Animal Science Journal, Nihon Chikusan Gakkaihō

The objectives of the present study were to investigate the effects of selenium (Se) supplementation during in vitro maturation (IVM) on the developmental capacity of yak (Bos grunniens) oocytes. Nuclear maturation, DNA integrity, glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity, subsequent embryonic development, and gene expression after in vitro fertilization (IVF) were evaluated. The Se concentrations in yak plasma and follicular fluid were 0.142 and 0.069 μg/mL, respectively. The DNA damage in cumulus cells decreased significantly with 2 and 4 μg/mL supplementation of sodium selenite to IVM medium (P < 0...

A feeding experiment was carried out to determine the effects of different proportions of alfalfa hay and maize stover on the growth performance and carcass characteristics of fattening lambs. Forty-two healthy 3.5-month-old male Small-tail Han lambs of 23.89 ± 0.38 kg body mass were assigned to seven groups, which were fed mixed diets composed of maize stover and alfalfa hay containing 0%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70% or 100% maize stover on a dry matter (DM) basis. Each lamb received 1.5 kg DM of forage mixture three times daily and supplementary concentrate (0...

The aim of this study was to investigate the optimal conditions of ultrasound-assisted alkaline extraction (UAAE) on pork liver protein isolate (UPLPI) and its physico-chemical properties. Response surface methodology was used to determine the optimal conditions for UAAE, which were at ultrasonic power 265 W, ultrasonic time 42 min, NaOH concentration 0.80%, temperature 50°C, and solvent/raw material ratio 70. The extraction yield and efficiency of UPLPI were significantly improved over the conventional alkaline extraction (PLPI)...

In the present study, we aimed to determine the applicability of a paper container for the vitrification of in vitro matured (IVM) bovine oocytes. In experiment 1, IVM oocytes were exposed to vitrification solution (20% dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO), 20% ethylene glycol (EG), and 5 mol/L sucrose), using a two-step method, for 30 s; loaded onto either a paper container or Cryotop; and stored in liquid nitrogen. No significant difference (P < 0.05) in the survival and blastocyst formation rates after in vitro vitrification was observed between the paper container and Cryotop...

This study aimed to investigate the effects of replacing alfalfa hay (AH) with a mixture of cassava foliage silage and sweet potato vine silage (CSP) (1:1 on a dry matter (DM) basis) on ruminal and intestinal nutrient digestion in sheep. Four wethers were fed a control diet containing 35% of AH and two treatment diets containing 15% and 30% of the CSP as substitute for AH at 1.5 times the metabolizable energy required for maintenance. Replacing AH with the CSP silage did not affect DM intake, whereas it linearly increased (P < 0...

We compared the hair cortisol levels of lactating dairy cows in a cold- and a warm-temperate region out of four climatic zones in Japan. We simultaneously investigated the effects of calving number, lactation period and month of hair sampling. Hair of nine Holstein lactating cows chosen from each region (i.e. 18 cows per sampling) was sampled in March, June, September and December. Number of calvings (1, 2, ≥3) and lactation duration (early: <100, middle: 101-200, and late: >201 days) were balanced between regions...

Sleep is one of the essential behaviors for mammals. The aims of this study were to validate the use of accelerometer for measuring sleeping posture of cattle. Duration of sleeping posture of seven Japanese Black cows from 19.00 to 07.00 hours was measured by both accelerometer and video, and a total of 67 accelerometer and video measurement sets were collected. We calculated Cohen's κ coefficient between accelerometer and video measurements and 91.5% of the κ-values were >0.80. Intra- and inter-observer coefficient of variance showed that specific acceleration waveform patterns of sleeping posture could be easily and accurately detected by independent observers...

Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) technology are two classical reprogramming methods. Donor cell types can affect the reprogramming results in the above two methods. We here used porcine embryonic fibroblasts (PEFs) and adult porcine ear skin fibroblasts (APEFs) and adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) as donor cells for SCNT and source cells for iPSCs to study their in vitro developmental capability and colony-formation efficiency, respectively. For SCNT, fusion and cleavage rate has no significant difference among PEFs, ADSCs and APEFs...

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of cyclophosphamide (CPA) on cashmere shedding in cashmere goats. Thirty-two castrated Liaoning cashmere goats were randomly allotted to four groups, with eight replicates in each group. The four groups were injected intravenously with CPA doses of 0, 15, 20 and 25 mg/kg body weight, respectively. Feed intake, body weight, body temperature, and sphygmus were recorded and the erythrocyte count, leukocyte count, hemoglobin content, and cashmere yield and length were determined...

Buffalo milk represents an indispensable source of nourishment in many parts of the world and it is the second most consumed milk worldwide. Buffalo milk is actually used for the production of many dairy products such as pasteurized or concentrated milk, butter, yogurt, ice-cream, dehydrated milk products and cheeses. Due to its high nutritional value and the presence of natural bioactive substances, buffalo milk can also provide health benefits to consumers. In Italy, buffalo milk is used mainly for cheese making, mozzarella PDO (Protected Designation of Origin), which is a highly valued dairy product...

Upright and pendulous combs commonly exist in most single-comb chicken breeds. Here, the phenotypic characteristics of upright and pendulous combs in chickens and association with growth rate and egg production were analyzed. Phenotypic frequencies of upright and pendulous comb were investigated in five chicken breeds; the phenotypic frequencies of complete pendulous comb (CPC) and partial pendulous comb (PPC) ranged from 10.1% to 29.0% and 21.8% to 65.3%, respectively. CPC hens produced more eggs than PPC hens (P < 0...

Thermal analysis could rapidly and easily predict nutritional value of ruminant feeds. The hypothesis is that crambe meal (CM) has a quality similar to that of soybean meal (SM), and the objective of this study was to determine the nutritional characteristics of CM and compare them to those of SM. CM had greater concentrations of phytic acid (26.3 vs. 16.0 g/kg) and phenol compounds (615 vs. 393 mg gallic acid (GAE)/kg) than SM. In vitro dry matter (DM) digestibility was lower for CM than SM (752 vs. 975 g/kg DM)...

We recently found that orphan G-protein-coupled receptor (GPR)153 is expressed in the anterior pituitary (AP) of heifers, leading us to speculate that GPR153 colocalizes with gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptor (GnRHR) in the plasma membrane of gonadotrophs and is expressed at specific times of the reproductive cycle. To test this hypothesis, we examined the coexpression of GnRHR, GPR153, and either luteinizing hormone or follicle-stimulating hormone in AP tissue and cultured AP cells by immunofluorescence microscopy...

The Kunming dog is the first and only working dog breed from China to be recognized worldwide. As a domestic working dog, its excellent working performance has been well established; however, its normal reproductive parameters are not well understood. Therefore, this study was conducted to document the main reproductive parameters of this purebred working dog in field breeding conditions. Data on 1004 heats (753 with mating) from 203 bitches between 2008 to 2014, were collected and analyzed. The pregnancy rate and whelping rate was 79...

Vitamin A (VA) restriction in beef cattle improves meat marbling; however, the underlying molecular mechanisms remain incompletely understood. We performed microarray analysis to clarify the effect of VA restriction on Longissimus thoracis gene expressions in Japanese Black steers. Six Japanese Black steers 13-14 months of age were divided into two groups: S group (n = 3), which received VA supplementation, and R group (n = 3), in which dietary VA intake was restricted. Steers were fattened for 7 months, following which tissue samples were obtained...

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of feeding supplemental illite to Hanwoo steers on methane (CH4 ) emission and rumen fermentation parameters. An in vitro ruminal fermentation technique was conducted using a commercial concentrate as substrate and illite was added at different concentrations as treatments: 0%, 0.5%, 1.0%, and 2.0% illite. Total volatile fatty acids (VFA) were different (P < 0.05) at 24 h of incubation where the highest total VFA was observed at 1.0% of illite. Conversely, lowest CH4 production (P < 0...

To better understand rumen adaptation during dietary transitions between high- and low-quality forages, 10 rumen-cannulated Hu sheep were randomly allocated to two dietary treatments (five sheep each) with the same concentrate-to-forage ratio and concentration mixture, but different forage sequences: (i) alfalfa hay (AH) to corn stover (CS) and back to AH; and (ii) CS to AH and back to CS. A significant decrease in the rumen microbial protein concentration was observed on day 6 after dietary transition whether the transition was from AH to CS or from CS to AH, and this was accompanied by an increase in the ammonia nitrogen concentration as well as a decrease in the total volatile fatty acids concentration and pH...

Wool-biting behavior in housed sheep is a serious animal welfare problem and is difficult to control. Since we have found that sheep fed on rolled hay performed less post-feeding wool-biting than those fed on baled hay, here we mixed these two kinds of hay in four different proportions (0%, 33%, 67% and 100% of rolled hay) to test the effect of rolled hay on repressing wool-biting behavior. We also measured the pulling force needed to remove a piece of rolled hay, baled hay, wool and fresh grass. Wool-biting occurred most frequently in the treatment containing 0% rolled hay; however, there was no significant difference between the other three treatments...

The objectives of this experiment were: (i) to determine the net energy (NE) of soybean oil (SBO) fed to growing pigs using indirect calorimetry (IC); and (ii) to evaluate the effects of inclusion rate of SBO on heat production, oxidative status and nutrient digestibility in growing pigs. Eighteen growing barrows were allotted to three diets based on completely randomized design with six replicate pigs (period) per diet. Diets included a corn-soybean meal basal diet and two test diets containing 5% or 10% SBO at the expense of corn and soybean meal...

This study estimated the effects of hybrid and bacterial inoculant on fermentation quality and fatty acid profile of barley silages. Yuyeon (Silkless) and Youngyang (Silking) barley hybrids were harvested at 24.9 and 27.1% dry matter, respectively, and chopped to 10 cm lengths. Each hybrid was treated with or without an inoculant (2 × 10(4)  colony-forming units/g of Lactobacillus plantarum). A total of 48 silos were prepared in an experiment with a 2 × 2 (hybrid × inoculant) treatment arrangement with four replications and three ensiling durations (2, 7 and 100 days)...