The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of osteocalcin ( OCN ) on fatty liver hemorrhagic syndrome ( FLHS ) in aged laying hens. Thirty 68-week-old White Plymouth laying hens were randomly assigned into conventional single-bird cages, and the cages were randomly allocated into one of 3 treatments (n = 10): normal diet (ND + vehicle, ND + V ), high-fat diet (HFD + vehicle, HFD + V ), and HFD + OCN (3 μg/bird, 1 time/2 d, i.m.) for 40 d. At day 30, oral glucose tolerance tests ( OGTT ) and insulin tolerance tests ( ITT ) were performed. At the end of experiment, the hens were euthanized followed by blood collection. The plasma aspartate transaminase ( AST ), alkaline phosphatase ( ALP ), total cholesterol ( TC ), triglyceride ( TG ), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol ( LDL-C ), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ( HDL-C ) were measured using an automatic biochemistry analyzer. Pathological changes in the liver were examined under both light and transmission electron microscopes. The plasma inflammatory factors including interleukin-1 ( IL-1 ), IL-6, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha ( TNF-α ) were analyzed by ELISA, and the gene expressions of these inflammatory factors in the liver were analyzed by real-time PCR. The level of oxidative stress was evaluated using malondialdehyde ( MDA ) and glutathione peroxidase ( GSH-Px ) assay kits, respectively. The results showed that HFD + V hens had more severe liver hemorrhage and fibrosis than ND + V hens ( P < 0.05). The ultramicrostructural examination showed that hepatocytes of HFD + V hens exhibited necrotic pyknosis showing great intracellular electron, mitochondrial swelling, shrunk nucleus, and absence of autolysosomes. Osteocalcin mitigated HFD + V–induced pathological changes in aged laying hens. High-fat diet + OCN hens had higher insulin sensitivity; lower liver concentrations of MDA ( P = 0.12) but higher GSH-Px ( P < 0.05); and lower blood TNF-α concentrations ( P < 0.05) and mRNA expressions ( P < 0.05) than HFD + V hens. These results suggest OCN functions in preventing the FLHS process in old laying hens through inhibiting excessive energy diet-induced metabolic disorder, oxidative stress, and related pathological damage.

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A new poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) membrane ion-selective electrode based on bis-salicyladehydediaminjodipropylamine (BSDDA) as an ion carrier was successfully applied to the detection of Hg 2+ ions. This electrode displayed good selectivity toward Hg 2+ in comparison with other metal ions and exhibited a Nernstian slope of 30.5 ± 0.4 mV per decade of Hg 2+ over a concentration range of 9.5´10 -7 to 6.4´10 -2 M of Hg 2+ in the pH range 1.5 to 3.5. The detection limit was 7.0 ± 0.2´10 -7 M and response time was about 10 s to 25 s. The electrode can be used at least 2 months without apparent divergence in potential. In addition, the effects of experimental parameters such as membrane composition, nature and amounts of plasticizer and additive were investigated. The proposed electrode could be used as an indicator electrode in the detection of Hg 2+ in samples.

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