Effects of dietary basil (Ocimum basilicum) supplementation on reproductive hormones, semen parameters, and testicular development in Zandi male lambs.

This study investigated the potential impact of feeding whole plant basil on sperm quality and the concentration of certain reproductive hormones in male lambs. A total of 18 Zandi male lambs with an initial weight of 28.8 ± 2.03 kg were included in a completely randomized design with three treatments and six repetitions. The experimental treatments included: 1) control (basal diet without basil), 2) diet containing 12.5 % basil, and 3) diet containing 25 % basil. The results showed that feeding basil to male lambs significantly increased testosterone concentration and decreased blood cortisol levels (P < 0.05). Additionally, feeding high levels of basil significantly improved sperm concentration, motility, and viability in the experimental samples, while reducing the level of complete abnormalities and malondialdehyde concentration (P < 0.05). The findings suggest that dietary supplementation of 25 % whole plant basil could be a useful strategy to improve sperm quality and increase testosterone secretion while reducing cortisol levels in male lambs.

Effect of different sources of dietary zinc on sperm quality and oxidative parameters.

Zinc has a critical physiological role in sperm function. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of different sources of zinc on sperm quality. For this purpose, 18 Zandi lambs with an average weight of 32 ± 1.2 kg were subjected to three treatments in a completely randomized design. Experimental treatments include (1) control treatment of basal diet without zinc supplementation, (2) basal diet with 40 mg/kg of zinc supplementation from zinc sulfate source and (3) basal diet with 40 mg/kg of zinc supplementation with organic source. At the end of feeding period, lambs were slaughtered. To determine the effect of experimental treatments on sperm quality, the testes were transferred to the laboratory. After that, epididymal spermatozoa were evaluated for sperm motility parameters, abnormal morphology, viability, membrane functionality, malondialdehyde (MDA) and antioxidant activity [glutathione peroxidase (GPx), superoxide dismutase (SOD), total antioxidant capacity (TAC)], sperm concentration and testosterone level. Zinc sulfate administration decreased MDA levels compared to other treatments and increased GPx and TAC activity compared to the control (P < 0.05), although SOD activity was not affected by any supplementation. Also, the use of zinc sulfate supplementation increased the percentage of total and progressive motility compared to the control group (P < 0.05). Membrane integrity and sperm viability were also affected by zinc sulfate supplementation (P < 0.05). Therefore, the results of this study showed that the use of zinc sulfate, can improve sperm motility and survival indices and its antioxidant capacity.

Evaluating the role of gamma irradiation to ameliorate salt stress in corn.

PURPOSE: Salt stress is a significant issue in corn cultivation leading to corn yield reduction, especially in the arid and semi-arid regions. Nuclear technologies, along with other standard methods, can be used as an efficient method for mitigating salt stress effects on plants. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this research, gamma irradiation (GI) was studied on seeds in the salt stress amelioration of corn in laboratory and field conditions. A total of five doses of gamma rays (25, 50, 100, 150 and 200 Gy) were applied to corn seeds (SC.703) at the laboratory under saline and control conditions. The best gamma-ray treatment (25 Gy) was selected for studying corn under salt stress in the field condition. RESULTS: The length of the radicle, seminal roots and shoot, dry weight of radicle, and seminal roots were affected by salt stress (p <.001). However, GI affected only the radicle and seminal root length (p < .001). The radicle length was decreased as much as 3, 11, 17, 25, and 27% in 25, 50, 100, 150 and 200 Gy of GI, respectively. In addition, the seminal root length was decreased in all GI treatments except 25 Gy (p < .05). Plants derived from seeds exposed to GI (25 Gy) had a higher chlorophyll content of 1, 17, and 29% at V3 (third leaf stage), R1 (silk stage, p < .001), and R4 (dough stage, p < .001), respectively. In GI treatment, the soluble carbohydrate content was significantly higher (p < .001) at all three measurement stages and the soluble protein was significantly higher (p < .001) only at the R4 stage. Moreover, proline content was higher in GI (25 Gy) at V3 (58%, p < .05) and R1 (98%, p < .001) treatment stages. CONCLUSION: Since plants from gamma-irradiated seeds had a greater plant weight and their economic traits (cob and grain weight) were higher compared to control plants under salt stress conditions, it can be concluded that a low dose of GI may ameliorate the effect of salt stress on the corn plants.

Effect of trace mineral source on biochemical and hematological parameters, digestibility, and performance in growing lambs.

To study the efficacy of organic trace mineral supplementation on blood parameters, digestibility, and growth as compared to inorganic sources, 18 Zandi male lambs (with initial body weight, 28.5 ±1.4 kg and 110±5 days old) were divided into three groups of six animals in each in a completely randomized design. Lambs in the control group were fed basal diet containing 63 kg/100 kg of concentrate mixture, 22 kg/100 kg of alfalfa hay, and 15 kg/100 kg wheat straw. Animals in the experimental groups were additionally supplemented with trace minerals supplied by sulfates or a diet in which 25.7 ppm Zn, 14.3 ppm Mn, 8.9 ppm Cu from mineral-amino acid complex, and 0.86 ppm Co from Co glucoheptonate replaced with similar amounts of Zn, Mn, Cu, and Co from sulfates. All lambs were kept in individual pens with cemented floor and provision of individual feeding and watering. Lambs fed with either organic or inorganic trace mineral supplement showed higher dry matter intake and growth rate and better feed conversion efficiency (P<0.05) as compared to the control group. Blood glucose, urea nitrogen, cholesterol, and hepatic enzymes were similar among the treatments. Triglycerides (P<0.01) concentration was lower for mineral-supplemented groups. Blood vitamin B12 concentration increased with mineral supplementation and was higher for the lambs fed with organic source of trace elements as compared with those fed with inorganic mineral and the control diet (P=0.04). The results of this study showed that feeding organic trace elements improves growth performance of finishing lambs but did not affect nutrient digestibility and blood parameters.

Beneficial Effects of Vitamins, Minerals, and Bioactive Peptides on Strengthening the Immune System Against COVID-19 and the Role of Cow's Milk in the Supply of These Nutrients.

The COVID-19 pandemic, which causes severe respiratory tract infections in humans, has become a global health concern and is spreading rapidly. At present, the most important issue associated with COVID-19 is the immune system and the factors that affect it. It is well known that cow's milk is highly rich in micronutrients that increase and strengthen the immune system. Research shows that the administration of these nutrients is very effective in fighting COVID-19, and a deficiency in any of them can be a weakness in the fight against the virus. On the other hand, cow's milk is accessible to the whole population, and drinking colostrum, raw, and micro-filtered milk from cows vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2 could provide individuals with short-term protection against the SARS-CoV-2 infection until vaccines become commercially available. This review aimed to discuss the effects of milk vitamins, minerals, and bioactive peptides on general health in humans to combat viral diseases, especially COVID-19, and to what extent cow's milk consumption plays a role in providing these metabolites. Cow's milk contains many bioactive compounds that include vitamins, minerals, biogenic amines, nucleotides, oligosaccharides, organic acids, and immunoglobulins. Humans can meet a significant portion of their requirements for vitamins and minerals through the consumption of cow's milk. Recent studies have shown that micronutrients such as vitamins D, E, B, C, and A as well as minerals Zn, Cu, Mg, I, and Se and bioactive peptides, each can have positive and significant effects on strengthening the immune system and general health in humans.

In vitro evaluation of binding capacity of different binders to adsorb aflatoxin.

This study was conducted to compare the efficacy of different feed additives as mycotoxin binders in vitro. Four prevalent aflatoxin-sequestering agents (SAs) including two bentonite clays (common and acid activated bentonite), a yeast cell wall product and an activated charcoal product were evaluated in vitro to verify their capacity for binding aflatoxin B1 (AFB1). The SAs were individually mixed at two different ratios with AFB1 (1:70,000, 1:120,000) and their binding capacity indices were determined. Experimental bentonites showed high adsorption abilities, binding more than 70.00% of the available AFB1. At the 1:70,000 and 1:120,000 aflatoxin binder (AF:B) ratios, acid activated bentonite were sequestered over 87.00 and 99.00% of the AFB1, respectively. Yeast cell wall showed moderate adsorption ability at the 1:120,000 AF:B ratio, adsorbing 47.00 of AFB1. The adsorption ability of activated carbon at two AF:B ratio and yeast cell wall at 1:70,000 AF:B ratio were significantly lower than other binders. The ratio of chemisorption and binding equivalency factor were higher for acid activated bentonite compared to other sequestering agents. Based on the result of this study, it seems that acid activated bentonite could be considered efficient at sequestering the available AFB1, resulting as promising agents for use in animals diet.

Comparison of artificial neural networks and multiple linear regression for prediction of dairy cow locomotion score.

In this study, artificial neural networks (ANNs) were employed to investigate the relationship between locomotion score and production traits. A total number of 123 dairy cows from a free-stall housing farm were used in this study. To compare the effectiveness of the ANNs for the prediction of locomotion score, the multiple linear regression (MLR) model was developed using the eight production traits, body condition score, parity, days in milk, daily milk yield, milk fat percent, milk protein percent, daily milk fat yield, and daily milk protein yield as input variables to predict the locomotion score. The ANN predictions gave a higher coefficient of determination (R2) values with lower mean squared error (MSE) than MLR. The R2 and MSE of the MLR model were 0.53 and 0.36, respectively. However, the ANN model for the same dataset produced much improved results with R2 = 0.80 and MSE = 0.16, respectively. Globally, the results of this study showed that the connectionist network model was a better tool to predict locomotion scores compared to the multiple linear regression.

Assessing the protective effect of bentonite against lead toxicity in growing lambs.

The objective of the present experiment was to investigate the effect of bentonite supplementation in lead (Pb)-exposed lambs on serum Pb, Ca, P, Cu, Zn, and Fe concentrations, blood hematological parameters, and hepatic enzymes. Twenty Zandi male lambs (initial BW, 17.5 ± 1.6 kg) were randomly assigned to one of the four treatments: (1) control (no Pb or bentonite), (2) 15 mg/kg DM Pb as Pb acetate with no bentonite, (3) 15 mg/kg DM Pb as Pb acetate with 1.5% bentonite, and (4) 15 mg/kg DM Pb as Pb acetate with 3% bentonite. The experiment lasted after 90 days. Lead intake resulted in a decrease (P < 0.05) in serum Fe and an increase in serum Pb, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activities (P < 0.05). Bentonite supplementation at 1.5 or 3% of DM decreased blood Pb concentration (P < 0.01) in lambs fed diets containing Pb and reduced (P < 0.05) blood concentration of Cu and Zn compared to control group (P < 0.01). However, the hematological parameters were not affected by any of the treatments. Our results showed that the dietary supplementation of bentonite could protect lambs against lead toxicity.

Heating Process in Pasteurization and not in Sterilization Decreases the Iodine Concentration of Milk.

BACKGROUND: Iodine is a vital component of the thyroid hormones and is required for normal growth, development, and tissue metabolism in humans and animals. OBJECTIVES: This study for the first time compares the effects of heating during pasteurization and sterilization on the iodine concentration of milk for an adequate provision of dietary iodine. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was carried out on multiparous Holstein Friesian lactating cows. Thirty Holstein dairy cows were fed with a diet containing 10 mg of potassium iodide (KI) per kilogram dry matter of diet. Milk samples were obtained on days 4 and 2 before and again on days 2, 4, 6, and 8 after the inclusion of KI into the total mixed ration diet of the dairy cows. The milk samples were sterilized using ultra-high temperature, following which the effect of the heating process during sterilization on the cows' iodine concentration was compared to that in the only previous documented study from Iran in which milk supplementation with KI was the same as ours. Milk in that study was pasteurized via the high-temperature short-time method, a method which involves temperatures in excess of 73°C for durations longer than 15 seconds. RESULTS: The inclusion of KI in the diet of the dairy cows in these 2 separate experiments increased their milk iodine levels. Pasteurization decreased the iodine content of the milk (P < 0.05), while no significant difference was observed in the iodine concentration of the sterilized milk. CONCLUSIONS: The present study showed that the iodine concentration is not decreased during the heating process in sterilization, indicating that supplemented sterilized milk could be a good alternative vehicle for dietary iodine in the prevention of iodine deficiency.

Effects of electron beam, NaOH and urea on chemical composition, phenolic compounds, in situ ruminal degradability and in vitro gas production kinetics of pistachio by-products.

The current study evaluated the effects of electron beam (EB; 10, 20, 30 and 40 kGy), urea and NaOH treatments on chemical composition, phenolic compounds, in vitro gas production and i n situ ruminal degradability of pistachio by-product (PB). The EB decreased (p < 0.01) neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF) and acid detergent lignin (ADL) contents of PB. Treating PB by NaOH and urea increased cell wall constitute of PB (p < 0.01). Irradiation at doses of 30 and 40 kGy reduced tannin and increased total phenol content of PB (p < 0.01). NaOH and urea treatments decreased tannins, total phenolics and condensed tannins of PB compared to control (p < 0.01). In situ ruminal dry matter (DM) degradation data showed that irradiation increased (p < 0.01) and, urea and NaOH decreased (p < 0.01) rapidly fermentable fraction (a) of PB. NaOH decreased (p < 0.01) fraction b and total degradable fraction (a + b) of PB. Irradiation and polyethylene-glycol increased rate of gas production (k), metabolizable energy (ME) and short chain fatty acid concentrations (SCFA), while, NaOH decreased gas production potential (b), ME and SCFA (p < 0.01). Data showed that although NaOH was efficient in detannification of PB, however, it reduced gas production and in situ degradation of PB.

Rumen development and growth of Balouchi lambs offered alfalfa hay pre- and post-weaning.

The consumption of solid feed is essential for successful transition from a pre-ruminant to a functional digestive tract. Lambs fed starter rations containing highly fermentable carbohydrates often experience dramatic changes in concentrations of rumen and blood metabolites. The optimal amount of roughage required in the diet of pre-ruminant animals is still unclear. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of feeding alfalfa hay on performance and rumen development in young Balouchi lambs. In a completely randomized design, 30 lambs were fed one of three experimental diets consisting of a control, without alfalfa hay (C), a diet containing 7.5% alfalfa hay (A1), and a diet containing 15% alfalfa hay (A2). Lambs fed A1 and A2 diets had lower dry matter intake during the pre-weaning period (P < 0.01) and overall (P = 0.02), but feed conversion ratio and average daily gain were not affected by feeding alfalfa hay. Concentration of beta-hydroxybutyric acid was higher in C compared with the A1 and A2 groups (P < 0.01). Concentrations of glucose and non-esterified fatty acids did not differ among the groups of animals. Feeding alfalfa hay reduced thickness of the rumen epithelial keratinized layer (P = 0.04) and increased thickness of muscular layer (P = 0.05). We concluded that including 15% alfalfa hay in the starter diet could reduce thickness of the keratinization layer and increase muscularity of rumen wall without adverse effects on growth and performance of newborn lambs.