Journal of Animal Science and Technology最新文献

Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) is an enzyme present in various tissues and plays an important role in biochemical processes, by catalyzing the hydrolysis of organic phosphates and energy metabolism. Despite significant ALP activity in seminal plasma across species, its role in sperm function remains unclear. Several studies have revealed the important role of taurine in male reproductive functions, due to its antioxidant and membrane-stabilizing activity, and ability to enhance sperm quality. Therefore, this study examined the influence of taurine on ALP activity and pH stability in liquid boar semen during storage. Boar spermatozoa were exposed to different concentrations of ALP (0-5 IU/mL), and sperm motility, viability, acrosome integrity, and ALP activity were examined. In addition, liquid boar semen with varying concentrations of taurine (10-80 mM) was stored at 17°C for 7 days, and the ALP activity, pH level, and fertilization competence of spermatozoa were investigated through the storage period. Higher ALP activity was detected in fresh spermatozoa compared with capacitated spermatozoa. Motility, viability, and acrosome integrity decreased significantly in sperm incubated with 1-5 IU/mL ALP. An immunofluorescence assay revealed that ALP was localized on the acrosome, equatorial segment, and tail, and the fluorescence intensity indicated that ALP levels gradually decreased during storage. When the pH of liquid boar semen was maintained at 7.4 during storage, it showed higher ALP activity and sperm quality compared to sperm stored in a medium where pH was not maintained at a stable level. Also, when boar spermatozoa were stored in the diluent containing taurine, the pH and ALP activity were stable during the storage period. The generation of intracellular reactive oxygen species decreased in sperm stored with taurine, and higher levels of sperm motility and viability were observed. The expression of mRNA associated with fertilization competence was higher in the sperm stored with 40 mM taurine compared to that of sperm stored without taurine. Thus, it can be concluded that ALP activity and pH stability are crucial for maintaining sperm quality during liquid boar semen storage, and these factors can be regulated by the addition of taurine, suggesting its applicability in assisted reproductive techniques in mammals.

Developmental patterns of the gut microbiota are important for improving chicken health and productivity. However, the influence of litter and litter microbes on cecal microbiota is still unclear. This study aimed to identify broiler cecal microbiota at different ages according to litter usage in cage (without litter) and conventional (with litter) conditions. The cecal contents of the broilers from each group were collected from 1-5 wk. The development and function of the gut microbiota were evaluated using 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The final body weight of the chickens was higher in the cage group than that in the conventional group. In particularly, α-diversity was higher at 3 wk than that at 1 wk. The phyla Firmicutes predominated at 3 wk. In contrast, the abundance of Bacteroidetes and fibrinolytic bacteria increased significantly at 1 and 2 wk compared to that at 3 and 5 wk. Corynebacterium was the most abundant genus in the conventional group after 3 wk. In conclusion, the cecal microbiota are influenced by environmental factors, such as cage, which improves the chicken gut environment.

Eggshell waste and Schisandra chinensis by-products are natural sources rich in beneficial nutrients and bioactive compounds. However, their combined effects with multi-probiotics on poultry productivity and health remain unexplored. This study assessed the immediate effects of a feed additive-eggshell waste (ES), Schisandra chinensis by-product (SC), and multi-probiotics (M)-administered for four weeks to aged laying hens before slaughter, evaluating the improvements of laying performance, egg quality, blood characteristics, visceral organs, tibia, and cecal microbiota. A total of 216 Hy-line Brown laying hens (70-week-old) were assigned to four dietary treatments consisting of 9 replicates of 6 birds in a completely randomized design. The combination of eggshell waste, Schisandra chinensis by-product, and multi-probiotics (ESM) of feed additive consisted of 40% eggshell, 5% SC, and 10⁹-10¹¹ CFU/g of multi-probiotic strains including Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus licheniformis, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Lactobacillus plantarum, and supplemental nutrient premix. The treatment groups were as follows: corn-soybean meal-based basal diet (control); basal diet + 0.1% ESM; basal diet + 0.2% ESM, basal diet + 0.4% ESM. The total egg productivity rate during the experiment period tended to improve in ESM 0.2%, as compared with the control. The ESM 0.1% group increased egg weight (p < 0.05) while ESM 0.1% and ESM 0.2% tended to increase egg mass, compared to the control (p = 0.051). However, there was no significant difference in egg weight, feed intake, feed conversion ratio, and egg quality among the treatments. Furthermore, blood characteristics did not differ between the treatments, except for the total cholesterol contents, which was higher in ESM 0.4% treatment than the control (p < 0.05). ESM 0.4% supplementation showed a tendency for higher calcium, compared to the control. ESM 0.4% supplementation showed higher bone mineral density (BMD) of the tibia neck than the control (p < 0.01). All three ESM groups demonstrated a significant decrease in the abundance of Bacteroidaceae (p < 0.05), and an increase in the abundance of Lactobaillaceae at the family level (p < 0.01). In conclusion, ESM fed hens showed beneficial effects on the egg weight, egg mass, BMD of tibia neck, and cecal microbiota in laying hens.

The removal of antibiotic growth promoters from poultry diets has driven research into alternative feed additives to optimize production performance in laying hens. Among these alternatives, dietary organic acids (OAs) have gained significant attention due to their antimicrobial properties, ability to modulate intestinal acidity, and role in enhancing nutrient utilization. This review comprehensively examines the effects of OAs supplementation on egg production and quality, blood parameters, intestinal morphology, fecal and intestinal microbiota, and bone health in laying hens. Studies indicate that various OAs supplementation improves egg production and quality. Additionally, OAs contribute to superior eggshell quality by enhancing calcium and protein absorption. The physiological benefits of OAs supplementation include improved intestinal morphology, gut microbiota, and immune and physiological responses. On the other hand, the effectiveness of OAs varies depending on the type of acid, dosage, environmental conditions, and interactions with feed ingredients or additives. This review consolidates current findings to provide practical insights into the application of OAs as a viable alternative to AGPs in commercial laying hen production.

This study examined the effects of microencapsulated organic acids and essential oils (EOA) combined with a protease (PRO) supplement on the growth performance and gut health of broilers subjected to nutritional challenges through a diet high in wheat and corn distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS). The treatments were: 1) corn and soybean meal-based diet with high levels of wheat and corn DDGS (WD); 2) WD+microencapsulated organic acids and essential oils at 300 mg/kg (EOA); 3) WD+PRO at 125 mg/kg (PRO); and 4) WD+EOA at 300 mg/kg+PRO at 125 mg/kg (EOA+PRO). Body weight gain, feed intake and mortality rate did not differ among treatments (p > 0.05). However, feed conversion ratio from day 1-35 was lower in the EOA+PRO group than in the WD group (p < 0.05). The EOA+PRO group had a lower jejunal crypt depth (CD) and a higher villus height/crypt depth (VH/CD) ratio than the other groups (p < 0.01). The putrescine level was higher in the WD group than in the other groups (p < 0.05). On day 35, the EOA and EOA+PRO groups had higher claudin-1 mRNA expression than the WD and PRO groups (p < 0.01). Occludin mRNA expression was higher in the EOA and PRO groups than in the WD group (p < 0.01). In summary, the combination of EOA and PRO improved feed efficiency and gut health in broilers fed a high wheat and corn DDGS diet. This was demonstrated by decreased jejunal CD, increased VH/CD ratio, increased mRNA expression of claudin-1 at the tight junction and decreased putrescine content in the hindgut, suggesting an indirect effect on pathogenic bacteria.

Y-box-binding protein 2 (YBX2) is a germ cell-specific protein that plays important roles in mRNA stability, transcription, and translation. However, the effects of YBX2 on porcine embryos development remain unclear. To investigate the function of YBX2 in early porcine embryonic development, YBX2 knockdown (KD) was performed via siRNA microinjection at the single-cell stage. The expression level of YBX2 gene was measured by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). The effect of YBX2 on mitochondrial function and zygotic genome activation were detected by qRT-PCR, western blot, immunofluorescence staining. The results showed that YBX2 is essential for early embryonic development. YBX2 KD decreased the blastocyst rate, mitochondrial activity, and the expression levels of NRF1, NRF2, and SIRT1, thereby reducing mitochondrial biogenesis. In addition, YBX2 KD led to an increase in maternal mRNA levels and a decrease in zygotic genome activation mRNA levels. However, maternal protein levels were reduced, indicating that YBX2 can affect the maternal-to-zygotic transition. Meanwhile, H3K9ac levels decreased and H3K9me3 levels increased following YBX2 KD, suggesting that YBX2 regulates gene transcription. YBX2 affected embryonic development by regulating mitochondrial biogenesis and ZGA expression.

Ligilactobacillus ruminis is a gram-positive anaerobic bacterium in the host intestinal tract. L. ruminis has not been extensively studied, resulting in limited data regarding its potential probiotic properties and genomic information. In this study, the genome of L. ruminis CACC881 was comprehensively analyzed, resulting in the prediction of potential probiotic characteristics. Additionally, a comparative genomic analysis was conducted on the five L. ruminis strains. The genome of strain CACC881 comprised one circular chromosome 2,107,343 bp in length. Among the predicted 1,935 protein-coding genes, the genome included genes associated with potential probiotic properties, such as acid/bile salt tolerance, clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR)-related genes, and vitamin B-group genes. Notably, the genes for bacteriocin regulation/immunity (nisK and nisI) and antioxidant activity (ahpC) were exclusively found in strain CACC881, while absent in the other four L. ruminis genomes. These findings suggest that L. ruminis CACC881 is a potential probiotic with applications for the animal industry.

The use of agricultural by-products, such as corn cobs, has gained significant attention as a sustainable and promising strategy for developing functional feed additives. This study aimed to produce a functional feed additive enriched with xylo-oligosaccharides (XOS) and yeast protein, using corn cobs as the primary raw material. To efficiently convert the xylan in corn cobs into XOS, a recombinant Saccharomyces boulardii strain displaying endo-xylanase on its cell surface was constructed. Among six anchor proteins evaluated for their efficiency in endo-xylanase expression, the X-Tir1 strain exhibited the highest enzymatic activity. Simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of pretreated corn cobs using the X-Tir1 strain and commercial cellulase were optimized under various pretreatment conditions, resulting in the production of 15.2 g/L of XOS and 12.8 g DCW/L of yeast protein after 72 h of fermentation with corn cobs pretreated using 2% (w/v) NaOH. This study demonstrates an environmentally sustainable and cost-effective approach to upcycling agricultural by-products into value-added functional feed additives, thereby improving feed efficiency in fiber-based diets. Additionally, it underscores the applicability of a cell surface display system as a versatile and effective tool for bioconversion processes.

This study aimed to investigate the effects of taurine on broiler embryonic muscle-derived satellite cells under heat stress. Satellite cells were extracted from the leg muscle of 18-day-old broiler embryos and cultured under two different temperature (37°C and 42°C), with or without taurine addition. The experiment comprised four treatment groups: 37°C without taurine, 37°C with taurine, 42°C without taurine, and 42°C with taurine. Cell survival rates and the expression of genes related to heat shock proteins (HSPs), cell cycle, oxidative stress, and MAPK/ERK-Nrf2 were analyzed, considering the effects of taurine and culture temperature and their interaction. The results showed higher cell survival rates at 42°C, with increased expression of satellite cell markers pax7 and MyoD in all treatment groups. HSP90 and HSP40 gene expressions were significantly upregulated at 42°C, and taurine treatment also led to a significant increase. However, HSP70 expression showed the opposite pattern. In cell cycle-related genes, expect for bcl2, significant differences were observed due to taurine and culture temperature, with an interaction effect observed for p53. Regarding antioxidant-related gene expression, superoxide dismutase was significantly upregulated at 42°C and also in the taurine treatment. extracellular signal-regulated kinase and nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 showed significant increases and decreases due to 42°C and taurine, respectively, while c-Jun N-terminal kinase and p38 displayed opposing results. These diverse findings suggest that broiler satellite cells can undergo proliferation and growth at 42°C, and taurine treatment can enhance their resilience to heat stress, potentially maintaining cellular health even at 37°C.

This study aimed to review the applicability of the Welfare Quality^® protocol to evaluate animal welfare in cattle and pig slaughterhouses in Korea. A total of 6 cattle and 7 pig slaughterhouses were studied and evaluated by applying the Welfare Quality^® protocol. To ensure the reliability and reproducibility of the results, the three investigators were first trained in Welfare Quality^® protocol and took video and photographs during the initial field assessment. A reassessment was then conducted using video and photographs. Generalized linear models, such as Poisson regression or negative binomial regression, were used to analyze differences between slaughterhouses, and Spearman's rank correlation was used to assess the relationships between different factors in slaughterhouse scores. The average on-site inspection of the slaughterhouse took four and a half hours, and the video analysis took a total of eight and a half hours. A total of 590 cattle and 3,232 pigs were evaluated in the study. The analysis revealed significant differences between the turning back and dead animals in unloading, as well as in slipping and turning back in the moving to stunning area (p < 0.05) in 6 cattle slaughterhouses. In 7 pig slaughterhouses, differences were observed in panting in the lairage and falling, reluctance to move, and lameness in the moving to the stunning area among slaughterhouses (p < 0.05). By analyzing several variables within the slaughterhouse, we found that for cattle, the density of trucks and pens was strongly associated with temperature stress and lameness, and that rough handling increased as the cattle's fear response increased. For pigs, they also found that rough handling increased as the pigs' fear response increased. This study is significant because it is the first to evaluate the welfare of cattle and pigs in slaughterhouses in Korea and was successful in identifying several welfare issues in slaughterhouses.