Chronic heat stress induces renal fib osis and mitochondrial dysfunction in laying hensOA

Background Heat stress in laying hens negatively affects egg production and shell quality by disrupting the homeo-stasis of plasma calcium and phosphorus levels. Although the kidney plays an important role in calcium and phos-phorus homeostasis, evidence regarding the effect of heat stress on renal injury in laying hens is yet to be elucidated. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of chronic heat stress on renal damage in hens during laying periods.Methods A total of 16 w...     

A novel candidate gene CLN8 regulates fat deposition in avianOA

Background The fat deposition has a crucial role in animal meat flavor, and fat deposition-related traits are vital for breeding in the commercial duck industry. Avian fat-related traits are typical complex phenotypes, which need a large amount of data to analyze the genetic loci.Results In this study, we performed a new phenotypic analysis of fat traits and genotyped whole-genome variations for 1,246 ducks, and combed with previous GWAS data to reach 1,880 ducks for following analysis. The carc...     

Functional roles of taurine,L-theanine,Lcitrulline, and betaine during heat stress in poultryOA

Heat stress(HS) is an important environmental stress factor affecting poultry production on a global scale. With the rise in ambient temperature and increasing effects of global warming, it becomes pertinent to understand the effects of HS on poultry production and the strategies that can be adopted to mitigate its detrimental impacts on the performance, health, welfare, immunity, and survival of birds. Amino acids(AAs) have been increasingly adopted as nutritional modifiers in animals to amelio...     

The significan e of N-carbamoylglutamate in ruminant productionOA

Improving the efficiency and production of grazing ruminants to support food and fiber production, while reducing the environmental footprint and meeting the welfare needs of the animals, is important for sustainable livestock production systems. Development of new technologies that can improve the efficiency of nitrogen(N) utilization in ruminants, and that are effective and safe, has important implications for ruminant livestock production. N-carbomoylglutamate(NCG) is a functional micronutrie...     

Maternal supply of cysteamine alleviates oxidative stress and enhances angiogenesis in porcine placentaOA

Background: Oxidative stress in placenta is associated with the occurrence of adverse pregnancy outcomes in sow,but there are few satisfactory treatment strategies for these conditions. This study investigated the potential of cysteamine(CS) as an antioxidant protectant for regulating the reproductive performance, redox status, and placental angiogenesis of sows.Methods: The placental oxidative stress status and vascular density of piglets with different birth weights: < 1.0 kg(low birth weig...     

Establishment of a male fertility prediction model with sperm RNA markers in pigs as a translational animal modelOA

Background: Male infertility is an important issue that causes low production in the animal industry. To solve the male fertility crisis in the animal industry, the prediction of sperm quality is the most important step. Sperm RNA is the potential marker for male fertility prediction. We hypothesized that the expression of functional genes related to fertilization will be the best target for male fertility prediction markers. To investigate optimum male fertility prediction marker, we compared t...     

Single-cell transcriptomic atlas of goat ovarian agingOA

Background The ovaries are one of the first organs that undergo degenerative changes earlier in the aging process, and ovarian aging is shown by a decrease in the number and quality of oocytes. However, little is known about the molecular mechanisms of female age-related fertility decline in different types of ovarian cells during aging, especially in goats. Therefore, the aim of this study was to reveal the mechanisms driving ovarian aging in goats at single-cell resolution.Results For the firs...     

Dynamic changes of genomic methylation profiles at different growth stages in Chinese Tan sheepOA

Background: Tan sheep, an important local sheep breed in China, is famous for their fur quality. One-month-old Tan sheep have white, curly hair with beautiful flower spikes, commonly known as "nine bends", which has high economic value. However, the "nine bends" characteristic gradually disappears with age; consequently, the economic value of the Tan sheep decreases. Age-related changes in DNA methylation have been reported and may be responsible for age-induced changes in gene expression. Until...     

Selenoproteins synergistically protect porcine skeletal muscle from oxidative damage via relieving mitochondrial dysfunction and endoplasmic reticulum stressOA

Background The skeletal muscle of pigs is vulnerable to oxidative damage, resulting in growth retardation. Selenoproteins are important components of antioxidant systems for animals, which are generally regulated by dietary selenium(Se) level. Here, we developed the dietary oxidative stress(DOS)-inducing pig model to investigate the protective effects of selenoproteins on DOS-induced skeletal muscle growth retardation.Results Dietary oxidative stress caused porcine skeletal muscle oxidative dama...     

Harnessing male germline epigenomics for the genetic improvement in cattleOA

Sperm is essential for successful artificial insemination in dairy cattle, and its quality can be influenced by both epigenetic modification and epigenetic inheritance. The bovine germline differentiation is characterized by epigenetic reprogramming, while intergenerational and transgenerational epigenetic inheritance can influence the offspring’s development through the transmission of epigenetic features to the offspring via the germline. Therefore, the selection of bulls with superior sperm q...     

Serum metabolic profile and metabolome genome-wide association study in chickenOA

Background Chickens provide globally important livestock products. Understanding the genetic and molecular mechanisms underpinning chicken economic traits is crucial for improving their selective breeding. Influenced by a combination of genetic and environmental factors, metabolites are the ultimate expression of physiological processes and can provide key insights into livestock economic traits. However, the serum metabolite profile and genetic architecture of the metabolome in chickens have no...     

Invited review: Remediation strategies for mycotoxin control in feedOA

Mycotoxins are secondary metabolites of different species of fungi. Aflatoxin B1(AFB1), deoxynivalenol(DON),zearalenone(ZEN) and fumonisin B1(FB1) are the main mycotoxins contaminating animal feedstuffs. These mycotoxins can primarily induce hepatotoxicity, immunotoxicity, neurotoxicity and nephrotoxicity, consequently cause adverse effects on the health and performance of animals. Therefore, physical, chemical, biological and nutritional regulation approaches have been developed as primary stra...     

Genomic patterns of homozygosity and inbreeding depression in MurcianoGranadina goatsOA

Background: Inbreeding depression can adversely affect traits related to fitness, reproduction and productive performance. Although current research suggests that inbreeding levels are generally low in most goat breeds, the impact of inbreeding depression on phenotypes of economic interest has only been investigated in a few studies based on genealogical data.Results: We genotyped 1040 goats with the Goat SNP50 BeadChip. This information was used to estimate different molecular inbreeding coeffi...     

Gut health benefit and application of postbiotics in animal productionOA

Gut homeostasis is of importance to host health and imbalance of the gut usually leads to disorders or diseases for both human and animal. Postbiotics have been applied in manipulating of gut health, and utilization of postbiotics threads new lights into the host health. Compared with the application of probiotics, the characteristics such as stability and safety of postbiotics make it a potential alternative to probiotics. Studies have reported the beneficial effects of components derived from ...     

Dietary oregano essential oil supplementation improves intestinal functions and alters gut microbiota in latephase laying hensOA

Background: Dietary essential oil(EO) supplementation can exert favorable effects on gut health in broilers. However,it is unknown whether EO could improve intestinal functions, consequently beneficial for egg performance and quality in late-phase laying hens. This study was aimed to investigate the potential effects of EO on production performance,egg quality, intestinal health and ileal microbiota of hens in the late phase of production. A total of 288 60-week-old Hy-line Brown laying hens wer...     

Mechanisms underlying the role of endoplasmic reticulum stress in the placental injury and fetal growth restriction in an ovine gestation modelOA

Background Exposure to bisphenol A(BPA), an environmental pollutant known for its endocrine-disrupting properties, during gestation has been reported to increase the risk of fetal growth restriction(FGR) in an ovine model of pregnancy. We hypothesized that the FGR results from the BPA-induced insufficiency and barrier dysfunction of the placenta, oxidative stress, inflammatory responses, autophagy and endoplasmic reticulum stress(ERS). However, precise mechanisms underlying the BPA-induced place...     

Effect of dietary magnolia bark extract supplementation in finishing pigs on the oxidative stability of meatOA

Background: Magnolia bark extract(MBE) is a natural supplement with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial activities. Its properties suggest that the dietary supplementation in livestock could improve the quality of products. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate, for the first time, the effect of dietary MBE supplementation(0.33 mg/kg) in finishing pigs on the oxidative stability of meat. Oxidative stability is of paramount importance for pork, as it affects storage, r...     

Role of functional fatty acids in modulation of reproductive potential in livestockOA

Fatty acids are not only widely known as energy sources,but also play important roles in many metabolic pathways.The significance of fatty acids in modulating the reproductive potential of livestock has received greater recognition in recent years.Functional fatty acids and their metabolites improve follicular development,oocyte maturation and embryo development,as well as endometrial receptivity and placental vascular development,through enhancing energy supply and precursors for the synthesis ...     

Lovastatin as a supplement to mitigate rumen methanogenesis: an overviewOA

Methane from enteric fermentation is the gas with the greatest environmental impact emitted by ruminants.Lovastatin(Lv) addition to feedstocks could be a strategy to mitigate rumen methane emissions via decreasing the population of methanogenic archaea(MA). Thus, this paper provides the first overview of the effects of Lv supplementation, focusing on the inhibition of methane production, rumen microbiota, and ruminal fermentation.Results indicated that Lv treatment had a strong anti-methanogenic...