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Arch. Anim. Breed., 62, 99–105, 2019
https://doi.org/10.5194/aab-62-99-2019
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the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Open Access
Archives Animal Breeding
Original study
The influence of zinc-methionine bioplex
supplementation to pregnant and lactating
sheep on selected wool parameters
Anna Wyrostek1, Stefania Kinal2, Bo˙
zena Patkowska-Sokoła1, Robert Bodkowski1,
Paulina Cholewi´
nska1, and Katarzyna Czy˙
z1
1Institute of Animal Breeding, Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences,
Wrocław, 51-630, Poland
2Department of Animal Nutrition and Feed Management, Wrocław University of Environmental
and Life Sciences, Wrocław, 51-630, Poland
Correspondence: Katarzyna Czy˙
z (katarzyna.czyz@upwr.edu.pl)
Received: 31 October 2018 – Revised: 9 February 2019 – Accepted: 27 February 2019 – Published: 21 March 2019
Abstract. The most important nutrients affecting wool production include sulfur amino acids, such as methio-
nine, and minerals, such as zinc, and their deficiency may cause wool production decrease. The aim of this study
was to evaluate an effect of zinc and methionine chelate addition on the qualitative characteristics of Merino ewes
wool and zinc content in wool fibers and on their surface. Histological evaluation of fibers was also performed.
The study included 22 Polish Merino ewes divided into two groups: control and experimental (0.4 g chelates
daily per head). The experiment lasted for 4 months (3.5 months of pregnancy and 2 weeks of early lactation).
The length, thickness and breaking force of wool fibers were higher in the experimental group compared to the
control group. Higher content of zinc in wool of sheep from the experimental group was also demonstrated. The
histological structure of fibers from both groups did not differ, as the content of zinc on their surface. It can be
concluded on the basis of the obtained results that the addition of chelates favorably influenced the thickness
compensation of wool fibers and amount of wool obtained from sheep during pregnancy and early lactation, as
well as mechanical features of wool.
1 Introduction
Wool is a natural raw material obtained mainly from sheep,
but also from alpacas, llamas, some breeds of goats and rab-
bits. The production and quality of wool are affected by nu-
merous factors that include breed, sheep genetics, age of
the animal, part of animal body the wool is collected from,
color of wool fibers, intervals between successive shears,
and some environmental and management factors (Reis and
Sahlu, 1994; Sahoo and Soren, 2011; Holman and Malau-
Aduli, 2012; Khan et al., 2012; Ragaišien˙
e et al., 2016).
One of the main factors affecting the quantity and quality of
wool produced is proper nutrition of the animals. The most
important nutrients that affect its production include sulfur
amino acids (cystine, cysteine and methionine) and lysine.
Cystine and cysteine are the most important elements in the
growth of wool, but methionine can be transformed into them
through transsulfuration and transamination pathways. These
processes involve the contribution of 3/4 of methionine sup-
plied to the organism. Methionine is considered an indispens-
able amino acid for animals, and it is known that it cannot be
synthesized to a degree that would be sufficient to maintain
the proper growth and development of animals (Reis, 1989;
Reis and Sahlu, 1994; Sahoo and Soren, 2011; Khan et al.,
2012; Bin et al., 2017). In addition to its role in wool produc-
tion, methionine is also involved in oxidative stress reduc-
tion; its deficiency is linked to hepatic pathology, intestinal
epithelium growth suppression and growth performance dis-
orders (Bauchart-Thevret et al., 2009; Bin et al., 2017).
Moreover, some minerals, such as zinc, also affect the pro-
duction of wool. This effect can be due to reduced feed intake
and altered function of the rumen and thus nutrient supply or
Published by Copernicus Publications on behalf of the Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology (FBN).
100 A. Wyrostek et al.: The influence of zinc-methionine bioplex supplementation to pregnant and lactating sheep
metabolic processes disturbances (Szigeti et al., 2016). The
deficiency of zinc in the feed ration is manifested by an in-
hibition of wool growth, loss of wool and an increased wool
fiber fragility (Sahoo and Soren, 2011; Khan et al., 2012).
Except its role in wool production, zinc affects a wide vari-
ety of functions, including gene expression, DNA and protein
synthesis, cell signaling, cell division and growth of the an-
imal, development and function of the immune system, syn-
thesis of structural proteins like collagen and keratin, bone
and tissue development, reproduction and the organism’s de-
fense against oxidative stress (Sun et al., 2011; Sloup et al.,
2017). Deficiency or a marginal zinc status may impair one
or more of these processes; therefore, this element is widely
supplemented in animal diets either in the form of inorganic
salts (e.g., sulfates, chlorides or oxides) or in organic forms.
The advantage of inorganic forms is their low cost; how-
ever, it is generally believed that this form is less bioavail-
able compared to the organic one. Many authors compared
in their research the bioavailability of inorganic and organic
forms of zinc in the nutrition of animals, especially rumi-
nants (Spears, 1989; Rojas et al., 1995; Cao et al., 2000;
Ryan et al., 2002; Pal et al., 2010; Hassan et al., 2011; Ja-
farpour et al., 2015; Page et al., 2017). These studies demon-
strated better bioavailability of organic forms (bioplexes), so-
called chelates, i.e., compounds of metal ions and the ligand
(protein or amino acid). They do not demonstrate any an-
tagonisms and interactions that can occur between inorganic
salts and other components like hydroxides, phosphates, car-
bonates and oxygen, which ensures highest bioavailability of
organic forms (Hosnedlova et al., 2007; Kinal and Slupczyn-
ska, 2011; Sahoo et al., 2014). The chelates also retain stabil-
ity at varying pH levels in the digestive tract (Hassan et al.,
2011).
Pregnancy, and especially its second part and early lacta-
tion, exhibits a negative impact on wool production in the
ewes (Corbett, 1979; Masters et al., 1993; Reis and Sahlu,
1994; Khan et al., 2012). It was demonstrated that improper
nutrition of sheep during pregnancy negatively affects the de-
velopment of secondary hair follicles in their lambs, result-
ing in permanent reduction in adult wool production (Szigeti
et al., 2016). Also, Thompson et al. (2011) showed that the
nutrition and condition of ewes during pregnancy affects the
production and diameter of the wool fibers of their lambs.
Many studies indicate that wool is a good indicator of
micro-element supply to the organism and its analysis can be
used as an alternative test to the analysis of minerals in other
tissues, such as blood (Hawkins and Ragnarsdóttir, 2009;
Patkowska-Sokoła et al., 2009).
The aim of this study was to evaluate an effect of
chelates (Zn +methionine, denoted ZnMet), in the form
of a Zinpro100 preparation, on wool parameters of Polish
Merino ewes during pregnancy and early lactation, including
physicomechanical characteristics of wool (length, diameter,
breaking force, elongation, tensile strength), content of zinc
Table 1. The share of particular components in basic diet for preg-
nant and lactating ewes (%)∗.
Diet Pregnant Lactating
component ewes ewes
Maize silage 34.4 % 35.8 %
Meadow hay 27.4 % 25.9 %
Rye straw 27.4 % 21.4 %
Barley grain 13.8 % 17.4 %
∗Content per kilogram of dry matter.
in wool, composition of elemental ions on the surface of wool
fibers and histological structure of the fibers.
2 Material and methods
The study involved 22 Polish Merino ewes at the age of
about 3 years that were kept in the sheepfold belonging
to the Agrominor company in Mokrzeszów (Lower Silesia
province, Poland). The manner in which the experiment was
conducted ensured animals welfare, and did not cause any
unnecessary pain, stress or discomfort according to the act of
15 January 2015 on the protection of animals used for scien-
tific and educational purposes (Journal of Laws, 2015). They
were randomly selected and divided into two equal groups:
control, without the supplementation, and experimental, re-
ceiving the Zinpro100 supplement with an amount of 0.4 g
per head per day. The sheep were maintained in the sheep-
fold building in separated group pens on a deep straw lit-
ter. The experiment lasted for a total of 4 months and in-
cluded 3.5 months of pregnancy and 2 weeks of lactation.
All sheep, both during pregnancy and lactation, were fed in
the same manner (Table 1). The content of zinc in the con-
trol dose during pregnancy was 49.36 mg kg−1DM (dry mat-
ter), and during lactation it was 62.12 mg kg−1DM; in the
case of sheep from the experimental group it was 89.36 and
102.12 mg kg−1DM, respectively (Table 2).
In order to unify the wool regrowth in all sheep, a 10cm ×
10 cm patch was cut on the left side at the height of the last rib
of each sheep on day 0. After a 4-month period of the experi-
ment, the wool was cut again at this point, and it was used
for the measurements of the selected physicochemical pa-
rameters of the fibers, determination of zinc content in wool
and elemental composition of wool fibers, as well as charac-
terization of the differences in histological structure of wool
fibers.
Prior to measurements, the fibers were washed with a mild
detergent in order to remove suint from their surface. All
measurements were made in the middle part of the fibers.
The diameter of wool fibers was measured using an
MP3 lanameter with a magnification of 500×, according
to the standards approved for wool thickness analysis (Eu-
ropean Union, 2016). Fiber length was determined without
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A. Wyrostek et al.: The influence of zinc-methionine bioplex supplementation to pregnant and lactating sheep 101
Table 2. Zinc content in feeding dose for pregnant and lactating
ewes (mg kg−1DM).
Group Pregnant Lactating
ewes ewes
Control 49.36 62.12
Experimental 89.36 102.12
Table 3. Selected physicomechanical parameters of wool samples.
Parameter Group
Control Experimental
Length (cm) 2.58A±0.50 3.31B±0.88
Thickness (µm) 22.56A±0.35 24.39B±0.80
Breaking force (N) 0.10A±0.01 0.12B±0.01
Elongation (%) 40.29a±1.56 38.82b±1.74
Tensile strength (Nmm−2) 255.78 ±27.75 252.19 ±39.02
A,B– differences significant at P≤0.01;a,b– differences significant at P≤0.05.
fiber stretching using a ruler and 10×magnifying glass; for
this purpose, the fibers were mounted on slides and immersed
in paraffin oil. Fiber diameter and length measurements were
made for 300 fibers from each animal.
Breaking force (neutons, N) and elongation (percent, %)
were determined for 20 fibers from each animal using a Mat-
est (Poland) tensile testing machine and software. Tensile
strength was calculated according to the following formula:
RS=F
AN mm−2,(1)
where Fis breaking force (newtons, N) and Ais hair fiber
cross section (mm2).
The measurements were made at the Skin and Hair Coat
Laboratory of the University of Life Sciences in Wrocław,
Poland.
Determination of zinc content in wool was made by atomic
spectrometry at the laboratory of the Department of Nutrition
and Feed Management of the Wrocław University of Envi-
ronmental and Life Sciences, Poland. Wool samples for zinc
determination were prepared by obtaining an ash, which was
transferred to the flasks and supplemented with a suitable
amount of deionized water. The content of zinc was mea-
sured on the AAS-3 atomic absorption spectrometer using a
zinc lamp.
Wool fiber histological structure examination and a point
analysis of elemental ion content were carried out using
a scanning electron microscope (SEM) LEO 435 VP by
Carl Zeiss SMT AG in the Laboratory of Electron Mi-
croscopy of the Faculty of Biology and Animal Breeding of
the University of Life Sciences in Wrocław, Poland.
All statistical analysis was performed using STATIS-
TICA v.10 (StatSoft, Tulsa, USA). The differences between
Figure 1. Zinc content in wool fibers from control and experi-
mental groups (mg kg−1DM). a,bshows differences significant at
P≤0.05.
the mean values were determined using the Student’s ttest
for independent variables. Also the Spearmen correlation co-
efficients between the examined features was specified.
3 Results and discussion
Table 3 presents the mean values and standard deviations for
the examined physicomechanical parameters of wool from
the control and experimental groups. The mean length of
sheep wool from the experimental group was 32 % higher
compared to the control group. The average thickness of
wool fibers from sheep from the experimental group was
about 8 % higher in relation to the control group. The dif-
ferences regarding the length and thickness of the examined
samples were confirmed statistically (P < 0.01). The values
of mechanical properties of wool fiber, like breaking force
and elongation, were also affected by supplementation. The
breaking force was about 20 % higher (P < 0.01), while the
elongation value appeared to be about 4 % lower (P < 0.05)
in the experimental group compared to the control. The dif-
ference in the case of the tensile strength was not confirmed
statistically; however, it tended to be slightly lower in the ex-
perimental group.
Zinc content in the analyzed wool fibers is presented in
Fig. 1. The level of this element was significantly higher, by
about 15 % (P < 0.05) in the experimental group compared
to the control (85.56 vs. 98.39 mg kg−1DM).
The correlation coefficients between the analyzed wool
fiber features are presented in Table 4. Statistically confirmed
positive correlations were found between the value of length
and thickness, length and zinc content, thickness and zinc
content, breaking force and tensile strength and zinc content,
and between the elongation and tensile strength. On the other
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102 A. Wyrostek et al.: The influence of zinc-methionine bioplex supplementation to pregnant and lactating sheep
Table 4. Correlations between the examined wool characteristics.
Length Thickness Breaking Elongation Tensile Zinc
(cm) (µm) force (%) strength content
(N) (N mm−2) (mg kg−1DM)
Length 1.000 0.544∗0.141 −0.117 −0.307 0.602∗
Thickness 1.000 0.350 −0.550∗−0.506∗0.680∗
Breaking force 1.000 0.002 0.627∗0.655∗
Elongation 1.000 0.448∗−0.206
Tensile strength 1.000 0.065
Zinc content 1.000
∗– differences significant at P≤0.05.
Table 5. The content of some elemental ions on the wool surface (g 100 g−1).
Group Element
C O S Na Ca Mg Al Si P Zn
Control 58.63 29.74 5.73 0.01 0.62 0.16 0.31 0.50 0.73 0.01
Experimental 58.77 32.84 6.20 0.00 0,59 0.14 0.27 0.43 0.70 0.01
Figure 2. Histological structure of wool fiber from control and experimental groups.
hand, negative correlations were noted between the thickness
of wool fibers and their breaking force and tensile strength.
An analysis of the percentage content of elemental ions on
the surface of wool fibers was also performed. The results
of this analysis are included in Table 5. There were no sig-
nificant differences between the content of various elemental
ions. In both groups, C, O and S, i.e., elements that build
keratin, which is the basic hair protein, were the most abun-
dant. The other elements, i.e., Na, Ca, Mg, Al, Si, P and Zn,
occurred in much smaller amounts, below 1 g 100 g−1.
The histological structure of the wool fibers from both
groups is shown in Fig. 2. The wool fibers of both groups
were characterized by the correct construction of the cuticle.
The scales were smoothly overlapping one another, both in
the control and experimental group. The arrangement of cuti-
cle scales was regular, ring-shaped, i.e., one scale surrounded
the entire fiber, and their edges were smooth. The only differ-
ence visible in SEM images is the smaller diameter of fibers
from the control group, which confirms the thickness mea-
surements made using a projection microscope.
The last months of pregnancy and early lactation are the
periods that not only negatively affect the quantity and qual-
ity of wool obtained from the ewes, but in the case of im-
proper nutrition also the future wool production by their
lambs (Corbett, 1979; Masters et al., 1993; Reis and Sahlu,
1994; Ferguson et al., 2011; Thompson et al., 2011). The
length and diameter of wool fibers are the main parame-
ters determining the price of wool. These are the features
that are most influenced by proper nutrition (Reis and Sahlu,
1994; Sahoo and Soren, 2011). The main nutrients limiting
the growth of wool are sulfuric amino acids (cystine, cysteine
and methionine) and lysine, as well as zinc. Supplementation
with sulfuric acids and zinc increases both the length and the
diameter of the fibers (Page et al., 2017).
Arch. Anim. Breed., 62, 99–105, 2019 www.arch-anim-breed.net/62/99/2019/
A. Wyrostek et al.: The influence of zinc-methionine bioplex supplementation to pregnant and lactating sheep 103
Our study demonstrated that wool of sheep supplemented
with ZnMet bioplex was about 30 % longer and about 8 %
thicker than wool of sheep fed without the addition. In the
case of Merino sheep wool fibers, their thickness usually did
not exceed 30 µm, and the average diameters is usually in the
range of 16–26 µm (Holman and Malau-Aduli, 2012; Sharma
and Pant, 2013), which is consistent with the results obtained
in this study. White et al. (1994) showed a significant ef-
fect of zinc, in an inorganic form (ZnSO4), on the growth
of wool in the Merino breed rams in the case of zinc de-
ficiency. It was also found in that study that zinc levels of
only 4 mg kg−1caused abnormal keratinization of fibers in
the examined sheep and a significantly lower content of this
element in their wool.
The physicomechanical properties of wool fibers are sig-
nificant from a textile industry point of view, since they deter-
mine the usefulness and assignment of the fibers (Fatahi and
Yazdi, 2010; Ragaišien˙
e and Rusinaviˇ
ci¯
ute, 2012). The value
of breaking force obtained is this study was higher in the ex-
perimental group compared to the control one, which was
accompanied by higher thickness of wool fibers in the exper-
imental group. This means that thicker fibers need a higher
force to be broken, In turn, the elongation decreased with an
increasing thickness of the fibers, which suggests that thicker
fibers are less flexible. The value of tensile strength is one of
the most important features determining wool fiber process-
ing usefulness, and it represents the strength that should be
applied to rupture the fiber. Higher values of this parameter
demonstrate a higher resistance of the fibers. In this study,
this parameter was not affected by the supplementation de-
spite an increase in the values of thickness and breaking force
in the experimental group. It can be thus concluded that the
fibers after supplementation were stiffer and more resistant
compared to the fibers obtained from sheep before supple-
mentation.
Ryan et al. (2002) analyzed the bioavailability of zinc for
adult Texel sheep. Using zinc in inorganic (ZnSO4) and or-
ganic (bioplex) forms, they demonstrated that there is no dif-
ference between the amount of zinc from various sources in-
corporated into the wool. Concurrently, they proved that an-
imals receiving zinc in organic form had significantly higher
levels in their hooves and the quality of those hooves was
better. Similar results regarding the lack of differences in the
amount of zinc in wool depending on the source of its origin
were obtained by Pal et al. (2010) and Page et al. (2017). Ad-
ditionally, Page et al. (2017) showed no effect of zinc source
on the increase in diameter and length of wool fiber in the
growing rams. It was demonstrated in this study that the level
of zinc in the wool fibers of supplemented sheep was about
15 % higher compared to nonsupplemented sheep.
However, many studies confirm better bioavailability of
organic zinc forms, indicating its higher level in plasma, liver
and other organs in animals supplemented with zinc chelates
(Cao et al., 2000; Pal et al., 2010; Hassan et al., 2011).
4 Conclusions
Wool of sheep receiving the ZnMet bioplex addition was
characterized by higher values of thickness, length and
breaking force, with concurrently decreased elongation
value, as well as a higher content of zinc in wool fibers. How-
ever, no significant differences were found in the content of
zinc on the surface of the hair between the examined groups.
It can therefore be concluded that the addition of the ZnMet
bioplex positively affected the quality of wool obtained from
sheep during pregnancy and early lactation with regards to
physicomechanical parameters important from the process-
ing point of view. Although an increase in wool fibers thick-
ness was found, the values were still within the range re-
ported in the literature for Merino sheep, and concurrently
in the scope of the so-called fine fibers, most beneficial in the
textile industry.
Data availability. The data sets are available upon request from
the corresponding author.
Author contributions. SK and BPS designed the experiment;
RB obtained wool samples; AW and PC carried out wool analy-
sis; PC performed the statistical analysis; AW and KC prepared the
paper.
Competing interests. The authors declare that they have no con-
flict of interest.
Review statement. This paper was edited by Manfred Mielenz
and reviewed by two anonymous referees.
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