Effect of dietary Eucommia ulmoides oliver polysaccharide on immune function and meat quality of Songliao Black Pigs.

Eucommia ulmoides is a traditional Chinese herbal medicine, with pharmacological effects such as lowering blood pressure and enhancing immune function. The effects of dietary Eucommia ulmoides polysaccharide (EUP) on immune function and meat quality were studied in Songliao Black Pigs. Blood lymphocyte counts and percentage, concentrations of serum total protein and of albumin increased, whereas those of urea nitrogen and triglyceride decreased. White blood cell and lymphocyte counts, and serum IgA, IgE, IgG2 a and IFN-γ increased. Average daily weight gain, slaughter weight, lean meat rate and cooked meat rate increased, whereas pH24, feed-weight ratio, fat rate, yellowness (b#) and centrifugal dehydration rate decreased. Transcriptome sequencing of longissimus dorsi muscle detected 32 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), of which 26 were up-regulated and 6 down-regulated. A total of 19 genes were differentially expressed in the four groups, 18 of which were up-regulated. The DEGs included ADAMTS4, PER1, STAC, SERPINE1, FASN, THRSP, SP7 and KRT80 and the protein interaction network showed 20 up-regulated nodes, three down-regulated nodes and 14 DEGs. GO functional annotation and enrichment analysis showed that 34 items were significantly enriched, including transferase activity, actin binding, acetyl coenzyme A, acyl coenzyme A metabolism, adipose tissue development and acyl glycerol homeostasis. KEGG pathway analysis showed that the AMPK and PPAR signaling pathways were enriched. Dietary Eucommia polysaccharide enhanced immune function in Songliao Black Pigs, improved growth and carcass performance, increased the expression of genes related to meat quality traits and improved meat quality.

Molecular occurrence and risk factors for Toxoplasma gondii infection in equids in Jilin, China.

Toxoplasma gondii, one of the important zoonotic parasites, has been detected in lots of hosts including humans, with a widespread prevalence. The products of equids, such as meat and milk, have been closely related to humans' life. As the intermediate hosts, little is known about equids toxoplasmosis in Jilin province. Therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate the occurrence and risk factors of Toxoplasma gondii infections in equids from Jilin, northeastern China. In this study, a total of 245 blood samples of equids (192 horses, 25 donkeys and 28 mules) were collected from six localities in Jilin Province from March 2018 to August 2020 and detected by PCR. The occurrence rate of T. gondii B1 gene was analyzed using multivariable logistic regression to evaluate risk factors associated with the positive rates in equids. Among 245equids, T. gondii molecular occurrence was 9.0% (22/245). The highest positive rate was observed in equids from Dongfeng (16.3%) followed by Taonan (10.0%), Wangqing (8.3%), Antu (8.0%), Tonghua (8.0%) and Shulan (2.3%). Statistical analysis revealed that farming model and region may be two main risk factors. Data analysis indicated that the positive rate in captive farm (3.2%, 95% CI: 0.0-6.7%) was significantly lower than those in cage-free farm (P < 0.05), and the region of Shulan was protective factor (OR: 0.063, 95% CI: 0.007-0.559).The results of our study alert people to be aware that the present of equids T. gondii infection in this region, and contribute to a prevention and treatment program for toxoplasmosis in Jilin, China.