Search Results (16,861)

Interest in phytotherapy and phytogenic additives in veterinary medicine and animal production has increased considerably, driven by the search for functional alternatives to extensive antimicrobial use and the growing emphasis on food safety. In this context, Curcuma longa L. and its main bioactive compound, curcumin, have attracted attention because of their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory and antimicrobial properties. This review synthesizes recent evidence on the use of C. longa and curcumin in veterinary medicine, with emphasis on the botanical and phytochemical basis of the plant, the main biological mechanisms involved, and reported applications in poultry, swine, ruminants, aquaculture, and companion animals. It further highlights that the interpretation of findings is strongly influenced by botanical identity, phytochemical variability, product type, standardization, dose and route of administration. Available evidence indicates promising effects on antioxidant status, intestinal health, productive performance and hepatic protection in selected experimental models. However, translation into practice remains constrained by the low oral bioavailability of curcumin, formulation heterogeneity and inconsistent reporting. Overall, C. longa represents a promising phytogenic resource, but robust veterinary recommendations require studies in target species, better characterized products and standardized experimental protocols for application. Full article

The agricultural sector, particularly animal production, faces numerous unprecedented challenges driven by climate change, resource depletion, and an ever-growing global demand for quality food. These challenges are further compounded by the increasing environmental impact of livestock farming, including greenhouse gas emissions, overuse of water and land resources, and the destruction of vital ecosystems. Ensuring the sustainability of animal production systems while mitigating the negative environmental impacts of these factors is essential for future global food security. As the demand for animal-derived products continues to rise, there is a pressing need for innovations that can enhance productivity without compromising environmental integrity or animal welfare. Artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a transformative technology with the potential to revolutionize the animal production industry. AI-driven solutions offer promising avenues for optimizing production efficiency, enhancing animal health and welfare, and reducing the environmental footprint of livestock farming. Machine learning, sensor technologies, and advanced data analytics are being increasingly utilized to monitor and predict various aspects of animal farming, such as feed efficiency, disease prevention, and climate resilience. These technologies enable farmers to make data-driven decisions, fostering more sustainable and environmentally responsible practices. This review examines the integration of AI into animal production systems, emphasizing its applications in climate change mitigation, resource management, and advancing sustainability. The discussion addresses how AI technologies can be utilized to improve productivity while minimizing environmental impact and enhancing animal welfare. Additionally, the paper outlines future opportunities, challenges, and potential barriers to integrating AI technologies into livestock farming, thereby ensuring long-term sustainability amid global challenges. Full article

Acerola (Malpighia emarginata DC.) is one of the richest natural sources of vitamin C and an important source of phenolic compounds, carotenoids, and bioactive polysaccharides. Although the fruit can be consumed fresh, it is more commonly processed into juices and frozen pulp, generating substantial amounts of by-products (pomace, peels, and seeds), corresponding to approximately 20–60% of the fruit biomass, with high phytochemical content. These fractions represent underutilized sources of bioactive compounds. This narrative review, supported by a structured literature search, integrates evidence on the phytochemical composition of acerola pulp and its by-products and relates these profiles to biological effects in experimental and human studies, focusing on compound characterization, composition–function relationships, and underlying mechanisms. Key compounds, including ascorbic acid, hydroxycinnamic acids, flavonoids, and polysaccharides, are associated with the modulation of redox homeostasis, inflammatory signaling, and lipid metabolism, particularly under high-fat dietary conditions. Human evidence remains limited but suggests matrix-dependent effects on vitamin C bioavailability and selected cardiometabolic markers. Overall, the evidence is constrained by methodological heterogeneity, limited clinical data, and insufficient characterization of bioactive fractions. Future research should prioritize detailed phytochemical profiling, dose–response relationships, bioavailability assessment, and well-controlled clinical trials incorporating molecular biomarkers, supporting the development of acerola-derived matrices as functional and bioactive-rich ingredients. Full article

The utilization of unconventional feed resources offers a sustainable strategy to mitigate feed shortages particularly in tropical and subtropical regions where access to conventional feeds is often limited. Among these, water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) is one of the world’s most aggressive aquatic weeds, which has drawn attention due to its dual role as a problematic invasive species and a potential livestock feed. This plant reduces water quality, contributes to biodiversity loss and causes economic damage in farming systems. At the same time, its high capacity for nutrient absorption makes it a viable source of protein and energy for ruminants when properly harvested and processed into forms such as hay, dried leaves, and silage. However, its utilization requires caution, as the plant can accumulate toxins and heavy metals from polluted water, which may harm animal health if unprocessed. This review focuses on the potential of water hyacinth to improve ruminant growth performance, nutrient digestibility and rumen fermentation. Including water hyacinth in ruminant diet safely can possibly improve animal productivity, contribute to sustainable weed management and also provide a practical strategy to alleviate feed shortage in dry seasons, thereby encouraging resilience and sustainable ruminant production. Full article

Research on cattle feeding and nutrition has increasingly integrated animal welfare considerations in response to evolving scientific, societal, and production challenges. This study aimed to characterise the global scientific landscape on this topic through a comprehensive bibliometric analysis. A structured methodological framework was applied using the Web of Science database, covering the period from 2009 to 2025, limited to literature published in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. The analysis followed five stages: research design, data collection, analysis, visualisation, and interpretation, using a broad search strategy combining terms related to cattle production, nutrition, feeding, health, stress, and welfare. Bibliometric indicators and science mapping techniques were implemented using the Bibliometrix package in R (Biblioshiny), including collaboration network analysis, keyword co-occurrence, thematic evolution, and Bradford’s Law to identify core journals. In total, 424 documents were analysed. The results showed sustained growth in scientific production, particularly from 2016 onwards, indicating consolidation of the field. Output was concentrated in a limited number of countries, institutions, and journals, supported by increasingly interconnected collaboration networks. Thematic trends revealed a shift towards integrative approaches linking nutrition with stress, health, and productivity, positioning nutrition as a key tool to enhance welfare and efficiency, although behavioural and socio-economic aspects remain underrepresented. Full article

Lameness associated with bacterial chondronecrosis with osteomyelitis (BCO) continues to be an important topic of great interest to global poultry production. Caused by bacterial infection of susceptible necrotic bone tissue, the disease severely affects animal health, welfare, and productivity, leading to significant economic losses annually. In recent years, the Kazakhstan poultry industry has enjoyed significant investment and strong growth, with goals of self-sufficiency within the decade. However, there remains a significant knowledge gap in poultry research in the nation, especially regarding the topic of BCO lameness. As such, this study aims to provide a preliminary evaluation of BCO lesion prevalence in different geographical regions of the country―namely Abai, Almaty, and Akmola. In each region, about 200 broilers from local poultry farms were procured, humanely euthanized, and necropsied to evaluate prevalence of femoral and tibial lesions commonly associated with BCO lameness. On average, most broilers had no damage to femoral head (78.17%) followed by femoral head separation (FHS, 11.94%), while the tibial head saw ubiquitous degrees of damage ranging from severe (71.42%) to observable (23.06%). These findings signify potential underlying issues connected to BCO lameness that will necessitate early management and intervention measures to prevent future spread of the disease. Full article

The aim of this study was to characterize ruminal degradation and postruminal digestibility of dry matter (DM) and crude protein (CP) in full-fat raw soybeans (ffSB), extruded full-fat raw soybeans (effSB) and soybean cake (SBc) derived from three non-GMO locally grown soybean varieties (PETRINA, ERICA and VIOLA). To hasten data interpretation, ruminal degradation and postruminal digestibility of the conventional solvent-extracted soybean meal (SBM) was also investigated. Effective rumen degradation (ERD) of DM was lower for SBc (0.726) than for SBM (0.777; p < 0.001). Independent of soy variety, it was less for SBc than ffSB (0.801) and the least for effSB (0.783; p < 0.001). Intestinal DM digestibility was higher for SBM (0.946) compared to ffSB (0.708) and effSB (0.604), and regardless of soybean variety, it was lower for effSB than for SBc (0.866; p < 0.01). The ERD of CP was higher for ffSB (0.817) compared to SBM (0.6858; p = 0.007), and, independent of soy variety, it was less for SBC (0.773) than ffSB and the lowest for effSB (0.750; p < 0.001). Intestinal digestibility of CP was higher for SBM (0.998) compared to ffSB (0.944), effSB (0.926), and SBc (0.943). Regardless of soybean variety, it was lower for effSB than for ffSB and SBc (p < 0.002). However, interactions between product type and soybean variety were also detected for almost all investigated parameters, except for c for DM and c and ERD for CP (p < 0.001), with variety ERICA showing the lowest ERD and variety PETRINA showing the highest intestinal digestibility. The study demonstrated that the type of soybean processing and soybean variety significantly affected ERD and intestinal digestibility of DM and CP. Soy products (effSB and SBc) produced by the farmer on his own farm from non-GMO soybeans harvested on his own farm can serve as valuable feed material for cattle, making him independent from the need to purchase imported SBM. Full article

Grazing is widely used to manage grasslands, but its effects on plant diversity and community composition are context-dependent. In the Canary Islands, pastures are limited and fragmented but represent some of the most species-rich plant communities. This study evaluates the effects of grazing abandonment and grazing intensity on plant diversity and composition in the mountain pastures of Gran Canaria under wildfire prevention management. Vegetation was surveyed in 11 paired grazed and ungrazed plots across an environmental gradient over two years. Grazing intensity was quantified using livestock GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) tracking, distinguishing low- and high-intensity regimes. A total of 112 plant species were recorded, mostly typical of pasture communities. Species richness remained stable across treatments, grazing intensities, and years (2023–2024), indicating strong short-term resistance. However, species composition varied along the grazing intensity gradient: high-intensity grazing produced more homogeneous communities dominated by grazing-tolerant species, while low-intensity grazing maintained greater variability. Grazing abandonment showed no clear compositional shifts, suggesting delayed responses. Environmental factors such as soil, moisture, temperature, and coastal influence also structured species distributions. Overall, grazing intensity is the main driver of plant community structure, highlighting its importance for biodiversity conservation, wildfire risk reduction, and maintaining traditional pastoral practices. Full article

In intensive animal production, the overuse of antibiotics has exacerbated bacterial antimicrobial resistance and environmental pollution. Together with gut microbiota dysbiosis and recurrent disease outbreaks, these challenges severely constrain the sector’s high-quality development. Quorum sensing (QS), a cell-density-dependent bacterial communication mechanism, can be modulated through agents that specifically inhibit or activate QS circuitry to regulate microbial community functions. Such QS modulators possess notable advantages, such as environmental benignity and high target specificity, and thus offer innovative strategies to decrease antibiotic reliance, enhance production efficiency, and reduce environmental emissions. This review examines QS modulators sourced from plants, microorganisms, animals, and synthetic processes, while highlighting key challenges such as environmental interference, resistance development, high costs, and the lack of standardized biosafety evaluations. Future research should focus on enhancing specificity, stability, affordability, and safety, with an emphasis on rational design, synergistic systems, improved manufacturing processes, and multi-target modulators. This review may provide a theoretical basis for translating QS-regulation technologies into farm-level applications, thereby advancing sustainable animal production and antibiotic-free husbandry. Full article

Fruit production in many crops depends on pollen transfer by animals, and many self-sterile crops rely on long-distance pollen transfer by animals between different genotypes, i.e., between different cultivars. Foragers such as honeybees may need to visit and carry the pollen of more than one cultivar to be effective pollinators, but we currently have little understanding of how many foragers are carrying more than one cultivar of pollen. We determined the number of cultivars carried by honeybees returning to their hive with pollen at two locations in an orchard of a predominantly self-sterile tree crop, macadamia. The locations were either (i) close to only one macadamia cultivar or (ii) between two macadamia cultivars. We sampled honeybees early in the flowering period, when the floral resource availability was lower, and at peak flowering when the resource availability was higher. We identified the cultivars carried by individual honeybees using a SABER-MassARRAY method that distinguishes cultivar-specific SNPs in pollen DNA. We found that most honeybees carried pollen from only one identified macadamia cultivar, regardless of the hive location and time within the flowering period. Only 15% of the honeybees were carrying pollen from more than one identified macadamia cultivar. This suggests that most honeybee foraging visits to flowers in the orchard were unlikely to have resulted in cross-pollination. Pollenizer trees could be interplanted among the main cultivars in macadamia orchards to increase the number of honeybees carrying cross-pollen and increase their pollination efficiency. Full article

Bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV), a significant global pathogen threatening cattle industries worldwide, presents substantial challenges for disease control. Its ability to infect cattle across all age groups, coupled with incompletely understood transmission mechanisms, complicates prevention and treatment strategies. We previously reported that BVDV induced tunneling nanotubes (TNTs)—F-actin-rich cytoplasmic connections between adjacent cells—and utilizes these structures for intercellular transmission. In this study, we used lentiviral transfection to express various structural and non-structural proteins of BVDV and identified NS5A as a critical viral protein that induces the formation of TNTs. RNA-seq analysis revealed that CKAP2, a host protein, plays a key role in TNT generation, with the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway being essential for this process. Further investigation demonstrated that CKAP2 interacts with BVDV NS5A, triggering the activation of the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway, thereby promoting TNT formation and enhancing viral dissemination. Our data highlight a previously unknown mechanism of BVDV spreading and replication, which could have significant implications for within-host spread and immune evasion. Full article

Lignocellulosic agricultural residues are abundant yet underutilized despite their potential for sustainable bioconversion. This study evaluated spent mushroom substrate (SMS) from Pleurotus ostreatus cultivation and roots of leafy vegetables (RLV) as alternative substrates for Pleurotus production, using wheat straw as a control. Two species, P. ostreatus and P. citrinopileatus, were cultivated on different SMS/RLV ratios and the immunomodulatory potential of harvested mushrooms was assessed. Specifically, protein (PE-D-P3 < 3 kDa) and carbohydrate (CE-D) fractions obtained after in vitro digestion were applied to LPS-challenged THP-1 cells and immune-related gene expression was analyzed by qPCR. Both species significantly modulated immune responses. The PE-D-P3 showed a more pronounced immunomodulatory effect, significantly downregulating IL1B, IL6 and TNF, whereas the CE-D reduced only TNF expression. Substrate composition influenced bioactivity: PE-D-P3 from SMS 80-RLV 20% resulted in the greatest reduction in IL1B, IL6 and TNF, while CE-D from SMS 60-RLV 40% reduced IL1B and CXCL8. These findings provide insights that both fungal species and substrate composition influence immunomodulatory compound production. Valorizing lignocellulosic residues through optimized mushroom cultivation represents a sustainable strategy for producing functional ingredients with applications in human and animal health, particularly for preventing inflammation-related disorders. Full article

Sex control technology has become a key technique in aquatic animal breeding, as many aquatic species exhibit distinct sexual dimorphism in growth, reproduction, immunity, and other economically important traits. Therefore, methods such as regulating sex ratios and establishing unisexual populations can significantly enhance aquaculture productivity and breeding efficiency. Recent years have seen a rapid advancement in the field of research on the mechanisms of sex determination and differentiation in aquatic animals, as well as sex control technologies. This review summarizes the latest advances in research on the mechanisms of sex formation in aquatic animals, including genetic sex determination, environmental sex determination, and genotype-environment interactions. Furthermore, this review outlines the major sex-linked genes and molecular markers used for genetic sex identification, introduces key male and female regulatory factors involved in gonadal differentiation, and explores the application of major sex control methods in aquaculture breeding, including techniques such as interspecific hybridization, environmental regulation, hormone induction, parthenogenesis, and gene editing. Full article

This review analyzes the economic, social, and environmental dimensions of water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) production and its contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A scoping review following PRISMA-ScR guidelines was conducted using the Web of Science (2020–2026), resulting in 225 included studies. Buffalo production is a multipurpose system that generates value through milk, meat, hides, manure, draft power, and animal-assisted services, with greater longevity than most livestock species. Economically, it supports income diversification, resource efficiency, and functions as a financial asset that can be sold to cover unexpected expenses. Socially, it enhances food security by providing nutrient-dense products, particularly milk with bioactive compounds associated with potential health benefits, and promotes women’s participation in livestock management and household economies. Environmentally, buffalo systems efficiently utilize low-quality forages, are adapted to marginal conditions, contribute to wetland conservation, and provide ecosystem services. These contributions align with several SDGs (1, 2, 5, 8, 12, 13, and 15). However, sector expansion is constrained by limitations in nutrition, management, veterinary services, and reproductive efficiency, as well as environmental challenges related to methane emissions and life cycle impacts. While global methane emissions from buffalo are lower due to their smaller population, emission intensity remains system-dependent and represents a critical challenge. In conclusion, water buffalo production represents a multifunctional and context-dependent system with significant potential to support sustainable development, although targeted innovations are required to improve productivity and address environmental challenges. Future research should integrate One Health and One Welfare approaches, develop long-term studies, and expand research under diverse experimental and field conditions to better characterize the potential health implications of buffalo-derived products. In addition, strengthening circular economy strategies, including region-specific diets to reduce emissions, remains a priority. Full article

This study explicitly assesses how crop and livestock production, along with real labor productivity, affect greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture across the European Union (EU), considering both per capita and total emissions. Using annual Eurostat data for EU Member States from 2008 to 2024, the research applies multiple regression models and a multivariate General Linear Model (GLM) to evaluate structural relationships, complemented by Holt exponential smoothing and ARIMA models to analyze temporal dynamics and generate forecasts. The empirical results indicate that crop and livestock production have a statistically significant positive effect on emissions, while real labor productivity has a significant negative impact. The models explain over 92% of the variation in total emissions and over 95% of the variation in per capita emissions, confirming strong explanatory power. Forecasts show continued growth in agricultural output but a declining trend in per capita emissions, primarily driven by productivity improvements. These findings demonstrate that improvements in labor efficiency and technological progress can partially offset the environmental pressures associated with increased agricultural production. The study concludes that achieving climate-neutral agriculture in the EU is feasible through sustained productivity gains and innovation-driven transformation. Full article