{
  "abstract": "This study was conducted to investigate the breed-specific effects of different dietary energy sources on performance, expression of energy metabolism-related genes, and metabolic parameters in fat tailed and thin tailed sheep. A 2 × 3 factorial arrangement (two breeds × three dietary treatments) was used. Thirty-six fat tailed (Taleshi breed) and 36 thin tailed lambs (zel breed) were assigned to three dietary treatments for 116 days ( n = 12 for each Breed*diet comparison): a control diet (no fat supplement), a diet containing 4% stearic acid-rich saturated fatty acid (SFA), and a diet containing 4% protected unsaturated fatty acids (US FAS ). A significant breed × diet interaction was found for average daily gain (ADG) ( P < 0.05 ). Fat-tailed lambs fed the SFA diet had the highest ADG (115.71 g/day), which was significantly greater ( P < 0.05) than thin-tailed lambs on the same diet (108.57 g/day) and fat-tailed lambs on USFA (107.14 g/day). Dry matter intake (DMI) was not significantly affected by breed × diet interaction. Gene expression analysis showed that protected USFA significantly upregulated ( P < 0.05) LPL and FAS genes in the tail fat of fat-tailed lambs. In thin-tailed lambs, protected USFA significantly increased ( P < 0.05) subcutaneous adipose tissue expression of GLUT4, TNF-α, and IGF-1 genes. Moreover, LPL and FAS were also upregulated in thin-tailed lambs fed protected USFA. A significant breed × energy source interaction was observed for ruminal butyric acid concentration and the acetate: propionate ratio ( P < 0.05). Metabolically, fat-tailed lambs demonstrated greater insulin sensitivity, particularly when fed SFA and protected USFA, as evidenced by a significantly lower area under the curve (AUC) in the insulin tolerance test ( P < 0.05), whereas thin-tailed lambs exhibited higher insulin resistance. Plasma glucose, triglycerides, and cholesterol were significantly influenced by breed × fat source interaction ( P < 0.05), with thin-tailed lambs on the SFA diet showing the highest values. Rumen parameters, including pH and protozoal count, were significantly affected by fat source ( P < 0.05) but not by breed. In conclusion, metabolic and performance responses to dietary energy sources are highly breed-dependent. Fat-tailed sheep are more efficient at utilizing SFA for growth, while protected USFA significantly modulates key metabolic genes in thin-tailed sheep. These findings highlight the importance of tailoring dietary energy strategies to the animal’s genetic background.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 5,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Hamed Alipour"
    },
    {
      "name": "Hamed Khalilvandi-Behroozyar"
    },
    {
      "name": "Rasoul Pirmohammadi"
    },
    {
      "name": "Behzad Asadnezhad"
    },
    {
      "name": "Ahmad Ghorbani"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/89qq9ce4vpqhn.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1038/s41598-026-62401-w",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "89qq9ce4vpqhn",
  "issns": [
    "2045-2322"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-026-62401-w",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "1102|Ruminant Nutrition and Digestive Physiology"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7220393336",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-026-62401-w_reference.pdf",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-05",
  "publisher": "Springer Science and Business Media LLC",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/89qq9ce4vpqhn.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:17:22Z",
      "native_id": "10.1038/s41598-026-62401-w",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-026-62401-w"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "openalex:1102|Ruminant Nutrition and Digestive Physiology",
      "subfield": "plant-biology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Breed-dependent metabolic and growth responses to saturated and unsaturated fat supplements in fat-tailed and thin-tailed lambs",
  "title_text": "Breed-dependent metabolic and growth responses to saturated and unsaturated fat supplements in fat-tailed and thin-tailed lambs",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:17:22Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/89qq9ce4vpqhn",
  "venue": "Scientific Reports",
  "versions": []
}