rss_2.0Sciendo RSS Feed for Annals of Animal Sciencehttps://sciendo.com/journal/AOAShttps://www.sciendo.comhttps://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/6470adfb71e4585e08aa2dd2/cover-image.jpghttps://sciendo.com/journal/AOAS140216https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0080<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>In this trial, the effects of early qualitative feed restriction and barrier perch access on some meat quality traits, growth performance, and diet cost analysis of broiler chickens were investigated. A total of 504 1-d old male chicks (Ross 308) were randomly allocated to four treatments (qualitative feed restriction-QFR; absence-/presence+ and barrier perch-BP; absence-/presence+) with three replicate pens in a completely randomised design involving a 2 x 2 factorial arrangement of treatments. Broiler chickens in the treatment of QFR (-) were fed with a corn-soybean meal diet containing protein and energy at the level specified in the commercial hybrid catalogue during d 0-42. The treatment of QFR (+) was fed with a corn-soybean meal diet containing lower energy (10%) and protein (20%) for the first d 21, and then between d 22-42, they were fed with a diet specified in the commercial hybrid catalogue. In the treatment of BP (+), the barrier perch was placed between the feeder and the drinker. Meat quality traits (pH, lightness-L*, redness-a*, yellowness-b*, chroma, hue angle, and cooking loss-CL), growth performance (body weight-BW, body weight gain-BWG, feed intake-FI, and feed conversion ratio-FCR), and diet cost analysis (total diet cost and diet cost per unit weight gain) were recorded. Except for the a* value and hue angle measured at 24-h post-slaughter, the effect of QFR treatments on meat quality traits was insignificant in all measurements. During d 0-42, in the treatments of QFR (+) of BW, BWG, and FI were lower (respectively P&lt;0.001, P&lt;0.001, and P=0.005), and FCR was worse (P=0.014). The QFR treatments did not differ significantly in dietary cost per unit weight gained during d 0-42. As a result, it can be said that early qualitative feed restriction did not significantly affect meat quality traits. The treatment of QFR (+) resulted in reduced growth performance. However, diet cost per unit weight gain showed similar values in both the QFR treatments (QFR+ €0.75, QFR- €0.76, P=0.511).</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00802023-07-29T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0083<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>A nutritional study was conducted to evaluate the influence of dietary fish oil (FO) sparing by using a mixture of vegetal oils (VO) on rainbow trout (<italic>Oncorhynchus mykiss</italic>) juveniles (30.0 g). A basal diet was supplemented with the experimental oils at a 10% level, including FO (FO diet), a blend of VO (sunflower, soybean and, rapeseed oils with a 1:1:1 ratio), and a mixture (1:1 ratio) of FO and the blends of VO (MIX). In a raceway system, four hundred and fifty fish were stocked in nine rectangular concrete tanks (50 fish. tank⁻¹). Three experimental diets, with three replicate each, were offered to fish up to visual satiation for eight weeks. Growth performance did not change among groups (P&gt;0.05). The highest and lowest proportions of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), n-3 long chain-PUFA, especially docosahexaenoic acid, and n-3/n-6 PUFA ratio were in the whole body of FO and the VO groups, respectively (P&lt;0.05). Serum catalase and glutathione peroxidase activities in VO group were higher than others. Serum superoxide dismutase activity in fish-fed FO and VO diets was higher than MIX group (P&lt;0.05). VO group had higher serum lysozyme, alternative complement pathway, and total immunoglobulin levels than other experimental groups. MIX group had highest serum triglyceride, cholesterol, and low-density lipoproteins. Serum high-density lipoproteins, aspartate aminotransferase, and alanine aminotransferase levels in VO treatment were in the lowest level compared to others (P&lt;0.05). The highest relative transcription levels of fatty acid synthase, delta-6 fatty acyl desaturase, and apolipoprotein b-100 genes were in the liver of fish fed the MIX diet. The relative transcription level of the fatty acid-binding protein1 gene did not change (P&gt;0.05). In summary, the results of this study revealed that dietary FO sparing with VO did not adversely affect the growth and health indices of rainbow trout; nevertheless, it had adverse effects on its nutritional values by reducing whole-body n-3 LC-PUFA content.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00832023-07-29T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0082<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>This experiment aimed to ascertain whether adding chitosan-oligosaccharides (COS) to the diet will affect Mandarah laying hens’ productivity and reproductive efficiency. At the age of 34 weeks, 120 laying hens and 12 cocks of the Mandarah chicken strain were separated into four groups, each consisting of 30 hens and three cocks. The 1^st group served as a control group, receiving only a basic diet. The 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^th experimental groups received 0.1, 0.2, and 0.5 g/kg of chitosan-oligosaccharides as an addition to the base diet, respectively. According to the findings of this study, the majority of the analyzed attributes differed significantly between treatment groups. Comparing the COS-treated birds to the control birds, the COS-treated birds significantly increased egg production, improved feed conversion, haugh unit score, shell thickness, fertility, hatchability, ovary weight, and the number of yellow ovarian follicles as well as blood estradiol-17β (E₂) and testosterone concentrations. Furthermore, compared to the other treated groups, introducing COS at a level 0.1 g/kg diet resulted in the best laying rate, egg mass, and feed conversion. The highest percentage of fertility, hatchability of hatching eggs, ovary weight, number of yellow ovarian follicles, and serum E2 concentration was also found in birds fed COS at a dose of 0.2 g/kg feed. In addition, compared to the control diet, COS treatment at 0.1, 0.2, and 0.5 g/kg enhanced relative economic efficiency by 464.43, 457.41, and 352.75%, respectively. It is concluded that chitosan improves economic efficiency, reproductive performance, productivity in laying hens, and overall health when used at a 0.1 g/kg diet.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00822023-07-29T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0081<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>In this study, the antibacterial effects of postbiotics obtained from <italic>Pediococcus acidilactici, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum</italic> and <italic>Latilactobacillus sakei,</italic> which were grown in sterile cow’s milk and De Man Rogosa and Sharpe (MRS) Broth, against some food pathogens (<italic>Salmonella</italic> spp., <italic>Listeria monocytogenes</italic>, <italic>Escherichia coli</italic> O157:H7, and <italic>Brucella melitensis</italic>) was investigated. It was observed that lactic acid bacteria postbiotics produced in MRS Broth formed larger inhibition zones than those developed in cow’s milk against pathogenic bacteria. In order to investigate the antimicrobial effect of the postbiotics on chicken breast meat and to compare this effect with lactic acid decontamination, samples contaminated with <italic>Salmonella</italic> spp. and <italic>L. monocytogenes</italic> were immersed into the postbiotics of <italic>L. plantarum</italic> and <italic>L. sakei</italic>, 2.1% lactic acid solution, and distilled water for 10 minutes. Microbial changes in the groups were investigated during the storage at 4 ˚C for 17 days. On the 8^th day of storage, it was determined that the number of <italic>Salmonella</italic> spp. in the groups treated with postbiotics decreased by 0.9 log₁₀ CFU/g compared to the control and distilled water groups. While the number of <italic>L. monocytogenes</italic> increased during storage in the control and distilled water groups, the postbiotics and 2.1% lactic acid exhibited a bacteriostatic effect on <italic>L. monocytogenes</italic> during storage period. Compared to the postbiotics, 2.1% lactic acid had higher reduction (1.8 log₁₀ CFU/g) rates against <italic>Salmonella</italic> spp. (P&lt;0.05), also a significant difference was observed against <italic>L. monocytogenes</italic> in the first and last days of storage (P&lt;0.05). While the shelf life of chicken breast meat was determined to be 5 days in the control and distilled water groups, postbiotic treatments extended the shelf life of chicken breast meat by an extra 9 days, and %2.1 lactic acid treatment extended an extra 12 days compared to the control and distilled water treatments.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00812023-07-29T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0075<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>The human population is expected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050. One of the main challenges will be the demand for food and food security. With time farmland is being lost especially due to environmental change and anthropogenic activities. There is huge competition for the utilisation of farmland for human food production, animal feed production, energy production and other sectors that are utilising the farmland. To minimize the competition between human food and animal feed production, in terms of land use, alternative growing systems, such as hydroponics, may serve to address this problem. Hydroponics is a technology of sprouting grains or growing plants in a soilless environment, with only water or nutrient-rich solution. The present review aims to provide an evaluation of hydroponically-sprouted maize and barley in food producing animals, underlining benefits and limitations in its application.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00752023-07-29T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0079<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of replacing soybean meals with legume grains in diets on laying performance of hens and egg quality, with particular emphasis on egg lysozyme content. The study included 4 breeds/strains of laying hens included in the conservation programme in Poland, i.e.: Green-legged Partridge (Z-11), Yellow-legged Partridge (Ż-33), Rhode Island Red (R-11), and Leghorn (H-22). At 41–56 weeks of age, the hens of each strain were divided into two groups: I (control) – fed <italic>ad libitum</italic> with a standard diet based soybean meal, and II (experimental) – fed <italic>ad libitum</italic> with a diet that contained beans, peas and lupins instead of soybean meal. At 56 weeks of age, 32 eggs were taken at random from each group of hens and each strain, which were subjected to quality assessment. The results of the study confirm the possibility of feeding the above-mentioned hens with a diets in which soybeans were replaced with 28% of faba bean, pea, and yellow lupin grains without a significant effect on laying performance, but with a change in some egg quality characteristics. In groups of hens fed a diet without soybean, a decrease in egg and albumen weight, albumen and yolk pH values, and an increase in yolk colour towards yellow were recorded, as well as an increase in Haugh units and air cell height and shell porosity. There was a significant effect of genotype and diet and simultaneously of both factors on the content and activity of lysozyme in the thin and thick albumen. In the experimental groups, the average content and activity of lysozyme in the thin albumen decreased and in the thick albumen increased. Regardless of diet, statistically significant variation in egg internal quality and egg shell quality between hen strains was shown, as well as a correlation between the content and activity of lysozyme in eggs and shell colour.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00792023-07-29T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0078<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Sarcoids are the most common dermatological tumor of equids worldwide. These fibroblastic tumors rarely regress, more often they remain and can be locally invasive. To explore the functional importance of DNA methylation during the BPV-dependent neoplasia of equine dermal tissues, this study assessed a methylation level of CpG islands (CGIs) in the promoter region of <italic>LPAR1, MPZL3</italic>, and <italic>POPDC2</italic> genes, and within the gene body of the <italic>EHF</italic> gene, which were found to be differentially expressed in sarcoid samples in a previous study and harbored the differentially methylated sites (DMSs) in their sequences. The results of bisulfite sequencing PCR (BSP) showed a decrease in the methylation levels of CGIs of <italic>LPAR1</italic> and <italic>EHF</italic> genes and an increase in the case of <italic>POPDC2</italic>. The obtained data did not reveal any changes in the level of DNA methylation in the analyzed promoter region of the <italic>MPZL3</italic> gene between the tumor and healthy tissues. Our observations confirm the presence of CpG methylation alternations in the equine sarcoid and provide new insight into a better understanding of the epigenetic regulation of this tumor development.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00782023-07-29T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0077<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Especially in arid regions, developing tilapia culture with the ability to survive a wide range of salinities is crucial due to the limited availability of fresh water for aquaculture. The present study focused on evaluating the growth performance of Nile tilapia in a biofloc system under three salinity levels: 0 (BFT0), 4 (BFT4), and 8 g/L (BFT8). Fingerling fish were raised for 37 days in tanks with a water volume of 140 liters and a stocking density of one fish per liter. The results of the water quality parameters showed that dissolved oxygen and pH decreased with increasing salinity. Furthermore, the BFT8 group had the highest concentrations of settled solid (19.98 ml/L) and total suspended solid (428.37 mg/L), while the BFT8 group had the lowest TAN concentration (4.32 mg/L). The final weight and specific growth rate were significantly higher in the BFT8 and BFT4 groups compared to the BFT0 group. Survival rates were not significantly different across treatments, and all of them were higher than 97%. The protein and lipid content of Nile tilapia bodies and bioflocs decreased with increasing salinity, while the ash content increased. The highest body ash content in Nile tilapia (13.81% of dry weight) and bioflocs (31.78% dry weight) was found at 8 g/L salinity. Based on the present study, it is suggested that salinities of 4 and 8 g/L can improve water quality, growth performance, survival, and carcass composition of Nile tilapia fingerlings in the biofloc system. This finding suggests that brackish waters can be utilized for sustainable aquaculture for the rearing of Nile tilapia.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00772023-07-29T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0076<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Aquaculture is another mainly crucial food manufacturing division in the globe and it’s also economical importance in many countries. Disease outbreaks are mainly affected to decrease aquatic production, prior chemotherapeutics and antibiotics treatments are supportive to manage the infections. In this method, residues cause side effects on humans and aquatic animals. Researchers find out pro-pre-synbiotics methods used to enhance the feed quality and aquatic production. Herbal dietary feed supplementation development is eco-friendly, non-toxic, cost-effective, and easily handle for the preparation of feeds for aquatic animals in aquaculture. This review provides some information regarding herbal dietary feed supplements is assist to improve aquatic animals’ health and also getting better quality of aquatic feed in the aquatic sector. These review reports enlighten the way of upcoming investigations progress of novel applications in aquaculture.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00762023-07-29T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0089<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>In the nanotechnology era, nanotechnology applications have been intensifying their prospects to embrace all the vigorous sectors persuading human health and animal. The safety and concerns regarding the widespread use of engineered nanomaterials (NMs) and their potential effect on human health still require further clarification. Literature elucidated that NMs exhibited significant adverse effects on various molecular and cellular alterations. Epigenetics is a complex process resulting in the interactions between an organism’s environment and genome. The epigenetic modifications, including histone modification and DNA methylation, chromatin structure and DNA accessibility alteration, regulate gene expression patterns. Disturbances of epigenetic markers induced by NMs might promote the sensitivity of humans and animals to several diseases. Also, this paper focuses on the epigenetic regulators of some dietary nutrients that have been confirmed to stimulate the epigenome and, more exactly, DNA histone modifications and non-histone proteins modulation by acetylation, and phosphorylation inhibition, which counteracts oxidative stress generations. The present review epitomizes the recent evidence of the potential effects of NMs on histone modifications, in addition to <italic>in vivo</italic> and <italic>in vitro</italic> cytosine DNA methylation and its toxicity. Furthermore, the part of epigenetic fluctuations as possible translational biomarkers for uncovering untoward properties of NMs is deliberated.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00892023-07-26T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0069<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Xylooligosaccharides (XOSs) are increasingly being explored as prebiotics in fish diets; however, their effects and modes of action have not been well evaluated. Reports have shown that dietary XOS has the potential to improve the proliferation of beneficial gut microbes, and their metabolites, and enhance disease resistance in several fish species. In contrast, other studies report no substantial changes in immune and growth parameters compared to control groups. Like all prebiotics, the mode of action of XOS is based on their selective stimulation of beneficial gut microbiota, which will outcompete and prevent pathogen proliferation in the gut, and produce metabolites that modulate host immune responses. The reports of improved growth performance of XOS fed fish may be due improved intestinal microbiome, enhanced glycolysis activity and elevated gastrointestinal enzymatic activities. Dietary XOSs have different effects on fish performance depending on the fish species and the structure of XOSs (degree of XOS polymerization and substitution). Nevertheless, further research is essential to determine the optimal dosage, degree of polymerization, and substitution levels required to improve each fish species' gut health and growth performance. This review highlights the prebiotic effects of XOSs, their mechanism of action, and knowledge gaps.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00692023-07-12T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0073<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Starvation and malnutrition are one of the most destructive problems faced by the poor and needy in the world. With the world population expected to increase by 9.7 billion by 2050, there are growing concerns about the long-term sustainability of many existing food production systems to meet future needs for food. Aquaculture is one of the important sources of food supply, the development of which is of great importance as an important weapon in the global fight against malnutrition and poverty, especially in developing countries and arid and semi-arid regions of the world. In recent decades, aquaculture has dominated all sectors of livestock production in terms of growth and increasingly contributes to food security, poverty reduction, job creation and sources of income. It is important to follow sustainable development goals to increase aquaculture production. Climate change is currently affecting food security through increasing temperature and decreasing rainfall, especially in arid and semi-arid regions. Food security is a global concern and access to affordable, nutritious, safe and properly cultivated food is one of the most important issues globally. The main emphasis in the development of aquaculture in arid and semi-arid areas is the use of new technologies based on water saving, such as biofloc technology (BFT), integrated multi-trophic aquaculture system (IMTA) and recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS). In this study, the importance of aquaculture as a sustainable source of food production in arid and semi-arid regions is discussed.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00732023-07-12T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0070<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>The objective of this study was to comparatively analyse the physical parameters, basic chemical composition and the macro- and microelement content of offal obtained from fattening pigs raised in deep litter and slatted floor housing systems. The experiment involved a group of 80 Puławska fatteners, including 40 pigs kept in deep-litter pens (group I) and 40 pigs in slatted pens without bedding (group II). Offal (tongues, kidneys, hearts, lungs and livers) were evaluated for weight, physical characteristics (pH₄₅, pH₂₄, WHC), chemical composition (water, protein, fat) and the content of minerals: macro- (K, Na, Mg, Ca) and microelements (Zn, Fe, Mn, Cu). Based on the results obtained, associations were found between housing system and basic chemical composition of some offal, i.e. percentage of water (slatted floor&lt;deep litter) and protein (slatted floor&gt;deep litter) in lungs, content of protein (slatted floor&gt;deep litter) and fat (slatted floor&lt;deep litter) in liver, and content of fat in heart (slatted floor&lt;deep litter). The amount of macro- and microelements was significantly differentiated by the housing system with regard to the kidneys: potassium, magnesium, calcium and manganese (slatted floor&lt;deep litter), sodium (slatted floor&gt;deep litter); lungs: sodium (slatted floor&gt;deep litter), potassium (slatted floor&lt;deep litter); and liver: iron (slatted floor&gt;deep litter) and copper (slatted floor&lt;deep litter). In general, the housing system of fattening pigs modified the physical parameters and chemical composition of the analysed offal.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00702023-07-12T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0074<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Livestock farming is considered one relevant cause of global warming. The aim of this article is to show that the environmental footprint of broilers and laying hens is small among farmed animal species. Author examines the increase in the production of broilers and laying hens over the past decades as a result of genetic selection, and as a consequence their greenhouse gas emissions, land, water and energy use have decreased. It was evidenced that with the increase of production the environmental footprint per unit of product decreases. On the other hand, in alternative housing systems, especially in free-range and organic production, all indicators deteriorate. Supplying the Earth's ever-growing population with a sufficient amount of high-quality food of animal origin, in such a way that the environmental footprint of poultry farming is reduced, can be achieved with intensive production taking into account animal welfare. New tools and methods such as genomic selection, gene editing or precision poultry breeding will help in this.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00742023-07-12T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0072<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>In this study, we investigated the dietary effects of dandelion root extract (DRE) on growth performance, body composition, serum biochemical parameters, intestinal and liver histology, and fish resistance against <italic>Lactococcus garvieae</italic> infection in the rainbow trout. In total, 540 rainbow trout fry (22.05±1.740 g and 13.03±0.470 cm) were used. Six experimental groups (Control, 2.5 mL/kg (DRE-1), 5 mL/kg (DRE-2), 10 mL/kg (DRE-3), 20 mL/kg (DRE-4), and 40 mL/kg (DRE-5) dandelion root extract) with three replicates were formed. In each tank, 30 fish were placed and fed for 90 days, and the volume of water was adjusted to 80 L with a flow-through system. The results showed that the final fish weight, weight gain, specific growth rate, protein efficiency ratio, and protein deposition rate were significantly higher in the DRE-4 group, while the feed conversion ratio and fat deposition ratio were significantly lower compared to that in the control group (P&lt;0.05). The viscerosomatic index and the hepatosomatic index decreased in the experimental groups depending on the concentration of the extract used, while the condition factor was higher than that in the control (P&lt;0.05). The DRE significantly decreased glucose, cholesterol, triglyceride, low-density lipoprotein, alanine aminotransferase, and aspartate aminotransferase levels in blood serum in the fish from the experimental groups, but it significantly increased high-density lipoprotein, alkaline phosphatase, and total protein levels (P&lt;0.05). Similarly, the DRE positively affected intestinal histology by increasing the stratum compactum, submucosa, lamina propria, villi length, villi width, absorption area, tunica muscularis thickness, mucosal folds, and goblet cell count. In the liver, depending on the high-fat diet (crude lipid = 20%), vacuolization areas, hepatocellular degeneration areas, apoptotic hepatocyte nucleus, and necrotic areas recorded in the control group decreased or even disappeared completely in the extract groups. The results of the challenge test showed that adding 2.5 mL/kg of the DRE to the feed positively affected the disease resistance against <italic>Lactococcus garvieae</italic> infection. The results of the quadratic polynomial regression showed that an average level of 23.91±1.048 mL/kg of DRE would be suitable for optimum fish growth.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00722023-07-12T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0071<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are the focus of this manuscript, as bioconservative molecules that constitute a major defense mechanism in many organisms. Various antimicrobial peptides have been isolated and identified, but AMPs derived from <italic>Hermetia illucens</italic> (HI) will be the focus of this review. The review focuses mainly on cecropins, defensins, and attacins. <italic>Hermetia illucens</italic> is a remarkable organism adapted to life in a diverse, often highly polluted environment, and its resilience is largely attributed to AMPs. AMPs are active against many bacterial and fungal species and also act to induce the osmotic lysis of protozoa. They attack pathogenic microorganisms without damaging host cells in the process. Given the increasing antibiotic resistance of many bacterial strains in animal production, AMPs appear to be a tempting alternative as substances that limit and inhibit the growth and development of pathogens, as well as an option in veterinary medicine as potential substitutes for antibiotics, the administration of which must be limited in the European Union. The AMP content of HI larvae extracts, which determines their activity, depends on the larval diet and the solvent used. This review presents <italic>in vitro</italic> studies on the effects of AMPs from <italic>Hermetia illucens</italic> on microorganisms and <italic>in vivo</italic> studies on the potential of HI larvae meal as a feed supplement.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00712023-07-12T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0068<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>The main objective of the current trial was to evaluate the beneficial influences of <italic>Origanum vulgare</italic> leaf extract (OVLE) on growth, some blood indices, redox status, and the expression of some growth and immune-related genes. Three thousand seven hundred and eighty Nile tilapia fingerlings were allocated six equal groups. The first group served as a control and received a basal diet, while the other five groups were fed diets containing graded amounts of OVLE (0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, and 0.5 %, respectively) and defined as OVLE_0.1, OVLE_0.2, OVLE_0.3, OVLE_0.4, and OVLE_0.5 for 98 days. Growth performance and feed efficiency parameters were significantly improved in OVLE_0.4 and OVLE_0.5 groups compared with the control group. The hematological indices, specifically hemoglobin, red blood cell, and white blood cell count were significantly increased in the fish group fed a 4% OVLE-supplemented diet compared to other groups. Fish fed higher dietary inclusion levels of OVLE significantly increased total protein and albumin concentrations compared to other experimental groups. The OVLE_0.4 and OVLE_0.5 supplemented groups promoted innate immune response and phagocytic activity and stimulated the lipase enzyme activity of Nile tilapia. All estimated redox markers were significantly improved in the fish groups that received 4 or 5 % OVLE compared with the control and other OVLE groups. The fish groups fed higher levels of OVLE significantly up-regulated the expression of <italic>GH</italic>, <italic>IL-8</italic>, and <italic>IL-1β</italic> genes and downregulated the expression of the <italic>Hsp70</italic> gene. Furthermore, the intestinal histological features demonstrated normal structure in all OVLE-administered fish groups, with improved intestinal villus length compared to the untreated group. Finally, it could be concluded that including OVLE in the Nile tilapia diet at higher levels (0.4 up to 0.5%) could improve performance and general health status.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00682023-07-12T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0065<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>Environmental impact, quality, and quantity of food products of ruminant origin (especially beef and mutton) are considered major challenges in meeting the nutritional requirements of the growing human population worldwide. Therefore, we conducted this <italic>in vitro</italic> study to explore the potential of Paulownia leaves silage (PLS) to reduce the environmental impact of feedlot lamb production and improve ruminal fatty acids (FAs) profile by influencing ruminal biohydrogenation. In the present study, Paulownia leaves silage (PLS) and alfalfa silage (AAS) were mixed in a proportion of 1:0 (Control, PLS 0%), 0.75:0.25 (PLS 25%), 0.5:0.5 (PLS 50%), 0.25:0.75 (PLS 75%) and 0:1 (PLS 100%) on dry matter (DM) basis in the lamb diet. The experimental findings demonstrated that 100% replacement of AAS with PLS in the lamb diet significantly improved the ruminal fermentation by increasing the <italic>in vitro</italic> DM degradability (P&lt;0.01), total volatile fatty acid (P&lt;0.01), and propionate production (P&lt;0.01) while reducing the acetate: propionate (A/P) ratio (P&lt;0.01) and CH₄ concentration (mM; L and Q P&lt;0.05) and CH₄, mM/g DM (L and Q P&lt;0.05). Meanwhile, 100% PLS inclusion in the diet increased the total monounsaturated fatty acids (P&lt;0.05), total unsaturated fatty acids (P&lt;0.01) and total <italic>n-3</italic> fatty acids (P&lt;0.05) particularly alpha-linolenic acid (ALA; C18:3 <italic>n</italic>-3; P&lt;0.05) in the rumen fluid after incubation. Moreover, the total saturated fatty acids concentration was reduced (P&lt;0.01). These findings suggested that PLS could be a climate-friendly and sustainable alternative to AAS in the lamb feedlot diet for quality meat production.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00652023-07-12T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0067<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>The aim of this study was to identify molecular defects caused by mutations in mitochondrial DNA in cases of recurrent and multiple canine tumours. We presented molecular differences in the mtDNA genome for two tumours observed in different body parts of 5 dogs and throughout time in the case of the recurrence. Mitochondrial DNA was sequenced on an Illumina MiSeq sequencer using a 600-cycle kit in a paired-end mode targeting at least 100x coverage. The sequences obtained were subjected to bioinformatic analyses in order to determine mutation and polymorphic sites within the analysed mtDNA genome in the tumour tissue. The total amount of changes: single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), indels, mutations, and heteroplasmy detected in this study was 329. Ten polymorphisms were found in all analysed samples: ins.2679_2680G (<italic>tRNA-Leu (UUR)),</italic> m.5367C&gt;T (<italic>COX1</italic>), m.5444T&gt;C (<italic>COX1</italic>), m.6065A&gt;G (<italic>COX1</italic>), m.8368C&gt;T (<italic>ATP6</italic>), m.8807G&gt;A (<italic>COX3</italic>), ins.9913_9914TG (<italic>ND4L</italic>), m.13299T&gt;A (<italic>ND5</italic>), m.15814C&gt;T, and m.16418A&gt;G (control region). Interestingly, the highest number of differences in the mtDNA genome was observed between non-cancerous <italic>pyogranuloma</italic> tissue and <italic>epithelioma glandulae sebacei</italic>. The mutations in the non-cancerous tissue were mainly found in positions where polymorphisms were observed in blood and tumour tissue. The lowest number of changes was observed for the youngest analysed dog, which may indicate that some changes appeared in the mitogenomes with age. There were fewer heteroplasmic alterations in the larger than smaller tumour, which may suggest that the tumour growth is enhanced by genomic stability. The changes in the protein-coding genes were mostly synonymous, and nonsynonymous changes did not lead to alterations in protein properties. New mutations were observed in the post-recurrence tumours in comparison with the pre-recurrent tissue and blood.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00672023-07-12T00:00:00.000+00:00https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-0066<abstract> <title style='display:none'>Abstract</title> <p>The simulation of investment strategies with different farm-scale scenarios has been evaluated for best management plan in cage farming business for the establishment of a salmon production with either full capacity – or progressive investment. Economical revenues were analyzed with business risk assessment based on operating-and fixed costs for each of the four scenarios. In the theoretical model projected for the stimulation of best management plans, structural elements for the construction of an offshore Turkish salmon farm in the Black Sea were designed and investment costs for an annual production capacity of 4,000 tons were re-scaled by 25, 50 and 75% reduction, corresponding to 3,000, 2,000 and 1,000 tons per year, respectively. Economic variables of operational costs were comparatively evaluated with the revenues and annual profit conditions by sales of harvested fish. The break-even points for all investment strategies with different farm-scale scenarios were remarkably lower (on average 302,574.7 kg/year) than the harvest yields from the farms (on average 3,702,857.1 kg/year). Based on break-even points and margin of safety (MOS over 85%), all farms gained net profits with low risks in the first year, whether the farm received full investment, or initiated business with reduced investment expenditures for a gradual and progressive expansion plan. Findings of this study exhibit useful indications for farm management in understanding conditions of a step-wise establishment of business plans for salmon farming in offshore conditions.</p> </abstract>ARTICLEtruehttps://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/aoas-2023-00662023-07-12T00:00:00.000+00:00en-us-1