Animal最新文献

{"title":"Investigating the correlation between phenotypes, adrenal transcriptome, and serum metabolism in laying ducks exhibiting varying behaviours under the same stressor","authors":"H.X. Sun ,&nbsp;R.B. Guo ,&nbsp;T.T. Gu ,&nbsp;Y.B. Zong ,&nbsp;W.W. Xu ,&nbsp;L. Chen ,&nbsp;Y. Tian ,&nbsp;G.Q. Li ,&nbsp;L.Z. Lu ,&nbsp;T. Zeng","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101343","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101343","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Laying ducks in cage environments face various stressors, including the fear of novelty, which negatively affects their behaviour and performance. The reasons behind the variation in behaviour under identical stress conditions are not well understood. This study investigated how different behaviours affect production performance, immune response, antioxidant capabilities, adrenal gene expression, and serum metabolite profiles in caged laying ducks subjected to the same stressor. Overall, 42-week-old laying ducks (N = 300) were selected, fed for 60 days, and simultaneously underwent behavioural tests. Based on their behavioural responses, 24 ducks were chosen and categorised into two groups: high-active avoidance (<strong>HAA</strong>) and low-active avoidance (<strong>LAA</strong>). The study utilised phenotypic, genetic, and metabolomic analyses, coupled with bioinformatics, to identify crucial biological processes, genes, and metabolites. The results indicated that ΔW (BW gain) and average daily egg weight (<strong>ADEW</strong>) were significantly lower in the HAA group compared to the LAA group (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). By contrast, the feed-to-egg ratio was higher in the HAA group than in the LAA group (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). Levels of serum immunoglobulin A, total antioxidant capacity, and the activities of enzymes like superoxide dismutase and catalase (<strong>CAT</strong>) were significantly lower in the HAA than in the LAA group (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05), whereas serum ACTH levels were significantly higher in HAA than in the LAA group (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). The adrenal transcriptome analysis revealed 148 differentially expressed genes in the HAA group, with 97 up-regulated and 51 down-regulated. Moreover, enrichment analysis highlighted significant differences in two metabolic pathways: neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction and oxidative phosphorylation (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). Serum metabolomics identified 11 differentially accumulated metabolites between the groups, with variations in up and down-regulation. Integrative analysis of phenotype, transcriptome, and metabolome data showed a strong correlation between the exosome component 3 (<strong>EXOSC3</strong>) gene, phenotypic traits, and differential metabolites. Thus, we deduced that the differences in average daily egg weight among ducks could be linked to variations in gabapentin and EXOSC3 gene expressions, affecting serum CAT levels.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"18 11","pages":"Article 101343"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142512399","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"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":"Interactions between broiler parent stock age and egg pre-incubation duration: effects on embryo development, hatchability, day-old chick weight, and yolk sac weight","authors":"M. Gregrova ,&nbsp;M. Lichovnikova ,&nbsp;M. Foltyn ,&nbsp;Z. Tvrdon ,&nbsp;D. Hampel","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101333","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101333","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Egg storage is a common practice in commercial hatcheries, but prolonged storage can negatively impact hatchability, causing a significant problem for the poultry industry. Repeated pre-incubation could mitigate the decline depending on the age of the parent stock. The study investigated the interactions between parent stock age (30, 45, and 58 weeks) and repeated pre-incubation on the hatchability and embryo development of 15-day stored eggs from Ross 308 parent stock. Three different pre-incubation durations were employed during storage: no pre-incubation and twice at the 5th and 10th days of egg storage for either 4 or 8 h. For each parent stock age, 3 600 eggs collected on the same day from the same parent stock were used for hatchability assessment. The duration of pre-incubation was determined as the eggshell temperature increased from 28 °C to a maximum of 35 °C and then cooled to 28 °C; the persistency at 35 °C was either 1 or 4 h for the total pre-incubation period. The hatchability of both set and fertile eggs and early, middle, and late embryonic mortality depended on the parent stock’s age (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.001). Pre-incubation alone did not have any impact on hatchability. Conversely, a significant interaction was observed between parent stock age and pre-incubation duration on the hatchability of fertile eggs (<em>P</em> = 0.001). At 30 weeks of parent stock age, both durations of pre-incubation positively influenced the hatchability. At 45 weeks of parent stock age, pre-incubation length had no effect on hatchability. At 58 weeks of parent stock age, a longer pre-incubation period, 2 × 8 h, was associated with decreased hatchability. Early embryonic mortality was not influenced by pre-incubation. However, a significant interaction was observed (<em>P</em> = 0.003). At 30 weeks of parent stock age, both short and long lengths of pre-incubation were associated with a decrease in early embryonic mortality. However, at 45 and 58 weeks, pre-incubation did not significantly affect early embryonic mortality. Additionally, longer pre-incubation periods significantly increased middle mortality compared to untreated eggs (<em>P</em> = 0.035). The median of embryo development for untreated eggs was the same across all ages (stage 10). In the older parent stock (45 and 58 weeks), repeated pre-incubation increased variability in embryo development, while in the younger parent stock, repeated pre-incubation decreased variability in embryo development. In conclusion, the duration and the frequency of pre-incubation should be specified based on the age of the parent stock.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"18 11","pages":"Article 101333"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142420877","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"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":"Dietary supplementation with calcium peroxide improves methane mitigation potential of finishing beef cattle","authors":"E. Roskam ,&nbsp;D.A. Kenny ,&nbsp;A.K. Kelly ,&nbsp;V. O’Flaherty ,&nbsp;S.M. Waters","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101340","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101340","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Calcium peroxide (<strong>CaO₂</strong>) offers potential as an anti-methanogenic dietary feed material. The compound has been previously assessed <em>in vitro</em>, with methane (<strong>CH₄</strong>) reductions of &gt; 50% observed. The objective of this study was to assess dietary supplementation of CaO₂ at different inclusion levels and physical formats in a finishing beef system on the effects of animal performance, gaseous emissions, rumen fermentation parameters and digestibility. Seventy-two dairy-beef bulls (465 kg; 16 months of age) were randomly allocated to one of four treatments supplemented with CaO₂; in a coarse ration (1) <strong>CON</strong> (0% CaO₂), (2) <strong>LO</strong> (1.35% CaO₂), (3) <strong>HI</strong> (2.25% CaO₂), and in a pellet (4) <strong>HP</strong> (2.25% CaO₂) (n = 18). Animals received their respective treatments for a 77 d finishing period, during which DM intake (American Calan Inc., Northwood, NH), average daily gain (<strong>ADG</strong>), feed efficiency and enteric emissions (GreenFeed emissions monitoring system; C-Lock Inc., Rapid City, SD) were measured. The finishing diet was isonitrogenous and isoenergetic across the four treatment groups, composed of 60:40 grass silage:concentrate. Silage was offered each morning (0900 h), and concentrates were offered twice daily (0800 and 1500 h). Supplementation of CaO₂ had no effect on final weight (<em>P</em> = 0.09), ADG (<em>P</em> = 0.22) or feed efficiency (<em>P</em> = 0.13). Regarding DM intake, the HI treatment group consumed in the order of 1 kg less than CON (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01), while HP did not affect DM intake compared to CON (<em>P</em> = 0.79). Across treatments, DM intake ranged from 8.43 to 9.57 kg/d, equating to 1.6–1.8% of BW. Daily CH₄ values for the control were 240 g/d, while CaO₂ supplemented diets ranged from 202 to 170 g/d, resulting in daily CH₄ reductions of 16, 29 and 27% for LO, HI and HP, respectively, compared to CON (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.0001). Additionally, hydrogen was reduced in CaO₂ supplemented animals by 32–36% relative to CON (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.0001), with a simultaneous reduction in volatile fatty acid production (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01) and an increase in propionate concentration (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.0001). Across all universally accepted CH₄ metrics (yield, intensity, production), the dietary inclusion of CaO₂ whether at a low or high rate, or indeed, through a coarse ration or pelleted format reduced CH₄ in the order of 16–32%. This study also concluded that CaO₂ can successfully endure the pelleting process, therefore, improving ease of delivery if implemented at farm level.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"18 11","pages":"Article 101340"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142446991","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"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 refeeding with low- or high-carbohydrate diets on intermediary carbohydrate metabolism in juvenile and adult Nile tilapia","authors":"S. Thongchaitriwat ,&nbsp;S. Kumkhong ,&nbsp;E. Plagnes-Juan ,&nbsp;S. Panserat ,&nbsp;L. Marandel ,&nbsp;S. Boonanuntanasarn","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101334","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101334","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Generally, energy expenditure and compensation according to food deprivation and refeeding often occur along the life cycle of farmed-raised fish. Fasting and refeeding are also hypothesised to modulate carbohydrate metabolism particularly for herbivorous and/or omnivorous. This study aims to investigate the effects of short-term fasting and subsequent refeeding with high or low−carbohydrate diets on the intermediary carbohydrate metabolism of juvenile and adult Nile tilapia (<em>Oreochromis niloticus</em>) which is known to be a good user of carbohydrate as an energy source. Fish were fasted for 4 days and subsequently refed with either a low carbohydrate and high protein (<strong>LC/HP</strong>) or high carbohydrate and low protein (<strong>HC/LP</strong>) diet for 4 days. Our results showed that 4 days of refeeding with either one of the diets could compensate for weight loss due to fasting. Thus, we investigated the effects of a 4-day-refeeding strategy and different carbohydrate−refeeding diets on plasma metabolites, nutrient composition, and glucose and its related metabolism in the liver and muscle of adult fish. Refeeding had similar effects in adults and juveniles and induced modulations to the intermediary metabolism: (1) refeeding with the HC/LP diet elevated plasma glucose levels; (2) refeeding with both diets increased triglyceride levels in the plasma, liver, and muscle, but the effect of the HC/LP diet was superior; (3) refeeding elevated plasma cholesterol levels in adults, irrespective of diet; (4) refeeding with both diets increased hepatic lipid levels in juveniles, with stronger effects observed in those fed the HC/LP diet, and refeeding with the HC/LP diet elevated hepatic lipid levels in adults; (5) refeeding with both diets increased the plasma protein content, but the effect of the LC/HP diet was superior; (6) refeeding with the LC/HP diet increased hepatic protein content in adults; and (7) refeeding with both diets increased hepatic glycogen levels, but the effect of the HC/LP diet was superior. Additionally, in juveniles and adults, refeeding with the HC/LP diet upregulated the expression of glycolytic genes in the liver and muscle, lipogenic genes in the liver, and glucose transport genes. Moreover, refeeding with the HC/LP diet downregulated the expression of gluconeogenic and amino acid catabolism genes in the liver and amino acid catabolism genes in the muscle. Collectively, the effect of short-term refeeding with a high carbohydrate diet on intermediary metabolism resembled that of long-term feeding, supporting the hypothesis that Nile tilapia, an omnivorous fish, is highly responsive to dietary carbohydrates.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"18 11","pages":"Article 101334"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142440993","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"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":"Response of maiden ewes to the ‘ram effect’ is a robust management practice and a candidate selection trait for enhanced reproductive performance in drylands","authors":"I. Ben Salem ,&nbsp;M. Rouatbi ,&nbsp;M. Mlika ,&nbsp;T. Getachew ,&nbsp;A. Govind ,&nbsp;A. Haile ,&nbsp;M. Raggem ,&nbsp;R. Lahsoumi ,&nbsp;M. Rekik","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101332","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101332","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Management of reproduction that relies on naturally based solutions is extremely important to counter the negative perception around hormone-based interventions. In Mediterranean latitudes and wider regions of non-tropical drylands, sheep do not normally ovulate during spring but exposure to a ram can induce oestrus and ovulation. This study assesses the response of maiden Barbarine ewes in drylands to the ‘ram effect’ during springtime and estimates the genetic parameters of this response. The study uses a database documenting, for 24 consecutive years, the response of nulliparous 18-month-old ewes when mated after stimulation by the ‘ram effect.’ In addition to the oestrous and fertility database, a pedigree database was also available. Nearly half of the maiden ewes responded to the ‘ram effect,’ while 24% exhibited spontaneous reproductive activity and displayed oestrus during the first 14 days following the introduction of rams. Nearly 5% of females did not exhibit oestrus, and these animals are proposed for early culling. Average annual values of Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (<strong>NDVI</strong>), reflecting vegetation cover, and the percent of maiden ewes spontaneously cycling were positively correlated (<em>P</em> = 0.006). Interestingly, NDVI was negatively correlated with the percentage of anoestrus females that did not respond to the ‘ram effect’ but exhibited oestrus beyond the hypothetical time frame commonly used to describe it. Average fertility was 82.8% and was significantly affected by mating year, live weight at mating, and the response to the ‘ram effect.’ The highest fertility (88.39%) was for females spontaneously cycling at the time of ram introduction, and the lowest (83.35%) was for females coming into oestrus beyond the time frame for a ram-induced oestrus and ovulation. Heritability from a univariate logit-transformed analysis for fertility was 0.10 and the genetic correlation between fertility and the interval between ram introduction and oestrus was 0.26, suggesting that a shorter interval is associated with higher fertility. Thus, the interval between ram introduction and oestrus is a good candidate for selective breeding for high fertility of maiden ewes in drylands mated out-of-season using the ‘ram effect.’</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"18 11","pages":"Article 101332"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142432111","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"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":"Live black soldier fly larvae as environmental enrichment for native chickens: implications for bird performance, welfare, and excreta microbiota","authors":"S. Bellezza Oddon ,&nbsp;I. Biasato ,&nbsp;I. Ferrocino ,&nbsp;A. Imarisio ,&nbsp;M. Renna ,&nbsp;C. Caimi ,&nbsp;M. Gariglio ,&nbsp;S. Dabbou ,&nbsp;M. Pipan ,&nbsp;D. Dekleva ,&nbsp;M.R. Corvaglia ,&nbsp;V. Bongiorno ,&nbsp;E. Macchi ,&nbsp;L. Cocolin ,&nbsp;L. Gasco ,&nbsp;A. Schiavone","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101341","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101341","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Dietary live insect larvae were recently proposed for use in laying hens and broiler−intensive chicken farming as an innovative form of environmental enrichment, but their use in native dual-purpose chickens has never been investigated. This study aims to evaluate the effects of live black soldier fly (<strong>BSF</strong>) larvae as environmental enrichment in two autochthonous dual-purpose chicken breeds, namely Bionda Piemontese (<strong>BP</strong>) and Bianca di Saluzzo (<strong>BS</strong>), in terms of bird performance, behaviour, integument status, excreta corticosterone metabolites (<strong>ECMs</strong>), and microbiota analyses. A total of 90 BP and 90 BS hens aged 308 days old were randomly distributed between two treatment groups (three replicates/group/breed, 15 hens/replicate). For the following 90 days, the control group (<strong>C</strong>) was fed a commercial feed only, whereas the BSF group was fed the commercial diet plus BSF live larvae calculated at 6% of the expected daily feed intake (DFI). Larva ingestion time, bird performance, integument scores, and behavioural observations were assessed at regular intervals, and excreta samples were collected to evaluate ECM and microbiota. The larva ingestion time became faster over the course of the experimental trial (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.001). The DFI of BSF-fed hens was lower than that of C hens independently of breed (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.001), whereas only in the BS hens, the live weight of the BSF-fed group was greater than that of the C group (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.01). The BSF-fed BP hens showed a higher laying rate and feed conversion ratio compared with BSF-BS (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). Better total integument scores were observed in BSF-fed BP hens compared with C-birds (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). The BSF-fed hens displayed higher frequencies of preening, trotting, and wing flapping than C, as well as a lower incidence of severe feather pecking (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.05). An increase in allopreening was only identified in BSF-fed BS hens with respect to the C hens (<em>P</em> &lt; 0.001). No differences in ECM and faecal microbiota were observed between treatment groups. In conclusion, the administration of BSF live larvae as environmental enrichment has the potential to positively influence the welfare of both BP and BS chickens, by enhancing the frequency of positive behaviours whilst reducing severe feather pecking, without affecting their excreta microbiota. BSF larva administration also has the potential to improve the productive performance and the plumage status of the BP breed.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"18 11","pages":"Article 101341"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142421382","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"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":"The impact of rainfall on beef cattle growth across diverse climate zones.","authors":"F M Hasan, S Lomax, P C Thomson, M R Islam, A Chlingaryan, C E F Clark","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101336","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.animal.2024.101336","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Genetics, animal husbandry, and the feedbase all impact cattle growth. Australia's cattle feedbase covers 40% of the continent and encompasses diverse climates and landscapes, making stocking rate decisions challenging. Of the factors contributing to climate change, rainfall is a primary determinant of feedbase growth and, with this, cattle growth. Understanding the interplay between rainfall and cattle growth across the diverse Australian landscape is thus critical to aid farmer decision-making. However, revealing such interactions between landscape and rainfall for cattle growth for such decision-making has until now been infeasible due to a lack of sufficient temporal and spatial cattle growth data. The Optiweigh (OW) system has been deployed across Australia's extensive beef production systems as a voluntary weighing unit, opportunistically monitoring cattle liveweight (LW). This study determined the impact of rainfall on the temporal and spatial variability of beef cattle growth across three of Australia's agro-climatic zones (grassland, subtropical, and temperate), aiming to describe the diverse feedbase through patterns of LW variability. A total of 1.3 million cattle LW observations were collected from 82 026 cattle over 2 years (2020-2022). Rainfall data from the Australian Bureau of Meteorology were also collated for the closest meteorological station to each OW unit. Cattle LW average daily gain (ADG) was clustered by season and zone. A series of linear mixed models were used to examine ADG for each zone-season combination, with random effects for individual animals and farms, and fixed effects for climate zone and current and lagged rainfall. The overall mean ADG for the dataset was 0.68 kg/day, with greater growth variability between farms within a zone (SD: 0.349 ± 0.021 kg/day, estimate ± SE) than between cattle within a farm (SD: 0.229 ± 0.004 kg/day). This ADG variability can be partly attributed to the timing and amount of rainfall, with agro-climatic zones showing unique interactions between rainfall and ADG. Seasonal lagged rainfall effects were present in the grassland and temperate zones, while rainfall in the temperate zone had a year-round effect on cattle growth. Furthermore, season-wise lagged rainfall had mixed effects on ADG, whereas rainfall occurring in a season reduced growth in the same season across zones (P < 0.001). These findings provide valuable initial insights into the variability of ADG across the landscape over time and markedly improve our understanding of the interplay between climate and Australia's diverse feedbase, contributing to improved management strategies.</p>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":" ","pages":"101336"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142479915","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Lactation affects postweaning metabolic profiles, but not follicle size in multiparous sows","authors":"Q. Yu ,&nbsp;K.J. Teerds ,&nbsp;J. Keijer ,&nbsp;N.M. Soede","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101339","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101339","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Young sows mobilise body reserves to support milk production during lactation, resulting in a negative energy balance (<strong>NEB</strong>). This NEB affects the development of follicles and oocytes that give rise to the next litter. Decreased IGF1 levels due to a NEB are thought to play a role in this process. As this has hardly been studied in multiparous sows, the current study focused on relations between lactation BW loss (%), metabolic hormones, and follicle development in multiparous sows at Day 0 and Day 4 after weaning. A total of 31 sows of parity 4.7 ± 2.5 were killed at either Day 0 or Day 4 after weaning. Average BW loss during lactation was 3.3 ± 4.5%, while average backfat loss was 4.1 ± 0.3 mm. The metabolic profile confirmed the metabolic impact of lactation as both non-esterified fatty acid (<strong>NEFA</strong>), and creatinine levels were higher at Day 0 than that at Day 4. Conversely, serum levels of IGF1 and growth differentiation factor 15 levels were lower on Day 0 than on Day 4. A higher BW loss (%) was related to higher NEFA levels on Day 0, but not on Day 4. IGF1 concentrations in serum and follicle fluid were similar at Day 0 and Day 4 and were not related to follicle size on these days. In conclusion, although lactation affected postweaning metabolic profiles in these multiparous sows, follicle size was not related to these profiles, probably due to the relatively mild BW loss of these sows. IGF1 concentrations were less affected by lactation and did not seem to limit follicle development, as it does in sows experiencing high weight loss.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"18 11","pages":"Article 101339"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142432159","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"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":"Cross-ancestry meta-genome-wide association studies provide insights to the understanding of semen traits in pigs","authors":"H. Cheng ,&nbsp;Z.Y. Zhang ,&nbsp;H. Han ,&nbsp;R. Wei ,&nbsp;W. Zhao ,&nbsp;Y.C. Sun ,&nbsp;B.B. Xu ,&nbsp;X.L. Hou ,&nbsp;J.L. Wang ,&nbsp;Y.Q. He ,&nbsp;Y. Fu ,&nbsp;Q.S. Wang ,&nbsp;Y.C. Pan ,&nbsp;Z. Zhang ,&nbsp;Z. Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101331","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101331","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Semen traits play a crucial role in pig reproduction and fertility. However, limited data availability hinder a comprehensive understanding of the genetic mechanisms underlying these traits. In this study, we integrated 597 299 ejaculates and 3 596 sequence data to identify genetic variants and candidate genes related to four semen traits, including sperm progressive motility (<strong>MOT</strong>), semen volume, sperm concentration (<strong>CON</strong>), and effective sperm count (<strong>SUM</strong>). A cross-ancestry meta−genome-wide association study was conducted to detect 163 lead single nucleotide polymorphisms (<strong>SNPs</strong>) associated with MOT, CON, and SUM. Subsequently, transcriptome-wide association studies and colocalisation analyses were integrated to identify 176 candidate genes, many of which have documented roles in spermatogenesis or male mammal semen traits. Our analysis highlighted the potential involvement of <em>CSM5</em>, <em>PDZD9</em>, and <em>LDAF1</em> in regulating semen traits through multiple methods. Finally, to validate the function of significant SNPs, we performed genomic feature best linear unbiased prediction in 348 independent pigs using identified trait-related SNP subsets as genomic features. We found that integrating the top 0.1, 1, and 5% significant SNPs as genomic features could enhance genomic prediction accuracy for CON and MOT compared to traditional genomic best linear unbiased prediction. This study contributes to a comprehensive understanding of the genetic mechanisms of boar semen traits and provides insight for developing genomic selection models.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"18 11","pages":"Article 101331"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142432156","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"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":"Signatures of selection analyses reveal genomic differences among three heavy pig breeds that constitute the genetic backbone of a dry-cured ham production system","authors":"F. Bertolini ,&nbsp;G. Schiavo ,&nbsp;S. Bovo ,&nbsp;A. Ribani ,&nbsp;S. Dall’Olio ,&nbsp;P. Zambonelli ,&nbsp;M. Gallo ,&nbsp;L. Fontanesi","doi":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101335","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.animal.2024.101335","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The Italian pig farming industry is unique in its focus on raising heavy pigs primarily for the production of high-quality dry-cured hams. These products require pigs to be slaughtered at a live weight of around 170 kg at 9 months of age. The primary breeds used in this system are Italian Duroc, Italian Landrace, and Italian Large White which are crossed to produce lines that meet standard requirements. Over the past four decades, selection and breeding programmes for these breeds have been subjected to distinct selective pressures to highlight the characteristics of each breed. In this study, we investigated the genome of these breeds by analysing high-density single nucleotide polymorphism data from over 9 000 pigs to scan for signatures of selection using four different methods, two within breeds and two across breeds. This allowed to identify the genomic regions that differentiate these breeds as well as any relevant genes and biological terms. On a global scale, we found that the Italian Duroc breed exhibited a higher genetic differentiation from the Italian Landrace and Italian Large White breeds, with a pairwise F_ST value of 0.20 compared with the 0.13 between Italian Landrace and Italian Large White. This may reflect either their different origins or the different breeding goals, which are more similar for the Italian Landrace and Italian Large White breeds. Despite these genetic differences at a global level, few signatures of selection regions reached complete fixation, possibly due to challenges in detecting selection linked to quantitative polygenic traits. The differences among the three breeds are confirmed by the low level of overlap in the regions detected. Genetic enrichment analyses of the three breeds revealed pathways and genes related to various productive traits associated with growth and fat deposition. This may indicate a common selection direction aimed at enhancing specific production traits, though different biological mechanisms are likely targeted by the same directional selection in these three breeds. Therefore, these genes may play a critical role in determining the distinctive characteristics of Italian Duroc, Italian Landrace, and Italian Large White, and potentially influence the traits in crossbred pigs derived from them. Overall, the insights gained from this study will contribute to understanding how directional selection has shaped the genome of these heavy pig breeds and to better address selection strategies aimed at enhancing the meat processing industry linked with dry-cured ham production chains.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50789,"journal":{"name":"Animal","volume":"18 11","pages":"Article 101335"},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142432158","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}