• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.27 no.6
• /
• pp.767-777
• /
• 2014

Characterizing local chicken types and their mostly rural production systems is prerequisite for designing and implementing development and conservation programs. This study evaluated the management practices of small-scale chicken keepers and the phenotypic and production traits of their chickens in Oman, where conservation programs for local livestock breeds have currently started. Free-range scavenging was the dominant production system, and logistic regression analysis showed that socio-economic factors such as training in poultry keeping, household income, income from farming and gender of chicken owners influenced feeding, housing, and health care practices (p<0.05). A large variation in plumage and shank colors, comb types and other phenotypic traits within and between Omani chicken populations were observed. Male and female body weight differed (p<0.05), being $1.3{\pm}0.65$ kg and $1.1{\pm}0.86$ kg respectively. Flock size averaged $22{\pm}7.7$ birds per household with 4.8 hens per cock. Clutch size was $12.3{\pm}2.85$ and annual production $64.5{\pm}2.85$ eggs per hen. Egg hatchability averaged $88{\pm}6.0%$ and annual chicken mortality across all age and sex categories was $16{\pm}1.4%$. The strong involvement of women in chicken keeping makes them key stakeholders in future development and conservation programs, but the latter should be preceded by a comprehensive study of the genetic diversity of the Omani chicken populations.

• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
• /
• v.21 no.1
• /
• pp.14-23
• /
• 2016

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is caused by fat accumulation and is associated with oxidative stress. In this study, we investigated the potential protective effect of pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) peel extract (PPE) against oxidative stress in the liver of rats with NAFLD. Sprague-Dawley rats were fed a high fat diet (HFD), 20% corn oil, or palm oil for 8 weeks in the presence or absence of PPE. The control group was fed a basal diet. The progression of NAFLD was evaluated histologically and by measuring liver enzymes (alanine transaminase and aspartate transaminase), serum lipids (triglycerides and total cholesterol), and oxidative stress markers. The HFD feeding increased the body weight and caused NAFLD, liver steatosis, hyperlipidemia, oxidative stress, and elevated liver enzymes. Administration of PPE ameliorated the hepatic morphology, reduced body weight, improved liver enzymes, and inhibited lipogenesis. Furthermore, PPE enhanced the cellular redox status in the liver tissue of rats with NAFLD. Our findings suggest that PPE could improve HFD-induced NAFLD via abolishment of hepatic oxidative damage and hyperlipidemia. PPE might be considered as a potential lead material in the treatment of NAFLD and obesity through the modulation of lipid metabolism.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
• /
• v.16 no.4
• /
• pp.549-556
• /
• 2007

The study was carried out to examine on the refiner discharge from Alaska pollock as a collagen resource by characterizing biochemical and functional properties of collagen. The refiner discharge from Alaska pollock surimi manufacturing was a good resource for collagen extraction according to the results of total protein, heavy metal, volatile basic nitrogen, collagen content, amino acid composition, and thermal denaturation temperature (TDT). TDT of acid soluble collagen from refiner discharge showed $20.7^{\circ}C$, which was similar to that of collagen from Alaska pollock muscle and was higher than that of collagen from Alaska pollock skin. TDT of acid-soluble collagen from refiner discharge was, however, lower than those of skin collagens from warm fish and land animal. Acid-soluble collagen from refiner discharge of Alaska pollock could be used as a functional ingredient for food and industrial applications according to the results of water and oil absorption capacities, and emulsion properties. In addition, if the thermal stability of the acid-soluble collagens is improved, collagen from refiner discharge from Alaska pollock could be more effectively used.

• Ocean and Polar Research
• /
• v.23 no.4
• /
• pp.323-335
• /
• 2001

Distribution features of foulers attached on 28 ships of 6 main shipping routes (SR) of the Far East Sea Basin were analyzed using various statistical methods. Collections obtained during 1976-1990 in the expeditions by the Institute of Marine Biology were used for the analyses. Samples were taken from the ships during anchorage by SCUBA diving and from dry-docks of Vladivostok ship-repairing yard. In all cases, the distribution patterns of most animals and algal species showed clear contagious patterns. Total biomass of fouling organisms and biomass of attached animals frequently increased along the horizontal direction of ship hulls, from the stem to the sternpost. Animal and algal species were usually located at different sites of the hulls. According to the increasing floating speed, there was, a clear tendency of the displacement in main fouling biomass from the stem to the stem. Any generalizations and deductions concerning the distribution patterns of the foulers from the same SR ships are not always substantiated, but one may see some similarities of the fouler distributions in many cases. Micro-scale turbulence generated by water flow around a ship hull for the distribution of fouling organisms is discussed.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.23 no.6
• /
• pp.742-749
• /
• 2010

We investigated the antioxidant efficacy of quercetin (0% Diet 1, 0.25% Diet 2, and 0.5% Diet 3) pretreatment for 30 and 60 days in response to cadmium (Cd) toxicity in the olive flounder, and measured the plasma lysozyme activity to understand the immune effects of quercetin. The lysozyme activity with Diets 2 and 3 was higher than with Diet 1. Based on this result, to examine the immune ability and antioxidant role of quercetin, we exposed olive flounder fed quercetin to Cd and then measured the expression and activity of antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT)) and lipid peroxidation (LPO). With Diets 2 and 3, the expression and activity of antioxidant enzymes and the $H_2O_2$ concentration were lower than with Diet 1. In addition, the LPO levels were lower than with Diet 1, which protected the cell membrane. Therefore, quercetin removed the reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced by Cd, indicating that quercetin has antioxidant ability. In addition to its antioxidant ability, quercetin has immune effects.

• Development and Reproduction
• /
• v.23 no.4
• /
• pp.385-390
• /
• 2019

Upon gene inactivation in animal models, the zebrafish (Danio rerio) has become a useful model organism for many reasons, including the fact that it is amenable to various forms of genetic manipulation. Genome editing is a type of genetic engineering in which DNA is inserted, deleted, modified, or replaced in the genome of a living organism. Mainly, CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) Cas9 (CRISPR-associated protein 9) is a technology that enables geneticists to edit parts of the genome. In this study, we utilized this technology to generate an mmp15b mutant by using zebrafish as an animal model. MMP15 is the membrane-type MMP (MT-MMP) which is a recently identified matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) capable of degrading all kinds of extracellular matrix proteins as well as numerous bioactive molecules. Although the newly-established mmp15b zebrafish mutant didn't exhibit morphological phenotypes in the developing embryos, it might be further utilized to understand the role of MMP15 in liver-related diseases, such as liver fibrosis, and associated pathogeneses in humans.

• Journal of fish pathology
• /
• v.22 no.2
• /
• pp.163-166
• /
• 2009

The ectoparasite ciliate Trichodina has been recorded from above 100 species of freshwater and marine fishes. In April 2009, we investigated the trichodia infection in 13 species of marine fishes captured by emplacement net and gill net in order to understand trichodina infection status among the natural fish populations along the Namhae-Gun coast area, the southen coast of Korea. Trichodina infection was observed in 10 out of 10 sea basses Lateolabrax japonicus, 2 out of 5 finespotted flounder Pleuronichthys cornutus and 1 out of a stone flounder Kareius bicoloratus. The sea bass infected with the parasite showed hypertrophy and exfoliation in gill epithelium. In addition, hyperplasia and lamellar fusion of gill filament were noticed among naturally affected sea bass.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
• /
• v.39 no.6
• /
• pp.584-591
• /
• 2023

Active plant immune response involving programmed cell death called the hypersensitive response (HR) is elicited by microbial effectors delivered through the type III secretion system (T3SS). The marine bacterium Hahella chejuensis contains two T3SSs that are similar to those of animal pathogens, but it was able to elicit HR-like cell death in the land plant Nicotiana benthamiana. The cell death was comparable with the transcriptional patterns of H. chejuensis T3SS-1 genes, was mediated by SGT1, a general regulator of plant resistance, and was suppressed by AvrPto1, a type III-secreted effector of a plant pathogen that inhibits HR. Thus, type III-secreted effectors of a marine bacterium are capable of inducing the nonhost HR in a land plant it has never encountered before. This suggests that plants may have evolved to cope with a potential threat posed by alien pathogen effectors. Our work documents an exceptional case of nonhost HR and provides an expanded perspective for studying plant nonhost resistance.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.17 no.9
• /
• pp.1188-1191
• /
• 2004

Two species of marine catfish, Arius maculatus and Osteogeneiosus militaris, belonging to family Ariidae were analysed electrophoretically for genetic variation in 6 enzymes, alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH), malate dehydrogenase (MDH), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), glucose dehydrogenase (GDH), malic enzyme (ME) and superoxide dismutase (SOD). Eighteen individuals of each species were studied. Two loci MDH and ADH were polymorphic in both. Average heterozygosity in A. maculatus was 1.46, while it was 2.5 in O. militaris. The allele frequencies were used to estimate Nei's genetic distance (D). The D value was calculated to be 0.6879. Two isozyme loci, ME and SOD, were found to be the most reliable species specific markers. No tissue specific loci were observed for the enzymes studied, the bands being identical in each case. The genetic distance observed between O. militaris and A. maculatus in this study suggests that they would be more appropriately classified as species of the same genus rather than being assigned separate genera.

• Development and Reproduction
• /
• v.16 no.4
• /
• pp.371-378
• /
• 2012

Notch signaling plays fundamental roles in various animal development. It has been suggested that Hr-Notch, a Notch homologue in the ascidian Halocynthia roretzi, is involved in the formation of peripheral neurons by suppressing the neural fates and promoting the epidermal differentiation. However, roles of Notch signaling remain controversial in the formation of nervous system in ascidian embryos. To precisely investigate functions of Notch signaling, we have isolated and characterized Hr-Numb, a Numb homologue which is a negative regulator of Notch signaling, in H. roretzi. Maternal expression of Hr-Numb mRNAs was detected in egg cytoplasm and the transcripts were inherited by the animal blastomeres. Its zygotic expression became evident by the early neurula stage and the transcripts were detected in dorsal neural precursor cells. Suppression of Hr-Numb function by an antisense morpholino oligonucleotide resulted in larvae with defect in brain vesicle and palps formation. Similar results have been obtained by overexpression of the constitutively activated Hr-Notch forms. Therefore, these results suggest that Hr-Numb is involved in Notch signaling during ascidian embryogenesis.