Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology最新文献

{"title":"Rotavirus infection induces ferroptosis through NCOA4-mediated ferritinophagy in IPEC-J2 cells.","authors":"Ye Zhao, Xia Dong, Qingyuan Lan, Luqian She, Yongsheng Hu, Lei Chen, Mailin Gan, Lili Niu, Yan Wang, Xiaofeng Zhou, Linyuan Shen, Li Zhu","doi":"10.1186/s40104-026-01457-0","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40104-026-01457-0","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Rotavirus (RV) infection damages mature intestinal epithelial cells and is a leading cause of severe diarrhea in infants and young animals. However, the host cell death pathways involved in RV infection remain incompletely understood. This study used an RV-infected IPEC-J2 cell model and integrated transcriptomic, proteomic, and functional assays to investigate whether RV infection is associated with ferroptosis and NCOA4-mediated ferritinophagy.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>High-throughput sequencing and data-independent acquisition (DIA)-based quantitative proteomic analysis showed enrichment of ferroptosis, autophagy, and cell death-related signaling pathways after RV infection. Functional assays showed that RV infection was associated with intracellular Fe²⁺ accumulation and lipid peroxidation. The ferroptosis inducer (erastin) increased VP6 expression, whereas the ferroptosis inhibitor (Fer-1) attenuated this effect. NCOA4, a ferritinophagy receptor, was upregulated after RV infection. NCOA4 knockdown reduced RV-associated Fe²⁺ accumulation, ROS production, ferritin degradation-related changes, and VP6 expression, whereas NCOA4 overexpression enhanced these responses. The autophagy inhibitor (3-MA) and the lysosomal blocker (CQ) attenuated RV-associated ferroptosis markers and VP6 expression, consistent with involvement of the autophagy-lysosome pathway in ferritin turnover.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>These findings support a model in which RV infection promotes ferroptosis-associated changes and VP6 expression through NCOA4-mediated ferritinophagy in IPEC-J2 cells. As this study was performed in vitro and did not directly measure epithelial transport, barrier function, infectious viral yield, or diarrheal outcomes, further in vivo studies are needed to determine the contribution of this pathway to RV pathogenesis.</p>","PeriodicalId":64067,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"17 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13317329/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148354816","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Lactate in ruminant health: metabolic roles and the emerging significance of lactylation.","authors":"Xiao Li, Maocheng Jiang, Yinghao Huang, Dian Wang, Jianbo Cheng","doi":"10.1186/s40104-026-01442-7","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40104-026-01442-7","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In ruminants, lactate metabolism is closely integrated with rumen fermentation, metabolic adaptation, and redox homeostasis under both physiological and pathological conditions. Under metabolic stress, alterations in lactate production, transport, and utilization may support tissue adaptation, but may also contribute to metabolic dysfunction and disease. As an emerging epigenetic modification, lactylation has been proposed as a mechanistic link between lactate metabolism and gene regulation, with lactate serving as a putative precursor. In this review, we summarize the dual roles of lactate in ruminant health and stress responses, evaluate the feasibility of lactate as a precursor for lactylation, and discuss the potential mechanisms and biological significance of lactylation in metabolic regulation and disease pathogenesis. Because direct evidence in ruminants remains limited, findings from non-ruminant models are considered only where they provide relevant mechanistic support. Overall, this review highlights current knowledge, major uncertainties, and key priorities for future mechanistic studies of lactate metabolism and lactylation in ruminants.</p>","PeriodicalId":64067,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"17 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13312736/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148347506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A scalable framework for single-cell eQTL mapping uncovers genetic regulators of meat production traits in pigs.","authors":"Qiqi Zhang, Qi Bao, Lingsen Zeng, Zhicheng He, Zhen Wang, Cong Li, Guoqiang Yi","doi":"10.1186/s40104-026-01452-5","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40104-026-01452-5","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Genetic determinants that regulate molecular phenotypes and complex traits often act in a highly context-dependent manner, and the underlying cell-type-specific regulatory mechanisms remain incompletely understood.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>In this study, we analyzed 42 single-cell and single-nucleus RNA sequencing (sc/snRNA-seq) datasets from pig skeletal muscle. Through systematic benchmarking, we optimized a robust workflow for SNP calling and genotype imputation tailored to sc/snRNA-seq data, achieving high accuracy and computational efficiency. We constructed a comprehensive single-cell atlas of skeletal muscle that delineates cellular components and developmental trajectories, and identified 5,020 significant single-cell expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs). By integrating phenotypic data from the PigGTEx project and performing phenome-wide association studies (PheWAS), we further pinpointed three candidate loci significantly associated with meat quality and growth traits whose effects were dependent on cell type.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This work offers a scalable computational framework for single-cell eQTL mapping and characterizes cell-type-specific associations between genetic variation and gene expression relevant to economically important traits in livestock, thereby providing functional context in particular for non-coding variants implicated by GWAS and helping to inform genomic selection and precision genome editing.</p>","PeriodicalId":64067,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"17 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13310442/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148340950","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Impact of increasing market pig weights in North America: a comprehensive review.","authors":"Justice Bless Dorleku, Isaac Hyeladi Malgwi, Tawanda Tayengwa, Benjamin Mark Bohrer, Marcio de Souza Duarte, Ángela Cánovas, Luigi Faucitano, Manuel Juárez","doi":"10.1186/s40104-026-01453-4","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40104-026-01453-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The North American swine industry is shifting towards raising pigs to heavier weights, partly due to the potential for higher profitability for pork processors. However, producers may incur losses due to feed and transportation costs associated with heavy-weight pigs. In some cases, these animals can fall outside grid-based grading specifications, resulting in discounts for carcasses that are too heavy or too lean/too fat. Furthermore, increasing weight raises concerns regarding nutritional requirements, feed efficiency, environmental sustainability, welfare issues, carcass composition, chilling rate, meat quality, and implications for genomic selection. Variation exists for growth performance traits and carcass composition across genotypes. In this review, we summarise the biological, physiological, and genetic mechanisms underlying the effect of increasing weight in contemporary pig production. A comprehensive understanding of animal performance, animal welfare, carcass traits and genetic regulations in heavy-weight pigs will be significant for refining breeding goals, precision feeding strategies and handling practices.</p>","PeriodicalId":64067,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"17 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13309961/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148340993","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A microbial consortium constructed with gut microbes of Chinese native chicken breeds protects chicks against Salmonella infection.","authors":"Yimei Feng, Meihong Zhang, Fengwenhui Zhang, Guanyu Hou, Jinxin Zhang, Shuran Zhao, Yuqing Feng, Dan Liu, Dahai Xu, Yongfei Hu","doi":"10.1186/s40104-026-01447-2","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40104-026-01447-2","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The gut microbiota plays a crucial role in protecting chickens against colonization by enteric pathogens, such as Salmonella. Native chickens, including Wenchang chicken and Danzhou chicken, harbor a highly diverse gut microbiota, which may contain anti-pathogenic strains. This study aimed to construct a microbial consortium from these native chicken breeds and evaluate its efficacy in protecting chicks from Salmonella infection.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A collection of 273 bacterial strains, representing 61 species, was isolated from the cecal digesta of Wenchang chicken and Danzhou chicken. From this collection, 29 strains were identified as exhibiting in vitro inhibitory activity against the indicator pathogens. Genomic analysis of the constituent strains in consortium BL6 revealed the genetic potential for producing antimicrobial peptides and secondary metabolites, suggesting a mechanistic basis for the inhibition. In a chick model challenged with S. Typhimurium, BL6 mitigated intestinal damage by promoting crypt restoration, enhanced barrier function, and enriched Lactobacillus, collectively contributing to improved intestinal health.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>These findings underscore the potential of a microbial consortium derived from the gut microbes of native chickens in combating Salmonella infection. This research offers valuable insights for developing innovative strategies to prevent and treat pathogen infections in broilers.</p>","PeriodicalId":64067,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"17 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13307419/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148335054","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Multi-omics analysis reveals Parabacteroides distasonis and Kineothrix alysoides as potential key bacterial species associated with anemia in sows.","authors":"Lingling Sun, Nan Chen, Yunbo Yang, Rui Chen, Yanming Cheng, Yan Chen, Xianghua Yan","doi":"10.1186/s40104-026-01443-6","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40104-026-01443-6","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Sow anemia has been reported to be associated with reduced reproductive performance. Additionally, anemia may alter gut microbiota composition. However, the gut microbiota and metabolic signatures specifically linked to sow anemia status remain poorly understood.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Compared with normal sows, anemic sows had lower hemoglobin levels at gestational days 30, 90, and 110 (P < 0.0001). The litter size (16.68 vs. 17.13), live litter size (14.34 vs. 15.13), healthy litter size (13.40 vs. 14.36), and litter weight (18.77 vs. 19.50) of anemic sows were lower than normal sows, but there was no significant difference. Iron transport-related genes showed that placental ferritin expression was significantly higher in normal sows than in anemic sows (P = 0.003). Serum antioxidant analysis showed that total antioxidant capacity was significantly lower in anemic sows than in normal sows at gestational days 90 (P = 0.026) and 110 (P = 0.017). Superoxide dismutase activity was significantly lower in anemic sows than in normal sows at gestational day 90 (P = 0.004) and showed a decreasing trend at gestational day 110 (P = 0.072). Fecal 16S rRNA analysis revealed distinct gut microbiota compositions between normal and anemic sows. Untargeted metabolomics showed distinct intergroup separation, with significant enrichment of the cytochrome P450 pathway at gestational days 30 and 110 (P < 0.05). Furthermore, multiple bacterial taxa showed significant positive correlations with hemoglobin levels, including Christensenella hongkongensis, Gimesia aquarii, Shigella dysenteriae, Massiliimalia massiliensis, Kineothrix alysoides, Mediterraneibacter gnavus, Parabacteroides distasonis, and Treponema sp. Marseille-Q3903 (P < 0.05).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This study reveals the gut microbial and metabolic characteristics between normal and anemic sows. Two key bacterial species, P. distasonis and K. alysoides, were identified as associated with anemia status in sows.</p>","PeriodicalId":64067,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"17 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13295343/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148320532","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Apple pomace and hempseed cake can reduce methane intensity (CH₄/DMI) and alter the rumen microbiome in dairy cows: a shotgun metagenomic approach.","authors":"Abdolvahab Ebrahimpour Gorji, Benchu Xue, Tianhai Yan, Tomasz Sadkowski, Xianjiang Chen, Omar Cristobal-Carballo, Steven Morrison, Vahid Razban, Laurence Smith, Sokratis Stergiadis, Katerina Theodoridou, Masoud Shirali","doi":"10.1186/s40104-026-01448-1","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40104-026-01448-1","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>With growing attention to environmental impacts, the dairy sector is increasingly focused on implementing strategies that lower methane emissions and enhance sustainability while maintaining productivity and economic viability. Utilizing agro-industrial by-products as alternative feed ingredients supports circular economy goals, lowers feed costs, and may benefit rumen fermentation and environmental performance in dairy cows.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Forty-five mid-lactation Holstein cows were assigned to three diets, Control, Apple Pomace (AP), or Hempseed Cake (HC) for 24 d. Feed intake, milk yield, rumen fermentation, methane emissions, and nutrient use were measured. Rumen samples underwent shotgun metagenome sequencing and bioinformatics analysis to assess microbial and functional changes.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Values are reported as mean ± SEM. Shotgun metagenomic sequencing revealed that both supplements significantly increased the relative abundance of Bacteroidota (AP: 56.7% ± 2.8%, P = 0.032; HC: 54.5% ± 3.4%, P = 0.048) compared to the Control (48.2% ± 3.1%). Concurrently, Bacillota (formerly Firmicutes) abundance decreased, significantly reducing the Bacillota/Bacteroidota ratio (formerly the Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio) from 0.81 ± 0.06 (Control) to 0.58 ± 0.05 for AP (P = 0.012) and 0.64 ± 0.05 for HC (P = 0.034). Functional analysis showed that AP increased the abundance of Segatella bryantii (2.1-fold, P < 0.01), associated with a 1.52-fold enrichment in propionate metabolism pathways (P = 0.019). Phenotypically, AP significantly reduced the acetate-to-propionate ratio (AP: 2.41 vs. Control: 4.50; P = 0.0075) and methane emissions per unit of dry matter intake (CH₄/DMI) (AP: 20.33 vs. Control: 24.27 g/kg; P = 0.016). HC supplementation upregulated fiber-degrading taxa such as Xylanibacter ruminicola (1.6-fold) and enriched xylanase families (GH10: 1.58-fold, P = 0.035), alongside a significant reduction in methane intensity (CH₄/DMI). Total methane output, feed intake, and milk yield were not significantly changed by treatments (P > 0.05).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>In this short-term (24-d) controlled feeding study in mid-lactation Holstein cows, AP and HC were associated with distinct microbial and functional shifts alongside lower methane intensity, with AP linked to propanoate-related signals and HC to fiber-degrading functions; however, ruminal H₂ concentration and methanogenesis/hydrogen-metabolism markers were not quantified, so the proposed mechanisms should be interpreted as plausible inferences rather than direct physiological evidence.</p>","PeriodicalId":64067,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"17 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13292333/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148310461","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Engineered Bacillus subtilis for high-yield nattokinase production and therapeutic potential in obesity management.","authors":"Yilin Liu, Lei Zhu, Tingyu Yao, Yanfeng Wang, Chunyan Xie, Le Gao","doi":"10.1186/s40104-026-01438-3","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40104-026-01438-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Nattokinase (NK), a serine protease renowned for its thrombolytic activity, holds immense promise for addressing cardiovascular diseases and metabolic disorders. However, its clinical and industrial translation has been severely hampered by low yields in conventional expression systems, which rely on inefficient solid-state fermentation or suboptimal recombinant platforms. Meanwhile, the global burden of obesity and its associated cardiovascular diseases remain prominent. To this end, implementing a fed-batch fermentation strategy for precise nutrient control is a critical approach to breaking through yield bottlenecks and achieving high-density NK production. Meanwhile, introducing in vivo animal model studies enables a more systematic evaluation of the actual therapeutic efficacy and mechanisms of recombinant NK in improving lipid metabolism and alleviating cardiovascular complications.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>First, we engineered a robust recombinant Bacillus subtilis strain (T3) by harnessing a strong constitutive promoter (Pspovg) and a dual-reporter system (NK-eGFP fusion), enabling real-time monitoring of protein expression. This platform achieved a groundbreaking NK activity of 1.18 × 10⁵ U/mL in shake-flask cultures, surpassing traditional fermentation methods by over threefold. Second, through fed-batch optimization in a 5-L bioreactor, we developed a scalable production protocol that delivered a peak NK activity of 4.19 × 10⁵ U/mL, marking a 61% enhancement over wild-type strains and setting a new paradigm for cost-effective industrial-scale manufacturing. Third, comprehensive animal studies revealed NK's previously unappreciated metabolic versatility: dietary supplementation (10,000 U/kg BW) in high-fat diet-fed mice not only attenuated obesity-related phenotypes including body weight gain, adiposity, and dyslipidemia, but also restored gut microbiota homeostasis by reversing the dysregulated Bacteroidetes/Firmicutes ratio and enriching taxa implicated in metabolic health.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>These findings collectively establish NK as a multifunctional enzyme with applications extending beyond its well-known thrombolytic properties to include metabolic syndrome management. The study provides both a theoretical foundation and practical methodology for large-scale NK production while expanding the therapeutic potential in obesity management. By integrating advances in genetic engineering, fermentation technology, and physiological evaluation, this work represents a significant step forward in harnessing microbial enzymes for therapeutic purposes.</p>","PeriodicalId":64067,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"17 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13289328/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148304185","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Comparative lipidomics and volatile profiling reveal distinct aroma signatures in Arbas cashmere goat meat from grazing and housed feeding systems.","authors":"Chengrui Zhang, Xin Du, Dingkun Fan, Jixian Zhang, Aoyu Wang, Zhihao Song, Pei Zhong, Rong Bai, Qiyu Diao, Naifeng Zhang","doi":"10.1186/s40104-026-01423-w","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40104-026-01423-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Feeding patterns significantly influence goat meat aroma profiles, which are closely related to muscle lipid composition. This relationship is especially significant for indigenous breeds like the Arbas cashmere goat, whose distinctive meat aroma has been traditionally recognized. Despite the known correlation between lipid metabolism and aroma formation, the specific mechanisms by which grazing vs. housed feeding systems modulate these processes in indigenous goat breeds remain poorly characterized. This study employed a comparative approach using integrated foodomics and lipidomics to investigate aroma profiles and lipid compositions in the longissimus thoracis et lumborum (LTL) muscle of Arbas cashmere goats raised under contrasting grazing and housed feeding systems.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The volatile profile suggests that fruity and milky notes primarily characterized the aroma of the LTL muscle in Arbas cashmere goats. However, notable differences were observed between grazing and housed feeding goats in terms of their aroma profiles. (Z)-4-Heptenal, ethyl hexanoate, ethyl decanoate, ethyl octanoate, ethyl acetate and ethyl 3-methylbutyrate were identified as key contributors to meat aroma. Differences in intramuscular fat, triglycerides, and phospholipid content were also detected between groups. Lipidomics analysis identified 1,465 lipid species, among which PC (15:0/22:6) was uniquely involved in glycerophospholipid metabolism, arachidonic acid metabolism and α-linolenic acid metabolism pathways, suggesting a central role in the synthesis of aroma-related compounds.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>These findings demonstrate that feeding systems modulate meat flavor through lipid metabolism pathways, particularly via differential accumulation of key aroma volatiles and targeted alterations in glycerophospholipid metabolism, providing a scientific basis for optimizing housed feeding strategies to enhance Arbas cashmere goat meat quality.</p>","PeriodicalId":64067,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"17 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13285302/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148297383","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Reducing dietary crude protein for gestating and lactating sows reduces daily nitrogen retention, but reproductive performance is not impacted by diet protein concentration.","authors":"Jimena A Ibagon, Su A Lee, Hans H Stein","doi":"10.1186/s40104-026-01445-4","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40104-026-01445-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Soybean meal (SBM) is a primary protein source in swine diets, but partial replacement with crystalline amino acids (AA) is commonly used to reduce dietary protein. Adequate dietary protein and energy are essential to support fetal development, milk production, and litter growth. However, crystalline AA are absorbed more rapidly than AA from intact protein, which may limit protein synthesis due to a lack of AA availability. Therefore, an experiment was conducted to test the hypothesis that feeding sows diets based primarily on corn, SBM, and no crystalline AA will result in improved reproductive performance and immunity of sows compared with sows fed diets with less SBM and more corn and crystalline AA.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Nitrogen excretion in feces and urine, absorbed nitrogen, and retained nitrogen (g/d) were greater (P < 0.05) in gestating sows fed the high-protein diet compared with sows fed the low-protein diet. Rectal temperature 24 h after farrowing of sows fed the low-protein diet was greater (P < 0.05) compared with sows fed the high-protein diet. Number of live-born and total born pigs was not different between treatments, but sows fed the high-protein diet tended to produce fewer (P < 0.10) mummified pigs than sows fed the low-protein diet. Malondialdehyde was greater (P < 0.05) in sows fed the low-protein diet, but serum glutathione peroxidase and white blood cell count were greater (P < 0.05) in sows fed the high-protein diet. Colostrum immunoglobulin G and concentrations of fat, protein, urea nitrogen, lactose, and immunoglobulin G were greater (P < 0.001) in milk from sows fed the high-protein diet than in milk from sows fed the low-protein diet.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Feeding a low-protein diet to gestating sows decreased daily nitrogen retention. Reproductive performance was not affected, but feeding a high-protein diet without crystalline AA resulted in greater concentrations of fat, protein, and lactose in milk and improved immune-related characteristics compared with feeding a low-protein diet.</p>","PeriodicalId":64067,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Animal Science and Biotechnology","volume":"17 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":7.9,"publicationDate":"2026-06-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13281559/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148280077","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}