INDIVIDUAL AND GROUP INDICES OF VELVET ANTLER PRODUCTION OF MARALS FOR THE PERIOD OF THEIR ECONOMIC USE

Maral breeding is a promising direction of animal hus-bandry in the Altai Region and the Republic of Altai. Breed-ing of highly productive maral stags is based on the proper organization of breeding work which is not possible without an accurate evaluation of individual and group indices of velvet antler weight. In this regard, the research goal is to study individual and group indices of velvet antler produc-tion of marals for the period of their economic use depend-ing on the age. It was found that the velvet antler weight increased by 6.3 kg over the entire study period, and there was a decreasing tendency of the productive index in thir-teen-year-old marals by 800 g. It was found that in the maral stag herd in 2021, the maral stag born in 2008 with velvet antler weight of 18.8 kg became the record holder. The main criteria for culling were decreased velvet antler production and fatness; the age of those animals was from eleven to fourteen years. In this regard, it was found that individual highly productive thirteen-year-old maral stags could consistently produce high-weight velvet antlers dur-ing the period of their economic use. To improve the quali-tative composition of marals, at breeding time, it is neces-sary to evaluate and select high-productive stags from six to twelve years old individually in dynamics and cull low-productive ones regardless of age.

Use of Network Pharmacology and Molecular Docking Technology to Analyze the Mechanism of Action of Velvet Antler in the Treatment of Postmenopausal Osteoporosis

Deer velvet antlers are the young horns of male deer that are not ossified and densely overgrown. Velvet antler and its preparations have been widely used in the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis (PMOP) in recent years, although its mechanism of action in the human body remains unclear. To screen the effective ingredients and targets of velvet antler in the treatment of PMOP using network pharmacology and to explore the potential mechanisms of velvet antler action in such treatments, we screened the active ingredients and targets of velvet antler in the BATMAN-TCM database. We also screened the relevant targets of PMOP in the GeneCards and OMIM databases and then compared the targets at the intersection of both velvet antler and PMOP. We used Cytoscape 3.7.2 software to construct a network diagram of “disease-drug-components-targets” and a protein-protein interaction (PPI) network through the STRING database and screened out the core targets; the R language was then used to analyze the shared targets between antler and PMOP for GO-enrichment analysis and KEGG pathway-annotation analysis. Furthermore, we used the professional software Maestro 11.1 to verify the predictive analysis based on network pharmacology. Hematoxylin-eosin (H&E) staining and micro-CT were used to observe the changes in trabecular bone tissue, further confirming the results of network pharmacological analysis. The potentially effective components of velvet antler principally include 17β-E2, adenosine triphosphate, and oestrone. These components act on key target genes such as AKT1, IL6, MAPK3, TP53, EGFR, SRC, and TNF and regulate the PI3K/Akt-signaling and MAPK-signaling pathways. These molecules participate in a series of processes such as cellular differentiation, apoptosis, metabolism, and inflammation and can ultimately be used to treat PMOP; they reflect the overall regulation, network regulation, and protein interactions.

INFLUENCE OF DIFFERENT DOSES OF TISSUE BIO-STIMULANT MADE FROM VELVET ANTLER DEER BY-PRODUCTS ON COW REPRODUCTIVE QUALITIES

Исследования проводились в Алтайском крае на коровах Приобского типа черно-пестрой породы. Было сформировано 4 группы коров 3 лактации, аналогов по живой массе (500 кг), в период сухостоя, по 10 голов в каждой. Молочная продуктивность по последней контрольной дойке перед запуском составляла в среднем 22,5 л. Тканевый биостимулятор вводили с интервалом 14 дней, четырехкратно в период сухостоя и четырехкратно в период раздоя. В I опытной группе доза тканевого биостимулятора составляла 15 мл/гол., во II — 22,5 мл/гол., в III — 30 мл/гол. Опытную партию тканевого биостимулятора изготовили из субпродуктов и боенских отходов пантовых оленей. Наиболее оптимальной дозой применения тканевого биостимулятора следует считать 22,5 мл/гол, она способствовала сокращению времени прихода коров в первую половую охоту после отела на 3,9%, повышению результативности осеменения до 30,0%, уменьшению сервис-периода на 17,5% (P≤0,05) и индекса осеменения на 32,0%. The studies were conducted in in the herd of Black-Pied cows of the Priobskiy type. Four groups of 10 dry cows at the age of the 3rd lactation and comparable in live weight (500 kg) were formed. The milk yield at to the last control milking before drying-off averaged 22.5 liters. The tissue bio-stimulant was administered two weeks apart, four times during the dry period and four times during the first 100 days of lactation. The tissue bio-stimulant was administered in the following doses: in the 1st trial group — 15 mL per head; 2nd trial group — 22.5 mL per head; 3rd trial group - 30 mL per head. The trial batch of the tissue bio-stimulant was made from velvet antler deer by-products and slaughterhouse offal. The tissue bio-stimulant dose of 22.5 mL per head should be considered the most optimal one; it shortened time of coming in the first heat after calving by 3.9%, increased insemination effectiveness to 30.0%, shortened the service period by 17.5% (P≤0.05) and decreased the insemination index by 32.0%.

Velvet Antler Ameliorates Cardiac Function by Restoring Sarcoplasmic Reticulum Ca2+-ATPase Activity in Rats With Heart Failure After Myocardial Infarction

Objective: Velvet antler (VA; cornu cervi pantotrichum), a well-known traditional Chinese medicine, has been shown to exert cardioprotective effects. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of VA on heart failure (HF) caused by ischemia-reperfusion, and explore its possible mechanism from the regulation of sarcoplasmic/endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase 2 alpha (SERCA2a).Methods: A rat model of HF was established by ligating the left anterior descending coronary artery of male Sprague–Dawley rats (n = 88). One week after surgery, VA (200, 400, or 800 mg/[kg day−1]) or enalapril (1 mg/[kg day−1]) was administered daily for the next 4 weeks. Heart function was detected by echocardiography and histopathological analysis. The serum BNP level was measured by ELISA, and the expression of SERCA2a, PLB, PLB-Ser16, and PKA was determined by western blotting. SERCA2a and PLB mRNA levels were determined by real-time quantitative PCR.Results: Compared with the sham group, cardiac function in the HF group, including the serum BNP level, heart mass index, myocardial collagen deposition, and left ventricular ejection fraction, was markedly reduced; however, these changes could be reversed by VA treatment. In addition, VA (200 mg/[kg·d−1]) inhibited the decrease of SERCA2a and PLB mRNA levels and SERCA2a, PLB, PLB-Ser16, and PKA protein expression and restored the activity of SERCA2a and PKA. Enalapril affected only PLB protein expression.Conclusion: VA can improve myocardial fibrosis and ventricular remodeling in rats, thereby helping to restore cardiac function. The underlying mechanism may be related to the upregulation of the expression and activation of PKA and PLB and the restoration of the expression and activity of SERCA2a.