The effect of replacing inorganic zinc with organic zinc in diets of pregnant goats was investigated on the development of the liver and spleen of offspring. Pregnant goats (n = 14; Xiangdong black goat, local breed) of similar parity and body weight (BW, 37.17 ± 5.28 kg) were selected and divided randomly into two groups: the zinc sulfate group (ZnSO₄; n = 7) and the methionine-chelated zinc group (Zn-Met; n = 7). Goats were fed for 45 days (day 106 of gestation to delivery). After delivering, lactating goats were fed a diet without extra zinc supplement. Kid goats were weaned at 2 months of age and both the groups were fed the same diet. All goats were fed a mixed diet and had free access to fresh water. Kid goats were slaughtered on day 100, and the liver and spleen were collected, weighed, and stored in liquid nitrogen for genomic DNA methylation and related gene expression determination. In the Zn-Met group, the liver organ index of kid goats showed an increasing trend (P < 0.10), but the methylation of the whole genome was not affected both in the liver and spleen (P > 0.10). Furthermore, the blood zinc content of the offspring was reduced (P < 0.05), and the expression of genes related to methylation were downregulated (P < 0.05) or showed a downward trend (P < 0.10) in the liver and spleen. These data indicated that goats feeding Zn-Met during pregnancy increased the offspring liver organ index without change in the genomic DNA methylation. It is speculated that the regulation of zinc finger protein Sp3 adjusted by blood zinc indirectly regulated the expression of methylation-related genes in the liver and spleen of the kid goats, thus enhancing the development and function of the immune system of the offspring.

研究了在怀孕山羊的饮食中用有机锌代替无机锌对后代肝脏和脾脏发育的影响。选择 具有相同胎次和体重（体重，37.17±5.28公斤）的怀孕山羊（n = 14；湘东黑山羊，当地品种）并将其随机分为两组：硫酸锌组（ZnSO ₄；n  = 7）和蛋氨酸螯合的锌基（Zn-Met; n = 7）。山羊饲养了45天（从妊娠到分娩的第106天）。分娩后，给哺乳的山羊饲喂不添加锌的饮食。小山羊在2个月大时断奶，两组均以相同的饮食喂养。所有山羊都接受了混合饮食，可以自由享用淡水。在第100天宰杀小山羊，收集肝脏和脾脏，称重，并保存在液氮中用于基因组DNA甲基化和相关基因表达测定。在Zn-Met组中，小山羊的肝脏器官指数呈上升趋势（P  <0.10），但整个基因组的甲基化在肝脏和脾脏中均不受影响（P  > 0.10）。此外，后代的血锌含量降低了（P <0.05），并且 在肝脏和脾脏中与甲基化相关的基因表达下调（P  <0.05）或呈下降趋势（P <0.10）。这些数据表明，怀孕期间饲喂Zn-Met的山羊增加了后代肝器官指数，而基因组DNA甲基化没有改变。推测通过血液锌调节锌指蛋白Sp3的调节间接调节了小山羊的肝脏和脾脏中甲基化相关基因的表达，从而增强了后代免疫系统的发育和功能。