Dietary Phytoncide Supplementation Improved Growth Performance and Meat Quality of Finishing Pigs
We conducted this 10-wk experiment to evaluate the effects of dietary phytoncide, Korean pine extract as phytogenic feed additive (PFA), on growth performance, blood characteristics, and meat quality in finishing pigs. A total of 160 pigs ([Landrace×Yorkshire]×Duroc, body weight (BW) = 58.2±1.0 kg) were randomly allocated into 1 of 4 treatments according to their BW and sex, 10 replicate pens per treatment with 4 pigs per pen were used (2 barrows and 2 gilts). Dietary treatments were: CON, control diet; PT2, CON+0.02% PFA; PT4, CON+0.04% PFA; PT6, CON+0.06% PFA. Overall, average daily gain (ADG) was higher in PT4 (p<0.05) than in PT6, average daily feed intake (ADFI) was lower in PT6 than in CON (p<0.05). Besides ADFI decreased linearly (p<0.05) with the increased level of phytoncide and gain:feed ratio in PT4 treatment was higher (p<0.05) than CON treatment. During 5 to 10 weeks and overall, quadratic (p<0.05) effect was observed in ADG among the treatments. At the end of this experiment, pigs fed with PT4 diet had a greater (p<0.05) red blood cell concentration compared to the pigs fed CON diet. Water holding capacity increased linearly (p<0.05) with the increased level of phytoncide supplementation. Moreover, firmness, redness, yellowness, and drip loss at day 3 decreased linearly (p<0.05) with the increase in the level of phytoncide supplementation. In conclusion, inclusion of phytoncide could enhance growth performance without any adverse effects on meat quality in finishing pigs.
Effects of phytogenic substances on growth performance, digestibility of nutrients, faecal noxious gas content, blood and milk characteristics and reproduction in sows and litter performance
Forty sows (Landrace×Yorkshire), with an average body weight (BW) of 184.5 kg and average parity of 2.65, were used to determine the effects of a phytogenic feed additive (PFA) on growth performance, digestibility of nutrients, faecal NH3-N gas content, blood and milk characteristics and litter performance. Dietary treatments included: 1. control (CON) and 2. PFA (basal diet + 0.04% phytogenic feed additive). Digestibility of dry matter (DM) was increased signifi cantly (P<0.05) in PFA treatment. Faecal ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N) measured at the end of experiment was reduced (P<0.05), however no signifi cant effect (P>0.05) was observed on the digestibility of protein in PFA. On day 1 of lactation, albumin and lymphocyte were decreased (P<0.05) whereas WBC was increased signifi cantly (P<0.05) when sows were fed the PFA diet. IgG content in milk was increased by PFA at farrowing and after farrowing 12 h (P<0.01; P<0.05). Similarly, IgA content in milk was increased by PFA after farrowing 12 h (P<0.01). Protein and solid concentration in colostrum were signifi cant lower (P<0.01; P<0.05) in PFA treatment than CON treatment after farrowing 12 h. In conclusion, feeding 0.04% of PFA from day 107 of gestation to day 21 of lactation improved DM digestibility, RBC and WBC concentration, and lactose, IgG and IgA production in colostrums and decreased faecal NH3-N concentration.
Genetics of the phenotypic evolution in sheep: a molecular look at diversity-driving genes
Background After domestication, the evolution of phenotypically-varied sheep breeds has generated rich biodiversity. This wide phenotypic variation arises as a result of hidden genomic changes that range from a single nucleotide to several thousands of nucleotides. Thus, it is of interest and significance to reveal and understand the genomic changes underlying the phenotypic variation of sheep breeds in order to drive selection towards economically important traits. Review Various traits contribute to the emergence of variation in sheep phenotypic characteristics, including coat color, horns, tail, wool, ears, udder, vertebrae, among others. The genes that determine most of these phenotypic traits have been investigated, which has generated knowledge regarding the genetic determinism of several agriculturally-relevant traits in sheep. In this review, we discuss the genomic knowledge that has emerged in the past few decades regarding the phenotypic traits in sheep, and our ultimate aim is to encourage its practical application in sheep breeding. In addition, in order to expand the current understanding of the sheep genome, we shed light on research gaps that require further investigation. Conclusions Although significant research efforts have been conducted in the past few decades, several aspects of the sheep genome remain unexplored. For the full utilization of the current knowledge of the sheep genome, a wide practical application is still required in order to boost sheep productive performance and contribute to the generation of improved sheep breeds. The accumulated knowledge on the sheep genome will help advance and strengthen sheep breeding programs to face future challenges in the sector, such as climate change, global human population growth, and the increasing demand for products of animal origin.