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Background: Clinical experience suggested that a unique porcine serum polypeptide extract, used in hospitals for people with severe malnutrition, serendipitously resulted in a dramatic improvement in many fibromyalgia cases. Aims: The study aims to determine the effectiveness of a unique polypeptide serum extract in improving the symptoms of CFS and fibromyalgia (CFS/FMS). Methods: An open-label prospective study of 43 people with CFS or Fibromyalgia recruited worldwide. Interventions: Four 500 mg tablets twice daily for five weeks. Outcome Measures: Assessed baseline at five weeks of treatment using a VAS(1-10 points) rating energy, sleep, cognitive function, pain, overall well-being, anxiety, and digestive health, as well as the FIQR. The primary outcome measure was the pre- and post-treatment VAS composite score for the first five symptoms. Results: 43 subjects completed the three-week treatment trial. 60.5% of subjects rated themselves as improved, with 18.6% rating themselves as much better. In the 60.5% of subjects that rated themselves as improved, the significant average improvement was seen in all categories: 1. 69.4% increase in energy(p Conclusion: Recovery Factors® resulted in markedly improved energy, sleep, cognition, pain relief, calming, digestion and overall well-being in those with CFS/FMS. Clinical Trial Registration Number: NCT04381793.

Infection with African swine fever virus (ASFV) causes an acute and highly lethal hemorrhagic disease that has been responsible for huge economic losses in China. To exactly detect the antigen of ASFV, we established a rapid, no-wash, one-step sandwich-type immunoassay based on the amplified luminescent proximity homogenous assay-linked immunosorbent assay (AlphaLISA) using two monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) M-5 and M-6 against ASFV p72. ASFV p72 in samples was captured by biotinylated mAb M-5 connected to the donor bead surface via streptavidin and "sandwiched" by mAb M-6 which was coated onto the acceptor bead. Efficacy and sensitivity trials revealed that the AlphaLISA could detect ≥0.78 ng/ml of purified p72 and with a linear range of 0.78-100 ng/ml. The AlphaLISA was specific for ASFV and did not cross-react with other common pathogenic porcine viruses. Compared with RealPCR ASFV DNA test and ASFV antigen detection kit, the sensitivity of the AlphaLISA evaluated in 60 porcine serum samples was 93% and 100%, respectively. The specificity was 100% and 91.7%, respectively. This study presents a good laboratory diagnostic tool for sensitive and efficient detection of ASFV in porcine serum. KEY POINTS: • MAbs M-5 and M-6 recognized various epitopes of ASFV p72. • The established ASFV p72 AlphaLISA showed well specificity, high sensitivity, and satisfied correlation coefficient.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are evolutionarily conserved small non-coding RNAs that regulate the expression of genes, and they affect important biological and physiological states. Circulating miRNAs in blood are useful markers of metabolism and economic traits. Expression levels of circulating miRNAs have been estimated using quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR). Proper normalization is critical for accurate miRNA expression analysis. However, there is no study which systematically presented endogenous reference genes for evaluating circulating miRNA expression in pigs. In this study, ten porcine miRNAs (let-7a, miR-16, miR-17, miR-23a, miR-26a, miR-93, miR-103, miR-107, miR-127 and miR-191), based on the literature, were chosen as candidate reference miRNAs in serum. We evaluated the expression stability value of these miRNAs in Berkshire, Duroc, Landrace and Yorkshire pigs using geNorm and NormFinder. We determined the optimal combination of reference miRNAs for qPCR experiments: miR-127 and miR-17 in Berkshire pigs; miR-127 and miR-93 in Duroc and Landrace pigs; miR-127 and miR-16 in Yorkshire pigs. miR-127 was the best reference gene in pigs, regardless of the breed. Our study is crucial for the discovery of novel biomarkers in pigs. The reference miRNAs presented in this study could be used as appropriate reference genes for the measurement of circulating miRNA levels in studies of physiological blood metabolites.

We developed and made a preliminary validation of a bead-based multiplexed immunoassay for simultaneous detection of porcine serum antibodies to Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae serovars 1, 2, 6, 7, and 12. Magnetic fluorescent beads were coupled with A. pleuropneumoniae antigens and tested with a panel of serum samples from experimentally infected pigs and with serum samples from uninfected and naturally infected pigs. The multiplex assay was compared to in-house ELISAs and complement fixation (CF) tests, which have been used for decades as tools for herd classification in the Danish Specific Pathogen Free system. Assay specificities and sensitivities as well as the corresponding cutoff values were determined using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, and the A. pleuropneumoniae multiplex assay showed good correlation with the in-house ELISAs and CF tests with areas under ROC curves ≥ 0.988. Benefits of multiplexed assays compared to ELISAs and CF tests include reduced serum sample volumes needed for analysis, less labor, and shorter assay time.

To establish an animal model of acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) that would replicate the pathological process of ACLF in humans, rats were administered porcine serum (PS) for 11 weeks. Liver fibrosis was determined by pathological and biochemical assessments. The animals then were injected with d-galactosamine (d-gal) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The survival times of animals with cirrhosis and ACLF were determined over 48 h. Other animals were killed at 0, 4, 8 and 12 h after administration of d-gal/LPS. Liver injury was assessed by histopathological analysis and biochemical indices, and apoptosis was detected by Western blot and TUNEL analysis. After PS administration for 11 weeks the serum levels of hyaluronic acid and N-procollagen type III peptide increased significantly, and serious fibrosis and cirrhosis was observed at weeks 10 and 11. Cirrhotic rats were injected with d-gal/LPS to induced ACLF; the rate of mortality over 48 h was 80%. ALT and AST levels increased markedly at 4 h, but decreased significantly at 8 and 12 h post-treatment. The total bilirubin, direct bilirubin, and total bile acids levels increased markedly at 8 and 12 h. Clotting times, TNF-α and IL-6 levels increased significantly, except for 12 h post-treatment. Apoptosis, inflammation and necrosis were elevated as determined by hematoxylin-eosin staining and TUNEL assays. BCL-2 levels decreased significantly, While BAX levels increased significantly. Cytochrome c expression peaked at 8 h post-d-gal/LPS treatment. In conclusion, an ACLF model induced by PS and d-gal/LPS was established and the underlying mechanisms of ACLF development were explored., Graphical abstract A rat acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) model induced by porcine serum and d-galactosamine/lipopolysaccharide was established and underlying mechanisms of ACLF development were explored.fx1

The resonant coil magnetometer quantifies paramagnetic particles (PMPs) and has been used to develop magneto-immunoassays in a range of formats. The advantage of magneto-immunoassays is that they are relatively inexpensive, portable, easy to perform and give results in under 5 min. Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Virus (PRRSV) is an infection of domesticated pigs producing large economic losses in the swine industry current diagnosis is performed using commercially available ELISA kits. Here we describe the development of a competitive magneto-immunoassay (MIA) and pilot study with porcine serum samples. The data show that this technology has the potential for use as a rapid and portable in field system for the detection of antibodies in porcine serum to PRRSV. A range of assay parameters and magnetometer settings were optimised, including the concentration of antibody conjugated PMPs used in the assay and movement of an external magnet to pull particles to a sensor surface. PRRSV positive control serum demonstrated competition with antibody conjugated PMPs with a dose dependent relationship. The magneto-immunoassay developed showed good agreement with the PRRS IDEXX X3 ELISA. The PRRSV magneto-immunoassay demonstrated a sensitivity of 73% and specificity of 100%. The results suggest that a rapid assay using the magnetometer technology detects specific anti-PRRSV antibody in pig serum. The magneto-immunoassay is suitable for use as a rapid ‘on-site’ method for the serological detection of PRRSV infection. Keywords: Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory virus, Resonant Coil Magnetometer, Magneto-immunoassay, Competitive immunoassay, Serology, Pig serum

Food allergies are a potential food safety and public health concern worldwide. To assure the safety of people who experience allergic reactions, it is necessary to establish effective and reliable methods for rapid detection of food allergens. This paper reports an innovative method for the rapid detection and analysis of porcine serum albumin (PSA), known as a major allergen in pork, based on a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) biosensor. The antibodies known to have a high bioactivity against PSA were verified by competitive indirect-ELISA and then immobilized on the SPR sensor surface, thus allowing them to capture PSA. The developed SPR demonstrated a linear range from 1.0 to 450 ng/mL for the measurement of PSA with a detection limit of 19.81 ng/mL. Within-day RSD (1.97–4.02%) and between-day RSD (1.88–4.15%) were no more than 5%. The SPR was evaluated for analysis of six commercial food samples and showed almost perfect agreement between the results obtained by ELISA test kits without significant differences (P > 0.05). Therefore, this assay permits accurate, specific, and sensitive detection of PSA in pork and pork products.

Improving the ability to predict livestock performance using biomarkers will provide a benefit for livestock genetic evaluation and improvement. The most practical biological sample to screen for development of biomarkers is serum due to the ease of collection. However, protein profiles in serum are complex and dynamic. Strategies are needed to manage variation in serum proteins used for biomarker identification. Albumin is the most abundant protein in serum, comprising over 50% of the overall protein content, and has historically been depleted from serum before biomarker identification. The objective of this study was to investigate the use of gel-based proteomic techniques to evaluate the need for porcine albumin depletion in biomarker identification. Albumin is known to bind many proteins in the blood, thus potential biomarkers could be removed during albumin depletion. Using two-dimensional difference in gel electrophoresis (2D-DIGE), we show whole serum can be used for biomarker discovery. The data obtained show that albumin removal methods are effective for porcine sera. Over 85% of the protein spots resolved on at least half of the gels were changed in abundance between whole and albumin depleted sera. Of the 204 protein spots significantly altered in abundance, 59 were changed over 400%. However, albumin removal also altered the serum proteome in an unpredictable manner; in the depleted sera, 86 protein spots were increased in abundance and 118 were decreased. Furthermore, the abundance of 59.4% of the protein spots in the albumin depleted samples had a larger standard error than whole sera. However, the resolution of albumin in 2D-DIGE analysis of whole sera permitted the detection and quantification of substantial numbers of proteins. Thus, it is proposed that whole serum can be used in a gel-based proteomics system for the identification of porcine biomarkers.

Pork provides an ideal source of food energy; however, pork can elicit an allergic reaction, and porcine serum albumin (PSA) has been identified as a major allergen. This study examined the impact of gamma irradiation on the allergenicity and structural qualities of PSA; the PSA solution was gamma-irradiated at 1, 2, 4, 6, and 8 kGy. Allergenicity was investigated by immunoblotting and competitive indirect ELISA using serum from patients who are allergic to pork, and conformational changes in irradiated PSA were measured by circular dichroism, sulfhydryl group detection, and fluorescence emission spectra. The secondary and tertiary structures of gamma-irradiated PSA were altered, and the allergenicity of PSA was lowered by boosting the amount of irradiation. In addition, there is high correlation between depletion in the α-helix and immunoglobulin E-binding capability of PSA. The results show a new possibility in using gamma irradiation to reduce the allergenicity of pork products.

This study was conducted to evaluate the changes in porcine serum albumin (PSA), a major allergen, which occur when raw pork ham is marinated with kiwi or pineapple juice, and/or when the ham is pan broiled at 300℃ for 4 min after marination. In this study, raw pork ham was soaked for 4 h or 8 h in marinades containing commercial marinating sauce only, commercial marinating sauce and 7% kiwi juice, or commercial marinating sauce and 7% pineapple juice. When the meat was marinated and then pan-broiled, pork ham meat protein was significantly denatured and hydrolyzed, and the level of PSA in the meat was significantly reduced. The PSA contents of pork broiled without marination, pork that had been marinated in commercial marinating sauce alone, pork that had been marinated in commercial marinating sauce with kiwi juice, and pork that had been marinated in commercial marinating sauce with pineapple juice, were 95.4, 43.3, 14.3, and 5.4 ng/mL, respectively (p

Human C-reactive protein (CRP) and serum amyloid component P (SAP) are well-characterised ligands for dying and dead cells, while facets of their physiological function still need to be unravelled. We partially characterised CRP and SAP from different species with similar acute-phase systems. Human, rabbit and porcine CRP bound phosphocholine (PC) and phosphoethanolamine (PEt). Human and porcine SAP bound PEt while rabbits seem to have very low levels of SAP or rabbit SAP does not bind PEt. Porcine serum additionally contained other ligands for PC and PEt. Some of them were immunoglobulins. Therefore, rabbits, pigs and humans cover the ability to bind PC and PEt with different extents.

BACKGROUND Cobalamin (vitamin B12 ) and folate (vitamin B9 ) are important for the amino acid metabolism and nucleic acid synthesis. Immunoassays for the measurement of both vitamins in serum are routinely used in people, cats, and dogs, serving as indicators for clinical disorders including cobalamin and/or folate deficiency, small intestinal dysbiosis, or inadequate dietary supply of these vitamins. The analysis of these analytes may also be clinically useful in pigs. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to analytically validate immunoassays for the measurement of cobalamin and folate concentrations in porcine serum, and to determine serum cobalamin and folate concentrations in healthy newborn pigs pre- and postweaning. METHODS Assay validation for both vitamins included the determination of linearity, accuracy, and intra- and inter-assay variability using serum samples from 10 pigs. Also, serum cobalamin and folate concentrations were compared in piglets between pre- and postweaning. RESULTS For both vitamins, observed-to-expected ratios for linearity and accuracy were 93.2 ± 14.3% and 100.3 ± 8.1% (mean ± standard deviation), respectively. Intra- and inter-assay coefficients of variation for serum were ≤ 8.7% and ≤12.5%, respectively. Significantly higher serum cobalamin and lower folate concentrations were observed in piglets at the time of weaning than at postweaning (P < .0061; P < .0001, respectively). CONCLUSIONS Both immunoassays are linear, accurate, precise, and reproducible for measurement of porcine serum cobalamin and folate concentrations. Piglets differing in age by only 12 days had significantly different serum cobalamin and folate concentrations. The implications of differing serum cobalamin and folate concentrations in pigs at different stages of life should be further investigated.

Hydrolysated peptides from kinds of proteins have been applied as natural ingredients in food industry, mainly due to their good functional properties. However, the fate of them under different processing conditions is rarely understood. In our study, changes of functional properties in porcine plasma protein hydrolysates (PPH) were evaluated in a free hydroxyl radical-mediated oxidation system. PPH was obtained by hydrolyzing porcine plasma protein with Alcalase for 5 h at pH 8.0, 55°C. When exposed to free radical-mediated oxidation, functional properties of PPH improved dramatically with growing oxidant concentrations and reaction time, especially at 20°C. Solubility, foaming capacity and emulsification of PPH increased significantly (P < 0.05) during early stage of oxidation, with solubility increasing from 83.1% (non-oxidized PPH) to 97.4%(20°C, 10mM H2OSubscript text2, 5 h), emulsifying activity index and foaming capacity rising form 1.24m2/g to 2.73 m2/g, and 144% to183%, respectively. Stability for emulsifying and foaming were also found to be reinforced. The improvements in functional properties of PPH helped to play theoretical basis for applying the peptides in food systems.

This study was performed to investigate the effects of heat and autoclave treatment on the binding ability of porcine serum albumin (PSA) to IgG and the serum of patients who were allergic to pork. Heat treatment at 100°C for 20 min on PSA was able to decrease the binding ability of PSA to IgG to 52%. The binding ability of PSA to IgG was also reduced to 29% by autoclave treatment of PSA at 121°C for 30 min. The binding ability of PSA autoclaved for 30 min to serum also decreased to 10%. SDS-PAGE and immunoblotting of PSA heated at 100°C for 20 min revealed that the intensity of the PSA band decreased and its presence was barely recognized by IgG. In the case of autoclave treatment (for 5 min), PSA was degraded to low-molecular-weight peptides and IgG and serum did not recognize them. Therefore, autoclave treatment can effectively reduce the allergenicity of PSA.

One of the main applications of serum proteomics is the identification of new biomarkers for animal disease or animal production. However, potential obstacles to these studies are the poor performance of affinity serum depletion methods based on human antigens when using animal samples, and loss of minor serum components bound to albumin and other proteins. In the present study, we have analyzed the efficiency and reproducibility of the ProteoMiner® beads with bovine and porcine serum samples, and compared to a traditional immunoaffinity-based albumin and IgG depletion system specific for human samples. The ProteoMiner kit is based on the use of a combinatorial peptide binding library and intends to enrich low-abundance proteins.

Pork is an excellent source of essential nutrients such as protein. However, pork can trigger hypersensitivity and serumalbumin of pork is known as major allergen. In this study, to evaluate the effect of gamma irradiation on the allergenicity ofporcine serum albumin (PSA), PSA solution was irradiated at 3, 5, 7, 10, 15, and 20 kGy. The changes in the ability of PSAto bind IgG and patient’s serum caused by gamma irradiation were observed by ci-ELISA and immunoblotting. SDS-PAGEwas used for measuring the conformational change of gamma-irradiated PSA. The ability of 3-kGy-irradiated PSA to bindp-IgG and patient’s serum was decreased to 30% and 15%, respectively. The binding ability showed no significant differ-ences among all irradiated samples. SDS-PAGE showed that the irradiated PSA bands were degraded and aggregated.Immunoblotting of irradiated PSA revealed that IgG and patient’s serum were rarely recognized at 3 kGy. Therefore, gammairradiation could be applied to less-allergenic pork products. Key words: porcine serum albumin, allergenicity, gamma irradiation

This paper studied the enzymatic hydrolysis process for porcine serum polypeptide from porcine blood. And the optimum enzymatic hydrolysis conditions were as follows: enzyme concentration was 1190u/g, pH was 9.0, temperature was 50°C, time was5.3h. the relative DH was 21.26% under above conditions, It not only solve the environmental problems of livestock and poultry processing industry but also opened up new channels and new areas for functional food’s research, it had good social and economic benefits.

ummary In porcine serum and tissue extracts an aberrant migrating CK isoenzyme fraction with an electrophoretic mobility cathodic to the normal CK-MM position was investigated for complex formation with serum immunoglobulins. Specific antibodies to porcine immunoglobulins (IgG and IgM) were used. This aberrant CK band, referred to as CK-4, is probably BB in nature and is only present in serum and tissue extracts where normally migrating CK-BB can be detected after electrophoretic separation. No complex binding to lipoproteins seems to occur spontaneously, whereas the immunoinhibition experiments indicate a complex formation between the IgG fraction and the CK-BB isoenzyme which probably contributes to the abnormal site of this isoenzyme. Zusammenfassung Eine Isoenzym-Variante der Kreatinkinase aus Gewebeextrakten und Serum des Schweines Ein elektrophoretisch von der normalen CK-MM-Position aberrant in Richtung Katode wanderndes CK-Isoenzym wurde bezuglich Komplexbildung mit Serum-Immunglobulinen untersucht. Es wurden spezifische Antikorper gegen IgG und IgM des Schweines verwendet. Diese aberrante CK-Fraktion, die als CK-4 bezeichnet wird, ist moglicherweise von der Art des BB und ist nur nachweisbar im Serum und in Gewebeextrakten, in denen sich nach elektrophoretischer Trennung eine normal wandernde BB-Fraktion erkennen last. Mit den Lipoproteinen scheint es keine Komplexbildung zu geben. Die Immun-Inhibitionsversuche zeigten jedoch eine Komplexbildung zwischen dem CK-BB-Isoenzym und der IgG-Fraktion, welche moglicherweise fur die ungewohnliche Prosition des Isoenzyms verantwortlich ist. Resume Une isoenzyme variante de la creatine kinase a partir d'extraits tissulaires et de serum de porc Une isoenzyme CK se deplacant vers la cathode de facon aberrante en fonction de la position normale de CK-MM en electrophorese a ete examinee concernant une formation d'un complexe avec des immunglobulines seriques. On a utilise des anticorps specifiques anti-IgG et anti-IgM du porc. Cette fraction CK aberrante, designee par CK-4, est probablement du genre BB et n'est mise en evidence que dans du serum ou dans des extraits tissulaires dans lesquels on peut reconnaitre une fraction BB se deplacant normalement apres une separation electrophoretique. Il ne semble pas y avoir la formation d'un complexe avec les lipoproteines. Les essais d'inhibition immunologiques ont toutefoirs montre l'image d'un complexe entre l'isoenzyme CK-BB et la fraction IgG qui pourrait etre responsable de la position inhabituelle de l'isoenzyme. Resumen Una isoenzima variante de la creatina quinasa en el suero sanguineo y extractos histicos porcinos Se estudio una fraccion migratoria aberrante de la isoenzima CK del suero sanguineo y extractos histicos porcinos, con una mobilidad electroforetica catodica en relacion con la posicion normal CK-MM, en cuanto a la formacion de un complejo con las inmunoglobulinas sericas. Se utilizaron anticuerpos especificos anti-IgG e IgM del cerdo. Esta fraccion aberrante CK, designada como CK-4, tal vez sea del genero de la BB y solo se puede identificar en el suero y en los extractos histicos, en los cuales tras separacion electroforetica se puede reconocer una fraccion BB que se desplaza con normalidad. Parece ser que con las lipoproteinas no se forma ningun complejo. Los ensayos de inmunoinhibicion mostraron una formacion compleja entre la fraccion IgG y la isoenzima CK-BB, la cual podria ser responsable de la posicion heteroclita de esta isoenzima.

The pork hams and bacon comprisi ng the most popular processed pork were tr eated with autoclave to investigate applica-tion of hypoallergenic pork. Among pork hams and bacon, two products with the highest binding ability were selected forexperiments. The results of ci-ELISA on pork hams treated with auto clave showed that the binding ability of p-IgG and pig-allergic patient's sera (P2) to PSA (porcine serum albumin) from pork ham samples by autoclave treatment at 121 o C for 30min was slightly decreased. The binding ability to p-IgG of b and c bacon treated with autocl ave was declined to below 16%and 11% as compared with control sample that showed 60% and 91% binding ability. The binding ability to P2 of b and cbacon treated with autoclave decreased to below 22% and 34% as compared with control sample that showed 95% and126% binding ability. A result of immunoblotting on bacon showed that p-IgG as well as pig patient’s sera did not recognizePSA well in autoclave treatment. The results obtained from this work indicated that autoclav e treatment was effective for areduction of allergenicity of pork hams and bacon. Therefore the autoclave treatment may be applied to development ofhypoallergenic pork.

Background : Hepatic fibrosis is a chronic progressive disorder with a poor prognosis for which no definitive treatment exists. S-allylcysteine (SAC), an ingredient of aged garlic extract, is known to have antioxidant and hepatoprotective effects. The aim of this study was to investigate the antifibrotic effects of SAC in the liver. / Methods : Hepatic fibrosis was induced in male Wistar rats by porcine serum (PS) intraperitoneal injection. SAC (0.15% of basal diet) or N-acetylcysteine (NAC, 0.45% of basal diet) was orally administered for 12 weeks. Liver damage was assessed by the levels of plasma alanine aminotransferase (ALT), hepatic lipid peroxides (LPO), and hepatic total thiols 12 weeks after first PS injection. Area of fibrosis was examined by Azan-Mallory staining. Hydroxyproline content of liver were assessed as an index of collagen content. Liver was examined for expression of α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) as a marker of hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation....

The complement fixing capacity of porcine IgG-antibodies prepared from pseudorabies immune sera was examined in the presence and absence of preparations containing porcine Clq. Preparation of porcine Clq was performed by initial dialysis of normal swine serum against a 0.018 M EGTA buffer, pH 7.5, followed by purification on Sephadex G-200 and subsequently on QAE-Sephadex. The Clq activity in the different preparations was determined by haemolytic assay. Guinea pig complement depleted of Clq by dialysis in 0.018 M EGTA buffer was used as R-Clq. Cl activity was assayed, using guinea pig complement diluted in a Na2Mg-EDTA buffer as R-Cl. The purity of the C1q preparations was estimated by crossed immunoelectrophoresis and rocket immunoelectrophoresis, and it was found that porcine C1q of reasonable purity was obtained by the QAE-Sephadex separation. Whether a microtechnique using four units of haemolytic complement (100 per cent) or a quantitative technique using fifty units of haemolytic complement (50 per cent) were applied, porcine C1q was found to be of crucial importance for complement fixation with porcine antibody (IgG)-antigen complexes. This points to a selective requirement for porcine C1q as opposed to guinea pig C1q.

Inhibitors against cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), an inducible enzyme that catalyzes prostaglandin synthesis, are widely used in clinical. However, the potential hepatic toxicity of COX-2 inhibitors remains incompletely investigated. We report in this study that a clinically available COX-2 inhibitor, celecoxib, exacerbates porcine serum (PS)-induced hepatic fibrosis and induces hepatocellular necrosis in an experimental liver fibrosis model. Histological results revealed that although celecoxib by itself did not cause notable hepatic damages, it markedly enhanced hepatic fibrosis that had been initiated by PS. While PS alone did not cause any necrotic change in liver cells, the addition of celecoxib resulted in hepatocellular necrosis in PS-treated animals. Notably, celecoxib enhanced reduction of plasma prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) levels induced by PS. Taken together, our results indicate that treatment with celecoxib may exacerbate liver fibrosis and cause hepatocellular necrosis. This may be associated with reduction in PGE(2) as an inheritance consequence of inhibition of COX-2.

Resumen The purpose of this study was to compare the foam capacity (FC) and foam stability (FS) of freeze-dried porcine serum (PS) and porcine serum albumin (PSA) with egg white protein (EW). PSA was obtained by hydrophobic interaction chromatography in a single chromatographic step. Foaming properties were determined at 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 % of protein solutions in buffer phosphate, pH 7.2, under native conditions (25°C) and after heat treatment (80°C, 10 min). Both, FC and FS properties improved with increasing protein concentration in all isolates. In native fractions, foam capacity of PS and PSA proteins were comparable to EW fraction. However, the foaming stability of EW and PSA was higher than that PS. After heat treatment, foam capacity of EW fraction was not affected, whereas it decreased for both porcine fractions. On the contrary, foam stability of porcine fractions was higher than for EW. In conclusion, separation of PSA from total serum allows obtaining a protein with foaming propertie...

The measurement of serum pepsinogen concentrations by enzymatic method and immunoassay provides diagnostic values and should be helpful in the detection of gastric diseases related to a rise of blood pepsinogen. In the present study, the correlation between a conventional enzymatic method and a recently developed radioimmunoassay (RIA) for serum pepsinogen A was investigated. A total of 123 sera samples of porcine foetuses (n = 28), adult healthy pigs (n = 56), pigs with parakeratosis (n = 25) and pigs with ulceration of the pars oesophagea (n = 14) were tested. Overall, there was a slight correlation between the two methods (r = 0.60). In relation to individual animal groups, the correlations (r) were 0.39 (P0.05), 0.74 (P0.001), 0.19 (P0.05) and 0.34 (P0.05) in foetuses, healthy pigs, pigs with parakeratosis and pigs with ulcers, respectively. In both methods, pepsinogen concentrations (means+/-SE) were significantly higher (P0.05) in pigs with parakeratosis (1778 +/- 86.00 mUTyr/L; 690 +/- 53.00 ng/mL) and in pigs with ulcers (2026 +/- 153.00 mUTyr/L; 1747 +/- 94.00 ng/mL) when compared to healthy pigs (935 +/- 58.00 mUTyr/L; 275 +/- 35.00 ng/mL). The proteolytic method gave a significant increased activity (P0.05) in foetuses (1150 +/- 82.00 mUTyr/L) vs. (935 +/- 58.00 mUTyr/L) in healthy adult pigs, indicating an additional proteolytic activity in the sera of foetuses or neonates.

Three foot-and-mouth disease virus non-structural protein antibody detection kits, CHEKIT FMD-3ABC, UBI FMD NS EIA and DVIVR NSP ELISA, were compared in the study. The results showed that the specificity of the kits ranged from 96.7 to 100% in nai;ve pigs and from 93.6 to 98.1% in vaccinated pigs, and that the DVIVR kit had the highest analytical sensitivity. The kappa statistics for the detection of 612 sera were 0.582, 0.447 and 0.658 for CHEKIT/UBI, CHEKIT/DVIVR and UBI/DVIVR, respectively. This study also revealed that measurable non-structural protein specific antibodies in some of infected pigs were sustained either for shorter periods or in intermittent patterns, thus aggravating the difficulties associated with the removal of pre-exposed pigs in the field.

The authors automated an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to detect porcine serum antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii. Two thousand swine sera can be assayed in two eight-hour shifts using a robotic workstation. The automated-ELISA programming is not complex and the test configuration is flexible. This high-throughput screening (HTS) a-ELISA can achieve a 10-fold increase (100→ 1000 tests) in test capacity over the manual method. The assay has been validated according to the requirements of the ISO/IEC 17025 standard. These include repeatability, reproducibility, and optimal threshold value studies. Other requirements are proficiency panel testing, analyst training, standard operation procedure, and equipment certifications.

Red cell concentrate, serum, albumin, and immunoglobulin fractions were separated from porcine blood collected at a HACCP-implemented (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points system-implemented) slaughterhouse in Hermosillo, Mexico. Functional and microbiological properties were examined. Red cell concentrate and serum isolates were high in protein (92 and 85%, respectively) but limited in methionine and isoleucine. Porcine serum and albumin fractions showed emulsifying properties comparable to bovine sources. Porcine immunoglobulins were 96% soluble. All fractions were of excellent microbiological quality. These results indicate the optimal sanitary conditions during slaughter and processing procedures, as well as the potential functionality of porcine protein fractions.

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for quantification of haptoglobin in porcine serum was evaluated. The detection limit when expressed as the estimated concentration of a blank sample was 0.0003 mg/ml. The precision of the assay was acceptable with intra-assay coefficients of variation below 4 % and inter-assay coefficient of variation below 5 % for serum concentrations ranging from 1.0 mg/ml and above. For samples with a concentration below 0.8 mg/ml, the inter-assay coefficient of variation was above 10 %. The assay maintained linearity under dilution. Recovery was proportional. Haemolysis significantly decreased the measured concentration of haptoglobin in paired serum samples (one-sided t-test, P

Heat-induced gels of charcoal-treated, freeze-dried porcine serum fortified by chicken myosin solution (2.5%, w/w), as well as pork sausage fortified by the serum, were analyzed in terms of their rheological properties by creep measurements at different protein concentrations. The creep curves of gels and sausages conformed to a six-element mechanical model consisting of one Hookean, two Voigt and one Newtonian component. The mixture of the serum and chicken myosin (5.6% total protein concentration) formed a harder gel upon heating than 6% serum alone. This indicated that interactions between porcine serum protein and myosin occurred with heating. The viscoelastic values of pork sausage increased with the addition of the serum. Moreover, pork sausage fortified by the serum had higher viscoelastic values than sausage fortified by egg white protein (p

Two experiments were conducted to investigate the effect of serum-derived immunoglobin (Ig) source and the effect of colostrum supplementation with serum-derived Ig on the attainment of passive immunity in newborn colostrum-deprived calves. In experiment 1, colostrum-deprived Holstein bull calves were fed pooled colostrum (PC, n = 9), spray-dried bovine serum (BS, n = 11), or spray- dried porcine serum (PS, n = 9). All treatments were balanced to provide 45 g of IgG in a 2-L volume at birth and again 12 h later. Calves receiving BS had higher 24-h serum IgG concentrations than did calves receiving PC or PS (8.3, 5.7, and 4.2 g of IgG/L for BS, PC, and PS, respectively). In experiment 2, the effect of supplementing bovine colostrum of varying quality with BS on Ig absorption was assessed. Thirty-two colostrum-deprived Holstein bull calves and four freemartin heifer calves were allotted by birth order to receive one of three treatments. Treatments consisted of 1) 2 L of pooled high quality colostrum (95.8 g of IgG, 0% from BS), 2) 2 L of pooled medium quality colostrum mixed with BS (95.2 g of IgG, 47% from BS), or 3) 2 L of low quality colostrum mixed with BS (98.8 g of IgG, 70% from BS). Serum IgG concentrations at 24 h after treatment were greater for calves receiving medium and low quality colostrum supplemented with BS (6.2, 9.6, and 9.6 g of IgG/L for high, medium, and low quality colostrum, respectively). Similarly, apparent efficiency of IgG absorption was greater for calves receiving medium and low quality colostrum supplemented with BS (25, 37, and 38% for high, medium, and low quality colostrum, respectively). The results of these studies suggest that dried BS contains a concentrated source of Ig, which is efficiently absorbed by newborn calves. Supplementation of marginal or low quality colostrum with dried BS is an effective means of improving passive transfer of IgG in newborn calves.