manipulation during embryonic development on the physiological responses of Goliath chickens. A total of 2000 hatching eggs from 48-week-old breeders were weighed, numbered, and randomly distributed equally into 4 incubators. Each incubator received 500 eggs (4 replicates of 125 eggs each). Eggs in two of the incubators were rotated hourly at a 45° angle and maintained at 37.8°C and 60 relative humidity (T0 groups). Between embryonic days (ED) 10 and 18 of incubation, the eggs from the other two incubators were heated to 38.5°C for 6 hours per day (T1 groups). The eggs were reweighed and candled, and viable eggs were moved to the hatching baskets at ED 18 of incubation. Hatching eggs were examined individually for hatching events every three hours during the final three days of incubation. On day 21, blood samples were collected from 12 chicks per group for hormonal and biochemical analyses. The evaluated blood parameters included Triiodothyronine (T3), T4 (thyroxine), cortisol, uric acid, lactate dehydrogenase, and total protein. At hatch, chicks were weighed and their quality (survival after hatching and performance standards) was evaluated. Data were collected on embryonic development, hatching window, hatching events, biochemical parameters, and hormonal concentrations. Results indicated that hatchability, chick’s weight, Triiodothyronine, and corticosterone were higher in the T1 group, compared to the control group. At hatch on day 21, the pipping muscle of chicks in the treated group (T1) was significantly heavier than that of the control group, while the embryonic mortality rate was significantly higher in the T0 group. In conclusion, applying heat treatment for 6 hours at 38.5°C from ED10-ED18 of embryogenesis increased significantly the hatching rate, the pipping muscle, and the chick’s weight in this study. © The Author(s) 202
Control of Field Infectious Bronchitis Virus Genotype GI-23 (Variant 2) Using Combined Heterologous Vaccine Genotype Strains GI-13 (1/96) and GI-1 (H120)
No full textInfectious bronchitis (IB) is a disease with significant economic impacts both on the costs of control strategies and on productive losses. Various vaccination protocols are applied, depending on homologous or heterologous protection against IB and finding the optimal balance between costs and benefits as a choice by a responsible veterinarian. The current case study aimed to demonstrate the efficacy of a heterologous vaccine combination against field IBV GI-22 (Variant 2) infection when vaccination quality was properly monitored. Two groups, each consisting of six flocks, were examined before and after improving the quality of IB vaccine application in the hatchery. These groups were vaccinated with H-120 and 1/96 vaccine strains for heterologous protection. The study involved field visits, necropsies, serology via ELISA, and oropharyngeal sampling for RT-PCR follow-up activities. Moreover, performance parameters including average body weight, feed conversion ratio, and 7 days plus total mortality were analyzed at the end of the production cycle at 40-45 days of age. Results indicated that the group with enhanced vaccination quality in the hatchery exhibited a significant decrease in IBV titers and an absence of IBV GI-22 field infection. Additionally, there was an improvement in performance data in terms of average body weight, FCR and total mortality. Hatchery vaccination proved to be more controllable and practical compared to traditional on-farm vaccination, ensuring better control of the vaccination process and massive coverage of the farm population. © The Author(s) 202
Pharmacokinetic Characteristics of Diclazuril in Japanese Quails (Coturnix japonica) and Domestic Pigeons (Columba livia)
No full textCoccidiosis, caused by the protozoan Eimeria, is a significant disease in poultry farms worldwide, leading to substantial economic losses. Triazines, benzene-aceto-nitrile derivatives, are widely employed in the field of veterinary healthcare to combat the hazardous impacts of protozoan parasite infestation comprising coccidiosis. The current research was designed to investigate the pharmacokinetic profile of diclazuril, a member of triazines, in Japanese quails (Coturnix japonica) and domestic pigeons (Columba livia) following single oral administration at 0.3 mg/kg body weight. 78 Quails (male: female, 1:1, 7 weeks old) and 78 pigeons (male: female, 1:1, 4 weeks old) were randomly divided into 13 groups for each species (n=6 birds/ group). Plasma samples were obtained at various time intervals (at time 0 preceding diclazuril administration, and 0.5, 1, 4, 8, 12, 24, 48, 72, 96, 120, 144, and 168 hours after diclazuril administration) to determine its concentration utilizing high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The non-compartmental approach was applied to assess the pharmacokinetic parameters via the aid of WinNonlin 8.3 software. In quails and pigeons, the peak plasma concentrations were 5.35 and 9.14 μg/mL attained at 8 hours, respectively. Additionally, the elimination half-lives (T1/2λz) were 30.74 and 26.48 hours, and the area under the plasma concentration-time curve from time zero to the last sample (AUC0-last) values were 155.67 and 343.57 μg h/mL, respectively. The mean residence time was 30.71 hours in quails and 39.68 hours in pigeons. Diclazuril exhibited favorable pharmacokinetic characteristics after oral administration at a dose of 0.3 mg/kg in quails and pigeons. However, to adjust the dosage regimen for curing coccidiosis, a future study is warranted to determine the clinical efficacy against coccidia infection. Moreover, further investigation is needed to evaluate the tissue residues and calculate the withdrawal time of diclazuril in quails and pigeons. © Open Access: This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Identification of Extremely Virulent Infectious Bursal Disease Virus Via Molecular and Histological Methods in Broiler Chickens
No full textInfectious bursal disease (IBD) is caused by an RNA virus belonging to the Avibirnavirus genus within the Birnaviridae family. The global prevalence of infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) is a significant concern, affecting birds of all ages. Birds infected with IBDV exhibit symptoms, such as depression, bleeding in the thighs and pectoral muscles, and enlargement of the bursa. This study aimed to identify predominant IBDV serotypes using molecular methods and to gain insights into the resulting pathological conditions in infected chickens. Additionally, the study investigated the viral sequence and the relationship between a local Diyala isolate and reference strains from the Genebank. In the current study, the IBDV was isolated from broiler chickens aged 2-3 weeks from 15 farms in the Diyala Governorate of Iraq. A total of 15 samples, each from a different farm, were collected. Necropsy samples were obtained from various organs of broiler chickens, including the bursa of Fabricius, lungs, liver, and kidneys. Specific primers targeting the VP2 gene were used for reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis. The RT-PCR analysis yielded a 727 bp fragment, confirming the presence of IBDV in 10 out of the 15 samples. One strain was assigned the accession number LC498531 in the NCBI database. Phylogenetic analysis using the neighbor-joining tree program revealed three distinct groups. All examined regional samples (S1) were situated within the constructed tree. Five samples formed a specific group, indicating a close relationship. Histological examination of the tissues showed visible alterations such as degeneration, necrosis, and infiltration of inflammatory cells, particularly heterophils, providing clear evidence of the disease. In conclusion, this study confirmed the presence of IBDV in broiler chickens from multiple farms in Iraq’s Diyala Governorate, highlighting distinct clustering patterns in viral sequences. Moreover, the study confirmed the virus's presence using conventional RT-PCR, with histological examination supporting the findings. © The Author(s) 202
Amelioration Potency of a Nano-Therapeutic Drug in Rats with Uninephrectomy and Cisplatin-induced Toxicity
No full textWhile physicians describe drugs to treat diseases, these medications may have cytotoxic effects on certain organs, necessitating the use of some drugs to ameliorate such adverse effects. The study was conducted to investigate the protective behavior of nanoemulsified sodium salicylate on uninephrectomized rats injected with cisplatin to induce nephrotoxicity. Fifty adult male albino rats, aged five weeks and weighing approximately 100–120 g, were divided into five groups. The first group received 200 mg/kg/day i.p normal saline for 30 days. The second group was administrated 200 mg/kg/day of nanoemulsified salt of salicylic acid for 30 days. The third group, comprising uninephrectomized rats, was injected with two doses of cisplatin (20 mg/kg body weight) on alternate days from the start of the experiment to induce nephrotoxicity. The fourth group, also uninephrectomized, received 200 mg/kg/day i.p of nanoemulsified sodium salicylate for 30 days. The fifth group, uninephrectomized and treated with 200 mg/kg/day sodium salicylate nanoemlusion for 21 days, was subsequently injected with two doses of cisplatin, followed by continued nanoemulsified sodium salicylate treatment until day 30 from the start of the study. The results showed a significant increase in tissue inhibitor metalloproteinase 1 (TIMP-1), Hyaluronic acid (HA), malondialdehyde, kidney injury molecule -1(KIM-1), and nitric oxide in the nephrotoxic group injected with cisplatin compared to the control group. Additionally, there was an elevation in the mRNA expression of nephrotoxic group with uninephrectomy. However, nephrotoxic rats treated with nanoemulsified sodium salicylate exhibited only a modest increase in TIMP-1, HA, and KIM-1 levels, along with elevated expressions of podocin and nephrin compared to the healthy control group. These findings suggest that nanoemulsified sodium salicylate exerts a protective effect against cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity in uninephrectomized. © The Author(s) 202
The Influence of Mannan Oligosaccharides and Beta Glucan Supplementation on Growth Performance, Blood Constituents, and Cecal Parameters of Broiler Chickens
No full textGrowth promoters in poultry feed have been under severe attention since antibiotics were banned for use in animal diets by the European Union. Thus, it has been important for poultry researchers to find alternatives to antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs) to boost the health and production performance of poultry. This research was conducted to evaluate the effects of adding ALTIMOS® (cell wall of Saccharomyces cerevisiae; mannan oligosaccharides MOS + beta-glucan BG) to broiler diets on productive performance, blood parameters, intestine histopathology, and cecum microbiota of broiler chicken. A total of 252 one-day-old Ross chicks were randomly selected and divided into seven treatments, with six replicates of each treatment. The treatments were the control group (0% feed additives), and groups that received 0.05, 0.125, 0.250, 0.500, 1.0, and 2.0 g MOS+BG /kg basal diet for 35 days feeding trial. The results showed that during most trial periods, the group fed the basal diet supplemented with 1.0 g MOS+BG/kg had the highest body weight and weight gain, as well as the lowest feed consumption and best feed conversion ratio, compared to other treated groups. Moreover, this group had the best productive performance in the accumulative period. The inclusion of MOS+BG at 1.0 g/kg diet showed no significant effect on carcass percent compared to the control group. In addition, the inclusion of MOS+BG at 1.0 g/kg diet resulted in the lowest count of Escherichia coli and Enterococcus in the cecum, the highest Lactobacillus bacteria count among all experimental treatments, and a higher yeast count compared to the control group. The group fed 1.0 g MOS+BG/kg ration had the lowest blood cholesterol, whereas there were no significant differences among all experimental groups in the measured liver functions. Notably, the Hemoglobin percentage in the group fed MOS+BG at 1.0 g/kg feed was the highest. In the group fed 1.0 and 2.0 g MOS+BG/kg, the intestinal villi length was longer, and the histopathology revealed mild alteration. Overall, the supplementation of 1.0 g MOS+BG/kg diet improved growth performance, blood constituents, and cecum’s beneficial bacteria counts of broilers. © The Author(s) 2024. All Rights Reserved
Effects of Butylated Hydroxytoluene and Sorbitol as Diluent Components on Structural and Surface Ultrastructural Changes of Gaga Chicken Sperm During Cryopreservation
No full textThe Gaga chicken is an indigenous Indonesian breed that is important to preserve using semen cryopreservation technology. The study was conducted to determine the effect of adding sorbitol and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) in the diluent on the structural and surface ultrastructure of cryopreserved Gaga chicken sperm during cryopreservation /frozen storage. The study aimed to assess how adding sorbitol and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) to the diluent affects the structure and surface ultrastructure of cryopreserved Gaga chicken sperm. A completely randomized design was employed with four treatments and 10 replications including egg yolk-lactate ringer diluent (EYLR) as the control group, EYLR diluent with 3 mM BHT, EYLR diluent with 2% sorbitol, and EYLR diluent with both 3 mM BHT and 2% sorbitol. Semen was collected using a massage technique from 4 male chickens aged approximately 10 months, pooled semen was diluted, packaged in 0.25 mL straws, equilibrated for 2 hours at 5 °C, pre-freeze for 10 minutes, frozen for 24 hours, and thawed for 30 seconds at 37 °C. The parameters evaluated were sperm plasma membrane integrity, acrosome integrity, DNA damage, mitochondrial functionality, and surface ultrastructure. The results showed that the treatment had a significant effect on plasma membrane integrity and post-thawing mitochondrial functionality compared to the control, but no effect was observed on acrosome integrity or DNA damage. The results showed that the combination treatment of BHT with sorbitol had a significant effect on plasma membrane integrity and post-thawing mitochondrial function, but did not affect acrosome integrity or DNA damage when compared to the control group. Ultrastructural observations indicated that cryopreservation caused damage to the head, middle, and tail of the sperm in the control groups. However, these changes were prevented by the diluent containing a combination of BHT and sorbitol. The addition of both components (BHT 3 mM + sorbitol 2%) effectively maintained plasma membrane integrity, mitochondrial functionality, and surface ultrastructure of Gaga chicken sperm during cryopreservation
3D Printing in Civil Engineering: Pioneering Affordable Housing Solutions
No full textThe escalating global housing crisis necessitates innovative solutions that streamline construction processes while enhancing sustainability and reducing costs. This paper explores the transformative potential of 3D printing technologies in the construction of affordable housing within the field of civil engineering. By examining the technical, economic, and environmental dimensions of 3D printed buildings, the study assesses their scalability for mass housing projects and discusses the significant advantages such as reduced waste, increased precision, and the utilization of recycled materials. The paper also highlights the major challenges to widespread adoption, including regulatory issues, material limitations, and workforce training needs. Through various international case studies, it demonstrates how 3D printing is being successfully implemented to address diverse housing needs and align with Sustainable Development Goals. The study concludes with strategic recommendations for overcoming existing barriers and maximizing the technology’s benefits, outlining a future where 3D printing could fundamentally alter the construction landscape
Fluoride Concentration in Selected Water Sources of Ngamiland and Boteti Districts: Risk of Dental Fluorosis
No full textFluoride is well-known for its role in preventing dental issues and promoting strong teeth and bones. It is commonly found in water, tea, and fluoridated toothpaste. The World Health Organisation recommends fluoride concentrations between 0.5 mg/L to 1.50 mg/L in water. Excessive fluoride intake can lead to dental fluorosis which affects tooth enamel. This study aimed to investigate fluoride levels in different water sources within selected villages of Ngamiland and Central Boteti districts and assess dental fluorosis prevalence among the residents. Our objectives were to measure fluoride concentrations in various water sources, evaluate the impact of pH and salinity on fluoride levels, and determine the link between fluoride concentration and dental fluorosis prevalence. Water samples were analyzed for fluoride concentration, pH, and salinity using ion chromatograph, pH meter, and conductivity meter, respectively. Interviews were conducted in Maun, Tsau, Toteng, and Motopi regarding dental fluorosis prevalence. Results showed that groundwater in Motopi and Tsau had fluoride concentrations ranging from 2.81 – 17.05 mg/L, while Toteng tap and standpipe water had fluoride concentrations of 0.78 and 0.83 mg/L. Maun tap and standpipe water, as well as Motopi surface water, yielded fluoride concentrations ranging from 0.16 – 0.37 mg/L. Salinity and pH showed no significant relationship with fluoride concentration, with correlation coefficients of 0.09 and 0.46, respectively. In conclusion, Tsau boreholes had the highest fluoride concentration, linked to dental fluorosis in individuals aged 30 years and above. Maun tap and standpipe water, alongside Motopi tap and surface water, exhibited low fluoride concentrations, while Toteng tap, and standpipe water revealed appropriate fluoride levels. The study revealed that Salinity and pH do not influence fluoride concentration in water
Investigation of Performance of Copper Slag and Ore Tailings Novel Trial Self-compacting Concrete Mixtures
No full textA non-conventional concrete with the properties of flow-ability, filling-ability, and passing-ability without any need for mechanical compaction but flow under self-weight is known as self-compacting concrete. This study developed trial mixtures for self-compacting concrete (SCC) using locally available waste products. The copper slag and ore tailings from Bamangwato Concessions Limited Mine in Selebi-Phikwe, Botswana were used as source of fine aggregate, and fines substitute. Eight mix proportions were developed with the quantities of cement, granite, copper slag, ore tailings and water-cement ratio as variables. The mix proportions were developed in accordance with recommendations from American Concrete Institute (ACI 237R-07) and fresh SCC properties (flow ability, passing ability, filling-ability, and segregation) were performed to assess the performance of the mixes. It was observed that the range of slump flow values were between (500 – 750 mm), V-funnel values (1.46 – 7.46 s), passing-ability of (0.76 – 1.0). The hardened properties of SCC (strength and density) were between 8.1 and 33.3 MPa, and 2093 to 2406 kg/m3) respectively. It could be concluded that SCC produced from mine wastes (copper slag and ore tailings) is found suitable for the use in unreinforced and normal concrete applications