Mulberry leaf powder regulates antioxidative capacity and lipid metabolism in finishing pigs

This study evaluated the potential of mulberry leaf powder as an unconventional feed material for fin-ishing pigs by assessing the growth performance,antioxidative properties,fatty acid profile,and lipid metabolism in 180 Xiangcun black pigs.Pigs with an initial body weight(BW)of 71.64±1.46 kg were randomly assigned to 5 treatment groups,including the control diet and 4 experimental diets.The corn,soybean meal,and wheat bran in the control diet were partly replaced by 3%,6%,9%,or 12%mulberry leaf powder in experimental diets.There were 6 replicates(pens)of 6 pigs per replicate in each treatment.Blood and muscle samples were collected after the 50-day feed experiment.Compared with the control group,the 3%,6%,and 9%mulberry diets had no adverse effect(P>0.05)on the growth performance of pigs.The serum glutathione peroxidase activity and glutathione concentration increased linearly(P<0.05)with the increase in dietary mulberry inclusion.There was no significant difference in the relative expression levels of antioxidant-related genes in muscle tissue between the control and mul-berry groups.Inclusion of dietary mulberry powder increased(P<0.05)the content of polyunsaturated fatty acids,especially in the longissimus dorsi(LD)muscle,up-regulated(P<0.05)the relative mRNA expression level of uncoupling protein-3 in muscle tissue,but down-regulated(P<0.05)the relative mRNA expression levels of hormone-sensitive lipase,acetyl CoA carboxylaseα,lipoprotein lipase,and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor y in LD in a linear pattern.The nuclear respiratory factor 2 expression level in the LD muscle of pigs fed the 9%mulberry diet was higher(P<0.01)than that in the other mulberry groups and control group.The inclusion of less than 12%dietary mulberry did not detrimentally affect the growth performance of Xiangcun black pigs,but enhanced the serum antioxidant property,increased the polyunsaturated fatty acid content,and inhibited lipid oxidation by regulating gene expression levels of lipid metabolism and mitochondrial uncoupling protein in muscle tissue.Mulberry leaves can be utilized as a forage crop in the diet of finishing pigs.

Comparison of fatty acid profile of three adipose tissues in Ningxiang pigs

The present study is conducted to determinate fatty acids(FA) composition in 3 adipose tissues. Subcutaneous and perirenal adipose tissues were prepared from 24 Ningxiang castrated boars and 24 castrated gilts fattened by a traditional diet for 56 d, respectively. The results showed that the FA profile in the 3 adipose tissues(dorsal subcutaneous adipose [DSA], abdominal subcutaneous adipose [ASA], and perirenal adipose [PA]) differed greatly. In boars, the proportions of oleic acid(c18:1 n9 c)(P < 0.05), cis-11-20 c acid(c20:1)(P < 0.05), and a-linolenic acid(c18:3 n3)(P < 0.05) in DSA were the highest among 3 adipose tissues, whereas palmitic acid(c16:0)(P < 0.05) and stearic acid(c18:0)(P < 0.05) in DSA had the lowest proportion. In gilts, cis-11-20 c acid(c20:1)(P < 0.05) in DSA was the highest, while stearic acid(c18:0)(P < 0.05) in subcutaneous adipose was the lowest among these deposits. Overall, the results indicate that from external to inner carcass of boars, the sum of saturated fatty acids(SFA) increase, but the sum of monounsaturated fatty acids(MUFA) decrease, while ASA of gilts have the greatest proportion of MUFA and the lowest SFA. Sex and adipose locations as significant effects on the FA profile are interaction.