Genetic relationships between efficiency traits and gut microbiota traits in growing pigs being fed with a conventional or a high-fiber diet

In pigs, the gut microbiota composition plays a major role in the process of digestion, but is influenced by many external factors, especially diet. To be used in breeding applications, genotype by diet interactions on microbiota composition have to be quantified, as well as their impact on genetic covariances with feed efficiency (FE) and digestive efficiency (DE) traits. This study aimed at determining the impact of an alternative diet on variance components of microbiota traits (genera and alpha diversity indices) and estimating genetic correlations between microbiota and efficiency traits for pigs fed a conventional (CO) or a high-fiber (HF) diet. Fecal microbes of 812 full-siblings fed a CO diet and 752 pigs fed the HF diet were characterized at 16 weeks of age by sequencing the V3-V4 region of the 16S rRNA gene. A total of 231 genera were identified. Digestibility coefficients of nitrogen, organic matter, and energy were predicted analyzing the same fecal samples with near infrared spectrometry. Daily feed intake, feed conversion ratio, residual feed intake and average daily gain (ADG) were also recorded. The 71 genera present in more than 20% of individuals were retained for genetic analyses. Heritability (h²) of microbiota traits were similar between diets (from null to 0.38 ± 0.12 in the CO diet and to 0.39 ± 0.12 in the HF diet). Only three out of the 24 genera and two alpha diversity indices with significant h² in both diets had genetic correlations across diets significantly different from 0.99 (P < 0.05), indicating limited genetic by diet interactions for these traits. When both diets were analyzed jointly, 59 genera had h² significantly different from zero. Based on the genetic correlations between these genera and ADG, FE, and DE traits, three groups of genera could be identified. A group of 29 genera had abundances favorably correlated with DE and FE traits, 14 genera were unfavorably correlated with DE traits, and the last group of 16 genera had abundances with correlations close to zero with production traits. However, genera abundances favorably correlated with DE and FE traits were unfavorably correlated with ADG, and vice versa. Alpha diversity indices had correlation patterns similar to the first group. In the end, genetic by diet interactions on gut microbiota composition of growing pigs were limited in this study. Based on this study, microbiota-based traits could be used as proxies to improve FE and DE in growing pigs.     

不同屠宰体重的合作猪肉质灰色关联度分析

应用灰色关联度分析法将肉质指标 (pH值、肉色等级评分、大理石纹等级评分、失水率、贮存损失、熟肉率、瘦肉率和屠宰率 )视为一个灰色系统 ,对不同屠宰体重的合作猪的肉质进行综合评定。结果表明 ,等权关联度和加权关联度的分析结果完全一致 ,肉质较优的是 40kg屠宰体重的合作猪组 ,按优劣顺序依次是 30kg组、 35kg组、 45kg组和 2 5kg组。并提出用该法对肉质乃至其他性状进行综合评定时如何保证结果的可靠性和实用性     

莱芜猪胴体品质肉质特性及其随体重变化规律的研究

研究测定了25头莱芜猪的胴体品质和肉质特性,分析了莱芜猪胴体、肌肉品质随体重(35、40、50、60、70、80、90kg)的变化规律,为确定不同生长阶段的适宜营养水平和上市屠宰体重提供依据.结果表明,莱芜猪自35～90kg瘦肉率在42.43%～55.29%之间,肌肉pH值稳定在6.19～6.52之间,肉色指标优良,大理石纹评分在2.50～4.38之间,肌内脂肪含量在4.51%～19.92%之间;当70kg体重屠宰时,肌肉失水率较低为13.47%,肉色、大理石纹评分较高分别为3.5、3.38,肌内脂肪含量较高为11.54%.胴体和肉质性状间相关程度有强有弱,相关系数有正有负.相同性状间有较强的正相关,相反性状间有较强的负相关.综合分析试验结果认为,莱芜猪以体重70kg作为上市屠宰体重比较合理.     

莱芜猪胴体品质肉质特性及其随体重变化规律的研究

研究测定了25头莱芜猪的胴体品质和肉质特性,分析了莱芜猪胴体、肌肉品质随体重(35、40、50、60、70、80、90kg)的变化规律,为确定不同生长阶段的适宜营养水平和上市屠宰体重提供依据。结果表明,莱芜猪自35~90kg瘦肉率在42.43%~55.29%之间,肌肉pH值稳定在6.19~6.52之间,肉色指标优良,大理石纹评分在2.50~4.38之间,肌内脂肪含量在4.51%~19.92%之间;当70kg体重屠宰时,肌肉失水率较低为13.47%,肉色、大理石纹评分较高分别为3.5、3.38,肌内脂肪含量较高为11.54%。胴体和肉质性状间相关程度有强有弱,相关系数有正有负。相同性状间有较强的正相关,相反性状间有较强的负相关。综合分析试验结果认为,莱芜猪以体重70kg作为上市屠宰体重比较合理。     

Dietary protein level affects nutrient digestibility and ileal microbiota structure in growing pigs

This study aimed to determine whether dietary protein content influences pig health as indicated by ileal microbiota structure and coefficients of total tract apparent digestibility (CTTAD) of nutrients. Seventy‐two gilts, with an initial body weight of 29.9 ± 1.5 kg, were used in this 42‐day feeding study. Pigs were randomly allotted to one of three dietary treatments of corn‐soybean meal contained 14, 16 or 18% crude protein (CP). As dietary CP content decreased, the CTTAD of most essential amino acids (AAs), except for arginine and histidine, increased linearly, while those of most nonessential AAs decreased linearly. The concentration of total short‐chain fatty acids (SCFA) was higher in pigs fed the diet with 14% CP content than others. Ileal microbiota structure was changed by dietary treatments. In particular, at the phylum level, the relative abundance of Tenericutes in ileal digesta decreased as the dietary protein content reduced, while that of cyanobacteria increased. At the genus level, the relative abundance of Weeksella, Phaseolus acutifolius, Slackia, Sulfurimonas and Aerococcus showed significant differences among the three dietary treatments. In conclusion, ileal microbiota structure was changed by dietary protein content. Moderate reduction of protein intake can benefit gut health by enhancing the gut microbial fermentation and SCFA formation.     

Intestinal microbiota and its interaction to intestinal health in nursery pigs

The intestinal microbiota has gained increased attention from researchers within the swine industry due to its role in promoting intestinal maturation,immune system modulation,and consequently the enhancement of the health and growth performance of the host.This review aimed to provide updated scientific information on the interaction among intestinal microbiota,dietary components,and intestinal health of pigs.The small intestine is a key site to evaluate the interaction of the microbiota,diet,and host because it is the main site for digestion and absorption of nutrients and plays an important role within the immune system.The diet and its associated components such as feed additives are the main factors affecting the microbial composition and is central in stimulating a beneficial population of microbiota.The microbiotaehost interaction modulates the immune system,and,concurrently,the immune system helps to modulate the microbiota composition.The direct interaction between the microbiota and the host is an indication that the mucosa-associated microbiota can be more effective in evaluating its effect on health parameters.It was demonstrated that the mucosa-associated microbiota should be evaluated when analyzing the interaction among diets,microbiota,and health.In addition,supplementation of feed additives aimed to promote the intestinal health of pigs should consider their roles in the modulation of mucosa-associated microbiota as biomarkers to predict the response of growth performance to dietary interventions.     

Prediction of nutrient digestibility in grower-finisher pigs based on faecal microbiota composition

Microbiota play an important role in total tract nutrient digestion, especially when fibrous diets are fed to pigs. This study aimed to use metagenomics to predict faecal nutrient digestibility in grower-finisher pigs. The study design consisted of 160 three-way crossbreed grower-finisher pigs (80 female and 80 male) which were either fed a diet based on corn/soybean meal or a more fibrous diet based on wheat/barley/by-products. On the day before slaughter, faecal samples were collected and used to determine faecal digestibility of dry matter, ash, organic matter, crude protein, crude fat, crude fibre and non-starch polysaccharides. The faecal samples were also sequenced for the 16S hypervariable region of bacteria (V3/V4) to profile the faecal microbiome. With these data, we calculated the between-animal variation in faecal nutrient digestibility associated with variation in the faecal microbiome, that is the “microbiability”. The microbiability values were significantly greater than zero for dry matter, organic matter, crude protein, crude fibre and non-starch polysaccharides, ranging from 0.58 to 0.93, as well as for crude fat with a value of 0.37, but not significantly different from zero for ash. Using leave-one-out cross-validation, we estimated the accuracy of predicting digestibility values of individual pigs based on their faecal microbiota composition. The accuracies of prediction for crude fat and ash digestibility were virtually 0, and for the other nutrients, the accuracies ranged from 0.42 to 0.63. In conclusion, the faecal microbiota composition gave high microbiability values for faecal digestibility of dry matter, organic matter, crude protein, crude fibre and non-starch polysaccharides. The accuracies of prediction are relatively low if the interest is in precisely predicting faecal nutrient digestibility of individual pigs, but are promising from the perspective of ranking animals in a genetic selection context.     

澳洲白羊体质量与体尺指标的相关及回归分析

[目的]研究澳洲白羊体质量与体尺指标的相关及回归关系,为肉羊新品种选育提供参考.[方法]采用SPSS19.0软件对6月龄澳洲白羊体质量与体尺指标进行相关性分析、通径分析、逐步回归分析,并对其相关系数进行分解,得出了体质量与体尺指标之间的最优回归方程.[结果]体质量(y)与管围(x6)和胸围(x3)相关性极显著(P＜0....     

德南牛体尺体重相关性及主成分分析

[目的]为了研究德南牛生长发育状况。[方法]采用SPSS23.0软件对对河南省南阳市某德南牛某养殖场中的321头德南牛成年母牛,体尺指标进行相关性分析,选择5个生长性状进行相关性和主成分分析。[结果] 德南牛体高、体斜长、胸围、管围、十字部高、具有极显著相关（P＜0.01）;从主成分的特征向量和贡献率来看,主成分1反映了德南牛的整体外貌结构信息,第2主成分反映了尻部特征。本研究为阐明德南牛的体型外貌特征和选育思路提供了依据。     

青海高原牦牛体尺和体重性状相关性的统计学分析

为了解牦牛不同性别和年龄的体尺性状数据表现和相关性,实验采集146头健康的牦牛性别、年龄、体高、体斜长和胸围的数据,使用SPSS软件分析牦牛各体尺指标与体重之间相关性,并用SAS软件分析性别年龄对牦牛体尺的影响。结果表明,牦牛的体高、体斜长和胸围有显著的相关性,其中牦牛的胸围变异系数和标准差权衡数值最大,有较高的选育价值。此外,性别和年龄会对牦牛的选育产生很大影响,根据牦牛性别和年龄制定合适的选育标准。根据体尺估算不同性别和年龄的牦牛,发现体尺数据表现良好的牦牛在体重上同样表现良好。     

太湖流域地方猪种遗传结构评估和体重体尺性状差异相关选择位点鉴定

旨在解析太湖流域地方猪品种内部遗传结构,鉴定梅山猪亚群间、二花脸群体间和米猪群体间体重体尺性状差异的候选基因。试验采集440头猪样本(代表太湖流域地方猪最全面血统)进行基因芯片分型,并使用该基因分型数据集进行多种群体遗传学分析,明确太湖流域地方猪品种内部的遗传结构,并鉴定梅山猪亚群间、以及二花脸和米猪群体间体重体尺性状差异的候选SNP位点和候选基因。结果显示:在太湖流域地方猪种内部,二花脸猪与米猪间的亲缘关系最接近,其遗传距离小于梅山猪两个亚群间的遗传距离,并且拥有最为一致的进化路线。太湖流域地方猪各品种及梅山猪品种内两个亚群间都达到高度分化水平,Fst值均大于0.25,ADMIXTURE分析表明,包括梅山猪两个亚群在内的8个群体的群体结构不完全一致,在K=8时,各自展现出完全不同的祖先血统组成。通过梅山猪亚群间Fst分析、以及米猪和二花脸猪间Fst分析,在猪1、3和6号等染色体上,共鉴定到24个位点在两个分析中都表现出受选择状态,并在这些位点上下游50 kb范围注释到20个基因,其中有8个基因被报道与体重体尺性状相关。此外,受选择位点形成的选择区域与多个猪体重体尺相关QTLs重叠。试...     

12月龄短角牛体重与主要体尺指标的相关性分析

本文旨在探究12月龄短角牛体重与主要体尺指标之间的相关性,构建多元回归方程,研究影响短角牛的主要体尺指标及月龄。选取12月龄公牛163头,母牛261头,共424头短角牛体重、体高、十字部高、体斜长、胸围的体尺数据,使用最小二乘法对已知数据进行最佳线性拟合,构建多元回归方程并分析其相关性。结果显示,12月龄短角公牛的体重与各体尺指标的平均值均高于母牛;且体重与各体尺指标的回归关系达到极显著水平（p﹤0.01）,多元线性回归方程拟合度较高。12月龄短角牛无论公母,其体重与各体尺指标之间均呈现不同程度的相关性, 其中公牛的体高、十字部高、体斜长、胸围与体重的相关性高于母牛。12月龄短角公牛体重与体高、十字部高、体斜长、胸围呈极显著正相关（p﹤0.01）,其中体重与胸围的相关性最大(r=0.902)。12月龄短角母牛的体重与体高、十字部高、体斜长、胸围之间均呈极显著正相关（p﹤0.01）,其中与胸围相关性最大(r=0.823)。12月龄短角牛的体重与体高、十字部高、体斜长、胸围之间均呈极显著正相关（p﹤0.01）,其中与胸围相关性最大(r=0.873)。     

青龙本地山羊随机扩增多态DNA与体重体尺相关性研究

利用９种随机引物研究了青龙本地山羊的随机扩增多态ＤＮＡ,并利用ＳＰＳＳ程序对多态标记进行了方差分析。结果表明：青龙本地山羊基因组ＤＮＡ多态频率为４８．６５％,多态标记Ｋ０９Ｂ,Ｐ１４Ｄ和Ｑ１４Ｄ及其互作效应对体重和体尺有显著影响。     

山西白猪的微卫星标记与其体重、体尺性状的关联分析

 采用单变量动物模型分析了21个微卫星标记对山西白猪初生重、断奶重、6月龄体重、体长、体高、胸围和活体背膘厚等7个性状的影响。结果表明,S0227和S0218标记对6月龄活体背膘厚有显著影响（P<0.05）。在S0227座位上,杂合子AB型个体的6月龄背膘厚最薄;在S0218座位上,BB和CC型个体的背膘最薄。S0101标记对6月龄体高有显著影响（P<0.05）,对6月龄体重的影响也接近显著水平（P=0.0854）。在S0101座位上, CC型个体的6月龄体重最大,显著高于AB型个体,而与其他类型差异不显著;BC型个体的体高最高,显著高于AB型,而与其他类型差异不显著。     

Performance and profitability of second-cycle laying hens as influenced by body weight and body weight reduction during molt

An experiment was conducted to determine the effects of hen BW before molt and the percentage of BW loss during molt on the subsequent performance and profitability of hens during the second cycle of production. Results revealed that profits associated with Light hens (≤ 1,453 g, or 3.2 lb) were from 1.8¢ to 3.8¢/dozen eggs higher than those associated with Heavy hens (≥ 1,589 g, or 3.5 lb). Profits of Nonselected hens (ranging from 1,090 to 2,134 g, or 2.4 to 4.7 lb) were intermediate, ranging from 1.2¢ to 2.5¢/dozen higher than profits of Heavy hens. The increased profitability of Light hens was largely due to their improved feed conversion. Because Light hens produced predominantly Large and Extra Large eggs, the price spread between Medium and Large eggs had little impact on profits. Although not as pronounced as the effect of premolt BW, profits associated with Heavy hens that underwent a 35% reduction in BW during molt were from 0.8¢ to 1.5¢/dozen higher than those from Heavy hens with a 25% BW reduction. Reducing the BW of Light hens by 35% had no observable adverse effects in this study.     

Swine gut microbiota and its interaction with host nutrient metabolism

Gut microbiota is generally recognized to play a crucial role in maintaining host health and metabolism. The correlation among gut microbiota, glycolipid metabolism, and metabolic diseases has been well reviewed in humans. However, the interplay between gut microbiota and host metabolism in swine remains incompletely understood. Given the limitation in conducting human experiments and the high similarity between swine and humans in terms of anatomy, physiology, polyphagy, habits, and metabolism and in terms of the composition of gut microbiota, there is a pressing need to summarize the knowledge gained regarding swine gut microbiota, its interplay with host metabolism, and the underlying mechanisms. This review aimed to outline the bidirectional regulation between gut microbiota and nutrient metabolism in swine and to emphasize the action mechanisms underlying the complex microbiome–host crosstalk via the gut microbiota–gut–brain axis. Moreover, it highlights the new advances in knowledge of the diurnal rhythmicity of gut microbiota. A better understanding of these aspects can not only shed light on healthy and efficient pork production but also promote our knowledge on the associations between gut microbiota and the microbiome–host crosstalk mechanism. More importantly, knowledge on microbiota, host health and metabolism facilitates the development of a precise intervention therapy targeting the gut microbiota.     

Effect of liquid whey feeding on fecal microbiota of mature and growing pigs

The effect of liquid whey feeding on fecal bacteria and their metabolites was assessed in five pregnant sows and 66 growing pigs. Sows were fed a control diet for 4 weeks (control period) followed by the same diet but with whey feeding (5 L/day/pig) for 4 weeks (whey period). One group of growing pigs was given 267 L of whey per pig (whey group), while the other group was not (control group). In both cases, liquid whey was given separately from control diet. Sows in the whey period had feces showing lower pH, lower ammonia concentration, and larger population sizes of total bacteria, lactobacilli and bifidobacteria. The bacterial gene library analysis indicated that Mitsuokella and Megasphaera were more frequently detected, while Clostridium disporicum were detected less frequently in the whey period. Feces from whey‐fed growing pigs showed lower pH than that from control pigs in the early stage of growing. Also, larger populations of total bacteria, lactobacilli and bifidobacteria were recorded in the whey group. From the bacterial gene library analysis, the detection frequency of Lactobacillus reuteri tended to be higher in the whey group. These results indicate that whey feeding influences the hindgut microbiota of pigs, possibly leading to a fermentation shift that is favorable for animal health.     

Association between vaginal microbiota and risk of early pregnancy miscarriage

Approximately 15 % of clinically recognized pregnancies end in miscarriage. To explore the vaginal microbiota profile in women diagnosed with early pregnancy miscarriage (including missed miscarriage [M] or empty-sac miscarriage [E]), the microbial community structure in vaginal fluid was evaluated by Illumina MiSeq sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene V4 region and compared with that in women with normal pregnancy (P). Taxa identified in samples from the P, E, and M groups formed distinct clusters. The M group had the highest bacterial species richness and diversity, with lower Lactobacillus levels and higher Bacteroides, Halomonas, Miscellaneous-Crenarchaeota, Bacillus, Staphylococcus, Escherichia/Shigella, and Acetobacter levels than in the other two groups. The vaginal community-state types differed significantly among the three groups (P = 0.02) but were similar between the P and E groups (P = 0.21). Moreover, we identified an optimal marker set composed of 12 operational taxonomic units based on a random forest model that distinguished the M and P groups, with areas under the receiver-operating characteristic curve of 86.76 % and 93.33 % in the training and test groups, respectively. In conclusion, this study highlights that patients with early pregnancy miscarriage had a significantly different vaginal microbiota profile. Microbial markers analyzed by RT-qPCR may be applied for the etiological diagnosis of miscarriage. Further studies should be performed to elucidate the possible mechanism of special strains affecting miscarriage during early pregnancy.     

Regrouping of pigs by body weight at weaning does not affect growth performance,carcass quality or uniformity at slaughter of heavy weight pigs

We studied the influence of pen uniformity at weaning (7.5 ± 0.6 kg vs. 7.5 ± 1.2 kg body weight (BW ± SD)) and sex on growth performance during the nursery (7.5 to 27.3 kg BW) and the fattening (27.1 to 130.5 kg BW) phases and carcass quality of barrows and castrated females (CF). During the nursery phase, pigs from the more uniform pens had lower feed efficiency (P = 0.05) than pigs from the less uniform pens. Also, barrows had higher average daily feed intake (ADFI) (P < 0.05) and average daily gain (P < 0.001) and better feed efficiency (P < 0.001) than CF. During the fattening phase, initial pen uniformity did not affect growth performance of the pigs but barrows tended (P = 0.08) to have higher ADFI and worse feed efficiency than CF. Trimmed primal cut yield tended to be higher for the more uniform pigs and better for barrows than for CF (P = 0.09). It is concluded that regrouping of the pigs at weaning according to uniformity of BW did not affect growth performance or carcass quality of the pigs at slaughter. Castrated females might be used as an alternative to barrows for the production of carcasses destined to the dry‐cured industry.     

微卫星标记与考力代羊体重体尺性状遗传关系研究

本试验用单标记法研究考力代绵羊1号染色体ILSTS004~CSSM004和BM6506~MCM130之间的12个微卫星位点ILSTS004、MCMA008、MNS0094、CSSM004、BM6505、BMS4008、CSRD0298、TGLA415、BM8246、RM0509、URB0038、MCM0130,与其绵羊初生重、断奶重、体重(8月龄)、体高、体长、胸围、管围的遗传关系,结果ILSTS004位点不同基因型对初生重影响极显著(P<0·01)、对体重影响显著(P<0·05),CSSM004位点对体长影响显著(P<0·05),其余位点对体重等性状无显著影响(P>0·05)。其中,ILSTS004位点:基因型101099个体的初生重显著高于基因型095093(P<0·05),基因型101099个体的体重显著高于基因型103103(P<0·05);CSSM004基因型196196个体的体长显著大于基因型202202(P<0·05)。提示在1号染色体微卫星位点ILSTS004附近可能存在影响绵羊初生重、体重的数量性状位点(QTL),ILSTS004可作为其遗传标记之一;在CSSM004附近可能存在影响体长的QTL,CSSM004可作为其遗传标记之一。