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Supplementation with copper (Cu) improves deer antler characteristics, but it could modify meat quality and increase its Cu content to levels potentially harmful for humans. Here, we studied the effects of Cu bolus supplementation by means on quality and composition of sternocephalicus (ST) and rectus abdominis (RA) muscles (n=13 for each one) from yearling male red deer fed with a balanced diet. Each intraruminal bolus, containing 3.4 g of Cu, was administered orally in the treatment group to compare with the control group. Meat traits studied were pH at 24 h postmortem (pH24), colour, chemical composition, cholesterol content, fatty acid (FA) composition, amino acid (AA) profile and mineral content. In addition, the effect of Cu supplementation on mineral composition of liver and serum (at 0 and 90 days of treatment) was analysed. No interactions between Cu supplementation and muscle were observed for any trait. Supplementation with Cu increased the protein content of meat (P, This work was supported by INCYDEN Project (grant no. RTC-2016-5327-2) (Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad and the European Union Fund for Regional Development) and Project 01110AB020 funded by Excma. Diputación Provincial de Albacete. J. M. Lorenzo is a member of the MARCARNE network, funded by CYTED (ref. 116RT0503).

A recent study showed that antlers have evolved a high rate of growth due to the expression of proto-oncogenes and that they have also evolved to express several tumour suppressor genes to control the risk of cancer. This may explain why deer antler velvet (DAV) extract shows anti-tumour activity. The fast growth of antler innervation through the velvet in close association to blood vessels provides a unique environment to study the fast but non-cancerous proliferation of heterogeneous cell populations. We set out to study the anti-cancer effect of DAV in glioblastoma (GB) cell lines in comparison with temozolomide, a chemotherapeutic drug used to treat high-grade brain tumours. Here we report, for the first time, that DAV extract from the tip, but not from mid-parts of the antler, exhibits an anti-tumour effect in GB cell lines (T98G and A172) while being non-toxic in non-cancerous cell lines (HEK293 and HACAT). In T98G cells, DAV treatment showed reduced proliferation (37.5%) and colony-formation capacity (84%), inhibited migration (39%), induced changes in cell cycle progression, and promoted apoptosis. The anticancer activity of DAV extract as demonstrated by these results may provide a new therapeutic strategy for GB treatment., The authors are thankful to the Fundación del Hospital Nacional de Parapléjicos (Toledo, Spain) and the Spanish Ministry of Economy (Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad, Madrid, Spain) for financial support. L. C. is thankful to FNHP for the research fellowship (398764, 2018/6003). T. L. C., M. P., J. P., and A. G. are co-funded by the Estate program of Research, Innovation, and Development oriented towards Challenges of Society, by the European Union (reference number RTC-2016-5327-2) and by Counselling of Education, Culture, and Sports of Castilla-La Mancha [project no. SBPLY/19/180501/000115)].

The objective of European Union legislation on agriculture, livestock, and food production is to protect the human health. Several studies have shown the benefits of Mediterranean diet on human health. Some basic foods of the Mediterranean diet are produced in Spain. It is the case of bread (soft wheat), olive oil, Iberian cured products or wine, whose legislation is reviewed in the next chapter. It should be noted that, as an EU Member State, Spanish food legislation can be divided into community provisions, state provisions, and autonomic provisions.

Climatic models predict scenarios in which ambient temperature will continue increasing worldwide. Under these climatic conditions, fitness and animal welfare of many populations are expected to suffer, especially those that live in captive or semi-natural conditions, where opportunities of heat abatement are limited. We undertook an experimental design to assess the effect of heat abatement that water sprinkling might have on Iberian red deer calf growth and behaviour from birth to weaning (135 days). One group of ten mother-calf pairs lived on plots with water sprinkling (treatment) available during summer’s hottest time of the day, while the control group (nine mother-calf pairs) occupied plots with no available water sprinkling. Treatment and control groups were fed ad libitum and swapped between plots every seven days to minimise any plot effect. Body weight was monitored weekly and individual behaviour was recorded once or twice a week at mid-day. We observed that calves had showers under the sprinklers and wallowed in mud puddles. The results clearly indicated that calves of the treatment group showed a significant increase in body weight at weaning in comparison with the control group, with no differences between sexes (treatment: male = 56.5 kg, female = 50.3 kg; control: male = 50.3 kg, female = 46.5 kg). Mother weight and mother age effects were negligible on calf body weight at weaning. The heavier the mother the faster was the rate of growth of its offspring, irrespective of calf sex. The model indicated that although males grew significantly slower than female calves in the control group, males grew faster than females when exposed to the treatment. Calves of the treatment group spent less time drinking, less time in the shade, similar time eating and more time in motion than calves of the control group. There were no behavioural differences between calf sexes of treatment and control groups. The results indicate the importance of providing animals with opportunities of heat abatement in hot environments to improve animal growth and welfare in farmed Iberian red deer., The authors are grateful to Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (Retos-Colaboración program, Project INCYDEN, RTC-2016-5327-2) and Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha (research project SBPLY/19/180501/000115) and programe Beatriz Galindo 2020 (Plan Estatal de Política Científica y Técnica y de Innovación CNU/692/2019) for financial support.

This experiment evaluated the interactive effects among xylanase (XL; 0, 8,000, 16,000, and 32,000 BXU/kg), amino acid density (AA; high and low 10% difference), and additional fat (AF; 0 or +1.17%) applied postpellet in corn-soybean meal diets with dried distillers grains with solubles on performance, energy utilization, digestibility, and carcass traits in Ross 708 male broilers. A completely randomized block (pen location) design with 16 treatments arranged factorially (4 XL levels, 2 AA, and 2 AF) was analyzed using mixed models. No significant interactions or main effects were observed for feed intake at 49 d (P > 0.05) but chicks were heavier when consuming diets containing 0 or 8,000 BXU/kg (P = 0.015), high AA (P 0.05) but was improved in broilers fed the higher AA and AF diet (P = 0.015 for AA × AF). AME, GE, and CP digestibility were assessed at days 17 and 42. There were multiple interactions observed at day 17 with a significant three-way showing that AME and CP digestibility improved when increasing the XL and AF levels in the high AA fed birds compared with the low-density diets. At day 42, XL and AF significantly affected AMEn, GE, or CP digestibility; however, there was a significant interaction between XL and AF. Diets supplemented with 1.17% AF improved AMEn significantly in broilers fed the highest XL level. Breast yield was not affected by treatments, but wing yield decreased with high AA density when diets contained 16,000 BXU/kg without differences for the other diets (P = 0.04 for XL × AA). Effects of XL, AA, and AF interactions on performance and cut-up-part yields have to be considered until day 42 for most of the variables studied. However, at 49 d of age, the dietary AA density and AF did not markedly influence the response to XL in maize-based diets.

Cementum is a bone connective tissue that provides a flexible attachment for the tooth to the alveolar bone in many mammalian species. It does not undergo continuous remodelling, unlike non-dental bone, which combined with its growth pattern of seasonal layering makes this tissue uniquely suitable as a proxy for tracking changes in body repair investment throughout an animal´s life. We tested functional and sexual selection hypotheses on the rate of cementum deposition related to the highly polygynous mating strategy of red deer. We used a sample of 156 first lower molars from wild Scottish red deer of known age between 1 and 17 years old, approximately balanced by sex and age class. Cementum deposition on the inter-radicular pad increased with age at a constant average rate of 0.26 mm per year, with no significant differences between sexes. Cementum deposition was independent of (i) tooth wear, other than that associated with age, and (ii) enamel and dentine micro-hardness. The results partially supported the hypothesis that the main function of cementum is the repositioning of the tooth to maintain opposing teeth in occlusion. However, teeth that had more wear or males´ teeth that had faster rates of tooth wear than those of females did not present the expected higher rates of cementum deposition., The study was supported by projects Ministerio de Economia, Industria y Competitividad, Gobierno de España RTC-2016-5327-2 (Dr. T Landete-Castillejos); Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha SBPLY/19/180501/000115 (Dr. MP Serrano). The red deer study on the Isle of Rum National Nature Reserve takes place with the support of the UK Natural Environment Research Council and Scottish Natural Heritage. The European Union Lifelong learning programme (Leonardo da Vinci) for supporting the postgraduate students who collaborated in this study.

We studied changes in chemical composition, somatic cell count, and immunoglobulin G (IgG) and M (IgM) content in red deer (Cervus elaphus) colostrum during the transition to milk at different times after parturition (, This work was supported by the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad and the European Union Fund for Regional Development [INCYDEN Project RTC-2016-5327-2], and project [MTM2017-86875-C3-1-R AEI/ FEDER, UE]. M. Carmona is grateful for the Ramón y Cajal Fellowships RyC-2014-16307 by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities.

This article belongs to the Special Issue Small Ruminant Nutrition and Metabolism., This study describes the effects that Cu supplementation of late-gestating and lactating females (hinds) of Iberian red deer fed a balanced diet have on milk production, composition, and somatic cell count (SCC). Experimental hinds (n = 9) were subcutaneously injected every 42 days with Cu (0.83 mg Cu/kg body weight) from day 202 of gestation until the end of lactation (week 18). Control hinds (n = 8) were injected with a physiological saline solution with the same volume and at the same frequency as the experimental group. Copper supplementation decreased the SCC from 1.64 to 1.36 log 10/mL (p = 0.003) and modified the milk mineral profile. In particular, milk from hinds supplemented with Cu had more Ca (p = 0.02), Mg (p = 0.06), and K (p = 0.03) than milk from control hinds. However, Cu supplementation did not influence the Cu content of milk. Therefore, it can be concluded that Cu supplementation of hinds fed a balanced diet from late-gestation to the end of lactation could be a good strategy to reduce SCC and modify the mineral profile of milk increasing its Ca content., The Spanish Ministry of Economy (Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad) supported this work within the Estate program of Research, Innovation and Development oriented towards Challenges of Society, within the Framework Plan of Scientific, Technical Research and Innovation 2013–2016 and co-funded by the European Union (grant number RTC-2016-5327-2).

[Context]: The inclusion of Pinus taeda hydrolysed lignin (PTHL) in beef diets could improve quality and stability of meat, but effects could vary through the aging period (AP)., [Aim]: The aim was to evaluate the effects of the PTHL inclusion in the diet of finishing beef cattle on meat quality, fatty acid composition and oxidative stability at Days 1, 8, 11 and 15 of aging., [Methods]: Forty Limousin bulls (340 ± 42 kg) were fed ad libitum on a total mixed ration (TMR). The control group received exclusively TMR for 120 days, while the experimental group received the same TMR as the control group but supplemented with PTHL (Oxifenol, I-Green, Padua, Italy; 35 g/day per head at 1–90 days and 70 g/day per head at 91–120 days)., [Key results]: Diet did not influence the chemical composition, pH, cooking loss, Warner–Bratzler shear force and hydroperoxide content. The Warner–Bratzler shear force (P < 0.001) decreased, while lightness (P < 0.01) and hydroperoxides (P < 0.001) increased through the aging period. Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances were similar for both diets at 1 and 15 days. However, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances at 8 and 11 days were higher for control than for the PTHL diet (P = 0.023 for interaction). Protein carbonyls were higher for control than for the PTHL diet at 8 days (P = 0.003 for interaction), but similar for both diets for the other dates. Saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids varied through the AP with PTHL diet, while no changes were observed with control diet (P < 0.01 for interactions). At 11 days, the n-6 : n-3 ratio passed from being the minimum value with the PTHL diet to be the maximum with control diet (P < 0.01 for interaction)., [Conclusions]: The effects of PTHL inclusion in bull finishing diets depends on the AP but, generally, may result in beef with meat with beneficial effects on human health., [Implications]: Including PTHL in the diet of finishing bulls can be useful to improve meat quality, favouring the use of natural waste substances deriving from vegetal production.

Deer venison is increasingly valued as a natural meat. This study examines the three main sources of venison: farmed venison from New Zealand (NZ), the world’s leading producer, and wild deer from Spain (SP), the second largest producer, which mainly supplies venison from traditional autumn–winter driven hunts (monteria), involving packs of dogs, and a smaller proportion culled through summer selective stalking. Meat from NZ contained more protein, lower shear force and lower n-6/n-3 ratio (P, This work was supported by project no. SBPLY/19/180501/000115 supported this work (funded by Counselling of Education, Culture and Sports of Castilla-La Mancha) and by the Spanish Ministry of Economy (Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad) within the Estate program of Research, Innovation and Development oriented towards Challenges of Society, and co-funded by the European Union (reference number RTC-2016-5327-2). This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy (Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad) within the Estate programme of Research, Innovation and Development oriented towards Challenges of Society, within the Framework Plan of Scientific, Technical Research, and Innovation 2013–2016 and co-funded by the European Union (reference number RTC-2016-5327-2). José M. Lorenzo is member of the MARCARNE network, funded by CYTED (ref. 116RT0503).

Deer-meat consumption is increasing in several countries based on claims that it is a healthy red meat. This study assessed the effect of slaughter age (low - 26 months and younger; medium - from 27 months to younger than 42 months; and high - 42 months and older) on carcass characteristics and meat physicochemical properties of 150 Iberian wild red deer.; Results: Whole carcass yields of neck, backbone and flank increased (P < 0.001) with age, while yields of shoulder, tenderloin and leg decreased (P < 0.05) with age. The pH measured at 48 h post mortem at 9th rib level was not affected by age, while pH measured at 72 h post mortem at the longissimus thoracis et lumborum muscle decreased (P < 0.05) with age. Meat chemical composition was not affected by slaughter age, except for intramuscular fat (IMF), which increased (P < 0.05) with slaughter age. Finally, cooking loss and shear force were higher (P < 0.05) in meat from older deer.; Conclusion: Most characteristics of meat from wild red deer depend on age at slaughter. The greater IMF of meat from older animals may render it more palatable. However, meat shear force also increased with age. Additional studies testing palatability seem to be necessary to evaluate the effects of slaughter age on the sensorial quality of meat from Iberian wild red deer. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.; © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.

This study assessed the effect of age (L, less than 27 months old; M, from 27 to 42 months old; H, 43 months and older) on the fatty acid profile, cholesterol content, amino acid composition and mineral content of 150 Iberian wild red deer meat samples.; Results: Intramuscular fat content increased (P < 0.05) with age (0.05 vs 0.12 vs 0.34% for L, M and H groups respectively), while cholesterol content decreased (P < 0.05) as the slaughter age increased (52.78 vs 48.72 vs 45.34 mg per 100 g meat for L, M and H groups respectively). The slaughter age showed differences among groups for saturated fatty acids, with the highest content in older animals (30.41 vs 34.55 vs 38.21% for L, M and H groups respectively), whereas younger deer displayed the highest polyunsaturated fatty acid levels (50.05 vs 45.24 vs 37.55% for L, M and H groups respectively). The n-6/n-3 ratio was more favorable (P < 0.05) for young and medium ages compared with that for older animals. In contrast, amino acid profile and mineral content were only slightly affected by age.; Conclusion: As a general conclusion, wild red deer meat could be considered a good alternative to red meats for human consumption. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.; © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.

The main factors affecting the mechanical (and other) properties of bone, including antler, are the proportions of ash (especially Ca and P) and collagen content. However, some trace minerals may also play more important roles than would be expected, given their low levels in bone and antler. One such trace mineral is Cu. Here, we studied the effects of Cu supplementation on the mechanical and structural characteristics, and mineral content of antlers from yearling and adult (4 years of age) red deer fed a balanced diet. Deer (n=35) of different ages (21 yearlings and 14 adults) were studied. A total of 18 stags (11 yearlings and 7 adults) were injected with Cu (0.83 mg Cu/kg BW) every 42 days, whereas the remaining 17 (10 yearlings and 7 adults) were injected with physiological saline solution (control group). The Cu content of serum was analysed at the beginning of the trial and 84 days after the first injection to assess whether the injected Cu was mobilized in blood. Also, the mechanical and structural properties of antlers and the mineral content in their cortical walls were examined at three (yearlings) or four (adults) points along the antler beam. The effect of Cu supplementation was different in yearlings and adults. In yearlings, supplementation increased the Cu content of serum by 28%, but did not affect antler properties. However, in adults, Cu supplementation increased the Cu content of serum by 38% and tended to increase the cortical thickness of antlers (P=0.06). Therefore, we conclude that, even in animals receiving balanced diets, supplementation with Cu could increase antler cortical thickness in adult deer, although not in yearlings. This may improve the trophy value of antlers, as well as having potential implications for bones in elderly humans, should Cu supplementation have similar effects on bones as those observed in antlers., This work was supported by Project No. PEII-2014-004-P (Regional Consejería de Educación y Deportes de Castilla-La Mancha) and INCYDEN Project RTC-2016-5327-2 (Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad).

In the present study we assessed the effects of Cu supplementation and antler growth stage on mineral composition of serum and hard antler in red deer fed a balanced diet. Correlations between minerals were analysed for serum, for antlers, and between serum versus mature antler. Blood samples were drawn at Days –36, 54, 132 and 197 of the start of antler growth (SAG). Hard antlers were cut at Day 165 from SAG. The Cu supplemented group (n = 9) was injected with 0.83 mg Cu/kg of bodyweight, whereas the control group (n = 9) was injected with a physiological saline solution, both every 42 days between Days –36 (Cu supplied after blood sampling) and 132 from SAG. Supplementation with Cu increased (P < 0.05) the contents of P and Cu in serum but did not affect the antler mineral profile. Serum contents of Mg, Na, S, B and Cu increased during the antler growth, whereas contents of K, Al and Fe decreased in the same period (P < 0.001). At Day 54 from SAG in Cu group, serum P content correlated negatively with antler Ca content whereas Zn of serum and antler correlated positively (P < 0.05). The maximum number of correlations between the mineral profile of serum and hard antler was achieved at Day 132 from SAG (3.3, 4.7 and 12.9% for Days –36, 54 and 132, respectively). In conclusion, the analysis of specific minerals in serum could be used to detect in advance some mineral deficiencies in the antler.

BACKGROUND The use of spineless cactus in finishing diets for lambs improves the carcass quality. However, data about its influence on meat traits is very scarce. The effects of spineless cactus inclusion in the finishing diet of lambs at four levels (0, 150, 300 and 450 g kg-1 of dry matter, DM) in replacement of Tifton hay on the physicochemical and sensory properties of meat were studied. RESULTS The spineless cactus modified the chemical composition increasing the protein (P

Deer-meat consumption is increasing in several countries based on claims that it is a healthy red meat. This study assessed the effect of slaughter age (low - 26 months and younger; medium - from 27 months to younger than 42 months; and high - 42 months and older) on carcass characteristics and meat physicochemical properties of 150 Iberian wild red deer.Whole carcass yields of neck, backbone and flank increased (P0.001) with age, while yields of shoulder, tenderloin and leg decreased (P0.05) with age. The pH measured at 48 h post mortem at 9th rib level was not affected by age, while pH measured at 72 h post mortem at the longissimus thoracis et lumborum muscle decreased (P0.05) with age. Meat chemical composition was not affected by slaughter age, except for intramuscular fat (IMF), which increased (P0.05) with slaughter age. Finally, cooking loss and shear force were higher (P0.05) in meat from older deer.Most characteristics of meat from wild red deer depend on age at slaughter. The greater IMF of meat from older animals may render it more palatable. However, meat shear force also increased with age. Additional studies testing palatability seem to be necessary to evaluate the effects of slaughter age on the sensorial quality of meat from Iberian wild red deer. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.

This study describes the effects of Mn supplementation of 20 late-gestating and lactating Iberian red deer (Cervus elaphus hispanicus) females (hinds) fed a balanced diet on milk production and milk composition over the lactation period. Body weight of their calves at birth and at weaning was also evaluated. In addition, the effect of lactation stage was studied. For these purposes, 2 groups of hinds, one composed by 12 individuals (experimental) and the other by 8 individuals (con-trol) were compared. Experimental hinds were s.c. injected weekly with Mn (2 mg Mn/kg BW) from day 140 of gestation until the end of lactation (week 18; forced weaning by physical separation). Control hinds were injected with a physiological saline solution with the same volume and at the same frequency as the experimental group. Serum Mn content of hinds was assessed just before the first Mn injection and at week 10 of lactation to assess whether the injected Mn increased Mn concentrations in blood. No differences were observed for BW of calves at birth but calves whose mothers were injected with Mn tended (P = 0.07) to have greater gain of BW from birth to weaning in proportion of BW at birth compared to calves from control hinds. In addition, supplementation with Mn increased (P ≤ 0.05) daily milk production by 10.2%, milk fat content by 11.2%, and total fat yield by 17.8%. Also, milk from hinds supplemented with Mn had more Ca (P < 0.001) and P (P < 0.05) than milk from control hinds. Manganese supplementation did not influence Mn serum content when blood was analyzed at week 10 of lactation, but increased the Mn content of milk by 18.3% (P < 0.001). Lactation stage affected (P < 0.001) fat, protein, lactose, and DM. Their contents increased as lactation proceeded, and protein was substituted by fat. Therefore, results suggest that Mn supplementation of hinds is recommended, even when they are fed a balanced diet, to increase milk production and the content of fat, Ca, P, and Mn of milk., This research has been funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy (Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad) within the Estate program of Research, Innovation and Development oriented towards Challenges of Society, within the Framework Plan of Scientific, Technical Research, and Innovation 2013–2016 and co-funded by the European Union (reference number RTC-2016-5327-2).

The positive perception of deer meat among consumers is growing. Consequently, further efforts are needed to control its meat quality. Specifically, the aim of this study was to search protein biomarkers in connection with tenderness and intramuscular fat (IMF) content of Iberian wild red deer (Cervus elaphus) meat. Twelve venison samples classified as tender, intermediate and tough meat, as well as with different IMF were studied, using quantitative proteomic by SWATH-MS combined with bioinformatic analyses. The study of muscle proteome showed significant differences among these three groups of meat samples, since five differentially abundant proteins (IVD, LAMB1, MYL3, SDHC and SDHA) and six (FABP4, IVD, LAMB1, MYL3, CRYZ and SERPINB6) were strongly correlated with tenderness and IMF, respectively. The proteomic approach provides protein biomarkers linked to venison meat quality and marked changes in proteins related to oxidoreductase complex in skeletal muscle., The authors are grateful to Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (Retos-Colaboración program) (Project INCYDEN, grant number RTC-2016-5327-2) for financial support for the study. Special thanks to Cárnicas Dibe S.L., for the samples supplied for this research. Jose M. Lorenzo is member of the MARCARNE network, funded by CYTED (ref. 116RT0503). Thanks to GAIN (Axencia Galega de Innovación) for supporting this research (grant number IN607A2019/01).

In undomesticated animals information about the production and composition of milk over time is still scarce. In general, for most mammals it is known that milk composition changes across lactation, is different for male and female offspring, and even that marsupials, such as kangaroos, can simultaneously produce milk of different compositions for young of different ages. Such parallel milk production of differing compositions has not yet been studied in single-offspring placental mammals, but may help to explain behavioural processes like allosuckling (feeding the young of other adults) and lateralized suckling preferences. In this study we analysed the production and composition of milk in red deer throughout the lactation period and now confirm for the first time that there are axial differences present. The front teats, which are the favoured suckling positions of the deer’s offspring, produce milk with a greater protein-to-fat ratio. Also, from the beginning of lactation the yield is greater on the left side, the side preferred by calves in all of the studied species, both at population and individual level. The links between milk production and calf behaviour in deer deserve further study., This paper has been funded by the projects AGL2012-38898 (Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, Spain), MZERO0716 (Ministry of Agriculture, Czech Republic), and IGA-20165008 (Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech Republic).