Stem Cell Research

Eimeria tenella is an obligate intracellular apicomplexan parasite that causes avian coccidiosis and leads to severe economic losses in the global poultry industry. Cystathionine β-synthase (CBS) and cystathionine γ-lyase (CGL) act together to generate H2S in the reverse transsulfuration pathway. In this study, E.tenella Cystathionine β-synthase (EtCBS) was cloned using rapid amplification of cDNA 5′-ends (5’RACE) and characterized, and its immunoprotective effects were evaluated.

The recombinant EtCBS protein (rEtCBS) was expressed and successfully recognized by anti-sporozoites (Spz) protein rabbit serum. EtCBS mRNA levels were highest in Spz by qPCR, and the protein expression levels were higher in unsporulated oocysts (UO) than in other stages by western blot. Indirect immunofluorescence showed that EtCBS protein was found on the surface of Spz and second-generation merozoites (Mrz).

The invasion inhibition assays showed that rabbit anti-rEtCBS polyclonal antibodies joplink Aflatoxin B effectively inhibited parasite invasion host cells. Chickens immuzized with rEtCBS protein showed rominently increased weight gains and decreased oocyst output compared to non-immunized and infected control group. The results suggest that EtCBS could be a potential vaccine candidate against E. tenella.

Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is defined as the unexpected sudden death of an infant under 1 year of age that remains unexplained after a thorough case investigation. The SIDS pathogenesis is still unknown; however, abnormalities in brain centers that control breathing and arousal from sleep, including dramatic changes in neurotransmitter levels, have been supposed in these deaths. This is the first study focusing on mesencephalic dopaminergic neurons, so far extensively studied only in animals and human neurological diseases, in SIDS. Dopaminergic structures in midbrain sections of a large series of sudden infant deaths (36 SIDS and 26 controls) were identified using polyclonal rabbit antibodies against tyrosine hydroxylase, the rate-limiting enzyme in catecholamine biosynthesis, and the dopamine transporter, a membrane protein specifically expressed in dopaminergic cells. Dopamine-immunolabeled neurons were observed concentrated in two specific structures: the pars compacta of the substantia nigra and in the subnucleus medialis of the periaqueductal gray matter. Anatomical and functional degenerations of dopaminergic neurons in these regions were observed in most SIDS cases but never in controls. These results indicate that dopamine depletion, which is already known to be linked especially to Parkinson’s disease, is strongly involved even in SIDS pathogenesis.

The mediating role of coagulation function on the association of prenatal exposure to aflatoxin B1 and postpartum hemorrhage in Guangxi, China

Dietary administration of Bacillus subtilis KC1 improves growth performance, immune response, heat stress tolerance, and disease resistance of broiler chickens

The preventive effect and mechanisms of adsorbent supplementation in low concentration aflatoxin B1 contaminated diet on subclinical symptom and histological lesions of broilers