Growth performance of Black Bengal,Saanen, and their crossbred F1 as affected by sex,litter size,and season of kidding

The objective of the present study was to determine the factors that influenced growth performance of the goat kids of Black Bengal (BB), Saanen (SA), and their crossbred F1 (male Bengal × female Saanen [BBSA] and male Saanen × female Black Bengal [SABB]). Data for 674 kids were analyzed from 316 litters and 134 does. All kids were weekly measured on their characteristics (body weight, length, height at the withers, and chest girth) from birth to 11 weeks old. The kid’s breed and sex, litter size, and season of kidding influenced birth weight and other characteristics through the experiment. The SA and BBSA kids showed similar performance, which were higher than BB and SABB kids. Male kids had higher performance than female kids, and kids from a single litter showed the highest performance. Kids born during rainy season showed lower performance than those born in hot and cool seasons. In conclusion, the crossbred BBSA is superior to SABB or BB to raise in tropical climate Moreover, sex, litter size, and kidding season also affected growth performance during the preweaning period up to 11 weeks old.     

西宁地区西门塔尔牛血液蛋白质多态性的研究

采用聚丙烯酰胺凝胶电泳对西宁地区西门塔尔牛的血红蛋白、运铁蛋白和后运铁蛋白的多态性特征进行了研究。结果表明:①血红蛋白位点存在HB AA和HB AB两种基因型,以HBAA为优蛰基因型,HB~A为优势等位基因;②运铁蛋白位点存在TF AA,TF AD,TF DD,TF DE和TF AE五种基因型,以TF DD为优势基因型,TF~D为优势等位基因;③后运铁蛋白位点存在PTFAA,PTF AB和PTF BB三种基因型,以PTF AA为优势基因型,PTF~A为优势等位基因;④三个血液蛋白质位点的平均基因杂合度为0.3396。     

不同类型日粮饲喂幼龄山羊的效果研究

在精料用量相同、定量采食的条件下,研究不同粗料配合、不同加工方法对幼龄波尔羊生产性能的影响,并分析其经济效益。结果表明:粗料为35%稻秆粉、15%砻糠的 号全混合颗粒料在本次试验中的效果最为突出。与粗料为青草的日粮1相比,试羊日增重、饲料转化率分别提高48.4%(P<0.05)和27.9%,且每千克增重饲料费用降低41.5%;与粗料为稻秸散料的日粮2相比,试羊日增重、饲料转化率分别提高了53.3%(P<0.05)和26.9%,且每千克增重饲料费用降低30.9%。经济效益明显。     

Finding best exotic breed proportion in crossbred lactating sheep kept under farmers’ conditions in Ethiopia determined by use of nested Legendre polynomials with limited data

ABSTRACT

The present study was conducted to estimate milk production performance and fit lactation curves for groups of ewes of Local and of Awassi crosses, with a variable blood level, reared under farmer’s environment. The Weigh-Suckle-Weigh method plus hand milking was used to estimate milk yield for ewes. A total of 466 observations from 115 ewes were used. Estimated least-squares adjusted means for the milk production over 120 days were 0.56?kg day^?1 (Local), 0.67 (<30% Awassi), 0.86 (30–50% Awassi), and 0.96 (>50% Awassi). Groups with 30–50% Awassi and >50% Awassi ewes produced significantly (p?<?0.05) more milk than Local ewes. Significant differences were observed between <30% Awassi and >50% Awassi crossbred groups. The best crosses (>50% Awassi) produced over 70% more milk than the local ewes which demonstrates the potential that exists in increasing milk production through the initiated crossbreeding programme with sheep in Ethiopia.     

Effects of concentrate‐to‐forage ratios and 2‐methylbutyrate supplementation on ruminal fermentation,bacteria abundance and urinary excretion of purine derivatives in Chinese Simmental steers

This study evaluated the effects of dietary concentrate levels and 2‐methylbutyrate (2MB ) supplementation on performance, ruminal fermentation, bacteria abundance, microbial enzyme activity and urinary excretion of purine derivatives (PD ) in steers. Eight ruminally cannulated Simmental steers (12 months of age; 389 ± 3.7 kg of body weight) were used in a replicated 4 × 4 Latin square design with a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement. Moderate‐concentrate (400 g/kg diet [MC ]) or high‐concentrate (600 g/kg diet [HC ]) diets were fed with or without 2MB (0 g/day [2MB ?] or 15.0 g/day [2MB +]). Dry matter intake and average daily gain increased, but feed conversion ratio decreased with the HC diet or 2MB supplementation. Ruminal pH decreased, but total volatile fatty acid increased with the HC diet or 2MB supplementation. Molar proportion of acetate and acetate‐to‐propionate ratio decreased with the HC diet, but increased with 2MB supplementation. Propionate molar proportion and ruminal NH ₃‐N content increased with the HC diet, but decreased with 2MB supplementation. Neutral detergent fibre degradability decreased with the HC diet, but increased with 2MB supplementation. Crude protein degradability increased with the HC diet or 2MB supplementation. Abundance of Ruminococcus albus , Ruminococcus flavefaciens , Fibrobacter succinogenes and Bufyrivibrio fibrisolvens as well as activities of carboxymethyl cellulase, cellobiase, xylanase and pectinase decreased with the HC diet, but increased with 2MB supplementation. However, abundance of Prevotella ruminicola and Ruminobacter amylophilus as well as activities of α‐amylase and protease increased with the HC diet or 2MB supplementation. Total PD excretion also increased with the HC diet or 2MB supplementation. The results suggested that growth performance, ruminal fermentation, CP degradability and total PD excretion increased with increasing dietary concentrate level from 40% to 60% or 2MB supplementation. The observed diet × 2MB interaction indicated that supplementation of 2MB was more efficacious for improving growth performance, ruminal fermentation and total PD excretion with promoted ruminal bacteria abundance and enzyme activity in the MC diet than in the HC diet.     

Multimarker and rare variants genomewide association studies for bone weight in Simmental cattle

Bone weight, defined as the total weight of the bones in all the forequarter and hindquarter joints, can reflect somebody conformation traits and skeletal diseases. To gain a better understanding of the genetic determinants of bone weight, we used a composite strategy including multimarker and rare‐marker association to perform genomewide association studies (GWAS) for that character in Simmental cattle. Our strategy consisted of three models: (i) A traditional linear mixed model (LMM) was applied (Q+K‐LMM); (ii) single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with p‐values less than .05 from the LMM were selected to undergo the least absolute shrinkage and selector operator (Lasso) in the second stage (LMM‐Lasso); (iii) genes containing two or more rare SNPs were examined by performing the sequence kernel association test (gene‐based SKAT). A total of 1,225 cattle were genotyped with an Illumina BovineHD BeadChip containing 770,000 SNPs. After the quality‐control procedures, 1,217 individuals with 608,696 common SNPs and 105,787 rare SNPs (with 0.001 < minor allele frequency [MAF] <0.05) remained in the sample for analysis. A traditional LMM successfully mapped three genes associated with bone weight, while LMM‐Lasso identified nine genes, which included all genes found by traditional LMM. Only a single gene, EPHB3, surpassed the significance threshold after Bonferroni correction in gene‐based SKAT. In conclusion, based on functional annotation and results from previous endeavours, we believe that LCORL, RIMS2, LAP3, PRKAR2B, CHSY1, MAP2K6 and EPHB3 are candidate genes for bone weight. In general, such a comprehensive strategy for GWAS may be useful for researchers seeking to probe the full genetic architecture underlying economic traits in livestock.     

Bacterial community analysis of purulent material from liver abscesses of crossbred cattle and Holstein steers fed finishing diets with or without tylosin

Liver abscesses in feedlot cattle are polymicrobial infections. Culture-based studies have identified Fusobacterium necrophorum as the primary causative agent, but a number of other bacterial species are frequently isolated. The incidence of liver abscesses is highly variable and is affected by a number of factors, including cattle type. Holstein steers raised for beef production have a higher incidence than crossbred feedlot cattle. Tylosin is the commonly used antimicrobial feed additive to reduce the incidence of liver abscesses. The objective of this study was to utilize 16S ribosomal RNA amplicon sequence analyses to analyze the bacterial community composition of purulent material of liver abscesses of crossbred cattle (n = 24) and Holstein steers (n = 24), each fed finishing diet with or without tylosin. DNA was extracted and the V3 and V4 regions of the 16S rRNA gene were amplified, sequenced, and analyzed. The minimum, mean, and maximum sequence reads per sample were 996, 177,070, and 877,770, respectively, across all the liver abscess samples. Sequence analyses identified 5 phyla, 14 families, 98 genera, and 102 amplicon sequence variants (ASV) in the 4 treatment groups. The dominant phyla identified were Fusobacteria (52% of total reads) and Proteobacteria (33%). Of the top 25 genera identified, 17 genera were Gram negative and 8 were Gram positive. The top 3 genera, which accounted for 75% of the total reads, in the order of abundance, were Fusobacterium, Pseudomonas, and Bacteroides. The relative abundance, expressed as percent of total reads, of phyla, family, and genera did not differ (P > 0.05) between the 4 treatment groups. Generic richness and evenness, determined by Shannon–Weiner and Simpson’s diversity indices, respectively, did not differ between the groups. The UniFrac distance matrices data revealed no clustering of the ASV indicating variance between the samples within each treatment group. Co-occurrence network analysis at the genus level indicated a strong association of Fusobacterium with 15 other genera, and not all of them have been previously isolated from liver abscesses. In conclusion, the culture-independent method identified the bacterial composition of liver abscesses as predominantly Gram negative and Fusobacterium as the dominant genus, followed by Pseudomonas. The bacterial community composition did not differ between crossbred and Holstein steers fed finishing diets with or without tylosin.     

复合双歧杆菌制剂对肉羊生长性能、养分表观消化率及血液生化指标的影响

为研究复合双歧杆菌制剂对肉羊生长性能、养分表观消化率及血液生化指标的影响,试验选择健康、体重相近的杜寒杂交肉羊60只随机分成4组,每组15个重复,每个重复1只,1组为对照组饲喂基础日粮,试验2、3、4组分别在基础日粮中添加2.5%、5.0%、10%的复合双歧杆菌制剂,预试验7 d,试验期56 d。结果表明:(1)试验3、4组的平均日增重较1组比分别提高13.5%、9.3%(P<0.05),料重比较1组比分别降低10.3%、9.4%(P<0.05),试验2、3、4组的干物质采食量均高于1组(P>0.05);(2)试验2、3、4组的干物质、钙、磷、酸性洗涤纤维表观消化率均高于1组(P>0.05),试验3、4组的粗蛋白质、中性洗涤纤维消化率较1组比分别提高17.2%、15.3%、12.5%、9.1%(P<0.05);(3)试验3、4组血清中的总蛋白(TP)含量较1组比分别提高16.0%、12.9%(P<0.05),试验2、3、4组血清中的白蛋白(ALB)含量均高于1组(P>0.05),试验2、3、4组血清中谷丙转氨酶(GPT)、谷草转氨酶(GOT)含量均低于1组(P>0.05),试验3、4组血清中尿素氮(BUN)含量较1组比分别降低15.4%、13.8%(P<0.05)。综上,不同水平的复合双歧杆菌制剂可以提高肉羊生长性能、养分表观消化率,且对血液生化指标无明显影响,以5.0%添加为适宜。     

Mycoplasma pneumonia of swine (MPS) resistance and immune characteristics of pig lines generated by crossing an MPS pulmonary lesion selected Landrace line and a highly immune capacity selected Large White line

To understand the influence of crossbreeding on Mycoplasma pneumonia of swine (MPS) resistance and immune characteristics, two crossbred lines were characterized. One crossbred line, LaWa, was generated by crossing the MPS pulmonary lesion selected Landrace line (La) and the highly immune‐selected Large White line (Wa). The second crossbred line, LaWb, was generated by crossing the La line and the nonselected Large White line (Wb). The crossbred LbWb line (nonselected Landrace line × nonselected Large White line) and the La line were used as controls. The LaWa and LaWb lines had an intermediate level of MPS lung lesions between La and LbWb lines, although the difference was not statistically significant. After stimulation with sheep red blood cells (SRBCs), the LaWb and LaWa lines showed immune characteristics similar to that of the La line; the number of monocytes in peripheral blood increased, while B cells, T cells, secretion of SRBC‐specific immunoglobulin G, and interleukin (IL)‐13 decreased. Additionally, the number of natural killer (NK) cells and the expression of IL‐4 and IL‐17 were significantly higher in the LaWb and LaWa lines, respectively. These data suggested that crossbreeding of La and Wa lines resulted in the inheritance of some of the selected immune responses.     

不同部位西门塔尔牛肉理化品质分析及烤制加工适宜性的研究

[目的]研究不同部位西门塔尔牛肉原料肉的理化品质,评价烤制加工后的食用品质和感官品质。[方法]选取体重为550 kg左右的西门塔尔肉牛10头,屠宰分割后取不同部位牛肉（里脊、外脊、前腿、后腿、眼肉、米龙）。4 ℃排酸72 h后,采用常规方法测定不同部位牛肉的蛋白质含量、脂肪含量、水分含量、pH值以及色泽指标,并对大理石花纹等级进行评分;220 ℃烤制10 min后,对不同部位牛肉进行剪切力和加工损失率测定,并对感官品质指标进行评价。[结果]不同部位牛肉的脂肪含量、大理石花纹评分、L^*值、a^*值、剪切力、色泽评分、嫩度评分、多汁性评分、香气评分和总体可接受性评分差异显著（P<0.05或P<0.01）,不同部位牛肉中的蛋白质含量、水分含量、pH值、b^*值、加工损失率、滋味评分差异不显著（P>0.05）。眼肉中脂肪含量最高（P<0.01）,前腿、后腿脂肪含量相同,均为最低（P<0.01）;眼肉、外脊的大理石花纹评分显著（P<0.01）高于其他部位;眼肉、外脊的L^*值显著（P<0.05）高于其他部位,里脊、后腿的L^*值显著（P<0.05）低于其他部位;外脊和眼肉的a^*值显著（P<0.01）低于其他部位;眼肉、外脊的剪切力显著（P<0.01）低于其他部位;眼肉的总体可接受性评分显著（P<0.05）高于其他部位,前腿、后腿和米龙的总体可接受性评分相同,均为最低（P<0.05）。[结论]外脊、眼肉的肌内脂肪含量高于其他部位,烤制后产品的嫩度、滋味及总体可接受性较好。眼肉和外脊是西门塔尔牛肉中最适宜加工烤制产品的部位。