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Deer antlers are unique because they are cast and regenerate each year. They are the fastest-growing structure, reaching an astonishing growth rate of up to 2.75 cm/day in length and more than 20 cm2/day of skin. Surprisingly, no study so far has assessed the metabolic rate of the antler. High metabolic rate needs highly efficient (or large) mitochondria, and it involves a high creation or reactive oxygen species (ROS), origin of oxidative stress. The speed of creation of ROS and the oxidative stress are inversely related to ageing and many diseases such as cancer or age-related diseases. However, antler must have the most efficient anti-oxidant system, as it rarely shows any departure from a perfect growth. This paper examines recent studies showing surprising applications in medicine of growing-antler extracts, or the information regarding its physiology. A recent study (Wang et al. (2019), Science 364, eaav6335) has shown that antlers have evolved a speed of growth faster than cancer, based on high expression of proto-oncogenes. As a result, deer has evolved tumour-suppression genes to control the high risk of developing cancer. This may explain why several studies have found in vitro and in vivo anti-cancer effects of deer velvet-antler extract in human tumours, such as cell cultures and animal models of cancers such as brain cancer (glioblastoma), prostate cancer, and others. We will also discuss findings in the study of the cyclic osteoporosis of the deer, with unexpected similarities in their proteomics and gene expression with that of the human pathological osteoporosis. Last, we will examine potential applications based on having the highest metabolic rate. If the future studies establish the antler as the tissue having the fastest metabolism and the best antioxidant system, this may have implications for understanding how to fight oxidative stress, which, in turn, will have direct implications for aging and age-related diseases (and others, from cancer to osteoporosis and Alzheimer’s for example). It may also show that velvet-antler extract is a general anti-cancer compound, and this may show the path to find an anti-cancer medicine that has no secondary toxic effects in healthy cells.

[EN] Antlers are unique structures because they grow rapidly and are cast annually, representing an important energetic and mineral cost for deer. Variables related to the timing of antler growth, such as date of antler casting and length of growth period, therefore, should be affected by somatic resources and availability of food. We examined the effects of body and antler weight, age, and climatic variables, on antler casting date and the period of time antlers were grown as well as possible random effects of individual, year, cohort, and pedigree, based on 244 antlers in a population of 109 males of Iberian red deer (Cervus elaphus) over a 17-year study from 1999 to 2016. Body weight affected casting date, with heavier males casting antlers earlier than lighter males. Antlers also grew faster and were cast earlier among older males than young males. Antler weight influenced casting date and the duration of the growth period: males with heavier antlers cast them earlier and grow them faster than males with light antlers. Nevertheless, age and antler weight interacted; as such, older males grew their antlers slower and delay casting date because they produce heavier antlers, in contrast to younger males, where those with the heaviest antlers grow them faster and cast first. The date of the end of antler growth also influenced casting date, so that antlers that took the longest to develop were cast later than those that finished growing early. We conclude that older and heavier males cast their antlers earlier and grow them faster than younger and lighter males, likely to correlate the subsequent antler growth with the spring peak in plant nutrients, but that this early development is limited physiologically by the size of the antlers., [ES] Las cuernas son estructuras únicas porque crecen rápidamente y desmogan cada año, representando así un coste importante para los ciervos. Por lo tanto, las variables relacionadas con la cronología de su crecimiento, tales como la fecha de desmogue o la duración del periodo de crecimiento, deberían verse afectadas por los recursos corporales del macho, así como por la cantidad de alimento disponible. Examinamos los efectos de la masa corporal y de las cuernas, la edad y las variables climáticas sobre la fecha de desmogue y la duración del crecimiento de las cuernas, así como los posibles efectos aleatorios del individuo, año, cohorte y pedigrí utilizando 244 cuernas en una población de 109 machos de ciervo ibérico (Cervus elaphus) a lo largo de 17 años de estudio desde 1999 hasta 2016. El peso corporal afectó a la fecha de desmogue, siendo los machos más pesados los que desmogan antes en relación a los más ligeros. Las cuernas también crecieron más rápido y fueron desmogadas antes entre los machos más viejos en comparación con los más jóvenes. El peso de la cuerna afectó a la fecha de desmogue y el periodo de crecimiento de la misma; machos con cuernas más pesadas desmogaron antes y las desarrollaron más rápido que machos con cuernas ligeras. En cualquier caso, la edad y peso de las cuernas interaccionaron y así, los machos de más edad ralentizan el crecimiento de las cuernas y retrasan la fecha de desmogue conforme desarrollan cuernas más pesadas, al contrario de los machos más jóvenes, los cuales desarrollan sus cuernas más rápido y desmogan antes cuanto más pesadas son las mismas. La fecha de final de crecimiento de las cuernas también afectó a la fecha de desmogue, de modo que los machos cuyas cuernas tardaron más tiempo en desarrollarse fueron los que más tarde desmogaron. Concluimos que los machos de más edad y más peso desmogan sus cuernas antes y las hacen crecer más rápido, posiblemente para correlacionar el crecimiento de la siguiente cuerna con el pico primaveral en nutrientes de las plantas, pero este desarrollo temprano está fisiológicamente limitado por el tamaño de la cuerna., Part of the original work by the authors of this study was supported 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 study also was funded partly by project PIC of regional government of Castilla-La Mancha (Consejería de Educación, Cultura y Deportes, project ref. SBPLY/19/180501/000115).

This article belongs to the Section Animal Welfare., Agonistic behavioural interactions play a decisive role in the competition for food, space, mating opportunities, and establishing social rank. We used pelt biting (number of bites on an animal’s body) as a proxy for assessing the intensity of agonistic animal interactions and how it responded to social, population, and heat stress factors. We modelled a 14-year time series of pelt biting records and observational data of agonistic interactions on a population of captive Iberian red deer (Cervus elaphus). We found that (i) the higher the social rank of deer, the lower the number of pelt bites received; (ii) increasing heat stress conditions caused deer to suffer more pelt bites; (iii) males received more bites than females; (iv) the heavier the deer, the lower the number of bites on their bodies; (v) the bigger the group, the more bites exhibited on its members; (vi) deer 5–6 years old suffered greater rate of pelt biting than younger or older deer; and (vii) hinds that gave birth earlier in the parturition period suffered less pelt biting than those that gave birth around the peak of the parturition season (p < 0.01 for all effects). Pelt biting is useful to predict management situations in which deer welfare could be at stake., The authors are grateful to Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha (research project SBPLY/19/180501/000115) and programme Beatriz Galindo 2020 (Plan Estatal de Política Científica y Técnica y de Innovación CNU/692/2019) for financial support.

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 article belongs to the Section Proteomics., Antlers are the only organ in the mammalian body that regenerates each year. They can reach growth rates of 1–3 cm/day in length and create more than 20 cm2/day of skin in the antler tips (their growth centers). Previous proteomic studies regarding antlers have focused on antler growth centers (tips) compared to the standard bone to detect the proteins involved in tissue growth. However, proteins of cell differentiation and regeneration will be more accurately detected considering more growing tissues. Thus, we set out to compare proteins expressed in antler tips (the highest metabolism rate and cell differentiation) vs. middle sections (moderate cell growth involving bone calcification), using ribs as controls. Samples were obtained in mid-June with antlers’ phenology corresponding to the middle of their growth period. Quantitative proteomic analysis identified 259 differentially abundant proteins mainly associated with antioxidant metabolic mechanisms, protein formation and Wnt signalling pathway, meanwhile, the mid antler section was linked to blood proteins. The high metabolic rate and subsequent risk of oxidative stress also seem to have resulted in strong antioxidant mechanisms. These results suggest that redox regulation of proteins is a key factor in the model of deer antler regeneration., This research was funded by the project SBPLY/19/180501/000115 from Conserjería de Educación, Cultura, y Deportes de Castilla-La Mancha awarded to T.L.-C., F.J.P.-B.,was supported by Plan Estatal de Política Científica y Técnica y de Innovación CNU/692/2019. J.M.L. and D.F. belong to the competitive reference research group, FunMeat (Axencia Galega de Innovación, GAIN-IN607A2019/01) and they are members of the HealthyMeat network, funded by CYTED (Ref. 119RT0568).

[Aim of study]: The effects of hunting season (autumn vs. winter) on carcass characteristics and meat quality of Iberian wild red deer were assessed., [Area of study]: A total of 100 males of wild red deer of Iberian genetic line (Cervus elaphus) were hunted on Ciudad Real (south central Spain)., [Material and methods]: Yields for shoulder (with bone), neck, backbone, loin, tenderloin, leg (with bone), short plate and flank were determined. In addition, samples of Longissimus thoracis et lumborum and Rectus abdominis muscles were collected. Then, pH48, colour measurements, chemical composition, cooking loss, Warner Bratzler shear blade, fatty acid and amino acid profiles and mineral content were analyzed.., [Main results]: Deer hunted in autumn (n=50) had higher (p, [Research highlights]: Autumn hunting is recommended to obtain carcasses with higher yields of shoulder, backbone and short plate and meat with higher IMF. Conversely, winter hunting is advisable for higher loin yield and for a profile richer in polyunsaturated fatty acids., RTC-2016-5327-2: Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (España) (Program Retos-Colaboración, Project INCYDEN). Counselling of Education, Culture and Sports of Castilla-La Mancha, Spain: RSBPLY/19/180501/000.

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.

The European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) is one of the most abundant ungulate species in Europe. Many studies have investigated its distribution, behavior, and ecology, but few have focused on its role as bioindicators for pollutants, particularly regarding antlers, which has been shown to indicate also deer physiology. The presence of geothermal power plants can induce accumulation of potentially polluting elements (such as Tl, S, and Pb). Thus, we collected roe deer samples from areas of Tuscany (Italy) where power plants are present. They were divided according to whether their home range included areas close or far from geothermal power plants. We analyzed the body measurements and the profile of the minerals in the liver and antlers tissues using the ICP-OES technique. Results showed that livers from roe deer close to power plant accumulated higher quantity of Bi, Co, Ni, Tl, and S compared to controls. Males culled close to geothermal power plants had significantly lower values for weight and chest circumference, and also, the antlers showed higher values for Li and Sr in the first sampling position. Thus, despite the small sample size in this preliminary study, antlers and livers of roe deer seem to be a bioindicator of industrial impact on the environment.

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).

Amino acid supplementation in cervids is an almost unexplored research area. Lysine (Lys) and Methionine (Met) are the two amino acids considered as limiting for ruminants and Lys supplementation shows good potential for increased antler growth as it is the main component of collagen and a bone tissue precursor. However, several studies in other ruminants have shown greater effects when simultaneously supplementing Lys + Met. Two experiments based on Lys and Met supplementation during first antler growth were conducted during two consecutive years. Each experiment involved 45 yearling fallow bucks distributed in three groups, balanced by weight: Exp.1: Pasture, Pasture + Barley (0.2 kg/animal per day), and Pasture + Barley + Lys (5 g/animal per day); Exp.2: Pasture + Barley (0.5 kg/animal per day), Pasture + Barley + Lys (9 g/animal per day), and Pasture + Barley + Lys + Met (9 and 3 g/animal per day, respectively). Lys supplementation during the first experiment did not improve any antler characteristics (P 0.05). However, in the second experiment, both Lys (9 g) and Lys + Met treatments had positive effects on the external antler characteristics (P = 0.013), antler weight (P = 0.061) and particularly on the burr perimeter (P = 0.008), which is crucial for antler size in following years. The results also suggest a stronger positive effect of amino acid supplementation on antler growth when the animals have a low performance in the presence of poorer pasturing situation., This study was supported by the Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences – CZU Prague (IGA- IGA20195011, CIGA 20185006) and by the Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic (MZE-RO0718).

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).

Antler size, structure, composition and mechanics have been shown to reflect nutrition, climate and body effects in red deer, but studies have only assessed effects on size in the roe deer (Capreolus capreolus). Roe deer show little sexual dimorphism, lower inter‐male fighting and could form groups during part of the year but does not form harems, in contrast to red deer. Thus, it is interesting to assess how nutrition and habitat affects investment in antlers as compared to red deer. Antlers were collected from adult males of two game estates differing in location, climate and management: 13 from the south‐east of Spain (mild winter, hot summer, dry habitat and rich supplementary feeding), and 10 specimens came from central‐southern part of the Czech Republic (snowy winter, mild summer, humid habitat and limited supplementary feeding). After measuring whole‐antler parameters, a destructive sampling was performed to obtain a full‐transversal section and cortical bone samples from two sampling position along the main beam. Then bone structure, mechanical properties (three‐point bending test, impact test) and the mineral profile were studied. Roe deer from Spain had heavier and longer antlers than Czech roe deer. Their bone material had a higher mechanical quality, although Czech roe deer compensated by developing antlers with thicker walls. Mineral composition also differs, particularly by greater contents in Czech antlers in 3 minerals associated with nutrient stress: Fe, K and Zn. We concluded that the differences found between populations may be caused by differences in habitat quality and diet, in a similar way as reported for red deer, despite interspecific differences. Our study suggests that habitat affects antler parameters and, as previous results in red deer, suggests that improving diet quality may affect size, composition and mechanical quality of antler material. Certainly, antlers of roe deer provide information useful for population management., This work was supported by the pre‐doctoral contract for research personnel under the R + D+I Plan, co‐financed by the European Social Fund (2015/4062; 2015); and by Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (project INCYDEN RTC‐2016‐5327; 2016) and by IGA‐20175014 (Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague).

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.

Antlers are bony appendages of deer that undergo periodic regeneration from the top of permanent outgrowths (the pedicles) of the frontal bones. Of the “less familiar” bone types whose study was advocated by John Currey to gain a better understanding of structure-function relationships of mineralized tissues and organs, antlers were of special interest to him. The present review summarizes our current knowledge about the evolution, development, structure, mineralization, and biomechanics of antlers and how their formation is affected by environmental factors like nutrition. Furthermore, the potential role of antlers as a model in bone biology and several fields of biomedicine as well as their use as a monitoring tool in environmental studies are discussed., Part of the original work by the authors of this review was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness (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 Science, Technical Research, and Innovation 2013–2016 and co-funded by the European Union (reference number RTC-2016-5327-2).

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 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.Intramuscular fat content increased (P0.05) with age (0.05 vs 0.12 vs 0.34% for L, M and H groups respectively), while cholesterol content decreased (P0.05) 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 (P0.05) 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.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.

[Objectives]: Studying animal vocal aging has potential implication in the field of animal welfare and for modeling human voice aging. The objective was to examine, using a repeated measures approach, the between-year changes of weight, social discomfort score (bites of other hinds on hind pelt), body condition score (fat reserves) and acoustic variables of the nasal (closed-mouth) and the oral (open-mouth) contact calls produced by farmed red deer hinds (Cervus elaphus) toward their young. [Results]: Repeated measures ANOVA revealed that with an increase of hind age for 1 year, the acoustic variables of their nasal contact calls (the beginning and maximum fundamental frequencies, the depth of frequency modulation and the peak frequency) decreased, whereas in their oral contact calls only the end fundamental frequency decreased. Duration and power quartiles did not change in any call type. Body weight and body condition score increased between years, whereas discomfort score decreased. Results of this study revealed directly the short-term effects of aging on the acoustics of the nasal contact calls in the same hinds. This study also confirmed that elevated emotional arousal during emission of the oral contact masks the effects of aging on vocalization in female red deer., This study was supported by the Russian Science Foundation, Grant No 14-14-00237 (to IV, OS and EV) for collection of acoustic data and acoustic analysis, and by Spanish Ministry of Economy (Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad) within the Estate program of Research, Innovation and Development oriented towards Challenges of Society, co-funded by the European Union (Reference Number RTC-2016-5327-2) (to TL, JPB, AG and LG) for collection of body weight, condition and discomfort data.

We studied the effects of social rank on the haematologic profile in a herd of 24 female Iberian red deer hinds. Social rank hierarchy was determined and blood samples were taken and analysed. After adjusting for age and body mass, dominance ranking showed a significant negative effect (ie, lower values in dominant hinds) on white blood cell (WBC) count, haemoglobin and haematocrit. Our results are similar to those reported for stressed individuals due to physical immobilisation, but do not support the predicted enhanced erythropoiesis due to higher levels of androgens. The results for WBC numbers may also reflect that subordinate hinds must allocate a higher amount of resources to immunity as a result of injuries incurred from dominant hinds, while simultaneously facing restricted access to food sources. For red blood cell (RBC) counts, the results may be due to subordinate hinds likely needing increased haematocrit and haemoglobin levels for fast flight responses. Our data show that social rank influences haematologic profile, and thus it should be considered when correctly interpreting blood analyses in social cervid species., This study was supported by the grants IGA-20175014 (Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech Republic) and RTC-2016-5327-2 (MINECO, Spain).

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 ethanol stability, a freshness and heat stability indicator, of Iberian red deer milk was determined. Additionally, the interspecific differences in composition, physical, hygienic and technological parameters, in bulk tank milk obtained from red deer, sheep, goats and cows were compared. Red deer milk ethanol stability was similar to that of sheep milk; bovine milk was the most stable and goat milk the least. Ethanol stability was influenced by pH; within the range studied, increased pH increased stability, this effect being more noticeable in bovine milk than in milk from the other species. Milk composition presented evident differences among species, as did somatic cell counts, total bacterial count, pH and titratable acidity or density. The results suggest that milk of red deer is very similar to that of sheep, but is even richer in fat and proteins, making it an interesting and novel product with high potential in dairy industry., This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities and the European Union Fund for Regional Development [INCYDEN Project RTC-2016-5327-2]. Carmona M. thanks the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities for the Ramón y Cajal FellowshipsRyC-2014-16307

Red deer farming has started to play a greater role in modern agriculture and today is an interesting alternative for pig or cattle breeders. With regard to the low effort and high efficiency of maintenance, it may be expected that keeping these animals in fenced enclosures will be more popular over time. This trend is warranted by the fact that the demand on two main deer products: venison and antlers, is constantly rising, due to the quality of deer meat and prices of antler hunting trophies. Several countries of the world have already realized the scale of advantages to be derived from deer farming and today are world leaders in this area. Despite this expansion, the market still remains opened for deer products. Poland is a country with the climatic conditions, vast plain areas and varied vegetation that are fully sufficient to undertake large-scale deer farming, and to become a European leader. Therefore the aim of this review is to detail deer farming within the Polish framework and environmental conditions, and to illustrate its potential in sustainable modern agriculture and the economy.

Horns are permanent structures projecting from the head of bovids, consisting of a bony horncore covered with a layer of skin and then a sheath of keratinous material showing variability of growth intensity based on nutrition. From the point of view of the horn's mechanical properties, the keratin sheath has been widely studied, but only a few studies have considered the complete structure of the horn and fewer studies have focused on the bony horncore and its characteristics. The latter showed the important role of the bony core, when cranial appendages are subject to mechanical stress (as happens during fighting). The mechanical properties of bone material, along with its mineral profile, are also important, because they can show effects of different factors, such as nutrition and mineral deficiencies in diet. For this reason, eight horncores of captive common eland male were sampled at four positions along the vertical axis of the horn. The main aim was to study variation in mechanical properties and the mineral content along the vertical axis of the horncores. We further analysed whether the spiral bony ridge present on eland horncores differs in any of the studied properties from adjacent parts of the horncore. In other antelopes, spiral ridges on the horns have been proposed to increase grip during wrestling between males. Cross-sections of the horncores were performed at four positions along the longitudinal axis and, for each position, two bone bars were extracted to be tested in impact and bending. Moreover, in the first sampling position (the closest position to the base) two bars were extracted from the spiralled bony area. The resulting fragments were used to measure ash content, bone density and mineral content. Results showed that horn bone decreased along the vertical axis, in ash (−36%), density (−32%), and in impact work ‘U’ (marginally significant but large effect: −48%). The concentration of several minerals decreased significantly (Mg, Cr, Mn and Tl by −33%, −25%, −31%, −43%, respectively) between the basal and the uppermost sampling site. The bone tissue of the horncore spiral compared with non-spiral bone of the same position showed a lower ash content (53% vs. 57%), Mg and Mn; in addition to showing approximately half values in work to peak force ‘W’, bending strength ‘BS’ and ‘U’, but not in Young's modulus of elasticity ‘E’. In conclusion, similarly to the results in a totally different fighting bony structure, the antlers, the horncore of eland shows advantageous parameters in bone tissue of the base in respect to the tip, with higher values for mechanical properties, density and mineral profile. Moreover, the spiral bone tissue showed lower material mechanical properties. Probably the spiral tissue of the horn may have a role in deflecting potential cross-sectional fractures during wrestling. In addition, it may serve to improve the grip during wrestling, and we propose that it may also prevent risk of rotation of sheath with respect to internal bone not only in this, but also in other straight bovid horns., This study was supported by the grant IGA‐20175014 (Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech Republic) and grants MZERO0716, MZERO0717 (Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic), and funded by MINECO project INCYDEN RTC ‐2016‐5327‐2 (University of Castilla‐La Mancha, Spain).

Osteophagia is a common behaviour among ungulates. It has been considered as a mineral source for cervids, mainly related to phosphorus deficiency. In this study, we aimed to study the seasonality in antler consumption of Iberian red deer (Cervus elaphus) and to assess the differences among sex/age classes. In a game reserve located in South-Eastern Spain, antlers were offered to free-ranging animals, and their chewing behaviour was recorded with camera traps. Red deer was the species observed with greatest frequency (90.5%), and only red deer was observed chewing the offered antlers. Males showed greatest peak of consumption at the end of antler growth; females showed the greatest peak at the beginning of the lactation and calves after delivery of the newborn. All groups showed an important second peak of consumption in September. We conclude that osteophagia might have a role as a natural mineral supplement for red deer, but not for wild boar or foxes; and that each sex/age class uses this resource at different times according to differential needs in calcium and phosphorus, supporting the “seasonally increased requirements hypothesis”., This study was supported by the grant IGA-20172007 (Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences, Czech Republic) and PEII-2014-004-P (Consejería de Educación y Deportes de Castilla-La Mancha, Spain).

The preorbital gland plays not only an olfactory role in cervids but also a visual one. Opening this gland is an easy way for the calf to communicate with the mother, indicating hunger/satiety, stress, pain, fear, or excitement. This information can be also useful for farm operators to assess how fast the calves habituate to handling routines and to detect those calves that do not habituate and may suffer chronic stress in the future. Thirty-one calves were subjected to 2 consecutive experiments to clarify if observing preorbital gland opening is related to habituation to handling in red deer calves (Cervus elaphus). Calves were born in 3 different paddocks, handled as newborns (Exp. 1), and then subjected to the same routine handling but with different periodicity: every 1, 2, or 3 wk (Exp. 2). In Exp. 1, preorbital gland opening was recorded in newborns during an initial handling (including weighing, ear tagging, and sex determination). Preorbital gland opening occurred in 93% of calves during this procedure and was not affected by sex, time since birth, or birth weight. Experiment 2 consisted of measuring preorbital opening during the same routine handling (weighing, blood sampling, and rump touching to assess body condition) when calves were 1, 3, and 5 mo old. Binary logistic regression showed that gland opening was associated with habituation to handling, since at 1 and 3 mo the probability of opening the gland decreased with the number of handlings that a calf experienced before (P = 0.008 and P = 0.028, respectively). However, there were no further changes in preorbital gland opening rate in the 5-mo-old calves (P = 0.182). The significant influence of the number of previous handlings on the probability of opening the preorbital gland was confirmed through generalized linear model with repeated measures (P = 0.007). Preorbital gland opening decreased along the phases of the study. Nevertheless, we found a significant trend in individuals to keep similar opening patterns (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.807, P < 0.001), which suggests that the more stressed individuals can be detected with this method. Therefore, we conclude that preorbital gland opening during routine handlings is related to the number of previous handlings, and thus it can be used as an indicator of lack of habituation to handling in farmed cervids.

Stag rutting calls differ among subspecies of red deer Cervus elaphus. Studying sex-, age-, and subspecies-related vocal variation may highlight the forces driving this evolution. This study presents the first bioacoustical comparison of oral calls produced during the rut by Iberian red deer Cervus elaphus hispanicus stags, hinds and calves and compares the acoustics of nasal and oral calls of hinds and calves. Also, it provides the first comparison of rutting roars between farmed and wild stags. Call maximum and mean fundamental frequencies (f0max and f0mean) were higher in farmed than in wild stags. Moreover, hinds had lower f0max and f0mean compared with both farmed and wild stags. The call minimum fundamental frequency (f0min) was indistinguishable between all groups of adults, irrespective of sex, farming and nasal versus oral vocal emission. In calves, but not in hinds, oral calls had higher f0max and f0mean compared with nasal calls. The higher fundamental frequencies in farmed as compared with wild stags may have resulted from emotional arousal due to human presence at recordings or from the higher body conditions of stags reared under a farm. The comparison of our results with previously published data on various subspecies of red deer suggests that there are different pathways of vocal ontogeny in eastern and western branches of Cervus elaphus and that the acoustics of stag and hind calls are more similar within the various subspecies than they are among the subspecies., This study was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research, grants 12-04-00260 (for IV, VM and EV) and 14-04-00794 (for VM), by Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, Spain, project AGL2012-38898 (for TL, AG and LG), and by Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Spain, projects TATANKA CGL2011-25062, CGL2010-09700 and ACOURA CGL2008-04814 (for RM, DL and JB).

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).

Combined PIXE and PIGE analysis was applied at the new Bucharest Tandetron to investigate biomineralization in two calcified tissues, deer antlers and femur bone. By annual loss and fast re-growth, antlers are a valuable model for bone as a dynamical system. Samples characterized by optical microscopy and histology were analyzed for P, Ca, F, Na, Mg, S, Cl, K, Zn, Sr by 3 MeV proton simultaneous PIXE and PIGE, using a hydroxyapatite standard and other reference materials. Good correlation between methods was found for P, and the concentrations were related to biological data. Antlers showed lower mineralization than femur, with the lowest values in the third antler beam. A power function of mineralization vs. >mineral age> of antlers was found. Thus combined PIXE and PIGE of antlers may bring highly relevant insights in biomineralization research.

Antlers constitute the only mammal model for limb regeneration. A number of factors affect antler regeneration. In this review, we examine such factors and the potential consequences for organ regeneration. As body mineral stores are depleted to grow antlers, physiological exhaustion is shown in the mineral composition, mechanical performance and, according to preliminary studies, porosity of the antler bone material. Nutrition plays an important role in antler characteristics. Thus, antler composition can be used as a diagnostic tool to assess mineral deficiencies in deer. Studies on ecological effects of exceptional weather in plants suggest that minor minerals, particularly Mn, may play disproportionately roles in mechanical performance of bone material. This suggests that Mn (and perhaps other minerals) is essential to incorporate Ca and P from resorbed skeleton material in antlers. Apart from implications for game management, some effects may have applications for medicine., This review has been possible thanks to projects MCEI-FEDER project CGL2008-00749/BOS, MICINN-FEDER (UNCM08-1E-004), and JCCM (POII10-0129-0562). JAE and FC were funded by JCCM postdoctoral contract.