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Ruminants, Volume 2, Issue 4 (December 2022) – 10 articles

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9 pages, 682 KiB  
Article
Increased Dietary Protein to Energy Ratio in Pre-Weaning Lambs Increases Average Daily Gain and Cortical Bone Thickness in the Tibia
by Michaela J. Gibson, Brooke R. Adams, Penny J. Back, Keren E. Dittmer, Hitihamy M. G. P. Herath, Sarah J. Pain, Paul R. Kenyon, Patrick C. H. Morel, Hugh T. Blair and Chris W. Rogers
Ruminants 2022, 2(4), 478-486; https://doi.org/10.3390/ruminants2040034 - 01 Dec 2022
Viewed by 1327
Abstract
The objective of this study was to examine if diets differing in crude protein (CP) to metabolizable energy (ME) ratio (CP:ME) pre-weaning altered peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) measures of bone mass and strength in lambs. The left hind leg of lambs were [...] Read more.
The objective of this study was to examine if diets differing in crude protein (CP) to metabolizable energy (ME) ratio (CP:ME) pre-weaning altered peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) measures of bone mass and strength in lambs. The left hind leg of lambs were available at the completion of a trial designed to examine the effect that altering the CP:ME ratio in milk replacer had on growth and body composition of pre-weaned lambs reared artificially. Treatments consisted of either normal commercial milk replacer (CMR, n = 10) containing 240 g/kg CP and 21.89 MJ/kg ME, high protein milk replacer (HPM, n = 9) containing CMR with additional milk protein concentrate to reach 478.7 g/kg CP and 19.15 MJ/kg ME or a mix of normal milk replacer and milk protein concentrate adjusted twice-weekly to match optimal CP:ME requirements (MB, n = 8) based on maintenance plus 300 g/d liveweight gain. At 22 kg live weight, lambs were euthanized and the tibia including the surrounding muscle was collected and scanned using pQCT at the mid-diaphysis. Lambs on the HPM and MB diets had a greater average daily gain (p < 0.01). There were limited differences in bone morphology and muscle mass, though notably the higher protein diets (MB and HPM) were associated with greater cortical thickness (p < 0.05) and, therefore, potentially greater peak bone mass at maturity This finding demonstrates that pre-weaning diets, and the protein content in particular, may influence the developmental potential of long bones and attainment of peak bone mass at maturity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers of Ruminants 2021-2022)
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7 pages, 872 KiB  
Article
Effect of a Novel Variant with Let-7c MicroRNA Gene on Litter Size in Markhoz Goats
by Emel Zergani, Amir Rashidi, Jalal Rostamzadeh, Jens Tetens and Mohammad Razmkabir
Ruminants 2022, 2(4), 471-477; https://doi.org/10.3390/ruminants2040033 - 01 Dec 2022
Viewed by 1011
Abstract
This study was focused on identifying the effects of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) located on an entire region of the let-7c miRNA gene with consideration of its ability to promote litter size in Markhoz goats. The Markhoz goat, the native breed in Iran, [...] Read more.
This study was focused on identifying the effects of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) located on an entire region of the let-7c miRNA gene with consideration of its ability to promote litter size in Markhoz goats. The Markhoz goat, the native breed in Iran, is important for its reproductive traits, such as litter size. DNA polymorphism of let-7c miRNA gene was revealed and considered for further studies for its effect on litter size in Markhoz goats. PCR-SSCP analysis investigated different band patterns for this miRNA; however, sequencing results have detected only an A to T substitution located five nucleotides downstream of the let-7c miRNA gene. The chi-squared test showed that the let-7c miRNA gene locus was out of the Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium (HWE) and has significant effect (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the least-square analysis indicated that the let-7c miRNA gene does not affect prolificacy in the Markhoz goat (p > 0.05). In sum, all loci failed to have a significant effect on the litter size trait (p > 0.05). Moreover, years of kidding and parity had no significant impact on let-7c_S (p > 0.05); however, the let-7c_B affected the litter size trait significantly (p < 0.05). Additionally, binary logistic regression and chi-square analysis revealed that allele A of the detected SNP within 3′ UTR region of the let-7c gene had a non-significant effect on litter size in the studied goats (p > 0.05). Full article
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15 pages, 334 KiB  
Review
Applications of Microsatellites and Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms for the Genetic Characterization of Cattle and Small Ruminants: An Overview
by Oscar Cortes, Javier Cañon and Luis Telo Gama
Ruminants 2022, 2(4), 456-470; https://doi.org/10.3390/ruminants2040032 - 07 Nov 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2152
Abstract
The status of genetic diversity, adaptation to climate change or the identification of genes associated with traits of interest in livestock populations has been a major concern for scientists in the last decades. Biotechnology has evolved continuously, offering new tools and methodologies to [...] Read more.
The status of genetic diversity, adaptation to climate change or the identification of genes associated with traits of interest in livestock populations has been a major concern for scientists in the last decades. Biotechnology has evolved continuously, offering new tools and methodologies to analyse the genomes of livestock species. Biochemical markers or protein polymorphisms were the tools used for population studies many years ago, but over the last three decades the methodologies available to analyse livestock genomes have changed notably. The development of DNA molecular markers, especially microsatellites and Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms, opened new possibilities for a better understanding of livestock genomes, unthinkable until recently. However, Whole-Genome Sequencing technologies or genome editing techniques are changing the way to analyse or interact with the genomes, even before full advantage can be taken of all the possibilities open by the last group of molecular markers. The aim of this review is to summarize the opportunities available through livestock genome analysis in cattle and small ruminant populations, namely through the molecular markers most widely used over the last few years, including microsatellites and Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conservation and Valuation of the Ruminant Local Breeds)
8 pages, 237 KiB  
Article
Propionibacteriaium acidipropionici CP 88 Dose Alters In Vivo and In Vitro Ruminal Fermentation Characteristics
by Jonah R. Levenson, Logan Thompson, Roderick Gonzalez-Murray, Ryan J. Gifford, Meghan P. Thorndyke, Octavio Guimaraes, Huey Yi Loh, Briana V. Tangredi, Harrison Hallmark, Richard Goodall, John J. Wagner and Terry E. Engle
Ruminants 2022, 2(4), 448-455; https://doi.org/10.3390/ruminants2040031 - 04 Nov 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1467
Abstract
Twelve 5-year-old beef steers, with an average weight of 2000 lbs., fitted with rumen canulae were used in a 4 × 4 incomplete Latin square design to examine the impact of the direct fed microbial Propionibacterium acidipropionici CP 88 (PA) on rumen fermentation [...] Read more.
Twelve 5-year-old beef steers, with an average weight of 2000 lbs., fitted with rumen canulae were used in a 4 × 4 incomplete Latin square design to examine the impact of the direct fed microbial Propionibacterium acidipropionici CP 88 (PA) on rumen fermentation characteristics, in vitro CH4, CO2, and N2 production, and in vivo CH4 and CO2 production. All steers were housed in the same pen equipped with eight GrowSafe feeding stations to monitor individual animal feed intake and one GreenFeed System to estimate individual animal CH4 and CO2 production. Steers were fed a corn-silage-based diet throughout the experiment. Treatments consisted of PA administered at: (1) control (0.0); (2) 1.0 × 108; (3) 1.0 × 109; and (4) 1.0 × 1010 cfu∙animal−1∙day (d)−1. Treatments were administered directly into the rumen as a single bolus dose daily. On day 7 and 14 of each period, rumen fluid was collected from each steer 2 h post treatment administration for VFA analysis and in vitro DM digestibility determination. Following a 14 d washout period, animal treatments were switched and the experiment repeated until the 4 × 4 Latin square was complete. In vivo propionic acid molar proportions and total VFA concentrations were greater (p < 0.05) in steers receiving PA when compared with controls. All other in vivo rumen fermentation characteristics were similar across treatments. In vitro DM disappearance (p < 0.05) and total VFA (p < 0.05) were greater and CH4 lesser (p < 0.04) in fermentation vessels incubated with rumen fluid from animals receiving PA when compared with controls. Dry matter disappearance (p < 0.03) and propionic acid molar proportions increased (p < 0.04) linearly as the dose of PA increased. In vitro total VFA tended (p < 0.08) to increase linearly and CH4 production per unit of DM digested tended (p < 0.09) to decrease quadratically in response to PA dose. All other in vitro rumen fermentation characteristics were similar across treatments. These data indicate that PA impacts in vivo and in vitro rumen fermentation characteristics. Full article
13 pages, 2276 KiB  
Review
Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP) in Non-Cow Milk and Dairy Products: A Review of Current Evidence and Future Trends
by Eleni Malissiova, Stamatia Fotiadou, Anastasia Tzereme, Dimitra Cheimona, Georgia Soultani, Ioannis Maisoglou and Athanasios Manouras
Ruminants 2022, 2(4), 435-447; https://doi.org/10.3390/ruminants2040030 - 04 Nov 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3027
Abstract
Alkaline phosphatase is used as the main marker in the evaluation of successful milk pasteurization, although there is concern about whether this method is appropriate for non-cow milk. We systematically reviewed articles related to ALP in non-cow milk and dairy products. From a [...] Read more.
Alkaline phosphatase is used as the main marker in the evaluation of successful milk pasteurization, although there is concern about whether this method is appropriate for non-cow milk. We systematically reviewed articles related to ALP in non-cow milk and dairy products. From a total of 183 studies retrieved, 31 articles were included in the review. Our study shows that most research is focused on goat and sheep milk, while other species are rather neglected as far as the use of ALP as a milk safety marker is concerned. More evidence on ALP kinetics is required for non-cow milk and its products and on alternative pasteurization-efficiency markers, such as other enzymes, as these issues are crucial for consumer health. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Milk and Dairy Products)
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15 pages, 4758 KiB  
Article
Effect of Growth Hormone Exon-5 Polymorphism on Growth Traits, Body Measurements, Slaughter and Carcass Characteristics, and Meat Quality in Meat-Type Lambs in Turkey
by Vasfiye Kader Esen and Cengiz Elmacı
Ruminants 2022, 2(4), 420-434; https://doi.org/10.3390/ruminants2040029 - 02 Nov 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1650
Abstract
This study examined the relationship between GHE5 polymorphisms and growth and carcass characteristics of meat-type sheep breeds reared in Turkey. A total of 202 lambs were tested, consisting of five breeds. By SSCP analysis and nucleotide sequencing, 14 nucleotide changes (12 substitutions and [...] Read more.
This study examined the relationship between GHE5 polymorphisms and growth and carcass characteristics of meat-type sheep breeds reared in Turkey. A total of 202 lambs were tested, consisting of five breeds. By SSCP analysis and nucleotide sequencing, 14 nucleotide changes (12 substitutions and two deletions) were identified in four variants of GHE5. In the coding region of GHE5, five substitutions occur, including c.1588C>Y(C/T) (Ala160Val), c.1603A>M(A/C), c.1604G>S(G/C) (Lys165Thr), c.1606A>W(A/T) (Gln166Leu), and c.1664C>Y(C/T). P3 female and P1 male lambs had the highest rump height at weaning, whereas P3 females and P2 males had the highest chest depth (p < 0.05). At yearling, P1 variant lambs have longer body length (BL; p < 0.05), wider leg circumferences, and thinner cannon bone perimeter (CBP) (p > 0.01), in contrast to P2 variant lambs, which have a shorter BL and thicker CBP. Furthermore, P2 had a greater percentage of neck, shoulder, and leg, P1 had a greater percentage of loin, and P3 had a greater percentage of rack, but there was no significant difference between them. A marker-assisted selection approach can be used to improve sheep carcass quality traits by taking advantage of the nucleotide substitutions found on GHE5 and the detected differences between variants. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers of Ruminants 2021-2022)
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13 pages, 452 KiB  
Article
Assessing the Reliability of Optimized Residual Feed Intake Measurements in Beef Cattle
by Jaakko Mononen, Joel Kostensalo, Maiju Pesonen, Arto Huuskonen and Katariina Manni
Ruminants 2022, 2(4), 407-419; https://doi.org/10.3390/ruminants2040028 - 31 Oct 2022
Viewed by 1224
Abstract
Residual feed intake (RFI) is the preferred measurement for feed efficiency in beef cattle, but it is laborious to determine. Data from two experiments of growing bulls (test period durations of 56 and 63 days) were used to examine how a reduction in [...] Read more.
Residual feed intake (RFI) is the preferred measurement for feed efficiency in beef cattle, but it is laborious to determine. Data from two experiments of growing bulls (test period durations of 56 and 63 days) were used to examine how a reduction in the number of times the animals were weighed and the shortening of the length of the observation period affect the reliability of the RFI determination. We introduce two easily understandable probability measures for assessing reliability. ‘The consistency of the pair-wise ranks’ gives the probability that the rank of any two animals compared remains the same when the amount of data is reduced. ‘The consistency of the thirds’ gives the probabilities that an individual animal will remain in the same, i.e., the lowest, middle, or highest, third of animals. The reliability of the results was not greatly affected when the weighing interval was reduced from one week to four weeks. However, shortening the test period resulted in a marked reduction in the reliability of RFI. If individual feed intake is automatically measured, the workload required for RFI measurements can most effectively be reduced by reducing the number of weighing times but keeping the duration of the test period long enough. Full article
(This article belongs to the Topic Precision Feeding and Management of Farm Animals)
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17 pages, 2712 KiB  
Article
Temperature and Temperature Humidity Index Changes during Summer to Autumn in a Temperate Zone May Affect Liveweight Gain and Feed Efficiency in Sheep
by Eric N. Ponnampalam, Malcolm McCaskill, Khageswor Giri, Stephanie K. Muir, Fiona Cameron, Joe L. Jacobs and Matthew I. Knight
Ruminants 2022, 2(4), 390-406; https://doi.org/10.3390/ruminants2040027 - 01 Oct 2022
Viewed by 1974
Abstract
Lamb finishing during summer in southern Australia faces the challenges of dry paddock feed of low nutrient value and energy concentration, combined with periods of high temperature that reduce appetite. One potential forage to overcome these challenges is camelina, a brassica with a [...] Read more.
Lamb finishing during summer in southern Australia faces the challenges of dry paddock feed of low nutrient value and energy concentration, combined with periods of high temperature that reduce appetite. One potential forage to overcome these challenges is camelina, a brassica with a high lipid concentration. Liveweight gain (LWG) and feed efficiency (FE) of a pelleted diet containing 15% camelina hay (CAM) were compared with an equivalent diet based on oaten hay (STD), a feed commonly used during dry seasons. The experiment was conducted under summer to autumn conditions using 56 maternal Composite (Composite) wether lambs (4 months, 28–38 kg liveweight) and 56 Merino wether yearlings (15 months, 37–43 kg liveweight). Animals were maintained in group pens (8/pen) and weekly average feed intakes per pen and liveweights per pen were determined in a shaded well-ventilated animal house. The LWG and FE for both animal types were significantly lower during weeks 5–8 compared with weeks 1–4. These changes coincided with a higher proportion of daytime maxima exceeding 28 °C (50% vs. 21%) and night-time hours exceeding 22 °C (15% vs. 9%). The experiment indicated that the LWG and FE of sheep fed the CAM diet were less affected by the elevated temperatures than sheep fed the STD diet during weeks 5–8. However, further research under controlled environmental conditions is required to further validate these results. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers of Ruminants 2021-2022)
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8 pages, 240 KiB  
Article
Association between Ruminal pH and Rumen Fatty Acids Concentrations of Holstein Cows during the First Half of Lactation
by Georgios C. Kitkas, Georgios E. Valergakis, Maria Kritsepi-Konstantinou, Athanasios I. Gelasakis, Panagiotis D. Katsoulos, Emmanouil Kalaitzakis and Nikolaos K. Panousis
Ruminants 2022, 2(4), 382-389; https://doi.org/10.3390/ruminants2040026 - 26 Sep 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2372
Abstract
Ruminal pH in dairy cows follows a diurnal fluctuation; low values are indicative of subacute ruminal acidosis and are associated with alterations of rumen fatty acids concentrations. The objective of the present study was to prospectively study the associations between ruminal pH and [...] Read more.
Ruminal pH in dairy cows follows a diurnal fluctuation; low values are indicative of subacute ruminal acidosis and are associated with alterations of rumen fatty acids concentrations. The objective of the present study was to prospectively study the associations between ruminal pH and the rumen fluid concentrations of short, medium, and long chain fatty acids, under field conditions during the first half of lactation in 53 Holstein cows of a dairy farm. Ruminal fluid was obtained by rumenocentesis, which was performed at 30, 90, and 150 days in milk (DIM). Ruminal pH was measured immediately after collection with a portable pH meter, whereas gas chromatography was used for the determination of ruminal fatty acid concentrations. Mixed linear regression models were used for data analysis. The prevalence of cows with low ruminal pH (≤5.5) was 45.3%, 54.7%, and 66.0% at 30, 90, and 150 DIM, respectively. The concentrations of acetic, propionic, butyric, valeric, isovaleric, caproic and linoleic acids were negatively associated with ruminal pH values, whereas the acetic to propionic ratio was positively associated with rumen pH. Under field conditions and naturally occurring low ruminal pH cases, ruminal concentrations of most fatty acids are negatively related with ruminal pH values Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers of Ruminants 2021-2022)
22 pages, 2005 KiB  
Article
Representing Cattle Farming around the World: A Conceptual and Holistic Framework for Environmental and Economic Impact Assessment
by Lucie Perin, Patrice Dumas and Mathieu Vigne
Ruminants 2022, 2(4), 360-381; https://doi.org/10.3390/ruminants2040025 - 23 Sep 2022
Viewed by 2380
Abstract
Around the world, cattle farming systems are diverse and lead to diverse environmental and socio-economic consequences. To assess these consequences, the diversity of cattle farming needs to be represented. A conceptual framework based on three inter-linked concepts (management types, animal profiles and lineage [...] Read more.
Around the world, cattle farming systems are diverse and lead to diverse environmental and socio-economic consequences. To assess these consequences, the diversity of cattle farming needs to be represented. A conceptual framework based on three inter-linked concepts (management types, animal profiles and lineage groups) is proposed resulting in two typologies, and tested on cattle systems in Kenya. The management type typology provides an understanding of the cattle farming practices across the world. Animal profiles, defined by the animal’s age and sex, and used together with management types, serve as a convenient unit for the analysis of feed use, environmental impacts, animal functions, and costs. Lineage groups bring together cattle and their progeny, making it possible to account for movements across management types and for all co-productions in impact assessments. The illustration on Kenya showed the completeness of the framework, the availability of management-type characteristics, and also the lack of precise data on shares of lineage groups and management types. The conceptual framework developed here should render it possible to capture and compare the multiple characteristics and functions of cattle farming around the world, including their environmental impact, which currently is a major issue for the global livestock sector. Full article
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