Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology最新文献

{"title":"Multi-omics analysis reveals host-microbe interactions driving divergent energy allocation strategies in Tibetan sheep under cold-season feeding regimes","authors":"Xungang Wang, Qian Zhang, Tongqing Guo, Shanshan Li, Yuna Jia, Shixiao Xu","doi":"10.1186/s40104-025-01259-w","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40104-025-01259-w","url":null,"abstract":"As an indigenous livestock species on the Tibetan Plateau, Tibetan sheep exhibit remarkable adaptability to low temperatures and nutrient-scarce environments. During the cold season, Tibetan sheep are typically managed under two feeding regimes: barn feeding (BF) and traditional grazing (TG). However, the molecular mechanisms underlying their adaptation to these distinct management strategies remain unclear. This study aimed to investigate the adaptive strategies of rumen function in Tibetan sheep to cold-season feeding regimes by integrating analyses of rumen morphology, microbiome, metabolome, and transcriptome. Twelve healthy Tibetan sheep with similar body weights were assigned into two groups (BF vs. TG). At the end of the experiment, rumen tissues were subjected to histological observation. Multi-omics techniques were employed to evaluate the effects of cold-season feeding regimes on rumen function in Tibetan sheep. The ruminal papilla height, width, and muscular thickness were significantly higher in BF group. The relative abundances of Actinobacteria and Succiniclasticum were significantly elevated in the rumen of BF group, whereas Rikenellaceae, Gracilibacteria, and Lachnospiraceae showed higher abundances in the TG group. Metabolomic analysis identified 19 differential metabolites between the two groups, including upregulated compounds in BF group (fumaric acid, maltose, L-phenylalanine, and L-alanine) and TG group (e.g., phenylacetic acid, salicyluric acid and ferulic acid). These metabolites were predominantly enriched in phenylalanine metabolism, alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism, and phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis pathways. Additionally, 210 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in rumen epithelium: 100 upregulated DEGs in the BF group were enriched in nutrient metabolism-related pathways (e.g., fatty acid degradation and PPAR signaling pathway), while 110 upregulated DEGs in the TG group were associated with immune-related pathways (e.g., p53 signaling pathway and glutathione metabolism). Among these, we observed distinct rumen functional responses to different cold-season feeding regimes in Tibetan sheep and revealed energy allocation strategies mediated by host-microbe interactions. In the BF group, Tibetan sheep adopted a \"metabolic efficiency-priority\" strategy, driving rumen microbiota to maximize energy capture from high-nutrient diets to support host growth. In contrast, the TG group exhibited an \"environmental adaptation-priority\" strategy, where rumen microbiota prioritized cellulose degradation and anti-inflammatory functions, reallocating energy toward homeostasis maintenance at the expense of rumen development and growth performance.","PeriodicalId":14928,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"38 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144928014","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"LAPTM4B as a key regulator in the copper-induced endoplasmic reticulum–lysosome interplay disorder in duck liver and the protective role of baicalin","authors":"Hongyu Shang, Xueyan Dai, Jing Chen, Chenghong Xing, Xiaona Gao, Huabin Cao, Guoliang Hu, Haotang Li, Mingwen Hu, Fan Yang","doi":"10.1186/s40104-025-01255-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40104-025-01255-0","url":null,"abstract":"Copper (Cu) is a pervasive environmental pollutant with significant hepatotoxic effects in animals. The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) interacts closely with lysosomes to maintain intracellular homeostasis. However, the role and mechanism of ER-lysosome crosstalk in Cu-induced liver injury in ducks remains unclear. To investigate this, we established both an in vivo model of Cu-exposed ducks and an in vitro model of duck hepatocytes, and added baicalin (Ba) to further explore its protective effects. The results of this study demonstrated that exposure to Cu resulted in vacuolar degeneration and oxidative stress in duck hepatocytes, while ultrastructural observations revealed ER swelling and an increased number of autophagic lysosomes. Furthermore, Cu exposure significantly upregulated mRNA and protein levels related to ER stress, autophagy, and lysosomal membrane factors. It also markedly increased ER-lysosomal co-localization. Further experiments showed that knockdown of LAPTM4B significantly attenuated Cu-induced ER autophagy and reduced ER-lysosomal co-localization in hepatocytes. Molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulations confirmed that LAPTM4B has a stable binding site to Ba; in vitro experiments demonstrated that Ba could effectively alleviate Cu-induced ER-lysosome crosstalk in duck hepatocytes and reduce hepatocyte injury by targeting LAPTM4B; additionally, in vivo experiments showed that Ba significantly inhibits Cu-induced liver injury in ducks. In summary, the present study demonstrates that Cu exposure disrupts ER-lysosomal crosstalk in duck liver, leading to ER-lysosomal damage and subsequent hepatocyte injury. In contrast, Ba alleviates this injury by selectively targeting LAPTM4B, ultimately attenuating Cu-induced hepatotoxicity. ","PeriodicalId":14928,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"11 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144924038","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Bacillus velezensis MZ09 alleviates DSS-induced colitis in piglets by remodeling the intestinal microbiota activating the SCFAs–GPR43–STAT3 pathway and suppressing NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated pyroptosis","authors":"Zhengyi Wang, Xiuyu Fang, Zhihua Yu, Xiangyu Huo, Haiyang Liu, Yongqing Du, Baoming Shi","doi":"10.1186/s40104-025-01262-1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40104-025-01262-1","url":null,"abstract":"Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is closely associated with intestinal microbiota dysbiosis and metabolic dysfunction. The aim of this study was to explore the protective effects and mechanisms of the probiotic Bacillus velezensis MZ09, which produces branched-chain short-chain fatty acids (BSCFAs), against the dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis in piglets. In this study, a DSS-induced piglet colitis model was established to explore the impact of MZ09. Pretreatment with MZ09 significantly alleviated the symptoms of colitis in piglets. For example, the disease activity index (DAI) score decreased, the length of the colon was restored, and splenomegaly was alleviated. MZ09 enhanced intestinal barrier integrity by upregulating the expression of tight junction proteins such as Claudin-1, Occludin, and ZO-1. Using 16S rRNA analysis, we found that MZ09 could remodel the intestinal microbiota. MZ09 increased the abundance of beneficial bacteria such as Firmicutes and Lactobacillus while suppressing the growth of harmful bacteria such as Proteobacteria and Escherichia-Shigella. MZ09 also increased the levels of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in the colon. The increased SCFA content activated G-protein-coupled receptor 43 (GPR43), which increased the phosphorylation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) and promoted the production of the anti-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-10 (IL-10). Mechanistically, MZ09 mitigated mitochondrial damage via the STAT3/hypoxia-inducible factor 1α (HIF-1α) axis. This action inhibits nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain, leucine-rich repeat and pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome-mediated pyroptosis, thus reducing the release of the proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β and IL-18. B. velezensis MZ09 alleviates DSS-induced colitis in piglets through multiple pathways, including gut microbiota remodeling, SCFAs–GPR43–STAT3 axis activation, and NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated pyroptosis suppression. These findings provide a new theoretical basis for the development of targeted intervention strategies for IBD, suggesting that MZ09 represents a potentially promising therapeutic agent for IBD treatment. ","PeriodicalId":14928,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"13 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144915469","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Enzymatic cottonseed protein alleviates DSS-induced enteritis in juvenile yellow catfish (Pelteobagrus fulvidraco): focus on macrophage polarization and necroptosis in the intestine","authors":"Guangju Zhang, Xiaoqiu Zhou, Weidan Jiang, Pei Wu, Yang Liu, Yaobin Ma, Hongmei Ren, Xiaowan Jin, Weiwei Xiao, Ya Li, Lin Feng","doi":"10.1186/s40104-025-01248-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40104-025-01248-z","url":null,"abstract":"In intensive aquaculture systems, the frequent incidence of enteritis reduces production efficiency and results in significant economic losses. Protein feeds account for 40%–60% of aquafeed expenses, and with the growth of intensive aquaculture, demand for fishmeal as a key protein source outstrips supply, driving up prices. This study investigated the therapeutic potential of reducing dietary protein levels by 3% and adding enzymatic cottonseed protein (ECP) in juvenile yellow catfish with dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)-induced enteritis. A total of 1,260 healthy juvenile yellow catfish (Pelteobagrus fulvidraco), with an average body weight of 5.90 ± 0.05 g, were randomly allocated into 7 experimental groups, each with 3 replicates. The fish were fed one of seven diets for 10 weeks: a normal-protein diet (42%; NP) and 6 low-protein diets (39%; LP) supplemented with graded levels of ECP at 0% (ECP0), 1% (ECP1), 2% (ECP2), 3% (ECP3), 4% (ECP4), and 5% (ECP5), respectively. Subsequently, 48 fish from each group were selected to receive 1 mL of 6% DSS solution. Our findings demonstrated that: (1) The DSS + ECP0 group aggravated DSS-induced enteritis in juvenile yellow catfish compared to the DSS + NP group. (2) Dietary supplementation of ECP in LP diets significantly enhanced the enzymatic activity and levels of immunoreactive substances, including LZM, C3, C4, and ACP (P < 0.05). Mechanistically, first, ECP supplementation modulated macrophage polarization by inhibiting the M1 phenotype while promoting the M2 phenotype, potentially through the JAK-STAT signaling pathway; second, dietary ECP suppressed the phosphorylation cascade of key necroptosis-related proteins, including RIP1, RIP3, and MLKL, potentially via the NF-κB and MAPK signaling pathways. (3) The DSS + ECP2 group demonstrated comparable or superior efficacy to the DSS + NP group in mitigating DSS-induced intestinal enteritis. Our results demonstrated that ECP can alleviate DSS-induced enteritis by regulating macrophage polarization and reducing necroptosis. Furthermore, ECP supplementation effectively counteracted the exacerbation of enteritis caused by dietary protein reduction. These findings highlighted the effectiveness and feasibility of ECP in alleviating enteritis and saving protein. ","PeriodicalId":14928,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"26 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144900380","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A deep learning strategy for accurate identification of purebred and hybrid pigs across SNP chips","authors":"Zipeng Zhang, Zhengwen Fang, Yongwang Du, Yilin He, Changsong Qian, Weijian Ye, Ning Zhang, Jianan Zhang, Xiangdong Ding","doi":"10.1186/s40104-025-01249-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40104-025-01249-y","url":null,"abstract":"Breed identification plays an important role in conserving indigenous breeds, managing genetic resources, and developing effective breeding strategies. However, researches on breed identification in livestock mainly focused on purebreds, and they yielded lower predict accuracy in hybrid. In this study, we presented a Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) model with multi-output regression framework specifically designed for genomic breed composition prediction of purebred and hybrid in pigs. We utilized a total of 8,199 pigs from breeding farms in eight provinces in China, comprising Yorkshire, Landrace, Duroc and hybrids of Yorkshire × Landrace. All the animals were genotyped with 1K, 50K and 100K SNP chips. Comparing with random forest (RF), support vector regression (SVR) and Admixture, our results from five replicates of fivefold cross validation demonstrated that MLP achieved a breed identification accuracy of 100% for both hybrid and purebreds in 50K and 100K SNP chips, SVR performed comparable with MLP, they both outperformed RF and Admixture. In the independent testing, MLP yielded accuracy of 100% for all three pure breeds and hybrid across all SNP chips and panel, while SVR yielded 0.026%–0.121% lower accuracy than MLP. Compared with classification-based framework, the new strategy of multi-output regression framework in this study was helpful to improve the predict accuracy. MLP, RF and SVR, achieved consistent improvements across all six SNP chips/panel, especially in hybrid identification. Our results showed the determination threshold for purebred had different effects, SVR, RF and Admixture were very sensitive to threshold values, their optimal threshold fluctuated in different scenarios, while MLP kept optimal threshold 0.75 in all cases. The threshold of 0.65–0.75 is ideal for accurate breed identification. Among different density of SNP chips, the 1K SNP chip was most cost-effective as yielding 100% accuracy with enlarging training set. Hybrid individuals in the training set were useful for both purebred and hybrid identification. Our new MLP strategy demonstrated its high accuracy and robust applicability across low-, medium-, and high-density SNP chips. Multi-output regression framework could universally enhance prediction accuracy for ML methods. Our new strategy is also helpful for breed identification in other livestock.","PeriodicalId":14928,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"40 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144840132","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Fine mapping genetic variants affecting birth weight in sheep: a GWAS of 3007 individuals using low-coverage whole genome sequencing","authors":"Ran Li, Yuheng Bai, Maqiang Zhao, Xinyue Zhang, Haiyan Wang, Bo Feng, Shuo Zhang, Huanhuan Zhang, Gang Ren, Xihong Wang, Yu Jiang","doi":"10.1186/s40104-025-01251-4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40104-025-01251-4","url":null,"abstract":"Birth weight is a critical economic trait in livestock production. However, its genetic architecture remains poorly understood due to historical limitations in sample size and reliance on low-density SNP arrays. In this study, we utilized low-coverage whole-genome sequencing (lcWGS) to genotype 3,007 Hu sheep, bypassing the cost and resolution constraints of conventional genotyping arrays while achieving scalable genome-wide variant detection. LcWGS with high imputation accuracy (97.8% allelic concordance) enabled genome-wide association studies (GWAS) identifying two novel quantitative trait loci (QTLs) on chromosomes 6 and 9. The chromosome 9 QTL encompassed a regulatory region functionally linked to PLAG1 expression through expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) mapping. Compared with wild-type homozygotes, heterozygous carriers of the lead SNP (chr9:g.35920172A > G) presented a 9.85% increase in birth weight (3.35 kg vs. 3.68 kg; Δ = 0.33 kg). Notably, the derived allele of this SNP exhibited low frequencies of < 0.1 across most global sheep breeds except Dorper, highlighting its potential for selective breeding applications. Leveraging lcWGS data, haplotype-based fine-mapping prioritized three candidate causal variants. A secondary QTL on chromosome 6 colocalized with the FecB mutation, a well-established locus associated with increased litter size. Intriguingly, individuals carrying one FecB allele showed a 6.18% reduction (0.22 kg) in birth weight, which tentatively indicates potential pleiotropic influences on both growth and reproductive traits. This study demonstrates the utility of lcWGS as a cost-effective, high-resolution tool for dissecting complex traits in livestock. Our findings not only advance the understanding of birth weight genetics in sheep but also offer a blueprint for accelerating genetic improvement programs in global livestock production through cost-effective, genome-wide approaches.","PeriodicalId":14928,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"16 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144819231","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Genome-wide analyses reveal intricate genetic mechanisms underlying egg production efficiency in chickens","authors":"Lizhi Tan, Xinyu Cai, Yuan Kong, Zexuan Liu, Zilong Wen, Lina Bu, Yuzhan Wang, Xiaojun Liu, Zhiwu Zhang, Jianlin Han, Dandan Wang, Yiqiang Zhao","doi":"10.1186/s40104-025-01245-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40104-025-01245-2","url":null,"abstract":"Compared to many other vertebrates, chickens have a high reproductive efficiency in terms of egg production. The classic traits for evaluating egg-laying performance include age at first egg, egg number, clutch size, laying rate, etc. These egg-laying traits were not specifically designed to characterize egg production efficiency and stability. By considering the stage-specific variations in the egg production curve, this study aims to investigate the genetic mechanisms that directly influence the efficiency of egg production at each stage of the laying cycle. Using whole-genome sequencing data, we perform comprehensive genome-wide association study for 39 traits that focus on egg production efficiency and stability in the Gushi chicken. We showed that the haplotype-based approach is more effective for genetic mapping and capturing polygenic architecture. By combining the signals of Singleton Density Score (SDS), which is a population-genetic statistic designed to detect recent selection by leveraging the distribution of singletons, and association analyses, multiple egg-laying traits related to egg production efficiency were found to have experienced polygenic selection. Consistently, functional analysis of associated genes demonstrates that egg production efficiency benefits from multiple physiological functions. Furthermore, our results identified the CNNM2 gene, known for its role in magnesium homeostasis, plays a dual role in egg production variance, promoting variability during the up-stage while reducing it during the sustained-stage to optimize egg production efficiency. Collectively, our multiple genome analyses reveal a complex genetic mechanism underlying more efficient and stable egg production, and establish chicken genetics as a model for studying reproductive efficiency across species.","PeriodicalId":14928,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"36 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144819180","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Reducing crude protein content in the diet of lactating dairy cows improved nitrogen-use-efficiency and reduced N excretion in urine, whilst having no obvious effects on the rumen microbiome","authors":"Agalu W. Zeleke, Nicholas J. Dimonaco, Katie Lawther, Anna Lavery, Conrad Ferris, Jon Moorby, Sharon A. Huws","doi":"10.1186/s40104-025-01240-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40104-025-01240-7","url":null,"abstract":"Nitrogen-Use-Efficiency (NUE) in lactating dairy cows, defined as milk nitrogen (N) output as a proportion of N consumed, is low, with the majority of excess N excreted in manure. Excreted N can be lost to the environment as ammonia gas leading to environmental acidification and nutrient enrichment of sensitive habitats, and to watercourses contributing to aquatic eutrophication. While there is much evidence that NUE can be improved by reducing the crude protein (CP) content of dairy cow diets, the long-term impacts of feeding lower protein diets on cow performance and the rumen microbiome are less well understood. This study examined the effects of reducing the CP contents of dairy cow diets on cow performance, NUE, the relationship between NUE and residual feed intake (RFI), and the rumen microbiome. Dietary CP content did not affect feed intake, milk yield or milk composition (P > 0.05), except for milk urea N (MUN), which increased with increasing diet CP content (P < 0.05). The mean NUE was 34%, 34% and 31% for the LCP (low-protein, 15%), MCP (medium-protein, 16%), and HCP (high-protein, 17%) diets, respectively. RFI was negatively correlated with NUE (r = −0.57, P < 0.001). The rumen ammonia-N concentrations increased with increasing dietary CP; however, the ruminal pH and volatile fatty acid (VFA) content of the rumen fluid remained constant. Predicted urinary N excretion was greater in the HCP and MCP diets than in the LCP diet. Reducing dietary CP content in dairy cow diets did not affect microbial composition, diversity and functional profiles. The family Bacteroidaceae was more abundant in HE (high-efficiency) cows, whereas the Methanobacteriaceae and the genus Methanobrevibacter were more abundant in LE (low-efficiency) cows. Additionally, propanoate metabolism, cysteine and methionine metabolism and amino acid biosynthesis pathways were more abundant in HE cows, whilst the methane (CH4) metabolism pathway was upregulated in LE cows. The results demonstrate that diet CP can be reduced with no loss in cow performance, but with an associated reduction in N excretion. The abundance of microbial populations differed between low and high efficiency cows, which may contribute to the differences in efficiency observed. ","PeriodicalId":14928,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"95 1","pages":"113"},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144802797","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Lonicerae flos and turmeric extracts alleviate necrotic enteritis in broilers by modulating gut-liver health and microbiota","authors":"Xingbo Liu, Yunru Ji, Huiyuan Lv, Zhong Wang, Zengpeng Lv, Yuming Guo, Wei Nie","doi":"10.1186/s40104-025-01246-1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40104-025-01246-1","url":null,"abstract":"Necrotic enteritis (NE) can cause intestinal barrier dysfunction in broilers, leading to secondary liver injury (SLI). In this process, the gut-liver axis plays a crucial role. Lonicerae flos and turmeric extracts (LTE), containing chlorogenic acid and curcumin, have been reported to possess anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. Based on these potential biological benefits, this study aims to investigate the reparative effects of LTE on the intestinal barrier dysfunction in NE-infected broilers and assess its therapeutic efficacy in alleviating SLI. By elucidating the regulatory mechanisms of LTE on gut-liver axis health, this research provides new insights into the prevention and treatment of NE in broilers. LTE improved body weight and average daily gain while reducing intestinal lesion scores, coccidia oocysts, and Clostridium perfringens counts in NE broilers (P < 0.05). LTE enhanced intestinal morphology and up-regulated the expression of tight junction protein genes (CLDN1, TJP1) and MUC2, suppressed pro-inflammatory cytokine and myeloperoxidase (MPO) levels, and minimized endotoxin (ET) accumulation in NE broilers (P < 0.05). Furthermore, LTE alleviated oxidative stress in ileal cells and protected mitochondrial structure and function in NE broilers. NE infection induced intestinal permeability in broilers, leading to increased serum pro-inflammatory cytokines and intestinal-derived endotoxin levels, which caused liver damage. LTE significantly reduced liver pathologic damage, pro-inflammatory cytokine levels, aspartate transaminase, alanine aminotransferase, and ROS levels in NE broilers (P < 0.05). Additionally, 16S rRNA sequencing revealed that NE significantly increased the relative abundance of Barnesiella and decreased the relative abundance of Bacteroidota, Desulfobacterota and Bacteroides in the cecum of broilers. LTE enhanced intestinal microbiota diversity and reduced the segregation of intestinal microbiota induced by NE infection. In summary, LTE can alleviate NE and SLI by modulating the microbiota, inhibiting inflammation and oxidative stress, and ameliorating mitochondrial dysfunction, thereby enhancing gut-liver axis health and growth performance.","PeriodicalId":14928,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"52 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144797238","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Dietary inulin supplementation in early gestation regulates uterine fluid exosomes and angiogenesis to improve embryo implantation in sows","authors":"Junlei Chang, Xujing Pan, Wenyan Wei, Xuemei Jiang, Lianqiang Che, Yan Lin, Yong Zhuo, Bin Feng, Lun Hua, Jian Li, Jianping Wang, Mengmeng Sun, Xilun Zhao, Ruinan Zhang, De Wu, Shengyu Xu","doi":"10.1186/s40104-025-01247-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40104-025-01247-0","url":null,"abstract":"Embryo implantation in early gestation is crucial for reproductive success, while dietary fiber plays a key role in regulating sow fertility. However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. This study explores the influence of dietary inulin on embryonic implantation using a sow model. Sows were fed a diet supplemented with 11 g/kg of inulin during early gestation and were slaughtered on gestation day 19 (G19). Uterine fluid exosomes (UFEs) and endometrial tissues were collected for high-throughput sequencing and for analysis of the expression of angiogenesis-related genes and proteins, respectively. Furthermore, UFEs obtained from slaughtered sows were injected into G19 sows to investigate the effects on reproduction and angiogenesis. The results showed that inulin significantly increased the number of blood vessels in the endometrium and expression of the angiogenesis-related proteins MMP2 and ANGPT1 in G19 sows (P < 0.05). Bioinformatics analysis revealed that inulin significantly downregulated miRNAs associated with angiogenesis inhibition in UFEs, while upregulating miRNAs related to trophoblast physiological activities and regulation of the uterine fluid microenvironment (P < 0.05). Furthermore, intravenous injection of G19 sows with UFEs from sows fed a diet containing inulin had significantly promoted vascular formation in the endometrium and embryos, and increased the number of live embryos on gestation day 28 (G28) (P < 0.05). Additionally, the mRNA expression levels of MMP2, ANGPT1, and VEGF in the placentas of sows were significantly elevated on G28 and at farrowing in the UFEs injection group (P < 0.05). Dietary supplementation with inulin during early gestation in sows promoted embryo implantation by regulating angiogenesis at the maternal–fetal interface through the modulation of miRNA expression in UFEs. These findings provide a theoretical reference for the application of dietary fiber in sow nutrition.","PeriodicalId":14928,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"20 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.0,"publicationDate":"2025-08-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144778300","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}