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Environmental challenges may adversely affect poultry production. Autochthonous breeds are particularly valuable in a climate change context because of adaptation to the local environment. The objective of the present study was to determine the impact of cold stress, water restriction, and heat stress on the stress response quantified by the heterophil to lymphocyte ratio (H/L) of ten local Spanish breeds of laying hens. Hens of these local breeds were consecutively subjected to three treatments: natural cold stress (2, 4, 6, 7, 9, and 13 °C), water restriction (with a duration of 2.5, 4.5, 7, 10, and 12 h, respectively), and natural heat stress (23, 26, 28, 30, 34, 38, 40, and 42 °C). During cold stress, H/L was higher at 9 and 13 °C than at 2, 4, and 6 °C, and higher at 9 °C than at 7 °C (P < 0.05). H/L values were similar during all water restriction levels. During heat stress, H/L was particularly elevated at temperatures higher than 40 °C (P < 0.05). Overall, Andaluza Azul, Andaluza Perdiz and Prat Codorniz showed lowest resilience to stress based on their H/L response, whereas Pardo de Leon, Villafranquina Roja, and Prat Leonada showed highest resilience.

Circular economic principals of production are based on material flows through the system with minimum external inputs, recycling of resources, generating minimum waste, emissions, or pollution. Agriculture presents a major opportunity for the utilization of wastes, by-products and co-products in the development of a circular economy via the design of circular agricultural production systems and the creation of new sustainable value chains. The present work outlines an illustrative example of a circular bee¿legume¿poultry agricultural production system, based on the premise that: (1) there is an urgent need to prioritize pollinator stewardship and pollinator ecosystem restoration to counteract pollinator decline, (2) the EU Plant Protein Plan fosters EU-grown plant proteins including local legumes, and (3) poultry production is the most important segment of the animal production industry, and the fastest growing agricultural sub-sector. For the successful implementation of circular agriculture, multidisciplinary research is needed regarding all sectors involved, as well as practical evaluations and the realization of proof of concept depending on the geographical location. For sustainable circular agricultural practices to be adopted by agriculturists and agricultural workers, a culture shift is needed, with close cooperation between all actors involved.

El programa de conservación de razas autóctonas de gallinas españolas se inició en 1975. La evaluación y control de la consanguinidad es consustancial a los programas de conservación. Los métodos de evaluar la consanguinidad tradicional basados en pedigríes no son viables en el contexto actual del programa de conservación con 12 razas y un total de entre 3000 y 4000 animales vivos debido a los costos económicos necesarios en términos de instalaciones y personal. Desde su inicio se intentó controlar la tasa de la consanguinidad mediante un gran tamaño de población en cada una de las razas. Las nuevas herramientas moleculares como Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) permiten evaluar la consanguinidad utilizando Runs of Homozygosity (ROHs) que son la suma total de fragmentos homocigotos de ADN respecto al tamaño total del genoma para cada individuo. El objetivo de este trabajo es por primera vez evaluar la consanguinidad del programa de conservación utilizando NGS y ROHs en 20 gallinas de Castellana Negra (CN).

Hydroxymethylated cytosine (5hmC) is a stable DNA epigenetic mark recognized by methyl-CpG binding protein 2 (MeCP2), which acts as a transcriptional regulator and a global chromatin-remodeling element. Because 5hmC triggers a gene regulation response markedly different from that produced by methylated cytosine (5mC), both modifications must affect DNA structure and/or DNA interaction with MeCP2 differently. MeCP2 is a six-domain intrinsically disordered protein (IDP) with two domains responsible for dsDNA binding: methyl-CpG binding domain (MBD) and intervening domain (ID). Here we report the detailed thermodynamic characterization of the interaction of hmCpG-DNA with MeCP2. We find that hmCpG-DNA interacts with MeCP2 in a distinctly different mode with a particular thermodynamic signature, compared to methylated or unmethylated DNA. In addition, we find evidence for Rett syndrome-associated mutations altering the interaction of MeCP2 with dsDNA in a cytosine modification-specific manner which may correlate with disease onset time and clinical severity score.

Climate change can have a negative impact on agricultural production and food security. Vice versa, agricultural practices themselves contribute to climate change because of land, water, and energy use and anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gasses and waste. The European Green Deal focusses on “transition to a sustainable food system that has a neutral or positive environmental impact, helps mitigate climate change and adapt to its impact, and reverses the loss of biodiversity”. Local production of feed proteins in the European Union may result in new agro-ecosystem services that can be integrated to maximize sustainability of agricultural practices. Feed crops with nutritional properties that are both benefcial to functional biodiversity, biocontrol, pollination, and other ecosystem services can be incorporated into livestock diets. However, implementation is hampered by lack of information, embedded habits of specialization, proft maximization priorities, a lack of awareness about the environmental impacts of existing production systems, and a lack of fow of resources and services between the sectors. When economic benefts from investments are not immediately evident, transition can only be successful with government policies that focus on providing knowledge and education, and fnancial support. To convince agriculturists and agricultural workers to adopt sustainable practices, policy changes are needed with close cooperation between, and support from, all actors involved, including producers, non-governmental and civil society organisations, and the retail industry.