Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Jan Pytlík Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic Author-Name: Filipp Georgijevič Savvulidi Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic Author-Name: Jaromír Ducháček Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic Author-Name: Radim Codl Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic Author-Name: Marek Vrhel Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic Author-Name: Szabolcs Nagy Author-Workplace-Name: Institute of Animal Sciences, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Georgikon Campus, Keszthely, Hungary Author-Name: Luděk Stádník Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Prague, Czech Republic Title: Effect of extender on the quality and incubation resilience of cryopreserved Holstein bull semen Abstract: There are still concerns over sperm quality when plant-based diluents are used instead of animal-based semen extenders. Therefore, in our study we compared the effects of one soybean lecithin-based (AndroMed®) and two egg yolk-based (BullXcell® and Optidyl®) commercially available extenders on post-thaw in vitro sperm quality. Fifty ejaculates collected from ten bulls were aliquoted into three parts and diluted with the above-mentioned extenders. Post-thaw sperm viability, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), plasma membrane integrity, and acrosome status were analysed immediately after thawing (0 h) and at an hourly interval during 2-h incubation at 38 °C. Sperm functionality variables were assessed by simultaneous quadruple staining using flow cytometry. Semen stored in Optidyl® had a greater viability, plasma membrane and acrosome integrity than that stored in AndroMed® and BullXcell® (P < 0.05). With the use of BullXcell® there was a higher percentage of sperm with high MMP (P < 0.05) when compared with the other extenders. The incubation affected the development of sperm quality parameters differently as the variables related to the plasma membrane showed an increase, while MMP and acrosome integrity showed a decline. Although the semen from all bulls responded to treatments in a similar manner, significant intra- and inter-male differences were found. In conclusion, the results clearly displayed the beneficial effects of egg yolk over soybean lecithin supplementation on in vitro sperm quality. Keywords: bovine, frozen-thawed semen, flow cytometry, thermoresistance Journal: Czech Journal of Animal Science Pages: 75-86 Volume: 67 Issue: 3 Year: 2022 DOI: 10.17221/196/2021-CJAS File-URL: http://cjas.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/196/2021-CJAS.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/cjs-202203-0001.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlcjs:v:67:y:2022:i:3:id:196-2021-CJAS Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Lenka Krpálková Author-Name: Niall O'Mahony Author-Workplace-Name: Lero - The Irish Software Research Centre, Department of Agricultural and Manufacturing Engineering, School of Science Technology Engineering and Maths (STEM), Kerry Campus, Munster Technological University, Tralee, Ireland Author-Name: Anderson Carvalho Author-Workplace-Name: Lero - The Irish Software Research Centre, Department of Agricultural and Manufacturing Engineering, School of Science Technology Engineering and Maths (STEM), Kerry Campus, Munster Technological University, Tralee, Ireland Author-Name: Sean Campbell Author-Workplace-Name: Lero - The Irish Software Research Centre, Department of Agricultural and Manufacturing Engineering, School of Science Technology Engineering and Maths (STEM), Kerry Campus, Munster Technological University, Tralee, Ireland Author-Name: Joseph Walsh Author-Workplace-Name: Lero - The Irish Software Research Centre, Department of Agricultural and Manufacturing Engineering, School of Science Technology Engineering and Maths (STEM), Kerry Campus, Munster Technological University, Tralee, Ireland Title: Association of rumination with milk yield of early, mid and late lactation dairy cows Abstract: Identification of the associations of cow feeding behaviour with milk yield (MY) is important for supporting recommendations of strategies that optimize MY. The objective of this study was to identify associations between measures of rumination time (RT) and MY using data collated from 2 777 dairy cows on nine commercial dairy farms during the years 2017 to 2019. A database contained behaviour and daily MY data. Cows averaged (mean ± standard deviation) 2.7 ± 1.6 lactations, 153 ± 81 days in milk, and 23.2 ± 7.5 kg/day of MY during the observation period. Behavioural data included RT (504 ± 93 min/day), feeding time (FT) (479 ± 110 min/day), resting time (360 ± 94 min/day), and activity time (96 ± 45 min/day). The coefficient of variation for RT (min/day) was 18.5%. The behavioural differences observed in this study provide a new insight into the effects of RT and FT on MY. MY was positively associated with RT in early and mid-lactation dairy cows with correlation coefficients of 0.24 (P < 0.001) and 0.25 (P < 0.001), respectively. The mean level of rumination time (MRT) was shown to be correlated with total MY produced over the whole lactation (305 days). The differences in MY between the highest and lowest MRT groups of cows were 1 735 kg, 2 617 kg and 1 941 kg in the first, second and third lactation, respectively. High-yielding dairy cows in early (≥ 23 kg/day) and mid (≥ 30 kg/day) lactation achieved the highest RT (522 ± 3.54 min/day and 507 ± 3.17 min/day, P < 0.05) and the highest FT (457 ± 4.69 min/day and 496 ± 4.00 min/day, P < 0.05), respectively. Cows in the highest MY groups also had the lowest activity and resting times during the most productive (early and mid) phases of lactation (P < 0.05), which is in agreement with our finding that more productive cows spend a greater proportion of their time feeding and ruminating. Keywords: accelerometer, behaviour, MilkBot model, Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm, precision dairy farming, MooMonitor+ Journal: Czech Journal of Animal Science Pages: 87-101 Volume: 67 Issue: 3 Year: 2022 DOI: 10.17221/94/2021-CJAS File-URL: http://cjas.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/94/2021-CJAS.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/cjs-202203-0002.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlcjs:v:67:y:2022:i:3:id:94-2021-CJAS Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Mohsin Raza Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Physiology, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan Author-Name: Muhammad Shahbaz Yousaf Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Physiology, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan Author-Name: Jamal Ahmad Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Animal Nutrition, Ravi Campus-Pattoki, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan Author-Name: Muhammad Afzal Rashid Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Animal Nutrition, Ravi Campus-Pattoki, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan Author-Name: Khalid Abdul Majeed Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Physiology, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan Author-Name: Sajid Khan Tahir Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Physiology, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan Author-Name: Shumaila Ashraf Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Physiology, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan Author-Name: Muhammad Numan Author-Workplace-Name: Veterinary Research Institute, Lahore, Pakistan Author-Name: Abia Khalid Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Physiology, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan Author-Name: Habib ur Rehman Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Physiology, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan Title: Prebiotics supplementation modulates pre-weaning stress in male cattle calves by improving growth performance, health scores and serum biomarkers Abstract: Neonatal calves are prone to gastrointestinal infections and microbial dysbiosis that lead to high morbidity and mortality. Prebiotics can be used to mitigate the adverse effects of gut diseases and microbial dysbiosis. Forty male Holstein-Friesian calves (2 ± 1 day old) were divided into four dietary treatments: control (milk without prebiotics), YCW-2, YCW-4 (milk containing 2 or 4 g/day/calf of yeast cell wall, respectively), and cMOS (milk containing commercial mannan-oligosaccharides 4 g/day/calf). Milk intake, feed intake, and health scores were recorded daily, whereas body weight, dry matter intake (DMI), and body measurements were recorded weekly. Feed efficiency (FE) was determined at the end of the trial (eight weeks). Cell-mediated immunity (CMI) was assessed by the topical application of dinitrochlorobenzene. Blood samples were collected fortnightly to determine glucose, non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), and beta-hydroxybutyric acid (βHBA). Cell wall supplemented calves had significantly higher (P < 0.05) final body weights, DMI, and body measurements along with improved (P < 0.05) faecal scores. Feed intake was higher (P < 0.05) in both the YCW-supplemented calves. Glucose was lower (P < 0.001), whereas BUN and βHBA were significantly higher in the YCW-2 animals. No differences were observed in FE, CMI, and NEFA between all the experimental animals. The yeast cell wall (2 g) may have the potential to improve the growth performance and health status of neonatal calves. Keywords: cattle calf, yeast cell wall, structural development, blood metabolites, immunity Journal: Czech Journal of Animal Science Pages: 102-113 Volume: 67 Issue: 3 Year: 2022 DOI: 10.17221/70/2021-CJAS File-URL: http://cjas.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/70/2021-CJAS.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/cjs-202203-0003.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlcjs:v:67:y:2022:i:3:id:70-2021-CJAS Template-Type: ReDIF-Article 1.0 Author-Name: Antonella Dalle Zotte Author-Name: Gianluca Pranzo Author-Workplace-Name: Department of Animal Medicine, Production and Health, Agripolis, University of Padova, Padova, Italy Title: Effects of dried Portulaca oleracea supplementation to the laying hen diet on productive performance, egg physical traits, fatty acid composition, and cholesterol content Abstract: Portulaca oleracea is a widespread herbaceous plant particularly rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), antioxidant compounds and characterised by a healthy omega-6/omega-3 ratio. The focus of this research was to evaluate the effects of Portulaca oleracea supplementation to the diet of laying hens on productive performance, egg physical traits, fatty acid composition and cholesterol content. Twenty-six 24-week-old Warren strain layers were randomly assigned to two different groups of 18 and eight birds, respectively: one group received a commercial diet (C) whereas the other group was given the same control diet supplemented with 20% of dried Portulaca oleracea (PO). Hens were fed for 21 days. Feed and water were provided ad libitum. The poor palatability of the PO diet compromised the optimisation of the productive performance, with a significant reduction of the oviposition efficiency (0.69 vs 0.88 for PO and C, respectively; P < 0.05) and egg physical traits. Considering the egg nutritional traits, dietary PO significantly decreased the yolk proportion of saturated fatty acid (43.0% vs 44.1%, P < 0.05), while it increased the content of PUFA (19.4% vs 17.8%, P < 0.001), and within the latter, both omega-6 and omega-3 proportion significantly increased in comparison with C group (16.4% vs 17.6%, P < 0.001 and 1.46% vs 1.80%, P < 0.001, for n-6 and n-3, respectively). This resulted in an improvement of the omega-6/omega-3 ratio (10.4 vs 11.3 for PO and C, respectively; P < 0.05). Egg yolk cholesterol content did not vary between dietary treatments. It could be concluded that the use of Portulaca oleracea for producing omega-3-enriched eggs is feasible once the problem of palatability has been overcome and the energy requirements of the hens have been covered. Keywords: egg quality, omega-3 fatty acids, poultry, purslane, yolk Journal: Czech Journal of Animal Science Pages: 114-123 Volume: 67 Issue: 3 Year: 2022 DOI: 10.17221/9/2022-CJAS File-URL: http://cjas.agriculturejournals.cz/doi/10.17221/9/2022-CJAS.html File-Format: text/html X-File-Ref: http://agriculturejournals.cz/RePEc/caa/references/cjs-202203-0004.txt Handle: RePEc:caa:jnlcjs:v:67:y:2022:i:3:id:9-2022-CJAS