Animals

Back pain in horses is a frequent musculoskeletal issue that affects performance and welfare. Magnetotherapy has been proposed as a complementary, non-invasive treatment to reduce pain and support soft tissue recovery, but studies in horses remain limited. This pilot study aimed to evaluate the effects of low-frequency pulsed magnetic field therapy on horses with hypersensitivity to palpation along the longissimus dorsi muscle. Four recreational horses participated in a 10-session magnetotherapy program, with changes assessed using palpation, neck flexibility tests, heart rate measurements and thermal imaging. Results showed a reduction in pain sensitivity and muscle tension, particularly in the withers, thoracic, lumbar and sacral regions. Heart rate decreased after treatment, which may indicate a relaxing effect. Thermal imaging confirmed that magnetotherapy did not increase surface temperature, confirming its non-thermal nature. No adverse effects or swelling were observed in any of the horses. These findings provide preliminary data from this pilot study, suggesting that magnetotherapy may be a beneficial adjunct in the treatment of back pain in horses, promoting relaxation and pain relief without inducing tissue heating. Further research on larger populations with a negative control group is needed to validate these findings and support broader clinical application.

To meet market supply and demand, producers must accurately schedule processing dates to ensure optimal pricing. This study developed a practical feeding program system for local Taiwanese chicken breeds, including Guzao males, Huangjin females, and Red Junglefowl males. The system integrates daily predictions of cage-level body weight to guide each flock toward a target weight before the planned processing date. Four prediction models were evaluated, including random forest, XGBoost, Extra Trees, and an artificial neural network. The best-performing model was embedded into the system, and an Extra Trees model was used to estimate the total remaining ration and update daily feed allocations under standard feeding conditions. A validation experiment was conducted using a 54-day batch of Guzao males, during which cage-level data were collected. The feed conversion ratio of birds managed under the feeding program was compared with that of conventional feeding. The results provide preliminary support for the feasibility of a data-guided feeding program system with potential agricultural application value, although additional batches and cross-farm evaluations are needed to confirm generalizability and operational performance.

This study investigated the molecular and microbial factors behind the higher disease resistance of hybrid taimen by combining gut microbiome profiling with host transcriptomic analysis of intestinal and liver tissues. Both hybrid taimen and H. taimen were raised under the same recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) conditions. After recording survival rates following three enteritis outbreaks, samples of intestinal contents and tissues were collected from both groups. The gut microbiota was analyzed using full-length 16S rRNA sequencing in PacBio, and host gene expression was assessed with Illumina RNA-seq. Functional predictions were made using PICRUSt2 and Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (GSEA). Results showed that hybrids had significantly higher survival rates after enteritis (p < 0.05). Although microbial alpha diversity was similar, beta diversity revealed slight compositional differences. Hybrids showed higher levels of Hapalosiphon and Tepidimicrobium, microbes associated with antimicrobial compounds and the metabolism of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). Functional predictions indicated enrichment in selenocompound metabolism and ansamycin biosynthesis in hybrids. Transcriptomic analysis identified 4233 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the intestine and 3980 in the liver. In hybrids, intestinal tissues exhibited increased expression of immune pathways, including complement activation, lysosomal activity, and the transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) signaling pathway. Liver tissues demonstrated higher expression of genes related to cholesterol synthesis, fatty acid degradation, and the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) signaling pathway. qRT-PCR validated the expression patterns of 20 selected DEGs. These findings tentatively suggest that the elevated disease resistance of hybrid taimen may be linked, at least in part, to a combination of microbial taxa inferred to produce antimicrobial metabolites and short-chain fatty acids, as well as an apparent intensification of intestinal immune and barrier-related gene expression, and hepatic pathways that possibly support energy supply and steroid-based immunity. However, this multi-omics data set is only correlational. We still do not know whether a single strain or a few host genes are enough to produce the resistant phenotype. Gnotobiotic trials, microbiota transplants, and targeted metabolomics will be necessary to turn these interesting associations into solid evidence.