Regulation of oxidative stress as the foundation for animal health and productivity

The article presents the results of the authors' own research and a review of literature sources on the issues of animal adaptation to environmental factors, particularly intensive animal farming methods, from the perspective of mitochondrial function, tissue free-radical oxidation, and energy metabolism. Based on fundamental studies of the biophysical potential state of living systems, the influence of lipid peroxidation on health status, productivity, and viability of animals is demonstrated, along with the role of antioxidants in their manifestation. The decrease in growth that occurs in piglets at weaning, associated with lipid peroxidation, can be eliminated with the help of various types of antioxidants. Doses of ultraviolet irradiation of pigs under the conditions of industrial technology have been developed, which make it possible to regulate the level of free-radical oxidation of tissues and enhance their antioxidant activity, allowing to improve the fertility of sows, the viability and intensity of growth of the offspring. For the first time, sharp differences in the most common breeds of pigs in the level of free-radical oxidation of their tissues have been found, associated with different content of fatty acids and cholesterol in intramuscular fat and lard. The dependence of the quality of meat products on the composition of their fatty acids has been shown. Antioxidants such as catalase and thiol compounds contained in the blood of boars and sows are able to counteract the destructive effect of reactive oxygen species during fertilization, affect fertility and the litter weight during farrowing. For the first time, in contrast to the stereotype about the harmfulness of EFAs and, in particular, pork lard, it has been experimentally proven that fat containing more EFAs, but less PUFAs, especially linoleic fatty acid and cholesterol, when included in animal feed, has a positive effect on productivity and the cardiovascular system, and reduces the atherogenic index. It has been proposed to introduce a special section of animal husbandry, "Energobiotest", which studies the ratio of oxidative and antioxidant reactions in the body, develops technologies for harmonizing life processes and improving the quality of livestock products.

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