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"Pekin"
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Effect of Dietary Clostridium butyricum Supplementation on Growth Performance, Intestinal Barrier Function, Immune Function, and Microbiota Diversity of Pekin Ducks
Clostridium butyricum (C. butyricum) is increasingly being used to test the promotion of the gut health of animals. However, the modes of action for such applications for waterfowl remain unclear. Thus, we investigated whether or not intestinal barrier function, immune-related gene expression, and the diversity of the intestinal microbiota in Pekin ducks varied under C. butyricum supplementation. A total of 500 ducks were randomly assigned into five treatments supplemented with basal diets containing: either 0 (group Control), 200 (group CB200), 400 (group CB400) and 600 (group CB600) mg/kg C. butyricum or 150 mg/kg aureomycin (group A150) for 42 days. In comparison with the control group, C. butyricum supplementation enhanced the growth performance and intestinal villus height of Pekin ducks at 42 d. Serum immune indexes and fecal short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) were all improved at both 21 d and 42 d after C. butyricum addition. The mRNA expression levels of Mucin2, Zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1), Caudin-3, and Occludin increased at 21 d and 42 d and the mRNA expression levels of IL-4 and IL-10 only increased at 42 d after C. butyricum addition. Dietary C. butyricum also resulted in an increase in the number of diversities of operational taxonomic units (OTUs), and an increase in the α-diversity of intestinal microbiota. The addition of C. butyricum altered the composition of the intestinal microbiota from 21 d to 42 d. The relative abundance of Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes showed little changes among groups; however, the relative abundance of Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes were found to have been significantly different between the 21 d and 42 d. C. butyricum administration improved the intestinal health of Pekin ducks by increasing the diversity of intestinal microbiota, enhancing the SCFAs contents, and strengthening the intestinal barrier function and immune systems. The optimal dietary supplementation dosage was recommended as 400 mg/kg in the diet.
Journal Article
Characterization and Comparative Transcriptomic Analysis of Skeletal Muscle in Pekin Duck at Different Growth Stages Using RNA-Seq
Skeletal muscle, accounting for approximately 50% of body weight, is the largest and most important tissue. In this study, the gene expression profiles and pathways in skeletal muscle of Pekin duck were investigated and compared at embryonic day 17, 21, and 27 and postnatally at 6 months of age. An average of 49,555,936 reads in each sample was obtained from the transcriptome libraries. Over 70.0% of alternative splicing (AS) in each sample was mainly alternative 5′ first exon (transcription start site)—the first exon splicing (TSS) and alternative 3′ last exon (transcription terminal site)—the last exon splicing (TTS), indicating that TSS and TTS were the most common AS event in Pekin ducks, and these AS events were closely related to the regulation of muscle development at different growth stages. The results provided a valuable genomic resource for selective breeding and functional studies of genes. A total of 299 novel genes with ≥2 exons were obtained. There were 294 to 2806 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in each pairwise comparison of Pekin duck. Notably, 90 DEGs in breast muscle and 9 DEGs in leg muscle were co-expressed at all developmental points. DEGs were validated by qPCR analysis, which confirmed the tendency of the expression. DEGs related to muscle development were involved in biological processes such as “endodermal cell differentiation”, “muscle cell cellular homeostasis”, “skeletal muscle tissue growth” and “skeletal muscle cell differentiation”, and were involved in pathways such as oxidative phosphorylation, ECM-receptor (extracellular matrix receptor) interaction, focal adhesion, carbon metabolism, and biosynthesis of amino acids. Some DEGs, including MYL4, IGF2BP1, CSRP3, SPP1 and KLHL31, as well as LAMB2, LAMA2, ITGB1 and OPN, played crucial roles in muscle growth and development. This study provides valuable information about the expression profile of mRNAs and pathways from duck skeletal muscle at different growth stages, and further functional study of these mRNAs and pathways could provide new ideas for studying the molecular networks of growth and development in duck skeletal muscle.
Journal Article
The Impact of Different Relative Humidity Levels on the Production Performance, Slaughter Performance, and Meat Quality of White Pekin Ducks Aged 4 to 42 Days
This study aimed to investigate the effects of different humidity levels on the growth performance, slaughter performance, and meat quality of Pekin ducks through the artificial control of humidity, and to identify the suitable environmental humidity for Pekin duck growth. A completely randomized single-factor design was employed, selecting 144 newly hatched male Pekin ducks with healthy and similar BW (body weight) (60.92 g ± 4.38). These ducks were randomly assigned to four groups (A (RH (relative humidity) = 60%), B (RH = 67%), C (RH = 74%), D (RH = 81%)), with 12 ducks and 3 replicates in each group. The ducks were raised in a climate-controlled room for 42 days with ad libitum access to feed and water. BW and feed intake were measured every 3 days, and slaughter performance and meat quality were assessed at 42 days. There was no significant difference in the ADG (average daily gain) from 1 to 21 days (p > 0.05). The ADFI (average daily feed intake) of Group D was significantly lower than that of Groups A, B, and C (p < 0.05), with no significant differences between Groups A, B, and C (p > 0.05). At 42 days, the BW, ADG, and ADFI of Groups A and C were significantly higher than those of Group D (p < 0.05), with no significant differences among Groups A, B, and C (p > 0.05). Group C had a significantly higher breast muscle weight, breast muscle ratio, liver weight, and liver index than Groups B and D (p < 0.05), with no significant differences between Groups A, B, and D (p > 0.05). The meat shear force in Group C was significantly lower than that in Groups A, B, and D (p < 0.05). The L* (brightness) of Group C was significantly lower than that of Group A (p < 0.05), and the a* (redness) value of Group C was significantly higher than that of Groups A and B (p < 0.05), with no significant difference compared to Group D (p > 0.05). Group B had a significantly higher cooking loss than Groups A, C, and D (p < 0.05), with no significant differences among Groups A, C, and D (p > 0.05). Under 26 °C conditions, Pekin ducks perform best in terms of the production performance and feed efficiency, with high-quality meat, especially when reared at 74% humidity.
Journal Article
Genome-Wide Association Analysis Identifies Important Haplotypes and Candidate Gene XKR4 for Body Size Traits in Pekin Ducks
Body size is an important growth indicator in ducks and is a primary selection criterion for physical improvement. An excessively rapid growth rate in meat ducks can result in excessive body size, which may hinder subsequent processing and slaughter operations. However, only a few molecular markers related to body size have been studied in meat ducks. In this study, we performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) to identify candidate genes and QTLs affecting body length (BL), keel bone length (KBL), neck length (NL), and breast width (BrW) in Pekin ducks (Anas platyrhynchos domestica). Our results indicate the significant SNP for NL is located within a pseudogene, whereas the significant SNP for BrW is located in an intergenic region. More importantly, our analysis identified a haplotype that was significantly associated with both BL and KBL. This haplotype, containing 48 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), is localized within the XKR4 gene. The identification of this haplotype suggests that XKR4 may be a key candidate gene influencing BL and KBL in Pekin ducks. These findings have important implications for the breeding and genetic improvement of Pekin ducks, and provide valuable insights into the genetic architecture of body size traits in this species.
Journal Article
Alleviation of Catching and Crating Stress by Dietary Supplementation of Bacillus subtilis in Pekin Ducks
Catching and crating may elicit stress and fear reactions in poultry because the procedures involve human contact and exposure to a novel environment. This study determined the effects of dietary probiotic supplementation on physiological stress, underlying fear, and growth performance of Pekin ducks subjected to catching and 4 h of crating. The study used a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement; the main factors were diet (basal or basal + probiotic) and crating durations (0 or 4 h). From 1 to 21 days of age (doa), birds were fed a basal or basal + probiotic (CLOSTAT® (Bacillus subtilis) (Kemin Industries, Inc., Des Moines, IA, USA), 1 g/kg) diet. At 21 doa, an equal number of ducklings from each dietary group were caught and crated for 4 h or left undisturbed in the home pens. Birds were examined for serum corticosterone (CORT), heat shock protein (HSP) 70, creatine kinase (CK), triglyceride (TG), glucose (GLU), cholesterol (CHOL), and lactate (LAC) concentrations, heterophil to lymphocyte ratios (HLR), tonic immobility (TI) duration, open-field (OF) test, body weight (BW), and feed conversion ratios (FCR). Diet had no significant (p > 0.05) effect on CORT among the non-crated ducks. However, after catching and crating, birds fed the control diet had significantly (p < 0.05) higher CORT than their probiotic-supplemented counterparts. Catching and crating significantly (p < 0.05) elevated HSP70, HLR, GLU, and CHOL but reduced TG in ducks. Birds fed the probiotic-supplemented diet showed significantly (p < 0.05) lower HSP70, HLR, TG, and CK than those fed the control diet. Probiotic-supplemented ducks showed reduced fear-related behaviours, including TI durations, ambulation latency, and body shaking. Diet had a negligible effect on body weights and FCR of ducks at 21 doa. In brief, catching and crating for 4 h augmented Pekin ducks’ physiological stress and fear reactions, and supplementing birds with probiotics was beneficial in ameliorating these detrimental effects.
Journal Article
Short Beak and Dwarfism Syndrome in Ducks in Poland Caused by Novel Goose Parvovirus
Short beak and dwarfism syndrome (SBDS), which was previously identified only in mule ducks, is now an emerging disease of Pekin ducks in China and Egypt. The disease is caused by the infection of ducks with a genetic variant of goose parvovirus—novel goose parvovirus (nGPV). In 2019, SBDS was observed for the first time in Poland in eight farms of Pekin ducks. Birds in the affected flock were found to show growth retardation and beak atrophy with tongue protrusions. Morbidity ranged between 15% and 40% (in one flock), while the mortality rate was 4–6%. Co-infection with duck circovirus, a known immunosuppressive agent, was observed in 85.7% of ducks. The complete coding regions of four isolates were sequenced and submitted to GenBank. The phylogenetic analysis revealed a close relationship of Polish viral sequences with the Chinese nGPV. Genomic sequence alignments showed 98.57–99.28% identity with the nGPV sequences obtained in China, and 96.42% identity with the classical GPV (cGPV; Derzsy’s disease). The rate of amino acid mutations in comparison to cGPV and Chinese nGPV was higher in the Rep protein than in the Vp1 protein. To our knowledge, this is the first report of nGPV infection in Pekin ducks in Poland and Europe. It should be emphasized that monitoring and sequencing of waterfowl parvoviruses is important for tracking the viral genetic changes that enable adaptation to new species of waterbirds.
Journal Article
Effect of Dietary L-Methionine Supplementation on Growth Performance, Carcass Traits, and Plasma Parameters of Starter Pekin Ducks at Different Dietary Energy Levels
A 2 × 6 factorial experiment was conducted to determine the influences of dietary metabolizable energy (ME) and methionine (Met) levels on growth performance, carcass traits, and plasma biochemical parameters of starter Pekin ducks from 1 to 21 days of age. A total of 600 one-day-old male Pekin ducklings were randomly assigned to 12 groups (six replicates each group and eight ducks per replicate) in a 2 × 6 two-factor arrangement. The basal Met levels of two basal diets (11.54 and 12.52 MJ/kg ME) were 0.31 and 0.29%, respectively. The crystalline L-Met was supplemented to yield six diets according to different supplemental levels (0, 0.05, 0.10, 0.15, 0.20, and 0.25%). The results showed that the body weight (BW) and average daily weight gain (ADG) were increased (p < 0.05) with increasing dietary Met levels. Dietary ME levels changed from 11.54 to 12.52 MJ/kg increased the BW and ADG (p < 0.05) as well as decreased the average daily feed intake and feed to gain ratio (p < 0.05). As the dietary Met level increased, leg muscle yield increased (p < 0.05). Conversely, increasing the dietary ME level decreased the leg muscle yield (p = 0.0024) and increased abdominal fat (p < 0.001). Meanwhile, the concentrations of total cholesterol (TCHO), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLC) in plasma were decreased (p < 0.05) when the ME levels of diets changed from 11.54 to 12.52 MJ/kg. Meanwhile, the plasma TCHO and HDLC concentrations decreased (p < 0.05) as dietary Met levels increased. Based on the linear-broken line model, the dietary Met requirement of starter Pekin ducks from 1 to 21 days of age for optimal ADG were 0.362% (0.052% supplemental L-Met) at 11.54 MJ ME/kg and 0.468% (0.178% supplemental L-Met) at 12.52 MJ ME/kg, respectively, when crystal L-Met was supplemented to formulate the diets. This suggested that the Met requirement of starter Pekin ducks was affected by dietary ME levels. The data potentially provide theoretical support for the utilization of crystalline L-Met in duck production.
Journal Article
Effects of Dietary Zinc on Carcass Traits, Meat Quality, Antioxidant Status, and Tissue Zinc Accumulation of Pekin Ducks
This study investigated the effects of dietary zinc on carcass traits, meat quality, antioxidant capacity, and tissue zinc accumulation of Pekin ducks. A total of 768 1-day-old Pekin ducks were randomly allocated to six dietary treatments and penned in groups of 16 with 8 pens per treatment. Ducks were fed a basal corn-soybean meal diet supplemented with graded levels of zinc sulfate (0, 15, 30, 60, 120, 240 mg zinc/kg) for 35 days. The slaughter weight, carcass weight, eviscerated weight, and breast and leg muscle weight of Pekin ducks were increased with increasing dietary zinc levels (
P
< 0.05). Zinc supplementation increased the pH value at 24-h postmortem and the intramuscular fat (IMF) (
P
< 0.05), but decreased the lightness value, drip loss, and shear force in breast meat of ducks (
P
< 0.05). Increasing dietary zinc increased the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), glutathione reductase (GR), catalase (CAT), and the content of glutathione (GSH), as well as decreased the malondialdehyde (MDA) level in breast muscle (
P
< 0.05). RT-qPCR analysis demonstrated that supplemental zinc notably enhanced the transcription of SOD, GPX, GR, CAT, and nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) (
P
< 0.05). Meanwhile, zinc accumulation in plasma, breast muscle, liver, and tibia were linearly increased with increasing zinc supplementation (
P
< 0.05). These results indicated that zinc supplementation could improve carcass traits and meat quality and increase the activities and mRNA levels of antioxidant enzymes in breast muscle of Pekin duck. Base on broken-line regression analysis that 91.32 mg/kg of dietary zinc was suggested for optimal carcass traits, meat quality, antioxidant capacity, and zinc deposition of Pekin duck.
Journal Article
Screening of Genes Related to Fat Deposition of Pekin Ducks Based on Transcriptome Analysis
Subcutaneous fat deposition is an important index with which to evaluate meat-producing ducks, and affects their meat quality and feed conversion rate. Studying the differentially expressed genes in subcutaneous fat will help to comprehensively understand the potential mechanisms regulating fat deposition in ducks. In this study, 72 Nankou 1 Pekin Ducks and 72 Jingdian Pekin Ducks (half male and half female) at 42 days of age were selected for slaughter performance and transcriptome analysis. The results showed that the breast-muscle yield of Nankou 1 ducks was significantly higher than that of Jingdian ducks, but that the abdominal fat yield and subcutaneous fat yield were higher than that of Jingdian ducks. Thousands of DEGs, including many important genes involved in fat metabolism regulation, were detected by transcriptome. KEGG enrichment analysis showed that the DEGs were significantly enriched on pathways such as regulation of lipolysis in adipocytes, primary bile acid biosynthesis, and biosynthesis of unsaturated fatty acids. SCD, FGF7, LTBP1, PNPLA3, ADCY2, and ACOT8 were selected as candidate genes for regulating subcutaneous fat deposition. The results indicated that Nankou 1 had superior fat deposition ability compared to Jingdian ducks, and that the candidate genes regulated fat deposition by regulating fat synthesis and decomposition.
Journal Article