A 9-week feeding experiment was conducted to determine the dietary biotin requirement of Japanese seabass, Lateolabrax japonicus C. Six isonitrogenous and isoenergetic purified diets (Diets 1-6) containing 0, 0.01, 0.049, 0.247, 1.238 and 6.222 mg biotin kg )1 diet were fed twice daily to triplicate groups (30 fish per group) of fish (initial average weight 2.26 ± 0.03 g) in 18 fibreglass tanks (300 L) filled with 250 L of water in a flow-through system. Water flow rate through each tank was 2 L min )1 . Water temperature ranged from 25.0 to 28.0°C, salinity from 28.0 to 29.5 g L )1 , pH from 8.0 to 8.1 and dissolved oxygen content was approximately 7 mg L )1 during the experiment. After the feeding experiment, fish fed Diet 1 developed severe biotin deficiency syndromes characterized by anorexia, poor growth, dark skin colour, atrophy and high mortality. Significant lower survival (73.3%) was observed in the treatment of deficient biotin. The final weight and weight gain of fish significantly increased with increasing dietary biotin up to 0.049 mg kg )1 diet (P < 0.05), and then slightly decreased. Both feed efficiency ratio and protein efficiency ratio showed a very similar change pattern to that of weight gain. Dietary treatments did not significantly affect carcass crude protein, crude lipid, moisture and ash content. However, liver biotin concentration (0-6.1 lg g )1) significantly increased with the supplementation of dietary biotin (P < 0.05), and no tissue saturation was found within the supplementation scope of biotin. Broken-line regression analysis of weight gain showed that juvenile Japanese seabass require a minimum of 0.046 mg kg )1 biotin for maximal growth. KEY WORDS

Silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix) and bighead carp (Aristichthys nobilis) are two of the four most important pond-cultured fish species inhabiting the major river basins of China. In the present study, genetic maps of silver carp and bighead carp were constructed using microsatellite and AFLP markers and a two-way pseudo-testcross strategy. To create the maps, 60 individuals were obtained from a cross of a single bighead carp (female) and a single silver carp (male). The silver carp map consisted of 271 markers (48 microsatellites and 223 AFLPs) that were assembled into 27 linkage groups, of which 22 contained at least four markers. The total length of the silver carp map was 952.2 cM, covering 82.8% of the estimated genome size. The bighead carp map consisted of 153 markers (27 microsatellites and 126 AFLPs) which were organized into 30 linkage groups, of which 19 contained at least four markers. The total length of the bighead carp map was 852.0 cM, covering 70.5% of the estimated genome size. Eighteen microsatellite markers were common to both maps. These maps will contribute to discovery of genes and genetic regions controlling traits in the two species of carp.

For silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix), a combined microsatellite (or simple sequence repeat) and amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) sex average linkage map was constructed. A total of 483 markers (245 microsatellites and 238 AFLPs) were assigned to 33 linkage groups. The map spanned 1352.2 cM, covering 86.4% of the estimated genome size of silver carp. The maximum and average spaces between 420 loci were 21.5 cM and 3.2 cM, respectively. The length of linkage groups ranged from 3.6 cM to 98.5 cM with an average of 41.0 cM. The number of markers per group varied from 2 to 44 with an average of 14.6. The AFLP markers significantly improved the integrity of microsatellite-based linkage groups and increased the genome coverage and marker evenness. A genome-wide recombination suppression was observed in male. In an extreme case, six microsatellites co-segregated in male, but spanned a 45.1 cM region in female.

Aims Probiotics and plant extracts have been used to prevent the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The study aimed to explore the effect of the interaction between potential probiotics and bitter gourd extract (BGE) or mulberry leaf extract (MLE) on T2DM. Methods and Results Potential probiotics were tested for their gastrointestinal tract viability and growth situation combined with BGE and MLE in vitro. The diabetes model was constructed in C57BL/6 mice, and the potential effect and mechanism of regulating blood glucose were verified. Hematoxylin‐eosin staining (HE), gas chromatography (GC), ELISA, and RT‐PCR were also used for analysis. The results showed that Lactobacillus casei K11 had outstanding gastrointestinal tract viability and growth situation with plant extracts. Administration of L. casei K11 combined with BGE and MLE significantly reduced blood glucose levels and ameliorated insulin resistance in diabetic mice than the administration of Lactobacillus paracasei J5 combined with BGE and MLE. Moreover, in L. casei K11 combined with BGE and MLE groups, lipid metabolism, oxidative stress, and proinflammatory cytokine levels were regulated. Furthermore, the results indicated that L. casei K11 combined with BGE and MLE improved free fatty acid receptor 2 (FFAR2) upregulation, glucagon‐like peptide‐1 (GLP‐1) secretion, and short‐chain fatty acid (SCFA) levels. Conclusions These findings showed that L. casei K11 combined with BGE and MLE modified the SCFA–FFAR2–GLP‐1 pathway to improve T2DM. Significance and Impact of the Study This study identified a new modality for evaluating interactions between potential probiotics and plant extracts. Our findings revealed that L. casei K11 combined with BGE and MLE significantly promoted the SCFA–FFAR2–GLP‐1 pathway to inhibit T2DM.

Aims: Infantile eczema, usually coupled with a range of hypersensitive phenotypes, has come into notice with its rising prevalence and unclear pathogenesis. Recent studies show close ties between eczema and an infant's intestinal flora. To gain a further understanding of the interactions between microbiota and eczema, we studied the breast milk flora as a new factor and present the links among breast milk flora, infant intestinal flora and infantile eczema through a cohort study in Northeast China. Methods and Results: Fifty-two families were recruited with either an eczema or healthy infant younger than 6 months. Analysis and predictions using amplicon sequencing of microbiota found that Bifidobacterium and Bacteroidetes were enriched in healthy and eczema infant stools, respectively, consistent with previous reports. For breast milk flora, more 'positive' bacteria such as Akkermansia were enriched in breast milk from healthy infants' mothers. Further, higher bacterial delivery efficiencies were found in pairs of breast milk flora and infants' stool flora of families with eczema infants compared with families with healthy infants. Bacteroidetes, a widely known indicator of eczema, was found delivered more in eczema pairs. Further metagenomic predictions revealed that the breast milk microbiota participated significantly less in metabolism and immune system pathways, particularly in antigen processing and presentation and in Th17 cell-related pathways. Conclusions: In conclusion, as with other components of breast milk, the breast milk microbiota closely associates with infants' health via mother-infant bacterial delivery and metabolic functions. Significance and Impact of the Study: Our research aimed to fill the gap between the eczema and breast milk flora and describe the connections among breast milk and intestinal flora and eczema.