Beneficial and adverse effects of medicinal plants as feed supplements in poultry nutrition: a review.

Medicinal plants exhibit colossal impact on poultry industries by improving its performance and productivity. However, some of these plants show adverse influence too by decreasing egg production percentage, egg mass, and microbiota counts. Green tea, nettle, pennyroyal, yarrow, and alfalfa in the form of seed, powder, and extract had vast potentiality to improve immunity, reduce the growth of pathogenic microbes, and improve the viable counts of lactic acid bacteria. Lavender, Alfalfa, and Nettle powder were able to improve egg yolk color. Furthermore, ginger reduced fat content in meat and increased color intensity. Flax seed increased alpha linolenic acid content in tissue, and increased n-3 fatty acid content in breast as well as thigh tissue. Physiological assessment showed that green tea, lavender, nettle, pennyroyal, and yarrow improved poultry immunity. Lavender and nettle improved internal organ traits. Interestingly, the use of flaxseed improved quail egg hatchability. Plants metabolites, particularly carvacrol and thymol showed its pivotal role as natural growth promoters by affecting growth performances, nutrient bioavailability, and immunity of broiler chickens. Additionally, in recent years, micro-encapsulation or nano-encapsulation of plant extracts and its metabolites improved growth performances of broiler chickens, thereby suggested wide utilization of this technique as a potential alternative to antibiotic growth promoters in future. This review sheds a light on beneficial as well as no adverse effects of some of the direct-fed important medicinal plants and its metabolites in poultry nutrition in order to suggest its key role in future poultry enterprise.

Antibacterial activity of three essential oils and some monoterpenes against Ralstonia solanacearum phylotype II isolated from potato.

The present study describes the possibility of using some essential oils and monoterpens as bioagents against the growth of Ralstonia solanacearum, a causal bacterium of potato brown rot disease. Eight isolates of the bacterium were recovered from infected potato tubers, showing typical symptoms of the disease, Isolates were identified as R.solanacearum phylotype II, based on biochemical and physiological characteristics, as well as, at the molecular level through PCR analysis. Three essential oils extracted from Corymbia citriodora (leaves), Cupressus sempervirens (aerial parts), and Lantana camara (aerial parts) were evaluated for their antibacterial activity against eight isolates of R. solanacearum phylotype II. Results demonstrated that L. camara essential oil (concentration 5000 µg/mL) had the highest effects against the RsMo2, RsSc1 and Rs48, with inhibition zone (IZ) values of 17.33, 16.33, and 17.50 mm, respectively, also against Rs2 (IZ 14.33 mm), and RsIs2 (IZ 16 mm). C. citriodora oil showed the highest activity against RsBe2 (IZ 14 mm), RsFr4 (IZ 13.66 mm) and RsNe1 (IZ 13.66 mm). Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS-FID) analyzed the chemical composition of these essential oils. It was proved that L. camara leaves contains mainly trans-caryophyllene (16.24%) and α-humulene (9.55%), in C. citriodora oil were α-citronellal (56.55%), α-citronellol (14.89%), and citronellol acetate (13.04%), and in Cup. sempervirens aerial parts were cedrol (22.17%), and Δ3-carene (18.59%). Five monoterpenes were evaluated against the most resistance Ralstonia isolate RsFr5 to the three studied essential oils and found that limonene had the highest effect against it compared with the lowest thymol. The results proved the strong bio effects of the essential oil from L. camara leaves as a natural product contained monoterpenes that can inhibit the growth of tested R. solanacearum phylotype II isolates.

Relación del estilo de vida y estado de nutrición en estudiantes universitarios: estudio descriptivo de corte transversal / Life style and nutritional status in university students: a descriptive, cross-sectional study

Introducción: el estilo de vida es el conjunto de comportamientos que practica habitualmente una persona en forma consciente y voluntaria durante el transcurso de su vida. La evaluación del estado nutricional a través de la antropometría permite tomar medidas preventivas en beneficio de la salud. Ello cobra importancia en los jóvenes, pues diversos autores han destacado que la población universitaria es un grupo especialmente vulnerable para desarrollar costumbres y hábitos de riesgo. Propósito: el objetivo de la investigación es evaluar y relacionar el estilo de vida con el estado de nutrición de estudiantes universitarios. Diseño: estudio observacional, descriptivo, de corte transversal. Se valoró el estado de nutrición y se aplicó el cuestionario FANTASTIC. Resultados: el 88,1 por ciento de los estudiantes tiene un estilo de vida saludable y 65 por ciento fue clasificado como normal de acuerdo al índice de masa corporal. Conclusión: se encontró que sí existe una relación entre el estilo de vida y el estado de nutrición. Por otro lado se identificaron conductas de riesgo en las dimensiones de nutrición, tabaco, sueño y estrés.

Introduction. Lifestyle is the set of behaviors that an individual practices consciously and voluntarily in the course of his or her life. The assessment of nutritional status by anthropometry can lead to the adoption of preventive measures for health. This is especially important in young people, as many authors have noted that the university population is particularly vulnerable for risky customs and habits. Aim. The purpose of this study is to assess and relate lifestyle with nutritional status of university students. Design. Observational descriptive, cross-sectional. Nutritional status was evaluated and the FANTASTIC questionnaire was applied. Results. 88.1 percent of students have a healthy lifestyle and 65 percent were classified as normal according to body mass index. Conclusion. The study found that there is a relationship between lifestyle and nutritional status. On the other hand risk behaviors were identified in the dimensions of nutrition, tobacco smoking, sleep and stress.

Eating behaviors and eating disorders symptomatology in nutrition students / Conductas alimentarias y sintomatología de trastornos del comportamiento alimentario en estudiantes de nutrición

Eating disorders are psychopathological problems that currently are becoming important due to its increased incidence in certain population groups. The objective of this study was to analyze eating behaviors and eating disorders symptomatology in nutrition students from a public university of the east of State of Mexico. A battery of tests was applied to 182 students (157 women and 25 men) with an average age of 20.5 years (SD = 2.72). Results showed 8.8% of participants with eating disorders symptomatology, finding independence with the body mass index; however, with the fat percentage we found significant differences. We found body dissatisfaction in 33.51%, although compensatory behaviors were not a predominant factor in this group, however, findings shows latent risk that is increasing by the socio-cultural influence of the body aesthetic model and affect body dissatisfaction, and changes in eating behavior, despite in his academic training students acquired theoretical knowledge about this psychopathologies.

Los trastornos del comportamiento alimentario son problemas psicopatológicos que en la actualidad están adquiriendo importancia por el incremento de su incidencia en ciertos grupos de población. El objetivo del presente estudio fue analizar las conductas alimentarias y la presencia de sintomatología de trastornos del comportamiento alimentario en los estudiantes de nutrición de una universidad pública del oriente del Estado de México. Se aplicó una batería de pruebas, en 182 alumnos (157 mujeres y 25 hombres) con un promedio de edad de 20.5 años (DE = 2.72). Los resultados mostraron 8.8% de participantes con sintomatología de trastornos del comportamiento alimentario, hallando independencia con la variable índice de masa corporal, no obstante, en el porcentaje de grasa si se observaron diferencias estadísticamente significativas. La insatisfacción corporal, se presentó en 33.51%, aunque las conductas compensatorias no fueron un factor predominante en este grupo, sin embargo, los hallazgos muestran riesgo latente que se acrecenta por la influencia sociocultural del modelo estético corporal e introyecta insatisfacción corporal y cambios en la conducta alimentaria, a pesar de que en su formación académica los estudiantes de nutrición adquieren el conocimiento teórico sobre estas psicopatologías.

Enzymatic reactions and synthesis of n-butyl caproate: esterification, transesterification and aminolysis using a recombinant lipase from Geobacillus thermoleovorans CCR11.

The recombinant lipase LipMatCCR11 from the thermophilic strain Geobacillus thermoleovorans CCR11 was applied in the synthesis of n-butyl caproate via transesterification in hexane and xylene. The short chain flavour ester was obtained by alcoholysis from ethyl caproate and n-butyl alcohol and acidolysis from n-butyl butyrate and caproic acid. This enzyme was also used in the condensation reaction from caproic acid and n-butanol. The conversion percentages at equilibrium (Xe) were similar to those obtained with Candida antarctica lipase fraction B (CAL-B) in the same reaction conditions, while lower conversion velocities (k) were attained. LipMatCCR11 reached high conversion percentages in either hexane or xylene as organic media (> 63%); the enzyme was also able to catalyze the aminolysis reaction of ethyl caproate with benzyl amine in hexane obtaining a conversion percentage > 62%.