Mariano Pauselli

Milk fatty acid composition, rumen microbial population, and animal performances in response to diets rich in linoleic acid supplemented with chestnut or quebracho tannins in dairy ewes

The aim of the study was to evaluate milk fatty acid (FA) profile, animal performance, and rumen microbial population in response to diets containing soybean oil supplemented or not with chestnut and quebracho tannins in dairy ewes. Eighteen Comisana ewes at 122±6 d in milking were allotted into 3 experimental groups. Diets were characterized by chopped grass hay administered ad libitum and by 800 g/head and day of 3 experimental concentrates containing 84.5 g of soybean oil/kg of dry matter (DM) and 52.8 g/kg of DM of bentonite (control diet), chestnut tannin extract (CHT diet), or quebracho tannin extract (QUE diet). The trial lasted 4 wk. Milk yield was recorded daily, and milk composition and blood parameters were analyzed weekly. At the end of the experiment, samples of rumen fluid were collected to analyze pH, volatile fatty acid profile, and the relative proportions of Butyrivibrio fibrisolvens and Butyrivibrio proteoclasticus in the rumen microbial population. Hepatic functionality, milk yield, and gross composition were not affected by tannin extracts, whereas milk FA composition was characterized by significant changes in the concentration of linoleic acid (CHT +2.77% and QUE +9.23%), vaccenic acid (CHT +7.07% and QUE +13.88%), rumenic acid (CHT -1.88% and QUE +24.24%), stearic acid (CHT + 8.71% and QUE -11.45%), and saturated fatty acids (CHT -0.47% and QUE -3.38%). These differences were probably due to the ability of condensed versus hydrolyzable tannins to interfere with rumen microbial metabolism, as indirectly confirmed by changes in the relative proportions of B. fibrisolvens and B. proteoclasticus populations and by changes in the molar proportions of volatile fatty acids. The effect of the CHT diet on the milk FA profile and microbial species considered in this trial was intermediate between that of QUE and the control diet, suggesting a differential effect of condensed and hydrolyzable tannins on rumen microbes. Compared with control animals, the presence of B. fibrisolvens increased about 3 times in ewes fed CHT and about 5 times in animals fed QUE. In contrast, the abundance of B. proteoclasticus decreased about 5- and 15-fold in rumen liquor of ewes fed CHT and QUE diets, respectively. The use of soybean oil and a practical dose of QUE or CHT extract in the diet of dairy ewes can be an efficient strategy to improve the nutritional quality of milk.

Use of Dried Stoned Olive Pomace in the Feeding of Lactating Buffaloes: Effect on the Quantity and Quality of the Milk Produced

Dried stoned olive pomace (DSOP) was administered to dairy water buffaloes, and their productive performance and milk composition were analysed. Sixteen pluriparous lactating buffaloes were divided into two uniform groups (control and experimental), taking into consideration the following parameters: milk production (2,192 and 2,102 kg) and duration of lactation (254 and 252 d) of the previous year, distance from calving (51 and 43 d), milk production (9.71 and 10.18 kg/d), body condition score (BCS) (6.44 and 6.31) and weight (617 and 653 kg) at the beginning of the trial. Both diets had the same formulation: second cut alfalfa hay 20%, corn silage 42%, concentrate 38% but the two concentrates differed in their formulation, the experimental one contained 15.50% of DSOP as fed. The employed DSOP showed high amounts of secoiridoids, such as 3,4-dihydroxyphenylethanol (3,4-DHPEA) (1.2 g/kg DM), 3,4-dihydroxyphenylethanol-elenolic acid di-aldehyde (3,4-DHPEA-EDA) (12.6 g/kg DM), p-hydroxyphenylethanol-elenolic acid di-aldehyde (p-HPEA-EDA) (5.6 g/kg DM) and lignans, which are known to be powerful bioactive compounds. The control diet had an energy-protein content of 0.86 Milk FU/kg DM and 143.3 g/kg DM of crude protein, whereas the experimental diet of 0.87 Milk FU/kg DM and 146.6 g/kg DM of crude protein. Each animal of the two groups received 17 kg DM/d and each buffalo of the experimental group, by way of the concentrate, ingested 1.05 kg DM/d of DSOP. The trial lasted 40 days. No significant difference was found between the BCS (6.41 and 6.53), live weight (625.93 and 662.50 kg) and milk production (9.69 and 10.08 kg/d) of the two groups, as was the case for fat, protein, lactose, pH and coagulating parameters of the two milks. The milk fat of the experimental group had a significantly higher content of total tocopherols (10.45 vs 8.60 μg/g, p<0.01) and retinol (3.17 vs 2.54 μg/g, p<0.01). The content of the reactive substances with tiobarbituric acid (TBARs) was significantly lower in the milk fat of the experimental group (12.09 vs 15.05 μg MDA/g, p<0.01). The acid content of the milk fat of the experimental group had a significantly higher content (p<0.05) of C18:0 and of C18:3ω6. LC-MS/MS analysis showed the presence of 3,4-DHPEA (36.0 μg/L) in the milk of the DSOP-fed buffaloes, while other phenols were not found. DSOP, in the quantity utilized, can be used in the feeding of the lactating buffalo; the dietetic-nutritional characteristics of the milk are improved due to a greater contribution of tocopherols, retinol and the presence of hydroxytyrosol.

The use of stoned olive cake and rolled linseed in the diet of intensively reared lambs: effect on the intramuscular fatty-acid composition.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of the inclusion of stoned olive cake and rolled linseed in a concentrate-based diet for lambs on the fatty-acid composition of polar and non-polar intramuscular lipids of the longissimus dorsi muscle. To achieve this objective, 32 Appenninica lambs were randomly distributed into four groups of eight lambs each and were fed conventional cereal-based concentrates (diet C); concentrates containing 20% on a dry matter (DM) basis of rolled linseed (diet L); concentrates containing 35% DM of stoned olive cake (diet OC); and concentrates containing both rolled linseed (10% DM) and stoned olive cake (17% DM; diet OCL). The concentrates were administered together with grass hay at a 20:80 forage:concentrate ratio. Growing performances and carcass traits were evaluated. The fatty-acid composition was analysed in the total intramuscular lipids, as well as in the polar and neutral lipids. The average feed intake and the growth performance of lambs were not affected by the dietary treatments, as a consequence of similar nutritional characteristics of the diets. The inclusion of rolled linseed in the L and OCL diets increased the content of C18:3 n-3 in intramuscular total lipids, which was threefold higher in meat from the L lambs and more than twofold higher in meat from the OCL lambs compared with the C and OC treatments. The n-6:n-3 ratio significantly decreased in the meat from lambs in the L and OCL groups, reaching values below 3. The L treatment resulted in the highest level of trans-18:1 fatty acids in the muscle. Regardless of the dietary treatment, the t10-18:1 was the major isomer, representing 55%, 45%, 49% and 45% of total trans-18:1 for C, L, OC and OCL treatments, respectively. Neutral lipids from the OC-fed lambs contained the highest amount of c9-18:1 (more than 36% of total fatty acids); however, the content of c9-18:1 did not differ between the OC and C lambs, suggesting an intensive biohydrogenation of dietary c9-18:1 in the case of OC treatment. The highest content of c9,t11-18:2 was detected in the intramuscular fat from the L-fed lambs, followed by the OCL treatment. A similar trend was observed in the neutral lipid fraction and, to a lower extent, in the polar lipids.

Volatiles in raw and cooked meat from lambs fed olive cake and linseed

This study was conducted to determine the effects of feeding olive cake and linseed to lambs on the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in raw and cooked meat. Four groups of eight male Appenninica lambs each were fed: conventional cereal-based concentrates (diet C), concentrates containing 20% on a dry matter (DM) basis of rolled linseed (diet L), concentrates containing 35% DM of stoned olive cake (diet OC), or concentrates containing both rolled linseed (10% DM) and stoned olive cake (17% DM; diet OCL). The longissimus dorsi muscle of each lamb was sampled at slaughter and was subjected to VOC profiling through the use of SPME-GC-MS. In the raw meat, the concentration of 3-methylpentanoic acid was higher in treatment C as compared with treatments L, OC and OCL (P<0.01). Moreover the level of nonanoic acid was greater in treatments C and OC than in treatment L (P<0.05). With respect to alcohols, in raw meat the amount of 2-phenoxyethanol in treatment OCL was lower than in treatments C (P<0.01) and OC (P<0.05), while in cooked meat the amount of 1-pentanol was higher in treatment C than in treatment OC (P<0.05). Apart from these compounds, none of the lipid oxidation-derived volatiles was significantly affected by the dietary treatment. Therefore, the results suggest that the replacement of cereal concentrates with linseed and/or olive cake did not cause appreciable changes in the production of volatile organic compounds in lamb meat.

Different protein source (soybean or faba bean) in postweaning diets for Apennine and Sopravissana (Italian Merino) light lamb: slaughtering performances

Riassunto Differente fonte proteica (soia o favino) in diete postsvezzamento per agnelli leggeri Appenninici o Sopravissani (Merino Italiani): rilievi alla macellazione. Trentasei agnelli delle razze Appenninica (AP) e Sopravissana (IM) sono stati sottoposti ad un breve finissaggio post-svezzamento in stalla, allo scopo di valutare la possibilità di ottenere agnelli leggeri in intensivo, utilizzando un fieno comune e dei concentrati con differente fonte proteica: farina di estrazione di soia (SBM) e favino fioccato (FFB), per l’esigenza di trovare fonti alternative alla soia sia dal punto di vista agronomico che da quello legato alla sicurezza rispetto agli OGM. La prova ha evidenziato differenze di performance sia, com’era da attendersi, tra animali di razza differente (resa netta: 55,56 vs. 52,39% in AP e IM), sia tra soggetti alimentati con diete diverse, a scapito della soia, sia per quanto riguarda le rese (55,49 vs. 52,46% in FFB e SBM) che per le caratteristiche delle carcasse.

Effect of somatic cell count and lactation stage on sheep milk quality

Abstract In order to evaluate the effects of mammary health status and lactation phase on the qualitative parameters of ovine milk, 213 individual milk samples were repeatedly collected from 40 primiparous Sarda ewes on a monthly basis. Yield, physico-chemical characteristics, casein fractions quantitative distribution, somatic cell count (SCC), cheese making properties and plasmin-plasminogen activity were determined on each sample. Repeated individual milk SCC were used as a marker of udder health status, allowing the definition of three classes: “Healthy” (H), “Infected” (I) or “Doubtful” (D). Samples were grouped into 4 classes of days in milk (DIM). To evaluate the influence of mammary health status and phase of lactation, a mixed model was performed using the ewe as random effect. Milk physico-chemical parameters were influenced both by the udder health status and by lactation phase. In particular, the udder health status adversely affected ケs1 and ゲ1-casein fractions (P00.01) and curd firmness (P00.05). Samples reactive to rennet were 92.73%, 70.65% and 64.60% in “H”, “D” and “I,” respectively. Lactation phase influenced the overall milk composition and technological characteristics. Plasmin activity was higher in the “I” group than in the others (16.1 vs 11.8 and 11.2 U/ml; P00.01) and it significantly (P00.01) increased during lactation. In conclusion, both mastitis and mammary involution are proven to exert a detrimental effect on milk quality since they enhance its endogenous proteolytic activity.

Organic livestock production systems as a model of sustainability development.

Abstract Organic farming and livestock production offer effective means of satisfying consumer demand for healthy and safe foods and reducing the environmental pressure of agricultural production. In Mediterranean areas organic livestock production could be considered a feasible systems to improve rural development in unfavourable areas and to maintain rural landscape. Constrains, like pasture availability during the year, determine the evolution of different strategies in livestock rearing to improve or maintain net income of population. Moreover the evaluation of the sustainability using a holistic approach using assessment criteria like Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Emergy Assessment could be considered models to evaluate organic and conventional livestock production sustainability and at the same time new research fields.

Consumer acceptance of Italian or New Zealander lamb meat: an Italian case study

Abstract A Central location test was performed to compare heavy Apennine lamb meat to New Zealander lamb meat in order to create a Protected Geographical Indication for lamb meat. Roasted New-Zealander and heavy Apennine lamb legs were tested by 106 consumers according to the following experimental plan: blind phase (B) without any possibility to recognize the meat type tasted, expected phase (E) in which were described the characteristics of the two types of meat without tasting, informed phase (I) in which the tasted meat was recognized in provenience. Results showed in a nine point scale of appreciation for flavour, juiciness and overall pleasure, the highest values in Apennine lamb meat. B test showed the highest value for overall pleasure (P<0.01). Interaction, Italian lamb x Informed test showed the highest values for all the parameters except for overall liking for which Italian lamb x E test showed the highest values. About foreign lamb meat B test showed higher values than I and E test. Information about lamb meat origin showed disconfirmation for tenderness in Italian lamb meat. Foreign lamb meat showed a positive disconfirmation for flavour and overall pleasure, that confirm the better perception by consumers in blind consumption than in the informed one.

Supplementation of Nigella sativa seeds to Barbarine lambs raised on low- or high-concentrate diets: Effects on meat fatty acid composition and oxidative stability

Twenty-eight Barbarine male lambs were used to investigate the effect of dietary Nigella sativa seeds (NSS) on meat fatty acids and oxidative stability in two different feeding systems (high- or low-concentrate). Dietary treatments were planned to offer: 70% barley hay and 30% concentrate (LC); LC+12g/day of NSS (LCN); 30% barley hay and 70% concentrate (HC); HC+12g/day of NSS (HCN). NSS increased intramuscular fat only in the low-concentrate system (P=0.039); accordingly, the content of 14:0, c-9 14:1, t-9 18:1, t-11 18:1 and both individual and sum of odd and branched chain fatty acids were greater in LCN than LC meat. TBARS in raw meat increased from 0 to 3days of refrigerated storage regardless NSS supplementation. From 3 to 6days, TBARS further increased only in the meat from lambs not receiving NSS. At 6-days storage, TBARS were lower (P<0.05) in the meat of lambs receiving NSS compared to the meat of lambs not receiving NSS.

Effect of age and feeding area on meat quality of wild boars

Abstract The stomach content and samples of Longissimus dorsi muscle of 32 feral wild boars were collected in two different feeding areas (forest and farmland) of Umbria region (Italy). The animals from each feeding area were divided into two age classes: class 1 (12–24 months of age; 48 kg average weight) and class 2 (animals older than 2 years of age; 84 kg average weight). The major food categories consumed were hard mast and crops (89.02–75.98%). The L*(lightness) and a*(red to green colour) values of the meat were affected by the feeding area as well as the b*(yellow colour) value; the age significantly affected only the a* and the b* value of the meat. The α-tocopherol was the most abundant vitamin E homologue, ranged between 520.63 and 1881.33 ng/g and was higher in farmland areas. The index of lipid oxidation (TBARS) ranged from 0.093 and 0.140 mg MDA/kg and was higher in wild boars from farmland. The monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) ranged between 38.36 and 46.75% and were higher in wild boar of class 2. The total polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) as well as PUFAn-6 were affected by age, while PUFAn-3 was only affected by feeding area and ranged from 0.91 and 1.99 in farmland and forest, respectively. The feeding area affects the intramuscular fat contents in terms of nutritional characteristics of the meat: the n-6/n-3 ratio that was lower in meat from animals hunted in the forest area (p ≤ .001), as well as the ARA/(EPA + DHA) ratio (p ≤ .01).