Effect of Day Length on Growth and Gonadal Development in Meishan Male Pigs.

Day length is a critical environmental factor for regulating animal growth and development. This study aimed to investigate the effects of different day lengths on the developmental changes of growth parameters, testicular sizes, testosterone secretion in Meishan male pigs, and steroidogenesis proteins and melatonin receptors. Fourteen Meishan male pigs (10 weeks (wks) of age) with the same parity, paired in litter and body weight (BW), were evenly allocated into a short-day-length group (SDL, 10 light/14 dark) and long-day-length group (LDL, 14 light/10 dark).

Fecal microbial composition associated with testosterone in the development of Meishan male pigs.

Introduction: The gut microbiota closely relates to host health, whereas the relationship between gut microbiota and testosterone during the development of Meishan male pigs remains unclear. This study investigated the fecal microbiota composition and testosterone level during development in Meishan male pigs.

Methods: Fresh fecal samples of 20 healthy Meishan male pigs were individually collected at 10 and 22 weeks (wk) of age for testosterone content detection and bacteria pyrosequencing analysis.

Comparison of the Microbiome-Metabolome Response to Copper Sulfate and Copper Glycinate in Growing Pigs.

This study aims to compare the fecal microbiome-metabolome response to copper sulfate (CuSO) and copper glycinate (Cu-Gly) in pigs. Twelve Meishan gilts were allocated into the CuSO group and the Cu-Gly group (fed on a basal diet supplemented with 60 mg/kg copper from CuSO or Cu-Gly) paired in litter and body weight. After a two-week feeding trial, the Cu-Gly group had a higher copper digestibility, blood hemoglobin, and platelet volume and higher levels of plasma iron and insulin-like growth factor-1 than the CuSO group.

Melatonin mediates via melatonin receptor 1 in a temperature-dependent manner regulating ATP metabolism and antioxidative enzyme activity of boar spermatozoa in vitro.

Researches indicated that melatonin (MLT) could ameliorate oxidative damage and increase sperm motility for conservation sperms, whereas the underlying mechanism remains unknown. And elucidating this, present study was designed to investigate the energy metabolism of sperm throughout preservation at 17 °C and activating with 37 °C. Herein, semen of ten Landrace boars (16∼18 months of age) were diluted and treated with gradient concentrations of MLT (0 nM, 1 nM, 10 nM, 1 μM, 1 mM and 5 mM), and kept away from light in the incubator of 17 °C for 5 days (preservation), and the sperm motility was evaluated after 37 °C incubation for 10 min (activating).

Supplementation with Fermented Feedstuff Enhances Orexin Expression and Secretion Associated with Increased Feed Intake and Weight Gain in Weaned Pigs.

The health status of weaned pigs is crucial for their subsequent growth performance. Supplementation with fermented feedstuff is able to improve the feed intake and growth of weaned pigs; however, the exact mechanism behind this is not clear. Hence, in the present study a total of 320 Duroc × Landrace × Yorkshire weaned pigs were selected and allocated to the following two groups: unfermented diet group (UFD) and fermented diet group (FD).

Effects of Decabrominated Diphenyl Ether Exposure on Growth, Meat Characteristics and Blood Profiles in Broilers.

Decabrominated diphenyl ether (BDE-209) is widely used as a flame retardant and is detected at high levels in the environment. Its toxicities have been reported and have attracted attention. In the present study, broilers were used to determine the response in growth performance, carcass traits, meat quality, blood profiles and antioxidant system to BDE-209 exposure at doses of 0, 0.

The Microbiome-Metabolome Response in the Colon of Piglets Under the Status of Weaning Stress.

Weaning is stressful for piglets involving nutritional, physiological, and psychological challenges, leading to an increase in the secretion of cortisol, changes in gut microbiome and metabolites, whereas the underlying relationships remain unclear. To elucidate this, 14 Meishan female piglets were divided into the weaning group and the suckling group at the age of 21 days paired by litter and body weight. After 48 h of experiment, weaned piglets had lower body weight, but higher salivary cortisol level than that of their suckling litter mates ( < 0.

Crude fiber modulates the fecal microbiome and steroid hormones in pregnant Meishan sows.

The beneficial effects of dietary fiber on the reproductive performance and welfare of sows have been discussed broadly, but few researches examined the causal changes and the association of gut microbiota and the steroid hormones, the main regulators of reproductive function. To shed light on this, thirty-six Meishan sows were allocated into 2.5% crude fiber (CF) group and 7.

Butyric acid regulates progesterone and estradiol secretion via cAMP signaling pathway in porcine granulosa cells.

Butyric acid (BA), one of the short chain fatty acids (SCFAs), has positive actions on the metabolism, inflammation, etc. However, whether it influences the reproductive physiology and if so the detail mechanism involved has not yet been determined. In this study, the porcine granulosa cells (PGCs) were treated with gradient concentrations of BA.

Stem Cell Labeling with Superparamagnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticles Using Focused Ultrasound and Magnetic Resonance Imaging Tracking.

Magnetosonoporation (MSP) is a relatively safe and efficient approach for instant MR stem cell labeling. In this study, the physical and magnetic properties of different formulations of synthesized superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPION) were characterized. Then, a "closed" MSP apparatus using focused ultrasound was designed and the feasibility of MSP stem cell labeling using focused ultrasound was validated by evaluating the proliferation, migration and differentiation of the magnetically labeled cells.

MRI tracking of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells labeled with ultra-small superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles in a rat model of temporal lobe epilepsy.

Transplantation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) is a promising approach for treatment of epilepsy. To our knowledge, there is little research on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) tracking of BMSCs labeled with ultrasmall superparamagnetic iron oxide (USPIO) nanoparticles in a rat model of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). In this study, BMSCs were pre-labeled with USPIO nanoparticles, and then the cell apoptosis, proliferation, surface antigens, and multipotency were investigated.

Investigation of muscle degeneration process in young rats with ischemia injury using MR diffusion tensor imaging.

Skeletal muscle is vulnerable to ischemia injury after direct trauma or indirect causes. Magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) has been demonstrated to be a powerful tool to investigate muscle structures. However, most previous DTI studies that investigated ischemia muscle were performed on mature species, results of which may not apply on other age populations, such as young groups.

Efficacy of MRI visible iron oxide nanoparticles in delivering minicircle DNA into liver via intrabiliary infusion.

Gene therapy is a very promising technology for treatment of liver diseases. Minicircle DNA (MCDNA) is a versatile gene vector, which possesses excellent features in bio-safety and duration of transgene expression. However, its application has been hampered by the lack of an efficient gene delivery system.

Self-assembled magnetic theranostic nanoparticles for highly sensitive MRI of minicircle DNA delivery.

As a versatile gene vector, minicircle DNA (mcDNA) has a great potential for gene therapy. However, some serious challenges remain, such as to effectively deliver mcDNA into targeted cells/tissues and to non-invasively monitor the delivery of the mcDNA. Superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) nanoparticles have been extensively used for both drug/gene delivery and diagnosis.

Comparative analysis of mesenchymal stem cells from adult mouse adipose, muscle, and fetal muscle.

Recently, increasing evidence supports that adult stem cells are the part of a natural system for tissue growth and repair. This study focused on the differences of mesenchymal stem cells from adult adipose (ADSCs), skeletal muscle (MDSCs) and fetal muscle (FMSCs) in biological characteristics, which is the key to cell therapy success. Stem cell antigen 1 (Sca-1) expression of MDSCs and FMSCs at passage 3 was two times more than that at passage 1 (P < 0.

Inhibition of adipogenic differentiation by myostatin is alleviated by arginine supplementation in porcine-muscle-derived mesenchymal stem cells.

Porcine mesenchymal stem cells in postnatal muscle have been demonstrated to differentiate into adipocytes. This increases adipocyte number and lipid accumulation, and is thought to be the origin of intramuscular fat. In this study, the effects of myostatin and arginine on adipogenic differentiation in mesenchymal stem cells derived from porcine muscle (pMDSCs) were investigated in vitro.