Effects of evaporative cooling systems on the performance of lactating sows in a tropical climate.

This study evaluated litter performance, behavioral and physiological parameters, and milk characteristics of sows submitted to different thermal environments. Fifty sows were distributed in a completely randomized design with two treatments: an evaporative cooling system (ECS) and a conventional system (CS). Sow and its litter were characterized as an experimental unit. The animals were weighed at equalization and weaning. Feed intake, milk production, and bromatological characteristics of milk were measured; the sows respiratory rate, rectal, and surface temperature were monitored. Litter uniformity was determined at equalization and weaning. Behaviors of the sows and litters were monitored for 24 h on the 7th and 15th day of lactation. Temperature and relative humidity inside the maternity was 25.00 to 28.00 °C and 26.00 to 32.55 °C and 30.00 to 70.00% and 70.00 to 88.00%, respectively, considering ECS and CS. Nutritional quality of the milk remained stable during lactation in both systems evaluated. ECS improved the average weight of the piglets, weaning weight, and daily milk production by 0.038, 0.699, and 2.31 kg/day, respectively. Sows housed in the ECS had a reduction in physiological parameters and, increase in inactive alert behavior (1.79 percentage points) and breastfeeding behavior. Piglets showed a decrease of 2.43% in the range of feedings at night and 0.15% during the day. ECS provided better comfort to the sows at the expense of the CS and, consequently, better litter performance.

Effect of milk exposure on the redox profile of Caenorhabditis elegans.

The consumption of bovine milk and its derivatives is associated with inflammation, gastrointestinal disorders and the development of diseases in humans. Most studies related to milk effects are based on either clinal trials or experimental models such as mice and cell cultures. In this study we present the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans as an alternative model to evaluate the effects of milk on oxidative stress in other animal models. The toxicological effect of 20% milk exposure for 8 h on C. elegans was evaluated by progeny quantification, body size and pharyngeal pumping rate. Treating the worms with milk did not affect the worms brood size but interfered with their fecundity by delaying the average number of eggs in the first day of oviposition when compared to the control group. The size of worms treated with milk were significantly smaller compared to control. The pharyngeal pumping rate of milk-treated animals was not significantly different compared to untreated animals. Taking together, the results suggest that 20% milk treatment is not toxic for the worms but induces a minor delay achieving its adulthood and therefore its reproduction period. Milk exposure did not reduce the worms' survival under stress conditions and increase endogenous ROS levels. This study contributes to characterize the effects of milk exposure on the C. elegans nematode.

Transchromosomic bovines-derived broadly neutralizing antibodies as potent biotherapeutics to counter important emerging viral pathogens with a special focus on SARS-CoV-2, MERS-CoV, Ebola, Zika, HIV-1, and influenza A virus.

Historically, passive immunotherapy is an approved approach for protecting and treating humans against various diseases when other alternative therapeutic options are unavailable. Human polyclonal antibodies (hpAbs) can be made from convalescent human donor serum, although it is considered limited due to pandemics and the urgent requirement. Additionally, polyclonal antibodies (pAbs) could be generated from animals, but they may cause severe immunoreactivity and, once "humanized," may have lower neutralization efficiency. Transchromosomic bovines (TcBs) have been developed to address these concerns by creating robust neutralizing hpAbs, which are useful in preventing and/or curing human infections in response to hyperimmunization with vaccines holding adjuvants and/or immune stimulators over an extensive period. Unlike other animal-derived pAbs, potent hpAbs could be promptly produced from TcB in large amounts to assist against an outbreak scenario. Some of these highly efficacious TcB-derived antibodies have already neutralized and blocked diseases in clinical studies. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has numerous variants classified into variants of concern (VOCs), variants of interest (VOIs), and variants under monitoring. Although these variants possess different mutations, such as N501Y, E484K, K417N, K417T, L452R, T478K, and P681R, SAB-185 has shown broad neutralizing activity against VOCs, such as Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, and Omicron variants, and VOIs, such as Epsilon, Iota, Kappa, and Lambda variants. This article highlights recent developments in the field of bovine-derived biotherapeutics, which are seen as a practical platform for developing safe and effective antivirals with broad activity, particularly considering emerging viral infections such as SARS-CoV-2, Ebola, Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus, Zika, human immunodeficiency virus type 1, and influenza A virus. Antibodies in the bovine serum or colostrum, which have been proved to be more protective than their human counterparts, are also reviewed.

Goat farm variability affects milk Fourier-transform infrared spectra used for predicting coagulation properties.

Driven by the large amount of goat milk destined for cheese production, and to pioneer the goat cheese industry, the objective of this study was to assess the effect of farm in predicting goat milk-coagulation and curd-firmness traits via Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. Spectra from 452 Sarda goats belonging to 14 farms in central and southeast Sardinia (Italy) were collected. A Bayesian linear regression model was used, estimating all spectral wavelengths' effects simultaneously. Three traditional milk-coagulation properties [rennet coagulation time (min), time to curd firmness of 20 mm (min), and curd firmness 30 min after rennet addition (mm)] and 3 curd-firmness measures modeled over time [rennet coagulation time estimated according to curd firmness change over time (RCTeq), instant curd-firming rate constant, and asymptotical curd firmness] were considered. A stratified cross validation (SCV) was assigned, evaluating each farm separately (validation set; VAL) and keeping the remaining farms to train (calibration set) the statistical model. Moreover, a SCV, where 20% of the goats randomly taken (10 replicates per farm) from the VAL farm entered the calibration set, was also considered (SCV80). To assess model performance, coefficient of determination (R2VAL) and the root mean squared error of validation were recorded. The R2VAL varied between 0.14 and 0.45 (instant curd-firming rate constant and RCTeq, respectively), albeit the standard deviation was approximating half of the mean for all the traits. Although average results of the 2 SCV procedures were similar, in SCV80, the maximum R2VAL increased at about 15% across traits, with the highest observed for time to curd firmness of 20 mm (20%) and the lowest for RCTeq (6%). Further investigation evidenced important variability among farms, with R2VAL for some of them being close to 0. Our work outlined the importance of considering the effect of farm when developing Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy prediction equations for coagulation and curd-firmness traits in goats.

The replacement of grass hay by cassava foliage hay or spineless cactus improves lamb performance.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of partial or total replacement of Tifton 85 hay with cassava foliage hay and/or spineless cactus on the weight gain, body measurements, ingestive behaviour, and parasite infection of confined sheep. Thirty-five non-castrated male lambs with no defined breed were housed in individual pens for 90 days. Five treatments in a complete mixture were offered twice a day: Tifton hay (TH), cassava foliage hay (CFH), Tifton hay + cassava foliage hay (TH + CFH), Tifton hay + spineless cactus (TH + SC), and cassava foliage hay + spineless cactus (CFH + SC). The data were evaluated by analysis of variance and Tukey's test at 5% probability. The dry matter and crude protein intake were higher in sheep fed CFH and CFH + SC than sheep fed TH. Animals fed TH + SC presented a higher average daily gain (0.215 g) than sheep fed TH (0.125 g). The addition of spineless cactus to the diet with Tifton hay increased the feed efficiency by approximately 100% but did not affect the faecal egg count/g. The use of cassava foliage hay and its association with spineless cactus is recommended for the replacement of Tifton 85 hay in the diet of confined sheep.

Evaluation of microbiological, cellular and risk factors associated with subclinical mastitis in female buffaloes.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the microbiological and cellular milk profile for the diagnosis of subclinical mastitis in female buffaloes and to assess risk factors for predisposition of the disease. METHODS: Analyses were carried out by standard plate count (SPC), identification of species and antibiotic resistance, somatic cell count (SCC), electrical electrical conductivity of milk (ECM), and lactoferrin content in milk. Teat cups were swabbed to evaluate risk factors, observing hyperkeratosis, milking vacuum pressure and cleanliness of the site. Hence, 30 female buffaloes were randomly selected (15 from a group in early lactation and 15 in late lactation). RESULTS: The most common bacteria in the microbiological examination were Staphylococcus spp., Streptococcus spp. and Corynebacterium sp. In the antibiotic sensitivity test, 10 (58.82%) of the 17 antibiotics tested were sensitive to all isolates, and resistant bacteria were Streptococcus uberis, Streptococcus dysgalactiae, Streptococcus haemolyticus, and Escherichia coli. It was observed that positive samples in the microbiological examination showed total bacterial count between 9.10×103 to 6.94×106 colony forming units/mL, SCC between 42,000 to 4,320,000 cells/mL and ECM ranging from 1.85 to 7.40 mS/cm. It was also found that the teat cups had high microbial counts indicating poor hygiene, and even faults in the cleanliness of the animals' waiting room were observed. It is concluded that values of SCC above 537,000 cells/mL and ECM above 3.0 mS/mL are indications of mammary gland infection for this herd; however, the association of these values with a microbiological analysis is necessary to more accurately evaluate the health status of mammary glands with subclinical mastitis. CONCLUSION: Through phenotypic characterization of bacteria involved in the samples, the genera Staphylococcus spp., Streptococcus spp., and Corynebacterimum bovis were the most prevalent in this study. Faults in environment and equipment hygienization are factors that are directly associated with mastitis.

Gross composition, fatty acid profile and sensory characteristics of Saanen goat milk fed with Cacti varieties.

The use of cactus is an alternative for sustainable production systems in Northeast Brazil. The objective of this research was to evaluate the influence of supplying five cacti species from the Brazilian semi-arid northeast region on the physical-chemical sensory characteristics and the profile of fatty acids of Saanen goat milk. Five multiparous goats were used, confined, and distributed in a Latin square 5 × 5 design, with five experimental diets and five periods. Treatments consisted of 473 to 501 g/kg of a cactaceous mix (Pilosocereus gounellei, Cereus jamacaru, Cereus squamosus, Nopalea cochenillifera, or Opuntia stricta) added to 187.8 to 197.9 g/kg of "Sabiá" (Mimosa caesalpiniifolia) hay and 311 to 329 g/kg of concentrate. No effects of experimental diets (P > 0.05) were evidenced in the physical and chemical composition of milk for fat, total solids, or salt levels. However, protein, lactose, solids-not-fat levels, and cryoscopy point were influenced by diet (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference (P > 0.05) in the profile of fatty acids between treatments for all acids found, except for butyric acid. Diets also did not (P > 0.05) confer sensory changes in milk characteristics. The use of the native cacti in the dairy goats' diet did not influence the sensory characteristics or lipid profile of milk.