Fermentation can increase the concentration of active ingredients and improve the effectiveness of Chinese herbal medicine. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of solid-state fermentation (SSF) on the polysaccharide content and color of Glycyrrhiza stems and leaves, as well as to explore the potential of computer vision-based analytical chemistry for the rapid, non-destructive, and accurate quality identification of fermented herbs. The effects of different inoculation rates on the polysaccharide content and color of fermented Glycyrrhiza stems and leaves were evaluated. Subsequently, dynamic changes in the viable counts of the probiotic strains, pH values, polysaccharide content, and color of Glycyrrhiza stems and leaves were explored during the entire fermentation process. The correlations of color variables that were extracted from the images with key quality indicators of the Glycyrrhiza stem and leaf samples were verified. The results showed that with an increase in inoculation amount, the polysaccharide content demonstrated a trend of first increasing and then decreasing, which was consistent with the color parameter behavior, and the optimal inoculation amount was 0.2%. During fermentation, R, G, B, S, V, L, a*, and B* were significantly correlated with the polysaccharide content (p < 0.01), while the correlation of H was weak. Principal component analysis (PCA) based on color variables can effectively distinguish between different stages of fermentation. This study provides a reference for the rapid and nondestructive analysis of fermented Glycyrrhiza stems and leaves, offering a new approach to process monitoring and quality control of fermented herbs.

Complex phytonutrients (CPS) have attracted extensive interest due to their anti-inflammatory effects. This investigation focused on the impact of CPS on rumen health in lambs on high-concentrate diets, emphasizing growth performance, ruminal fermentation, epithelial barrier integrity, ruminal metabolism, and microbial communities. A total of 54 lambs, 3 months old and with a 30.42 ± 0.54 kg body weight, were randomly assigned to three treatment groups, with six replicates per treatment and three lambs per replicate. The lambs received a basal diet (the ratio of concentrate to forage was 75:25) without CPS supplementation (CON) or with the inclusion of 2.5 g/kg (CPS2.5) or 5.0 g/kg CPS (CPS5.0) for a total of 60 days. The CPS groups exhibited increased growth performance and improved rumen fermentation parameters. Mechanistically, CPS enhanced rumen epithelial barrier function, thereby lowering inflammation and inhibiting the overactivation of the JNK/p38 MAPK signaling pathway, and the effect of CPS5.0 was better than that of CPS2.5. Notably, CPS5.0 could optimize the composition of rumen microbiota and increase the levels of Ursolic acid and other metabolites. The strong associations between rumen bacteria and health-related indicators and differential metabolites were further highlighted. Our findings suggest that adding CPS to lambs’ diets has widespread positive impacts, including improved growth performance, reduced inflammation and mRNA relative expression of apoptosis-related genes, enhanced barrier function, and beneficial changes in the rumen microbiome and metabolite profiles.

This study sought to evaluate the effects of Artemisia argyi aqueous extract (AAE) on rumen fermentation parameters and the microbiota within the rumen of lambs. A total of 32 lambs that are 3 months old and 24.06 ± 0.04 kg in body weight were randomly assigned to four treatment groups, with eight replicates per treatment. The diets for the four groups were formulated with the following adding dose of AAE: 0 mg/kg (CON), 500 mg/kg (AAE-L), 1000 mg/kg (AAE-M), and 1500 mg/kg (AAE-H), respectively. The results showed that, compared to the CON group, three AAE add groups significantly decreased the A/P ratio; AAE-M and AAE-H groups significantly increased MCP and propionic acid contents. Supplementation with AAE had no significant effect on the alpha and beta diversity of the rumen microbiota, but significantly increased the relative abundances of beneficial bacteria, such as Actinobacteriota in the rumen. In conclusion, AAE supplementation improved the rumen fermentation and microbiota of lambs. In the overall consideration, under the conditions of this research, the supplementation of 1000 mg/kg AAE was optimal.

Chronic cold stress impairs hepatic metabolism, antioxidant balance and fetal development of Mongolian sheep in northern pastoral zones, yet systematic research on nutritional mitigation remains limited. N-carbamylglutamate (NCG) boosts endogenous arginine synthesis, but its hepatic regulatory mechanisms against cold stress in pregnant ewes and fetuses remain unclear. This study explored NCG’s protective effects via integrated liver transcriptome and metabolome analysis. Twenty-four late-gestation ewes were divided into warm control, cold stress, and cold stress + daily NCG supplementation groups. Hepatic mRNA, lncRNA, circRNA, miRNA sequencing, untargeted LC-MS metabolomics, multi-omics conjoint analysis and qRT-PCR verification were conducted on ewe and fetuses liver samples. The results showed that, cold stress disturbed mTOR, PI3K/AKT, amino acid and energy metabolic pathways, triggering massive differential RNA and metabolite changes. NCG supplementation reversed cold-induced transcriptional and metabolic disorders, restoring glutathione and cysteine-methionine metabolism. Core hub genes AK4, AHCY and RRM2 linking transcriptomic and metabolic shifts were validated by qPCR, with divergent hepatic NCG responses observed between ewes and fetuses. Maternal NCG alleviates cold-caused liver oxidative damage, remodels energy and amino acid metabolism via mTOR and redox pathways, and confers transgenerational protection to fetuses through the maternal-placental-fetal axis. These findings elucidate NCG’s anti-cold-stress molecular mechanism and provide a basis for nutritional intervention for cold-region sheep farming.

Chronic cold stress disrupts hepatic metabolism and fetal development of Mongolian sheep in northern pastoral zones, while systematic nutritional mitigation strategies remain poorly characterized. N-carbamylglutamate (NCG) promotes endogenous arginine synthesis; however, its hepatic regulatory roles against cold stress in pregnant ewes and fetuses remain unclear. This study explored the potential protective effects of NCG via integrated hepatic transcriptome and metabolome analysis. Twenty-four late-gestation ewes were assigned to warm control, cold stress, and cold stress + NCG supplementation groups. Hepatic mRNA, lncRNA, circRNA, and miRNA sequencing, untargeted LC-MS metabolomics, multi-omics conjoint analysis, and qRT-PCR verification were performed using ewe and fetal liver tissues. The results indicated that cold stress potentially was associated with mTOR, PI3K/AKT, amino acid, and energy metabolic pathways, inducing extensive transcriptomic and metabolic alterations. NCG supplementation might reverse cold-induced transcriptional and metabolic disorders and restore glutathione and cysteine–methionine metabolism. qRT-PCR validated the differential expression of core hub genes AK4, AHCY, and RRM2, linking transcriptomic and metabolic reprogramming. Divergent hepatic molecular responses to NCG were observed between ewes and fetuses. Multi-omics correlation analysis suggested that maternal NCG may modulate hepatic energy and amino acid metabolism through mTOR and redox-related pathways under cold stress and potentially exert transgenerational hepatic effects on fetuses. These findings provide preliminary omics-based mechanistic hypotheses and a theoretical basis for nutritional intervention against cold stress in sheep production.