Animal Nutrition最新文献

{"title":"Digestion kinetics of protein feed ingredients and their impact on nitrogen utilization in growing pigs.","authors":"Jia Li, Yu Cao, Xiaoyi Yu, Jingyi Huang, Rouke Jiang, Mingyi Huang, Jinbiao Zhao, Dandan Han, Junjun Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.aninu.2024.12.006","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.aninu.2024.12.006","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The velocity of nitrogen release impacts nitrogen utilization efficiency and animal growth. Yet the crucial junctures linking nitrogen release and utilization from diverse feed ingredients to digestion kinetic parameters remain obscure. This study aimed to evaluate and subdivide in vitro protein digestion characteristics (such as release rate of free amino acids [FAA]) of three commonly used protein feed ingredients and to correlate the characteristics with nitrogen utilization in vivo. Ten soybean meals (SBM), eleven cottonseed meals (CM), and nine rapeseed meals (RM) were selected for in vitro study. After predigested for 120 min, the characteristics were evaluated within the small intestine stage. The release rate of total FAA from CM was significantly lower than SBM or RM during the fast-release phase (0 to 20 min). The total FAA release rate in SBM was substantially lower than others during the slow-release phase (20 to 140 min). In the in vivo experiment, cannulated growing barrows (<i>n</i> = 24; BW = 43.2 ± 2.8 kg) were allocated to 4 treatments (6 replicates for each treatment and 1 pig for each replicate). Three diets, each containing an equal concentration of crude protein (CP) supplied by either SBM, CM, or RM, fulfilled the requirements for essential amino acids. Nitrogen-free control diet was also included. There were strong correlations between plasma urea nitrogen (PUN) and the release rate of total FAA in both the fast- and slow-release phases (<i>P</i> < 0.01). In summary, differences in in vitro digestion kinetic characteristics among SBM, CM, and RM were determined. It is believed that separating the total small intestine phase of total FAA release into the fast- and slow-release phases as the evaluation standard of protein feed ingredients and diets might effectively reveal their character and can be related to the PUN concentration of pigs.</p>","PeriodicalId":8184,"journal":{"name":"Animal Nutrition","volume":"21 ","pages":"292-301"},"PeriodicalIF":6.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12145679/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144246144","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A perception that the feed grain basis of reduced-crude protein diets modifies the anabolic impact of insulin on the growth performance of broiler chickens.","authors":"Peter H Selle, Shemil P Macelline, Mengzhu Z Wang, Sonia Yun Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.aninu.2024.10.009","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.aninu.2024.10.009","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This inherently speculative review provides a perception that the feed grain basis of a reduced-crude protein (CP) diets modifies the anabolic impact of insulin in broiler chickens for the first 21 to 28 days post-hatch. Insulin is a powerful anabolic hormone in non-ruminant, mammalian species; however, the importance of insulin in avian species is usually dismissed because broiler chickens are held to be hyperglycaemic and resistant to insulin. However, there are indications that embryonic and young birds are in fact sensitive to insulin and resistance to insulin develops with age. The growth performance of broiler chickens offered wheat-based, reduced-CP diets is frequently inferior to corresponding diets based on maize or sorghum. This relative inferiority is declared by retarded weight gains, elevated feed conversion ratios (FCR) and negligible increases in relative abdominal fat-pad weights. However, the digestion rate of wheat starch is more rapid than that of maize and sorghum both under in vitro and in vivo conditions. This review explores the possibility that the divergent rates of starch digestion and intestinal uptakes of glucose from wheat, maize and sorghum are modifying the anabolic impacts of insulin to disadvantage wheat-based, reduced-CP diets. Insulin resistance may be modified by circulating ammonia (NH₃) concentration and acid-base balance; however, reduced-CP diets can generate elevated NH₃ concentration and metabolic acidosis to the detriment of insulin sensitivity. Moreover, starch concentration in reduced-CP diets are usually increased by about 25%, which would amplify any impacts of starch digestion rates on post-prandial glucose-insulin interaction. Research into this possibility is to be encouraged because it could expedite the development and acceptance of reduced-CP diets by global broiler chicken producers.</p>","PeriodicalId":8184,"journal":{"name":"Animal Nutrition","volume":"21 ","pages":"245-255"},"PeriodicalIF":6.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12145685/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144246141","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effects of dietary cinnamaldehyde supplementation in the perinatal period on reproductive performance, milk composition, redox status and gut microbiota of sows.","authors":"Junqi Jin, Shiya Liu, Xie Peng, Changqin Wang, Qiang Zhou, Zhengfeng Fang, Yan Lin, Shengyu Xu, Bin Feng, Yong Zhuo, Hua Zhao, De Wu, Lianqiang Che","doi":"10.1016/j.aninu.2025.02.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.aninu.2025.02.003","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Improving sow health during the perinatal period is crucial for reproductive performance. Cinnamaldehyde (CA), a naturally occurring compound, is known for its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and gut microbiota-modulating properties. This study evaluated the effects of dietary CA supplementation during the perinatal period on reproductive performance, milk composition, redox status, and gut microbiota of sows. Forty DanBred sows were randomly divided into two groups and fed either a basal (CON) diet or the basal diet supplemented with 1 g/kg CA from day 107 of gestation to day 7 of lactation. The results showed that dietary CA supplementation decreased farrowing duration (-78 min, <i>P</i> = 0.031) and tended to increase the concentrations of crude fat (<i>P</i> = 0.070) and dry matter (<i>P</i> = 0.078) in colostrum. Additionally, CA increased plasma glucose (<i>P</i> = 0.012) and decreased non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA) and triglyceride (TG) concentrations (<i>P</i> < 0.05) at farrowing. CA also reduced malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration (<i>P</i> = 0.048) and tended to increase plasma total superoxide dismutase activity (<i>P</i> = 0.084) at farrowing. Furthermore, CA supplementation increased the average daily gain (ADG) of piglets during days 15 to 21 of lactation (<i>P</i> = 0.040) and tended to increase the average daily feed intake (ADFI) of sows during days 8 to 14 of lactation (<i>P</i> = 0.059). Gut microbiota analysis revealed that CA increased the relative abundances of <i>g_Roseburia</i>, <i>s_Ruminococcus_flavefaciens</i>, <i>g_UCG_012</i>, f_p_251_o5, and o_Lachnospirales at farrowing, along with increased fecal propionate (<i>P</i> = 0.027) and butyrate contents (<i>P</i> = 0.057). Correlation analysis indicated that the relative abundances of <i>g_Roseburia</i> and o_Lachnospiraceae were positively correlated with plasma glucose, while the relative abundances of <i>s_Ruminococcus_flavefaciens</i> and <i>g_UCG_012</i> were negatively correlated with plasma TG concentration, and o_Lachnospirales abundance was negatively correlated with plasma NEFA concentration at farrowing. Additionally, plasma MDA concentration was positively correlated with mean birth interval, and glutathione peroxidase activity was positively correlated with ADFI. In conclusion, dietary CA supplementation during the perinatal period can shorten farrowing duration, improve colostrum composition, and enhance the growth rate of suckling piglets in late lactation, likely due to its positive effects on energy metabolism, redox status, and gut microbiota around parturition.</p>","PeriodicalId":8184,"journal":{"name":"Animal Nutrition","volume":"21 ","pages":"97-106"},"PeriodicalIF":6.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12124674/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144198103","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Rumen microbiota associated with feed efficiency in beef cattle are highly influenced by diet composition.","authors":"Abimael Ortiz-Chura, Karla Fabiola Corral-Jara, Jeremy Tournayre, Gonzalo Cantalapiedra-Hijar, Milka Popova, Diego P Morgavi","doi":"10.1016/j.aninu.2024.11.027","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.aninu.2024.11.027","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Given the role of the rumen microbiome in providing nutrients to the host ruminant, it is expected that rumen microbes contribute to inter-animal variations in feed efficiency. However, the link between microbial structure and an \"efficient\" host phenotype is unclear. We hypothesized that extreme residual feed intake (RFI) phenotypes would display distinctive microbiome features regardless of the diet. In this study, we selected the 32 most extreme RFI Charolais bulls from a cohort of 100 animals fed corn-silage (CS; <i>n</i> = 50) or grass-silage (GS; <i>n</i> = 50) based diets. Rumen samples were obtained 3 h after feeding, at slaughter, for fermentation and metataxonomic and metatranscriptomic microbial analysis. Volatile fatty acid profiles showed no differences between diets and between extreme RFI phenotypes (<i>P</i> > 0.05). Total bacteria and methanogen populations did not differ between extreme RFI phenotypes (<i>P</i> > 0.05), although methanogens expressed per liquid rumen digesta weight tended to decrease in the most efficient bulls compared to the least efficient ones (<i>P</i> = 0.10). The rumen microbial community structure differed between diets (<i>P</i> < 0.001), and between extreme RFI phenotypes in the GS diet. In the whole dataset, we identified <i>Succiniclasticum</i>, <i>Saccharofermentans</i>, <i>Clostridia_258483</i> and CAG-238 as bacteria discriminant between extreme RFI phenotypes (<i>q</i> < 0.10). Within diets, these four genera were also discriminant in the GS diet and were all associated with the least efficient bulls. In contrast, in bulls fed the CS diet, only <i>Saccharofermentans</i> and <i>Succiniclasticum</i> were discriminant but they were positively associated with the most efficient bulls. Rumen microbial functional features did not differ between extreme RFI phenotypes but did differ between diets. In conclusion, the rumen microbiome was mainly influenced by diet, with the RFI phenotype being a marginal effector. <i>Succiniclasticum</i>, <i>Saccharofermentans</i>, <i>Clostridia_258483</i>, and CAG-238 were discriminant between extreme RFI phenotypes regardless of diet. However, the direction of the association with RFI was diet dependent, indicating a diet-RFI interaction and suggesting that these discriminating microbes may be suitable microbial indicator species for RFI only when considered in conjunction with the diet information.</p>","PeriodicalId":8184,"journal":{"name":"Animal Nutrition","volume":"21 ","pages":"378-389"},"PeriodicalIF":6.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12143644/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144246077","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Fibroblast growth factor 21/extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 pathway as a key link mediates the effects of low-protein diet on skeletal muscle fiber type transformation in pigs.","authors":"Shuo Li, Pengbo Liang, Bo Wang, Jun Chen, Jinming You, Tiande Zou","doi":"10.1016/j.aninu.2025.03.001","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.aninu.2025.03.001","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Low-protein (LP) diets play a pivotal role in inducing skeletal muscle remodeling toward an oxidative phenotype in pigs, the underlying targets and mechanisms remain uncertain. This study aimed to investigate whether fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21), an endocrine signal associated with low protein intake, mediates the effect of LP diets on myofiber type transition in pigs. Twenty-four healthy castrated weaned pigs (Landrace × Yorkshire) with an initial body weight (BW) of 7.25 ± 0.12 kg were assigned and fed one of two dietary treatments: a normal-protein (NP group) diet containing 19.78% crude protein (CP) or an LP diet containing 16.91% CP (LP group), over a 28-day trial. The LP diet was supplemented with crystalline amino acids to achieve an equal content of limiting amino acids. Additionally, half of the pigs in each dietary group were randomly administered an extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) inhibitor (0.5 mg/kg BW, i.p.) weekly, while the remaining pigs received an equivalent dose of the vehicle (dimethyl sulfoxide). After blood sampling, all pigs were euthanized to collect liver and longissimus dorsi (LD) muscle samples. In vitro, we also explored the FGF21-induced myofiber conversion in porcine skeletal muscle satellite cells (PSCs), which were transfected with overexpression plasmid vector and ERK1/2 inhibitor. Results demonstrated that FGF21 was robustly increased by LP diets (<i>P</i> < 0.01), evidenced by elevated mRNA and protein expression levels of FGF21 in liver and LD muscle, as well as increased serum FGF21 concentration. Furthermore, pigs fed the LP diet exhibited a higher proportion of oxidative myofibers (<i>P</i> < 0.001), increased expression level of slow myosin heavy chain (MyHC) (<i>P</i> < 0.05) and myoglobin (<i>P</i> = 0.080), and enhanced succinate dehydrogenase activity (<i>P</i> < 0.01) in LD muscle. These effects were largely attenuated by ERK1/2 inhibitor administration. The activation of ERK1/2 and mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1) in the LD muscle of pigs fed LP diets was also suppressed by ERK1/2 inhibitor treatment (<i>P</i> < 0.05). In vitro, FGF21 overexpression increased slow MyHC protein expression, ERK1/2 phosphorylation and mTORC1 activity in PSCs (<i>P</i> < 0.05). Furthermore, inhibition of the ERK1/2 signaling significantly eliminated the FGF21-induced enhancement of oxidative myofiber expression and mTORC1 activity in PSCs (<i>P</i> < 0.05). Collectively, our findings suggest that the FGF21-ERK1/2 pathway serves as a key link mediator of LP diet-induced myofiber specification in pigs, and provide new insights into the understanding of the metabolic benefits of LP diets in pigs.</p>","PeriodicalId":8184,"journal":{"name":"Animal Nutrition","volume":"21 ","pages":"207-221"},"PeriodicalIF":6.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12145682/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144246147","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effects of increasing levels of dietary cation-anion difference on growth performance, nutrient digestibility, rumen fermentation, and rumen microbiota in fattening Hu sheep.","authors":"Yu Wang, Wenjin Zheng, Hongwei Duan, Jiazhi Luo, Yuyang Yin, Junshi Shen, Shengyong Mao, Weiyun Zhu, Zhongtang Yu","doi":"10.1016/j.aninu.2024.11.026","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.aninu.2024.11.026","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The dietary cation-anion difference (DCAD) has the potential to influence the physiological functions of animals. Nonetheless, there is a notable scarcity of research in the field of ruminant science regarding its effects on fattening sheep, particularly with respect to the rumen microbiota. Therefore, this study evaluated the effects of varied DCAD levels on growth performance, rumen fermentation, and rumen bacterial communities in fattening Hu sheep. Thirty-six fattening male sheep (20.66 ± 1.53 kg) were divided into two blocks based on body weight (BW), and the sheep in each block were then randomly assigned to one of three dietary treatments: low DCAD (LD, 2.3 mEq/kg of dry matter [DM]), medium DCAD (MD, 132.1 mEq/kg of DM), and high DCAD (HD, 276.9 mEq/kg of DM). The experiment lasted for 10 weeks, with 2 weeks of adaptation and 8 weeks of measurements and sampling. This experiment found that DCAD levels did not affect dry matter intake (DMI), average daily gain (ADG), or feed conversion efficiency of gain (G:F) of fattening Hu sheep (<i>P</i> > 0.05). However, the high DCAD level resulted in a linear increase in the apparent digestibilities of DM, organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), and ether extract (EE) (<i>P</i> < 0.05). Additionally, rumen pH exhibited a linear increase (<i>P</i> = 0.005) with the increase in DCAD level, while the concentrations of isobutyrate, isovalerate, and total branched-chain volatile fatty acids (BCVFA) displayed quadratic effects (<i>P</i> < 0.05), with the MD group showing the lowest values. Blood pH (<i>P</i> < 0.001), HCO₃ ^- (<i>P</i> = 0.011), and creatinine concentrations (<i>P</i> = 0.004) increased linearly, whereas Cl concentration decreased linearly (<i>P</i> < 0.001) with the increase in DCAD level. Metataxonomic analysis indicated a trend of higher ACE, Shannon, and Chao1 indexes in the HD group compared to the LD group (0.05 < <i>P</i> < 0.10). Principal coordinates analysis (PCoA) showed significant differences in rumen bacterial communities among the sheep groups (<i>P</i> = 0.016). Proteobacteria was significantly more relative abundant in the HD group compared to the MD and the LD groups (<i>P</i> = 0.011). At the genus level, the <i>Rikenellaceae</i> <i>RC9 gut group</i> (<i>P</i> = 0.064) and the <i>unclassified Eubacterium coprostanoligenes group</i> (<i>P</i> = 0.083) showed trends towards higher relative abundances in the MD group compared to the HD group. In conclusion, within the range of 0 to 300 mEq/kg of DM, DCAD levels did not affect the growth performance in fattening Hu sheep. However, elevated DCAD levels enhanced rumen and blood buffering capacities, increased microbial diversity within the rumen, and consequently improved nutrient digestion and the acid-base balance in sheep.</p>","PeriodicalId":8184,"journal":{"name":"Animal Nutrition","volume":"21 ","pages":"119-128"},"PeriodicalIF":6.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12143603/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144246146","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Nettle supplementation improves antioxidant status and modulates inflammatory response by altering lysophosphatidylcholines and enterolactone metabolism in dairy cows.","authors":"Qian Zhang, Na Ta, Jize Zhang, Xiaozhen Liu, He Ding, Xiaoqing Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.aninu.2025.01.006","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.aninu.2025.01.006","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Nettle is not only a nutrient-rich forage but also possesses the potential to act as a nutritional and physiological regulator. This study investigated the effects of supplementing nettle hay into the total mixed rations (TMR) on milk yield, milk composition, antioxidant capacity, immune function, and plasma metabolome in dairy cows. Twenty multiparous Holstein cows with similar days in milk (102 ± 8 d), milk production (39 ± 3 kg/d), milk fat (3.78 ± 0.55%), and milk protein (3.24 ± 0.28%) were randomly assigned to two dietary treatments: a control group (AH group, <i>n</i> = 10) receiving a TMR with 10.5% alfalfa hay and a nettle group (NH group, <i>n</i> = 10) receiving a TMR with 10.5% nettle hay. The experiment lasted for 80 d, including a 20 d pre-feeding period. Milk yield and overall composition remained consistent across the groups. However, the NH group exhibited a significant decrease in milk aspartic acid (<i>P</i> = 0.025) and a concomitant increase in arginine (<i>P</i> = 0.031). Nettle supplementation significantly reduced blood aspartate aminotransferase levels (<i>P</i> = 0.005) and improved antioxidant status, as evidenced by a higher total antioxidant capacity (<i>P</i> = 0.039) and total superoxide dismutase activity (<i>P</i> = 0.016), along with lower malondialdehyde (<i>P</i> = 0.018). The metabolome analysis identified 1143 differential metabolites using the positive ionization mode and 1253 differential metabolites using the negative ionization mode. KEGG analysis revealed significant enrichment of differential metabolites in arachidonic acid, linoleic acid, and amino acid metabolism pathways. Lysophosphatidylcholines and enterolactone displayed a significant negative correlation with blood aspartate aminotransferase levels (<i>r</i> < -0.5, <i>P</i> < 0.05) and interleukin-6 levels (<i>r</i> < -0.5, <i>P</i> < 0.05). In conclusion, nettle supplementation significantly influenced the immune and antioxidant capacities of dairy cows by altering the blood metabolome profile. Lysophosphatidylcholines and enterolactone are proposed as potential biomarkers for evaluating the physiological and immune effects of nettle supplementation. Further research is warranted to elucidate the specific mechanisms underlying these effects and optimize the feeding regimen for optimal outcomes.</p>","PeriodicalId":8184,"journal":{"name":"Animal Nutrition","volume":"21 ","pages":"279-291"},"PeriodicalIF":6.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12145696/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144246156","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Effects of ambient temperature, energy density, and energy source on energy partition and plasma metabolomics profile of finishing pigs.","authors":"Dan Jiang, Kai Zhou, Dongsheng Che, Hailong Jiang, Rui Han, Guixin Qin","doi":"10.1016/j.aninu.2025.01.005","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.aninu.2025.01.005","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Ambient temperature is an important factor affecting metabolic processes in animals, and its effect on energy metabolism is becoming more evident. Yet, integrative analysis of energy metabolism in finishing pigs at different combinations of ambient temperature, energy density and energy sources, still remain underexplored. In order to determine the special characteristics of energy metabolism of finishing pigs in low-temperature environment, the effects of different combinations of ambient temperature, energy density, and energy source on underlying mechanisms were elucidated by assessing energy metabolism using integrative indirect calorimetry and non-targeted plasma metabolomics analyses. Thirty-two finishing pigs (Duroc × Large White × Landrace) with similar body weight of 85.44 ± 2.04 kg were allotted in a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial arrangement (8 treatment groups, 4 replicates per group, 1 pig per replicate), which included two ambient temperatures (low temperature [10 °C] and normal temperature [20 °C]), two energy densities (normal energy density [NE, 14.02 MJ/kg] and high energe density [HE, 15.14 MJ/kg]), and two energy sources (low-oil source and high-oil source). The experiment period lasted 11 days. Increasing the energy density of the diet by adding oil changed the energy source in a low-temperature environment, improved crude fat digestibility (<i>P</i> < 0.001), and reduced the feed/gain ratio of pigs (<i>P</i> = 0.004), with a tendency for higher average daily gain (<i>P</i> = 0.098), which would increase energy utilization. Adding oil to the diet altered energy sources at low temperature, reducing carbon dioxide emission by 3.10%, increasing energy retention and fat oxidation (<i>P</i> < 0.05). Further, optimizing energy sources by adding oil significantly improved serum glucose (GLU) content (<i>P</i> < 0.001) and reduced urea nitrogen (UN) content at normal temperature (<i>P</i> < 0.001), with the same trend observed at low temperature. The metabolites in the eight groups were mainly enriched in the sphingolipid signaling pathway, insulin resistance, and glycerophospholipid metabolism (<i>P</i> < 0.05). Energy metabolism in finishing pigs was not only affected by ambient temperature and energy density, but also by energy source, leading to variations in metabolic pathways for different energy substances. Increasing the dietary energy density by increasing oil supplementation at low temperature is an effective way to improve the growth performance of finishing pigs while reducing pollutant emissions. The study provides a new solution for optimizing energy nutrition for finishing pigs in low-temperature environment.</p>","PeriodicalId":8184,"journal":{"name":"Animal Nutrition","volume":"21 ","pages":"390-401"},"PeriodicalIF":6.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12145808/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144246145","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Oyster mushroom fermented <i>Vachellia erioloba</i> pods as replacement for wheat bran in broiler diets: Physiology and meat physicochemical and nutritional quality.","authors":"Phethile E Mabuza, Makiwa S Mthana, Doctor M N Mthiyane","doi":"10.1016/j.aninu.2025.01.004","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.aninu.2025.01.004","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>High feed costs and compromised meat quality are among the major issues perturbing the global broiler industry. This study therefore investigated <i>Vachellia erioloba</i> pods-derived oyster mushroom spent substrate (OMSS) as a potential nutraceutical feed ingredient to replace wheat bran for enhancing meat quality in broilers. Four hundred male Ross 308 chicks at 14 d of age were randomly allocated to 40 pens and fed treatment diets (0%, 1.25%, 2.5%, 5% and 10% OMSS) each with 8 replicates of 10 birds for 28 d (grower: d 15 to 28, and finisher: d 29 to 42) prior to slaughter on d 43. Whilst there were no effects of diet on overall body weight gain (BWG), feed conversion efficiency (FCE), mortality rate, carcass traits, meat physicochemical quality, and most haemato-biochemistry parameters (<i>P</i> > 0.05), dietary OMSS increased chicken overall feed intake (FI) (linear: <i>P</i> = 0.043), gizzard weights (linear: <i>P</i> = 0.021), and breast meat ether extract (EE) (linear: <i>P</i> < 0.001) as it tended to increase its ash (<i>P</i> = 0.064) contents. Further, OMSS linearly increased chicken white blood cells (<i>P</i> = 0.044), lymphocytes (<i>P</i> = 0.002), platelets (<i>P</i> = 0.009), monocytes (<i>P</i> = 0.007), and lipase activity (<i>P</i> = 0.015), and linearly decreased its eosinophils (<i>P</i> = 0.007) and platelet distribution width (PDW; <i>P</i> = 0.003). Moreover, OMSS increased breast meat myristic (linear: <i>P</i> = 0.012), palmitic (quadratic: <i>P</i> = 0.015), palmitoleic (linear: <i>P</i> = 0.023), and oleic (linear: <i>P</i> = 0.002) acids, and impacted its total monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), with 1.25% and 5% inclusion levels inducing the lowest and highest responses, respectively (<i>P</i> = 0.024). In contrast, it decreased meat stearic (linear: <i>P</i> = 0.004), eicosenoic (linear: <i>P</i> = 0.004) and eicosadienoic (linear: <i>P</i> = 0.025) acid contents. However, OMSS did not affect meat's vaccenic, linoleic, α-linolenic, eicosatrienoic, total saturated fatty acids (SFAs), polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), n-3 PUFAs, n-6 PUFAs, and n-6/n-3 PUFA ratios (<i>P</i> > 0.05). In conclusion, dietary OMSS replacement of up to 10% wheat bran increased broiler meat fatness, ash, and MUFAs, as well as immune competence, lipase activity, gizzard weights and FI without altering other performance variables, carcass-visceral traits, haemato-biochemistry, and meat physicochemical quality.</p>","PeriodicalId":8184,"journal":{"name":"Animal Nutrition","volume":"21 ","pages":"155-165"},"PeriodicalIF":6.1,"publicationDate":"2025-03-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12143618/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144246157","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Myotonic dystrophy-related CDC42-binding kinase alpha (MRCKα) mediates methionine- and leucine-stimulated β-casein synthesis in bovine mammary epithelial cells via targeting mTOR.","authors":"Fang Wang, Jürgen van Baal, Lu Ma, Xuejun Gao, Jan Dijkstra, Dengpan Bu","doi":"10.1016/j.aninu.2025.01.003","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.aninu.2025.01.003","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Amino acids (AA), including methionine (Met) and leucine (Leu), stimulate milk synthesis in bovine mammary epithelial cells (BMEC) via activation of protein kinase mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR). In this study, we further explored the potential role of myotonic dystrophy-related CDC42-binding kinase alpha (MRCKα), previously identified as a critical mediator of prolactin-stimulated milk synthesis in BMEC. Administering different doses (0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8 mM) of Met or Leu to a primary BMEC culture showed that 0.6 mM was the optimal dose for stimulating β-casein production with both AA. At this dose, Met and Leu independently evoked higher (<i>P</i> < 0.05) protein levels of β-casein, MRCKα and sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1 (SREBP1), and increased (<i>P</i> < 0.05) phosphorylation of mTOR (Ser²⁴⁴⁸) and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) (Tyr³¹⁷) after 24 h. The stimulatory effects of both AA on relative protein level of β-casein, phosphorylation of mTOR, and phosphorylation of protein kinase B (PKB) (Thr³⁰⁸), were blocked by silencing MRCKα expression (<i>P</i> < 0.05). Whereas, that on the phosphorylation of PI3K remained intact (<i>P</i> = 0.385). Inhibiting PI3K with LY294002 blocked Met- and Leu-induced protein expression of MRCKα and β-casein and phosphorylation of mTOR (<i>P</i> < 0.05). Overexpression of MRCKα increased protein levels of β-casein and phosphorylation of mTOR, which was prevented by PKB inhibitor MK2206 (<i>P</i> < 0.05). Our results indicate that MRCKα is a key mediator of the Met- and Leu-induced signaling cascade, acting downstream of PI3K and upstream of PKB to regulate β-casein synthesis in BMEC.</p>","PeriodicalId":8184,"journal":{"name":"Animal Nutrition","volume":"21 ","pages":"129-139"},"PeriodicalIF":6.1,"publicationDate":"2025-02-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12143634/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144246155","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}