The effect of ingesting a saltbush and barley ration on the carcass and eating quality of sheepmeat

Effect of hay with or without concentrate or pellets on growth performance and meat quality of Ujimqin lambs on the Inner Mongolian Plateau

This study aimed to evaluate growth performance and meat quality of Ujimqin lambs fed native grass hay without or with concentrate (HC) or pellets. Ninety non-castrated 6-month-old male lambs of good health and similar body weight (26.83 ± 0.26 kg) were randomly divided into three groups (five lambs per cage). The average daily gain and intake of the pellets and HC groups were significantly greater (p < .05) than those in the hay group. The carcass weight, net meat mass, loin eye area, and backfat thickness were significantly greater (p < .05) in the HC groups. The intramuscular fat was significantly greater (p < .05) in the pellets and HC groups, while the shear force was significantly decreased (p < .05) in pellets and HC groups. The C16:0, C18:0, C18:1n9c, and C18:2n6 contents were significantly greater (p < .05) in the HC and pellet groups, while the C18:3n3 content was significantly greater (p < .05) in the hay group. Collectively, the present study suggested that feeding native grass hay with concentrate or pellets improved the growth in lambs.

CircRNA Cdr1as functions as a competitive endogenous RNA to promote hepatocellular carcinoma progression

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common malignancies worldwide. Recent years, circular RNA (circRNA) have been shown to exert vital functions in the pathological progressions of many diseases. A growing number of evidences have identified the representative function of exosomal circRNAs in the physiological state of donor cells, which further induces cellular responses after captured by recipient cells. However, the contributions of circRNAs to HCC remain largely unknown. In vitro and in vivo regulatory roles of circRNA Cdr1as in proliferative and migratory abilities of HCC were evaluated by CCK8, EdU, Transwell and tumourigenicity assays, respectively. Results showed circRNA Cdr1as was highly expressed in HCC cell lines and tissues. Overexpression of circRNA Cdr1as greatly accelerated HCC cells to proliferate and migrate. Mechanistically, we found that Cdr1as could promote the expression of AFP, a well-known biomarker for HCC, by sponging miR-1270. Further studies showed exosomes extracted from HCC cells overexpressing circRNA Cdr1as accelerated the proliferative and migratory abilities of surrounding normal cells. In all, circRNA Cdr1as serves as a ceRNA to promote the progression of HCC. Meanwhile, it is directly transferred from HCC cells to surrounding normal cells via exosomes to further mediate the biological functions of surrounding cells.

Rendimentos de carcaça, cortes comerciais e não-componentes da carcaça de cordeiros Santa Inês alimentados com feno de erva-sal e concentrado

Objetivou-se com este trabalho avaliar os rendimentos de carcaça, cortes comerciais e não-componentes da carcaça de cordeiros Santa Inês alimentados com 30, 40, 50 e 60% de feno de erva-sal associado a concentrado. Foram utilizados 32 ovinos machos castrados, com 8 meses de idade e peso inicial de 22 + 1,97kg, confinados individualmente e abatidos após 60 dias de confinamento. Os pesos de carcaça quente e fria decresceram linearmente com o aumento de feno de erva-sal na dieta, no entanto, não houve efeito para o rendimento verdadeiro de carcaça (59,42%) e dos cortes: paleta (19,26%), pescoço (8,52%), costelas (26,57%) e perna (33,88%). Houve efeito linear decrescente para área de olho de lombo e espessura de gordura à medida que o nível de feno de erva-sal aumentou na dieta. Os pesos e os rendimentos de pele, fígado, coração, rins com gordura perirrenal e gorduras omental e mesentérica decresceram linearmente com a inclusão de feno de erva-sal na dieta, enquanto o conteúdo (%) do trato gastrintestinal aumentou. O aumento da proporção de feno de erva-sal na dieta de cordeiros proporciona adequados rendimentos verdadeiros de carcaça e dos cortes comerciais, no entanto, reduz a área de olho de lombo e a espessura de gordura subcutânea, medidas importantes na avaliação qualitativa da carcaça ovina.

Salt intake and reproductive function in sheep

Producers have the possibility to combat human-induced dryland salinity by planting salt-tolerant plants such as saltbush. Saltbush has the potential to be used as a source of food for livestock at a time and place where pasture is not viable. However, saltbush contains high concentrations of sodium chloride salt and some other anti-nutritional factors that have the potential to affect feed and water intake and, directly or indirectly, the reproductive capacity of sheep. High-salt diet during gestation induces a small modification of the activity of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) that has an important role in the maintenance of the salt-water balance in non-pregnant and pregnant sheep. In contrast, the main effect of salt ingestion during pregnancy is observed on the biology of the offspring, with changes in the response of the RAS to salt ingestion and altered thirst threshold in response to an oral salt ingestion. These changes, observed later in life, are the result of fetal programming following the ingestion of salt by the mother. It seems that the exposure to salt during pregnancy could provide an advantage to the offspring because of this adaptive response. The response may be particularly useful, for example, when grazing herbivores are fed halophytic forages adapted to saline soils.

Sensory quality of meat from lambs fed garlic

The objective of this study was to determine whether the inclusion of garlic in a ration would have a negative impact on the flavour of lamb. The study used meat from 31 Merino wether lambs fed diets with varying levels of garlic (0%, 1.8% and 3.6%) for 10 weeks. Cooked samples of meat from the lambs were assessed for flavour and acceptability as lamb by an untrained consumer panel. There was no difference (P>0.05) between the treatments in flavour score, but the 3.6% garlic treatment group scored significantly higher in terms of acceptability as lamb (P<0.05) and was commented on positively by the panellists more frequently than the meat from any other treatment (P<0.05). These results suggest that the inclusion of garlic into the animals' feed did not have a negative impact on the flavour of the lamb and, at the high rate (3.6%), made the meat more acceptable to the panellists.

Age and nutrition influence the concentrations of three branched chain fatty acids in sheep fat from Australian abattoirs

The characteristic mutton odour, associated with the cooked meat of older sheep, can be problematic for some consumers who find the odour disagreeable. Branch chain fatty acids (BCFAs) are considered to be the main determinants of mutton odour. In this study, the aim was to identify the factors influencing the BCFA content of animals at abattoirs in Australia. Samples of subcutaneous fat from over the chump (gluteus medius) were collected from 533 sheep carcasses at abattoirs in New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia. The carcasses were from sheep differing in age, gender, breed and nutrition. The concentrations of three branched chain fatty acids (BCFAs); namely, 4-methyloctanoic (MOA), 4-ethyloctanoic (EOA) and 4-methylnonanoic acids (MNA), were determined. Statistical modelling showed that, with pre-slaughter nutrition in the model as a random term, BCFA concentrations could be used for discriminating the age of sheep. Fat samples from lamb carcasses had lower MOA and EOA concentrations and a higher concentration of MNA in comparison to hogget and mutton (P<0.05). When nutrition was excluded as a random effect from the statistical model, the MOA and MNA concentrations did not differentiate between lamb, hogget and mutton whereas, for EOA, lamb had a lower concentration than mutton (P<0.05) with hogget intermediate. An interaction existed between age and gender (P<0.05) where female lambs had lower EOA concentrations relative to the mutton but not for castrates.

Effects of increasing the inclusion level of Atriplex amnicola in the diet of sheep

The effects of increasing the level of inclusion of fresh Atriplex amnicola Paul G.Wilson foliage in an oaten chaff (Avena sativa L.) diet fed to sheep were investigated. Six experimental diets were formulated to contain varying amounts [0, 161, 362, 496, 650 and 836 g/kg diet dry matter (DM)] of A. amnicola, and these diets were fed to individually penned sheep according to a Latin square design. Feed and faecal samples were analysed for crude protein, neutral detergent fibre, acid detergent fibre, acid detergent lignin, and ash contents. Mineral contents and 24 h in vitro gas production were measured in freeze-dried feed samples. As the level of inclusion of A. amnicola increased, digestibility of DM, organic matter and neutral detergent fibre increased (P < 0.05), reaching the peak at the 496 g/kg DM inclusion level and then decreasing (P < 0.05) thereafter. Acid detergent fibre digestibility followed a similar trend, but peak digestibility was at 362 g/kg DM inclusion level. Digestibility of crude protein continued to increase (P < 0.05) with increasing inclusion of A. amnicola. Gas production (24 h) from A. amnicola was lower (P < 0.05) than that from oaten chaff (24.4 v. 45.3 mL/200 mg DM) and also had lower metabolisable energy content (in vitro ME, 6.3 v. 8.6 MJ/kg DM). As the level of inclusion of A. amnicola in the diet increased, gas production and in vitro metabolisable energy content decreased (P < 0.05). The 496 g/kg DM inclusion level provided the optimum N : energy ratio for fermentation of dietary fibre. At this level of inclusion the diet was rich in Na, Ca, P, Mg, K, S, Mn and Zn. High inclusion levels improved the crude protein value of the diet but compromised fibre digestibility.