Table 1.
Component composition of the feed mixtures given to the rabbits (%)
| C | E1 | E2 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Post-extraction soybean meal | 13 | 6.5 | 0 |
| Alfalfa hay | 20.1 | 20.1 | 22.1 |
| Wheat bran | 18.1 | 20 | 17 |
| Barley meal | 29.8 | 33.8 | 42 |
| Corn meal | 10 | 6.65 | 2 |
| Rapeseed oil | 2.1 | 1.05 | 0 |
| Phosphate | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| NaCl (salt) | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Mineral-vitamin premix | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Arbocel (wood cellulose) | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 |
| Pumpkin seed cake | 0 | 5 | 10 |
Table 2.
Chemical composition of pumpkin seed cake (%)
| Analytical component | Pumpkin seed cake |
|---|---|
| Dry matter | 92.48 |
| Crude ash | 7.12 |
| Crude fat | 26.52 |
| Crude protein | 43.36 |
| Crude fiber | 2.44 |
Table 3.
Chemical composition of the rabbit feed mixtures
| C | E1 | E2 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dry matter | 90.2 | 90.04 | 90.28 |
| Crude ash | 6.02 | 5.76 | 5.71 |
| Crude fat | 5.19 | 5.05 | 5.45 |
| Crude protein | 16.52 | 16.31 | 16.45 |
| Crude fiber | 10.68 | 11.92 | 11.16 |
Table 4.
Fatty acid profile in the feed mixtures (g/100 g of all measured fatty acids)
| C | E1 | E2 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| C8:0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| C10:0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| C12:0 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| C14:0 | 0.11 | 0.13 | 0.16 |
| C16:0 | 10.88 | 12.72 | 15.01 |
| C16:1n-9 | 0.18 | 0.15 | 0.14 |
| C18:0 | 1.84 | 2.80 | 3.75 |
| C18:1n-9 | 40.43 | 32.04 | 22.72 |
| C18:2n-6 | 39.17 | 47.13 | 55.14 |
| GLA | 0.00 | 0.01 | 0.00 |
| C20:0 | 0.46 | 0.41 | 0.36 |
| C18:3n-3 | 6.47 | 4.22 | 2.43 |
| C22:0 | 0.36 | 0.32 | 0.28 |
| C20:4n-3 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| C22:1 | 0.08 | 0.05 | 0.01 |
| C20:5n-3 (EPA) | 0.00 | 0.01 | 0.00 |
| C22:6n-3 (DHA) | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| SFA | 13.65 | 16.38 | 19.56 |
| UFA | 86.35 | 83.62 | 80.44 |
| MUFA | 40.69 | 32.24 | 22.87 |
| PUFA | 45.66 | 51.38 | 57.57 |
| PUFA n-6 | 39.18 | 47.14 | 55.14 |
| PUFA n-3 | 6.47 | 4.23 | 2.43 |
| DFA | 88.19 | 86.42 | 84.19 |
| UFA/SFA | 6.32 | 5.10 | 4.11 |
| MUFA/SFA | 2.98 | 1.97 | 1.17 |
| PUFA/SFA | 3.34 | 3.14 | 2.94 |
| PUFA n-6/n-3 | 6.05 | 11.15 | 22.71 |
Table 5.
Amino acid composition in the feed mixtures (g/kg)
| C | E1 | E2 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aspartic acid (Asp) | 15.86 | 11.55 | 10.26 |
| Threonine (Thr) | 6.32 | 4.73 | 4.30 |
| Serine (Ser) | 8.43 | 6.23 | 5.82 |
| Glutamic acid (Glu) | 30.14 | 24.78 | 22.82 |
| Proline (Pro) | 11.21 | 9.72 | 9.27 |
| Glycine (Gly) | 7.96 | 6.34 | 6.00 |
| Alanine (Ala) | 8.28 | 6.16 | 5.80 |
| Valine (Val) | 8.11 | 6.33 | 5.92 |
| Isoleucine (Ile) | 6.63 | 5.07 | 4.36 |
| Leucine (Leu) | 12.58 | 9.54 | 8.60 |
| Tyrosine (Tyr) | 5.86 | 4.16 | 3.31 |
| Phenylalanine (Phe) | 8.03 | 5.86 | 5.35 |
| Histidine (His) | 5.53 | 2.99 | 2.63 |
| Lysine (Lys) | 9.69 | 6.43 | 5.79 |
| Arginine (Arg) | 10.00 | 8.82 | 8.87 |
| Cysteine (Cys) | 2.62 | 2.44 | 2.31 |
| Methionine (Met) | 2.41 | 2.20 | 2.32 |
Table 6.
Effect of pumpkin seed cake on body weight and weight gains (g) of rabbits during rearing weeks (mean ± SEM)
| C (n = 20) | E1 (n = 20) | E2 (n = 20) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Body weight on day 35 | 962.2±11.8 | 973.3±13.2 | 972.5±11.8 | 0.779 |
| Body weight on day 56 | 1635.0±39.9 a | 1505.0±35.7 b | 1547.0±43.3 ab | 0.024 |
| Body weight on day 70 | 2059.3±48.1 | 2042.8±41.3 | 2020.3±54.1 | 0.847 |
| Body weight on day 77 | 2346.0±51.3 | 2330.0±41.4 | 2298.0±54.2 | 0.782 |
| Body weight on day 90 | 2769.0±66.5 | 2869.8±46.8 | 2926.3±55.7 | 0.150 |
| Gains (days 35–56) | 672.8±36.0 a | 531.7±29.7 b | 574.5±39.0 ab | 0.019 |
| Gains (days 35–70) | 1097.0±47.5 | 1069.5±35.9 | 1047.7±49.0 | 0.736 |
| Gains (days 35–77) | 1383.7±49.2 | 1356.8±37.6 | 1325.5±49.5 | 0.668 |
| Gains (days 35–90) | 1806.8±64.3 | 1896.5±49.9 | 1953.7±50.9 | 0.176 |
| Gains (days 56–70) | 424.3±26.1 b | 537.8±24.0 a | 473.3±31.8 ab | 0.018 |
| Gains (days 70–77) | 286.8±26.1 | 287.3±14.5 | 277.8±15.2 | 0.926 |
| Gains (days 77–90) | 423.0±44.3 b | 539.8±39.8 ab | 628.3±23.1 a | 0.001 |
| Daily gains to day 56 | 32.04±1.72 a | 25.32±1.41 b | 27.36±1.86 ab | 0.019 |
| Daily gains to day 70 | 31.34±1.35 | 30.56±1.02 | 29.93±1.40 | 0.736 |
| Daily gains to day 77 | 32.95±1.17 | 32.30±0.89 | 31.55±1.17 | 0.668 |
| Daily gains to day 90 | 25.15±0.89 | 24.66±0.68 | 24.66±0.90 | 0.668 |
| Daily gains (days 56–70) | 30.30±1.86 b | 38.41±1.72 a | 33.80±2.27 ab | 0.018 |
| Daily gains (days 70–77) | 40.96±3.73 | 41.04±2.06 | 39.68±2.17 | 0.926 |
| Daily gains (days 77–90) | 30.21±3.17 b | 38.55±2.84 ab | 44.87±1.64 a | 0.001 |
| Feed conversion (kg/kg gain) | 4.542±0.17 | 4.176±0.14 | 4.447±0.19 | 0.305 |
Table 7.
Effect of pumpkin seed cake on the parameters of hot and chilled carcass analysis (g) and dressing out percentage (%) (mean ± SEM)
| C (n = 10) | E1 (n = 10) | E2 (n = 10) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hot carcass analysis | ||||
| Slaughter weight | 2821.5±88.0 | 2893.0±57.1 | 2881.0±83.6 | 0.784 |
| Carcass weight without head | 1412.6±52.9 | 1499.8±34.4 | 1477.2±57.3 | 0.441 |
| Head | 243.6±9.02 | 240.9±3.51 | 236.0±4.81 | 0.684 |
| Liver | 83.20±5.79 | 83.34±1.92 | 81.29±4.98 | 0.938 |
| Heart | 9.44±0.34 | 9.54±0.42 | 10.54±0.62 | 0.221 |
| Kidneys | 18.05±0.86 | 17.74±0.75 | 17.18±0.89 | 0.761 |
| Lungs | 19.14±1.43 a | 15.76±0.47 b | 15.70±0.71 b | 0.026 |
| Perirenal fat | 16.01±2.63 | 11.03±4.18 | 10.67±3.08 | 0.464 |
| Total edible parts | 1802.1±66.5 | 1878.2±38.5 | 1848.6±63.0 | 0.644 |
| Skin with fur | 308.0±14.5 | 311.2±12.3 | 298.5±11.3 | 0.766 |
| Blood | 151.0±4.35 | 146.9±7.40 | 156.4±6.75 | 0.576 |
| Hind legs | 80.50±2.19 | 81.16±1.47 | 81.92±2.32 | 0.885 |
| Gastrointestinal tract | 479.9±11.5 | 475.5±12.6 | 495.6±10.7 | 0.449 |
| Total inedible parts | 1019.4±23.5 | 1014.8±20.9 | 1032.4±22.2 | 0.846 |
| Chilled carcass analysis | ||||
| Cold carcass weight without head | 1375.3±53.1 | 1468.0±37.9 | 1430.4±52.5 | 0.406 |
| Chilling loss | 37.32±3.69 | 31.78±6.71 | 46.78±10.11 | 0.356 |
| Weight of fore part | 542.0±24.7 | 599.0±16.4 | 585.7±25.9 | 0.198 |
| Weight of middle part | 316.0±10.4 | 321.0±13.4 | 308.2±13.1 | 0.763 |
| Weight of hind part | 517.3±18.9 | 548.0±13.2 | 536.5±15.8 | 0.410 |
| Dressing out percentage | ||||
| Dressing out percentage hot | 50.004±0.49 | 50.667±1.42 | 51.09±2.50 | 0.900 |
| Dressing out percentage chilled | 47.046±0.92 | 49.348±1.43 | 49.807±2.63 | 0.519 |
[i] C – control group fed with a standard pelleted basal diet, E1 – group fed with a diet containing 5% pumpkin seed cake, E2 – group fed with a diet containing 10% pumpkin seed cake, a, b – values in rows marked with different letters differ significantly (P≤0.05), SEM – standard error of the mean.
Table 8.
Effect of pumpkin seed cake addition on the acidity and color of muscles: longissimus lumborum and biceps femoris (mean ± SEM)
| C (n = 10) | E1 (n = 10) | E2 (n = 10) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| m. longissimus lumborum | |||||
| pH45 | 6.715±0.04 a | 6.601±0.05 ab | 6.504±0.03 b | 0.006 | 6.10–6.80 (Pałka et al., 2022) |
| pH24 | 5.733±0.27 a | 5.588±0.03 b | 5.563±0.02 b | 0.001 | 5.60–5.90 (Zając, 1999) |
| L*45 | 60.82±0.63 | 62.71±0.98 | 62.97±0.92 | 0.183 | |
| a*45 | 6.562±0.65 | 6.590±0.61 | 5.260±0.80 | 0.246 | |
| b*45 | 3.871±0.62 | 4.474±0.43 | 3.875±0.61 | 0.801 | |
| L*24 | 56.18±1.62 | 59.29±1.45 | 60.27±0.69 | 0.078 | |
| a*24 | 8.578±0.85 a | 9.068±0.46 b | 7.090±0.29 c | 0.038 | |
| b*24 | 6.750±0.38 | 6.929±0.41 | 6.130±0.30 | 0.179 | |
| m. biceps femoris | |||||
| pH45 | 6.791±0.04 a | 6.714±0.05 ab | 6.554±0.06 b | 0.012 | 6.10–6.80 (Pałka et al., 2022) |
| pH24 | 5.969±0.05 a | 5.695±0.06 b | 5.679±0.03 b | 0.001 | 5.60–5.90 (Zając, 1999) |
| L*45 | 53.54±0.67 | 54.85±0.36 | 55.16±0.52 | 0.155 | |
| a*45 | 4.020±0.41 | 4.369±0.54 | 4.016±0.29 | 0.971 | |
| b*45 | 2.739±0.43 | 3.499±0.41 | 2.994±0.34 | 0.546 | |
| L*24 | 55.17±0.97 | 54.51±0.62 | 56.99±0.58 | 0.145 | |
| a*24 | 6.337±0.42 | 6.058±0.34 | 5.618±0.61 | 0.496 | |
| b*24 | 5.083±0.44 | 5.010±0.31 | 4.848±0.43 | 0.774 | |
Table 9.
Effect of pumpkin seed cake addition on cooking loss, shear force and profile texture analysis of the longissimus lumborum muscle (mean ± SEM)
| C (n = 10) | E1 (n = 10) | E2 (n = 10) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shear force (kg) | 0.967±0.08 a | 1.661±0.16 b | 1.524±0.11 b | 0.001 |
| Hardness (kg) | 8.753±0.85 a | 13.268±1.39 b | 10.897±1.26 ab | 0.040 |
| Cohesiveness | 0.414±0.01 a | 0.487±0.01 b | 0.458±0.01 b | 0.001 |
| Springiness | 0.488±0.02 | 0.537±0.01 | 0.504±0.01 | 0.086 |
| Chewiness (kg) | 1.871±0.27 a | 3.731±0.57 b | 2.704±0.42 ab | 0.021 |
| Cooking loss (%) | 16.906±2.46 | 22.287±0.66 | 18.452±1.54 | 0.092 |
Table 10.
Effect of pumpkin seed cake on the diameter (μm) and proportion of muscle fibers type I, IIA, and IIB in the longissimus lumborum muscle (mean ± SEM)
| C (n = 10) | E1 (n = 10) | E2 (n = 10) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ØI | 48.09±1.06 | 48.79±1.35 | 47.78±1.38 | 0.865 |
| ØIIA | 50.67±1.76 | 49.74±0.81 | 50.28±1.28 | 0.887 |
| ØIIB | 66.19±1.35 | 66.44±1.38 | 66.68±1.20 | 0.966 |
| %I | 5.87±0.58 | 6.49±0.48 | 6.44±0.47 | 0.637 |
| %IIA | 23.32±1.05 | 23.37±1.16 | 23.10±0.91 | 0.981 |
| %IIB | 70.81±1.30 | 70.14±1.32 | 70.46±1.20 | 0.930 |
[i] C – control group fed a standard pelleted basal diet, E1 – group fed a mixture with 5% pumpkin seed cake, E2 – group fed a mixture with 10% pumpkin seed cake, I – type I fibers (oxidative, slow, red) – stained brown, IIA – type IIA fibers (oxidative-glycolytic, intermediate) – stained blue, IIB – type IIB fibers (glycolytic, fast, white) – no reaction, white color, SEM – standard error of the mean.
Figure 1.
Cross-sectional view of the m. longissimus lumborum of Popielno White rabbits. Control group (A), group fed 5% pumpkin seed cake (B), and group fed 10% pumpkin seed cake (C). Histochemical reaction for NADH-TR dehydrogenase activity and immunohistochemical reaction for the presence of the slow myosin heavy chain isoform. Red muscle fibers (type I), intermediate fibers (type IIA), and white fibers (type IIB). Scale bar 100 μm