Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41792185›Full record

ArticleScientific reports2026

Candidate blood biomarkers linked with feed intake efficiency and weight gain in sheep.

Olufemi Osonowo, Seyed Ali Goldansaz, Yaogeng Lei, Desiree Gellatly, Hamza Jawad, Shima Borzouie, Susan Markus, Younes Miar, Sean Thompson, Ghader Manafiazar

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in Scientific reports, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Olufemi OsonowoDepartment of Animal Science and Aquaculture, Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University, Truro, NS, B2N 5E3, Canada.
Seyed Ali GoldansazTechnology Access Centre for Livestock Production, Olds College of Agriculture & Technology, Olds, AB, T4H 1R6, Canada.
Yaogeng LeiTechnology Access Centre for Livestock Production, Olds College of Agriculture & Technology, Olds, AB, T4H 1R6, Canada.
Desiree GellatlyTechnology Access Centre for Livestock Production, Olds College of Agriculture & Technology, Olds, AB, T4H 1R6, Canada.
Hamza JawadDepartment of Animal Science and Aquaculture, Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University, Truro, NS, B2N 5E3, Canada.
Shima BorzouieDepartment of Animal Science and Aquaculture, Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University, Truro, NS, B2N 5E3, Canada.
Susan MarkusApplied Livestock Research, Lakeland College, Vermilion, AB, T9X 1K5, Canada.
Younes MiarDepartment of Animal Science and Aquaculture, Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University, Truro, NS, B2N 5E3, Canada.
Sean ThompsonTechnology Access Centre for Livestock Production, Olds College of Agriculture & Technology, Olds, AB, T4H 1R6, Canada.
Ghader ManafiazarDepartment of Animal Science and Aquaculture, Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University, Truro, NS, B2N 5E3, Canada. manafiazar@dal.ca.

Funding

Mathematics Information Technology Applied Computer Science (MITACS) Canada IT28650 and IT40885Results Driven Agriculture Research 2022N057R
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Feed consumption and weight gain critically influence sheep production profitability. Therefore, selecting animals that maintain growth while reducing feed intake is desirable. However, measuring residual intake gain (RIG) is resource-intensive, requiring extended monitoring of both feed intake and weight gain. Candidate blood metabolites linked to RIG may provide a practical tool for early selection. We assessed feed efficiency (FE) in 62 Rideau Arcott ewe lambs over 64 days, categorizing animals into efficient and inefficient groups using RIG. Serum metabolites were analyzed via direct injection liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry with a reverse-phase DI/LC–MS/MS custom assay, and associations with FE classifications were explored using multivariate and univariate statistical analyses. Candidate metabolites differentiating efficiency groups included citric acid, PC aa C32:2, and SM(OH) C22:1 (AUC = 0.82) at day 0, LysoPC a C18:1, SM C20:2, C7DC at day 28 (AUC = 0.84) and SM C16:1.1, PC ae C40:6.1 at day 64 (AUC = 0.77). Pathway analysis highlighted glycerophospholipid and arachidonic acid metabolism as consistently enriched across timepoints. Temporal kinetics analysis identified SM C20:2, LysoPC a C18:1, and butyric acid (p < 0.05) as varying between groups over the feeding period. Seven previously unreported metabolites in the Livestock Metabolome Database were detected in sheep serum. This exploratory study identifies metabolites and pathways associated with divergent RIG phenotypes in ewe lambs and suggests that blood metabolomics could complement performance records in FE improvement programs.

Indexed as

BiomarkersEatingWeight GainAnimal FeedAnimalsChromatography, LiquidFemaleMetabolomicsSheepTandem Mass SpectrometryBiomarkersEwe lambsFeed efficiencyResidual intake gain, Candidate biomarkersSerum metabolites

Identifiers

PMID41792185
PMCPMC13079904

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.