Podcasts about german landrace

Restenosis constitutes a serious problem during therapeutical use of stents. It is a multifactorial event composed of inflammatory reactions, thrombus formation, proliferation of muscle cells, and the design of the stent. This study is due to test the influence of various antithrombogenic and/or antiproliferative stent coatings on in-stent restenosis by comparison. Methods: 10 mm InFlow Dynamics Flex-Stents were dip-coated aseptically. Polylactic acid (PLA) is used as a carrier as well as being a testgroup itself. Into this carrier, different pharmaceuticals were incorporated alone or in combination with each other up to 20 % of the PLA concentration. There is around 200 µg of coating material per stent. The groups and their numbers are: PLA (n = 10), IH: 2 % iloprost + 5 % PEG-hirudin (n =11), IHD: 2% iloprost + 5% PEG-hirudin + 5% dexamethasone acetate (n = 11), DD: 5% dexamethasone acetate + 15% dexamethasone (n = 12) and UNC: uncoated bare stents (n = 16) as control group. By random, the stents were implanted into both femoral arteries (one into each) of 30 German Landrace pigs. After four weeks, the animals were euthanised and the stented vessels were analysed at three different levels. The histomorphometrical assessment included the absolute neointimal area, the neointimal thickness, and the thickness of neointima at the struts. Histomorphologically, the mean injury score as well as the symmetry of stent distension were analysed. Results: The biggest trauma of vessel wall was found with the uncoated control stents. The PLA stents showed the most asymmetrical extension, as well as the biggest thickness at the struts and neointimal thickness, and neointimal area. There is no significant difference between the groups. None of the groups is outstanding regarding the reduction of restenosis. Only the uncoated stents are noteworthy having no higher rate of restenosis contrary to expectations. Conclusion: Neither dexamethasone, nor iloprost or hirudin alone or in combination were able to inhibit proliferation of smooth muscle cells. There were no differences regarding neointimal proliferation between the antithrombotics iloprost and hirudin, the antiproliferative substance dexamethasone or the carrier polylactic acid or their combinations.

Investigations on the effects of Rare earth Element Citrates on growth promoting parameters in pigs and on ruminal fermentation in an artificial rumen (RUSITEC) For decades Rare Earth Elements, such as lanthanum, cerium, and praseodymium have been used in Chinese agriculture and farming for yield increase and growth promoting effects. Many Chinese studies showed partly enormous growth promoting effects whereas the most spectacular is seen in poultry and pig production. Several feeding trials with Rare Earth Elements were already carried out in our working group. So far mineral salt chlorides were used in previous studies. In the present study we tested for the first time the effects of Rare Earth Elements Citrate in grower pigs as well as in an in vitro trial in ruminants. A feeding study with 28 piglets (German Landrace x Piétrain) was carried out. They were separated in 4 dietary groups, each containing 7 animals. These animals received a regular diet, supplemented with a mixture of Rare Earth Elements Citrate in concentrations of 0, 50, 100, and 200 mg/kg feed for a 6 week period. A positive effect of the Rare Earth Elements Citrate on fattening performance parameters was determined. In the trial period the daily body weight gain of the two high supplemented groups increased between 8.6 % to 22.6 % compared to the control group. The low dosage group showed no difference. An increase in the feed conversion rate from 2 % to 6 % was shown in all Rare Earth Elements supplemented groups. This indicates that within the pig feeding highly increased growth-promoting effects were determined when supplemented with Rare Earth Elements Citrate compared with the studies in which the chloride form was used. The study on possible effects of Rare Earth Elements in ruminal fermentation was carried out with the Rumen Simulation Technique (RUSITEC), an artificial rumen. The effect of Rare Earth Elements in different dosages was compared to a negative control (without supplement) and a positive control (Tetracycline). Each trial lasted for a period of 10 days. The influence on the parameters pH-value, NH3, redox potential, fatty acid pattern, and gas production was analysed. Since the ruminal fermentation was not influenced, the conclusion can be drawn, that in this respect microorganisms are not affected by Rare Earth Elements.

The aim of the present study was to make a statement about selected blood ingredients for twelve pig breeds regarding the influence of the genotype. A possible race-dependence was proved for haematological parameters especially for erythrocytes, thrombocytes and leucocytes. Differences between the breeds were also found for electrolytes and the trace elements although a statement concerning breed-specifity was more difficult because some other environmental factors can have strong influence on these parameters as well. In part clear differences, which are caused by different physical characteristics and attributes of the animals such as muscle mass and susceptibility to stress, were established for substrates and enzymes. We were able to show that the pietrain pigs possess a remarkably higher concentration of some blood ingredients, in comparison with “German Landrace and Edelschwein“. To conclude, the results show, that there are marked differences in characteristics. We detected a varying influence of the genotype on the hematological and chemical blood parameters. The varying concentration of the blood parameters in the examined breeds seems to result from breed-specific metabolism and resistance to infections and environmental influence. The immune-histochemical search for accumulation of pathological prion protein with the antibody L42 in 48 brain tissue sections of both sows and boars was negativ. Nonetheless, it is possible to experimentally infect pigs with the infectious prion protein from cattle. This means that, in spite of the species-barrier, even though the infection was transmitted parenterally, pigs, along with many other animals, are susceptible to an infection with the bse-agent. There is a definite need for acquiring further knowledge on the exact onset of and events during infection and on the degree of contagiousness of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy not only in swine.

Studies on the effect of rare earth elements as growth promoter in pigs In China, rare earth elements were used in agriculture already for some decades. Rare earth elements are 17 elements which include scandium, yttrium, lanthanum and the 14 lanthanides. They were used as fertilizer in plant production and as growth promoters in animal production. Spectacular improvement of the fattening parameter daily body weight gain and feed conversion ratio of pigs were reported in the Chinese literature. In previous experiments of our working group the growth promoting effect of the rare earth elements has been proven for pigs under western feeding and housing conditions. In this thesis two feeding experiments with fattening pigs and a field trial with weaned piglets are described. In the first experiment a total of 48 pigs (German Landrace x Piétrain) were allotted to four dietary groups, 12 pigs in each group. The animals received a mixture of rare earth elements in a concentration of 0 or 300 ppm rsp. or pure lanthanum chloride and cerium chloride in a concentration of 100 ppm LaCl3 and 200 ppm CeCl3 or 200 ppm LaCl3 and 100 ppm CeCl3. Because of a disease this first study had to end ahead of schedule. In the second trial the design of the trial was the same as in the first one. During the 12 weeks of this experiment the pigs received feed, supplemented with the above described concentration of rare earth elements. The daily body weight gain in the REE group during the study period was 4 to 5 % better than in the control group, where there was no influence on the feed conversion rate. The accumulation of the lanthanides in the muscle and the liver was very low as shown in the experiments before. The analysis were made by ICP-mass spectrometry. In the serum, the levels of triiodothyronine and thyroxine were lower in the groups receiving the rare earth elements than in the control group. Thyroxine in the groups with 300 ppm REE mixture and with 100 ppm LaCl3 and 200 ppm CeCl3 was significantly lower than in the control group. In a field trial with piglets of the race Swiss Edelschwein the growth promoting effect of rare earth elements was proved by two experiments. The animals were fed with a commercial feed supplemented with a mixture of rare earth elements in a concentration of 0 rsp. 200 ppm. In the first trial for 16 days body weight gain and feed conversion ratio of the group with 200 ppm REE mixture improved by 3 % rsp. 9 % as compared to the controls. The second field trial lasted for 30 days and here, the group supplemented with 200 ppm REE mixture gained by 10 % more weight than the control group. The feed conversion ratio improved by 2 %. These results showed for the first time, that rare earth elements are able to improve the performance of the piglets under field conditions.