• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.335-356
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• 1997

Injection of bovine growth hormone (bGH) to lactating dairy cows increases milk yield and yields of milk components including fat. It is generally believed that most of the anabolic effects derived from bGH in animal tissues are primarily mediated by IGF-1. IGF-1 is a strong anabolic peptide in the plasma of animals and exerts mitogenic and metabolic effects on target cells. Contrary to most protein hormones, the majority of IGF-1 in circulation is bound to the binding proteins (IGFBPs) which are known to be responsible for modifying the biological actions of IGF-1, thus making determinations of IGF-1 actions more difficult. On the other hand, fat is a major milk component and the greatest energy source in milk. Currently, the fat content of milk is one of the major criteria used in determining milk prices. It has been known that flavor and texture of dairy products are mainly affected by milk fat and its composition. Acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC) is the rate limiting enzyme which catalyzes the conversion of acetyl-CoA to malonyl-CoA for fatty acid synthesis in 1ipogenic tissues of animals including bovine lactating mammary glands. In addition to the short-tenn hormonal regulation of ACC by changes in the catalytic efficiency per enzyme molecule brought about by phosphorylation and dephosphorylation of the enzyme, the long-term hormonal regulation of ACC by changes in the number of enzyme molecules plays an essential role in control of ACC and lipogenesis. Insulin, at supraphysiological concentrations, binds to IGF-1 receptors, thereby mimicking the biological effects of IGF-1. The receptors for insulin and IGF-1 share structural and functional homology. Furthermore, epidermal growth factor increased ACC activity in rat hepatocytes and adipocytes. Therefore, it can be assumed that IGF-1 mediating bGH action may increase milk fat production by stimulation ACC with phosphorylation (short term) and/or increasing amounts of the enzyme proteins (long term). Consequently, the main purpose of this paper is to give the readers not only the galactopoietic effects of bGH, but also the insight of bGH action with regard to stimulating milk fat synthesis from the whole body to the molecular levels.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.37 no.7
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• pp.1141-1155
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• 2024

Objective: RNA epigenetic modifications play an important role in regulating immune response of mammals. Bovine mastitis induced by Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is a threat to the health of dairy cattle. There are numerous RNA modifications, and how these modification-associated enzymes systematically coordinate their immunomodulatory effects during bovine mastitis is not well reported. Therefore, the role of common RNA modification-related genes (RMRGs) in bovine S. aureus mastitis was investigated in this study. Methods: In total, 80 RMRGs were selected for this study. Four public RNA-seq data sets about bovine S. aureus mastitis were collected and one additional RNA-seq data set was generated by this study. Firstly, quantitative trait locus (QTL) database, transcriptome-wide association studies (TWAS) database and differential expression analyses were employed to characterize the potential functions of selected enzyme genes in bovine S. aureus mastitis. Correlation analysis and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) were used to further investigate the relationships of RMRGs from different types at the mRNA expression level. Interference experiments targeting the m⁶ A demethylase FTO and utilizing public MeRIP-seq dataset from bovine Mac-T cells were used to investigate the potential interaction mechanisms among various RNA modifications. Results: Bovine QTL and TWAS database in cattle revealed associations between RMRGs and immune-related complex traits. S. aureus challenged and control groups were effectively distinguished by principal component analysis based on the expression of selected RMRGs. WGCNA and correlation analysis identified modules grouping different RMRGs, with highly correlated mRNA expression. The m⁶ A modification gene FTO showed significant effects on the expression of m⁶ A and other RMRGs (such as NSUN2, CPSF2, and METTLE), indicating complex co-expression relationships among different RNA modifications in the regulation of bovine S. aureus mastitis. Conclusion: RNA epigenetic modification genes play important immunoregulatory roles in bovine S. aureus mastitis, and there are extensive interactions of mRNA expression among different RMRGs. It is necessary to investigate the interactions between RNA modification genes regulating complex traits in the future.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.101-114
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• 2014

While there are persistent rumors that the consumption of goat meat dishes increases blood pressure, there is no scientific evidence to support this. Two experiments were conducted to clarify whether or not blood pressure increases in conjunction with the consumption of goat meat dishes. In experiment 1, 24 Dahl/Iwai rats (15 weeks old, body weight $309.3{\pm}11.1$ g) were evenly separated into 4 groups. The control group (CP) was fed a diet containing 20% chicken and 0.3% salt on a dry matter basis. The goat meat group (GM) was fed a diet containing 20% goat meat and 0.3% salt. The goat meat/salt group (GS) was fed a diet containing 20% goat meant and 3% to 4% salt. The Okinawan mugwort (Artemisia Princeps Pampan)/salt group (GY) was fed a diet containing 20% goat meat, 3% to 4% salt and 5% of freeze-dried mugwort powder. The experiment 1 ran for a period of 14 weeks during which time the blood pressure of the animals was recorded. The GS, and GY groups consumed significantly more water (p<0.01) than the CP and GM groups despite the fact that their diet consumption levels were similar. The body weight of animals in the CP, GM, and GS groups was similar while the animals in the GY group were significantly smaller (p<0.01). The blood pressure in the GM group was virtually the same as the CP group throughout the course of the experiment. In contrast, while the blood pressure of the animals in the GS and GY group from 15 to 19 weeks old was the same as the CP group, their blood pressures were significantly higher (p<0.01) after 20 weeks of age. The GY group tended to have lower blood pressure than the GS group. In experiment 2, in order to clarify whether or not the increase in blood pressure in the GS group and the GY group in experiment 1 was caused by an excessive intake of salt, the effects on blood pressure of a reduction of salt in diet were investigated. When amount of salt in the diet of the GS and GY group was reduced from 4% to 0.3%, the animal's blood pressure returned to normotensive. These results indicate that, as in the case of chicken consumption, prolonged consumption of goat meat does not cause increased blood pressure, rather the large amount of salt used in the preparation of goat meat dishes is responsible for the increase in blood pressure.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.15 no.12
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• pp.1765-1772
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• 2002

Three experiments were conducted to determine the feed processing method best suited for early and conventionallyweaned pigs, and to investigate the effects of different extrusion temperatures on ileal digestibility of amino acids in diets containing different protein sources. In exp.1, a total of 108 pigs (Landrace${\times}$Yorkshire${\times}$Duroc; 24 d of age and 7.60 kg average body weight) were alloted on the basis of sex, weight and ancestry to three treatments in a randomized complete block design. Feed processing methods used were mash (M), simple pellet (SP), and expanded pellet (EP). In exp. 2, a total of 96 pigs (Landrace${\times}$Yorkshire${\times}$Duroc; 14 d of age) were allotted on the basis of sex, weight, and ancestry to three treatments in a randomized complete block design. Diets were mash (M), expanded pellet (EP), and expanded pellet crumble (EPC). In exp. 3, a study was designed to investigate the effect of different extrusion temperatures (100, 120, and $140^{\circ}C$) over the control (untreated) on the ileal digestibility of amino acids in diets containing protein sources such as spray-dried plasma protein (SDPP), whey protein concentrate (WPC), and fish meal (FM). Results in exp.1 showed that ADG, ADFI and the F/G ratio of pigs fed the SP diet were improved (p<0.05) compared with those fed the M or the EP diets, but the digestibility of nutrients was not different (p>0.05) among the treatments. In exp. 2, pigs fed expanded pellet treatments (EP or EPC) had a significantly improved (p<0.05) F/G ratio compared to the pigs fed the M diet which was primarily attributed to the significant reduction (p<0.05) in ADFI, but the overall growth rate of pigs fed expanded pellet diets was not improved. In exp. 3, there was a significant interaction effect (p<0.05) between the extrusion temperature and protein source on the ileal digestibility of amino acids. With an extrusion temperature of $100^{\circ}C$, the ileal digestibility of Lys, Val, Gly and Ser was significantly lower in the diet containing WPC compared to the diet containing SDPP. Increasing the temperature to $120^{\circ}C$ led to significant differences (p<0.05) in the digestibility of Thr and Tyr between diets containing WPC and SDPP. Regardless of extrusion temperatures, the weaned pigs' diet containing either SDPP or FM had significantly higher Lys, Phe, Thr, Val, and Gly digestibility relative to the WPC diet. Results of the present study suggest that simple pelleting of diets containing protein sources such as whey protein concentrate, spray-dried plasma protein and fish meal would be better than the extruded or expanded pellet diets. Extruder or expander processing of weaned pigs' feed could reduce palatability and ileal digestibility of several amino acids and therefore may be responsible for a negative growth response in weaned pigs.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.29 no.11
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• pp.1562-1568
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• 2016

Monochromatic green light-emitting diodes (LED) light stimuli influences the posthatch growth performance of chicks. This study was undertaken with the following objectives: i) to examine whether the green LED light stimuli induces an overheating effect by determining weight loss rate of fertile eggs during incubation period; ii) to look for the development of eyes and other primary organs at different ages of embryos and newly hatched chicks. Arbor Acres fertile broiler eggs (n = 480) were randomly assigned to 3 incubation groups and exposed to continuous white light, green light, or a dark environment (control) from the first day to 19 d of incubation. The light sourced from LED lamps with the intensity of 30 lx at eggshell level. The results showed that either green or white light stimuli during incubation did not significantly affect the weight loss rate of fertile eggs, hatching time, hatchability, chick embryo, or body weight (BW), the weight percentage of heart, liver, and eyes, as well as obvious systematic abnormalities in eye weight, side-to-side, back-to-front, or corneal diameter from 15 d of embryogenesis to 6 d of posthatch (p>0.05). Compared with the dark condition, green light stimuli during incubation tended to increase feed intake (p = 0.080), improved the BW gain of chicks during 0 to 6 day posthatch (p<0.05), and increased the percentage of pectoral muscle to the BW on 3- and 6-day-old chicks. In addition, embryos or chicks in green light had lower weight percentage of yolk retention on 19 d of embryogenesis and 1 d of posthatch in comparison to those in dark or white group (p<0.05). These results suggest that providing 30 lx green LED light stimuli during incubation has no detrimental effect on the development of eyes, heart and liver of embryos and hatchlings, but does have potential benefits in terms of enhancement of the chick growth during the early posthatch stages. In addition, the fertile broiler eggs stimulated with 30 lx green LED light during incubation does not cause an overheating effect.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.14-22
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• 2019

Objective: The aim of the study was to find a possible association between the ${\beta}-$ and ${\kappa}-casein$ and ${\beta}-lactoglobulin$ genotypes and important milk physiochemical and technological characteristics such as acidity, alcohol stability, the contents of some minerals and the parameters of acid fermentation ability (FEA) in Czech Fleckvieh Cattle. Methods: Milk and blood samples were collected from 338 primiparous Czech Fleckvieh cows at the same stage of lactation. The genotypes of individual cows for ${\kappa}-casein$ (alleles A, B, and E) and ${\beta}-lactoglobulin$ (alleles A and B) were ascertained by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism, while their ${\beta}-casein$ (alleles $A^1$, $A^2$, $A^3$, and B) genotype was determined using melting curve genotyping analysis. The data collected were i) milk traits including active acidity (pH), titratable acidity (TA), alcohol stability (AS); calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), sodium (Na), magnesium (Mg), and potassium (K) contents; and ii) yoghurt traits including active acidity (Y-pH), titratable acidity (Y-TA), and the counts of both Lactobacilli and Streptococci in 1 mL of yoghurt. A linear model was assumed with fixed effects of herd, year, and season of calving, an effect of the age of the cow at first calving and effects of the casein and lactoglobulin genotypes of ${\beta}-CN$ (${\beta}-casein$, CSN2), ${\kappa}-CN$ (${\kappa}-casein$, CSN3), and ${\beta}-LG$ (${\beta}-lactoglobulin$, LGB), or the three-way interaction between those genes. Results: The genetic polymorphisms were related to the milk TA, AS, content of P and Ca, Y-pH and Lactobacilli number in the fresh yoghurt. The CSN3 genotype was significantly associated with milk AS (p<0.05). The effect of the composite CSN2-CSN3-LGB genotype on the investigated traits mostly reflected the effects of the individual genes. It significantly influenced TA (p<0.01), Y-pH (p<0.05) and the log of the Lactobacilli count (p<0.05). Conclusion: Our findings indicate that the yoghurt fermentation test together with milk proteins genotyping could contribute to milk quality control and highlight new perspectives in dairy cattle selection.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.340-350
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• 2007

The objective of this study was to determine whether peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor ${\gamma}$(PPAR${\gamma}$ is involved in the regulation of weaning to estrus of primiparous sows. Twelve sows composed of 6 groups of 2 full-sibs in a similar age (325.2 d), body weight (BW; 152.4 kg) and backfat thickness (BFT; 27.0 mm) at start of lactation, were allocated to accept 31 MJ (restricted group, R-group) or 53 MJ (control group, C-group) DE/d treatment, respectively. The experimental results indicated that the low energy intake resulted in excessive losses of BW and BFT during lactation in R-group sows, which may be related to decrease of serum 15-deoxy-${\Delta}^{12,14}$-prostaglandin $J_2$ (15d-$PGJ_2$), a ligand of PPAR${\gamma}$ The obvious peak and the frequency of LH, FSH and estradiol ($E_2$) were only observed in C-group sows. Except for $E_2$ at d 1 and 2, serum FSH, LH and $E_2$ concentrations in R-group were lower than those in C-group sows after weaning. However, the serum progesterone ($P_4$) level in R-group sows was always more than that in C-group. The expression abundances of PPAR${\gamma}$and GnRH receptor (GnRH-R) in pituitary, FSH receptor (FSH-R), LH receptor (LH-R), estrogen receptor (ES-R) and aromatase in ovary of anestrous sows were lower than those of estrous sows. Neither the BFT nor the BW was associated with the mRNA abundance of PPAR${\gamma}$in hypothalamus during lactation. Expressions of PPAR${\gamma}$in pituitary and ovary were affected evidently by the BFT changes and only by the loss of BW of sows during and after lactation. Furthermore, PPAR${\gamma}$mRNA level in ovary was significantly related to the expression abundances of GnRH-R, FSH-R, ES-R and aromatase, and GnRH-R was obviously associated with PPAR${\gamma}$expression in pituitary. However, PPAR${\gamma}$expression in hypothalamus likely has no effects on these genes expression and no obvious difference for all sows. Not serum $E_2$ or $P_4$ alone but the ratios of $E_2$ to $P_4$ and 15d-$PGJ_2$ to $P_4$, and serum FSH and LH were evidently related to PPAR${\gamma}$expression in pituitary and ovary. It is concluded that PPAR${\gamma}$is associated with body conditions, reproduction hormones and their receptor expression, which affected the functions of pituitary and ovary and ultimately the estrus after weaning of primiparous sows.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.568-578
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• 2020

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate effects of supplementation of culture media from solid-state fermented Isaria cicadae (I. cicadae) on performance, serum biochemical parameters, serum immune indexes, antioxidant capacity and meat quality of broiler chickens. Methods: A total of 648 Arbor Acres male broiler chickens(1 d; average body weight, 42.93±0.47 g) were randomly assigned to 6 treatments, each with six replicates and 18 broiler chickens per replicate. Broiler chickens were fed phase I (d 1 to 21) and phase II (d 22 to 42) diets. The phase I diets were corn and soybean-meal based diets supplemented with 0%, 2%, 4%, 6%, 8%, or 10% culture media from solid-state fermented I. cicadae respectively. The phase II diets were corn and soybean-meal based diets supplemented with 0%, 1.33%, 2.67%, 4.00%, 5.32%, or 6.67% culture media from solid-state fermented I. cicadae respectively. Results: In phase I, the broiler chickens with the supplementation of culture media had increased body weight gain and feed intake (linear and quadratic, p<0.05) with increasing inclusion of culture media. The levels of serum total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC), glutathione (GSH) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) increased linearly (p<0.05). In phase II, levels of serum T-AOC and interleukin-1β increased linearly (p<0.05), and GSH increased (p<0.05). In the kidney, GSH and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) concentrations increased (linear and quadratic, p<0.05) and SOD concentration increased linearly (p<0.05). Compared to the control, shear force and drip loss of breast muscle decreased (linear and quadratic, p<0.05). Drip loss of leg muscle decreased linearly and quadratically (p<0.05). Conclusion: Dietary supplementation of culture media from solid-state fermented I.cicadae which was enriched in both wheat and residual bioactive components of I. cicadae enhanced the growth performance of broiler chickens. It also improved body anti-oxidative status and contributed to improve broiler meat quality.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.826-833
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• 2019

Objective: This study was performed to evaluate whether hot temperature and rumen-protected fat (RPF) supplementation affect growth performance, rumen characteristics, and serum metabolites in growing stage of Korean cattle steers. Methods: Twenty Korean cattle steers ($230.4{\pm}4.09kg$ of body weight [BW], $10.7{\pm}0.09months$ of age) were divided into a conventional control diet group (n = 10) and a 0.8% RPF supplementation group (n = 10). Steers were fed 1.5% BW of a concentrate diet and 4 kg of tall fescue hay for 16 weeks (July 10 to August 6 [P1], August 7 to September 3 [P2], September 4 to October 1 [P3], October 2 to 30 [P4], of 2015). Results: The mean temperature-humidity index (THI) was higher (p<0.001) in P1 (76.8), P2 (76.3), and P3 (75.9) than in P4 (50.9). The mean THI of P1-3 were within the alert heat stress (HS) category range according to previously reported categories for feedlot cattle, and the mean THI of P4 was under the thermo-neutral range. Neither month nor RPF supplementation affected (p>0.05) average daily gain and gain to feed ratio. Month and RPF supplementation affected concentrations of glucose, albumin, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL); those of albumin and glucose tended to decrease (p<0.10), but HDL concentration increased (p<0.01) by RPF supplementation. Neither month nor RPF affected (p>0.05) ruminal pH, $NH_3-N$, and volatile fatty acid concentrations, whereas the C2:C3 ratio was affected (p<0.05) by month. Conclusion: Korean cattle may not have been significantly affected by alert HS during the growing stage. Growth performance was higher during hotter months, although some changes in blood metabolites were observed. The RPF supplementation affected some blood lipids and carbohydrate metabolites but did not affect growth performance.

• Animal Bioscience
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• v.36 no.8
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• pp.1180-1189
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• 2023

Objective: Discovering the mechanism of cell specification is important to manipulate cellular lineages. To obtain lineage-specific cell lines, the target lineage needs to be promoted, and counterpart lineages should be suppressed. Embryos in the early blastocyst stage possess two different cell populations, the inner cell mass (ICM) and trophectoderm. Then, cells in the ICM segregate into epiblasts (Epi) and primitive endoderm (PrE). PrE cells in embryos show specific expression of platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) and its receptor, PDGF receptor A (PDGFRA). In this study, we suppressed PDGF signaling using two methods (CRISPR/Cas9 injection and inhibitor treatment) to provide insight into the segregation of embryonic lineages. Methods: CRISPR/Cas9 RNAs were injected into parthenogenetically activated and in vitro fertilized embryos. The PDGF receptor inhibitor AG1296 was treated at 0, 5, 10, and 20 µM concentration. The developmental competence of the embryos and the number of cells expressing marker proteins (SOX2 for ICM and SOX17 for PrE) were measured after the treatments. The expression levels of the marker genes with the inhibitor were examined during embryo development. Results: Microinjection targeting the PDGF receptor (PDGFR) A reduced the number of SOX17-positive cell populations in a subset of day 7 blastocysts (n = 9/12). However, microinjection accompanied diminution of Epi cells in the blastocyst. The PDGF receptor inhibitor AG1296 (5 µM) suppressed SOX17-positive cells without reducing SOX2-positive cells in both parthenogenetic activated and in vitro fertilized embryos. Within the transcriptional target of PDGF signaling, the inhibitor significantly upregulated the Txnip gene in embryos. Conclusion: We identified that PDGF signaling is important to sustain the PrE population in porcine blastocysts. Additionally, treatment with inhibitors was a better method to suppress PrE cells than CRISPR/Cas9 microinjection of anti-PDGF receptor α gene, because microinjection suppressed number of Epi cells. The PDGF receptor might control the number of PrE cells by repressing the proapoptotic gene Txnip. Our results can help to isolate Epi-specific cell lines from blastocysts.