The results of a trial aimed at studying the effects of a commercial polyherbal digestive tonic, Ruchamax®, on the feed intake, apparent digestibility, fermentation and microbial digestion of lucerne and wheat straw in Arabian horses are reported. Six Arabian mares, aged three to four years and weighing about 400 kg, received a diet containing 65% forage, consisting of lucerne and wheat straw, and 35% concentrate for two phases of ten days; the first phase without any digestive supplement and the next phase with an additional 15 grams of Ruchamax® per animal per day. Feed intakes were measured daily, and apparent digestibility, cecal digestion, and fermentation were assessed at the end of each phase. In vitro gas production was assessed to determine the fermentation and gas production of lucerne and wheat straw. Digestibility of dry matter and neutral detergent fiber was also determined for each phase. Ruchamax® increased (p < 0.05) feed intake; apparent digestibility of dry matter, crude protein, neutral detergent fiber, and acid detergent fiber; the potential of gas production; and microbial biomass efficiency for both forages. However, Ruchamax® did not affect cell wall degradability, partitioning factor, microbial biomass, amount and ratio of volatile fatty acids, and in vitro digestibility of dry matter, crude protein, neutral detergent fiber, and acid detergent fiber. Besides establishing the positive effects of Ruchamax® supplementation on cecal digestion and fermentation in horses, our findings also uphold the functional equivalence of the equine hindgut to the ruminant forestomach.

Infectious bursal disease virus (IBDV) is a serious poultry pathogen responsible for causing major economic losses to the poultry industry globally. The virus is closely related to several other important viral pathogens of fishes, crabs, and mollusks and evolutionarily related to important viral pathogens of humans. Previously, we demonstrated the inhibition of this virus by the extracts of roots of Withania somnifera Dunal, commonly known as Indian ginseng, both in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, many studies reported the inhibition of diverse types of viruses by nanoparticles of silver. In the present study, we investigated the inhibitory effect of silver nanoparticles obtained by green synthesized with Indian ginseng extract against IBDV. Conditions for the synthesis of silver nanoparticles were optimized, and the nanoparticles thus obtained (WS AgNPs) were characterized physically. Thereafter, the maximum non-cytotoxic dose of these nanoparticles for treating chicken embryo fibroblasts (CEF) was determined. Treatment of IBDV-infected CEF with the WS AgNPs decreased the infective virus titer by >93%, intracellular viral load by >71%, and virus-induced cytopathy by >51%, demonstrating the strong inhibitory effect of the WS AgNPs against IBDV, and encouraging similar applications against related veterinary and human viruses.

The digestive system of young birds is very poor and inefficient in digestion and absorption of fat due to less lipase production and low rate of bile formation, which can be overcome by the use of exogenous emulsifier. This study aimed to evaluate the comparative efficacy of exogenous herbal and synthetic emulsifiers on growth performance, nutrients utilization, haemato-biochemical profile, and carcass quality in broiler chickens fed energy restricted diet during a 35-days feeding trial. 180 one day-old Cobb400Y chicks were assigned into four treatment groups, each with three replicates. T0(control) received a basal diet without emulsifier, group T1 received a basal diet with 3% less metabolizable energy, group T2 received a basal diet with 3% less metabolizable energy + synthetic emulsifier @250 g/tonne of feed and group T3 received a basal diet with 3% less metabolizable energy + herbal emulsifier @ 250 g/tonne of feed. Supplementation of exogenous emulsifier enhanced growth performance and economics of broiler chicken. These was no significant effect of exogenous emulsifiers on dry matter, crude protein, calcium and phosphorus retention in broiler chickens, however, retention of ether extract improved significantly. Haematological parameters, carcass characteristics and overall acceptability of meat of broiler chicken fed diets supplemented with emulsifiers in energy restricted diets didn`t differ. Emulsifier supplementation didn't change villi length and crypt depth. It was concluded that decrease in 3% metabolizable energy of broiler chicken diet depressed growth performance and economics of broiler chicken whereas, dietary supplementation of emulsifier @ 250 g/ tonne of energy restricted based broiler feed improved the growth performance, ether extract utilization, intestinal morphology and economics without affecting haemato-biochemical profile, and carcass quality of broiler chickens.

A study was undertaken to determine the anti-inflammatory effect of poly herbal supplements by measuring the levels of serum high sensitive C - reactive protein (hs-CRP) in the pigs reared during summer months. Experimental groups supplemented with poly herbal supplements have significantly lower levels of hs-CRP from first to six months of study period when compared to control. The overall mean hs-CRP (mg/dl) levels were reduced from 0.82 to 0.57 during grower phase and 0.82 to 0.46 during finisher phase in control and experimental groups respectively. Based on these results, it can be concluded that addition of poly herbal supplements in feed significantly lower the inflammatory activities in heat stressed pigs.

This study aimed to compare the efficacy of supplementation with a synthetic (DL-α-tocopherol acetate) or herbal source of vitamin E on performance of broiler chicken during a 35-days feeding trial. Day-old broiler chicks (180) were randomly assigned to one of four treatment groups, each with three replicates. T1 (control) received a basal diet, Group T2 received a basal diet with synthetic vitamin E @ 100 g/quintal of feed, Group T3 received a basal diet with herbal vitamin E @ 100 g/quintal of feed and Group T4 received a basal diet with synthetic vitamin E @ 50 g/ quintal of feed + herbal vitamin E @ 50 g/quintal of feed. Supplementation of herbal vitamin E enhanced growth performance traits (average weight gain, feed intake, feed conversion ratio and economics of broiler production), retention of nutrients (dry matter, nitrogen, and ether extract), haematological parameters (Hb, PCV, and TEC) and serum total cholesterol in broiler chicks. Antioxidant status revealed significant increase in GSH but not SOD and CAT. A marked increase in the antibody titer against Newcastle Disease vaccine was recorded in the herbal vitamin E supplemented group. The carcass quality was statistically similar among different dietary treatments, however, lowest abdominal fat and meat cholesterol were recorded in the group supplemented with herbal vitamin E. The study depicts that dietary supplementation of synthetic or herbal vitamin E and their combination @ 100 g/quintal of feed improved the growth performance, antioxidant status and carcass quality of broiler chickens; and that herbal vitamin E was economical and more effective as compared to the synthetic vitamin E in improving the performance of broiler chickens.

The present investigation was carried out to determine the effect of two herbal formulations, AV/LMP/10 (T1) (garlic, Allium sativum) and AV/HLP/16 (T2) (mixture of gugal, Commiphora mukul and fenugreek, Trigonella foenum-graecum with 50:50%), on the carcass characteristics, proximate composition, lipid profile including fatty acids, and meat quality attributes in Vencobb 400 broiler chickens. Broilers fed with the AV/HLP/16 (T2) formulation had significantly (P<0.05) superior carcass characteristics in terms of pre-slaughter weight, head, neck, shank, skin, stomach, intestine, giblet, and wholesale cut yield than the control and broilers supplemented with AV/LMP/10 (T1). Meat obtained from the broilers fed with the T2 formulation had a significantly (P<0.01) higher dressing percentage and lean percentage than the control broilers and the T1 supplemented broilers. Meat obtained from the broilers fed with the T2 formulation had significantly (P<0.01) higher moisture and protein content, and lower fat content than the control birds. Meat obtained from the broilers fed with the T2 formulations had significantly (P<0.01) lower triglycerides and higher phospholipids and cholesterol content than meat obtained from the control birds. A significant (P<0.01) increase was observed in the myristic, palmitic, oleic, palmitoleic, linoleic and behenic acid percentages, and a decrease in the stearic acid percentage in meat obtained from the broilers fed with the T2 formulation. Addition of the T2 formulation significantly (P<0.01) improved the physico-chemical quality and sensory scores of the chicken meat. The results of this study revealed that addition of herbal formulations had a significant effect on the carcass characteristics, proximate composition, fatty acid profile and meat quality attributes in comparison with the control birds.

This study was undertaken to evaluate the acute dermal toxicity of a topical anti-mastitis gel (Mastilep® gel; M/s Ayurvet Limited, India) in accordance with OECD 402 guidelines. Nine adults female Wistar rats, weighing 210-250 g, were used in the study. Following the topical application of the anti-mastitis gel, the animals were observed for the manifestation of toxic effects and mortality. Toxicity was evaluated on the basis of changes in body weight, histological appearances of heart, liver, kidney, and lungs, and blood biochemical parameters viz. AST, ALT, ALP and creatinine. Since no toxic effects or deaths were recorded until completion of the experiment, the anti-mastitis gel was found safe for dermal use.

Minimizing the use of antibiotics is a major concern of poultry producers, largely due to increase in antibiotic resistance, and phytobiotics are gaining popularity as natural replacer of antibiotic growth promoter in broilers. Nbiotic™ (M/s Ayurvet Limited, India) is a complete herbal growth promoter for poultry. This study aimed to evaluate the potential of Nbiotic™ to elicit acute oral toxicity as per OECD 423 guidelines. Three female Wistar rats were used for the study, where each animal served as its own control. Following the oral administration of the test substance, the animals were observed for the manifestation of toxic effects and mortality. No toxic effects or mortalities were observed till day 14 of administration and Nbiotic™ was found safe for oral use.

Heat stress is a very common type of stress in dairy animals. Exposure to heat-stress can result in decreased yield and poor, watery consistency of milk. Here, the results of an efficacy trial of a polyherbal antistressor premix at reducing summer stress-associated milk yield losses in dairy cows are reported. 12 healthy lactating Gir cows in early to mid of first to third lactations were randomized to one of two groups. The first group was left unsupplemented while the second group received supplementation with a polyherbal anti-stressor (Stresomix™ premix, M/s Ayurvet Limited, India) for seven days. Daily milk yield was recorded over a 30 days’ period of moderate heat stress (THI = 81.9). Protein and fat content of milk and serum cortisol levels were also measured at specific intervals. The polyherbal antistressor-supplemented group T1 showed significant improvements in milk fat content, fat-corrected milk yield, and serum cortisol levels over the untreated control group T0, attesting the efficacy of the polyherbal antistressor supplement in heat-stressed dairy cows. Based on the results of the study, the polyherbal antistressor, Stresomix premix, at 1 Kg/tonne of feed for 7 days, was found efficacious for the reduction of stress and improvement of milk fat content in dairy cows under summer stress.

Abstract In the present study, an herbal feed additive was tested for partial-to-complete replacement of synthetic methionine in poultry diets, along with its effects on performance, breast and thigh meat chemical composition, oxidative stability during refrigerated storage and the expression of five target genes in liver. In a 35 days trial, 600 one-day-old male chicks were randomly allocated to 4 groups with 10 replicates. Birds in the control group were fed a regular maize–soybean-based diet that covered DL-methionine needs while the second group (Meth40) was similar to control but contained only DL – Methionine at 40% of control diet. Diet in third group contained DLMethionine at 40% of control and the herbal feed additive Methiorep TMMeth40+Mrep) with extracts of Boerhavia diffusa, Azadirachta indica, Vigna mungo and Trigonella foenum-graecum. Diet of fourth group was formulated to totally replace DL Methionine by Methiorep TM (Mrep). Body weight gain and feed consumption were weekly recorded. At the end of the trial, all birds were slaughtered and 2 chickens per pen were selected for meat and liver sampling. The liver was tested for the expression of five target genes, namely Methionine synthase (MTR), Tyrosine aminotransferase (TAT), Spermidine synthase (SMS), Methionine sulfoxide reductase (MSRB1) and Betaine homocysteine S-methyltransferase (BHMT). The results showed that the Meth40 group had reduced body weight compared to the Meth40+Mrep group while the Control and Mrep groups had comparable weights. Feed intake and feed conversion ratio did not differ among the experimental groups. Carcass, breast and thigh meat yield were higher in the Mrep and the Control compared to Meth40 and Meth40+Mrep groups. Also, meat oxidation was significantly lower in herbal groups compared to the control group. After normalization to β-actin expression, quantitative real-time PCR analysis revealed an induction in the expression of MTR and SMS genes in the liver of both herbal treated groups. No changes were observed for the TAT, MSRB1and BHMT genes in the herbal treated groups compared to the control or the Meth40 group. In conclusion, herbal feed additives with specific plant extracts may be able to improve both growth performance and antioxidant activity of broiler chickens, phenolic content; yet, they may also support in amino acid efficient use of broiler.

A hypothetical protein (HP) is one that is known to exist only on the basis of a corresponding gene but without any function assigned to it. Many HPs have emerged as attractive vaccine candidates against prokaryotic and eukaryotic pathogens as well as against cancers. Mycobacterium bovis is a serious veterinary pathogen of tremendous zoonotic importance. This protocol describes a computational workflow for the identification of the HPs of M. bovis with vaccine potential and their subsequent structural and functional characterization.

The present study was undertaken to study the effect of a polyherbal immunomodulator (Restobal) on milk production, haematological parameters, and cortisol levels in dairy cattle vaccinated against FMD and HS.A total of 24 dairy cattle were divided into control and treatment groups.The treatment animals received Restobal from day 0 to day 10.Vaccine (FMD vaccine and FMD + HS vaccine) was given in both control and treatment animals on day 5 of treatment.Samples viz.milk, blood, and saliva were collected at different time intervals.SNF, total solids, and milk yield in milk samples from day 0 to day 35 of treatment did not show any significant difference suggesting that Restobal is not having any positive effect on and vaccination is not having any negative impact on the production parameters of milch animals.On haematological analysis, the vaccination significantly increased TLC, lymphocytes, and monocytes.Treatment of Restobal has been found to have a positive effect on TLC and monocytes as compared to the control group.Salivary cortisol levels increased significantly after vaccination with FMD + HS vaccine in both control and treatment animals.However, after FMD vaccination no significant increase was observed and the treatment group showed a significantlylower level on the 6 th day evening.

Income from livestock plays an important role in the socio-economic lives of the people globally. Wounds are a common problem that reduces productivity, increase mortality, impair host immune system, and depreciate hide quality that result in severe economic losses to livestock owners. Various studies have been conducted to develop effective herbal preparations for wound management. A clinical trial was undertaken to evaluate the efficacy of a novel topical herbal spray foam viz. AV/MSF/19 (M/s Ayurvet Limited, India) in the management of pocketed wounds in livestock. Twenty cattle having different types of pocketed wounds were assigned to one of two groups: Group T1, receiving treatment with AV/MSF/19, or Group T2, treated with a popular wound-healing spray (Brand X). The response to treatment was assessed based on clinical improvement and time required for wound healing. Results show that the mean time to 100% healing was 8 and 13.75 days in groups T1 and T2, respectively. In group T1, wound healed completely in lesser time and efficacy index was also higher than group T2. Based on the findings of the study, AV/MSF/19 was found to be efficacious in the management of wound in cattle.

The study was conducted for six weeks in commercial broiler birds to evaluate the effect of herbal lean meat formulation viz., AV/HLP/16 and AV/LMP/10 (M/S Ayurvet Ltd India). One hundred and eighty (180) broiler birds were randomly allocated into three groups, i.e., Control, Treatment (1) and Treatment (2) having four replicates in each. Control group was fed a standard basal diet without any supplementation and group T1 and T2 were supplemented with AV/HLP/16@500g/tonne of feed and AV/LMP/10 @500g/tonne of feed respectively. At the end of the trial period (42day) it was found that Hb% was significantly higher in T1 group (10.29±0.274b) followed by T2 group (9.62±0.100ab) in comparison to control group (8.99±0.249a).Lymphocyte count was also slightly higher in T1 group (59.98±0.76) as compared to T2 (59.74±0.23) and control group (58.57±0.61).Also, H:L ratio was slightly lower in T1 group in comparison to T2 and control. However, no significant changes were observed in TEC, TLC, PCV and leucocytes count among all the groups. Thus, it was concluded that AV/HLP/16 group has a better effect in terms of haemoglobin % and lymphocyte count followed by AV/LMP/10 in comparison to control group.

A ban on the use of antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs) has fueled and promoted scientific research towards the identification of reliable and effective alternatives. The supplementation of phytogenics AV/SSL12 (AVSSL) and Superliv Gold (SG) in water has been shown to improve broiler feed efficiency (FE) via modulation of hypothalamic neuropeptides. However, their effects on peripheral metabolic pathways are still unknown. The present study was undertaken to determine the effects of AVSSL and SG on lipid and protein metabolism-associated pathways in various tissues. Day-old male Cobb 500 chicks (n = 288) were randomly assigned to 3 treatment groups, with 8 replicates of 12 birds each. The treatment groups were fed a basal diet and supplemented with AVSSL or SG in the drinking water at a rate of 2, 4, and 7 mL/100 birds/d during the starter, grower, and finisher phases, respectively. The control group were fed a basal diet with no additive supplementation. On d 35, liver, adipose, and muscle tissue were collected from one bird per pen (8 birds/group). Data were analyzed using Student's T-test to compare one treatment group to the control using Graph Pad Prism version 6.0 for Windows. In the liver, the levels of phosphorylated acetyl-CoA carboxylase alpha (ACCα) were significantly increased in both the AVSSL and SG groups compared to the control. The hepatic expression of sterol regulatory element-binding protein cleavage-activating protein (SCAP) was significantly downregulated in both treated groups compared to the control. AVSSL supplementation downregulated the hepatic expression of SREBP-2 and adiponectin (AdipoQ), while SG administration upregulated hepatic AdipoR1/R2 mRNA abundances compared to the untreated group. Both AVSSL and SG treatments upregulated hepatic stearoyl-CoA desaturase-1 (SCD-1) gene expression compared to their untreated counterparts. In the adipose tissue, the levels of phosphorylated hormone-sensitive lipase (HSL) at Ser855/554 site were increased in both the AVSSL and SG groups compared to the control. However, ATGL protein expression was decreased in SG compared to the untreated group. In the muscle, the levels of phosphorylated mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) were increased in the AVSSL, but decreased in the SG group compared to the control. Collectively, these data indicate that supplementation of the phytogenics AVSSL and SG in water reduced hepatic lipogenesis-related proteins and increased adipose tissue lipolysis- and muscle protein synthesis-associated targets, which might explain, at least partially, the improvement in FE observed in previous research.

One-hundred and fifty, one-day-old Ross-308 female chicks were randomly allocated to five equal treatments: NCONTR negative control-not challenged; PCONTR positive control-challenged; PHERB1 and PHERB2 diets were supplemented with phytogenic formula (1 and 2 g/kg feed, respectively)-challenged; PSALIN diet was supplemented with salinomycin (60 mg/kg feed)-challenged. Challenge was made by oral inoculation with 3.5 × 104 E. acervulina, 7.0 × 103 E. maxima and 5.0 × 103 E. tenella oocysts, at 14 days of age. One week post inoculation, bloody diarrhea, oocysts numbers, and intestinal lesions were evaluated, along with intestinal microbiota, viscosity, and pH of digesta, and histopathology. PHERB2 had a comparable (p ≤ 0.001) growth performance and feed conversion ratio to PSALIN. PHERB1 and PHERB2 had similar (p ≤ 0.001) oocyst counts to PSALIN and lower than PCONTROL. PHERB2 and PSALIN had lower (p ≤ 0.001) jejunal, ileal, and cecal lesion scores compared to PCONTR. PHERB1 and PHERB2 had higher (p ≤ 0.001) jejunal and cecal lactobacilli and lower (p ≤ 0.001) coliform counts compared to other treatments. PCONTR had lower (p ≤ 0.001) jejunum villus height, height to crypt ratio, and villus goblet cells. Breast and thigh meat resistance to oxidation was improved (p ≤ 0.001) in PHERB1 and PHERB2 compared to the PCONTR. The polyherbal formula exerted a substantial improvement on growth performance and intestinal health of the Eimeria-challenged birds.

The objective of this study was to assess the acute oral toxicity of AV/SGB/27 (M/s Ayurvet Limited) in accordance with OECD-423 guideline. AV/SGB/27 is a herbal formulation for enhancing semen quality of livestock. Nine healthy and adult nulliparous nonpregnant Swiss albino female mice, weighing 24-28 g, were used in this study. After being given test material orally, the mice were examined for toxic effects and mortality. Changes in body weights, symptoms of toxicity, histological appearances of liver, kidney, and lungs, and biochemical parameters were used to assess the toxicity. No toxic effects or mortalities were noticed until the trial was completed, indicating that AV/SGB/27 is safe for oral consumption.

Effective countermeasures against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) demand a better understanding of the pathogen-host interactions. However, such information about the targets, responses, and effects in the host due to the virus is limited, especially so in the case of newly emerged pathogens. The peptide domains that form the interfaces of host and pathogen interacting proteins being evolutionarily conserved, it may be hypothesized that such interactions can be inferred from the similarities in the nucleotide sequences between the host and the pathogen. This communication reports the results of a study based on a parsimonious approach for the identification of the host-virus interactions, where sequence complementarity between the human and SARS-Cov-2 genomes was used to predict several interactions between the host and SARS-CoV-2 at different levels of biological organization. In particular, the findings are suggestive of a direct effect of SARS-CoV-2 on cardiac health. The existing literature on host responses to SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses attest to many of these predicted interactions, supporting the utility of the proposed approach for the identification of host interactions with other novel pathogens.