Objective:To investigate the hepatoprotective activity of the aqueous extract of the aerial parts of Portulaca oleracea (P. oleracea) in combination with lycopene against carbon tetrachloride induced hepatotoxicity in rats.Materials and Methods:Hepatotoxicity was induced in male Wistar rats by intraperitoneal injection of carbon tetrachloride (0.1 ml/kg b.w for 14 days). The aqueous extract of P. oleracea in combination with lycopene (50 mg/kg b.w) was administered to the experimental animals at two selected doses for 14 days. The hepatoprotective activity of the combination was evaluated by the liver function marker enzymes in the serum [aspartate transaminases (AST), alanine transaminases (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (Alk.P), total bilirubin (TB), total protein (TP) and total cholesterol (TC)], pentobarbitone induced sleeping time (PST) and histopathological studies of liver.Results:Both the treatment groups showed hepatoprotective effect against carbon tetrachloride induced hepatotoxicity by significantly restoring the levels of serum enzymes to normal which was comparable to that of silymarin group. Besides, the results obtained from PST and histopathological results also support the study.Conclusions:The oral administration of P. oleracea in combination with lycopene significantly ameliorates CCl4 hepatotoxicity in rats.

To lay the foundation for molecular breeding efforts, the first genetic linkage map of mulberry (2n=2x=28) was constructed with 50 F1 full-sib progeny using randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD), inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR), and simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers and two-way pseudotestcross mapping strategy. We selected 100 RAPD, 42 ISSR, and 9 SSR primers that amplified 517 markers, of which 188 (36.36%) showed a test-cross configuration, corresponding to the heterozygous condition in one parent and null in the other. Two separate female and male maps were constructed using 94 each of female-and male-specific testcross markers, containing 12 female linkage groups and 14 male linkage groups. At a minimum logarithm of the odds (LOD) score threshold of 6.0 and at a maximum map distance of 20 cM, the female map covered a 1,196.6-cM distance, with an average distance of 15.75 cM and maximum map distance of 37.9 cM between two loci; the male-specific map covered a 1,351.7-cM distance, with an average distance of 18.78 cM and a maximum map distance between two loci is of 34.7 cM. The markers distributed randomly in all linkage groups without any clustering. All 12 linkage groups in the female-specific map consisted of 4-10 loci ranging in length from 0 to 140.4 cM, and in the malespecific map, the 13 largest linkage groups (except linkage group 12, which contained three loci) consisted of 4-12 loci, ranging in length from 53.9 to 145.9 cM and accounting for 97.22% of the total map distance. When mapping, progeny pass through their juvenile phase and assume their adult characters, mapping morphological markers and identification of quantitative trait loci for adaptive traits will be the primary target. In that sense, our map provides reference information for future molecular breeding work on Morus and its relatives.

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Gut health plays an important role on production and performance of broilers. This trial was undertaken with an aim to evaluate the synergistic effect of probiotic, chicory root powder and coriander seed powder on the performance and gut health of broiler chicken. For this purpose, a total of 240 day-old broiler chicks were randomly allotted to six dietary treatments with 8 replicates of 5 birds in each. Treatment groups included T1 as control i.e., basal diet (BD) without any growth promoter and T2—BD + antibiotic (BMD 0.05%). In the remaining experimental diets, T3—probiotic (@ 0.01%) + chicory root powder (@ 1.0%), T4—probiotic (@ 0.01%) + coriander seed powder (@ 1.5%), T5—chicory root powder (@ 1.0%) + coriander seed powder (@ 1.5%) and T6—probiotic (@ 0.01%) + chicory root powder (@ 1.0%) + coriander seed powder (@ 1.5%). The results indicated that supplementation of probiotic + chicory (T3), probiotic + coriander (T4), chicory + coriander (T5) and probiotic + chicory + coriander (T6) in combination resulted in significantly (P<0.05) higher weight gain and better FCR compared to control and antibiotic groups at 42 d of age. Supplementation of different dietary groups did not show any significant (P>0.05) effect on feed intake of broilers. Supplementation of all the test diets (T3 to T6) significantly (P<0.05) increased the glutathione peroxidase (GSHPx), glutathione reductase (GSHRx) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) enzyme activity when compared to control and antibiotic groups at 42 d of age. Supplementation of all the test diets (T3 to T6) significantly (P<0.05) lowered the pH in the gut, increased Lactobacillus counts, and reduced E. coli and Salmonella counts in the ileum compared to control and antibiotic groups. Supplementation of all the test diets (T3 to T6) significantly (P<0.05) increased the villus height (VH), crypt depth (CD), VH:CD ratio and villus width (VW) in the duodenum and only VH and CD in the ileum compared to control and antibiotic groups. Significantly (P<0.05) higher jejunal VH and VW and increased the goblet cell number in duodenum, jejunum and ileum was recorded in all test diets (T3 to T6) compared to control and antibiotic groups. Therefore, combinations of probiotic (0.01%), chicory root powder (1.0%) and coriander seed powder (1.5%) can be used as feed additive for improving performance and gut health of broiler chicken.