VAJDA, V., MASKAĽOVÁ, I.:
Dietetical analysis of production health in dairy cows and its diagnostical and preventive program.
The most critical period in the production cycle of dairy cows is the time from calving until peak milk production. Dry matter intake, concentration of energy and protein are the most important factors affecting milk production. To optimise production, rumen health and reproduction of dairy cows, ration should be balanced for neutral detergent fibre, acid detergent fibre, crude protein, escape protein and non-fibre carbohydrates. Nutritional imbalances, deficiencies, or erratic management of feeding programs for dairy cows create large numbers of health problems and metabolic diseases. Herd health program as recommended by the veterinarian has to include a way to avoid metabolic diseases. Management practices that have been demonstrated to control feed rations should be incorporated into the consulting program of the veterinary nutritionists.
Key words: milk production; production health of daity cows; feed ration; phase nutirion
The genetic variation at codons 136, 154 and 174 of the gene PRNP influences susceptibility to scrapie. The resistance of most of the studied sheep breeds on a worldwide scale is associated with PrPARR and PrPAHQ alleles while homozygotic character increases their effect. Heterozygous PrPARR allele occupies a dominant place. The PrPVRR allele is under certain conditions associated with increased susceptibility. However, the above mentioned knowledge has no absolute validity. It should be updated even in the same breeds kept in different geographic regions with regard to potential occurence of different strains of the scrapie agent. When determining the amino acid polymorphism of the ovine PrP gene the new knowledge obtained in different geographic regions should be implemented continuously in the control of scrapie which should become an organic part of surveillance of animal transmissive spongiform encephalopathies.
Key words: scrapie; genotyping, polymorphism; amino acids on PrP gene codons
The effects of 7-chlortetracycline hydrochloride (CTCC) on selected parameters of the thyroid gland (TG) were observed after 4 and 12 weeks application (groups: CTCC 4 and CTCC 12) of the curative-protective doses (0.35 dkg/1 kg of live body weight) to 2-month-old suckling lamb-ewes. Results were compared with those obtained in the appropriate control groups. In the lamb-ewes with CTCC supply, the insignificantly higher weight of the TG lobes was found out (group CTCC 12) and changes, probably of proliferative character in the region of the thyroid isthmus (group CTCC 4) and thyroid lobes (group CTCC 12). The thyroid parenchyma of experimental lamb-ewes was, unlike the control ones, formed by follicles of small and middle size, with lining formed by higher cells with round or oval nucleus. The granular endoplasmic reticulum showed in both groups a considerable degree of dilatation. T3 and T4 did not change in any of the groups. Based upon the results it may be judge that CTCC in the curative-protective doses induces the changes in the thyroid parenchyma with some elements of proliferation; it means that it acts at a certain degree antithyroidally.
Key words: lamb-ewes; thyroid gland; chlortetracycline hydrochlorid
Chromosomal aberrations, sister exchange chromatids and micronuclei belong to the biological markers for estimation of the genotoxic load of animal population. A spontaneous frequency of micronuclei in the peripheral lymphocytes in sheep according to sex was studied using the micronucleus test. The frequency of micronuclei in Improved Valaschka rams aged 2 years was 26.5 ± 6.85/1000 of binucleated cells, in ewes of the same breed and at the age of 3-5 years 24.6 ± 9.95/1000 of binucleated cells, however, there were no statistically significant changes in the frequency of micronuclei between sex (P > 0.05).
Key words: sheep; sex; lymphocytes; micronucleus test; frequency of micronuclei
The natural sorbents zeolite and bentonite exhibit excellent adsorption properties and high affinity for ammonia ions due to which they are capable of removing ammonia and odours from the environment and appear prospective in the treatment of pig excrements. In our experiments we studied the influence of zeolite and bentonite on physical-chemical and microbiological parameters of pig slurry. No fecal coliform microorganisms were detected in bentonite-treated slurry after 7 days of contact and in zeolite-treated slurry after 14 days of contact. Coliform microorganisms were not detected after 14 days of the treatment of slurry either with zeolite or with bentonite. After 28 days of contact of pig slurry either with zeolite or with bentonite, the plate counts of psychrophilic and mesophilic microorganisms were decreased by 3 orders of magnitude in comparison with the control. The efficiency of removal was 98.9 and 99.9%, resp. During the experiment a considerable decrease in the concentration of ammonia, nitrogenous substances and phosphorus as well as total organic substances was observed. A significant decrease in the content of ammonium nitrogen was found in comparison with the control. The effectiveness of removal expressed in per cent was 59.15 % for zeolite and 60.16 % for bentonite. Both sorbents contributed to better sedimentation of suspended particles and decrease in odour. The results obtained point to the possibility of utilization of zeolite and bentonite in the initial stages of pig excrement treatment.
Key words: pig slurry; zeolite; bentonite; microbial plate counts; physical-chemical parameters; ammonium removal
Innovation of laboratory diagnostics of infectious diseases using molecular genetic methods enables the detection of microorganisms at the genetic level. In the starting phase of this trend mainly nucleic acid hybridization was used, later, at the turn of the 80ies, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) gained wide use. Whereas nucleic acid hybridization detects the DNA or RNA genome of the microorganism using a specific hybridization probe that only amplifies during the infectious process, PCR does the same after a several-million-fold in vitro multiplication by virtue of an enzyme reaction. PCR tests are characterized by high sensitivity, specificity and a rather simple procedure but are still accompanied by low reproducibility and the occurrence of falsely positive or negative results.
This survey presents some of the results achieved by the scientists of the Department of Gene Manipulations of the RIVM in close cooperation with the Department of Infectology and Tropical Veterinary Medicine of the University of Veterinary Medicine in Košice in the course of the last 5-6 years.
Key words: infectious diseases; laboratory diagnostics; viral diseases; PCR polymerase chain reaction; gene manipulation; pestiviruses
This paper comments on the results of research and development recently achieved at the Joint Rabiologic Laboratory (JRL) of the RIVM and the UVM in Košice. The results are structured according to the individual issues of rabiology and the actual needs of antirabic service: oral antirabic vaccination, laboratory diagnostics, development of vaccines and adjuvants, quantification of antirabic vaccine efficiency. The JRL also arranged for activities of the National Reference Laboratory of Rabies in the Slovak Republic and provided for training according to the needs of veterinary laboratory diagnostics of rabies. For the WHO and the OIE, this laboratory presents the contact place in issues of rabies control.
Key words: rabies; lyssavirus diseases; laboratory diagnostics of rabies; epizootiology of rabies; antirabic immunization; oral antirabic vaccination; adjuvants
The present tendency to leave using the synthetic substances as in nutrition as in prevention and disease treatment and effort to supplement them with the products of biotechnological and natural origin represent a great opportunity for wide utilization of probiotics in practice. So that probiotics could represent a real and effective alternative for antibiotics and chemotherapeutics, it should be inevitable to ensure their stably high efficacy. Ensuring the high efficacy of probiotic preparations requires a complex solving aimed at: a) product and b) its application form.
In the field of product, the future research is necessary to aim at selection of strains with strong probiotic effect.
Our result showed that maltodextrin KMS X-70 and PUFAs can be used for potentiation of the probiotic effect of microorganisms in the small intestine, and fructooligosaccharides in the large intestine. By their intercombination, reaching of the potentiating effect of the probiotic effect of microorganisms in the whole digestive tract can be expected. These postulates require next research.
Key words: probiotics; maltodextrins; polyunsaturated fatty acis; fructooligosaccharides