Promoting growth, improving meat quality – what else does glutathione do in animal production?

21 Apr Promoting growth, improving meat quality – what else does glutathione do in animal production?

Glutathione (GSH) is the most abundant low-molecular-weight thiol compound in cells. It mainly exists in eukaryotic cells in a reduced form, but it can also be oxidized to glutathione disulfide. (GSSG) or combined with other molecules such as GSSG-CoA and GSSG-cysteine. In cells, about 90% of GSH is distributed in the cytoplasm, and a small amount is distributed in subcellular organelles, such as mitochondria, nucleus and endoplasmic reticulum, and a relatively low amount of GSH can also be found in the extracellular space. The steady-state level of intracellular GSH depends on the synthesis, hydrolysis, recycling of GSSG and the balance between the intracellular reduced and oxidized states.

▲GSH structure

GSH imbalances are observed in a variety of pathological conditions, including cardiometabolic and cardiovascular diseases, tuberculosis, AIDS, diabetes, neurodegenerative diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, infertility, and cancer. Some animal experiments have found that GSH has the functions of resisting oxidative stress, detoxification, improving immunity, and promoting growth and development. Adding it to feed will benefit the healthy breeding of animals.

Glutathione is the most abundant non-protein thiol peptide in cells. In cells, glutathione scavenges free radicals, transduces signals, maintains membrane integrity, and acts as a source of nitrogen and sulfur during nutrient limitation.

Anti-oxidize effect

GSH is an abundant non-enzymatic antioxidant in mammalian cells, an important mechanism for intracellular defense against oxidative stress, and an important line of defense against ROS in the antioxidant system.

Immunity

When immune cells attack pathogens, they release some strong oxidative chemical components that are harmful to body cells, and GSH can neutralize these strong oxidative chemical components to protect immune cells.

Detoxification

Whether it is an enzymatic or non-enzymatic reaction that occurs in the cell, binding to GSH is a very important means of detoxification. Clinically, GSH can also be used as an antidote for poisoning by acrylonitrile, fluoride, carbon monoxide, heavy metals, aflatoxins, and organic solvents.

GSH is a new type of feed additive that can improve animal immune function, save feed, promote animal growth and improve meat quality. Adding GSH in the diet can promote the healthy breeding of livestock and poultry, reduce the amount of antibiotics, improve the quality and safety of meat products, and has a good application prospect.

Improve animal growth performance In the breeding industry, adding an appropriate amount of GSH to the diet has a positive impact on the growth and development of animals, can promote animal growth, save feed, and reduce production costs.

Enhance the ability of animals to resist oxidative stress GSH, as an important antioxidant in cells, can resist the adverse stress produced in the process of animal breeding.

Improve animal immunity Previous studies have shown that adding GSH to diet can improve animal growth performance, improve immunity and antioxidant capacity, and achieve the effect of enhancing immunity.

Alleviate the effects of toxicity GSH has an important detoxification effect. When the body ingests toxic and harmful substances, GSH can combine with toxic substances to form mercaptouric acid and excrete it out of the body, thus playing a role in detoxification.

Glutathione has very important physiological functions. In terms of animal production, Liu Pingxiang et al. (2004) showed that an appropriate amount of glutathione can improve the average daily gain quality and feed remuneration of weaned piglets, and can promote piglet growth. Wei Jianfu et al. (2004) reported that adding glutathione can increase the serum FT3 and IGF-1 levels of broiler chickens, and can promote the growth of broiler chickens. In terms of aquaculture, some data show that adding an appropriate dose of glutathione can improve the antioxidant capacity of the tilapia muscle tissue and the pancreas of Litopenaeus vannamei, increase the level of IGF-1 in the serum of grass carp and tilapia, and promote this. Growth of several aquatic animals. In addition, some data show that glutathione can also improve the lactation of lactating animals, glutathione can maintain the biological functions of male and female embryonic cells, increase the conception rate and promote the early development of embryos. Therefore, glutathione can improve the reproductive performance of animals.

It is believed that glutathione will have a broader development prospect in animal production in the future, and it will also have a positive impact on the development of the livestock and poultry industry.