Effect of Linseed Supplementation on Carcass, Meat Quality and Fatty Acid Composition in Pigs

The effect of linseed supplementation on carcass, meat quality and fatty acid profile of fat tissue was studied. No differences in carcass and meat quality traits were observed, the exception being drip loss that was lower in pigs supplemented with linseed. As regards fatty acids, linseed supplementation led to the increased content of unsaturated, polyunsaturated and n-3 fatty acids and decreased content of saturated fatty acids and n-6/n-3 ratio in the subcutaneous and intramuscular fat of pigs

Ergot and ergot alkaloids in cereal grains intended for animal feeding collected in Slovenia

This four-year study reports the occurrence of ergot alkaloids (EAs) in cereals intended for animal feeding collected in Slovenia. A total of 517 samples of cereals were analysed using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for the presence of EAs. The sample set included wheat, rye, triticale, oat, spelt and barley. The study revealed that 17% of the analysed cereal samples were contaminated with at least one ergot alkaloid. EAs have two epimeric forms: -ine and -inine. The incidence rates of the -ine and -inine forms in the analysed samples were 16% and 15%, respectively. The highest contamination rates were observed in rye (54%), oat (50%) and spelt (30%), where the highest mean concentrations of total EAs were also determined (502 µg/kg, 594 µg/kg and 715 µg/kg, respectively). However, the highest concentrations of total EAs were found in wheat and rye (4217 µg/kg and 4114 µg/kg, respectively). The predominant EAs were ergometrine, ergosine and ergocristinine. The occurrence of six or more ergot alkaloids was observed in 49% of the positive samples. A weak correlation (p = 0.284) in the positive samples was found between the mass of sclerotia and the total concentrations of EAs using the Spearman correlation coefficient