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Egg production is a vital biological and economic trait for poultry breeding. The 'hypothalamic–pituitary–ovarian (HPO) axis' determines the egg production, which affects the layer hens industry income. At the organism level, the HPO axis is influenced by the factors related to metabolic and nutritional status, environment, and genetics, whereas at the cellular and molecular levels, the HPO axis is influenced by the factors related to endocrine and metabolic regulation, cytokines, key genes, signaling pathways, post-transcriptional processing, and epigenetic modifications. MiRNAs and lncRNAs play a critical role in follicle selection and development, atresia, and ovulation in layer hens; in particular, miRNA is known to affect the development and atresia of follicles by regulating apoptosis and autophagy of granulosa cells. The current review elaborates on the regulation of the HPO axis and its role in the laying performance of hens at the organism, cellular, and molecular levels. In addition, this review provides an overview of the interactive network regulation mechanism of the HPO axis in layer hens, as well as comprehensive knowledge for successfully utilizing their genetic resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: New conjugated small molecules 5,5′-bis{5-Octyl-2-(2,2′-bithiophen-5-yl)-4H-thieno[2,3-c]pyrrole-4,6-dione}-3,3′-di-octylsilylene-2,2′-bithiophene DTS(BTTPD) 2 and 5,5′-bis{5-Octyl-2-(2,5-thiophenyl)-4H-thieno[2,3-c]pyrrole-4,6-dione}-3,3′-di-octylsilylene-2,2′-bithiophene DTS(TTPD) 2 of the acceptor–π–donor–π–acceptor type end-capped with thieno[2,3-c]pyrrole-4,6-dione (TPD) units for small molecule solar cells have been prepared through coupling of dithienosilole and TPD units bridged with thienylene and bithienylene. They are soluble in common organic solvents and show an interesting absorption. These small molecules have very similar optical band gaps (1.87 eV and 1.92 eV) and fairly close highest occupied molecular orbital energy levels (−5.52 to −5.55 eV). The best solar cells using DTS(TTPD) 2 as an electron donor and [6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PC61BM) as an electron acceptor demonstrated efficient performance with an obviously high open-circuit voltage (V OC) of 0.97 V and a power conversion efficiency of 1.20% after annealing and using MoO3 as electron-blocking layer. The solar cells based on DTS(BTTPD) 2 and PC61BM blend also exhibited a high V OC of 0.97 V under optimized conditions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Efficient and stable polymer bulk-heterojunction solar cells based on regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene):[6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (P3HT:PC61BM) blend active layer have been fabricated with a MoO3–Au co-evaporation composite film as the anode interfacial layer (AIL). The optical and electrical properties of the composite MoO3–Au film can be tuned by altering the concentration of Au. A composite film with 30% (weight ratio) Au was used as the AIL and showed a better performance than both pure MoO3 and PEDOT:PSS as AIL. The surface morphology of the MoO3–Au composite film was investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and showed that the originally rough ITO substrate became smooth after depositing the composite film, with the root mean square roughness (RMS) decreased from 4.08nm to 1.81nm. The smooth surface reduced the bias-dependent carrier recombination, resulting in a large shunt resistance and thus improving the fill factor and efficiency of the devices. Additionally, the air stability of devices with different AILs (MoO3–Au composite, MoO3 and PEDOT:PSS) were studied and it was found that the MoO3–Au composite layer remarkably improved the stability of the solar cells with shelf life-time enhanced by more than 3 and 40 times compared with pure MoO3 layer and PEDOT:PSS layer, respectively. We argue that the stability improvement might be related with the defect states in MoO3 component. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Fat storage-inducing transmembrane protein 2 (FITM2) plays an important role in regulating lipid storage and could be regarded as a candidate gene for intramuscular fat deposition in pigs. The aim of this study was to clone the coding domain sequence (CDS) of FITM2 gene, to compare the nucleotide acid and deduced amino acid sequences between breeds and species, to analyze the structure and characteristics of protein and to detect the expression profile of gene. The results exhibited that the CDS of FITM2 gene was 789 bp in length. The mutation of nucleotide acids led to the mutation of deduced amino acids between Banna miniature inbred pigs and other two breeds (Yorkshire × Landrace pigs and Duroc × (Landrace × Yorkshire) pigs). It was indicated that high identities of nucleotide acid and deduced amino acid sequences between Banna miniature inbred pigs and other species. The deduced amino acids were composed of loops and alpha helices in the structure. FITM2 protein may be a 30 kDa hydrophobic protein with 26 phosphorylation sites and one potential N-glycosylated site. FITM2 gene was widely expressed in various tissues, and the highest expression level was in adipose tissue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Anemia in piglets is a common problem in piglet production. In this experiment, three different iron additives were used in pregnant sow feed for comparison. The results revealed that adding iron supplements can improve the antioxidant capacity of sows, and lactoferrin and heme iron can improve the iron nutrition and antioxidant capacity of piglets. This study should help improve the reproductive performance of sows, prevent iron deficiency anemia in piglets, and improve disease resistance. To improve the reproductive performance of sows and the iron nutrition of newborn piglets, we studied the effects of dietary iron on reproductive performance in pregnant sows as well as antioxidant capacity and the visceral iron content of sows and newborn piglets. Forty pregnant sows were divided into four groups, the iron deficiency group (Id group) was fed a basic diet while sows in the treatment groups were fed diets supplemented with 200 mg/kg lactoferrin (LF group), 0.8% heme-iron (Heme-Fe group), or 500 mg/kg iron-glycine complex (Fe-Gly group). The results indicated that (1) different sources of iron had no significant effect on litter size, live litter size, and litter weight of sows; (2) the three additives improved iron nutrition in newborn piglets, with LF and Heme-Fe having better improvement effects; and (3) the addition of different iron sources improved the level of serum antioxidant biochemical indexes of sows and newborn piglets, and it can have an effect on gene level, among which lactoferrin has the best effect. Thus, adding LF, Heme-iron, or Fe-Gly to the diet of sows during the second and third trimester of gestation can improve the antioxidant capacity of the sows. The supplementation of LF in pregnant sow diets can also improve the antioxidant capacity and the iron nutrition of newborn piglets, with better additive effects than in Heme-Fe and Fe-Gly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Growth performance and meat quality are important traits for pig production. The aim of the present study was to investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying growth performance and meat quality, and to identify novel target molecules for predicting the growth performance and meat quality. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in Diannan small ears pigs (DSP) and Landrace pigs (LP) were assessed by RNA-sequencing analyzing technology. A total of 339 DEGs were obtained between DSP and LP. 146 DEGs were upregulated in LP compared with DSP and 193 DEGs were upregulated in DSP compared with LP. The DEGs were significantly enriched in 26 GO and 3 KEGG pathways. The protein–protein interaction (PPI) network with 201 nodes and 382 edges was constructed and 5 modules were extracted from the entire network. The identified upregulated expression of genes involved in glycolysis and myogenesis as well as extracellular matrix may be associated with fast body and muscle deposition rates in LP. Increased expression of genes involved in PPAR signaling pathway and fatty acid metabolism as well as oxidative phosphate processes could be related to the intramuscular fat deposition and meat quality in DSP. The present study may provide an improved understanding of the growth performance and meat quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lipid metabolic capacity, feed utilization, and the diversity of gut microbiota are reduced in the late laying stage for laying hens. This experiment aimed to investigate the effects of different levels of dietary metabolizable energy (ME) on hepatic lipid metabolism and cecal microbiota in late laying hens. The 216 Peking Pink laying hens (57-wk-old) were randomly assigned to experimental diets of 11.56 (HM = high ME), 11.14 (MM = medium ME), or 10.72 (LM = low ME) MJ of ME/kg, with each dietary treatment containing 6 replicates per group and 12 chickens per replicate. The HM group showed higher triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (T-CHO), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) concentrations in the liver compared with the LM group; second, the HM group showed higher TG concentration and the LM group showed lower T-CHO concentration compared with MM group; finally, the HM group showed a lower hepatic lipase (HL) activity compared with the MM and LM groups (P < 0.05). There was a significant difference in the microbial community structure of the cecum between the HM and MM groups (P < 0.05). The decrease of dietary ME level resulted in a gradual decrease relative abundance of Proteobacteria. At the genus level, beneficial bacteria were significantly enriched in the LM group compared to the MM group, including Faecalibacterium, Lactobacillus , and Bifidobacterium , (linear discriminant analysis [LDA] >2, P <0.05). In addition, at the species level, Lactobacillus crispatus, Parabacteroides gordonii, Blautia caecimuris , and Lactobacillus johnsonii were significantly enriched in the LM group (LDA>2, P < 0.05). The HM group had a higher abundance of Sutterella spp. compared to the LM group (LDA>2, P <0.05). In conclusion, this research suggests that the reduction in dietary energy level did not adversely affect glycolipid metabolism or low dietary ME (10.72 MJ/kg). The findings can be helpful for maintaining intestinal homeostasis and increasing benefit for gut microbiota in late laying hens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Plateau stress is a main factor limiting pig production. There are great differences in oxidation state and antioxidant defense between Tibetan pigs (TPs) and DLY pigs exposed to a plateau environment. However, there are limited reports on the mechanism of adaptation of TPs and DLY pigs to the plateau environment involving a signal pathway related to oxidation state. In the present study, we found that TPs exhibit a stronger heart and liver antioxidant stress capacity than DLY pigs through AMPK/p38 MAPK/Nrf2-ARE signaling pathways under a plateau hypoxic environment. This study evaluated the effect of a plateau environment on the heart and liver oxidation state of Tibetan pigs (TPs) and DLY pigs through analyzing AMPK, p38 MAPK, and Nrf2 signaling pathways. Twelve 120-day-old TPs and twelve 120-day-old DLY pigs were randomly divided into two groups in a plateau environment for three weeks. Exposed to a plateau environment, TPs exhibited a lower (p < 0.05) malondialdehyde level but higher (p < 0.05) glutathione, superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), and total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) activities in the liver and heart than those observed in DLY pigs. TPs also showed higher (p < 0.05) mRNA levels of SOD and GSH-Px in the liver and heart compared with those of DLY pigs. The TPs showed higher (p < 0.05) mRNA and protein levels of AMPK and Nrf2 in the liver and heart compared with those of DLY pigs. Furthermore, TPs showed higher (p < 0.05) mRNA and protein levels of p38 MAPK in the heart and higher mRNA levels of p38 MAPK in the liver compared with those of DLY pigs under a plateau environment. In summary, TPs possess a stronger antioxidant capacity in the heart and liver than that of DLY pigs in a plateau environment through AMPK/p38 MAPK/Nrf2-ARE signaling pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The conformation and microstructure of soy glycinin were investigated by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy after dry heating and autoclaving thermal treatments. The changes in frequency and signal intensity of infrared bands revealed the thermal denaturation on the solid-state structure of glycinin. The Fourier transform infrared spectral changes were subsequently assessed using the second derivative spectroscopy in the amide I region (1700–1600 cm−1). The bands at 1618 cm−1and 1682 cm−1were considered to reflect the formation of intermolecular and intramolecular aggregates (A1 and A2), and the contents of β -sheet indicated the degree of denaturation. In autoclaved samples, the contents of the glycinin α -helix, turn, random coil, and A2 significantly increased (P< 0.05), while the contents of the glycinin β -sheet and A1 significantly decreased (P< 0.05). The dry heating slightly affected the secondary structures of glycinin. The scanning electron microscopy results showed that the autoclaving treatment glycinin had denser and more uniform gel with homogeneous pores and heterogeneous granular structure, and the dry heating glycinin had crumbled multi-layered sheet like structure. The data suggested that the conformations of the autoclaved glycinins had more changes than dry thermally treated glycinins. While both dry thermally treated and autoclaved treated samples showed a high content in β -sheet structures which may adversely affect protein utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Abstract: A series of conjugated polymers were designed and synthesized via the alternating copolymerization of the electron-donating monomer 2,7-carbazole and electron-accepting monomers of naphthalene diimide (NDI), dithienyl-naphthalene diimide (DTNDI), perylene diimide (PDI) and dithienyl-perylene diimide (DTPDI), respectively. The obtained four copolymers showed good thermal stability as well as broad absorptions in visible region and narrow optical band gaps (1.86–1.59eV). Through cyclic voltammetry (CV) measuremnts, it was found that all copolymers were n-type semiconductive materials. The copolymers'' photovoltaic properties were evaluated when the blends of poly(3-hexyl thiophene) (P3HT) and copolymers were used as the active layers of polymer solar cells (PSCs): among four copolymers, the copolymer alternating 2,7-carbazole and DTPDI units (PCDTPDI) exhibited the best photovoltaic performance with an open-circuit voltage (V oc) of 0.48V, a short circuit current density (J sc ) of 3.40mA/cm2, fill factor (FF) of 0.42, and a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 0.68%. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Diet may affect gut microbial composition and diversity. There were 3 dietary groups: 0% citrus pulp diet (C), 1.5% citrus pulp diet (I), and 2.5% citrus pulp diet (II). A total of 180 healthy AA broilers (21-day old) were divided into 3 groups (C, I, and II), each group was set up with 6 replicates, and each replicate including 10 broilers (half male and female). At 42 d, the cecal contents of 18 broiler chickens were collected after slaughter. The cecal contents were analyzed using 16S rRNA sequencing technology. Compared with group C, the abundance of Firmicutes in groups I and II decreased, while the relative abundances of Bacteroidetes, Verrucomicrobia, Lactobacillus , and Faecalibacterium increased. LEfSe analysis showed that Actinobacteria, Coriobacteriia, Coriobacteriales , and Ruminococcaceae_bacterium_Marseille_P2935 in group I were significantly higher than those in group C. Bacteria, Coriobacteriales, Coriobacteriia, Coriobacteriaceae, Slackia, Bacteroides Marseille_P3132 , and Lactobacillus_pontis in group II were significantly higher than those in group C. The Staphylococcaceae, Bacteroides Marseille_P3132, Macroccus, Lactobacillus_pontis , and Streptococcus_equinus in group II were significantly higher than those in group I. Functional predictions indicated that the cecal microbiota of broilers fed the 2.5% citrus pulp diet was more tend to utilize carbohydrates through glycolytic/gluconeogenesis metabolism. Adding citrus pulp to the diet affects the microbial composition and has important implications for studying gut health and improving economic benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A novel quasi-zero-stiffness (QZS) metamaterial beam is proposed. • Quasi-zero stiffness is fulfilled by compliant mechanisms. • Design optimization is carried out to devise the QZS resonator. • QZS metamaterial beam enables very low-frequency band gaps. A novel metamaterial beam with embedded quasi-zero-stiffness (QZS) resonator is proposed to realize wave attenuation in very low-frequency band gaps. The configuration of the QZS resonator is developed by using compliant mechanism with design optimization, and the feature of quasi-zero stiffness is achieved under proper pre-compression. Then, the dispersion relations of the metamaterial beam are derived by the transfer matrix method (TMM) to predicate the band gap theoretically. Additionally, the dynamic responses of the metamaterial beam are obtained by the spectral element method (SEM) to evaluate the transmittance of the flexural wave. Finally, the prototype of the metamaterial beam is fabricated by additive manufacturing, and the experimental investigation is conducted to verify the formation mechanism of the band gaps, which shows very low-frequency band gaps. Therefore, the QZS metamaterial beam should be promising in application for very low-frequency wave attenuation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Three DPP derivatives with different end-groups were designed and synthesized. [•] Three DPP derivatives exhibit similar energy structures but different photovoltaic properties. [•] End-groups influence photovoltaic properties of three molecules through the inducing of different morphologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We developed a film-forming processing method for morphology control and organic solar cells (OSCs) optimization. In this protocol, the processing solvent inside a wet active layer is removed by dripping a soaking solvent that is selectively soluble for the processing solvents onto the wet active layer film. By this method, OSCs based on diketopyrrolopyrrole containing copolymers: [6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester blend were fabricated. Devices processed by this treatment show a significantly increased efficiency by a factor of 3 compared to devices fabricated by the traditional spin-coating method (from 1.03% to 3.2%), which is mainly attributed to morphology improvements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to evaluate in vitro probiotic characteristics of Pediococcus pentosaceus strain L1 from pickled radish and investigate its impacts on inflammatory responses in porcine intestinal epithelial cells (IEC) to enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) F4+. The abilities of P. pentosaceus L1 to tolerate gastrointestinal conditions and to antagonize ETEC F4+ growth were determined. Adhesion of P. pentosaceus L1 and its effect on ETEC F4+ adhesion to porcine IPEC-J2 IEC were evaluated. Furthermore, the effects of this strain on proinflammatory gene expression and cytokines/chemokine production in porcine IPEC-J2 IEC induced by ETEC F4+ were determined. P. pentosaceus L 1 showed good tolerance to the medium adjusted at pH 2.5 and consequently supplemented with 0.3% oxgall. Reduction of ETEC F4+ growth in co-culture with L1 was found. Effective adhesion of L1 to porcine. IPEC-J2 IEC was observed under these conditions. P. pentosaceus L1 decreased the adhesion of ETEC F4+ to IPEC-J2 IEC and the extent of inhibition of ETEC F4+ adhesion depended on the timing of L1 addition. Further analysis revealed down-regulation of expression of ETEC F4+-induced proinflammatory genes encoding interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and interleukin-8 (IL-8) in IPEC-J2 IEC. Expression of the genes involved in NF-κB pathway, including RELA and NFKB1 , were also repressed, as was production of IL-6, TNF-α, and IL-8. These results indicate that P. pentosaceus L1 may have potential as a probiotic for control of ETEC infection in pigs. • Pediococcus pentosaceus L1 showed good tolerance to low pH and bile salts. • P. pentosaceus L1 antagonized growth of enterotoxigenic Escheichia coli （ETEC）F4+. • P. pentosaceus L1 could adhere to IPEC-J2 intestinal epithelial cells (IEC) and reduce ETEC F4+ adhesion to IPEC-J2 IEC. • P. pentosaceus L1 reduced IPEC-J2 IEC proinflammatory response to ETEC F4+ via down-modulating NF-κB signaling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Temperature, which is an important environmental factor in broiler farming, can significantly influence the deposition of fatty acids in muscle. 300 one-day-old broiler chicks were randomly divided into three groups and reared at high, medium and low temperatures (HJ, MJ and LJ), respectively. Breast muscle and jejunal chyme samples were collected and subjected to analyses of fatty acid composition and 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Through spearman's rank correlation coefficient, the data were used to characterize the correlation between jejunal microbial diversity and muscle fatty acid deposition in the broilers. The results showed that Achromobacter, Stenotrophomonas, Pandoraea, Brevundimonas, Petrobacter and Variovorax were significantly enriched in the MJ group, and all of them were positively correlated with the fatty acid profiling of muscle and multiple lipid metabolism signaling pathways. Lactobacillus was significantly enriched in the HJ group and exhibited a positive correlation with fatty acid deposition. Pyramidobacter, Dialister, Bacteroides and Selenomonas were significantly enriched in the LJ group and displayed negative correlation with fatty acid deposition. Taken together, this study demonstrated that the jejunal microflora manifested considerable changes at high and low ambient temperatures and that jejunal microbiota changes were correlated with fatty acid deposition of muscle in broilers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]