Lignin degradation is important for enhancing the digestibility and improving the nutritive quality of ruminant feeds. White rot fungi are well known for their bioconversion of lignocellulosic biomass. The objective of this paper was to evaluate whether Lentinus sajor-caju, Pleurotus ostreatus, Phyllotopsis rhodophylla, Pleurotus djamor, Pleurotus eryngii, and Pleurotus citrinopileatus treatments altered the chemical compositions of highland barley straw constituents and enhanced their nutritional value as a ruminant feed. All white rot fungi significantly increased the relative crude protein (CP), ethyl ether extract (EE), starch, soluble protein (SP), and non-protein nitrogen (NPN) contents but decreased the ash, neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL), and acid detergent insoluble protein (ADFIP) contents. In addition, L. sajor-caju treatment increased (p < 0.001) the levels of PA, PB₂, PB₃, CA, CB₁, CB₂, and CNSC, but reduced (p < 0.001) the PC and CC in the solid-state fermentation of highland barley straw. Maximum ligninlysis (50.19%) was optimally produced in the presence of 1.53% glucose and 2.29% urea at 22.72 ℃. The in vitro dry matter digestibility and total volatile fatty acid concentrations of fermented highland barley straw, as well as the fermentability, were optimized and improved with L. sajor-caju, which degraded the lignocellulose and improved the nutritional value of highland barley straw as a ruminant feed.

Lentinus sajor-caju has shown potential for the bioconversion of lignocellulosic biomass in various substrates. Here, we evaluated whether L. sajor-caju affects the lignocellulosic biomass, in vitro fermentation and antioxidant properties of Astragalus membranaceus var. mongholicus (AMM) stems. The lignocellulosic biomass content and the antioxidant activity of AMM stems were determined by scanning electron microscopy, chemical component analysis, in vitro fermentation and LC-MS metabolomics after 30 days of fermentation by L. sajor-caju at 25 °C. L. sajor-caju significantly altered the rigid structure of the stems. Compared with the control condition, the lignocellulose contents were significantly reduced (p < 0.001) and improved in vitro digestibility and total volatile fatty acids. In total, 624 differential metabolites, including 201 up-regulated and 423 down-regulated, were identified in unfermented and fermented comparison groups. Correlation analysis indicated that there were strongly correlations of the total phenolic content and total antioxidant capacity. Meanwhile, the differential metabolites were primarily associated with antioxidant activity, with 4(3H)-quinazolinone, dihydrocarvyl acetate and jaceoside being the most representative. In summary, L. sajor-caju altered the composition of the cell wall of AMM stems, thereby enhancing their antioxidant activity.

This study evaluated the effects of dietary conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) on serum metabolites, antioxidant capacity, and immune function of transition ewes, as well as on growth performance, serum biochemical indices, and hormone levels of their suckling lambs. Forty healthy Ujumqin ewes (body weight 56.62 ± 5.30 kg) were randomly assigned to four groups (n = 10/group) at 28 d before expected parturition: control (basal diet), CLA-1 (basal diet + 10 g/d CLA), CLA-2 (basal diet + 20 g/d CLA), and CLA-3 (basal diet + 30 g/d CLA). Blood samples were collected from ewes at 21 d prepartum, at delivery, and at 21 d postpartum, and from lambs at 7 and 42 d postpartum. Serum metabolites, antioxidant enzymes, and inflammatory cytokines were measured. In ewes, CLA supplementation did not significantly affect serum AST, β-HB, GLU, TG, NEFA, SOD, GPX, MDA, or T-AOC (p > 0.05), although β-HB, GLU, SOD, GPX, and MDA changed with time. However, CLA markedly decreased serum TNF-α, IL-8, IL-6, and IL-1β (p < 0.05). In lambs, maternal CLA did not affect birth or final body weight. Maternal CLA decreased serum GH and the GH/IGF-1 ratio and increased IGF-1 (p < 0.05), especially at 30 g/d. Serum SOD, GPX, and MDA did not differ among groups, whereas T-AOC showed a significant group × time interaction (p = 0.004). Maternal CLA also decreased serum TNF-α, IL-8, IL-6, and IL-1β in lambs (p < 0.05). In conclusion, perinatal CLA supplementation did not significantly improve most energy metabolic or antioxidant enzyme indices under these conditions, but it alleviated excessive inflammatory responses in ewes and suckling lambs and activated the GH-IGF-1 axis in lambs. The 30 g/d CLA dose showed the strongest immunomodulatory and endocrine effects. These findings suggest that CLA may serve mainly as an immunomodulatory strategy in perinatal sheep, and dose optimization warrants further study.

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) exerts anti-inflammatory and antioxidant bioactivities, yet its optimal hepatic anti-inflammatory dosage under lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation remains unclear. This study aimed to screen the effective dietary CLA dose against LPS-triggered liver inflammation in mice. Twenty-four male mice were divided into four groups (n = 6): normal diet (ND), ND+0.5% CLA, ND+1% CLA and ND+2% CLA. After 49 days of feeding, all mice received LPS injection and were sacrificed 24 h later. Serum and liver tissues were collected to detect pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6), the oxidative stress marker malondialdehyde (MDA), antioxidant indices (superoxide dismutase, SOD and total antioxidant capacity, TAC), hepatic inflammatory gene mRNA and liver histopathology. The 1% CLA group exhibited lower serum and hepatic pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6) and the oxidative stress marker MDA, higher SOD and TAC (p < 0.01), and reduced hepatic inflammatory infiltration. All CLA treatments downregulated hepatic CXCL1 mRNA and upregulated peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARγ) mRNA (p < 0.05). In conclusion, 1% dietary CLA elicited optimal anti-inflammatory effects in this acute LPS-induced liver inflammation model, while 1% and 2% CLA showed comparable antioxidant effects. This study was a short-term acute inflammation mouse model. The tissue distribution and lipid metabolic profile of CLA were not examined, and the CLA mixed isomers were used. Moreover, the PPARγ pathway was inferred based solely on mRNA levels, and further in-depth verification is still needed.