“Substances contained in milk thistle seeds have a potential effect on mitigating or preventing the negative effects of physical activity on the body, they can also positively affect energy metabolism during the physical activity of sport horses,” said Hana Dočkalová from the Faculty of AgriSciences at Mendel University in Brno.
Scientists have not yet studied the relationship between milk thistle and physical activity in sport horses in detail. If they show a positive effect of one of the most frequently grown herbs on the equine organism, this opens the way to the application of a similar procedure to other animals or humans. The advantage of this method of treatment is the low incidence of health problems and reduced performance.
Extracts of milk thistle seeds are used in the treatment of toxic-metabolic liver damage and chronic diseases of this organ. The most important ingredients are comprehensively known as silymarin. Its correct dosing for horses is now being tested by scientists. “As part of an objective assessment of the results, this year we are using a fitness watch system with GPS and chest straps for the first time, which allows us to monitor the heart rate of horses,” said Dočkalová.
Milk thistle is currently used in pharmacology, as a dietary supplement in animals, especially to increase daily weight gain or in veterinary medicine. This herb is the second most frequently grown in the Czech Republic after cumin on an area of about 2,000 hectares. Thanks to scientists from MENDELU, it will now probably be used for other uses.
The three-year scientific project is funded by the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic and will end in 2022. The outputs of the project will be based on experimental administration of milk thistle expellers in feed mixture in correlation with blood biochemical parameters depending on the physical load of horses.
Contact for more information: Ing. Hana Dočkalová, Department of Animal Nutrition and Forage Production FA, phone.: +420 773 996 710, e-mail: hana.dockalova@mendelu.cz
More news
-
Landscape architecture students have advanced to the semi-finals of the international Streetlife Design Competition. A mixed team from the Faculty of Horticulture at MENDELU and the Faculty of Architecture at BUT worked on a design located on the…23. 3. 2023
-
The new Water in the Landscape Training Centre organises Water days: an…
At the end of January, the Water in the Landscape Training Centre was established at Mendel University in Brno. Its aim is to promote innovative approaches in water management education. This week, the centre is organising Water Days, an event that…21. 3. 2023 -
The LIFE WILD WOLF project seeks a balance between wolves and humans in Europe…
Understanding the interactions between humans and wolves in the cultural European landscape and preventing potential critical situations is the aim of a unique international project launched by Mendel University in Brno. A large multidisciplinary…14. 3. 2023 -
The research team from MENDELU will analyze the role of women in rural life
Mendel University in Brno is part of a European project that will focus on the empowerment of women in agriculture and rural life in ten countries. The three-year Horizon project, funded by the European Commission, will combine different research…28. 2. 2023 -
Although they feel safe in the Czech Republic, in their minds the employees are…
The war in Ukraine has been going on for almost a year now. Russia invaded it on 24 February last year. Mendel University has been involved in helping from the very beginning. Seven Ukrainian scientists with refugee status have found employment at…24. 2. 2023 -
University Masaryk Forest donates 100 trees to the Masaryk Forest in Israel as…
The benefit evening was attended by representatives of the School Forestry Enterprise and the Faculty of Forestry and Wood. "The trees are a symbolic link between the two forests that bear the name of President Liberator. In this connection, we…9. 2. 2023 -
Academic kindergarten Hrášek is celebrating ten years
Hrášek Kindergarten for the children of employees and students of the Mendel University in Brno has been operating for ten years. The kindergarten opened on February 1, 2013, with two classes with a capacity of forty children. Due to great interest…1. 2. 2023 -
Microalgae could be used in space for the production of biofuel, water…
The effects of cosmic radiation and UV radiation on the survival and growth of microalgae are being investigated by scientists from the Faculty of Agriculture of the Mendel University in Brno. Last year, experts sent a probe into the stratosphere…18. 1. 2023 -
Scientists are looking for solutions to feed big cities
Scientists from the Mendel University in Brno will participate in a European project to respond to major global changes in society. Most of the population is now moving to big cities and the question of how to feed these cities arises. The project,…13. 1. 2023 -
MENDELU scientists participate in the protection of the French Nature Park…
At the French archaeological excavation site of Bibracte, scientists from the Institute of Geology and Pedology of LDF MENDELU participate in European research. Their goal is to propose suitable measures for the protection and adaptation of the…9. 1. 2023