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The response surface method was used to study the ultrasonic extraction of traditional Chinese medicine Desmodium triquetrum (L.) DC. phenolic acid. By measuring the total phenolic content, the liquid/solid ratio, ultrasonic power, temperature, time and ethanol solubility were determined to be the significant influencing factors. The total phenolic content reached the highest value (30.3708 mg g-1) under the conditions of the liquid/solid ratio 30%, ultrasonic power 160 w, temperature 40 °C, time 20 min, and ethanol solubility 60%, compared with the traditional boiling method. The total phenolic content was improved, and it was close to the predicted value (29.6548 mg g-1), which proves that the scheme is feasible. After testing, the phenolic acid extracted under these conditions has a good antioxidation effect. The study suggests that ultrasonic extraction methods have the potential to extract antioxidants from traditional Chinese medicines. Also, the influence parameters affecting the process can be further optimized for industrial production.

The high prophylactic doses of ZnO commonly used to control post-weaning diarrhoea (PWD) in piglets have become an environmental problem. The possibility of partial replacement of ZnO by sodium humate (HNa) in PWD treatment was investigated in this study. Weaned piglets (32) were challenged with two enterotoxigenic E. coli strains (ETEC/O149/F4/LT and ETEC/O147/F18/LT) and allocated into four treatments maintained for three weeks: C (no supplementation); ZnO2.5 (2.5 g ZnO/kg diet); HNa + ZnO1.0; HNa + ZnO1.5; HNa + ZnO1.7 (20 g HNa and 1.0, 1.5 and 1.7 g ZnO/kg diet, respectively). The effects on incidence, severity and duration of diarrhoea, faecal shedding of total E. coli and both ETEC strains, growth rate and selected blood parameters were investigated. In contrast with ZnO2.5 and HNa + ZnO1.7, high daily diarrhoea scores, incidence and duration and mortality due to severe dehydration were seen in C, HNa + ZnO1.0 and HNa + ZnO1.5 groups. The administration of ZnO and HNa did not affect the faecal shedding of the challenged ETEC strains for eght days, even in clinically healthy piglets in ZnO2.5 and HNa + ZnO1.7 groups. Signs of growth depression were found in C; HNa + ZnO1.0 and HNa + ZnO1.5 groups during the first week. No difference in growth performance was observed in ZnO2.5 and HNa + ZnO1.7 piglets. Most of the selected biochemical and haematological parameters did not differ significantly among the treatments. However, a significantly higher serum Zn as a result of high dietary ZnO intake in the ZnO2.5 group compared to the control and HNa groups was detected. Significantly lower serum P in ZnO2.5; HNa + ZnO1.7 and HNa + ZnO1.0 groups compared to the control group was most likely induced by the increased Zn in serum. The results indicate the possibility of reducing the high pharmacological levels of ZnO in the prophylaxis of PWD through partial replacement with HNa. Such a treatment maintains the favourable prophylactic effect while lowering the Zn content in faeces.

The overall objective of this study was to improve the reproductive efficiency of lactating dairy cows and to improve the resulting total farm profit. The hypothesis is that a dairy farm can substantially improve its economic and environmental performance through increasing pregnancy rate, i.e. increasing the number of eligible cows that become pregnant for a given breeding period. This paper presents a tool which was designed with a view to comparing the reproductive efficiency. The tool was developed using dynamic programming in R (Shiny) and shows the changes in costs, revenues and net return projected for a given change in pregnancy rate. The model calculates from the first day in milk and stops when the last calf was born after successful insemination of each cow. Sensitivity analyses demonstrated that the economic return associated with reproductive performance is greatly affected by the input parameters and therefore real farm and market values are crucial. The average economic gain per percentage point of 21-d (21-day) pregnancy rate (PR) was 14.6 EUR per cow/year. The milk price showed the largest impact on the overall net return. A 10% increase in milk price increased the net return on average by 268 EUR (10% 21-d PR), 292 EUR (20% 21-d PR) and 299 EUR per cow/year (30% 21-d PR). Our study had the same set values of milk yield during lactations for all four evaluated farms and it was found that the milk income over feed cost increased with the reproductive performance in all evaluated farms on an individual cow level. Poor fertility means that cows spend longer producing lower amounts of less efficiently produced milk.

Phenolic compounds (PCs) - with special reference to secondary plant metabolites - were characterised in two Mediterranean olive groves (Olea europaea L.). Representative pedological profiles were dug to identify and characterise the pedotype. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were carried out on soil core samples gathered at fixed depths (0-20 cm and 20-40 cm) and olive leaf methanol extracts by high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection. The total PCs content reflected the soil organic carbon distribution, especially carbon of humic and fulvic acids, corroborating their crucial role in humification pathways. Among the analysed plant secondary metabolites, luteolin-4'-O-glucoside and verbascoside were the most abundant in leaves and soils, respectively. Most of the easily hydrolysed/metabolised phenols were not found in soils. Rutin and verbascoside, despite containing glucose, strongly persisted in the soil environment, probably due to their allelopathic effect. Oleuropein was not found in soils because it is highly soluble and mobile in the soil environment. Furthermore, the presence of clay in soil seemed to determine the accumulation of specific PCs. Our data suggest that PCs persistence in soil seems to be mainly determined by a balance between physicochemical and biochemical instability and allelopathic stability rather than their abundance in the plant.

The paper presents the results of a study on the impact of forest stand structure and development in 1998 to 2018 on the occurrence of dog's tooth violets (Erythronium dens-canis L.) in the Medník National Nature Monument, Czech Republic. The research was carried out in mixed European hornbeam and sessile oak stands, herb-rich European beech stands and the Sázava-river Norway spruce ecotype stands. The site and stand characteristics of the following three forest stand types were compared: 1) oak-hornbeam forests, 2) herb-rich beech forests and 3) secondary spruce forests. The results showed that the ratio of sterile and fertile plants was 2.9 to 1. The occurrence of E. dens-canis was higher in older stands with differentiated structure. On the contrary, stands characterized by a higher number of trees and basal area negatively affected the population size of E. dens‑canis. Significantly, the density of E. dens-canis decreased with increasing stand density index (SDI) and increased with increasing diameter differentiation index in relation to tree neighbours (TM_d). During the period of 20 years, the E. dens-canis population increased by 40.4% on permanent research plots, while the highest changes were observed on spruce plots (+92.1%) and the lowest increase was in oak-hornbeam forests (+18.0%). The highest numbers of E. dens-canis plants were found in herb-rich beech forests (1 774 plants.ha^-1), lower numbers occurred in oak-hornbeam forests (784 plants.ha^-1) and minimal in secondary spruce forests (51 plants.ha^-1).

Taro starch was modified and used as an alternative encapsulant for the microencapsulation of Lactobacillus plantarum SU-LS 36 by spray drying. Modification of taro starch was conducted by heat moisture treatment (HMT) and 2 autoclaving-cooling cycles (AC-2C). Microencapsulation of L. plantarum SU-LS 36 by spray dryer was done at constant air inlet (125 °C) and outlet temperature (50 °C), feed flow rate (4 mL min^-1), drying air flow rate (20 m3 h^-1) and air pressure (0.196 MPa). The modified taro starch AC-2C as an encapsulant material was able to produce round-shaped microcapsules and provided optimal protection during spray drying. The modified taro starch AC-2C is very promising to be used as an encapsulant for L. plantarum SU-LS36 since it showed better production yield (40.19%), high encapsulation efficiency (89.83%), protected the encapsulated bacteria from high temperature (70 °C), and showed the lowest viability decreasing during storage up to 6 weeks at room temperature.

It has been claimed that artificial insemination (AI) of cows with frozen-thawed semen treated with commercially produced kits, Heiferplus^TM (HP, in favour of female gender) and Bullplus^TM (BP, in favour of male gender), increases the birth chance of calves with desired sex ratio by at least 20-25% and pregnancy rates by at least 5-20%. Hence, this study was conducted to investigate the efficacy of HP and BP kits as combined with AI on the pregnancy rates, foetal sex ratios and some reproductive parameters in cows. For this, a total of 200 cows (100 Holsteins and 100 Simmentals) from three to five years old were used. Fifty Holstein and 50 Simmental cows served as controls. The other half of Holstein and Simmental cows was artificially inseminated with frozen-thawed semen treated with HP and BP, respectively. Findings showed that the AI of cows with frozen-thawed semen treated with HP had no significant effect on the pregnancy rate [52.0% (26/50) in HP group; 56.0% (28/50) in control group], female calf ratio [52.0% (13/25) in HP group; 44.4% (12/27) in control group], embryonic death, abortion, stillbirth, twinning and gestation length as compared to the control group. Similarly, AI of cows with frozen-thawed semen treated with BP did not lead to any significant effect on the pregnancy rate [64.0% (32/50) in BP group; 58.0% (29/50) in control group], male calf ratio [53.1% (17/32) in BP group; 39.3% (11/28) in control group] and other reproductive parameters as compared to the control group. In conclusion, HP and BP treatments of semen used in the AI provided only slight, non-significant increases in female (7.6%) and male (13.8%) calf ratios, respectively.

The potential of antagonistic rhizobacteria in the management of bacterial blight of cotton caused by Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. malvacearum (Xam) was evaluated under greenhouse and field conditions. In this study, 93 bacterial isolates from the rhizosphere of cotton were screened for their efficacy in inhibiting the growth of Xam in vitro. Among them, 21 isolates were found to inhibit the in vitro growth of Xam. These isolates were identified as Pseudomonas fluorescens and Bacillus subtilis based on phenotypic characteristics, biochemical properties and using 16S-23S intergenic transcribed spacer-Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). Among the 21 isolates, the isolates P. fluorescens Pf32 and P. fluorescens Pf93 and B. subtilis B49 exhibited the maximum inhibitory activity against Xam. Talc-based powder formulations of the effective antagonistic isolates of P. fluorescens (Pf32, Pf93) and B. subtilis (B49) were developed and evaluated individually and in combination for their efficacy in the management of bacterial blight of cotton under greenhouse and field conditions. The P. fluorescens isolates Pf32 and Pf93 and Bacillus subtilis isolate B49 survived well in the talc-based formulation for more than 90 days. The application of a mixture of Pf32, Pf93 and B49 to seed, soil and foliage significantly reduced the bacterial blight incidence and increased the plant height, number of branches and number of bolls under field conditions. The plots treated with a mixture of Pf32, Pf93 and B49 recorded the maximum yield of 1915 kg/ha and 1512 kg/ha in trial I and trial II compared to 1210 kg/ha and 987 kg/ha in the untreated control, respectively.

At the locality Čebovce we found damage on Asimina triloba cv. Prima and Corylus avellana, which is not a typical host plant. 20% of branches on the host plant Asimina triloba cv. Prima were damaged by the Currant Clearwing moth larvae. The leaves on the infested branches started to wilt in mid-August.

The study aimed to evaluate the effect of the straw mulch and compost application on the soil losses in potatoes cultivation. The three-year (2016-2018) exact field plot trials with the potato cv. Dicolora was carried out at the experimental station in Prague-Uhříněves. Wheat straw mulch in two doses 2.5 t/ha (SM1) and 4.5 t/ha (SM2) was applied on the soil surface; the compost in a dose of 20 t/ha (CM) was shuffled to the surface soil layer. Both straw mulch and compost application contributed to the significant reduction of the soil losses compared to control untreated (C). In the average of 2016-2018, the lowest soil loss 17.54 g/m² (amount of the soil sediment caught) was found for the variant with the straw mulch treatment (SM2); it means the decrease of soil losses by 71.9% compared to C. Variant SM1 (lower rate of straw mulch in dose 2.5 t/ha) showed the soil loss 18.6 g/m² (the decrease by 70.2% compared to C). The similar results for both variants indicate that for effective soil protection, it is not necessary to use the high doses of the straw mulch. Regarding the distribution of precipitation during the vegetation season, intensive precipitation during the short time, especially when they came after the longer period of drought led to higher soil losses compared to the precipitation distributed regularly.

There are limited data available in the literature about the frequency and distribution of endocarditis in suckling and weaned piglets. The goal of this study was to investigate the frequency and distribution of lesions from cases of spontaneous valvular endocarditis in young piglets and to determine the bacterial agents involved in those lesions. Valvular endocarditis lesions in suckling piglets were detected in 21/454 cases (4.62%) and in 20/306 cases (6.53%) in weaned piglets. Streptococci were the dominant bacterial species isolated in 68% of the cases; S. suis was identified in 48.7% of the cases, S. pyogenes in 7.3% and S. spp., which could not be further identified, were cultured in 12.1% of the cases. E. rhusiopathiae was identified as the causal agent of endocarditis in four cases in the weaned piglets. In three cases, A. suis and S. aureus were isolated, and, in two cases, A. pleuropneumoniae was identified. Y. enterocolitica was isolated form one case of valvular endocarditis in a weaned pig. The finding of valvular endocarditis caused by Y. enterocolitica is an uncommon finding in pigs, and to the authors' knowledge, there are no other reports of this agent being the cause of endocarditis in pigs. The involvement of Y. enterocolitica in endocarditis might have been assisted by the predisposing role of immunosuppressive viruses, such as porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome.

Cholecystokinin (CCK) affects the intestinal motility but in ruminants the question has not been entirely explored. The aim of this study was to examine the precise effects of CCK-octapeptide (CCK-OP)and its amphibian analogue, cerulein, on duodenal motor activity in unfasted rams in the course of chronic experiments. Five rams underwent the implantation of a strain gauge force transducer to the duodenal wall, and - additionally - the bipolar platinum electrodes to the duodenal bulb, distal duodenum, near the strain gauge force transducer, and proximal jejunum. During continuous motor recordings, 0.15M NaCl or CCK peptides were administrated intravenously. Injections of CCK-OP at doses of 20 (over 30 s), 200 (over 30 or 60 s), and 2 000 (over 30, 60, or 120 s) ng/kg of body weight and injections of cerulein at doses of 1, 10, or 100 ng/kg (given over the same periods) were each administered in the course of duodenal phase 1, 2a, or 2b of the migrating motor complex (MMC), i.e. 5 min after the onset of each phase. Injections of the smallest doses of CCK peptides exerted a slight and mostly insignificant effect on the duodenal areas under contraction (AUC). In the duodenum, the moderate doses of the hormones evoked short stimulatory effects followed by longer inhibitory biphasic effects on AUC. These effects were inversely related to the duration of the hormone injection. It is concluded that CCK evokes stimulatory and inhibitory (biphasic) physiological effects on duodenal motility in sheep.

Intensive tilapia egg incubation techniques create favourable conditions for microbial proliferation which often leads to massive mortalities of fish larvae. The effects of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) eggs exposure to bronopol on decontamination of their bacterial surface and survival of larvae were observed. Immersion treatments of fertilized eggs were applied at 10, 25, 50, 100, and 250 mg/l of bronopol for 10, 20, and 30 min. This treatment substantially reduced the number of bacteria on Nile tilapia eggs. The greatest reduction in bacterial numbers (1.58 × 10³ colony forming units/g of egg) was observed at the maximum treatment dosage, i.e. 250 mg/l for 30 min, but this was not significant when compared with treatments of 100-250 mg/l bronopol for 10-30 min. Treatments of 50-250 mg/l bronopol provided better larval survival (89.33-94.67%) than those of < 50 mg/l (P < 0.05). The larval survival obtained from the Nile tilapia eggs disinfected with 10 and 25 mg/l bronopol for 10-30 min was similar to that of negative controls (79.33-80.97%). Additional in vitro test was performed to determine the inhibitory potency of bronopol against bacteria cultured from fertilized Nile tilapia eggs. Twenty-two bacterial isolates (Aeromonas hydrophila (n = 12), Staphylococcus aureus (n = 6), Escherichia coli (n = 2), and Micrococcus spp. (n = 2)) responded to minimum inhibitory concentrations of bronopol ranging from 64 to 128 µg/ml. The study demonstrates that the immersion treatment of Nile tilapia fertilized eggs with 250 mg/l for 10-30 min, the concentration proven effective against bacteria cultured from fertilized eggs, significantly reduced bacterial load and improved larval survival.

The three-year field experiment (2015-2017) with graded doses of magnesium (Mg) and sulphur (S) was carried out at the Humpolec experimental station (49.5546239N, 15.3485489E; Czech Republic). The interactions between boron (B), Mg and S in the soil were studied. No boron was applied into soils. Contents of B, S and Mg in the soil were determined by the Mehlich 3 and NH₄ acetate methods. The crop rotation was: spring barley-oilseed rape-winter wheat. Three Kieserite doses (S and Mg fertiliser) were applied. Sulphur treatments were 10-20-40 kg S/ha to cereals and 20-40-80 kg S/ha to oilseed rape. The doses of Mg were: 13-26-52 kg Mg/ha to cereals and 26-52-104 kg Mg/ha to oilseed rape. A significant gradual decrease of B-Mehlich 3 was observed under Kieserite treatments during the experiment (from 1.24 mg B/kg in control in the 1^st year to 0.92 mg B/kg in the 3^rd year). On the contrary, B-NH₄ acetate contents in soils remained similar during 2015-2017 in control soils (0.33-0.39 mg B/kg) and significantly decreased under Kieserite treatments, namely by 55-57% in 2016 and by 43-48% in 2017. A significant decrease of B content in soils was noted since the second year of experiment after oilseed rape. The boron contents in soils were affected in several ways - by adsorption of B on magnesium oxides and other substances, exchange with SO₄^2- anions and possible leaching, and also by the uptake by grown crops, mainly oilseed rape.

Water stress decreases the quality of fruit by generating reactive oxygen species. Grafting is a technique that can improve the efficiency of crop water usage. This work was performed in order to assess the effect of different water stresses on the commercial and nutraceutical quality of a melon fruit. Cantaloupe melon plants, grown under shade houses were grafted onto a creole pumpkin rootstock and grown with different water stresses (20, 30, and 40 kPa). The grafted melon plants under 30-kPa water stress (G30) showed greater fruit firmness and increased catalase activity. The G30 fruits showed an increase in GPX activity of up to 80% over the non-grafted plants. The GSH was higher in fruits subjected to the 40-kPa water tension. The superoxide dismutase showed a 15% greater inhibition in the fruits from the non-grafted plants. At higher water tensions, the DPPH antioxidant activity decreased, while the vitamin C content increased.

The effect of pre-processing conditions such as speed, die sizes and moisture content on durability of cassava flour was investigated. Densification of cassava flour was done by pelletizing the flour through die and it is necessary to determine optimum conditions for designing and constructing a suitable processing plant. The flour was mixed with water at different blend ratios to form cassava mash of different moisture contents. The pellet quality was evaluated in terms of the durability of the pellets against the moisture content of the mash (18, 20 and 22% w.b.), die size (4, 6 and 8 mm) and the screw speed (90, 100 and 120 rpm). Test results showed that maximum durability of 84.437% was recorded at 20% (w.b.) moisture content using 4 mm die and low durability of 61.26% with using 8 mm die at 18% (w.b.) moisture content. The durability result shows that it decreased with increase in die size. Statistical analysis revealed that the die size had significant (P ≤ 0.05) effect on the durability.

In the Czech Republic, most mycobacterial infections in pigs are caused by the Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) and potentially pathogenic mycobacteria (PPM) derived from the environment. This study was undertaken after the isolation of PPM from various components of the environment of pig herds between 1996 and 2002 (Matlova et al., Veterinarni Medicina, 48, 2003, 343-357). Between 2003 and 2007, a total of 1114 environmentally-derived samples from 24 farms were examined. After staining according to Ziehl-Neelsen, acid-fast rods were found in 42 (3.8%) samples by direct microscopy, and PPM were isolated from 223 (20.0%) samples by culture. PPM occurred primarily in soil from the paddocks (53.8%), peat (53.2%), bedding (28.4%) and biofilm from the pipeline (21.0%). From MAC, M. avium subsp. hominissuis (MAH) genotype IS901- and IS1245+ was most frequent; M. avium subsp. avium (MAA) genotype IS901+ and IS1245+ and M. intracellulare genotype IS901- and IS1245- were isolated from one (0.4%) and three (1.3%) samples, respectively. The remaining isolates were identified as 19 other mycobacterial species: M. gordonae (n = 8), M. triviale (n = 6), M. flavescens (n = 3), M. nonchromogenicum (n = 3), M. terrae (n = 3), M. xenopi (n = 3), M. fortuitum (n = 2), M. chelonae (n = 2), M. chitae (n = 2), M. abscessus (n = 1), M. gastri (n = 1), M. kumamotonense (n = 1), M. marinum (n = 1), M. parafortuitum (n = 1), M. peregrinum (n = 1), M. porcinum (n = 1), M. scrofulaceum (n = 1), M. smegmatis (n = 1) and M. simiae (n = 1). The remaining 41 isolates of unidentified mycobacterial species did not contain the sequences IS901 and/or IS1245, specific for medically important members of MAC (MAA and MAH); a further 44 isolates were not tested due to their contamination or loss of ability to grow in vitro. A farm where MAH was often detected in the lymph nodes of pigs and in the environment between 1996 and 2002 (Period I), was selected for further investigation between 2003 and 2007 (Period II). A comparison of the findings of mycobacteria on the investigated farm in Period I and in the following Period II showed a significant increase (P < 0.01) in the occurrence of mycobacteria other than MAH, especially in peat samples.

The influence of storage time on a range of quality parameters, in vitro antioxidant activity, and the sensory acceptability of fully ripe strawberry tree fruits packaged into polypropylene trays under plastic film was assessed. Fruits were stored at 0°C for 6, 12 or 18 days and then transferred to shelf life at 20°C for 2 days. The parameters most influenced by cold storage and shelf life were firmness, colour, and antioxidant activity. Firmness decreased significantly during storage and colour parameters showed a decrease in saturation. Significant increases in polyphenols and anthocyanins were registered during storage, with a resulting increase in total antioxidant activity. The sensory analysis demonstrated that fruits maintain an acceptable quality level for up to 1 day under shelf life conditions following 18 days of cold storage.

A total of 120 weanling pigs [(Landrace × Yorkshire) × Duroc], 21 days of age with an average initial body weight (BW) of 6.52 ± 0.22 (SE) kg were selected to investigate the effects of extruded rice product as a replacement for dried whey on growth performance, coefficient of total tract apparent digestibility (CATTD), blood profiles, faecal shedding of Lactobacillus and Escherichia coli (the microbial counts of digesta were expressed as log₁₀ colony forming units per gram), and faecal scores of weanling pigs. Pigs were randomly allocated to one of four dietary treatments, with six replicates per treatment and five pigs per pen. Pigs in the control group were fed a diet based on corn, soybean, and 20% dried whey. Experimental groups received the same diet as the control group, but dried whey was replaced by 3%, 6%, and 9% extruded rice. Throughout the experimental period (six weeks), no differences were observed in the average daily gain, average daily feed intake, and gain/feed ratio. Pigs fed 6% and 9% extruded rice had a lower (P < 0.05) CATTD than pigs fed the control diet on Day 14. The blood creatinine concentration of pigs fed 9% extruded rice was higher (P < 0.05) than that of pigs in the control group on Day 14. Pigs fed the diets containing 6% and 9% extruded rice had decreased (P < 0.05) faecal E. coli counts on Day 14 compared with pigs fed the control diet. The current results indicate that feeding extruded rice can decrease faecal E. coli counts without negative effects on growth performance in weanling pigs.

Iron (Fe) is an essential mineral for animal development and function. The present study was carried out to evaluate the effect of replacing FeSO₄ with iron glycine chelate (Fe-Gly) in the equal Fe level in diets on broiler chickens. The broilers were randomly allotted to 6 dietary treatments with 5 replicate pens and 10 birds per pen. The treatments consisted of: Control group (100 mg Fe from FeSO₄/kg diet), Experimental group 1 (80 mg Fe from FeSO₄ + 20 mg Fe from Fe-Gly/kg diet), Experimental group 2 (60 mg Fe from FeSO₄ + 40 mg Fe from Fe-Gly/kg diet), Experimental group 3 (40 mg Fe from FeSO₄ + 60 mg Fe from Fe-Gly/kg diet), Experimental group 4 (20 mg Fe from FeSO₄ + 80 mg Fe from Fe-Gly/kg diet), and Experimental group 5 (100 mg Fe from Fe-Gly/kg diet). The results showed that replacing FeSO₄ with Fe-Gly in the diets did not significantly improve broiler growth performance (P > 0.05). But it significantly (P < 0.05) improved the blood biochemical parameters. Xanthione oxidase activity in blood serum showed no significant difference between all treatments at day 21 except for Experimental group 5 (P > 0.05). In addition, catalase activity in blood serum and Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase activity in liver were increased with the increasing replacement level of Fe-Gly (P < 0.05). But for all of the above indicators, the observed values of Experimental groups 3, 4, and 5 did not significantly differ (P > 0.05). This study indicates that replacing FeSO₄ with Fe-Gly in the equal Fe level in the diets cannot improve the growth performance of broilers. But it can effectively improve the blood biochemical parameters and antioxidative enzyme activity. The least substitution ratio for low feeding cost and beneficial effect on the broilers was 60%.

Myostatin (MSTN) is a negative regulator of skeletal muscle growth and development. A significant increase in skeletal muscle was observed in Mstn^-/- mice compared with wild-type mice. So far, there has been no report on porcine MSTN mutations leading to skeletal muscle hypertrophy. In this report a MSTN frameshift mutation missing 11 nucleotides in exon 2 was introduced into Meishan pigs by zinc finger nuclease (ZFN) technology. ZFN-edited MSTN^-/- Meishan pigs were successfully produced by a cloning method of somatic cell nucleus transfer. Results from slaughter experiments indicated that lean meat yield increased 16.53% in about 80 kg (10-months-old) MSTN^-/- Meishan sows compared with their corresponding wild-type counterparts. The lean percentage of carcass from MSTN^-/- sows was 61.20% vs 48.25% for MSTN^+/- sows and 44.67% for wild-type sows. The fat of MSTN^-/- sows was significantly lower than that of MSTN^+/- and wild-type sows. The loin eye area of MSTN^-/- Meishan sows (56.42 cm²) was greater than that of MSTN^+/- (37.39 cm²) and wild-type (26.26 cm²) sows. The muscle fibre area of longissimus muscle in wild-type Meishan sows (1 946 μm²) was significantly greater than that of MSTN^+/- (1 324 μm²) and MSTN^-/- (1 419 μm²) sows. Moreover the significantly increased skeletal muscle in these MSTN^-/- Meishan sows was mainly due to the increase in the number of myofibres rather than to hypertrophy. Compared with wild-type Meishan sows, it was noted that myofibres had transformed from type I to IIB in MSTN^-/- Meishan sows. Our present study demonstrated that frameshift mutation in MSTN by ZFN technology led to a significant increase in muscle mass and a significant decrease in fat content in Meishan sows.

In sustainable agriculture crop residues management should consider the interactions between soil and residue properties, which can affect the decomposition and global greenhouse gases (GHGs) emission. Through a laboratory experiment, we investigated the effect of the management (incorporation and surface placement) of wheat and faba bean residues on their decomposition and CO₂, CH₄ and N₂O emissions from two soils, a Chromic Vertisol and an Eutric Cambisol. In the Vertisol, wheat residues increased the CO₂ emission more than faba bean when left on the surface whereas no differences among residues were observed when incorporated. In the Cambisol, faba bean emitted more than wheat when left in the surface and less when incorporated. Total CH₄ emissions were higher in faba bean in Cambisol for both management and only when applied in the surface in Vertisol. Total N₂O emission in the Vertisol was higher when faba bean was incorporated, and wheat was left on the surface. In the Cambisol, wheat addition increased total N₂O emissions by 20% compared to faba bean, with no differences between managements. Our study confirmed that contrasting properties among tested soils resulted in significant interactions with residues own degradability and their placement affecting residue decomposition, soil C and N dynamics, and GHGs emission.

The experiment aimed to obtain a quadratic regression mathematical model of the comprehensive evaluation score of yield, quality, and four macroelements (N, K, P and Ca). The suitable nutrient solution was chosen and verified via computer simulation of the model and the highest comprehensive score in all treatments. Results showed that P, K and Ca had a positive effect on the comprehensive evaluation value of tomato, whereas N showed a negative effect. The optimal formula calculated using the regression equation could promote high-yield and high-quality tomato. The single-plant yield, soluble protein, vitamin C, total sugar, lycopene, and elemental utilisation of K and Ca in the tomato were 13.93, 78.95, 3.29, 20.98, 51.91, 16.69 and 24.14% higher than those in the special formula treatment of Japanese Yamazaki tomato, respectively. In summary, the optimal nutrient solution formula of tomato cultivation was obtained, in which the N, P, K and Ca levels were 24.83, 4.50, 9.49 and 5.73 mmol/L, respectively.

The paper deals with assessment of biogas yield from mixtures of Reynoutria substrates and livestock manure. The aim was to perform laboratory experiments and suggest suitable fermenter operating conditions (dry matter content, pH, share of substrate components, thermic regime) for metanogenic digestion, then to determine its quality and assess the usability of such produced biogas.

Besides its health and spoilage hazards, Escherichia coli is a process hygiene indicator for cheeses made from milk that has undergone heat treatment. Hence, its ability to persist in cheesemaking plant environment and equipment is important. In total, 120 samples from two producing plants were analysed and 72 E. coli isolates were obtained. The target was to find out whether there is a difference in heat-resistance between persistent and non-persistent E. coli strains. The strains were selected using macrorestriction analysis and recurrent detection in cheesemaking plants hereby: one strain persisting in brine for blue-veined cheeses, two strains persisting in brine for hard cheeses and one non-persistent strain from raw material. Their D(50)-values were 196; 417; 370 and 182 min, respectively, D(59)-values ranged from 20 to 32 min and z-values were 7.5; 6.6; 8.1 and 9.0 °C, respectively. The non-persistent strain was the least resistant to heating to 50 °C but it was not the least resistant generally. All tested strains were highly heat-resistant and carried genes of the heat resistance locus LHR1 and/or LHR2. Our results emphasise the need to screen for the presence of LHR genes and the occurrence of heat-resistant E. coli in cheese production where they could survive sub-pasteurisation temperatures and contaminate the manufacturing environment and finished products.

Four different concentrations of extracts obtained from three lichen species (Lecanora muralis (Schreb.) Rabenh., Letharia vulpina (L.) Hue, and Peltigera rufescens (Weiss) Humb) were tested against adults of Sitophilus granarius (L.) in Petri dishes. After treatments, mortalities of the adults were determined after 24, 48, and 96 h. Expectedly, higher concentration and longer exposure time resulted in higher S. granarius mortality. Mortalities 96 h after treatments with the highest concentration (20 mg/ml) of extracts of L. vulpina, P. rufescens, and L. muralis were determined as 100, 100, and 86.86%, respectively. However, there were no dead insects in the control group. Values of LC₅₀ after 96 h for L. muralis, L. vulpina, and P. rufescens extracts were 0.666, 0.505, and 0.328 mg/ml, respectively.

From soapstock, which is a waste product of sunflower oil production, the fatty component was isolated using isopropyl alcohol, toluene, fusel oil and a mixture of common salt and nonionic surfactants. With the help of the Langmuir film balance the molecular areas of isolated fats were found and the degree of hydrophobization in comparison with the original soapstock was evaluated. It was found that the strongest compression of the monolayer is observed when using fusel oil. The surface active properties of emulsifiers, synthesized by alkaline hydrolysis method on the basis of the obtained fat extracts and original soapstock, were studied. These results are consistent with measurements on the Langmuir balance.

This study was aimed to determine the impact of risk element content on the prevalence of the selected microbial groups in industrial soils of one of the steelworks in Poland. The concentration of heavy metals: Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Fe, Ni, Pb and Zn along with soil pH and the number of mesophilic bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes and Azotobacter was assessed in 20 soil samples. The limit concentrations of Cd, Pb and Zn were exceeded in five sites. However, even in these strongly contaminates sites, the studied microorganisms were abundant. The correlation between the concentration of heavy metals and microbial numbers was very weak and statistically insignificant. High numbers of fungi were observed in the contaminated sites, which was particularly interesting in one of the sites, strongly contaminated with Cd, Pb and Zn.

The using possibilities of secondary raw materials produced during the liquid biofuels production such as bioethanol and biodiesel, and also those produced during solid fuel production was determined. The study presents combustion of distiller's dried grain with solubles (DDGS) and pressing refuse of rapeseed methyl ester (RME). The combustion was done in gravimetric oven, according to the standards, under the laboratory conditions. Combustion heat of samples was measured with calorimeter IKA C5000. The results show the average combustion heat of 20.91 MJ/kg for DDGS and 18.996 MJ/kg for RME. Results are chronologically presented in tables and figures.

The paper presents the changes in the spatial structure of agricultural holdings in the European Union between 2010 and 2016 from the perspective of typological groups of countries. The research was conducted based on Eurostat data. The holdings were divided into the following groups: up to 5 ha of agricultural land (AL), 5-20 ha, 20-50 ha, and over 50 ha. Based on the fuzzy classification method, 4 typological groups of countries with a similar spatial structure of holdings were distinguished. The intergroup diversity is high. The dynamics of changes in the number of holdings in particular countries per typological group was presented. A downward trend in the total number of holdings and smallholdings was observed, in particular in countries characterised by a fragmented structure of holdings. In these countries, an upward trend in the number of holdings of 20-50 ha and over 50 ha was noted. Between 2010 and 2016, the structure and composition of typological groups changed. There were also slight changes (in different directions) in the structural distance between the groups.