Effects of replacement of Moringa oleifera for berseem clover in the diets of Nubian goats on feed utilisation, and milk yield, composition and fatty acid profile.

Replacement of conventional feedstuffs with cheap non-conventional ingredients may improve livestock performance and the quality of their products, particularly milk. The study considered the effects of Moringa oleifera (MO) foliage in replacement of berseem clover (BC) on feed utilisation and lactational performance in Nubian goats. A total of 16 lactating Nubian does, weighing 36.2±0.8 kg, were randomly assigned to four experimental treatments containing 0, 125, 250 and 375 g of MO per kg diet to replace 0 (M0), 25 (M25), 50 (M50) and 75% (M75) of BC (on dry matter (DM) basis) in a quadruplicated 4×4 Latin square design. The MO diets increased (P<0.01) feed intake and nutrient digestibility. Feeding MO diets improved (P<0.01) ruminal volatile fatty acids, acetate and propionate but reduced (P<0.01) valerate and iso-butyrate. Moringa diets increased (P<0.01) serum total protein, albumin and glucose but decreased (P<0.05) cholesterol and triglycerides. Milk yield and energy corrected milk, and milk total solids, fat and energy content were increased (P<0.01) in MO diets. Yields of milk components and energy were greater (P<0.05) for MO diets than for control diet. Milk total saturated fatty acids and athrogenicity index were lower (P<0.01), and unsaturated fatty acids, conjugated fatty acids and UFA/SFA ratio higher (P<0.05) for MO diets. It is concluded that feeding MO to replace 75% DM of BC improved feed utilisation, ruminal fermentation, and milk yield and quality in lactating Nubian goats.

Propolis supplementation attenuates the negative effects of oxidative stress induced by paraquat injection on productive performance and immune function in turkey poults.

Paraquat (PQ) is used as a herbicide in agriculture and causes oxidative and inflammatory damage to animal tissues. The current study was conducted to investigate the positive effects of dietary propolis (PR), as a potent naturally produced antioxidant, on growth performance and immune function of turkey poults exposed to oxidative stress induced by PQ injection. Native male turkey poults (n = 120, 49-d-old) were randomly assigned into 4 groups: poults received a basal diet with a daily subcutaneous PQ injection of 5 mg/kg BW for 7 consecutive days (PQ group), an experimental diet containing 1 g/kg PR with a daily subcutaneous PQ injection for 7 days (PR+PQ group), or received the experimental PR diet with a daily subcutaneous injection of 0.5 mL sterile saline for 7 days (PR group); while the control poults received a basal diet with a daily subcutaneous saline injection for 7 consecutive days (C group). The productive performance in the PQ group showed a significant (P < 0.05) reduction in the weight gain (WG) and feed intake (FI), and impaired feed conversion ratio (FCR). Propolis supplementation in the PR+PQ group significantly ameliorated the PQ effects on WG and FCR. Turkey poults of the PQ and PR+PQ groups had a significant augmentation in the blood malondialdehyde (MDA), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNFα), and corticosterone levels, and in contrast, a significant reduction in the triiodothyronine (T3), when compared to the C group. While propolis significantly reduced the MDA and corticosterone, and increased the T3 levels in the PR+PQ group compared to the PQ group. Furthermore, the dietary PR supplementation significantly limited the PQ-suppressive effects on cell- and humoral-mediated immunity and lymphocyte proliferation of turkey poults. In addition, propolis supplementation in the PR and PR+PQ groups markedly reversed the PQ-induced DNA fragmentation and heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70) over-expression in blood cells. It can be concluded that PR could improve turkey immunity and performance, particularly under inflammation and oxidative stress induced by PQ exposure.

Effect of introduction of a new electronic anesthesia record (Epic) system on the safety and efficiency of patient care in a gastrointestinal endoscopy suite-comparison with historical cohort.

BACKGROUND: Use of electronic medical record systems has increased in the recent years. Epic is one such system gaining popularity in the USA. Epic is a private company, which invented the electronic documentation system adopted in our hospital. In spite of many presumed advantages, its use is not critically analyzed. Some of the perceived advantages are increased efficiency and protection against litigation as a result of accurate documentation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, retrospective data of 305 patients who underwent endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (wherein electronic charting was used - "Epic group") were compared with 288 patients who underwent the same procedure with documentation saved on a paper chart ("paper group"). Time of various events involved in the procedure such as anesthesia start, endoscope insertion, endoscope removal, and transfer to the postanesthesia care unit were routinely documented. From this data, the various time durations were calculated. RESULTS: Both "anesthesia start to scope insertion" times and "scope removal to transfer" times were significantly less in the Epic group compared to the paper group. Use of Epic system led to a saving of 4 min of procedure time per patient. However, the mean oxygen saturation was significantly less in the Epic group. CONCLUSION: In spite of perceived advantages of Epic documentation system, significant hurdles remain with its use. Although the system allows seamless flow of patients, failure to remove all artifacts can lead to errors and become a source of potential litigation hazard.