• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.23 no.8
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• pp.1034-1042
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• 2010

This study aimed to determine the optimum dietary crude protein level in a typical diet for fattening pigs fed ad libitum under normal climate conditions in Central Vietnam. One hundred and ninety two gilts of Mong Cai local breed (MC), $F_1$ Large White${\times}$Mong Cai and $F_2$ crossbreds of (Landrace${\times}$Mong Cai)${\times}$Large White were used. At the start of the experiment, Mong Cai pigs weighed 12 kg at 11 weeks of age, $F_1$ pigs 12.1 kg at 8 weeks of age and $F_2$ pigs 12.2 kg at 8 weeks of age. Four diets differing in crude protein (CP) content (10.1, 13.1, 16.1 and 18.9% in DM) were formulated from rice bran, corn meal, cassava meal and fish meal. Calculated digestible energy content of the diets ranged from 13.5 to 13.8 MJ per kg DM. Pigs were housed individually in pens of $2.5\;m^2$ each and had ad libitum access to feed in a trough as well as water in bowls. The final weights after a growing period of 150 days were 66, 86 and 96 kg for MC, $F_1$ and $F_2$, respectively. Feed intake of MC pigs was highest at 13.1% CP while $F_1$ and $F_2$ had the highest feed intake at 16.1% CP. The results showed that for MC the maximum gain was obtained at levels between 13 to 16% CP. For the $F_1$ the maximum gain was at dietary protein levels of 16-17%. For $F_2$ the max gain was obtained at CP levels of 16 to 18%. Feed conversion was highest in MC pigs (~4.0) followed by $F_1$ (~3.3) and $F_2$ (~3.1), and within genotypes was lowest at the optimum CP level (p<0.05). Back fat thickness in MC (33.1 mm), $F_1$ (23.0 mm) and $F_2$ (20.5 mm) pigs was different and within genotypes was the lowest at intermediate CP levels. In conclusion, increasing the dietary crude protein contents in practical diets for pigs in Vietnam can increase production on small holder farms. Optimal performance for MC, $F_1$ and $F_2$ pigs is achieved at different dietary crude protein contents.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.246-253
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• 2017

Objective: Present study explores the effect of hot summer period on the glycolytic rate of early post-mortem meat quality of Ghungroo and Large White Yorkshire (LWY) pig and comparative adaptability to high temperature between above breeds by shifting the expression of stress related genes like mono-carboxylate transporters (MCTs) and heat shock proteins (HSPs). Methods: Healthy pigs of two different breeds, viz., LYW and Ghungroo (20 from each) were maintained during hot summer period (May to June) with a mean temperature of about $38^{\circ}C$. The pigs were slaughtered and meat samples from the longissimus dorsi (LD) muscles were analyzed for pH, glycogen and lactate content and mRNA expression. Following 24 h of chilling, LD muscle was also taken from the carcasses to evaluate protein solubility and different meat quality measurements. Results: LWY exhibited significantly (p<0.01) higher plasma cortisol and lactate dehydrogenase concentration than Ghungroo indicating their higher sensitivity to high temperature. LD muscle from LWY pigs revealed lower initial and ultimate pH values and higher drip loss compared to Ghungroo, indicating a faster rate of pH fall. LD muscle of Ghungroo had significantly lower lactate content at 45 min postmortem indicating normal postmortem glycolysis and much slower glycolytic rate at early postmortem. LD muscle of LWY showed rapid postmortem glycolysis, higher drip loss and higher degrees of protein denaturation. Ghungroo exhibited slightly better water holding capacity, lower cooking loss and higher protein solubility. All HSPs (HSP27, HSP70, and HSP90) and MCTs (MCT1, MCT2, and MCT4) in the LD muscle of pigs inclined to increase more in Ghungroo than LWY when exposed to high temperature. Conclusion: Effect of high temperature on the variation of HSPs and MCTs may play a crucial role in thermal tolerance and adaptation to different climatic conditions, pH regulation, muscle acidification, drip loss, protein denaturation and also in postmortem meat quality development.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.26 no.7
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• pp.1012-1020
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• 2013

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of dietary supplementation with thiazolidinedione (TZD) on growth performance and meat quality of finishing pigs. In Experiment 1, 80 castrated finishing pigs (Large White${\times}$Landrace, BW = 54.34 kg) were randomly assigned to 2 treatments with 5 replicates of 8 pigs each. The experimental pigs in the 2 groups were respectively fed with a diet with or without a TZD supplementation (15 mg/kg). In Experiment 2, 80 castrated finishing pigs (Large White${\times}$Landrace, BW = 71.46 kg) were divided into 2 treatments as designed in Experiment 1, moreover, carcass evaluations were performed. The results from Experiment 1 showed that TZD supplementation could significantly decreased the average daily feed intake (ADFI) (p<0.05) during 0 to 28 d, without impairing the average daily gain (ADG) (p>0.05). In Experiment 2, the ADG was significantly increased by TZD supplementation during 14 to 28 d and 0 to 28 d (p<0.05) and the feed:gain ratio (F:G) was significantly decreased by TZD supplementation during 0 to 28 d (p<0.05). Compared with the control group, TZD group had significantly higher serum triglyceride (TG) concentration at 28h and serum high-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels at 14 d (p<0.05). Moreover, there was an apparent improvement in the marbling score (p<0.10) and intramuscular fat (IMF) content (p<0.10) of the longissimus dorsi muscle in pigs treated by TZD supplementation. Real-time RT-PCR analyses demonstrated that pigs of TZD group had higher mRNA abundance of $PPAR{\gamma}$ coactivator 1 (PGC-1) (p<0.05) and fatty acid-binding protein 3 (FABP3) (p<0.05) than pigs of control group. Taken together, these results suggested that dietary TZD supplementation could improve growth performance and increase the IMF content of finishing pigs through regulating the serum parameters and genes mRNA abundance involved in fat metabolism.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.19 no.5
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• pp.632-637
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• 2006

Oviduct-specific glycoprotein 1 (OVGP1) is implicated in playing a role in fertilization and early embryo development. In this study, we have obtained the sequence of intron 9 of OVGP1 gene in swine. Comparative sequencing of Meishan (a native Chinese breed) and Large White pig breeds revealed an A/T substitution at position 943. A PCR-EcoRI-RFLP assay was developed to detect this mutation. Polymorphism analysis in Qingping animals showed that pigs with BB genotype had lower number of piglets born alive (NBA) in multiple parities than pigs with AA (p<0.05) and AB genotype (p<0.01). In Large $White{\times}Meishan$ ($LW{\times}M$) $F_2$ offspring, the weight of both ovaries (OW) of the BB genotype was significantly lighter than that of AB (p = 0.05) and AA (p<0.01) genotypes. Analysis of the data also revealed that the mutation locus affected these two traits mostly by additive effects. These studies indicated that the polymorphism was associated with NBA and OW in two distinct populations and further investigations in more purebreds or crossbreds are needed to confirm these results.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.32 no.8
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• pp.1084-1094
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• 2019

Objective: The aim of this study was to select the candidate genes affecting meat quality and preliminarily explore the related molecular mechanisms in the Mashen pig. Methods: The present study explored genetic factors affecting meat quality in the Mashen pig using RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq). We sequenced the transcriptomes of 180-day-old Mashen and Large White pigs using longissimus dorsi to select differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Results: The results indicated that a total of 425 genes were differentially expressed between Mashen and Large White pigs. A gene ontology enrichment analysis revealed that DEGs were mainly enriched for biological processes associated with metabolism and muscle development, while a Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes analysis showed that DEGs mainly participated in signaling pathways associated with amino acid metabolism, fatty acid metabolism, and skeletal muscle differentiation. A MCODE analysis of the protein-protein interaction network indicated that the four identified subsets of genes were mainly associated with translational initiation, skeletal muscle differentiation, amino acid metabolism, and oxidative phosphorylation pathways. Conclusion: Based on the analysis results, we selected glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase 1, malate dehydrogenase 1, pyruvate dehydrogenase 1, pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 4, and activator protein-1 as candidate genes affecting meat quality in pigs. A discussion of the related molecular mechanisms is provided to offer a theoretical basis for future studies on the improvement of meat quality in pigs.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.4 no.3
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• pp.227-230
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• 1991

A comparative study was conducted in total thirty six large while weaner pigs of about 15 kg body weight namely boars, barrows and gilts to evaluate best sex and economic slaughter weight with one standard ration. In 159 days study period feed consumption, growth, feed conversion ratio and carcass quality were judged in all sexes of pigs at 50, 70 and 90 kg body weight. It was noted that upto 70 kg body weight the growth in boars and gills 46.0 and 49.0 kg and feed conversion ratio 4.83 and 4.81 were superior and economical over the barrows, which were 45.5 kg and 4.95. Later on there were too many fluctuations in growth and feed conversion ratio in all sexes of pigs, which would be uneconomical. Carcass quality was also better in boars and gilts than barrows, No boar taint was noted in most of the boar carcasses. Hence it is concluded that boars and gilts can be raised upto the 70 kg body weight for economic pork production.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.22 no.8
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• pp.1180-1185
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• 2009

Two experiments were carried out to study the effects of dietary energy level on nutrient digestion, nitrogen (N) utilization, growth performance, insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I), and insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3 (IGFBP-3) in plasma, liver and longissimus dorsi muscle in growing-finishing pigs. In experiment 1 (Exp 1), 15 castrated male pigs (Duroc${\times}$Landrace${\times}$Large White) (Body weight, BW, 55.6${\pm}$1.8 kg) were divided into three groups and fed rations containing 13.33, 14.87 and 17.35 MJ digestible energy (DE)/kg as treatments I, II and III, respectively, using soybean oil as an energy source. The experiment lasted 8 days and faecal and urinary samples were collected during the last 3 days. The results showed that the digestibility of dry matter (DM), energy and N was increased from treatments I to III (p<0.01). N-retention and N-retention rate were not influenced by dietary DE level (p>0.05). In experiment 2 (Exp 2), 36 female pigs (Duroc${\times}$Landrace${\times}$Large White) (BW 41.5${\pm}$3.8 kg) were divided into three groups. The pigs were fed with the same three rations used in Exp 1 for 60 days. At the end of Exp 2, eight pigs were selected from each group for blood sampling and 4 pigs for slaughter trial. The results indicated that average daily feed intake (ADFI) and N-intake were significantly decreased (p<0.01), and DE intake (p<0.01) and average daily gain (ADG) (p<0.05) were increased. IGF-I and IGFBP-3 in plasma were increased (p<0.05). No significant differences in IGF-I and IGFBP-3 in liver and longissimus dorsi muscle were found between different treatments. It was concluded that higher dietary DE level improved nutrient digestibility, ADG and feed/gain ratio when soybean oil was used as an energy source in the ration of growing-finishing pigs. No significant differences were found in Nretention and IGF-I and IGFBP-3 in liver and longissimus dorsi muscle between different treatments.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.585-591
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• 2019

Objective: This study investigated carcass characteristics and meat quality of purebred Pakchong 5, crossbred pigs sired by Pakchong 5, and crossbred pigs sired by Duroc. Methods: Forty-eight pigs (average body weight of 22.25 kg) were composed of three groups as purebred Pakchong 5 (PP), Large $White{\times}Landrace$ pigs sired by Pakchong 5 (LWLRP), and Large $White{\times}Landrace$ pigs sired by Duroc (LWLRD). Each group consisted of eight gilts and eight barrows. At 109-day-raising period, pigs were slaughtered, and carcass characteristics were evaluated. Longissimus thoracis (LT) muscles from left side of carcasses were evaluated for meat quality and chemical composition. Data were analyzed using general linear model procedure, where group, sex, and their interaction were included in the model. Results: The PP had greater carcass, total lean, and ham percentages than crossbred pigs (p<0.05). LWLRP had thicker backfat and more carcass fat percentage than LWLRD (p<0.05). There were no differences (p>0.05) on cutting percentages from tender loin, loin, boston butt, and picnic shoulder among groups. The PP and LWLRP had larger loin eye area (LEA) than LWLRD (p<0.05). Gilts had more loin percentage and lower $L^*$ value than barrows (p<0.05). No meat color parameters ($L^*$, $a^*$, and $b^*$) were affected by groups (p>0.05). PP and LWLRP had larger muscle fiber diameters than LWLRD (p<0.05). However, water holding capacity, Warner-Bratzler shear force values, and chemical composition of LT were not affected by group or sex (p>0.05). Conclusion: Pakchong 5 purebred has good carcass and lean percentages. Compared to Duroc crossbred pigs, Pakchong 5 crossbreds have similar carcass and lean percentages, larger LEA, and slightly more carcass fat, with comparable meat quality and chemical composition. Pakchong 5 boars are more affordable for very small- to medium-scale pig producers.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.179-182
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• 2004

The polymorphism of the locus FSHRB in intron6-Exon7 of FSHR gene was investigated by PCR-RFLPs in Erhualian, Large White and Landrace${\times}$Large White; The association of polymorphism and litter size was analyzed by using SAS. The results showed that 1) the polymorphism of the locus FSHRB was significantly associated with litter size; 2) the total born number (TBN) and number born alive (NBA) of the sows with BB genotype were increased (p<0.05) with additive effects of 1.02-1.42 and 1.04-1.27 pigs per litter, respectively; 3) among the sows with genotype AA, AB or BB, there was an insignificant difference in born weight and weaning weight. This gene may be an effective potential tool used in conjunction with traditional selection methods.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.27 no.9
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• pp.1254-1262
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• 2014

Lymphoid enhancer binding factor 1 (LEF-1) is a member of the T-cell specific factor (TCF) family, which plays a key role in the development of breast endothelial cells. Moreover, LEF-1 gene has been identified as a candidate gene for teat number trait. In the present study, we detected two novel mutations (NC_010450.3:g. 99514A>G, 119846C>T) by DNA sequencing and polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism in exon 4 and intron 9 of LEF-1 in Guanzhong Black, Hanjiang Black, Bamei and Large White pigs. Furthermore, we analyzed the association between the genetic variations with teat number trait in these breeds. The 99514A>G mutation showed an extremely significant statistical relevance between different genotypes and teat number trait in Guanzhong (p<0.001) and Large White (p = 0.002), and significant relevance in Hanjiang (p = 0.017); the 119846C>T mutation suggested significant association in Guanzhong Black pigs (p = 0.042) and Large White pigs (p = 0.003). The individuals with "AG" or "GG" genotype displayed more teat numbers than those with "AA"; the individuals with "TC" or "CC" genotype showed more teat numbers than those with "TT". Our findings suggested that the 99514A>G and 119846C>T mutations of LEF-1 affected porcine teat number trait and could be used in breeding strategies to accelerate porcine teat number trait improvement of indigenous pigs breeds through molecular marker assisted selection.