Background： Betaine affects fat metabolism in animals, but the specific mechanism is still not clear. The purpose of this study was to investigate possible mechanisms of betaine in altering lipid metabolism in muscle...Background： Betaine affects fat metabolism in animals, but the specific mechanism is still not clear. The purpose of this study was to investigate possible mechanisms of betaine in altering lipid metabolism in muscle tissue in finishing pigs.Methods： A total of 120 crossbred gilts（Landrace × Yorkshire × Duroc） with an average initial body weight of 70.1 kg were randomly allotted to three dietary treatments. The treatments included a corn–soybean meal basal diet supplemented with 0, 1250 or 2500 mg/kg betaine. The feeding experiment lasted 42 d.Results： Betaine addition to the diet significantly increased the concentration of free fatty acids（FFA） in muscle（P 〈 0.05）. Furthermore, the levels of serum cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol were decreased（P 〈 0.05） and total cholesterol content was increased in muscle（P 〈 0.05） of betaine fed pigs. Experiments on genes involved in fatty acid transport showed that betaine increased expression of lipoprotein lipase（LPL）, fatty acid translocase/cluster of differentiation（FAT/CD36）, fatty acid binding protein（FABP3） and fatty acid transport protein（FATP1）（P 〈 0.05）. The abundance of fatty acid transport protein and fatty acid binding protein were also increased by betaine（P 〈 0.05）. As for the key factors involved in fatty acid oxidation, although betaine supplementation didn＇t affect the level of carnitine and malonyl-CoA, betaine increased mR NA and protein abundance of carnitine palmitransferase-1（CPT1）and phosphorylated-AMPK（P 〈 0.05）.Conclusions： The results suggested that betaine may promoted muscle fatty acid uptake via up-regulating the genes related to fatty acid transporter including FAT/CD36, FATP1 and FABP3. On the other hand, betaine activated AMPK and up-regulated genes related to fatty acid oxidation including PPARα and CPT1. The underlying mechanism regulating fatty acid metabolism in pigs supplemented with betaine is associated with the up-regulation of genes involved in fatty acid transport and fatty acid oxidation.展开更多
Background Intramuscular fat(IMF)content is a critical indicator of pork quality,and abnormal IMF is also relevant to human disease as well as aging.Although N6-methyladenosine(m^(6)A)RNA modification was recently fou...Background Intramuscular fat(IMF)content is a critical indicator of pork quality,and abnormal IMF is also relevant to human disease as well as aging.Although N6-methyladenosine(m^(6)A)RNA modification was recently found to regulate adipogenesis in porcine intramuscular fat,however,the underlying molecular mechanisms was still unclear.Results In this work,we collected 20 longissimus dorsi muscle samples with high(average 3.95%)or low IMF content(average 1.22%)from a unique heterogenous swine population for m^(6)A sequencing(m^(6)A-seq).We discovered 70genes show both differential RNA expression and m^(6)A modification from high and low IMF group,including ADIPOQ and SFRP1,two hub genes inferred through gene co-expression analysis.Particularly,we observed ADIPOQ,which contains three m^(6)A modification sites within 3’untranslated and protein coding region,could promote porcine intramuscular preadipocyte differentiation in an m^(6)A-dependent manner.Furthermore,we found the YT521-B homology domain family protein 1(YTHDF1)could target and promote ADIPOQ mRNA translation.Conclusions Our study provided a comprehensive profiling of m^(6)A methylation in porcine longissimus dorsi muscle and characterized the involvement of m^(6)A epigenetic modification in the regulation of ADIPOQ mRNA on IMF deposition through an m^(6)A-YTHDF1-dependent manner.展开更多
The past decade has witnessed a rapid surge of interest in the research and development of non-precious metal-based electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction （ORR）. Until now, the best catalysts in acidic e...The past decade has witnessed a rapid surge of interest in the research and development of non-precious metal-based electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction （ORR）. Until now, the best catalysts in acidic electrolytes have exclusively been Fe-N-C-type materials from high-temperature pyrolysis. Despite the ORR activities of metal phthalocyanine or porphyrin macrocydes having long been known, their durability remains poor. In this work, we use these macrocycles as a basis to develop a novel organic-carbon hybrid material from in-situ polymerization of iron phthalocyanine on conductive multiwalled carbon nanotube scaffolds using a low-temperature microwave heating method. At an optimal polymer- to-carbon ratio, the hybrid electrocatalyst exhibits excellent ORR activity with a positive half-wave potential （0.80 V）, large mass activity （up to 18.0 A/g at 0.80 V）, and a low peroxide yield （〈3%）. In addition, strong electronic coupling between the polymer and carbon nanotubes is believed to suppress demetallization of the macrocycles, significantly improving cycling stability in acids. Our study represents a rare example of non-precious metal-based electrocatalysts prepared without high-temperature pyrolysis, while having ORR activity in acidic media with potential for practical applications.展开更多
Probiotics can improve animal growth performance and intestinal health.Bacillus species,Lactobacillus species,Bifidobacterium species,yeast etc.are the common types of probiotics.However,understanding the effects of p...Probiotics can improve animal growth performance and intestinal health.Bacillus species,Lactobacillus species,Bifidobacterium species,yeast etc.are the common types of probiotics.However,understanding the effects of probiotics on the immune status and gut microbiota of weaning piglets and how the probiotics exert their impact are still limited.This study aimed to investigate the effects of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens 40(BA40)on the performance,immune status and gut microbiota of piglets.A total of 12 litters of newborn piglets were randomly divided into 3 groups.Piglets in control group were orally dosed with phosphate buffered saline;BA40 group and probiotics group were orally gavaged with resuspension BA40 and a probiotics product,respectively.The results showed that BA40 treatment significantly decreased(P<0.05)the diarrhea incidence(from d 5 to 40),diamine oxidase,D-lactate,interleukin(IL)-1βand interferon-γconcentrations compared with control group and probiotics group.Meanwhile BA40 dramatically increased the total antioxidant capacity,IL-10 and secretory immunoglobulin-A concentrations in contrast to control group.For the microbial composition,BA40 modulated the microbiota by improving the abundance of Bacteroides,Phascolarctobacterium(producing short-chain fatty acids)and Desulfovibrio and reducing the proliferation of pathogens(Streptococcus,Tyzzerella,Vellionella and paraeggerthella).Meanwhile,a metabolic function prediction explained that carbohydrate metabolism and amino acid metabolism enriched in BA40 group in contrast to control group and probiotics group.For correlation analysis,the results demonstrated that BA40-enriched Phascolarctobacterium and Desulfovibrio provide insights into strategies for elevating the health status and performance of weaned piglets.Altogether,BA40 exerted stronger ability in decreasing diarrhea incidence and improved antioxidant activity,gut barrier function and immune status of piglets than the other treatments.Our study provided the experimental and theoretical basis for the application of BA40 in pig production.展开更多
Obesity has become a major health crisis in the past∼50 years.The fat mass and obesity-associated(FTO)gene,identified by genome-wide association studies(GWAS),was first reported to be positively associated with obesi...Obesity has become a major health crisis in the past∼50 years.The fat mass and obesity-associated(FTO)gene,identified by genome-wide association studies(GWAS),was first reported to be positively associated with obesity in humans.Mice with more copies of the FTO gene were observed to be obese,while loss of the gene in mice was found to protect from obesity.Later,FTO was found to encode an m6 A RNA demethylase and has a profound effect on many biological and metabolic processes.In this review,we first summarize recent studies that demonstrate the critical roles and regulatory mechanisms of FTO in obesity and metabolic disease.Second,we discuss the ongoing debates concerning the association between FTO polymorphisms and obesity.Third,since several small molecule drugs and micronutrients have been found to regulate metabolic homeostasis through controlling the expression or activity of FTO,we highlight the broad potential of targeting FTO for obesity treatment.Improving our understanding of FTO and the underlying mechanisms may provide new approaches for treating obesity and metabolic diseases.展开更多
基金funded and supported by National Basic Research Program of China(No.2012CB124705)Zhejiang Provincial Key Research and Development Program(2015C03006)Provincial Key S&T Special Projects(2015C02022)
文摘Background： Betaine affects fat metabolism in animals, but the specific mechanism is still not clear. The purpose of this study was to investigate possible mechanisms of betaine in altering lipid metabolism in muscle tissue in finishing pigs.Methods： A total of 120 crossbred gilts（Landrace × Yorkshire × Duroc） with an average initial body weight of 70.1 kg were randomly allotted to three dietary treatments. The treatments included a corn–soybean meal basal diet supplemented with 0, 1250 or 2500 mg/kg betaine. The feeding experiment lasted 42 d.Results： Betaine addition to the diet significantly increased the concentration of free fatty acids（FFA） in muscle（P 〈 0.05）. Furthermore, the levels of serum cholesterol and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol were decreased（P 〈 0.05） and total cholesterol content was increased in muscle（P 〈 0.05） of betaine fed pigs. Experiments on genes involved in fatty acid transport showed that betaine increased expression of lipoprotein lipase（LPL）, fatty acid translocase/cluster of differentiation（FAT/CD36）, fatty acid binding protein（FABP3） and fatty acid transport protein（FATP1）（P 〈 0.05）. The abundance of fatty acid transport protein and fatty acid binding protein were also increased by betaine（P 〈 0.05）. As for the key factors involved in fatty acid oxidation, although betaine supplementation didn＇t affect the level of carnitine and malonyl-CoA, betaine increased mR NA and protein abundance of carnitine palmitransferase-1（CPT1）and phosphorylated-AMPK（P 〈 0.05）.Conclusions： The results suggested that betaine may promoted muscle fatty acid uptake via up-regulating the genes related to fatty acid transporter including FAT/CD36, FATP1 and FABP3. On the other hand, betaine activated AMPK and up-regulated genes related to fatty acid oxidation including PPARα and CPT1. The underlying mechanism regulating fatty acid metabolism in pigs supplemented with betaine is associated with the up-regulation of genes involved in fatty acid transport and fatty acid oxidation.
基金supported by funds from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No.U21A20249)China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2022 M712794)。
文摘Background Intramuscular fat(IMF)content is a critical indicator of pork quality,and abnormal IMF is also relevant to human disease as well as aging.Although N6-methyladenosine(m^(6)A)RNA modification was recently found to regulate adipogenesis in porcine intramuscular fat,however,the underlying molecular mechanisms was still unclear.Results In this work,we collected 20 longissimus dorsi muscle samples with high(average 3.95%)or low IMF content(average 1.22%)from a unique heterogenous swine population for m^(6)A sequencing(m^(6)A-seq).We discovered 70genes show both differential RNA expression and m^(6)A modification from high and low IMF group,including ADIPOQ and SFRP1,two hub genes inferred through gene co-expression analysis.Particularly,we observed ADIPOQ,which contains three m^(6)A modification sites within 3’untranslated and protein coding region,could promote porcine intramuscular preadipocyte differentiation in an m^(6)A-dependent manner.Furthermore,we found the YT521-B homology domain family protein 1(YTHDF1)could target and promote ADIPOQ mRNA translation.Conclusions Our study provided a comprehensive profiling of m^(6)A methylation in porcine longissimus dorsi muscle and characterized the involvement of m^(6)A epigenetic modification in the regulation of ADIPOQ mRNA on IMF deposition through an m^(6)A-YTHDF1-dependent manner.
基金Acknowledgements We acknowledge supports from the National Natural Science Foundation of China （Nos. 51472173, 51522208 and 21472135）, the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province （Nos. BK20140302 and SBK2015010320）, the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions and Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology
文摘The past decade has witnessed a rapid surge of interest in the research and development of non-precious metal-based electrocatalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction （ORR）. Until now, the best catalysts in acidic electrolytes have exclusively been Fe-N-C-type materials from high-temperature pyrolysis. Despite the ORR activities of metal phthalocyanine or porphyrin macrocydes having long been known, their durability remains poor. In this work, we use these macrocycles as a basis to develop a novel organic-carbon hybrid material from in-situ polymerization of iron phthalocyanine on conductive multiwalled carbon nanotube scaffolds using a low-temperature microwave heating method. At an optimal polymer- to-carbon ratio, the hybrid electrocatalyst exhibits excellent ORR activity with a positive half-wave potential （0.80 V）, large mass activity （up to 18.0 A/g at 0.80 V）, and a low peroxide yield （〈3%）. In addition, strong electronic coupling between the polymer and carbon nanotubes is believed to suppress demetallization of the macrocycles, significantly improving cycling stability in acids. Our study represents a rare example of non-precious metal-based electrocatalysts prepared without high-temperature pyrolysis, while having ORR activity in acidic media with potential for practical applications.
基金This research was supported by the fund from Science and Technology Projects of Zhejiang(2021C02008,CTZB-2020080127)China Agricultural Research System(CARS-35)National Center of Technology Innovation for Pigs.
文摘Probiotics can improve animal growth performance and intestinal health.Bacillus species,Lactobacillus species,Bifidobacterium species,yeast etc.are the common types of probiotics.However,understanding the effects of probiotics on the immune status and gut microbiota of weaning piglets and how the probiotics exert their impact are still limited.This study aimed to investigate the effects of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens 40(BA40)on the performance,immune status and gut microbiota of piglets.A total of 12 litters of newborn piglets were randomly divided into 3 groups.Piglets in control group were orally dosed with phosphate buffered saline;BA40 group and probiotics group were orally gavaged with resuspension BA40 and a probiotics product,respectively.The results showed that BA40 treatment significantly decreased(P<0.05)the diarrhea incidence(from d 5 to 40),diamine oxidase,D-lactate,interleukin(IL)-1βand interferon-γconcentrations compared with control group and probiotics group.Meanwhile BA40 dramatically increased the total antioxidant capacity,IL-10 and secretory immunoglobulin-A concentrations in contrast to control group.For the microbial composition,BA40 modulated the microbiota by improving the abundance of Bacteroides,Phascolarctobacterium(producing short-chain fatty acids)and Desulfovibrio and reducing the proliferation of pathogens(Streptococcus,Tyzzerella,Vellionella and paraeggerthella).Meanwhile,a metabolic function prediction explained that carbohydrate metabolism and amino acid metabolism enriched in BA40 group in contrast to control group and probiotics group.For correlation analysis,the results demonstrated that BA40-enriched Phascolarctobacterium and Desulfovibrio provide insights into strategies for elevating the health status and performance of weaned piglets.Altogether,BA40 exerted stronger ability in decreasing diarrhea incidence and improved antioxidant activity,gut barrier function and immune status of piglets than the other treatments.Our study provided the experimental and theoretical basis for the application of BA40 in pig production.
基金supported by the National Key R&D Program(No.2018YFD0500405).
文摘Obesity has become a major health crisis in the past∼50 years.The fat mass and obesity-associated(FTO)gene,identified by genome-wide association studies(GWAS),was first reported to be positively associated with obesity in humans.Mice with more copies of the FTO gene were observed to be obese,while loss of the gene in mice was found to protect from obesity.Later,FTO was found to encode an m6 A RNA demethylase and has a profound effect on many biological and metabolic processes.In this review,we first summarize recent studies that demonstrate the critical roles and regulatory mechanisms of FTO in obesity and metabolic disease.Second,we discuss the ongoing debates concerning the association between FTO polymorphisms and obesity.Third,since several small molecule drugs and micronutrients have been found to regulate metabolic homeostasis through controlling the expression or activity of FTO,we highlight the broad potential of targeting FTO for obesity treatment.Improving our understanding of FTO and the underlying mechanisms may provide new approaches for treating obesity and metabolic diseases.
