• Animal Bioscience
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.223-232
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• 2021

Objective: To investigate the improvement in utilization efficiency of total mixed ration (TMR) on Tibetan plateau, TMR were ensiled with different additives. Methods: A total of 150 experimental silos were prepared in a completely randomized design to evaluate the six treatments: i) control (without additive), ii) Lactobacillus buchneri (L. buchneri), iii) acetic acid, iv) propionic acid, v) 1,2-propanediol; and vi) 1-propanol. After 90 days of ensiling, silos were opened for fermentation quality and in vitro analysis, and then subjected to an aerobic stability test for 14 days. Results: Treating with L. buchneri, acetic acid, 1,2-propanediol and 1-propanol decreased propionic acid contents and yeast number, whereas increased (p<0.05) pH, acetic acid and ethanol contents in the fermented TMR. Despite increased dry matter (DM) loss in the TMRs treated with 1,2-propanediol and 1-pronanol, additives did not affect (p>0.05) all in vitro parameters including gas production at 24 h (GP24), GP rate constant, potential GP, in vitro DM digestibility and in vitro neutral detergent fibre digestibility. All additives improved the aerobic stability of ensiled TMR to different extents. Specially, aerobic stability of the ensiled TMR were substantially improved by L. buchneri, acetic acid, 1,2-propanediol, and 1-propanol, indicated by stable pH and lactic acid content during the aerobic stability test. Conclusion: L. buchneri, acetic acid, 1,2-propanediol, and 1-propanol had no adverse effect on in vitro digestibility, while ensiling TMR with the additives produced more acetic acid and ethanol, subsequently resulting in improvement of aerobic stability. There is a potential for some fermentation boosting additives to enhance aerobic stability of fermented TMR on Tibetan plateau.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.154-160
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• 2021

Objective: The effect of environmental enrichment on the behaviour of piglets in the nursery phase was evaluated. Methods: A total of 450 hybrid pigs (21 day old), including both females and uncastrated males, weighing approximately 6 kg, were distributed in a completely randomised design with 3 treatments and 3 replicates of 50 animals each. The treatments were: i) pen without environmental enrichment (control), ii) treatment consisting of continuous environmental enrichment (CEE) with rubber balls throughout the experimental period, and iii) treatment consisting of environmental enrichment with washed balls (EEWB) during the whole experimental period which were removed daily for washing. For the behavioural evaluation, 10 animals were randomly selected per replicate. The behavioural assessments were performed once a week, from 8 am to 6 pm, using images captured with a video camera. The data were submitted to non-parametric analyses, the means were compared using the Bonferroni test, and Person's correlations were also calculated. Results: A statistical difference (p = 0.001) was observed in the B5 (playful) behaviour; the animals in the EEWB treatment group had a higher frequency of this behaviour than animals in the control treatment group. The animals in the control group showed a higher frequency of B7 behaviour (lying down) (p = 0.026) than those in the EEWB and CEE treatment groups. The animals in the control group had a higher frequency of the B9 (belly nosing) behaviour than those in the EEWB group (p = 0.015). There was a tendency towards a higher frequency of behaviour B3 (walking in the pen) (p = 0.067) when the animals received the control treatment than treatments EEWB or CEE. Conclusion: The use of an enriching object improved the animal welfare and altered the correlation between the evaluated behaviours compared to the animals that did not have environmental enrichment.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.74-84
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• 2021

Objective: Feed additives that modify rumen fermentation can be used to prevent metabolic disturbances such as acidosis and optimize beef cattle production. The study evaluated the effects of liquid and powdered forms of polyclonal antibody preparation (PAP) against Streptococcus bovis and Fusobacterium necrophorum on rumen fermentation parameters in ruminally cannulated non-lactating dairy cows that were adapted or unadapted to a high concentrate diet. Methods: A double 3×3 Latin square design was used with three PAP treatments (control, powdered, and liquid PAP) and two adaptation protocols (adapted, unadapted; applied to the square). Adapted animals were transitioned for 2 weeks from an all-forage to an 80% concentrate diet, while unadapted animals were switched abruptly. Results: Interactions between sampling time and adaptation were observed; 12 h after feeding, the adapted group had lower ruminal pH and greater total short chain fatty acid concentrations than the unadapted group, while the opposite was observed after 24 h. Acetate:propionate ratio, molar proportion of butyrate and ammonia nitrogen concentration were generally greater in adapted than unadapted cattle up to 36 h after feeding. Adaptation promoted 3.5 times the number of Entodinium protozoa but copy numbers of Streptococcus bovis and Fibrobacter succinogens genes in rumen fluid were not affected. However, neither liquid nor powdered forms of PAP altered rumen acidosis variables in adapted or unadapted animals. Conclusion: Adaptation of cattle to highly fermentable carbohydrate diets promoted a more stable ruminal environment, but PAP was not effective in this study in which no animal experienced acute or sub-acute rumen acidosis.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.276-284
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• 2021

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine whether a dietary vitamin E (VE) supplement could alleviate any detrimental effects of aged corn on lipid metabolism and antioxidant status in laying hens. Methods: The experiment consisted of a 2×3 factorial design with two corn types (normal corn and aged corn (stored for 4 yr) and three concentrations of VE (0, 20, and 100 IU/kg). A total of 216 Lohmann laying hens (50 wk of age) were randomly allocated into six treatment diets for 12 wk. Each treatment had 6 replicates of 6 hens per replicate. Results: The results show that aged corn significantly decreased the content of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (p<0.05), and reduced chemokine-like receptor 1 (CMKLR1) mRNA expression (p<0.05) in the liver compared to controls. Diet with VE did not alter the content of crude fat and cholesterol (p>0.05), or acetyl-CoA carboxylase, lipoprotein lipase, fatty acid synthase or CMKLR1 mRNA expression (p>0.05) in the liver among treatment groups. Aged corn significantly increased the content of malondialdehyde (MDA) (p<0.05) and decreased superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity (p<0.05) in the liver. The VE increased the content of MDA (p<0.05) but decreased glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity in serum (p<0.01) and in the ovaries (p<0.05). Adding VE at 20 and 100 IU/kg significantly increased GSH-Px activity (p<0.05) in liver and in serum (p<0.01), 100 IU/kg VE significantly increased SOD activity (p<0.05) in serum. Aged corn had no significant effects on GSH-Px mRNA or SOD mRNA expression (p<0.01) in the liver and ovaries. Addition of 100 IU/kg VE could significantly increase SOD mRNA expression (p<0.01) in the liver and ovary. Conclusion: Aged corn affected lipid metabolism and decreased the antioxidant function of laying hens. Dietary VE supplementation was unable to counteract the negative effects of aged corn on lipid metabolism. However, addition of 100 IU/kg VE prevented aged corninduced lipid peroxidation in the organs of laying hens.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.642-651
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• 2021

Objective: This study aimed to determine the effects of different roughages in total mixed ration (TMR) inoculated with or without coculture of Lactobacillus acidophilus (L. acidophilus) and Bacillus subtilis (B. subtilis) on in vitro rumen fermentation and microbial population. Methods: Three TMRs formulations composed of different forages were used and each TMR was grouped into two treatments: non-fermented TMR and fermented TMR (F-TMR) (inoculated with coculture of L. acidophilus and B. subtilis). After fermentation, the fermentation, chemical and microbial profile of the TMRs were determined. The treatments were used for in vitro rumen fermentation to determine total gas production, pH, ammonianitrogen (NH3-N), and volatile fatty acids (VFA). Microbial populations were determined by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). All data were analyzed as a 3×2 factorial arrangement design using the MIXED procedure of Statistical Analysis Systems. Results: Changes in the fermentation (pH, lactate, acetate, propionate, and NH3-N) and chemical composition (moisture, crude protein, crude fiber, and ash) were observed. For in vitro rumen fermentation, lower rumen pH, higher acetate, propionate, and total VFA content were observed in the F-TMR group after 24 h incubation (p<0.05). F-TMR group had higher acetate concentration compared with the non-fermented group. Total VFA was highest (p<0.05) in F-TMR containing combined forage of domestic and imported source (F-CF) and F-TMR containing Italian ryegrass silage and corn silage (F-IRS-CS) than that of TMR diet containing oat, timothy, and alfalfa hay. The microbial population was not affected by the different TMR diets. Conclusion: The use of Italian ryegrass silage and corn silage, as well as the inoculation of coculture of L. acidophilus and B. subtilis, in the TMR caused changes in the pH, lactate and acetate concentrations, and chemical composition of experimental diets. In addition, F-TMR composed with Italian ryegrass silage and corn silage altered ruminal pH and VFA concentrations during in vitro rumen fermentation experiment.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.35 no.7
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• pp.1021-1029
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• 2022

Objective: The study was aimed to investigate the rules of postprandial changes in intestine digesta dry matter (DM) flow and amino acid digestibility of growing pigs fed low-protein (LP) diets made of different starch. Methods: Eight barrows (28.8±2.1 kg) with a T-cannula at the distal ileum were randomly allotted to an 8×3 Youden square design. Treatments included: waxy corn starch LP (WLP); corn starch LP (CLP) and pea starch LP (PLP). Diets were given at 08:00 and 20:00. Digesta samples were collected in six 2-h stages from 08:00 to 20:00. Results: The Cr concentrations of ileal digesta increased and then decreased in WLP and CLP, while increased continuously in PLP as time passed after postprandial (p<0.05). Higher average Cr concentrations (0.78% and 0.84% vs 0.70%; p<0.05) and lower average DM flow (181.1 g/kg and 166.3 g/kg vs 240.3 g/kg; p<0.001) were observed in WLP and CLP, compared with PLP. The apparent ileal digestibility coefficient of most amino acids in WLP and CLP increased compared with that in PLP. No difference in lysine or methionine digestibility was observed. When digesta were collected in 2-h periods, the apparent ileal digestibility coefficient of amino acids did not change over time. When digesta was collected in 4-h periods from 16:00 to 20:00 and 6-h periods from 14:00 to 20:00 (p<0.05), WLP and CLP showed markedly higher amino acid digestibility than PLP Conclusion: High-amylose slowly digested starch can increase the DM flow at the distal ileum and reduce the apparent ileal digestibility coefficient of amino acids of pigs fed LP diets. Compared with waxy corn starch and corn starch, pea starch reduced the digestibility of amino acids in digesta collected after 4 h postprandial.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.184-195
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• 2022

Objective: In this study we aimed to evaluate the effect of dietary live yeast supplementation on ruminal pH pattern, fermentation characteristics and associated bacteria in beef cattle. Methods: This work comprised of in vitro and in vivo experiments. In vitro fermentation was conducted by incubating 0%, 0.05%, 0.075%, 0.1%, 0.125%, and 0.15% active dried yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae, ADY) with total mixed ration substrate to determine its dose effect. According to in vitro results, 0.1% ADY inclusion level was assigned in in vivo study for continuously monitoring ruminal fermentation characteristics and microbes. Six ruminally cannulated steers were randomly assigned to 2 treatments (Control and ADY supplementation) as two-period crossover design (30-day). Blood samples were harvested before-feeding and rumen fluid was sampled at 0, 3, 6, 9, and 12 h post-feeding on 30 d. Results: After 24 h in vitro fermentation, pH and gas production were increased at 0.1% ADY where ammonia nitrogen and microbial crude protein also displayed lowest and peak values, respectively. Acetate, butyrate and total volatile fatty acids concentrations heightened with increasing ADY doses and plateaued at high levels, while acetate to propionate ratio was decreased accordingly. In in vivo study, ruminal pH was increased with ADY supplementation that also elevated acetate and propionate. Conversely, ADY reduced lactate level by dampening Streptococcus bovis and inducing greater Selenomonas ruminantium and Megasphaera elsdenii populations involved in lactate utilization. The serum urea nitrogen decreased, whereas glucose, albumin and total protein concentrations were increased with ADY supplementation. Conclusion: The results demonstrated dietary ADY improved ruminal fermentation dose-dependently. The ruminal lactate reduction through modification of lactate metabolic bacteria could be an important reason for rumen pH stabilization induced by ADY. ADY supplementation offered a complementary probiotics strategy in improving gluconeogenesis and nitrogen metabolism of beef cattle, potentially resulted from optimized rumen pH and fermentation.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.54-63
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• 2022

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the replacement of degummed soybean oil (DSO) by acid soybean oil (ASO) in diets with or without the inclusion of emulsifier on broiler performance, relative organ weight, lipase activity, intestinal morphometry, and nutrient digestibility. Methods: A total of 704 1-day-old male broiler chicks were allotted to a 2×2 completely randomized factorial design (with or without emulsifier × two lipid sources [ASO and DSO]), with eight replicates and 22 birds each. The metabolizable energy level in diets with emulsifier was reduced by 40 kcal/kg from 1 to 21 d and 50 kcal/kg from 22 to 49 d. Results: Broilers fed diets containing ASO without emulsifier had higher (p = 0.005) weight gain than DSO-fed animals and with the inclusion of emulsifier had worse (p = 0.018) feed conversion ratio (FCR). Birds fed diets with emulsifier worsened FCR regardless of lipid source from 1 to 21 days (p = 0.006) and from 1 to 49 days (p = 0.0002). There was an increase (p = 0.026) in the relative pancreas weight, at 14 days, in birds fed diets containing ASO. Lipase activity and morphometry of the duodenum and jejunum, at 14 and 21 days, were not affected (p>0.05). The dietary inclusion of emulsifier improved the digestible energy (p = 0.053) in the presence of ASO. For the digestibility coefficients (gross energy, crude protein, and mineral matter), no interference was observed (p>0.05). Conclusion: The inclusion of emulsifier to energy-restricted diet with ASO maintained broiler performance in the first week, but worsened FCR in subsequent phases. The ASO can be considered as an alternative lipid source to DSO and does not interfere with the morphophysiological characteristics and performance of broilers. The combination of ASO and emulsifier increased the digestible energy content by 6.2%.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.217-223
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• 2022

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the effects of feeding starch sugar byproducts (SSBs) on in situ disappearance rate, performance, and carcass characteristics of Hanwoo steers in the late finishing stage. Methods: To determine the in situ disappearance rate, nylon bags filled with 5 g of SSB were inserted into the ventral sac of two cannulated Holsteins cows and incubated for 0, 2, 4, 8, 16, 24, and 48 h. A total of 30 Hanwoo steers were fed the experimental diets, which were basal diet (control) and 7% SSB on an as-fed basis (4.35% dry matter [DM]), formulated according to requirements of the Korean Feeding Standard for Hanwoo. The experiment was conducted over 80 days using a completely randomized block design. Results: Soluble fraction a of DM and organic matter (OM) was 44.20% and 64.60% DM, fraction b was 23.00% and 19.40% DM, and c values (the rate of degradation of fraction b) were 0.04 and 0.04/h, respectively. The effective degradability of DM at rumen solid outflow rates of 0.02, 0.05, and 0.08/h was 59.83, 54.75, and 52.16, respectively, and for OM was 77.78, 73.52, and 71.34, respectively. Initial and final body weight, average daily gain, DM intake, and gain:feed did not differ significantly between control and SSB groups during the entire experimental period. Carcass traits of Hanwoo steers with SSB supplementation were not significantly different between treatments except for dressing percentage, which was greater with SSB treatment. The content of saturated fatty acid (SFA) was greater and that of unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) was lower in the SSB group than in the control group. The ratio of UFA to SFA was significantly lower in the SSB group than in the control group. Conclusion: A total mixed ration containing less than 4.0% DM of SSBs can be used in Hanwoo steers without a decrease in productivity and carcass traits.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.35 no.8
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• pp.1223-1234
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• 2022

Objective: The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effects of daily feed intake during the laying period on embryonic myogenic differentiation 1 (MYOD1), myogenic factor 5 (MYF5), and myogenic factor 6 (MYF6) gene expression in genetically fat and lean lines of chickens. Methods: An experiment in a 2×2 factorial design was conducted with two dietary intake levels (100% and 75% of nutrition recommendation) and two broiler chicken lines (fat and lean). Two lines of hens (n = 384 for each line) at 23th week of age were randomly divided into 4 treatments with 12 replicates of 16 birds. The experiment started at 27th week of age (5% egg rate) and ended at 54th week of age. Hatched eggs from the medium laying period were collected. Real time polymerase chain reaction analysis was used to analyse the MYOD1, MYF5, and MYF6 mRNA levels of E7, E9, E11, E13, and E15 body tissues and E17, E19, and E21 chest and thigh muscle samples. Results: The results indicated that there were significant effects of line, dietary intake, and interactions between them on MYOD1, MYF5, and MYF6 gene mRNA expression levels in embryonic tissues. Low daily feed intake did not change the expression trend of MYOD1 mRNA in either line, but changed the peak values, especially in lean line. Low daily feed intake altered the trend in MYF5 mRNA expression level in both lines and apparently delayed its onset. There was no apparent effect of low daily feed intake on the trends of MYF6 mRNA expression levels in either line, but it significantly changed the values on many embryonic days. Conclusion: Maternal nutrient restriction affects myogenesis and is manifested in the expression of embryonic MYOD1, MYF5, and MYF6 genes. Long term selection for fat deposition in broiler chickens changes the pattern and intensity of myogenesis.