Search Results (3)

A 56-day feeding trial was conducted to evaluate the quantitative methionine requirements in the diets of Florida pompano (Trachinotus carolinus). Eight practical diets using soybean meal, poultry meal, and red lentil meal as the primary protein sources were formulated using graded levels of methionine supplement (0 to 0.70 g/100 g diet). Groups of 15 juvenile Florida pompano (4.04 ± 0.05 g) were size-sorted and placed into one of 40 glass aquaria (132 L) with five replicates per diet. Significant differences (p ≤ 0.05) were observed in overall biomass, mean weight, weight gain, thermal growth coefficient (TGC), and feed conversion ratio (FCR). To estimate the dietary methionine requirement, a series of statistical models, including the one-slope broken line model (BLM1), two-slope broken line model (BLM2), broken quadratic model (BQM), and four-parameter saturation kinetic model (SKM-4) were used to assess mean weight, weight gain, TGC, apparent net protein retention (ANPR), and methionine retention (MR). The model selection showed that BLM1 fit the data best for MW and TGC, SKM-4 for PWG and ANPR, and BQM for MR. Based on these results, a minimum dietary methionine requirement of 0.68% of the diet or 1.70 g/100 g protein is recommended. Full article

In this nonsystematic review and opinion, including articles primarily selected from PubMed, we examine the pharmacological and nonpharmacological treatments of neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) in order to craft a reasonable opinion to help forge a paradigm shift in the treatment and prevention of primarily opioid-induced NAS. Newborns of individuals who use illicit and licit substances during pregnancy are at risk for withdrawal, also known as NAS. In the US, the reported prevalence of NAS has increased from 4.0 per 1000 hospital births in 2010 to 7.3 per 1000 hospital births in 2017, which is an 82% increase. The management of NAS is varied and involves a combination of nonpharmacologic and pharmacologic therapy. The preferred first-line pharmacological treatment for NAS is opioid therapy, specifically morphine, and the goal is the short-term improvement in NAS symptomatology. Nonpharmacological therapies are individualized and typically focus on general care measures, the newborn–parent/caregiver relationship, the environment, and feeding. When used appropriately, nonpharmacologic therapies can help newborns with NAS avoid or reduce the amount of pharmacologic therapy required and the length of hospitalization. In addition, genetic polymorphisms of the catechol-o-methyltransferase (COMT) and mu-opioid receptor (OPRM1) genes appear to affect the length of stay and the need for pharmacotherapy in newborns with prenatal opioid exposure. Therefore, based on this extensive literature and additional research, this team of coauthors suggests that, in the future, in addition to the current nonpharmacological therapies, patients with opioid-induced NAS should undergo genetic assessment (i.e., the genetic addiction risk severity (GARS) test), which can subsequently be used to guide DNA-directed precision amino-acid enkephalinase inhibition (KB220) therapy as a frontline modality instead of potent opioids. Full article

The aquaculture industry is in need of sustainable fish feed to reduce the use of expensive and environmentally invasive wild-caught fish currently fed to many carnivorous species. The black soldier fly (BSF) has become a popular sustainable alternative protein source; however, the nutritional waste byproduct of BSF, frass, has not been extensively studied as a feed replacement in carnivorous species. This study evaluates the potential of BSF frass on the growth, body composition, and intestinal microbiome of the Florida pompano, Trachinotus carolinus. Four experimental diets were formulated containing different levels of frass, replacing plant-based carbohydrate sources. As a result of this study, the frass did not improve the growth performance, resulting in a lower specific growth rate and higher feed conversion rate. While the frass diets did not alter the body composition, the visceral somatic index (VSI) significantly increased compared to the control diet and the hepatosomatic index (HIS) was lowered. The microbiome analysis showed high variation among the diets, with the control diet having the most distinct consortia, which may have been driven by the increased levels of starch compared to frass diets. This study indicates that BSF frass may not be a suitable feed replacement for carnivorous pompano; however, frass could still potentially be a replacement feed for herbivore or detritivore fish and should be further studied. Full article