Quantifying herbicide dose-response and resistance in <i>Echinochloa</i> spp. by measuring root length in growth pouches

Zhang, C. J.,Lim, S. H.,Kim, J. W.,Song, J. S.,Yook, M. J.,Nah, G.,Valverde, B. E.,Kim, D. S. Canadian Science Publishing 2015 Canadian journal of plant science. Revue canadienn Vol.95 No.6

<P> Zhang, C. J., Lim, S. H., Kim, J. W., Song, J. S., Yook, M. J., Nah, G., Valverde, N. E. and Kim, D. S. 2015. Quantifying herbicide dose-response and resistance in Echinochloa spp. by measuring root length in growth pouches. Can. J. Plant Sci. 95: 1181-1192. The aim of the presented study was to develop a bioassay for rapid diagnosis of herbicide dose-response and resistance in Echinochloa. Pre-germinated seeds of Echinochloa spp. were incubated in growth pouches (18 cm×16.5 cm) containing herbicide solutions in a range of concentrations. Shoot and root lengths were measured after 6 d of incubation. Dose-responses estimated by measuring root lengths in the growth pouches were well-described by the log-logistic dose-response model and similar to those estimated by a whole-plant assay. Accurate dose-response curves were successfully generated for several herbicides with different modes of action, suggesting that the growth pouch method can be used for herbicide bioassays. The suitability of the growth pouch method for rapid diagnosis of acetyl coenzyme-A carboxylase (ACCase) and acetolactate synthase (ALS) inhibitor resistance in Echinochloa spp. was also tested. For cyhalofop-butyl, resistant and susceptible biotypes were discriminated at 180-300 mg a.i. L<SUP>−1</SUP> and 80-120 mg a.i. L<SUP>−1</SUP> for barnyardgrass (E. crus-galli) and late watergrass (E. oryzicola), respectively. For penoxsulam, the discriminatory dosage was 350-500 mg a.i. L<SUP>−1</SUP> for barnyardgrass and 650-1000 mg a.i. L<SUP>−1</SUP> for late watergrass. The method was further used to identify late watergrass biotypes resistant and susceptible to two other ALS inhibitors, azimsulfuron and bispyribac-sodium. Our results show that the growth pouch method can be reliably used in herbicide dose-response studies and to diagnose herbicide resistance in Echinochloa spp., with significant time and cost savings compared with conventional whole-plant assays. </P>

Genetic Variability of mtDNA Sequences in Chinese Native Chicken Breeds

Liu, Z.G.,Lei, C.Z.,Luo, J.,Ding, C.,Chen, G.H.,Chang, H.,Wang, K.H.,Liu, X.X.,Zhang, X.Y.,Xiao, X.J.,Wu, S.L. Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2004 Animal Bioscience Vol.17 No.7

The variability of mtDNA hypervariable segment I (HVS I) sequences was investigated in a total of 48 birds belonging to 12 Chinese native chicken breeds. Sixteen haplotypes were identified from 35 polymorphic nucleotide sites which accounted for 6.4% of a sequenced 544 bp fragment. Diversity analysis of the haplotypes showed that Tibetan, Langshan and Henan cockfight chicken had only one haplotype, while ancient haplotypes existed in Taihe silky and Chahua chicken. Phylogenetic analysis of the haplotypes suggested that Chinese native chicken breeds shared 5 maternal lineages and some breeds would share the same maternal lineage, regardless of their external features and ecological types. Both divergent and phylogenetic analysis of the haplotypes indicated the close genetic relationships between the Chinese native chicken breeds and G. g. gallus and G. g. spadiceus from different areas, which implied that G. g. gallus and G. g. spadiceus were the original ancestors of the Chinese native chicken breeds.

Effects of Treating Whole-plant or Chopped Rice Straw Silage with Different Levels of Lactic Acid Bacteria on Silage Fermentation and Nutritive Value for Lactating Holsteins

Zhang, Y.G.,Xin, H.S.,Hua, J.L. Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2010 Animal Bioscience Vol.23 No.12

Two experiments were carried out to investigate i) the effects of four levels of lactic acid bacteria inoculants (LAB; 0, $2{\times}10^5$, $3{\times}10^5$ and $4{\times}10^5$ cfu/g fresh forage) and two physical forms of rice straw (whole and chopped rice straw) on silage fermentation quality and nutritive value of rice straw (RS) silage for lactating Holsteins and ii) the effects of the replacement of corn silage (CS) with different inclusion levels (0, 25 and 50%) of LAB treated RS on lactating performance of Holstein dairy cows. Rice straw packed with stretch film was ensiled for 45 d. The results showed that the higher level of LAB inoculants in the silage quadratically decreased pH, $NH_3$-N and acetic acid concentrations and increased the contents of lactic acid and total organic acids. The CP content and DM losses in the silage declined linearly as the level of LAB addition was increased. Compared with whole-plant rice straw silage (WRS), chopped rice straw silage (CRS) dramatically reduced pH by 0.83. The concentrations of $NH_3$-N were similar in WRS and CRS and both were less than 50 g/kg of total N. Chopping rice straw before ensiling significantly enhanced the lactic acid concentration and total organic acids content whereas the concentration of acetic acid declined. The CP, NDF and ADF content of CRS was 13.4, 5.9 and 10.2% lower than in WRS, respectively. Except for butyric acid concentration, significant interaction effects of inoculation level and physical form of RS were found on all fermentation end-products. Our findings indicated that milk yield and composition were not affected by different level of RS inclusion. However, because of the lower cost of WRS, cows consuming a ration in which WRS was partially substituted for CS had 3.48 Yuan (75% CS+25% WRS) and 4.56 Yuan (50% CS+50% WRS) more economic benefit over those fed a CS-based ration. It was concluded that the chopping process and LAB addition could improve the silage quality, and that substitution of corn silage with RS silage lowered the cost of the dairy cow ration without impairing lactation performance.

The Metabolizable Energy Value, Standardized Ileal Digestibility of Amino Acids in Soybean Meal, Soy Protein Concentrate and Fermented Soybean Meal, and the Application of These Products in Early-weaned Piglets

Zhang, H.Y.,Yi, J.Q.,Piao, X.S.,Li, P.F.,Zeng, Z.K.,Wang, D.,Liu, L.,Wang, G.Q.,Han, X. Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2013 Animal Bioscience Vol.26 No.5

Three experiments were conducted to evaluate the metabolizable energy (ME) value, standardized ileal digestibility (SID) of amino acids (AA) of soybean meal (SBM), soy protein concentrate (SPC) and fermented soybean meal (FSBM), and the application of these products in early-weaned piglets. In Exp. 1, four barrows with initial body weight (BW) of $14.2{\pm}1.4$ kg were used in a $4{\times}4$ Latin square design. The diet 1 contained corn as the only energy source. The other three diets replaced 25% of corn in diet 1 with one of the three soybean products, and the digestable energy (DE) and ME contents were determined by difference. In Exp. 2, four barrows (initial BW of $18.2{\pm}1.5$ kg) were fitted with ileal T-cannulas and allotted to a $4{\times}4$ Latin square design. Three cornstarch-based diets were formulated using each of the soybean products as the sole source of AA. A nitrogen-free diet was also formulated to measure endogenous losses of AA. In Exp. 3, ninety six piglets (initial BW of $5.6{\pm}0.9$ kg) weaned at $21{\pm}2$ d were blocked by weight and assigned to one of three treatments for a 21-d growth performance study. The control diet was based on corn and SBM, the two treatments' diets contained either 10% SPC or FSBM and were formulated to same SID lysine to ME ratio of 3.6 g/Mcal. The results showed that the ME content of SPC was greater than SBM (p<0.05). The SID of most AA in SPC was greater than the SID of AA in SBM (p<0.05). For the essential AA, the SID of histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine and threonine in FSBM were greater than in SBM (p<0.05). Even though they were fed same SID lysine to ME ratio of 3.6 g/Mcal diets, pigs fed SPC and FSBM diets had greater weight gain, G:F (p<0.05) and better fecal score (p<0.05) than pigs fed SBM diet. In conclusion, SPC showed a higher ME content and SID of AA than the SBM. SID of some essential AA in FSBM was higher than SBM and was similar with SPC. But the lower antigenic proteins and anti-nutritional factors content in SPC and FSBM may be the main factors affecting the performance of early-weaned piglets rather than the increased ME content and SID of AA.

Flavonoids Identified from Korean Scutellaria baicalensis Induce Apoptosis by ROS Generation and Caspase Activation on Human Fibrosarcoma Cells

Zhang, J.,Park, H.-S.,Kim, J.-A.,Hong, G.-E.,Nagappan, A.,Park, K.-I.,Kim, G.-S. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF CHINESE MEDICINE INC 2014 The American journal of Chinese medicine Vol.42 No.2

The effects of flavonoids from Korean Scutellaria baicalensis on fibrosarcoma HT1080 cells and their underlying molecular mechanism were investigated in this study. Flavonoids affected HT1080 cell proliferation by interrupting cell cycle progress, obviously augmenting the proportion of sub-G1 and diminishing that of G1 phase, and undergoing apoptosis at the tested dosage (100-400 mu g/mL). In addition, the mediated apoptosis was mainly caused by total reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and by up-regulating the ratio of Bax/Bcl-xL, triggering caspase cascades (caspase-3, -9 and -8), and inactivating PARP, dose-dependently. The proteomics results showed that AP-4, ARID 5B, HNRNP K, PLOG, Prdx6, and myosin-1, associated with cell growth, differentiation and development, and overexpressed in gastric cancer, colorectal cancer, pancreatic cancer, etc., were statistically down-regulated after the flavonoids treatment. Taken together, our data demonstrated that flavonoids from Korean S. baicalensis induced apoptosis in HT1080 cells, which involved a hierarchy of cellular pathways and multiple signal proteins, and might be a potential anticancer therapeutic agent.

Rose rock-shaped nano Cu₂O anchored graphene for high-performance supercapacitors via solvothermal route

Zhang, W.,Yin, Z.,Chun, A.,Yoo, J.,Diao, G.,Kim, Y.S.,Piao, Y. Elsevier Sequoia 2016 Journal of Power Sources Vol.318 No.-

Novel rose rock-shaped cuprous oxide anchored graphene nanocomposite (Cu<SUB>2</SUB>O-GN) is successfully synthesized by a simple and efficient one-step solvothermal method. Notably, the reduction of graphene oxide (GO) and deposition of nano-Cu<SUB>2</SUB>O on GN occur simultaneously during the polyol reaction process. The nanocomposite is systematically characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). We also explore the formation mechanism of Cu<SUB>2</SUB>O-GN including the concentration effect of the precursor, precipitation agent, GO, and heating rate on the morphology of the resulting nanocomposite. It is noteworthy that Cu<SUB>2</SUB>O is gradually decorated on the large sheets of GN to form ordered three-dimensional nanostructure with the optimized concentration of GO, which is crucial to the growth of the final nanoarchitectures. In addition, the electrochemical properties of the Cu<SUB>2</SUB>O-GN nanocomposite are investigated by cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic charge-discharge measurements. The composite shows a favorable electrochemical capacitance (416 F g<SUP>-1</SUP> at 1 A g<SUP>-1</SUP>), rate performance and cycling stability. Also, a high specific capacitance and good retention point to its promising applications as electrode materials in supercapacitors.

Dietary Requirement of True Digestible Phosphorus and Total Calcium for Growing Pigs

Ruan, Z.,Zhang, Y.-G.,Yin, Y.-L.,Li, T.-J.,Huang, R.-L.,Kim, S.W.,Wu, G.Y.,Deng, Z.Y. Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2007 Animal Bioscience Vol.20 No.8

Sixty healthy growing pigs ($Duroc{\times}Landrace{\times}Yorkshire$ with an average BW of 21.4 kg) were used to determine the true digestible phosphorus (TDP) requirement of growing pigs on the basis of growth performance and serum biochemical indices. Pigs were assigned randomly to one of five dietary treatments (12 pigs/diet), representing five levels of TDP (0.16%, 0.20%, 0.23%, 0.26% and 0.39%). There were three replications per treatment, with four pigs (2 barrows and 2 gilts) in each replication (2 pigs/pen) A randomized-block design was used, with pen as the experimental unit. Experimental diets were formulated to provide the 5 TDP levels with a total calcium (Ca) to TDP ratio of 2:1, and offered to pigs at 5% BW for 28 d. The total Ca contents of the five diets were 0.33, 0.38, 0.45, 0.51 and 0.79%, respectively. During the 28-d experimental period, the ADG of pigs was affected by dietary TDP levels as described by Equation 1: y = $-809,532x^4+788,079x^3-276,250x^2+42,114x-1$,759; ($R^2$ = 0.99; p<0.01; y = ADG, g/d; x = dietary TDP, %). The feed:gain ratio for pigs was affected by dietary TDP levels as described by Equation 2: y = $3,651.1x^4-3,480.4x^3+1,183.8x^2-172.5x+10.9$ ($R^2$ = 0.99; p<0.01; y = feed:gain ratio; x = dietary TDP, %). Total P concentrations in serum were affected by dietary TDP levels as described by Equation 3: y = $-3,311.7x^4+3,342.7x^3-1,224.6x^2+195.6x-8.7$ ($R^2$ = 0.99; p<0.01; y = total serum P concentration and x = dietary TDP, %). The highest ADG (782 g/d), the lowest feed:gain ratio (1.07), and the highest total serum P concentration (3.1 mmol/L) were obtained when dietary TDP level was 0.34%. Collectively, these results indicate that the optimal TDP requirement of growing pigs is 0.34% of the diet (e.g., 5.1 g/day for a 30-kg pig that consumed 1.5 kg feed daily) at a total Ca to TDP ratio of 2:1.

True Digestibility of Phosphorus in Different Resources of Feed Ingredients in Growing Pigs

Wu, X.,Ruan, Z.,Zhang, Y.G.,Hou, Y.Q.,Yin, Y.L.,Li, T.J.,Huang, R.L.,Chu, W.Y.,Kong, X.F.,Gao, B.,Chen, L.X. Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2008 Animal Bioscience Vol.21 No.1

To determine the true digestible phosphorus (TDP) requirement of growing pigs, two experiments were designed with the experimental diets containing five true digestible P levels (0.16%, 0.20%, 0.23%, 0.26% and 0.39%) and the ratio of total calcium to true digestible P (TDP) kept at 2:1. In Experiment 1, five barrows (Duroc${\times}$Landrace${\times}$Yorkshire) with an average initial body weight of 27.9 kg were used in a $5{\times}5$ Latin-square design to evaluate the effect of different dietary P levels on the digestibility and output of P and nitrogen. In Experiment 2, sixty healthy growing pigs (Duroc${\times}$Landrace${\times}$Yorkshire) with an average body weight (BW) of 21.4 kg were assigned randomly to one of the five dietary treatments (12 pigs/diet), and were used to determine the true digestible phosphorus (TDP) requirement of growing pigs on the basis of growth performance and serum biochemical indices. The results indicated that the true digestibility of P increased (p<0.05) linearly with increasing dietary TDP level below 0.26%. The true P digestibility was highest (56.6%) when dietary TDP was 0.34%. Expressed as g/kg dry matter intake (DMI), fecal P output increased (p<0.05) linearly with increasing P input. On the basis of g/kg fecal dry matter (DM), fecal P output was lowest for Diet 4 and highest (p<0.05) for Diet 5. The apparent digestibility of crude protein (CP) did not differ (p>0.05) among the five diets, with the average nitrogen output of 12.14 g/d and nitrogen retention of 66% to 74% (p>0.05), which suggested that there was no interaction between dietary P and CP protein levels. During the 28-d experimental period of Experiment 2, the average daily gain (ADG) of pigs was affected by dietary TDP levels as described by Eq. (1): $y=-809,532x^4+788,079x^3-276,250x^2+42,114x-1,759$; ($R^2=0.99$; p<0.01; y = ADG, g/d; x = dietary TDP, %), F/G for pigs by Eq. (2): $y=3,651.1x^4-3,480.4x^3+1,183.8x^2-172.5x+10.9$ ($R^2=0.99$; p<0.01; y = F/G; x = dietary TDP, %), and Total P concentrations in serum by Eq. (3): $y=-3,311.7x^4+3,342.7x^3-1,224.6x^2+195.6x-8.7$ (R2 = 0.99; p<0.01; y = total serum P concentration and x = dietary TDP, %). The highest ADG (782 g/d), the lowest F/G (1.07) and the highest total serum P concentration (3.1 mmol/L) were obtained when dietary TDP level was 0.34%. Collectively, these results indicate that the optimal TDP requirement of growing pigs is 0.34% of the diet at a total Ca to TDP ratio of 2:1.

Hypothalamic Norepinephrine Mediates Acupunctural Effects on Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis During Ethanol Withdrawal

Zhao, Z.L.,Kim, S.C.,Zhang, J.,Liu, H.F.,Lee, B.H.,Jang, E.Y.,Lee, C.W.,Cho, I.J.,An, W.G.,Yang, C.H.,Kim, Y.W.,Zhao, R.J.,Wu, Y.Y. Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam 2016 JOURNAL OF ACUPUNCTURE AND MERIDIAN STUDIES Vol.9 No.1

A previous study demonstrated that acupuncture at ST36 (Zu-San-Li) attenuates ethanol withdrawal (EW)-induced hyperactivation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in rats. The current study investigated the involvement of hypothalamic norepinephrine (NE) in that process. Rats were intraperitoneally treated with 3 g/kg/d of ethanol or saline for 28 days. After 24 hours of EW, acupuncture was applied to rats at bilateral ST36 points or at nonacupoints (tail) for 1 minute. A high-performance liquid chromatography analysis showed that EW significantly increased both the NE and the 3-methoxy-4-hydroxy-phenylglycol (MHPG) levels in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN). Western blot analysis also revealed that EW markedly elevated the phosphorylation rates of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), but spared TH protein expression in the PVN. However, acupuncture at ST36, but not at nonacupoints, greatly inhibited the increase in the hypothalamic NE, MHPG, and phosphorylation rates of TH. Additionally, postacupuncture infusion of NE into the PVN significantly attenuated the inhibitory effects of acupuncture at ST36 on the oversecretion of plasma corticosterone during EW. These results suggest that acupuncture at ST36 inhibits EW-induced hyperactivation of the hypothalamic NEergic system to produce therapeutic effects on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.

Effects of Xylanase Supplementation on Growth Performance, Nutrient Digestibility and Non-starch Polysaccharide Degradation in Different Sections of the Gastrointestinal Tract of Broilers Fed Wheat-based Diets

Zhang, L.,Xu, J.,Lei, L.,Jiang, Y.,Gao, F.,Zhou, G.H. Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 2014 Animal Bioscience Vol.27 No.6

This experiment was performed to investigate the effects of exogenous xylanase supplementation on performance, nutrient digestibility and the degradation of non-starch polysaccharides (NSP) in different sections of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) of broilers fed wheat-based diets. A total of 120 7-day-old Arbor Acres broiler chicks were randomly allotted to two wheat-based experimental diets supplemented with 0 or 1.0 g/kg xylanase. Each treatment was composed of 6 replicates with 10 birds each. Diets were given to the birds from 7 to 21 days of age. The results showed that xylanase supplementation did not affect feed intake, but increased body weight gain of broiler at 21 day of age by 5.8% (p<0.05) and improved feed-to-gain ratio by 5.0% (p<0.05). Xylanase significantly increased (p<0.05) ileal digestibilities of crude protein (CP) by 3.5%, starch by 9.3%, soluble NSP by 43.9% and insoluble NSP by 42.2% relative to the control group, respectively. Also, compared with the control treatment, xylanase addition increased (p<0.05) total tract digestibilities of dry matter by 5.7%, CP by 4.1%, starch by 6.3%, soluble NSP by 50.8%, and had a tendency to increase (p = 0.093) insoluble NSP by 19.9%, respectively. The addition of xylanase increased the concentrations of arabinose and xylose in the digesta of gizzard, duodenum, jejunum, and ileum (p<0.05), and the order of their concentration was ileum>jejunum>duodenum>>gizzard> caecum. The supplementation of xylanse increased ileal isomaltriose concentration (p<0.05), but did not affect the concentrations of isomaltose, panose and 1-kestose in the digesta of all GIT sections. These results suggest that supplementation of xylanase to wheat-based diets cuts the arabinoxylan backbone into small fragments (mainly arabinose and xylose) in the ileum, jejunum and duodenum, and enhances digestibilites of nutrients by decreasing digesta viscosity. The release of arabinose and xylose in the small intestine may also be the important contributors to the growth-promoting effect of xylanase in broilers fed wheat-based diets.