1,720,976 research outputs found

    Alleviative effect of some phytochemicals on cyadox-induced oxidative damage in rabbit erythrocytes

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    This study was carried out to evaluate the effects of different concentrations of cyadox (CYA), cinnamaldehyde (CIN) and resveratrol (RES) on rabbit isolated erythrocytes in two experiments. Experiment 1 evaluated the effects of different concentrations (2.5, 5, 10, 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100) Î1⁄4g/ml of CYA and Î1⁄4M of both CIN and RES separately on isolated erythrocytes in order to make the concentration response curve. Results indicated that CYA caused a significant depletion of reduced glutathione (GSH) content compared to control at 40 Î1⁄4g/ml and the depletion increased by increasing the concentration. On the other hand, both RES and CIN showed a highly significant elevation of GSH content at 40 Î1⁄4M being more effective by increasing concentrations. Experiment 2 investigated the potential benefits of using CIN and RES separately or in combination on CYA induced alterations in isolated rabbit erythrocytes (the used concentrations were based on the results of experiment 1). Results revealed that exposure to CYA caused a significant decrease in superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities and reduced glutathione (GSH) and total protein (TP) contents, CYA also elevated extracellular hemoglobin (Hb) and adenosine triphosphate (ATP), increased the malonaldehyde (MDA) and protein carbonyl (PrC) contents with increasing caspase3 and caspase8 activities suggesting CYA pro-oxidant effect. Both CIN and RES were able to inverse these hazardous effects of CYA. However, CIN was more effective than RES, and their combination showed a positive synergistic effect in protecting cells against oxidative injury caused by CYA

    The efficacy of high-protein tropical forages as alternative protein sourcesfor chickens: A review

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    Smallholders of poultry production systems in developing countries are commonly found in rural, resource-poor areas, and often face food insecurity. The main constraints for smallholders in poultry production in rural, resource-poor areas are the shortage of available commercial dietary protein and the high cost of commercial diets. The beneficial effects of legume and forage cultivation are economic, through providing protein for animals, and ecological, such as soil amendment, nitrogen fixation, and stripping control which participate to increase cropping efficiency. The potential nutritive value of a wide range of forages and grain legumes is presented and discussed. The impacts of dietary protein, fiber, and secondary metabolites in plant content, as as well as their consequences on feed efficiency, animal performance, and digestion processes are enclosed in this review. Lastly, approaches to reduce the anti-nutritional factors of the secondary metabolites of plants are explained

    Incidence of gastrointestinal parasites in pigeons with an assessment of the nematocidal activity of chitosan nanoparticles against Ascaridia columbae

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    In this investigation, the incidence and intensity of gastrointestinal parasites of domestic pigeons were evaluated, additionally, in vitro and in vivo evaluation of the antiparasitic activity of chitosan nanoparticles against the most predominant gut parasite. Therefore, 240 domestic pigeons (160 adults and 80 squabs) obtained from different localities in Giza governorate, Egypt, from February to July 2021, were subjected to parasitological and postmortem examination. The results revealed that 97% of pigeons were vulnerable to single or mixed gastrointestinal parasites. The detected helminths were identified as Capillaria columbae (C. columbae) with a total incidence of (12.5%), Ascaridia columbae (A. columbae) (83.3.%), Heterakis gallinarum (H. gallinarum) (18.7%), Raillietina cesticillus (R. cesticillus) (7.5%), Raillietina echinobothrida (R. echinobothrida) (29%), Choanotaenia infundibulum (C. infundibulum) (22.9%), Davainea proglottina (D. proglottina) (26.6%), and Cotugnia proglottina (C. proglottina) (14.5%). At the same time, the identified protozoan parasites were Trichomonas gallinae (T. gallinae), and Eimeria columbae (E. columbae), with a total incidence of 25 and 79%, respectively. Helminths and Eimeria infections were higher in adults than squabs, while T. gallinae infection was reported with a higher incidence in squabs (62.5%) than adults (6.2%). From our findings, A. columbae was the most predominant gut parasite in the examined pigeons. Thus, it was subjected to in vitro and in vivo treatment with chitosan nanoparticles. Serum and tissue samples were collected from the birds which have been used in the in vitro study to evaluate the oxidative stress markers as malondialdehyde (MDA), Nitric oxide levels and Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and Interleukin-1 beta activity also, chitosan nanoparticles- treated worm ultrastructure were determined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Finally, we recommend periodic monitoring of pigeon's farm to detect the parasitic infestation, and from our results, we recommend chitosan nanoparticles as a potent nematocidal agent

    Effect of a low-energy and enzyme-supplemented diet on broiler chicken growth, carcass traits and meat quality

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    The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of a low metabolizable energy (low-ME) diet supplemented with a multienzyme blend (KEMZYME®) on the growth performance, carcass traits and meat quality of chickens. A total of 108 broiler chicks (Ross 308) were randomly allocated to three experimental groups with six replicates per treatment and five birds per replicate; the groups were treated as follows: a control diet with no additive and standard metabolizable energy (ME; 3200 kcal kg1); a low metabolizable energy (low-ME; 3000 kcal kg1) diet; and a low-ME dietC0.5 g kg1 diet of enzyme (low-ME–Enz). Live body weight (LBW) at 43 and 47 d and body weight gain (BWG) during the periods from 38 to 43, 43 to 47 and 33 to 47 d decreased with the low-ME and low-ME–Enz diets in comparison with the control-diet (p<0:05). The values of the feed conversion ratio (FCR) were significantly increased with low-ME diets with or without enzyme at all growing stages. There were no significant differences among treatments in terms of carcass traits. With the exception of the jejunum weight, dietary treatments did not affect any digestive tract segments. Meat hardness decreased with the low-ME–Enz diet compared with the other diets (P D 0:039). Meat yellowness of the breast muscle increased (P D 0:001) with the low-ME–Enz diet in comparison with the other treatments at 24 h post-slaughter. In conclusion, the low-ME diet supplemented with KEMZYME® did not influence most of performance parameters and carcass traits of chickens; however, adding enzymes to the low-ME diet is an effective strategy to improve the meat quality criteria and small intestine characteristics

    Effect of supplementing honey via drinking water on growth performance, carcass traits, and blood biochemical parameters in broiler chickens

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    This study investigated the effects of supplementing broiler drinking water with Egyptian clover honey on growth performance, carcass characteristics, and blood biochemical parameters. A total of 525 one-day-old male Hubbard broilers were assigned to seven treatment groups to evaluate two concentrations of honey (13 and 26 mLL-1) administered at three different frequencies (daily, every other day, and every 3 d), along with a control group receiving no honey. Supplementing drinking water with honey significantly enhanced overall broiler performance. Birds receiving honey, particularly at the higher concentration and at intermittent intervals, showed improved body weight gain and feed efficiency compared to the control group. The highest relative weights of key lymphoid organs - such as the spleen, bursa of Fabricius, and thymus - were observed in supplemented groups, indicating a positive impact on immune system development. Hematological analysis revealed increased red and white blood cell counts, hemoglobin, and packed cell volume in honey-fed birds, reflecting improved oxygen transport and immune competence. Serum biochemical profiles demonstrated a favorable shift, with significant reductions in markers of metabolic stress and liver function (uric acid, creatinine, cholesterol, triglycerides, and alanine aminotransferase (ALT)) and notable increases in total protein, albumin, and globulin levels. Additionally, honey supplementation significantly enhanced humoral immune response, as evidenced by higher hemagglutination inhibition titers against Newcastle disease virus. The results indicate that honey supplementation via drinking water, especially at 26 mLL-1, administered intermittently, can effectively improve growth performance, physiological health, and immune function in broiler chickens. These findings support the potential of honey as a natural antibiotic-free additive to promote sustainable poultry production

    Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis

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    The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed

    Variations on the Author

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    “Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship

    Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis

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    We provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis

    Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts

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    We conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more sophisticated methods
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