• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.21 no.7
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• pp.1033-1037
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• 2008

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effects of chromium picolinate (CrPic) on growth hormone (GH) secretion and pituitary GH mRNA expression in finishing pigs. Forty eight crossbred pigs with an initial body weight of 65.57 kg (SD = 1.05) were blocked by body weight and randomly assigned to two treatments with three replicates. Each group was fed the diet supplemented with or without $200{\mu}g/kg$ chromium from CrPic for 40 days. The results showed that average daily gain of pigs was increased by 9.84% (p<0.05), and longissimus muscle area was increased by 17.29% (p<0.05) with the supplementation of CrPic. The results of GH dynamic secretion showed that supplemental CrPic increased the mean level and peak value of GH by 36.58% (p<0.05) and 26.60% (p<0.05), respectively, while there was no significant effect on basal value, peak amplitude and peak duration. Pituitary mRNA expression of GH was not significantly influenced by supplemental CrPic. These results indicated that CrPic increased pigs GH secretion without change of pituitary GH mRNA expression.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.402-405
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• 2006

This experiment was conducted to determine the effect of dietary betaine (0, 0.125%) on performance, carcass composition, pork quality and hepatic betaine-homocysteine methyltransferase (BHMT) activity of crossbred finishing barrows. Three replicates of ten pigs were used for each treatment. The results showed that average daily gain, feed intake and feed conversion were not affected by betaine. Compared with the control group, pigs treated with betaine had a 8.17% (p<0.05) decrease in carcass fat percentage, and a 8.84% (p<0.05) reduction in 10th-rib backfat thickness, but dressing percentage, percentage lean, longissimus muscle area, and average backfat thickness were not affected. There were also no significant differences in muscle color score, marbling score, pork pH value and water loss rate between the control and betaine-treated groups. Hepatic betaine-homocysteine methyltransferase (BHMT) activity was significantly increased by 13.97% (p<0.05) when pigs were offered 0.125% betaine.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.733-742
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• 2014

The glucagon-like peptide 2 (GLP-2) that is expressed in intestine epithelial cells of mammals, is important for intestinal barrier function and regulation of tight junction (TJ) proteins. However, there is little known about the intracellular mechanisms of GLP-2 in the regulation of TJ proteins in piglets' intestinal epithelial cells. The purpose of this study is to test the hypothesis that GLP-2 regulates the expressions of TJ proteins in the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway in piglets' intestinal epithelial cells. The jejunal tissues were cultured in a Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium/high glucose medium containing supplemental 0 to 100 nmol/L GLP-2. At 72 h after the treatment with the appropriate concentrations of GLP-2, the mRNA and protein expressions of zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1), occludin and claudin-1 were increased (p<0.05). U0126, an MAPK kinase inhibitor, prevented the mRNA and protein expressions of ZO-1, occludin, claudin-1 increase induced by GLP-2 (p<0.05). In conclusion, these results indicated that GLP-2 could improve the expression of TJ proteins in weaned pigs' jejunal epithelium, and the underlying mechanism may due to the MAPK signaling pathway.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.479-486
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• 2016

A previous genome-wide association study (GWAS) exposed histone deacetylase 2 (HDAC2) as a possible candidate gene for breast muscle weight in chickens. The present research has examined the possible role of HDAC2 in skeletal muscle development in chickens. Gene expression was measured by quantitative polymerase chain reaction in breast and thigh muscles during both embryonic (four ages) and post-hatch (five ages) development and in cultures of primary myoblasts during both proliferation and differentiation. The expression of HDAC2 increased significantly across embryonic days (ED) in breast (ED 14, 16, 18, and 21) and thigh (ED 14 and 18, and ED 14 and 21) muscles suggesting that it possibly plays a role in myoblast hyperplasia in both breast and thigh muscles. Transcript abundance of HDAC2 identified significantly higher in fast growing muscle than slow growing in chickens at d 90 of age. Expression of HDAC2 during myoblast proliferation in vitro declined between 24 h and 48 h when expression of the marker gene paired box 7 (PAX7) increased and cell numbers increased throughout 72 h of culture. During induced differentiation of myoblasts to myotubes, the abundance of HDAC2 and the marker gene myogenic differentiation 1 (MYOD1), both increased significantly. Taken together, it is suggested that HDAC2 is most likely involved in a suppressive fashion in myoblast proliferation and may play a positive role in myoblast differentiation. The present results confirm the suggestion that HDAC2 is a functional gene for pre-hatch and post-hatch (fast growing muscle) development of chicken skeletal muscle.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.21 no.11
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• pp.1629-1634
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• 2008

A trial was conducted to determine the effect of low crude protein (CP) diets with constant metabolizable energy to crude protein (ME:CP) ratio on growth, body composition and nutrient utilization of broiler chicks from 1 to 26 days of age. Four dietary treatments having four levels of CP and ME as 23, 22, 21 and 20% and 3,036, 2,904, 2,772 and 2,640 kcal/kg, respectively, were formulated and a ME:CP ratio of 132 was maintained in all the diets. Digestible lysine was maintained at 1.10 of the diet. A total of 1,760 day-old Hubbard broiler chicks were randomly divided into 16 experimental units and each diet was offered to four experimental units at random. Feed intake was increased (p<0.05) while weight gain and feed conversion ratio were adversely affected (p<0.05) when the diets with low CP and ME were fed to broilers. Total protein intake and total ME intake were linearly decreased (p<0.05) and protein efficiency ratio and energy efficiency ratio were lower (p<0.05) than in the chicks fed dietary regimen with 22% CP and 2,904 kcal/kg ME. The whole body analysis of the birds revealed that chicks fed the lowest dietary regimens retained less (p<0.05) nitrogen and more ether extract than chicks fed the control diet, however, body dry matter, total body ash and fat free body protein were not affected. Similarly, protein and energy utilization were also unaffected by the dietary treatments. In summary, chicks fed low CP diets with constant ME:CP ratio grew slower, used feed less efficiently and retained less protein and more body fat than chicks fed the control diet.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.879-890
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• 2023

Objective: This study was conducted to evaluate the use of Megasphaera elsdenii (M. elsdenii) as a probiotic on rumen fermentation, production performance, carcass traits and health of ruminants by integrating data from various related studies using meta-analysis. Methods: A total of 32 studies (consisted of 136 data points) were obtained and integrated into a database. The parameters integrated were fermentation products, rumen microbes, production performance, carcass quality, animal health, blood and urine metabolites. Statistical analysis of the compiled database used a mixed model methodology. Different studies were considered random effects, while M. elsdenii supplementation doses were considered fixed effects. p-values and the Akaike information criterion were employed as model statistics. The model was deemed significant at p<0.05 or had a tendency to be significant when p-value between 0.05<p<0.10. Results: Supplementation with M. elsdenii increased (p<0.05) some proportion of fermented rumen products such as propionate, butyrate, isobutyrate, and valerate, and significantly reduced (p<0.05) lactic acid concentration, acetate proportion, total bacterial population and methane emission. Furthermore, the probiotic supplementation enhanced (p<0.05) livestock production performance, especially in the average daily gain and body condition score. Regarding the carcass quality, hot carcass weight and carcass gain were elevated (p< 0.05) due to the M. elsdenii supplementation. Animal health also showed improvement as indicated by the lower (p<0.05) diarrhoea and bloat incidences as well as the liver abscess. However, M. elsdenii supplementation had negligible effects on blood and urine metabolites of ruminants. Conclusion: Supplementation of M. elsdenii is capable of decreasing ruminal lactic acid concentration, enhancing rumen health, elevating some favourable rumen fermentation products, and in turn, increasing production performance of ruminants.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.339-342
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• 1993

This influence of dietary medium chain triglyceride on liver protein synthesis in chicks was investigated using a large dose injection of $L-[4-^3H]$ phenylalanine. Dietary medium chain triglyceride increased liver weight and liver fat content of chicks compared to the long chain triglyceride group. Fractional synthesis rate of liver protein was increased by dietary medium chain triglyceride, which was accounted for not by elevating protein synthesized per unit RNA but by enhancing RNA: protein ratio.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.268-271
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• 1998

Twenty crossbred calves of $88{\pm}5.5kg$ initial live weight and 3-4 month of age were divided into two groups and fed wheat straw and concentrate to support a 500 g daily gain in body weight. Calves in the experimental group (YC) were given a daily dose of 10 ml yeast cell suspension (YC) containing live cells $(5{\times}10^9 cells/ml)$ of Saccharomyces cerevisiae ITCCF 2094. After a growth study of 122 days metabolism trials were conducted. The calves in the YC group recorded a daily weigt gain of $492{\pm}27.8g$ as compared to $476{\pm}20.1g$ in control group. There were no significant differences in feed intake, nutrient digestibility, feed/gain ratio and nitrogen retention between the YC supplemented and control groups.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.7 no.4
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• pp.513-516
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• 1994

The effects of the prevention of micelle formation and bile acid reabsorption, by using cholestyramine (CHOLN), a bile acid binding polymer, on the plasma lipid of Single Comb White Leghorn male chicks given diets containing medium chain triacylglycerol (MCT) and long chain triacylglycerol (LCT) were investigated. Corn oil and glyceryl tricaprylate were used as LCT and MCT sources, respectively. Plasma HDL cholesterol was reduced by CHOLN in all treatments. Plasma LDL cholesterol was reduced by CHOLN in chicks given LCT diet but not in MCT diet which could be accounted to the reduced plasma total cholesterol in LCT diet with CHOLN. It is concluded that bile acid binding does not alter the cholesteremic effect of MCT in the plasma of chicks.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.398-401
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• 1997

A caecal fermentation study was conducted in 30 Angora rabbits equally placed under five whole diets (75 concentrate : 25 roughage) supplemented with processed Neem (Azadirachta indica) kernel meal (NKM ; 2% urea or 1.5% NaOH, W/W), replacing isonitrogenously either at 50 or 100% level of deoiled peanut (Arachis hypogea) meal, for 18 wk period. The total volatile fatty acids level was depressed (p < 0.05) in all the experimental groups (0.02 to 0.04 mEq/g) and ammonia-nitrogen was lowest (p < 0.05; $24.9{\mu}mol/g$) in rabbits fed NaOH treated NKM supplemented diet. Enzyme activity (unit/g) of carboxy methyl-cellulase, ${\alpha}$-amylase, protease and urease exhibited much variation and did not differ significantly. Hence, the results could not confirm a possible adverse effect of feeding NKM on caecal fermentation.