Compensation effects of coated cysteamine on meat quality, amino acid composition, fatty acid composition, mineral content in dorsal muscle and serum biochemical indices in finishing pigs offered reduced trace minerals diet

Trimethylamine oxide supplementation differentially regulates fat deposition in liver, longissimus dorsi muscle and adipose tissue of growing-finishing pigs

Trimethylamine oxide (TMAO) is a microbiota-derived metabolite, and numerous studies have shown that it could regulate fat metabolism in humans and mice. However, few studies have focused on the effects of TMAO on fat deposition in growing-finishing pigs. This study aimed to investigate the effect of TMAO on fat deposition and intestinal microbiota in growing-finishing pigs. Sixteen growing pigs were randomly divided into 2 groups and fed with a basal diet with 0 or 1 g/kg TMAO for 149 d. The intestinal microbial profiles, fat deposition indexes, and fatty acid profiles were measured. These results showed that TMAO supplementation had a tendency to decrease lean body mass (P < 0.1) and significantly increased backfat thickness (P < 0.05), but it did not affect growth performance. TMAO significantly increased total protein (TP) concentration, and reduced alkaline phosphatase (ALP) concentration in serum (P < 0.05). TMAO increased the α diversity of the ileal microbiota community (P < 0.05), and it did not affect the colonic microbial community. TMAO supplementation significantly increased acetate content in the ileum, and Proteobacteria and Escherichia-Shigella were significantly enriched in the TMAO group (P < 0.05). In addition, TMAO decreased fat content, as well as the ratio of linoleic acid, n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), and PUFA in the liver (P < 0.05). On the contrary, TMAO increased intramuscular fat content of the longissimus dorsi muscle, whereas the C18:2n6c ratio was increased, and the n-6 PUFA:PUFA ratio was decreased (P < 0.05). In vitro, 1 mM TMAO treatment significantly upregulated the expression of FASN and SREBP1 in C2C12 cells (P < 0.05). Nevertheless, TMAO also increased adipocyte area and decreased the CPT-1B expression in subcutaneous fat (P < 0.05). Taken together, TMAO supplementation regulated ileal microbial composition and acetate production, and regulated fat distribution and fatty acid composition in growing-finishing pigs. These results provide new insights for understanding the role of TMAO in humans and animals.

Cysteamine-supplemented diet for cashmere goats: A potential strategy to inhibit rumen biohydrogenation and enhance plasma antioxidant capacity

Cysteamine (CS), as a feed supplement, can increase the level of growth hormone (GH) in the blood, promote animal growth. However, little attention has been paid to the effects of CS on the rumen microbiome and metabolic profile in cashmere goats. This study aimed to assess the effects of rumen microbiota, metabolites, and plasma antioxidative capacity induced by CS supplementation in cashmere goats. We selected 30 Inner Mongolia white cashmere goat ewes (aged 18 months), and randomly separate the goats into three groups (n = 10 per group) to experiment for 40 days. Oral 0 (control group, CON), 60 (low CS, LCS), or 120 mg/kg BW^-1 (high CS, HCS) coated CS hydrochloride every day. Using 16S and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, we identified 12 bacterial and 3 fungal genera with significant changes among the groups, respectively. We found a significant increase in rumen NH₃-N and total volatile fatty acid (TVFA) concentrations in the LCS and HCS groups compared with the CON. With untargeted LC-MS/MS metabolomics, we screened 59 rumen differential metabolites. Among the screened metabolites, many unsaturated and saturated fatty acids increased and decreased with CS treatment, respectively. CS supplementation increased the levels of plasma total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), superoxide dismutase (SOD), GH, and insulin-like growth factor-1(IGF-1). Spearman correlation analysis revealed that the abundance of U29-B03, Lactococcus, and Brochothrix were positively associated with the levels of δ2-THA, TVFA and antioxidant capacity. In conclusion, CS significantly affected rumen microbiota and fermentation parameters, and ultimately inhibited the biohydrogenation of rumen metabolites, enhanced plasma antioxidant capacity, and regulated some hormones of the GH-IGF-1 axis. This study provides an overall view into the CS application as a strategy to improve health production in cashmere goats.

Effects of Coated Trace Minerals and the Fat Source on Growth Performance, Antioxidant Status, and Meat Quality in Broiler Chickens

Inorganic trace minerals may exacerbate lipid peroxidation, thereby impacting lipid metabolism. This study aimed to compare the effects of inorganic and coated trace minerals in diets with different fat sources, on the performance, slaughter characteristics, and antioxidant status of broiler chickens. A total of 576 21-day-old Abor Acres broiler birds were randomly divided into four dietary treatment groups in a 2 (non-coated and coated trace minerals)×2 (soybean oil and lard) factorial design. Each treatment was replicated 12 times (12 birds per replicate). The results showed that coated minerals significantly improved the average daily gain (ADG) in weight and the feed conversion ratio (P<0.01), increased serum iron, zinc, selenium, and thyroxine contents, increased the activities of glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, total antioxidant capacity, and lipoprotein lipase (P<0.05), and decreased the serum and muscle malondialdehyde (MDA) contents (P<0.01). The use of soybean oil as the fat source resulted in a high ADG in weight, a low F/G ratio, reduced serum MDA content, and drip loss of breast and leg muscles (P<0.05). In conclusion, the supplementation of coated trace minerals improved growth performance, antioxidant status, trace mineral retention within serum, and lipid metabolism. Additionally, soybean oil also improved the growth performance, antioxidant performance, and meat quality of broilers. The combination of coated trace minerals and soybean oil generated the best growth performance, antioxidant status, and meat quality characteristics.

Effects of Coated Cysteamine on Oxidative Stress and Inflammation in Weaned Pigs

This study aimed to explore the effects of dietary coated cysteamine on oxidative stress and inflammation in diquat-induced weaning pigs. Twenty-four pigs were randomly assigned to three dietary groups with eight replicates: the control (fed base diet), diquat (fed base diet), and coated cysteamine + diquat groups (fed 80 mg/kg cysteamine). The experiment was conducted for 21 d, and consisted of a pre-starter period (14 d) and a starter period (7 d). Coated cysteamine treatment significantly increased (p < 0.05) the final weight and average daily gain (ADG) in pigs. The contents of alkaline phosphatase (ALP), immunoglobulin G (IgG), serine (Ser), and isoleucine (Ile) were elevated (p < 0.05) while the contents of albumin (ALB) and aspartic acid (Asp) were reduced (p < 0.05) in the serum after coated cysteamine supplementation. Coated cysteamine supplementation resulted in greater (p < 0.05) serum superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, the expression of interleukin-10 (IL-10) mRNA in the colon, and the CuSOD mRNA expression in the jejunum (p < 0.05) and colon (p = 0.073). Coated cysteamine supplementation showed an increasing trend in villus height (p = 0.060), villus height/crypt depth (V/C) (p = 0.056), the expression levels of zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1) mRNA (p = 0.061), and Occludin mRNA (p = 0.074) in the jejunum. In summary, dietary supplementation with coated cysteamine improves the intestinal barrier function of the jejunum by increasing the immunoglobulin content and the relative expression of intestinal immune factor mRNA in pigs while alleviating oxidative stress and inflammatory reactions caused by diquat.

The impact of probiotics on gut health via alternation of immune status of monogastric animals

The intestinal immune system is affected by various factors during its development, such as maternal antibodies, host genes, intestinal microbial composition and activity, and various stresses (such as weaning stress). Intestinal microbes may have an important impact on the development of the host immune system. Appropriate interventions such as probiotics may have a positive effect on intestinal immunity by regulating the composition and activity of intestinal microbes. Moreover, probiotics participate in the regulation of host health in many ways; for instance, by improving digestion and the absorption of nutrients, immune response, increasing the content of intestinal-beneficial microorganisms, and inhibiting intestinal-pathogenic bacteria, and they participate in regulating intestinal diseases in various ways. Probiotics are widely used as additives in livestock and the poultry industry and bring health benefits to hosts by improving intestinal microbes and growth performance, which provides more choices for promoting strong and efficient productivity.

Interplay between gut microbiota and antimicrobial peptides

The gut microbiota is comprised of a diverse array of microorganisms that interact with immune system and exert crucial roles for the health. Changes in the gut microbiota composition and functionality are associated with multiple diseases. As such, mobilizing a rapid and appropriate antimicrobial response depending on the nature of each stimulus is crucial for maintaining the balance between homeostasis and inflammation in the gut. Major players in this scenario are antimicrobial peptides (AMP), which belong to an ancient defense system found in all organisms and participate in a preservative co-evolution with a complex microbiome. Particularly increasing interactions between AMP and microbiota have been found in the gut. Here, we focus on the mechanisms by which AMP help to maintain a balanced microbiota and advancing our understanding of the circumstances of such balanced interactions between gut microbiota and host AMP. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview on the interplay of diverse antimicrobial responses with enteric pathogens and the gut microbiota, which should have therapeutic implications for different intestinal disorders.

The Effects of Dietary Glycine on the Acetic Acid-Induced Mouse Model of Colitis

Inflammatory bowel disease, a gut disease that is prevalent worldwide, is characterized by chronic intestinal inflammation, such as colitis, and disorder of the gut microbiome. Glycine (Gly) is the simplest amino acid and functions as an anti-inflammatory immune-nutrient and intestinal microbiota regulator. This study aimed at investigating the effect of Gly on colitis induced in mice by intrarectal administration of 5% acetic acid (AA). Bodyweight and survival rates were monitored, and colonic length and weight, serum amino acid concentrations, intestinal inflammation-related gene expression, and colonic microbiota abundances were analyzed. The results showed that Gly dietary supplementation had no effect on the survival rate or the ratio of colonic length to weight. However, Gly supplementation reversed the AA-induced increase in serum concentrations of amino acids such as glutamate, leucine, isoleucine, and valine. Furthermore, Gly inhibited colonic gene expression of interleukin- (IL-) 1β and promoted IL-10 expression in colitis mice. Gly supplementation also reversed the AA-induced reduction in the abundance of bacteria such as Clostridia, Ruminococcaceae, and Clostridiales. This change in the intestinal microbiota was possibly attributable to the changes in colonic IL-10 expression and serum concentrations of valine and leucine. In sum, Gly supplementation regulated the serum concentrations of amino acids, the levels of colonic immune-associated gene expression, and the intestinal microbiota in a mouse model of colitis. These findings enhance our understanding of the role of Gly in regulating metabolism, intestinal immunity, and the gut microbiota in animals afflicted with colitis.

Oxidative stress, nutritional antioxidants and beyond

Free radical-induced oxidative stress contributes to the development of metabolic syndromes (Mets), including overweight, hyperglycemia, insulin resistance and pro-inflammatory state. Most free radicals are generated from the mitochondrial electron transport chain; under physiological conditions, their levels are maintained by efficient antioxidant systems. A variety of transcription factors have been identified and characterized that control gene expression in response to oxidative stress status. Natural antioxidant compounds have been largely studied for their strong antioxidant capacities. This review discusses the recent progress in oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction in Mets and highlights the anti-Mets, anti-oxidative, and anti-inflammatory effect of polyphenols as potential nutritional therapy.