Phenotypic and genetic correlations of pork myoglobin content with meat colour and other traits in an eight breed-crossed heterogeneous population

Meat colour is one of the most important meat quality traits affecting consumption desire. Genetic improvement for meat colour traits is not so easy because pigs can be phenotyped only after slaughter. Besides the parameters from the optical instrument, other indexes that reflect the material basis of meat colour should be measured accurately and used in the genomic analysis. Myoglobin (Mb) is the main chemical component determining meat colour. However, to what extent the Mb content contributes to meat colour, and whether it can be used as a trait for pig breeding to improve meat colour, and the correlations of Mb content with complex porcine traits are largely unknown. To address these questions, we measured the muscle Mb content in 624 pigs from the 7th generation of a specially designed eight breed-crossed pig heterogeneous population, evaluated its phenotypic and genetic correlations with longissimus thoracis colour score at 24 h after slaughter. More than that, we also systematically phenotyped more than 100 traits on these animals to evaluate the potential correlations between muscle Mb content and economically important traits. Our results showed that the average muscle Mb content in the 624 pigs was 1.00 mg/g, ranging from 0.51 to 2.17 mg/g. We found that higher Mb content usually correlated with favourable meat colour, higher marbling score, less moisture content, and less drip loss. Genetic correlation analysis between muscle Mb content and 101 traits measured in this study shows that Mb content is also significantly correlated with 31 traits, including marbling, shear force, firmness, and juiciness. To our knowledge, this is one of the largest studies about the correlations of muscle Mb content with as many as 100 various traits in a large-scale genetically diversified population. Our results showed that the Mb content could be a selection parameter for the genetic improvement of meat colour. The selection for higher Mb content will also benefit marbling, shear force, firmness, and overall liking but might not affect the growth, carcass, and fat deposition traits.     

Effect of graded levels of dietary Bacillus toyonensis and Bifidobacterium bifidum supplementation on growth,carcass traits and ileal histomorphometry and microbiota of growing quails

This experiment investigated the role of graded dietary levels of two probiotic strains (Bacillus toyonensis; BT and Bifidobacterium bifidum; BB) on the growth rate, carcass traits, physiological and histological aspects of growing Japanese quail. One thousand and three hundred sixty one-day-old un-sexed Japanese quail chicks were distributed randomly into ten groups. The 1st group served as a control and fed the basal diet without supplement while the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th groups received the control diet supplemented with 0.05, 0.075, 0.10 and 0.125% BT, respectively. The 6th group fed the control diet plus 0.10% BB while the remaining groups (7th to 10th) received the basal diet incorporated with the previous levels of BT rich with 0.05% BB. Dietary supplementation of BT and/or BB increased body weight and gain; however, feed intake and feed conversion were not affected. Amylase activity was significantly elevated in 5th, 7th and 9th groups, while lipase activity was improved in all treatment groups except 3rd and 6th groups. Results obtained concluded that dietary supplementation of BT with or without BB is useful for performance, digestive enzyme activities, blood cholesterols, antioxidant status and ileal histomorphometry and microbiota of growing Japanese quail.     

Growth performance and carcass characteristics of Awassi lambs and Shami goat kids fed yeast culture in their finishing diet

Two experiments were completed to examine effects of inclusion of a yeast culture (YC) to a diet based on barley grain and wheat straw on digestibility, growth and meat traits of Awassi lambs and Shami goat kids. Experiment 1 studied effects of YC on apparent digestibility of dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM), crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF) and N balance in sheep, while experiment 2 studied effects on growth performance and carcass composition of lambs and kids. The same diet was used in both experiments and the YC was added to the diet of treated groups at the level of 12.6 kg YC/tonne of diet. Addition of YC had no effect on apparent digestibility of DM, CP and NDF, but it increased (P<0.05) digestibility of OM and ADF. No differences occurred in N intake, output or retention. Addition of YC did not affect growth rate, or DM intake, in both lambs and kids. YC supplementation to lambs reduced hot carcass weight, cold dressing proportion and total muscle/bone ratio, but increased empty digestive tract weight. There were no changes in back fat thickness, intermuscular fat of the leg muscle, and weights and proportions of carcass cuts. Measures of kids’ carcass characteristics and quality also did not differ. Only cuts of leg and shoulder differed (P<0.05) when calculated as a proportion of the whole carcass cut. Results show that YC supplementation increased digestibility with no effect on growth, feed intake or feed conversion ratio of fattening lambs and kids. However, YC supplementation reduced meat/bone ratio and tissue protein content, but increased fat content in carcasses of fattening Awassi lambs, but not in fattened Shami kids.     

甘南草原高原鼢鼠年龄划分及其组成分析

建立高原鼢鼠(Eospalax baileyi)种群年龄鉴定划分标准,可为对其的监测及防控提供科学依据。研究于2015年5月、10月分别在甘南草原碌曲县采用夹捕法捕捉高原鼢鼠469只(雄鼠209只,雌鼠260只),在对样本进行逐个解剖和数据记录之后,参考其体重、体长、胴体重及毛色等,对高原鼢鼠的年龄划分标准进行研究。依据胴体重将高原鼢鼠分为6组:亚成年组(雄144 g,雌106 g),成年Ⅰ组(雄144~210 g,雌106~148 g)、成年Ⅱ组(雄211~276 g,雌149~190 g)、成年Ⅲ组(雄277~342 g,雌191~232 g)、成年Ⅳ组(雄343~408 g,雌233~274 g)和老年组(雄409 g,雌275 g)。年龄结构表显示,不同的季节和不同地理区域高原鼢鼠的种群年龄结构类型均为增长型。     

Introduction of Non-Native Ticks Collected from Fresh Migratory Bird Carcasses on a Stopover Island in the Republic of Korea

When free-ranging birds are accidentally killed or die, there may be greater potential for their associated ticks to detach, seek alternate hosts, and become established. We examined 711 carcasses of 95 avian species for ticks at a stopover island of migratory birds in the Republic of Korea where only Ixodes nipponensis and I. persulcatus were previously reported from local mammals and vegetation. A total of 16 ticks, I. turdus and Haemaphysalis flava, were collected from 8 fresh carcasses belonging to 5 avian species. Despite their known abundance on migratory birds and mainland Korea, these species had not colonized the isolated insular ecosystem possibly due to the low abundance and diversity of local hosts. The results imply that increasing human impact, such as the anthropogenic mortality of migratory birds and the introduction of non-native mammalian hosts, will increase the potential invasion and colonization risk of ticks. This finding also suggests that tick surveillance consisting of fresh carcasses of dead migratory birds may provide additional information, often ignored in surveillance of ticks on live birds, for the potential introduction of non-native ticks and associated pathogens affecting animal and human health.     

日粮添加塞曼特罗（CIM）对大鼠生长胴体组成及GH水平的影响

选用２４只２月龄ＳＤ处女鼠配对分组,实验组日粮添加１０μｇ／ｇ塞曼特罗（ＣＩＭ）,试验期３０天。与对照组比较,ＣＩＭ显著提高大鼠生长速度（２７．３０％,Ｐ＜０．０１）和胴体比率,降低腰胁部脂肪重,提高腓肠肌、比目鱼肌和趾浅屈肌的鲜重和ＲＮＡ合量及ＰＮＡ／ＤＮＡ值,同时提高大鼠垂体和血清ＧＨ水平分别达３６．７０％（Ｐ＜０．０１）和２３．７７％（Ｐ＜０．０５）,降低血清脲氮含量。表明ＣＩＭ可显著促进大鼠生长,降低体脂含量,促进肌肉肥大,促进蛋白沉积。其作用机理可能还与其促进ＧＨ的合成和分泌有关。     

Proteome changes underpin improved meat quality and yield of chickens (Gallus gallus) fed the probiotic Enterococcus faecium

Background

Supplementation of broiler chicken diets with probiotics may improve carcass characteristics and meat quality. However, the underlying molecular mechanism remains unclear. In the present study, 2D-DIGE-based proteomics was employed to investigate the proteome changes associated with improved carcass traits and meat quality of Arbor Acres broilers (Gallus gallus) fed the probiotic Enterococcus faecium.

Results

The probiotic significantly increased meat colour, water holding capacity and pH of pectoral muscle but decreased abdominal fat content. These meat quality changes were related to the altered abundance of 22 proteins in the pectoral muscle following E. faecium feeding. Of these, 17 proteins have central roles in regulating meat quality due to their biological interaction network. Altered cytoskeletal and chaperon protein expression also contribute to improved water holding capacity and colour of meat, which suggests that upregulation of chaperon proteins maintains cell integrity and prevents moisture loss by enhancing folding and recovery of the membrane and cytoskeletal proteins. The down-regulation of β-enolase and pyruvate kinase muscle isozymes suggests roles in increasing the pH of meat by decreasing the production of lactic acid. The validity of the proteomics results was further confirmed by qPCR.

Conclusions

This study reveals that improved meat quality of broilers fed probiotics is triggered by proteome alterations (especially the glycolytic proteins), and provides a new insight into the mechanism by which probiotics improve poultry production.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2164-15-1167) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Les occupations gravettiennes de la Grotte Santa Maria di Agnano (Pouilles,Italie) – Zone SMA-Esterno : typo-technologie lithique et archéozoologie

The Gravettian in Apulia constitutes a singular cultural entity in the context of the prehistoric chrono-cultures of Upper Paleolithic in Italy. This situation can particularly be observed in the Gravettian sequence of the Paglicci cave on Mount Gargano, the lithic series of which show an original development. In the very heart of Apulia, until recently, no field for comparison could be found for the time sequence of the Paglicci cave. But the recent discovery of Gravettian occupation in the stratigraphic sequence of the SMA-external area of Santa Maria di Agnano makes it possible to revisit the status of the Paglicci cave, but also to clarify the specific characters of the Gravettian in Apulia. The lithic industry of SU 9-6 of SMA-Esterno is characterized by the presence of many burins on retouched truncation associated with straight backed points, Gravette or Vachons type. This association reminds us of the assemblage of Paglicci layer 21, attributed to Middle Gravettian. C14 datings for both sites match. Finally, at the base of the Gravettian SMA sequence, SU 11 provided large dihedral burins matching those found Paglicci layers 23-22 attributed to ancient Gravettian. The preliminary zooarchaeological study was carried out on a sample of 2007 remains of large mammals. In total, 816 taxinomic and anatomic remains (NRDt) could be identified, i.e. a 40.7% determination rate. The faunic spectrum consists of 10 taxons, among which 4 species of carnivores (leopard, wolf, fox, badger), 5 ungulates (horse, aurochs, ibex, deer and wild boar) and 1 leporid (hare). Ungulates prevail, as far as remains (98.7% of NRDt) or the minimum number of individuals (82.4% of NMI total) are concerned. Taphonomic analyses indicate that bones were not subject to deep post-depositional modifications. Consequences of weathering are visible on 17% of the cortical surfaces. Non-anthropic biological modifications are scarce: 13% of the material were impacted by roots and 0.7% show the results of carnivorous activity. The hare may be the only species, among herbivores, that was accumulated by a carnivore. The analysis of bone fractures and the traces left by the edge of a lithic tool reveal that the bone material was essentially accumulated and modified by human groups. Hunting is clearly aimed at both Horses (Equus caballus) and Aurochs (Bos primigenius), with occasional Red Deer (Cervus elaphus), Wild Boar (Sus s. scrofa) and Ibex (Capra ibex). The individuals represented are mainly sub-adults and mature adults. The human groups living on the site probably got their meat resources from the plain bordering the Adriatic shore and the vast, more or less flat, plateau overlooking the site. According to the skeleton representations in which the stylopod and zeugopod prevailed, after an initial treatment at the slaughter site, the Gravettians carried the most nutritious parts to the camp. The study of human activities indicates extensive processing of carcasses for their meat and extraction of marrow from long bones. Finally, specific research for fat from the cancellous tissue of the epiphyses of both long and short bones is proposed.     

Wind turbine fatalities approach a level of concern in a raptor population

Mortality from collisions with increasing numbers of wind turbines is a potential hazard to raptor populations, but the actual effects on a population scale have rarely been studied based on field data. We estimated annual collision numbers for Red Kites Milvus milvus in the German federal state of Brandenburg (29,483 km²). A hierarchical model considering carcass persistence rate, searcher efficiency and the probability that a killed animal falls into a searched area was applied to results of carcass searches at 617 turbines. Collision risk varied significantly with season. The model estimated 308 (95% CrI 159–488) Red Kite fatalities at 3044 turbines operating during 2012, representing 3.1% of the estimated post-breeding population of 9972 individuals. Using the potential biological removal (PBR) method, mortality thresholds of 4.0% were obtained for migratory Red Kite populations. This level of mortality may be reached when turbine numbers increase within a few years. Since wind turbine collisions may affect Red Kites throughout the global range, a more detailed assessment of the actual impacts on populations is needed, especially because the PBR does not account for the predominance of adult birds among the collision victims.     

Performance and carcass quality traits of Iberian × Duroc crossbred pig subject to gender and age at the beginning of the free-range finishing phase

The traditional production of the Iberian breed pig involves a long production cycle. It might be shortened by using Iberian pigs crossed with Duroc and by reducing the growing phase, but the age-related changes on productive performance and carcass quality should be addressed. Thus, productive performance, live measurements and carcass and primal cut traits were evaluated on Iberian × Duroc 50:50 crossed pigs according to animal age at the beginning of the free-range finishing phase (Montanera): 10, 12 and 14 months old (IBxD10 (n = 15), IBxD12 (n = 17) and IBxD14 (n = 18) animal batches, respectively) and gender (immunologically castrated female -consisted of the Improvac® vaccination- and surgically castrated males). During the growing period, animals were fed with restrictions; 1.49, 1.29 and 1.20 ± 0.023 (mean ± SEM) kg/day of commercial feeds to start Montanera with similar BW; 103.9, 102.9 and 102.1 ± 0.22 kg, for IBxD10, IBxD12 and IBxD14, respectively. IBxD14 animals yielded the highest average daily gain (ADG) and BW after Montanera, as well as larger rump height and croup width. In contrast, these animals had the lowest carcass yield. Although animals from IBxD10 yielded hams of inferior size, this could be of interest to the sector, as there is a certain segment of the market that demands hams of smaller size and, generally, this is difficult to obtain with the traditional Montanera production system. The gender had no major effects on performance and carcass and primal cut traits, so both immunologically castrated female and surgically castrated males are suitable for finishing in Montanera.