A cross-sectional study of bluetongue virus and Mycoplasma bovis infections in dairy cattle: I. the association between a positive antibody response and production efficiency

In a cross-sectional study of bluetongue virus (BTV) and Mycoplasma bovis (M. bovis) infections, a sample of 572 California dairy cows was tested for the presence of antibodies to answer the question: Is it possible to identify and to assess quantitatively the associations between positive antibody test and production? Serum samples collected from these cows during December 1986 were tested for the presence of antibodies to BTV and M. bovis using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Data on milk production were extracted from individual cow sheets of the California Dairy Herd Improvement Association (DHIA) record-keeping system and interfaced with percentage ELISA results for analysis. Univariate and multivariate statistical analyses, using the X ² test for categorical variables or Student's t-test for continuous variables and multiple logistic regression respectively, were carried out to evaluate for possible associations between positive antibody tests to each agent and each production variable of interest. Complete data on all variables studied were obtained for 289 (50.5%) cows for M. bovis and 423 (74%) cows for BTV. For cows with complete data on all variables, estimates of the point prevalence of antibodies to BTV and M. bovis were 70.5% and 66.1%, respectively. Results of this study indicated that Guernsey cows were more likely to have a positive BTV test than Holstein cows and that cows in higher lactations were more likely to test positive to BTV ELISA than those in lower lactations (p<0.05). Because all cows except those on one farm were Holstein, our confidence in the effect of breed is limited. The association between lactation number and BTV seropositive test may be an age factor identified earlier in the study. For M. bovis, the results of the analysis indicated that seropositive cows were more likely to produce less milk, on a mature equivalent basis (OR_adj=0.96, p=0.034), and that they had less extended 305 day milk production potential (OR_adj=0.90, p<0.0001) than seronegative cows.     

Occurrence of Coxiella burnetii in Polish dairy cattle herds based on serological and PCR tests

The aim of the research was to assess the prevalence of antibodies to Coxiella burnetii in dairy cattle herds in Poland and to compare the results of real-time PCR and ELISA tests performed on bulk tank milk (BTM) samples. In total, 2635 serum samples collected from 969 dairy cattle herds from all provinces were tested using ELISA. Additionally, BTM specimens from 101 herds were analysed by ELISA and real-time PCR targeting IS1111 element. Presence of anti-C. burnetii antibodies was confirmed in 25.39% of serum samples in 237 herds (24.46%) and the herd-level seroprevalence in Voivodeships varied from 2.5% to 61.4%. Moreover, 46 (45.5%) of analysed bulk tank milk samples gave postive result in ELISA and microbial DNA was detected in 40 (39.6%) of tested herds. The comparative analysis of ELISA and real-time PCR results obtained for BTM samples using the chi-square test showed statistically significant relationship between results of both methods.     

Comparison of carcass and meat characteristics of Brahman grade cattle (Bos indicus) and crossbred water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) fed on high roughage diet

The objective of this study was to compare the carcass and meat quality in crossbred cattle and crossbred water buffalo at the same younger age and fed with high roughage in the Philippines. Ten crossbred cattle and 10 crossbred water buffalo, with an average age of 22 months (18–24 months) were used in this experiment. The animals were fed a similar diet, which consisted of 85% Napier or Para grass and 15% concentrate mixture on a dry matter basis, for 180 days before slaughter. Slaughter weight of the crossbred water buffalo was higher (P < 0.05) than that of the cattle, although the dressing percentage was significantly (P < 0.01) lower for the former than for the latter. The estimated lean yield was higher (P < 0.05) in crossbred cattle than crossbred water buffalo. The muscle fiber diameter of loin in buffalo meat was smaller (P < 0.05) than that in cattle. In regard to carcass and meat quality, the crossbred water buffalo was comparable or slightly superior to the crossbred cattle in tenderness, sensory score of color (P < 0.01) and flavor (P < 0.05). These results clearly indicate that at a younger age and even under high roughage‐based fattening rations, crossbred water buffalo are able to produce good quality meat, which will be by no means inferior to that of crossbred cattle in the Philippines.     

包被γ-氨基丁酸及其复合矿物质添加剂对西门塔尔肉牛生长性能和血液生化指标的影响

研究包被γ-氨基丁酸(GABA)和包被γ-氨基丁酸(GABA)复合微量元素添加剂对生长期肉牛生长性能及血液生化指标的影响。选择12月龄体重在407.22kg±21.36kg的西门塔尔肉牛45头,随机分为3组(对照组,试验1组,试验2组),对照组饲喂基础日粮,试验组在饲喂基础日粮的基础上饲喂包被γ-氨基丁酸(GABA)和包被γ-氨基丁酸(GABA)复合矿物质微量元素。结果表明,平均日增重试验1组高于对照组,试验2组高于试验1组,极显著高于对照组(P<0.01)。碱性磷酸酶(ALP)的浓度试验组与对照组相比,总体呈上升趋势,在第20、30、40、50、60天时试验2组显著高于对照组(P<0.05)。血清中总蛋白(TP)的含量在第20天时试验1组极显著高于对照组(P<0.01),试验2组显著高于对照组(P<0.05);在第40天时试验1组显著高于对照组(P<0.05)。免疫球蛋白G(IgG)的浓度在第20、30天时,试验1组极显著高于对照组(P<0.01),试验2组显著高于对照组(P<0.05);在第40、50、60天时,试验1组显著高于对照组(P<0.05);试验2组显著高于对照组(P<0.05)。结果提示,添加包被γ-氨基丁酸(GABA)和包被γ-氨基丁酸(GABA)复合微量元素可以提高肉牛的体重,提高肉牛机体的免疫力,减少疾病的发生,且包被γ-氨基丁酸(GABA)复合微量元素的作用效果要优于γ-氨基丁酸(GABA)。     

柠檬酸稀土对锦江黄牛屠宰性能、肉品质及脂肪代谢的影响

本试验旨在研究柠檬酸稀土对锦江黄牛屠宰性能、肉品质及脂肪代谢的影响。选用年龄、体质量相近的健康育肥期锦江公牛为试验动物,共12头,平均体质量为(374.75±4.02)kg,随机分成2组,即对照组和试验组,在试验组饲粮中的添加柠檬酸稀土400 mg/kg,对照组不添加柠檬酸稀土。试验期为期70 d。饲养试验结束进行屠宰,测定其屠宰性能,分析测定肉品质指标和脂肪代谢相关酶及激素指标。结果显示:饲粮中添加柠檬酸稀土显著提高了平均日增质量(P<0.05),显著降低了料质量比(P<0.05);饲粮中添加柠檬酸稀土可显著提高血清中GH和瘦素的水平(P<0.05);饲粮中添加柠檬酸稀土显著降低了育肥期锦江黄牛的脏脂率和脂肪率(P<0.05),有降低背膘厚及板油率的趋势(0.05≤P≤0.1);饲粮中添加柠檬酸稀土显著提高了牛肉中粗蛋白的含量(P<0.05),降低了粗脂肪及干物质的含量(P<0.05),同时具有提高剪切力的趋势(0.05≤P≤0.1);饲粮中添加柠檬酸稀土显著降低了肝脏中MDA的活性(P<0.05),对FAS活性具有降低的趋势(0.05≤P≤0.1);饲粮中添加柠檬酸稀土显著提高了肝脏中LPL的活性(P<0.05),对TL也有升高的趋势(0.05≤P≤0.1)。结果表明,饲粮中添加400 mg/kg的柠檬酸稀土可改善锦江黄牛生产性能和屠宰性能,提高肌肉中粗蛋白含量,同时还有明显的降低育肥期锦江黄牛体内脂肪含量的作用,提高肉牛养殖效益。     

Cattle stunning with a penetrative captive bolt device: A review

The captive bolt device has been used for stunning cattle at abattoirs for more than 100 years and is now one of the stunning devices used most widely. The aim of this review article was to assess the effects that are decisive during cattle slaughter on the quality of stunning with the use of a captive bolt stunning device. The basis of effective stunning is the use of a suitable type of device, with the speed of the bolt and the kinetic energy corresponding to the anatomical parameters of the slaughtered animal. The importance of the regular cleaning and maintenance of stunning devices and monitoring of the effectiveness of stunning goes without saying. The immediate loss of sensibility in the animal must occur after the first shot. The effectiveness of the stunning process can be quantified by regular monitoring of the behavior of animals after stunning with an emphasis on the loss of reflexes (corneal reflex, regular breathing, attempts to regain physiological posture) and checks on the shot location on the skulls of slaughtered animals.     

Prevotella copri,a potential indicator for high feed efficiency in western steers

There has been a great interest to identify a microbial marker that can be used to predict feed efficiency of beef cattle. Such a marker, specifically one that would allow an early identification of animals with high feed efficiency for future breeding efforts, would facilitate increasing the profitability of cattle operations and simultaneously render them more sustainable by reducing their methane footprint. The work presented here suggests that Prevotella copri might be an ideal microbial marker for identifying beef cattle with high feed efficiency early in their life span and in the production cycle. Developing more refined quantification techniques that allow correlation of P. copri to feed efficiency of beef cattle that can be applied by lay people in the field holds great promise to improve the economy of cattle operations while simultaneously reducing their environmental impact by mitigating methane production from enteric fermentation.     

Dairy cattle behavior classifications based on decision tree learning using 3‐axis neck‐mounted accelerometers

Demand has been increasing recently for an automated monitoring system of animal behavior as a tool for the management of livestock animals. This study investigated the association between the behavior of dairy cattle and the acceleration data collected using three‐axis neck‐mounted accelerometers, as well as the feasibility of improving the precision of behavior classifications through machine learning. In total 38 Holstein dairy cows were used, and kept in four different farms. A logger was mounted to each collar to obtain acceleration data for calculating the activity level and variations. At the same time the behavior of the cattle was observed visually. Characteristic acceleration waves were recorded for eating, rumination, and lying, respectively; and the activity level and variations were significantly different among these behaviors (p < 0.01). Decision tree learning was performed on the data set from Farm A and validated its precision; which proved to be 99.2% in cross‐validation, and 100% in test data sets from Farms B to D. This study showed that highly precise classifications for eating, rumination, and lying is possible by using decision tree learning to calculate the activity level and variations of cattle based on the data obtained by three‐axis accelerometers mounted to a collar.     

Genotypes and allele frequencies of buried SNPs in a bovine single‐nucleotide polymorphism array in Japanese Black cattle

Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) arrays are widely used for genetic and genomic analyses in cattle breeding; thus, data derived from SNP arrays have accumulated on a large scale nationwide. Commercial SNP arrays contain a considerable number of unassigned SNPs on the chromosome/position on the genome; these SNPs are excluded in subsequent analyses. Notably, the position‐unassigned SNPs, or “buried SNPs” include some of the markers associated with genetic disease. In this study, we identified the position of buried SNPs using the Basic Local Alignment Search Tool against the surrounding sequences and characterized the relationship between SNPs and genetic diseases in Online Mendelian Inheritance in Animals based on the genomic position. We determined the position of 285 buried SNPs on the genome and surveyed the genotype and allele frequencies of these SNPs in 5,955 individual Japanese Black cattle. Eleven SNPs associated with genetic disease, which contained five buried SNPs, were found in the population with the risk allele frequency ranging from 0.00008396 to 0.46. These results indicate that buried SNPs in the bovine SNP array can be utilized to identify associations with genetic disorders from large scale accumulated SNP genotype data in Japanese Black cattle.     

Dormant Season Grazing: Effect of Supplementation Strategies on Heifer Resource Utilization and Vegetation Use

Grazing dormant forage under low-input heifer development strategies typically exposes cattle to low-quality forage. Protein supplementation while grazing dormant range can enhance heifer growth and reproductive performance. We examined resource utilization of heifers and the effects of dormant season grazing on residual vegetation characteristics under two supplementation management strategies. Approximately 100 weaned composite heifer calves were randomly selected and placed into one of two supplementation treatments in each of 2 yr, one receiving a free access 62% crude protein self-fed concentrate and the other receiving a daily hand-fed 20% crude protein cake. Grazing occurred from December (2015 and 2016) through March (2016 and 2017). Thirty transects were randomly located within each pasture for measuring vegetation quality and structure before and after grazing. Daily space use and behavior was evaluated for 21 individuals within each treatment using global positioning system (GPS) collars and resource utilization functions. Heifers supplemented with concentrated protein spent more time grazing per day than heifers supplemented with cake (6.92 ± 0.18, 6.24 ± 0.17 h). Relative use by heifers in the cake treatment was negatively related to horizontal distance from the supplement delivery site early to midwinter ($\stackrel{?}{\overline{\beta }}$ = ? 0.41 ± 0.16, ? 0.53 ± 0.17). Both treatments selected grazing locations relative to standing biomass of perennial grasses ($\stackrel{?}{\overline{\beta }}$ = 0.0005 ± 0.00004) and crude protein ($\stackrel{?}{\overline{\beta }}$ = 0.12 ± 0.007). However, resource selection was highly variable among individuals for both supplementation treatments. We found no treatment effects on pre-post grazing differences in residual cover of litter, grass, forbs and shrubs (P > 0.24). However, the time period when grazing occurred had an effect on residual vegetation conditions (P < 0.01). Our results indicate high levels of variability in grazing site selection by heifers, suggesting future research should incorporate individual animal measurements in an attempt to account for individual animal variability.