The effects of different levels of natural clay enterosorbent on the growth, nutrient availability, and genital organs of post-weaning female pigs fed with an addition of zearalenone (ZEA) were investigated in the study. A total of thirty-five post-weaning gilts (L×Y×D) with an average body weight of 12.36±1.46 kg were used in the test. The gilts were raised individually in metabolism cages and fed a corn-soybean meal-whey basal diet with an addition of 0 or 1 mg/kg of ZEA for 24 d with four levels of natural clay enterosorbent added in the feed. The treatments were: i) control; ii) control+2.5 g/kg clay; iii) control+1 mg/kg ZEA; iv) control+1 mg/kg ZEA+1.25 g/kg clay; v) control+1 mg/kg ZEA+2.5 g/kg clay; vi) control+1 mg/kg ZEA+5.0 g/kg clay; vii) control+1 mg/kg ZEA +10 g/kg clay. Pigs fed diets contaminated with additional purified ZEA had significantly reduced apparent digestibility of crude protein (CP), gross energy (GE) and apparent metabolic rate of GE (ME/GE, p<0.05) without changes of net protein utilization (NPU, p>0.05). Final body weight, average daily gain (ADG), average daily feed intake (ADFI), vulva length, vulva width, vulva area, relative weights of genital organ and proliferative changes of the ovary tissues in gilts fed ZEA-contaminated diet were increased (p<0.05) compared to the gilts fed the control diet. Addition of natural clay enterosorbent in the ZEA-contaminated diet showed a positive protection effect on ZEA feeding, and the protection was increased linearly or quadratically as clay content increased. However, in pigs fed a diet with clay alone at 2.5 g/kg level there was no significant impact (p>0.05) on all the parameters as compared to the control. It is suggested that feeding ZEA at about 1.0 mg/kg for 24 days might result in a deleterious effect in pigs, and addition of 5 or 10 g clay enterosorbent per kg diet can effectively neutralize the detrimental effects of the ZEA feeding.

Groundwater at many military factory, munition storage and maneuver sites is contaminated by explosives chemicals that were released into the subsurface. The 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) is among the most common explosive pollutants. In this study, two TNT-degrading strains, isolated from TNT-contaminated soils and wastewater sludge, were applied for TNT biodegradation. Based on the 16S rDNA sequence analyses, these two bacterial strains were identified as Achromobacter sp. and Klebsiella sp. via biochemical and DNA analyses. Microcosm study was conducted to evaluate the feasibility and efficiency of TNT biodegradation under aerobic conditions. Results indicate that TNT degradation by-products were detected in microcosms (inoculated with Achromobacter sp. and Klebsiella sp.) with cane molasses addition. Klebsiella sp. and Achromobacter sp. used TNT as the nitrogen source and caused completely removal of TNT. Two possible TNT biodegradation routes could be derived: (1) part of the TNT was transformed to nitrotoluene then transformed to nitrobenzene followed by the nitro substitute process, and trinitrobenzene, dinitrobenzene, and nitrobenzene were detected; and (2) TNT was transformed via the nitro substitute mechanism, and dinitrotoluene followed by nitrotoluene isomers were detected. The initial TNT degradation involved the reduction or removal of the nitro substitute to an amino derivative or free nitrite. Results show that the second route was the dominant TNT biodegradation pathway. The produced by-products were also degraded without significant accumulation during the degradation process. These findings would be helpful in designing a practical system inoculated with isolated TNT degradation strains for the treatment of TNT-contained groundwater.