Agaricus Blazei In The Diet Of Broiler Chickens On Immunity, Serum Parameters And Antioxidant Activity

The effect of adding Agaricus blazei to the diet of broilers on immunity, serum parameters, and antioxidant activity was evaluated. A total of 840 1-day-old chicks were used, distributed among five levels of a completely randomized design (0.0, 0.05, 0.10, 0.15, and 0.20% A. blazei), with six replications and 28 birds per experimental unit. The weights of the thymus, spleen and cloacal bursa were not influenced (P > 0.05). Leukocytes, macrophages and nitric oxide were unaffected (P > 0.05), but at each supplementation level compared with the control, differences appeared in the percentages of eosinophils and macrophages (P 0.05) at 42 days. Hypocholesterolemic effect was demonstrated (P 0.05). The antioxidant activity of mushroom showed a positive linear effect (P < 0.05) on DPPH capture on day zero of meat cooling. The inclusion of A. blazei in the diet of broilers provided an immunostimulatory activity and hypocholesterolemic effect. Residual compounds with antioxidant activity were present in the meat, which may promote tissue protection of the animal in vivo, making possible the use of A. blazei as a natural additive.3742235224

Model reference adaptive control of a nonsmooth dynamical system

In this paper a modified model reference adaptive control (MRAC) technique is presented which can be used to control systems with nonsmooth characteristics. Using unmodified MRAC on (noisy) nonsmooth systems leads to destabilization of the controller. A localized analysis is presented which shows that the mechanism behind this behavior is the presence of a time invariant zero eigenvalue in the system. The modified algorithm is designed to eliminate this zero eigenvalue, making all the system eigenvalues stable. Both the modified and unmodified strategies are applied to an experimental system with a nonsmooth deadzone characteristic. As expected the unmodified algorithm cannot control the system, whereas the modified algorithm gives stable robust control, which has significantly improved performance over linear fixed gain control

Exercise during pregnancy protects adult mouse offspring from diet-induced obesity

BACKGROUND: Physical exercise induces positive alterations in gene expression involved in the metabolism of obesity. Maternal exercise provokes adaptations soon after birth in the offspring. Here, we investigated whether adult mouse offspring of swim-trained mothers is protected against the development of the deleterious effects of high fat diet (HFD). METHODS: Our study comprises two parts. First, female C57BL/6 mice were divided into one sedentary and one swim-trained group (before and during pregnancy, n = 18). In the second part, adult offspring (n = 12) of trained and sedentary mothers was challenged to HFD for 16 weeks. Notably, most of the analysis was done in male offspring. RESULTS: Our results demonstrate that maternal exercise has several beneficial effects on the mouse offspring and protects them from the deleterious effects of HFD in the adult. Specifically, swimming during pregnancy leads to lower birth weight in offspring through 2 months of age. When subjected to HFD for 4 month in the adulthood, our study presents novel data on the male offspring's metabolism of trained mothers. The offspring gained less weight, which was accompanied by less body fat, and they used more calories during daytime compared with offspring of sedentary mothers. Furthermore, we observed increased adiponectin expression in skeletal muscle, which was accompanied by decreased leptin levels and increased insulin sensitivity. Decreased interleukin-6 expression and increased peptide PYY levels were observed in sera of adult offspring of mothers that swam during pregnancy. CONCLUSIONS: Our results point to the conclusion that maternal exercise is beneficial to protect the offspring from developing obesity, which could be important for succeeding generations as well

VARIÁVEIS SEDIMENTARES E HIDRODINÂMICA NA CONFLUÊNCIA DOS RIOS CABAÇAL E PARAGUAI, PANTANAL SUPERIOR, BRASIL

Em ambientes de confluência, a dinâmica de transporte e deposição depende do controle exercido por cada canal. Nesse sentido o presente trabalho objetivou analisar a granulometria dos sedimentos transportados pelos rios Cabaçal e Paraguai. Para tanto se adotou trabalho de campo, laboratório e gabinete. A distribuição em seções transversais variou em areia fina e silte a exceção da foz do Cabaçal com areia média na margem direita, onde, no período de estiagem ocorre deposição em barra de pontal

ASPECTOS IMUNOLÓGICOS E CLÍNICOS DA LEISHMANIOSE TEGUMENTAR AMERICANA: uma revisão

Leishmanioses são doenças infecciosas, zoonóticas, causadas por protozoários do gênero Leishmania que, ainda hoje, se constituem em importantes problemas de saúde pública mundial. Caracterizam-se como um complexo de doenças com importante espectro clínico e diversidade epidemiológica e de acordo com a espécie de Leishmania inoculada pelo vetor, o indivíduo infectado apresentará quadros diferentes, variando desde o aparecimento de lesões cutâneas, até a visceralização da infecção. A resposta imune nos seres humanos, devido a sua complexidade, ainda não está tão bem caracterizada como em camundongos. essa resposta envolve citocinas, moléculas coestimulatórias e ativação de linfócitos t auxiliares. De maneira geral, é aceito que a diferença entre resistência e susceptibilidade à infecção está relacionada à expansão de células t auxi-liares (th) dos tipos 1 e 2 (th1 e th2). Pacientes com a forma cutânea localizada desenvolvem ativação de linfócitos th1, na região da lesão, enquanto, aqueles com a forma cutâneo-mucosa apresentam ativação mista de linfócitos th1 e th2. Já os pacientes com a forma cutâneo-difusa exibem quase exclusivamente a ativação de linfócitos th2. o estudo da interação entre parasitas e hospedeiros, mediante a avaliação da biologia parasitária, a saliva do inseto- vetor, e mecanismos imunológicos da resposta do hospedeiro vertebrado têm dado uma nova luz ao entendimento dos mecanimos que regem essa relação. re-visamos aqui alguns desses aspectos.descritores: Leishmaniose tegumentar Americana; Clínica; Epidemiologia; ImunologiaAbstract:  Leishmaniasis are zoonot-ic infectious disease caused by protozoa of the genus Leishmania that still today constitute important public health problems worldwide. Characterized as a complex spectrum of diseases with signifcant clinical and epidemiological and diversity ac-cording to the species of Leishmania inoculated by the vector and infected individuals will present different conditions, rang-ing from the development of cutaneous lesions to visceral infection. the immune response in humans, due to its complexity, is still not as well characterized as in mice. this response involves cytokines, co-stimulatory molecules and activation of helper t lymphocytes. in general, it is assumed that the difference between resistance and susceptibility to infection is related to the expansion of t helper cells (th) type 1 and type 2 (th2 and th1). Patients diagnosed with localized skin develop activa-tion of th1 lymphocytes in the region of the lesion, while those with the present form mucocutaneous activation mixed th1 and th2 lymphocytes. Patients with diffuse cutaneous-form exhibit almost exclusively the activation of th2 lymphocytes.the study of the interaction between parasites and hosts, through the assessment, parasite biology, insect saliva-vector and vertebrate host response has given birth to a new understanding of the engine that governs this relationship. We review here some of these aspects.descriptors: American Tegumentar Leishmaniasis; Clinics; Epidemiology; Immunolog

Soil attributes and leaf litter composition in forest communities of the Brazilian Pantanal

Abstract Leaf litter is an important component related to nutrient cycling and conservation of soil biodiversity. In this context, the objective of our study was to investigate the relationship between soil and leaf litter in different forest communities in sub-regions of the Pantanal (Nhecolândia and Abobral/Miranda). To this end, we collected soil and leaf litter samples from 152 sample plots divided in physiognomies regionally called as Cordilheira, Capão, Murundu, Corixo and Cambará/Canjiqueira forest. In the laboratory, analytical determinations were conducted for 22 soil attributes and 11 elements of the chemical composition of the leaf litter. The forest communities showed a great well-defined edaphic gradient encompassing environments with high natural fertility soils (Capão and Cordilheira Abobral/Miranda), acidic soils with a high proportion of soluble Al3+ (Cambará/Canjiqueira, and Corixo), and poorly developed soils with a predominantly sandy texture (Nhecolândia region, Cordilheira and Murundu). Soil attributes are significantly related to the chemical composition of litter, as indicated by correlations between N, P, Ca, Mg, Mn and the C/N ratio with physical, chemical and soil organic matter attributes. This study revealed the interaction of soils with the chemical composition of litter, constituting an ecosystem service, in forest communities in the Brazilian Pantanal

Termografia infravermelho na estimativa de conforto térmico de frangos de corte

Poultry facilities must provide an environment that ensures thermal comfort allowing the animal to express its genetic potential for production; and new tools are being applied to measure the thermal comfort, especially thermal cameras. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association of the surface temperature of the birds with those from the facilities, and estimate the sensible heat transfer. For this, the thermal conditions of rearing in two aviaries with different ventilation systems, during the period of March to April 2011 were recorded. The aviaries were divided into six quadrants for the registration of surface temperatures obtained using an infrared thermal camera. In each quadrant the ambient temperature, relative humidity and wind velocity during the obtention of images were also recorded. It was observed that the surface temperatures of birds are associated with the surface temperature of the rearing facilities (side curtains, roof and litter). In aviary with negative pressure higher wind speeds compared to the conventional one were recorded and; therefore, allowed a higher sensible heat transfer by birds, suggesting that this provided better conditions for thermal comfort.As instalações avícolas devem assegurar um ambiente de conforto térmico que proporcione ao animal expressar todo o seu potencial genético para produção motivo pelo qual novas ferramentas estão sendo aplicadas para medir o conforto térmico animal destacando-se as câmeras termográficas. Neste trabalho objetivou-se avaliar a associação da temperatura superficial das aves com as das instalações e estimar a transferência de calor sensível. Para isto foram registradas as condições térmicas de alojamento em dois aviários com sistemas de ventilação distintos, no período de março a abril de 2011. Os aviários foram divididos em seis quadrantes para a coleta das temperaturas superficiais obtidas através de uma câmera termográfica infravermelho. Em cada quadrante também foram registradas temperatura ambiente, umidade relativa e velocidade do ar durante as coletas das imagens. Constatou-se que as temperaturas superficiais das aves estão associadas à temperatura superficial da instalação (cortinas laterais, forro e cama). No aviário com ventilação negativa foram registradas maiores velocidades do ar em relação ao convencional razão pela qual possibilitou a maior transferência de calor sensível pelas aves, sugerindo melhores condições de conforto térmico.UEMUNICAMP FEAGRIUNESPUNES