The polysaccharide of Millettia speciosa Champ. ex Benth (MSCP) has antioxidant properties, but its impact on chicken growth and development is not yet known. This study used chlortetracycline as a control to assess MCSP as a feed antibiotic substitute and its effects on Wenchang chicken production, slaughter performance, and meat quality. A total of 576 healthy 80-day-old Wenchang chickens were randomly allocated to six experimental groups. The control group (Control) received a basal diet, while the antibiotic group (CTC) was supplemented with 2 g/kg chlortetracycline (CTC). Four additional experimental groups were administered varying doses of MSCP: 400 mg/kg (MSCP₄₀₀), 800 mg/kg (MSCP₈₀₀), 1600 mg/kg (MSCP₁₆₀₀), and 3200 mg/kg (MSCP₃₂₀₀), respectively. The study discovered that incorporating MSCP and CTC into chicken diets significantly boosted the final body weight and average daily feed intake compared to the control group (p < 0.01), with MSCP notably enhancing average daily weight gain. With the addition of 800 mg/kg MSCP, chicken growth performance is comparable to that achieved with antibiotics in feed. However, it did not impact slaughtering performance (p > 0.05). In addition, MSCP significantly raised the pH after 24 h (p < 0.05) and decreased the yellowness (p < 0.01) of breast muscle. MSCP increased the essential amino acids (EAA) proportion in breast muscle (p < 0.05), EAA to nonessential amino acids (NEAA) ratio (p < 0.05), and diversity of fatty acids while decreasing C20:0 and increasing C18:2N6 and C22:1N9 content. Moreover, MSCP significantly reduced muscle fiber size (p < 0.01), increased fiber density (p < 0.01), boosted MYOD1 expression (p < 0.05), and decreased MSTN expression in breast muscle (p < 0.01). Overall, our study showed that supplementing the diet with MSCP, particularly at a dose of 800 mg/kg, enhanced growth, meat quality, muscle morphology, amino acid content, fatty acid composition, and gene expression related to muscle development in breast muscle. The results indicate that MSCP is a feed additive with the potential to replace antibiotics and improve meat quality, showing promising application potential.

Although existing research has uncovered the association between psychological stress and gut microbiota dysbiosis, the causal relationship remains unclear. The direct impact of psychological stress on gut microbiota and the potential bidirectional mechanisms remain unclear, including the specific molecular pathways involved. This study investigates the impact of psychological stress on the gut microbiota and associated metabolites in wild Hainan macaques, revealing that stress significantly alters microbial composition and function. Specifically, stress-induced changes in the gut microbiota are linked to shifts in key metabolites, particularly coumarins, which are known to interact with the nervous system. This suggests a feedback loop where stress modulates neurological function via microbiota-derived metabolites. We identified several differential metabolites, including specific C10757, that can serve as biomarkers for detecting stress-induced health risks. These findings highlight the potential of microbiota-based interventions to mitigate stress-related health issues and provide essential data for wildlife health monitoring. The study highlights the role of gut microbiota as a stress biomarker, underscoring the importance of psychological well-being in wildlife conservation and research to guide ethical animal management. IMPORTANCE: This study uncovers how psychological stress alters gut microbiota in wild animals, enhancing understanding of the gut-brain axis in natural ecosystems. Crucially, it identifies microbial profiles as non-invasive stress biomarkers, enabling early detection of environmental threats in conservation. The findings emphasize the ethical need to incorporate stress assessments (e.g., microbiota and cortisol analyses) into wildlife research to ensure welfare and data validity. Mechanistic parallels with captive species suggest evolutionary conservation of gut-brain pathways, opening avenues for cross-species therapies. By bridging psychobiology and conservation, this work establishes a framework for stress resilience interventions and ethical wildlife management, advancing both ecological health and humane science. Future research should explore microbiota-targeted strategies and cross-species applicability to optimize conservation outcomes.

This experiment aimed to study the effects of adding Morinda officinalis polysaccharide (MOP) on the growth, carcass performance and meat quality of Wenchang chickens. A total of 480 eighty-one-day-old Wenchang chickens were randomly allocated into five groups using a completely randomized design, with eight replicates per group (n = 8 per treatment). The control group received a basal diet (CON group), while the experimental group was given a diet with 500, 1000, 2000, and 4000 mg/kg MOP supplements. During the 40 day trial, MOP supplementation did not affect the growth and carcass performance (p > 0.05), but it increased the a* value of breast muscles compared to the CON group. The breast and thigh muscles in the MOP group had significantly lower shear force than those in the CON group (p < 0.05). The MOP groups significantly decreased the muscle fibers’ cross-sectional area and diameter in the breast and thigh muscles of Wenchang chickens compared to the CON group (p < 0.05). The MOP₅₀₀ group notably raised the total number of essential amino acids and total amino acid levels in Wenchang chickens, whereas the MOP₁₀₀₀ group significantly lowered the total SFA concentration (p < 0.05). Collectively, MOP enhances Wenchang chickens’ meat quality, with optimal results at 1000 mg/kg.

The genus Mallotus oblongifolius (MO), a member of the Euphorbia family, exhibits a predominant distribution in Hainan Island and has been proven to possess diverse medicinal attributes. Research indicates that ultramicro-grinding fully exposes the active ingredients of Mallotus oblongifolius, enhancing bioavailability and efficacy, compared to before. Our study investigates the effects of ultrafine powder of Mallotus oblongifolius (MOUP) on Hainan pigs. A total of sixty-four healthy castrated pigs (ternary hybrid pigs, Duroc × Duroc × Tunchang) with comparable initial body weight (BW, 68.06 ± 1.03 kg, 150 days old) were allocated randomly into four groups: the control group (CONT), the antibiotic group (ANTI), the 0.1% MOUP group (PT1), and the 0.5% MOUP group (PT2). There were four replicate pens per treatment with four pigs per pen. The pre-test lasted for 7 days and the formal test lasted for 70 days. The CONT group was fed the basal diet, the ANTI group was fed the basal diet supplemented with 300 mg/kg colistin sulfate, the PT1 group was fed the basal diet supplemented with 0.1% MOUP, and the PT2 group was fed the basal diet supplemented with 0.5% MOUP. The findings of our study indicate that the inclusion of colistin sulfate and MOUP in the diet did not have any significant impact on the production performance or carcass indicators of Hainan pigs compared to the CONT group. However, it is noteworthy that the addition of MOUP to the diet resulted in a significant improvement in the lightness, tenderness, muscle fiber morphology, amino acid composition, and antioxidant activity of the longissimus dorsi muscle, particularly in the PT2 group, compared to the CONT group. In conclusion, the present study has demonstrated that the inclusion of MOUP in the dietary regimen yields enhancements in the meat quality of Hainan pigs, particularly when supplemented at a concentration of 0.5%.

Background: Labour dystocia (LAD) in sows is a common reproductive disorder that reduces piglet survival rates and increases the number of stillbirths, causing substantial economic losses to pig farms. However, the genetic basis of LAD remains elusive. Herein, we performed a single-breed genome-wide association study (GWAS) for LAD using imputed whole-genome sequence data from 3263 sows (487 Landrace and 2776 Yorkshire). Results: In this study, analysis of the reproductive traits showed that the total number of piglets born and the number of piglets born alive were 1.43–2.85 and 1.60–2.94 higher, respectively, in sows with natural labour than in those with LAD. We identified 250 and 12 SNPs associated with LAD in primiparous and multiparous sows, respectively. Furthermore, in primiparous Yorkshire sows, two major QTL were fine-mapped to a 498.44 kb interval (23.18–23.68 Mb) on SSC2 and a 779.85 kb interval (43.34–44.12 Mb) on SSC9. Further analysis revealed that the two significant SNPs (2_23340612 and 9_44119733) within these QTL regions were located within regulatory regions across multiple pig breeds and tissues. The potentially regulatory SNP (2_23340612) is located within the binding sites of 27 transcription factors, that are primarily involved in oxytocin signalling, muscle contraction, and the development of female genitalia and embryo. The other potentially regulatory SNP (9_44119733) is located within the binding sites of eight transcription factors, among which three transcription factors (ZNF274, HMGA1, and CTCF) are predicted to interact with six candidate genes ( APOA1 , APOC3 , APOA4 , APOA5 , BUD13 , and ZPR1 ). Finally, eight promising candidate genes ( APOA1 , APOC3 , APOA4 , APOA5 , BUD13 , ZPR1 , ACAN , and HAPLN3 ) were identified to be associated with LAD. Functional enrichment analysis indicated that the candidate genes were enriched in pathways related to lipid metabolism, extracellular matrix organization, cell adhesion and response to estrogen. Conclusions: The LAD is a prominent reproductive disorder trait that negatively impacts the reproductive efficiency of sows. This study identified potentially regulatory SNPs (2_23340612 and 9_44119733) and eight promising genes ( APOA1 , APOC3 , APOA4 , APOA5 , BUD13 , ZPR1 , ACAN , HAPLN3 ) associated with LAD. To our knowledge, this is the first whole-genome-sequence-based GWAS with large-scale reproductive data to identify genetic markers and candidate genes of LAD of sows.