A. Kundu

Effect of feeding of Morinda citrifolia fruit juice on the biophysical parameters of healthy as well as mastitis-affected cow milk

The present study was conducted to assess the effect of Morinda citrifolia fruit juice on milk characteristics of healthy as well as mastitis-affected dairy cow. A total of 25 adult dairy cows were selected out of which 13 were healthy and 12 were found affected with sub-clinical mastitis. M. citrifolia fruit juice was fed to dairy cow at the rate of 100 ml/day/animal orally. The average pH of the normal milk and mastitis-affected milk was 6.60±0.12 and 7.2±0.17, respectively. The feeding of M. citrifolia juice significantly (p<0.05) lowered the pH of mastitis-affected milk to 6.54±0.07. The EC of mastitis-affected milk lowered significantly (p<0.05) after feeding of M. citrifolia fruit juice. The total bacterial count in the mastitis milk also decreased significantly (p<0.05) from 5.15±0.03×108 to 2.54±0.03×108 cfu/ml after feeding of M. citrifolia juice. Morinda feeding decreased the total protein concentration in the mastitis milk significantly (p<0.05) to 21.13±0.93 µg/ml. It could be concluded that the feeding of M. citrifolia fruit juice to dairy cows showed improvement in the quality and biophysical parameters of milk of mastitis-infected dairy animals.

Grommune: Morinda citrifolia-based herbal tonic for growth and immunity for commercial broilers

A herbal tonic (Grommune) was prepared from Morinda citrifolia fruit juice and fed to the broilers at various levels viz., 5 ml, 10 ml and 15 ml, and one group was kept as control. The result revealed that highest body weight (3.06 ± 0.10 kg) and better feed conversion ratio (FCR; 2.53) were recorded in the group fed with 15 ml of tonic as compared to the other groups though it was not significantly higher. The humoral immune response revealed significantly higher titre values with increase in level of tonic supplementation. The result indicated that feeding of herbal tonic at the dosage of 15 ml per bird up to 4 weeks and 30 ml per bird up to 8th week of age improved the body weight, FCR and immune competency status of broilers.

Galvanic replacement of As(0) nanoparticles by Au(III) for nanogold fabrication and SERS application

A galvanic replacement reaction between As(0) nanoparticles and Au(III) ions has been reported for the first time. Initially the stable yellow-brown As(0) nanoparticles were prepared by the borohydride reduction of an arsenite solution. The characterization of the As(0) particles was discussed in a recent report. In the present work these As(0) nanoparticles were exploited to fabricate gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). The as-obtained red colored gold sol showed a λmax at 540 nm and the size of the AuNPs were 62 ± 7 nm as observed from TEM analyses. It was interesting to note that the size of the AuNPs was comparable to that of the As(0) nanoparticles, which could be a sign of galvanic replacement in the absence of any stabilizer. The particles were spherical with a hollow core. The AuNPs were characterized by SEM, TEM, XRD, DLS and UV-visible spectroscopy. FTIR and Raman analysis indicated that during the galvanic replacement reaction As(0) was oxidized to arsenate, which stabilized the AuNPs through adsorption and H-bonding. Thus a stable assembly of AuNPs was obtained in the absence of any external stabilizer. The potential of such an assembly was further exploited for SERS detection of Rhodamine 6G, 4-mercaptopyridine and 4-aminothiophenol.

Haemato-Biochemical Profile of the Teressa Goat: An Indigenous Goat of A&N Islands, India

Haematological studies of the native Teressa goat found in A&N Islands, under open grazing system, was carried out with an aim to determine the base-line information of haematological and biochemical parameters as influenced by sex. Significant (P < 0.001) sex differences were evident on packed cell volume, haemoglobin, white blood cells (WBC), red blood cells (RBC), granulocyte % and biochemical parameters. The observed haematological value showed significantly (P < 0.05) higher WBC (22.97), granulocytes % (47.72), RBC (1.48), haemoglobin (12 g/dl) and hematrocit level (HCT) (26.22) and mean corpuscular haemoglobin (MCH) in the male Teressa goat as compared with female. However, there was no significant difference in lymphocytes between male and female Teressa goats. Significantly (P < 0.05) higher alanine amonotransferase (ALT) (25.7 U/l) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (83.3 U/l) and significantly (P < 0.05) lower cholesterol (75 mg/dl), triglyceride (17.3 mg/dl) and urea (15.5 mg/dl) were recorded in male. Generally, it has been observed that animals in the area of study were found to be averagely healthier and adapted to Island climatic condition. The generated haematological and biochemical values of Teressa goats in the present study may be used as base or platform for further study in these native Teressa goats.

Antibody response to goat erythrocytes in endangered Nicobari fowl, Vanaraja and their various F1 and F2 crosses under the hot humid climate of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India

The aim of the present investigation was to study the antibody response to goat erythrocytes in Nicobari fowl, Vanaraja and their various F1 and F2 crosses under the hot and humid climate of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The humoral immune response was measured against (1% v/v) goat red blood cells (GRBC) for total haemagglutinin (HA) antibody titre on days 7, 14, 21 and 28 post-immunization (PI). Among the pure breeds, HA titres of Black Nicobari were found significantly (P<0.05) to be significantly higher than that of White Nicobari and Vanaraja but did not vary significantly with Brown Nicobari during the entire period of the study. Among the F1 crosses, on days 7 and 21 PI, HA titres of Brown Nicobari×Vanaraja were significantly higher in comparison to Vanaraja×White Nicobari, White Nicobari×Vanaraja and Vanaraja×Black Nicobari but did not vary significantly (P<0.05) with Black Nicobari×Vanaraja and Vanaraja×Brown Nicobari. At day 7, PI antibody titres of Vanaraja×(Vanaraja×White Nicobari) and Vanaraja×Black Nicobari were significantly lower (P<0.05) in comparison to that of all other F2 crosses but did not vary significantly (P<0.05) between themselves. Positive heterosis was found in some F1 crosses.

Reproductive and productive performances of crossbred Andaman local pigs under small holder production system at Bay Islands, India

The present study appraises different traditional feeding practices followed by farmers and effect of dietary zinc supplementation on the reproductive and productive performances of crossbred Andaman local pigs. In the 1st experiment the effect of three feeding practices were evaluated and in the 2nd experiment the effect of supplementation of 80 ppm Zn on growth of weanling piglets were evaluated. The locally available feed ingredients like rice bran, taro (Colocasia esculenta) leaves, broken rice, broken wheat, maize, and coconut cake were used in different proportion for feeding. The different reproductive parameters like the mean age at puberty, age at first conception and first farrowing and various litter traits varied significantly (<0.01) among the three treatment groups. In the next experiment the effect of Zn supplementation on post weaning growth performances of piglets were studied. In treatment group (n=5) 80 ppm Zn was supplemented along with normal farm diet where as in control group (n=5) normal diet was given. The experiment continued for three months. The results showed that the sow receiving the ration made up of coconut cake, broken rice or maize performed better than the sow receiving ration made up of colocasia leaves and rice bran in respect of reproductive performances. Similarly, inclusion of 80 ppm Zn in stater ration enhanced the daily body weight.

Traditional pig rearing practices among the Nicobari tribes of Nicobar group of Islands, India

The Andaman & Nicobar Islands are a group of 572 big and small Islands & Islets in the South Eastern part of Bay of Bengal. Nicobari pigs (Sus scrofa Nicobaricus) which are indigenous to these islands got domesticated and well adapted to the island ecosystem. A study was conducted on pig rearing system among the Nicobari tribes of Nicobar group of islands viz. Car Nicobar, Katchal, Nancowry, Kamorta, and Teressa. Results of the current study revealed that the Nicobari pigs were reared under traditional system by the Nicobari tribal community and the pigs were concentrated only in Nicobar group of islands. The pigs were reared and considered as family asset among the tribal. The phenotypic characters showed that the Nicobari pigs were indigenous to these islands and their existence was noted since many centuries. These pigs were reared under free range system. Nicobari tribes use various indigenously made materials/utensils for housing and feeding. Pigs were fed mainly with coconut and other locally available feed resources and in addition, pigs feed through scavenging and rooting. No commercial farms or sale of meat was practiced. It is concluded that the Nicobari pigs are considered as an indigenous pig germplasm (Sus scrofa Nicobaricus) belonging to this island territory and Nicobari tribes practices century old established indigenous technical knowledge in pig rearing and they are passed through many generations. ITK would significantly contribute to the generation and pave the way for exploitation of technology to benefit tribal/rural populations.

Nicobari pig: an indigenous pig germplasm of the Nicobar group of Islands, India

The Andaman & Nicobar Islands are a group of 572 large and small islands & islets in the southeastern part of the Bay of Bengal. This preliminary study reports on husbandry practices and phenotypic characterization of indigenous Nicobari pig, in its home tract (Nicobar group of islands). A total of 377 families were surveyed in randomly selected villages on Car Nicobar, Nancowrie, Teressa, Katchal and Chowra islands. Results of the study revealed that Nicobari pigs were mostly semi feral in nature and reared under a free range system. Pigs were fed mainly with coconut and other locally available resources. The Nicobari pigs appeared short with long body. Theyshowed high prolificacy with an average litter size of 8–10 numbers. These pigs were considered as a family asset among the Nicobari tribe. No commercial farms and slaughter was practiced by the tribes. It is concluded that the Nicobari pigs are considered as an indigenous pig breed/germplasm (Sus scrofa Nicobaricus) belonging to this island territory. Owing to its adaptation and performance under resource-driven island ecosystem, Nicobari pig warrants conservation and improvement. In addition, genetic characterization this pig using SNP would help to confirm their genetic distinctiveness and recognition as a new breed for conservation and sustainable utilization.