ABSTRACT:
Thirty each Nellore (NEL) and crossbred Angus x Nellore (AxN) were used to evaluate the effect of feeding soybean oil (SBO) and breed on meat sensory acceptability and its relation to muscle metabolite profiles. Cattle were fed for 133 d on two different diets: 1) basal feedlot diet (CON) and 2) CON diet with 3.5% added SBO. No interactions between diet and genetic group were detected for any traits measured. Meat from animals fed SBO diet had lower overall liking, flavor, tenderness and juiciness scores compared to meat from animals fed CON diet. The four most important compounds differing between animals fed CON and SBO diets were betaine, glycerol, fumarate, and carnosine, suggesting that metabolic pathways such as glycerolipid metabolism; glycine, serine and threonine metabolism; glutamine and glutamate metabolism; valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis; and alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism were affected by diets. Nellore beef had a higher overall liking and meat flavor scores than AxN beef. The four most important compounds differing between breeds were glycine, glucose, alanine, and carnosine, which may indicate that metabolic pathways such as glutathione metabolism; primary bile acid biosynthesis; alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism; and valine, leucine and isoleucine biosynthesis were affected by genetic groups. Meat carnosine, inosine monophosphate, glutamate, betaine, glycerol and creatinine levels were correlated with sensory acceptability scores. Meat metabolite profiles and sensory acceptability were differentially impacted by diet and breed. © 2020 Elsevier Ltd

ABSTRACT:
This study's objective was to investigate how legume type and processing method affected digestibility, and subsequent gut microbiota and short chain fatty acid (SCFA) formation. After autoclaving and germinating-cooking, pinto bean and soybean were subjected to in vitro digestion. The digestion residues were fractionated into soluble and insoluble fiber, and fermented by microbiota from pig feces. Results showed the in vitro digestibility was affected significantly by processing method and legume type. Autoclaving resulted in higher digestibility. The in-vitro digested bean residues caused a rapid pH decrease in the first 12 h during the fermentation with pig feces, and a significant increse in the formation of SCFAs. A positive modulation of the gut microbiota by the in-vitro digested bean residues was observed. Prevotella copri and Bacteroides vulgatus exhibited the highest relative abundance in the treatments with germinated bean's soluble residues. Phascolarctobacterium succinatutens was increased by the insoluble residues. © 2019 Elsevier Ltd

ABSTRACT:
Numerous studies have reported the importance of thyroid hormones on the development of later preantral and antral follicles, but their interactions with other hormones and effects in regulating early preantral follicle growth remain unclear. Here we investigated the in vitro effects of thyroxine combined with insulin on caprine preantral follicle survival and development. Sliced ovarian tissues were cultured for 1 or 7 days using 10 ng/mL (low) or 10 μg/mL (high) insulin in the presence of thyroxine at 0, 0.5, 1 or 2 μg/mL. Post-culture, we evaluated the follicular survival and development, assessed the expression of apoptotic-related genes (Bcl2/Bax) and receptors of insulin and thyroid hormones, and quantified the estradiol and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production levels. Follicular survival in low-insulin culture conditions was enhanced by the presence of 0.5 μg/mL thyroxine (P < 0.05) as compared to the thyroxine-free medium but remained similar to non-cultured control in the presence of 2 μg/mL (P > 0.05). Significantly higher ROS production was measured from Day 1 to Day 7 in low-insulin culture media containing 0.5 or 2 μg/mL thyroxine (P < 0.05). When compared to high insulin level, the presence of thyroxine in low insulin culture conditions yielded higher stromal cell density (P < 0.05), increased estradiol production on Day 1, and higher Bcl2/Bax ratio on Day 7. Cultures with high levels of both insulin and thyroxine led to follicles and oocytes with larger diameters (P < 0.05). The RNA transcript levels of insulin and thyroid receptors were reduced in the presence of high insulin cultures when compared to controls (non-cultured). In conclusion, the combination of low concentrations of insulin and thyroxine better maintained follicle survival, while high levels ensured better follicular development. © 2020 Elsevier Inc.

ABSTRACT:
Edwardsiella ictaluri is a Gram-negative facultative anaerobe that can survive inside channel catfish phagocytes. E. ictaluri can orchestrate Type VI Secretion System (T6SS) for survival in catfish macrophages. evpP encodes one of the T6SS translocated effector proteins. However, the role of evpP in E. ictaluri is still unexplored. In this work, we constructed an E. ictaluri evpP mutant (EiΔevpP) and assessed its survival under complement and oxidative stress. Persistence of EiΔevpP in catfish as well as attachment and invasion in catfish macrophage and ovary cells were determined. Further, virulence of EiΔevpP in catfish and apoptosis it caused in macrophages were explored. EiΔevpP behaved same as wild type (EiWT) under complement and oxidative stress in complex media, whereas oxidative stress affected mutant's survival significantly in minimal media (p <.05). Persistence of EiΔevpP in live catfish and uptake and survival inside peritoneal macrophages were similar. The attachment and invasion capabilities of EiΔevpP in catfish ovary cells were significantly less than that of EiWT (p <.05). Although EiΔevpP showed reduced attenuation in catfish, causing decreased catfish mortality compared with EiWT (44.73% vs. 67.53%), this difference was not significant. The apoptosis assay using anterior kidney macrophages indicated that the number of live macrophages exposed to EiΔevpP was significantly higher compared with EiWT exposed macrophages at 24-hr post-treatment (p <.05). However, there were no significant differences in the early and late apoptosis. Remarkably, necrosis in EiΔevpP exposed macrophages was significantly less than that of EiWT exposed macrophages at 24 hr (p <.05). Our results demonstrated that evpP is required for colonisation of catfish ovary cells and increased apoptosis and necrosis in anterior kidney macrophages. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd

ABSTRACT:
Flavobacterium species are considered important fish pathogens in wild and cultured fish throughout the world. They can cause acute, subacute, and chronic infections, which are mainly characterized by gill damage, skin lesions, and deep necrotic ulcerations. Primarily, three Flavobacterium species, F. branchiophilum, F. columnare, and F. psychrophilum, have been reported to cause substantial losses to freshwater fish. In this study, we evaluated genomes of 86 Flavobacterium species isolated from aquatic hosts (mainly fish) to identify their unique and shared genome features. Our results showed that F. columnare genomes cluster into four different genetic groups. In silico secretion system analysis identified that all genomes carry type I (T1SS) and type IX (T9SS) secretion systems, but the number of type I secretion system genes shows diversity between species. F. branchiophilum, F. araucananum, F. chilense, F. spartansii, and F. tructae genomes have full type VI secretion system (T6SS). F. columnare, F. hydatis, and F. plurextorum carry partial T6SS with some of the T6SS genes missing. F. columnare, F. araucananum, F. chilense, F. spartansii, F. araucananum, F. tructae, Flavobacterium sp., F. crassostreae, F. succinicans, F. hydatis, and F. plurextorum carry most of the type IV secretion system genes (T4SS). F. columnare genetic groups 1 and 2, Flavobacterium sp., and F. crassostreae encode the least number of antibiotic resistance elements. F. hydatis, F. chilense, and F. plurextorum encode the greatest number of antibiotic resistance genes. Additionally, F. spartansii, F. araucananum, and chilense encode the greatest number of virulence genes while Flavobacterium sp. and F. crassostreae encode the least number of virulence genes. In conclusion, comparative genomics of Flavobacterium species of aquatic origin will help our understanding of Flavobacterium pathogenesis. © 2020 Elsevier Ltd