[Systematic review and pharmacoeconomic evaluation of Qizhi Weitong Granules in treatment of functional dyspepsia].

This study aims to investigate the efficacy, safety, and cost-effecctiveness of Qizhi Weitong Granules in the treatment of functional dyspepsia. Specifically, two commonly used clinical protocols for the treatment of functional dyspepsia were selected: Qizhi Weitong Granules+Mosapride vs Mosapride alone(control). Meta-analysis of previous clinical studies was performed to examine the efficacy and safety, and pharmacoeconomic evaluation was carried out according to the results of the Meta-analysis. The cost-effectiveness analysis was carried out to elucidated the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio(ICER), and the sensitivity was analyzed with tornado dia-gram and Monte Carlo simulation. The willingness-to-pay threshold of patients for functional dyspepsia was investigated and compared with the ICER to evaluate whether Qizhi Weitong Granules was cost-effective. The result showed that the effective rate of Qizhi Weitong Granules combined with Mosapride in the treatment of functional dyspepsia was 95.49%, which was higher than that of Mosapride alone(73.30%)(OR=8.52, 95%CI[4.36, 16.64])(P<0.000 1). The two groups showed no significant difference in safety. The price of Qizhi Weitong Granules+Mosapride was higher than that of Mosapride alone. The ICER was 640.29 CNY, 1 506.67 CNY lower than the willingness-to-pay threshold. The sensitivity analysis showed that the analysis results were relatively stable. Thus, Qizhi Weitong Granules+Mosapride is safe, effective, and economical in the treatment of functional dyspepsia, which should be further promoted in clinical settings.

Supplemental Choline Modulates Growth Performance and Gut Inflammation by Altering the Gut Microbiota and Lipid Metabolism in Weaned Piglets.

BACKGROUND: Whether dietary choline and bile acids affect lipid use via gut microbiota is unclear. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to investigate the effect of choline and bile acids on growth performance, lipid use, intestinal immunology, gut microbiota, and bacterial metabolites in weaned piglets. METHODS: A total of 128 weaned piglets [Duroc × (Landrace × Yorkshire), 21-d-old, 8.21 ± 0.20 kg body weight (BW)] were randomly allocated to 4 treatments (8 replicate pens per treatment, each pen containing 2 males and 2 females; n = 32 per treatment) for 28 d. Piglets were fed a control diet (CON) or the CON diet supplemented with 597 mg choline/kg (C), 500 mg bile acids/kg (BA) or both (C + BA) in a 2 × 2 factorial design. Growth performance, intestinal function, gut microbiota, and metabolites were determined. RESULTS: Compared with diets without choline, choline supplementation increased BW gain (6.13%), average daily gain (9.45%), gain per feed (8.18%), jejunal lipase activity (60.2%), and duodenal IL10 gene expression (51%), and decreased the mRNA abundance of duodenal TNFA (TNFα) (40.7%) and jejunal toll-like receptor 4 (32.9%) (P < 0.05); additionally, choline increased colonic butyrate (29.1%) and the abundance of Lactobacillus (42.3%), while decreasing the bile acid profile (55.8% to 57.6%) and the abundance of Parabacteroides (75.8%), Bacteroides (80.7%), and unidentified-Ruminococcaceae (32.5%) (P ≤ 0.05). Compared with diets without BA, BA supplementation decreased the mRNA abundance of colonic TNFA (37.4%), NF-κB p65 (42.4%), and myeloid differentiation factor 88 (42.5%) (P ≤ 0.01); BA also increased colonic butyrate (20.9%) and the abundance of Lactobacillus (39.7%) and Faecalibacterium (71.6%) and decreased that of Parabacteroides (67.7%) (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Choline supplementation improved growth performance and prevented gut inflammation in weaned piglets by altering gut microbiota and lipid metabolism. BA supplementation suppressed intestinal inflammation with no effect on growth performance, which was associated with changed gut microbiota and metabolites.

Genome-Wide Association Study Reveals Novel Candidate Genes Influencing Semen Traits in Landrace Pigs.

Artificial insemination plays a crucial role in pig production, particularly in enhancing the genetic potential of elite boars. To accelerate genetic progress for semen traits in pigs, it is vital to understand and identify the underlying genetic markers associated with desirable traits. Herein, we genotyped 1238 Landrace boars with GeneSeek Porcine SNP50 K Bead chip and conducted genome-wide association studies to identify genetic regions and candidate genes associated with 12 semen traits. Our study identified 38 SNPs associated with the analyzed 12 semen traits. Furthermore, we identified several promising candidate genes, including HIBADH, DLG1, MED1, APAF1, MGST3, MTG2, and ZP4. These candidate genes have the potential function to facilitate the breeding of boars with improved semen traits. By further investigating and understanding the roles of these genes, we can develop more effective breeding strategies that contribute to the overall enhancement of pig production. The results of our study provide valuable insights for the pig-breeding industry and support ongoing research efforts to optimize genetic selection for superior semen traits.

Additive and Dominance Genome-Wide Association Studies Reveal the Genetic Basis of Heterosis Related to Growth Traits of Duhua Hybrid Pigs.

Heterosis has been extensively used for pig genetic breeding and production, but the genetic basis of heterosis remains largely elusive. Crossbreeding between commercial and native breeds provides a good model to parse the genetic basis of heterosis. This study uses Duhua hybrid pigs, a crossbreed of Duroc and Liangguang small spotted pigs, as materials to explore the genetic basis underlying heterosis related to growth traits at the genomic level. The mid-parent heterosis (MPH) analysis showed heterosis of this Duhua offspring on growth traits. In this study, we examined the impact of additive and dominance effects on 100 AGE (age adjusted to 100 kg) and 100 BF (backfat thickness adjusted to 100 kg) of Duhua hybrid pigs. Meanwhile, we successfully identified SNPs associated with growth traits through both additive and dominance GWASs (genome-wide association studies). These findings will facilitate the subsequent in-depth studies of heterosis in the growth traits of Duhua pigs.

Metabolomic analysis reveals spermatozoa and seminal plasma differences between Duroc and Liang guang Small-spotted pig.

The Liang guang Small-spotted pig is a well-known Chinese indigenous pig that is valued for its exceptional meat quality. However, the Liang guang Small-spotted pig has a lower semen storage capacity, shorter storage time and worse semen quality compared to Duroc. Pig sperm used for artificial insemination (AI) loses part of vitality and quality when being stored in commercial solutions. Serious vitality losses and short shelf life of the semen are particularly prominent in Liang guang Small-spotted pig. In this study, the metabolites in seminal plasma and spermatozoa of Duroc and Liang guang Small-spotted pigs were identified using UHPLC-Q-TOF/MS technology. The findings indicated forty distinct metabolites concentrating on energy metabolic substrates and antioxidant capacity in Liang guang Small-spotted pig and Duroc seminal plasma, including D-Fructose, succinate, 2-dehydro-3-deoxy-d-gluconate, alanine betaine, citrate, carnitine, acetylcarnitine and so on. Seventeen different metabolites were explored, with a focus on glycerophospholipid metabolism in Liang guang Small-spotted pig and Duroc spermatozoa, primarily including glycerol 3-phosphate, acetylcarnitine, phosphatidylcholine (PC) 16:0/16:0, palmitoyl sphingomyelin, acetylcholine, choline, glycerophosphocholine, betaine, L-carnitine, creatinine and others. This study reveals the metabolite profile of spermatozoa and seminal plasma among different pig breeds and might be valuable for understanding the mechanisms that lead to sperm storage capacity. Metabolites involved in energy metabolism, antioxidant capacity and glycerophospholipid metabolism might be key to the poor sperm storage capacity in Liang guang Small-spotted pig.

Fermented Feed Modulates Meat Quality and Promotes the Growth of Longissimus Thoracis of Late-Finishing Pigs.

This study investigated the effect of fermented diet on growth performance, carcass traits, meat quality and growth of longissimus thoracis (LT) of finishing pigs. A total of 48 finishing pigs [Duroc × (Landrace × Large White), male, 126 ± 5-d-old] weighing 98.76 ± 1.27 kg were randomly assigned to two treatments (eight pens per treatment and three pigs per pen) for a 28-d feeding trial, including control diet and fermented diet. Fermented diet significantly increased the loin eye area and lean mass percentage, decreased backfat thickness and improved meat quality of LT by decreasing the shear force and drip loss at 48 h post slaughter and improving meat sensory characteristics compared with control diet. A fermented diet also significantly increased the abundance of insulin, insulin receptor (IR), myoblast determination protein (MyoD) and myosin heavy chain-I (MyHC-I) transcripts, and the phosphorylation levels of AKT, mTORC1, 4EBP1 and S6K1 in LT, while decreasing the expression of muscle atrophy F-box (MAFbx) and forkhead Box O1 (Foxo1) mRNA transcripts. Moreover, proteomic analysis revealed that differentially expressed proteins predominantly involved in protein synthesis and muscle development were modulated by fermented diet. Our results indicated that a fermented diet improved meat quality and enhanced LT growth of finishing pigs by increasing insulin/AKT/mTORC1 protein synthesis cascade and activating the Foxo1/MAFbx pathway, along with the regulation of ribosomal protein and proteins involved in muscle contraction and muscle hypertrophy.