Doboy, a Bosch Packaging Technology company, has introduced key fob technology to secure access to the control panel of packaging lines. The technology allows for numerous levels of security such that each user has an individualized level of access to the controls. Access levels for displays, data entry, control, monitoring and system operations can be configured on a machine-by-machine basis, customized to the requirements of different production environments. The technology is implemented using a fob format that can be carried on a key ring. The fob is touched to a magnetic reader to gain access to the control panel interface. www.doboy.com

The Evolum 25 (EV25) from Clextral, is an extruder designed for product testing, reliable scale up to production extruders and to assist petfood processors in developing new extruded products. This twin screw extruder is useful for producers looking to develop dry petfood, semi-moist nuggets, treats and premium petfood with a wide array of densities, textures, shapes and colors. The EV25 features a color touch screen control center, a push-button hydraulic barrel opening and screw profile changes. All recipes and operating results are fully accessible in a variety of formats for network backup or paper reporting. www.clextral.com

Neogen Corporation has been selected by the USDA to be licensed to manufacture a new culture medium called Campy-Cefex. Campy-Cefex provides a quicker, simpler way to detect and differentiate the pathogens Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli from other, relatively harmless members of the Campylobacter species, according to the company. The patented formulation uses only the antibiotics cycloheximide and cefoperazone, and has been shown by the USDA to both grow Campylobacter in a culture and repress the growth of most other organisms. Traditional enrichment methods require a 4-hour pre-enrichment step prior to inoculating media plates with sample cultures, but Campy-Cefex provides a “direct-to-plate” method, eliminating the pre-enrichment step. www.neogen.com

Amandus Kahl has recently introduced the Kahl Extruder, which is different from common, older model extruders because the die plate is fitted on a hydraulic piston. The die can be removed from the extruder outlet during operation. The handling of the machine is much less complicated compared to a normal extruder with a static die because of the easy start-up and quick pressure relief in case of blockages, according to the company. The extruder can also be supplied with steam jacketed barrel housing and friction discs. www.amandus-kahl-group.de

The mammalian intestinal tract is a nutrient-rich environment because it often lacks enzymes necessary to degrade certain food components. However, certain intestinal bacteria are useful for further metabolism of nutrients. Intestinal flora coevolved with its host and the selection was driven by the intestinal architecture (morphology and transit scheme) and dietary habits of the host. Different animal species have different typical profiles of intestinal bacterial populations.


Animals in general seem not to be able to hydrolyze beta-glycoside bonds, such as the chicory inulin beta-(2–1) bond. Chicory fructans were shown to be prebiotic, selectively interacting with intestinal bacterial ecosystem, in humans and in animals, including livestock and pets. This article describes how prebiotic feeding contributes to performance of livestock (pig, calf, horse, broiler, laying hen and fish) and to animal well-being—mainly pets but also livestock.

For many years, dietary arginine supplementation, often combined with other substances, has been used as a mechanism to boost the immune system. Considerable controversy, however, exists as to the benefits and indications of dietary arginine due in part to a poor understanding of the role played by this amino acid in maintaining immune function. Emerging knowledge promises to clear this controversy and allow for arginine's safe use.

In myeloid cells, arginine is mainly metabolized either by inducible nitric oxide (NO) synthases (iNOS) or by arginase 1, enzymes that are stimulated by T-helper 1 or 2 cytokines, respectively. Thus, activation of iNOS or arginase (or both) reflects the type of inflammatory response in a specific disease process. Myeloid suppressor cells (MSC) expressing arginase have been described in trauma (in both mice and humans), intra-abdominal sepsis, certain infections and cancer. Myeloid cells expressing arginase have been shown to accumulate in patients with cancer. Arginase 1 expression is also detected in mononuclear cells after trauma or surgery.


MSC efficiently deplete arginine and generate ornithine. Through arginine depletion, MSC may control NO production and regulate other arginine-dependent biological processes. Low circulating arginine has been documented in trauma and cancer, suggesting that MSC may exert a systemic effect and cause a state of arginine deficiency. Simultaneously, T lymphocytes depend on arginine for proliferation, zeta-chain peptide and T-cell receptor complex expression, and the development of memory. T-cells cocultured with MSC exhibit the molecular and functional effects associated with arginine deficiency. Not surprisingly, T-cell abnormalities, including decreased proliferation and loss of the zeta-chain, are observed in cancer and after trauma.

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