AIMTo investigate the effect of morphine on fetal movement, heart rate, hatch weight, hatch days and hatch rate.

METHODSMorphine was injected into airspace of eggs and fetal movement, heart rate, hatch weight, hatch days and hatch rates were recorded.

RESULTSHatch days were shorter, hatch rates were lower and some chicks became motor disorder for morphine. Chicks with morphine exposure 20 mg/kg from E 12 to E 16 had highest hatch rate and lowest disable rate. Morphine reduced fetal movement, increased heart rate (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONThe development of chick embryo is impaired by morphine exposure and the magnitude of these effects depends on the drug dose and the length of time that the developing organism is exposed to morphine.

Animals ; Chick Embryo ; drug effects ; growth & development ; Chickens ; growth & development ; Morphine ; pharmacology

Adhesion formed between tendon and its sheath after repair often impairs functional recovery. There have been many attempts to reduce adhesion around a repaired tendon, but most results have been unsatisfactory or impractical in clinical application. Moreover, most attempts were focused on extrinsic tendon healing. whereas studies on the intrinsic tendon healing are sacrce in the literature. We have previously reported that fibrotic tendon adhesion after repair was decreased by decorin, a natural inhibitor of TGF-beta. Accordingly, the serial tensile strength was measured after complete tensection and repair of the tendon severance in order to confirm the effect of decorin inhibition of intrinsic healing capability. Forty White Leghorn chickens were subject to complete transection and repair of the third toe flexor digitorum profundus tendon in Zone II. In the experimental group, 0.5ml of diluted decorin(50microgram/ml) was injected around the repaired site, and the same volume of saline solution in the control group. Tendons were harvested at 1, 3, 5 and 7 weeks. The disrupting force of the repair site was analyzed using tensiometry(LLOYD LR 30K, U.K). The tensile strength of repaired tendon was similar in both groups for all postoperative periods. This indicates that intrinsic healing proceeds normally within the decorin group in spite of the blockade of TGF-betaactivity. Decorin, a natural inhibitor of TGF-beta, showed a significant inhibitory effect on reducing post-repair tendon adhesions, without disruption of intrinsic healing in the chicken flexor tendon injury model. Therefore, decorin is expected to be a useful agent for preventnion on tendon adhesion after the repair in clinical usage.
Chickens ; Decorin* ; Postoperative Period ; Sodium Chloride ; Tendon Injuries ; Tendons* ; Tensile Strength* ; Toes ; Transforming Growth Factor beta

Over the past few years, considerable progress has been achieved about the extracellular elements and intracellular regulatory molecules that are involved in the regulation of chondrogenesis. However, little is known about the molecular mechanism of how these molecules influence the gene activities during cartilage differentiation. Recently we isolated a Chicken Cartilage derived Matrix Protein (CCMP 10), a novel protein, from chicken prechondrogenic mesenchyme. To further understand the function of CCMP-10 in cartilage development, we investigated the expression of CCMP-10 during the prechondrocyte differentiation in chick embryos and micromass cultured prechondrogenic cells, using a variety of methods such as transient transfection of CCMP 10, immunohistochemical localization, northern analysis, and western analysis. When transiently transfected, CCMP 10 was expressed in both nucleus and cytoplasm, with stronger intensity in the nucleus. In an immunohistochemical study, CCMP 10 was expressed in prechondrogeinc mesenchymal cell, perichondrium, and resting and proliferative zone of the growth plate of long bone, while no expression of CCMP 10 was observed in upper mature chondrocytes and hypertrophic chondrocytes. Northern analysis of micromass cultured prechondrogenic cells showed the expression of CCMP-10 mRNA for first 2 days, while Col 2a1, aggrecan, and CMP mRNAs, known genes to express in mature chondrocyte, initiated the expression at day 2 and continued to express by day 5. In western analysis, CCMP-10 was detected at initial stage and continued to express by day 3, while Col 2al protein began to express only one day after, and continued to express. Taken together, our data suggest that CCMP-10 may play a significant role in the early cartilage development.
Aggrecans ; Animals ; Cartilage* ; Chick Embryo ; Chickens* ; Chondrocytes ; Chondrogenesis* ; Cytoplasm ; Growth Plate ; Mesoderm ; RNA, Messenger ; Transfection

The present study was performed to observe tegumental ultrastructure of Echinoparyphium recurvatum according to developmental stages. Worms (1, 3, 5 and 15-day old) were recovered from chicks experimentally infected with metacercariae from Radix auricularia coreana. One-day old worms were elongated and ventrally concave, and covered with peg-like tegumental spines except the adjecent areas of the head crown and excretory pore. Type I sensory papillae were distributed on the lip of the oral sucker, and grouped ciliated papillae were around the oral sucker. Peg-like tegumental spines were densely distributed on the anterior surface of the ventral sucker level. The ventral sucker had an aspinous tegument and no sensory papillae. Tegumental spines on the posterior surface of the ventral sucker level were sparsely distributed and disappeared posteriorly. In 3 and 5-day old worms, the tegument around the oral sucker was aspinose and wrinkled concentrically. The ventral sucker had a wrinkled tegument and many bulbous papillae. Type I sensory papillae were distributed between the bulbous papillae. Tegumental spines were spade-shaped with a terminal tip. A total of 45 collar spines including 4 end group ones on both ventral corners was alternately arranged in 2 rows. The 15-day old worms were very stout and their tegumental spines were tongue-shaped without a terminal tip. From the above results, it is confirmed that the surface ultrastructure of E. recurvatum was generally similar to that of other echinostomatid flukes. However, some features, i.e., morphological change of tegumental spines and appearence of sensory papillae on the ventral sucker according to development, and number, shape and arrangement of collar spines, were characteristic, which may be of taxonomic and bioecological significance.
Animals ; Chickens ; Echinostomatidae/anatomy & histology/growth & development/*ultrastructure ; Life Cycle Stages ; Lymnaea/parasitology ; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning

Tibial dyschondroplasia (TD) cases has not been reported in Tibetan chickens (TBCs), but it is commonly seen in commercial broilers characterized by lameness. The underlying mechanism remains unclear. Hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs) are important regulators of cellular adaptation to hypoxic conditions. In this study, we investigated the role of HIF-1α,
Anoxia ; Blotting, Western ; Chickens ; Growth Plate ; Osteochondrodysplasias ; Poultry ; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction ; RNA ; Thiram

The purpose of this investigation was to re-evaluate the neurotrophic effect of GPI-1046 on neurite outgrowth in vitro. GPI-1046 was synthesized and identified with mass spectrometry, nuclear magnetic resonance and elemental analysis. Chicken dorsal root ganglions (DRGs) were removed and divided into three groups: (1) The DRGs were cultured in DMEM containing different concentrations of GPI-1046; (2) The DRGs were cultured in DMEM containing nerve growth factor (NGF) alone at 0.8 and 8 ng/mL, respectively; (3) The DRGs were cultured in DMEM containing both different concentrations of GPI-1046 and NGF at 0.8 ng/mL. The results showed that GPI-1046 alone could not stimulate chicken DRG neurite outgrowth; however, GPI-1046 stimulated DRG neurite outgrowth only in the presence of NGF at low concentration in the culture medium.
Animals ; Cells, Cultured ; Chickens ; Ganglia, Spinal ; drug effects ; growth & development ; Nerve Growth Factor ; pharmacology ; Neurites ; drug effects ; Pyrrolidines ; pharmacology

Eimeria (E.) tenella (local isolate) sporozoites were adapted on the chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) of 10-12 days chicken embryos and completed its life cycle in 6~7 days at 39 degrees C and 70 per cent humidity. Only 23 embryos (4.6%) were found dead from 1~4 day post inoculation of sporozoites with mild lesions on CAM with no gametocytes but few sporozoites in chorioallantoic fluid (CAF). On 5~7 day post inoculation, 432 embryos (86.4%) were found dead with severe haemorrhages on CAM and CAF contained uncountable number of gametocytes. After seven days post inoculation, 45 embryos (9%) were found to be alive. Some oocysts were also detected in the CAF on 6~7 days post inoculation. In the histological sections of the CAM, there were abundant small dark colored rounded bodies of gametes; distributed extensively in tissues of CAM on 5~7 days post inoculation of sporozoites. In some cases, cluster of small mature and immature relatively large bodies were seen in increasing numbers on 5~6 days post inoculation.
Animals ; Chick Embryo ; *Chickens ; Chorioallantoic Membrane/*parasitology ; Coccidiosis/parasitology/*veterinary ; Eimeria tenella/*growth&development ; Histocytochemistry ; Poultry Diseases/*parasitology

Eimeria tenella, an intracellular protozoan parasite infecting the epithelial cells of the ceca of chickens, causes severe diarrhea and bleeding that can lead its host to death. It is of interest that E. tenella first penetrate into the mucosal intraepithelial lymphocytes (IEL) before they parasitize crypt or villous epithelial cells. This in vitro study was undertaken to know whether the penetration of E. tenella into such a lymphoid cell is a beneficial step for the parasite survival and development. Three sequential experiments were performed. First, the in vitro established bovine kidney cell line, MDBK cells, were evaluated for use as host cells for E. tenella, through morphological observation. Second, the degree of parasite development and multiplication in MDBK cells was quantitatively assayed using radioisotope-labelled uracil (3H-uracil). Third, the E. tenella sporozoites viability was assayed after preincubation of them with chicken spleen cells. E. tenella oocysts obtained from the ceca of the infected chickens were used for the source of the sporozoites. Spleen cells (E) obtained from normal chickens (FP strain) were preincubated with the sporozoites (T) at the E:T ratio of 100:1, 50:1 or 25:1 for 4 or 12 hours, and then the mixture was inoculated into the MDBK cell monolayer. Morphologically the infected MDBK cells revealed active schizogonic cycle of E. tenella in 3-4 days, which was characterized by the appearance of trophozoites, and immature and mature schizonts containing merozoites. The 3H-uracil uptake by E. tenella increased gradually in the MDBK cells, which made a plateau after 48-60 hours, and decreased thereafter. The uptake amount of 3H-uracil depended not only upon the inoculum size of the sporozoites but also on the degree of time delay (preincubation; sporozoites only) from excystation to inoculation into MDBK cells. The 3H-uracil uptake became lower as the preincubation time was prolonged. In comparison, after preincubation of sporozoites with spleen cells for 4 or 12 hours, the 3H-uracil uptake was significantly increased compared with that of control group. From the results, it was inferred that, although the penetration of E. tenella sporozoites into the lymphoid cells such as IEL is not an essential step, it should be at least a beneficial one for the survival and development of sporozoites in the chicken intestine.
Cattle- ; Cell-Line ; Cells,-Cultured ; Chickens- ; English-Abstract ; *Eimeria-growth-and-development ; *Kidney-parasitology ; *Lymphocytes-parasitology ; *Spleen-cytology

This study was purposed to investigate the angiogenesis-promoting activities of human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) modified by hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and the underlying mechanisms. The hMSCs were transfected by recombinant adenoviral vector carrying human HGF gene and seeded onto the chicken chorioallantoic membrane. Three days later, the number of blood vessels was counted and their angiogenic response was compared with those of hMSCs of same generation, recombinant basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and alpha-MEM as control. The expression levels of bFGF, VEGF, angiopoietin-1 and angiopoietin-2 were evaluated by RT-PCR assay. The results showed that gene-modified hMSCs exhibited greatest activity to promote angiogenesis while the angiogenic response was nearly same between groups treated by hMSCs and bFGF, all of which were significantly higher than that observed in control (p < 0.01). RT-PCR analysis revealed that hMSCs constitutively expressed multiple angiogenesis-associated growth factors and their levels seemed up-regulated by HGF gene transfer. It is concluded that HGF gene-modified hMSCs show a potent angiogenesis-promoting function and may be useful in the treatment of ischemic disorders.
Animals ; Cells, Cultured ; Chick Embryo ; Chickens ; Hepatocyte Growth Factor ; genetics ; Humans ; Mesenchymal Stromal Cells ; Neovascularization, Physiologic ; genetics ; Transfection

OBJECTIVETo study on the effect of been pollen on development of immune organ of animal.

METHODA total of 144 one day-old broilers were randomly divided into 2 groups, in which each group included 72 chickens. The control group was fed on the basal diet for 42 days, and that of experiment group supplemented 1.5% bee pollen. Six chickens in each group were selected and slaughtered at 7, 14, 21, 28, 35, 42 days respectively, and the thymuses, cloacal bursa and spleens were obtained, weighted, fixed in Bouin liquid and made into paraffin section.

RESULTCompared with control group, the weight and the relative weight of thymuses, cloacal bursa and spleens of experiment group increased significantly (P < 0.05) or extremely significantly (P < 0.01). In experiment group, the cortex of thymic lobule, bursa nodule and Periarterial Lymphatic Sheaths thicken obviously; the volume of bursa nodule, splenic nodule and ellipsoid augmented, and the germinal center of splenic nodule were obvious; the thymic corpuscle increased; the plica of cloacal bursa developed well and the degenerating of it retarded.

CONCLUSIONThe diet supplemented bee pollen could boost the early development of thymus and cloacal bursa, retard the degenerating of cloacal bursa and promote the immune response of spleen.

Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena ; Animals ; Bees ; Bursa of Fabricius ; anatomy & histology ; growth & development ; Chickens ; growth & development ; immunology ; Female ; Male ; Organ Size ; Pollen ; Random Allocation ; Spleen ; anatomy & histology ; growth & development ; Thymus Gland ; anatomy & histology ; growth & development