To systematically investigate the metabolic and microbial differences in feed efficiency between Hereford × Simmental (H × S) crossbred and purebred Simmental cattle (S × S), 20 steers (initial weight = 268.80 ± 30.88 kg; initial age = 273.00 ± 14.09 days) were used, which were housed in mixed pens and fed a low-energy diet (0.75 Mcal Neg/kg DM). This study revealed that the level of Hypoglycin B was related to a reduced T3, which could affect growth performance. Metabolomics analysis identified Hypoglycin B, lysoPC, and DHAP as key discriminative metabolites. Pathway enrichment analysis revealed that these metabolites were primarily mapped to glycine, serine, and threonine metabolism; alanine, aspartate, and glutamate metabolism; and pantothenate and CoA biosynthesis. In our study, the relative abundances of Succinivibrio and Clostridium_sensu_stricto_6 were significantly greater in the H × S group than in the S × S group; it may have stronger energy extraction abilities and matches their lower F/G. Romboutsia was positively correlated with Hypoglycin B and negatively correlated with LysoPC (20:2 (11Z,14Z)/0:0), which might be related to changes in blood metabolites. Nevertheless, these explanations remain correlational and require functional validation through targeted interventions.

The selective breeding of beef cattle plays an important role in meeting the growing demand for beef and improving production performance. This study used fattened cattle of the Simmental (S) breed, and two crossbreeds: Simmental × Mongolian (SM) and Simmental × Holstein (SH), which were healthy, of similar age and weight. The results showed that the blood glucose (GLU) levels of the crossbred, genetically improved SM and SH groups were higher than that of the S group. Compared with the S group, there were 49 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the SM group, of which 18 genes were up-regulated and 31 genes were down-regulated; and 1,031 DEGs in the SH group, of which 251 genes were up-regulated and 780 genes were down-regulated. We found that crossbreeding may increase GLU levels in the blood by upregulating cytochrome C oxidase subunit 3 (COX3) gene expression and downregulating of PRSS2, providing glycogen to the organism, and therefore enhancing GLU-converting capacity. This study highlighted the differences in feed utilization and energy metabolism among crossbred breeds and provides theoretical support for crossbreeding as a means of selecting breeds and improving beef cattle production. However, the expression of the genes were not validated in the present experiments, and these results need further validation.

This experiment aimed to investigate the effects of the Mongolian veterinary medicine Kushenqi decoction and its extracts on the immune and antioxidant functions in beef cattle under cold stress. A total of 40 healthy seven-month-old Simmental cattle in the growing period with similar body condition and weight were selected and randomly divided into eight groups, namely the cold stress control group (cold stress group), cinnamon tincture group (group CIN), low-dose, medium-dose, and high-dose Kushenqi decoction groups (groups BGSS-L, BGSS-M, BGSS-H), and low-dose, medium-dose, and high-dose extract groups (groups BGSSE-L, BGSSE-M, BGSSE-H). Each group had five replicates, with one cattle per replicate. The pre-trial period was three days, and the formal trial period was seven days, during which all groups except the cold stress group received the medication twice daily. The results showed that compared with cold stress group, the average daily gain (ADG) was improved in each experiment group. The plasma interleukin-6 (IL-6) content was significantly decreased in each experiment group (P<0.05), the tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) content was significantly decreased in groups BGSS-L and BGSSE-L (P<0.05), and the content of interleukin-2 (IL-2) in the groups BGSS-M, BGSS-H, BGSSE-M, BGSSE-H and CIN was significantly increased (P<0.05). The immunoglobulin G (IgG) content in groups BGSS-L and CIN was significantly higher than that in the cold stress group (P<0.05). Compared with the cold stress group, the glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity was significantly increased in groups BGSS-L and CIN (P<0.05), the superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity was significantly increased in groups BGSSE-H and CIN (P<0.05), the malondialdehyde (MDA) content in the groups BGSSE-L, BGSSE-M, BGSSE-H was significantly lower than that in the cold stress group and group CIN (P<0.05), and the total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) in group CIN was significantly higher than that in other groups (P<0.05). The study shows that the Kushenqi decoction and its extracts can effectively alleviate inflammation and oxidative damage induced by cold stress in beef cattle, enhance immune and antioxidant functions, and improve short-term weight gain. Considering all inexes, the group BGSS-L showed better improvement effects.

The experiment was to study the effects of chronic cold stress on hormones of hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenocortical axis (HPA), hypothalamus-pituitary-thyroid axis (HPT) and sympathetic-adrenal-medulla axis (SAM), serum immunity, and antioxidant indexes in house-fed Mongolian cattle. Twenty-four 28-month-old healthy Mongolian cattle with similar age and parity were divided into cold stress period and cold stress recovery period according to the changes of environmental temperature and wind speed. The cold stress period was seven days, and the cold stress recovery period was seven days. The results showed that the average environmental temperature during the cold stress period was -12.5 ℃, and cattle were in a cold stress state. Cattle in cold stress recovery period were in non-stress state. Compared with the convalescent period of cold stress, the serum corticotropic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol (COR) contentrations of Mongolian cattle in cold stress period increased significantly (P<0.05), while glucose (GLU) content decreased significantly (P<0.05). The contentrations of neutrophil elastase (NE), immunoglobulin M (IgM), and immunoglobulin G (IgG) decreased extremely (P<0.01), the contentrations of cold-induced RNA binding protein (CIRP), interleukin-4 (IL-4), and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) decreased significantly (P<0.05), and the contentrations of interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-2 (IL-2), and immunoglobulin A (IgA) increased extremely (P<0.01). The activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and the content of malondialdehyde (MDA) decreased extremely (P<0.01), while the activity of catalase (CAT) increased significantly (P<0.05). The results showed that cold stress environment activated HPA axis of Mongolian cattle fed in house and increased heat production capacity of the body to resist the cold environment. Under the stimulation of cold stress, Mongolian cattle showed strong immunity and ability to maintain antioxidant balance.

Species with different genetic backgrounds exhibit distinct metabolic traits. Nine beef cattle were selected for the experiment to study changes in serum metabolic phenotypes, rumen microbiota diversity, and composition in beef cattle from different genetic backgrounds. Three groups were Chinese Simmental (S group), Simmental×Chinese Holstein (SH group), and Simmental × Mongolian (SM group) cattle. We used ELISA to detect serum biochemical indicators. The Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) in the rumen were examined, and a significant difference was observed in the acetic acid content of the three experimental groups (p < 0.01). The propionic acid content in the rumen of the S group was significantly higher than that of the SH and SM groups (p < 0.05). The A/P ratios of both the S and SM groups were significantly higher than that of the SH group (p < 0.05). We analyzed rumen microbiota composition and diversity in each group of cattle using 16S rRNA sequencing and found that their composition was generally similar in the three groups of crossbred fattening cattle; however, the f_Bacteroidales_RF16_group and g_norank_f_Bacteroidales_RF16_group were significantly enriched in the SH group, whereas Treponema and Spirochaetia were significantly enriched in the SM group. Spirochaetia was significantly enriched in the SM group. Differences in rumen bacterial enrichment indicated that starch, protein, and cellulolytic abilities differed among the S, SH, and SM groups. The results of Spearman correlation analysis confirmed the correlation between rumen genera and serum biochemical indices. Overall, differences in rumen microflora play an important role in influencing the serum metabolic phenotype.

The winter cold stress of dairy cows has become one of the important problems affecting the healthy development of animal husbandry. Cold stress will lead to the decrease of feed intake, milk yield and reproductive performance of dairy cows, and seriously harm the economic benefits of dairy farmers. Inner Mongolia is located in a cold region, where animals are in a cold environment for a long time, and the impact of cold stress is more common. In order to more specifically understand the effects of cold stress on the production performance of dairy cows, the paper reviews the effects of cold stress on the behavior, milk yield, neuroendocrine, biochemical indexes, immune, antioxidant function, intestinal flora and other aspects of dairy cows, and summarizes the effective prevention and control measures to prevent cold stress of dairy cows, to provide reference for further research on the prevention and relief of cold stress in dairy cows.

IntroductionThe hair coat status of cattle serves as an easily observed indicator of economic value in livestock production; however, the underlying mechanism remains largely unknown. Therefore, the objective of the current study was to determine differences in the intestinal microbiota and metabolome of cattle based on a division of with either slick and shining (SHC) or rough and dull (MHC) hair coat in Simmental cows.MethodsEight SHC and eight MHC late-pregnancy Simmental cows (with similar parities, body weights, and body conditions) were selected based on their hair coat status, and blood samples (plasma) from coccygeal venipuncture and fecal samples from the rectum were collected. The intestinal microbiota (in the fecal samples) was characterized by employing 16S rRNA gene sequencing targeting the V3–V4 hypervariable region on the Illumina MiSeq PE300 platform, and plasma samples were subjected to LC–MS/MS-based metabolomics with Progenesis QI 2.3. Plasma macromolecular metabolites were examined for differences in the metabolism of lipids, proteins, mineral elements, and hormones.ResultsNotable differences between the SHC and MHC groups related to host hair coat status were observed in the host metabolome and intestinal microbiota (P < 0.05). The host metabolome was enriched in histidine metabolism, cysteine and methionine metabolism, and purine metabolism in the SHC group, and the intestinal microbiota were also enriched in histidine metabolism (P < 0.05). In the MHC group, the symbiotic relationship transitioned from cooperation to competition in the MHC group, and an uncoupling effect was present in the microbe–metabolite association of intestine microbiota–host interactions. The hubs mediating the relationships between intestinal microbiota and plasma metabolites were the intestinal bacterial genus g__norank_f__Eubacterium_coprostanoligenes_group, plasma inosine, triiodothyronine, and phosphorus, which could be used to differentiate cows’ hair coat status (P < 0.05).ConclusionOverall, the present study identified the relationships between the features of the intestinal microbiota and host hair coat status, thereby providing evidence and a new direction (intestine microbiota–host interplay) for future studies aimed at understanding the hair coat status of cattle.

为比较西门塔尔牛及其杂交育肥牛脂代谢相关血液指标和肉品质之间的差异,本研究选取西门塔尔牛(S组)、西门塔尔牛×荷斯坦牛(SH组)、西门塔尔牛×蒙古牛(SM组)各3头,分为3组,并对3组育肥牛的脂代谢相关血液生化指标和牛肉品质进行测定.结果表明:1)西门塔尔牛×荷斯坦牛和西门塔尔牛×蒙古牛杂交肉牛肉样红度a*均显著高于西门塔尔牛(P＜0.05);2)西门塔尔牛×蒙古牛杂交肉牛葡萄糖(GLU)含量较西门塔尔牛显著升高(P＜0.05);3)西门塔尔牛×荷斯坦牛杂交肉牛肌肉黄度b*极显著低于其他两组(P＜0.01).综上所述,西门塔尔牛×蒙古牛杂交肉牛较西门塔尔牛有较好的能量和脂肪贮存能力,且在肉色上也拥有更好的红度.本研究为肉牛选育改良及高效生产提供一定的数据支持和理论基础.

Subacute rumen acidosis (SARA) is a common nutritional metabolic disease in ruminants. The occurrence of SARA is mainly caused by ruminants consuming a large amount of grain-rich diet, leading to abnormal rumen fermentation and damaging rumen function. SARA causes changes in the rumen internal environment, damages the rumen epithelial barrier, and thus affects the morphology and function of the entire digestive tract, reducing the feed intake, feed conversion rate, and affecting the production performance of ruminants, causing economic losses. The article elaborates on the mechanism and symptoms of SARA, summarizes the impact of SARA on rumen health, microbial community, production performance and product quality, and aims to provide reference for improving the health production and breeding efficiency of ruminants.

The ratio of dietary concentrate to coarse is an important factor affecting the performance of ruminants. An appropriate ratio of dietary concentrate to coarse can maintain rumen fermentation function of ruminants, stabilize rumen environment, prevent rumen acidosis and provide nutrients for the body, so as to ensure the efficient production performance of ruminants such as lactation performance and slaughter performance. In the paper, the effects of dietary concentrate to coarse ratio on nutrient digestion and metabolism, rumen fermentation, gastrointestinal flora, rumen acidosis and slaughter performance of ruminants are reviewed to provide reference for improving the efficiency of ruminant breeding.

The aim of the study was to compare the serum immune and antioxidant indexes of Mongolian and Simmental cows grazing naturally on Xilin Gol grassland in Inner Mongolia. Ten Mongolian and Simmontal cows with similar age and parity were selected and GC, ACTH, GH, T3, T4, IL-1, IL-2, TNF-α, IgG, T-SOD, GSH-Px, T-AOC and MDA were determined by ELISA. The results showed that the serum GC and ACTH content of Mongolian cattle were significantly lower than those of Simental cattle (P<0.05), and T3 content were significantly higher than those of Simental cattle (P<0.05). The content of IL-2, IFN-γ and IgG in serum of Mongolian cattle were significantly higher than those of Simental cattle (P<0.05). The activity of T-SOD and GSH-Px in serum of Mongolian cattle were significantly higher than those of Simmental cattle (P<0.05), and the content of MDA was significantly lower than that of Simmental cattle (P<0.05). The study indicates that the disease resistance of Mongolian cattle is stronger than Simmental cattle under the same grazing conditions.

亚急性瘤胃酸中毒(SARA)是反刍动物较为常见的营养代谢性疾病.发生SARA的主要原因是反刍动物大量采食谷物饲料,导致瘤胃异常发酵,损伤瘤胃功能.SARA导致瘤胃内环境发生改变,损害瘤胃上皮屏障功能,进而影响整个消化道的形态及功能,降低反刍动物的采食量、饲料转化率,影响生产性能,造成经济损失.文章阐述了SARA发生机制与症状,SARA对瘤胃菌群、生产性能及畜产品品质的影响,为提高反刍动物生产性能和养殖效益提供参考.

选用放牧饲养条件下产前3个月、平均体质量为(583±22.5)kg的健康西门塔尔妊娠母牛12头,按照体质量相近原则随机分为2组,分别为放牧组(草场自然放牧采食)和补饲组(放牧+补饲精料),每组6头牛.预试期8 d,正试期60 d.结果显示,与放牧组相比,补饲组妊娠牛平均日增重(ADG)和体况评分(P＜0.05)显著提高.试验结束后,与放牧组相比,补饲组血清总抗氧化能力(T-AOC)、谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶(GSH-Px)和超氧化物歧化酶(SOD)活性均显著高于放牧组(P＜0.05),且丙二醛(MDA)含量显著低于放牧组(P＜0.05).与放牧组相比,补饲组试验牛血清中IL-2、IgA及IgG含量有升高趋势,但IL-1β、IL-4和IgM含量无显著性差异(P＞0.05).补饲组血清总蛋白(TP)、尿素氮(BUN)和高密度脂蛋白胆固醇(HDL-C)含量均显著高于放牧组(P＜0.05).结果表明,补饲精料可显著改善放牧饲养条件下妊娠牛的体况和营养代谢状况,并对其抗氧化和免疫功能的提高具有促进作用.

Lactation is an important physiological stage of dairy cows, which affects milk yield, reestrus and actual service life of dairy cows. Good feeding management measures will improve the service life of cows and increase the economic benefits of feedlots. In summer, when the temperature of the external environment exceeds the upper limit that the cow can adjust, the body will produce heat stress, resulting in the decrease of feed intake, milk yield and milk quality of the cow, and in severe cases, shock or death. When heat stress occurs, the intestinal tract, neuroendocrine and immune systems of dairy cows all produce stress responses, and the secreted hormones and neurotransmitters regulate each other. The article reviewed the effects of heat stress on blood physiological and biochemical indexes, production performance, immune function, antioxidant capacity and intestinal tract of lactating cows and its mechanism, and proposed prevention and control measures in terms of physical, nutritional regulation, drugs and additives, in order to provide references for reducing the harm of heat stress on lactating cows and improving milk yield.

Transport stress can have certain effect on animal production, endocrine, meat quality and immune function. After long-distance transportation of beef cattle, rumen function will be decreased and rumen microflora will be disturbed, which will lead to reduced feed intake and rumination times, increased body temperature and weight loss. The paper reviews the effect of transport stress on neuroendocrine and biochemical indexes, meat quality, immune, antioxidant function of beef cattle, summarizes relevant measures to alleviate transport stress of beef cattle, in order to provide reference for subsequent research and practical application of transport stress in beef cattle production.

The effects of Arula-7 powder (ASP) on diarrhea and intestinal barrier function associated with its regulation of intestinal microflora in calves infected with pathogenic Escherichia coli O1 (E. coli O1) were studied. Twenty Holstein calves were randomly divided into four treatment groups: normal control (NC), model control (MC), 0.5 mg/kg ciprofloxacin (CIP) and 2.50 g/kg ASP groups. ASP inhibited the relative abundance of Proteobacteria, Selenomonadales, and Enterobacteriales, and increased the relative abundance of Lactobacillus, Faecalibacterium, and Alloprevotella. Moreover, we demonstrated for the first time that the ASP and CIP promoted weight gain, reduced the diarrhea rate (P < 0.05), and enhanced antioxidant capacity (P < 0.05) due to the increase in average daily gain (ADG), total protein (TP), and albumin (ALB). In addition, ASP and CIP increased the expression of Zunola occludens-1 (ZO-1), Occludin, and Claudin-1 in the ileum (P < 0.05), and improved immunity due to increase levels of interleukin-2 (IL-2), interleukin-4 (IL-4), interferon-γ (IFN-γ), immunoglobulin A (IgA), and immunoglobulin G (IgG) in the serum, strengthened CD4+T levels in the ileal mucosa and reducing CD8+T and CD11c+T (P < 0.05). Hence, The intestinal microbiota environment formed by early intervention of ASP powder has a protective effect on the intestinal mucosal function of calves infected with pathogenic E. coli.

Koumiss is a traditional fermented drink widely consumed by nomads owing to its rich nutritional value and therapeutic effects. Lactobacillus paracasei is a bacterial strain isolated from koumiss and has a positive effect on diarrhea; however, the relationship between gut microbial dysbiosis and L. paracasei gut microbial metabolism remains unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the anti-diarrheal activity of L. paracasei in a murine E. coli-induced diarrhea model to provide novel insights into its probiotic properties by analyzing its intestinal metabolites and effects on the intestinal barrier. Oral administration of the probiotic, L. paracasei, enhanced tight junction protein expression, alleviated clinical manifestations consistent with E. coli-induced diarrhea, and positively affected overall intestinal microecological homeostasis. Moreover, it increased the goblet cell count and the secretory immunoglobulin A content and regulated intestinal metabolism via gut microbes, consequently preventing E. coli-mediated disruption of the intestinal epithelial cell barrier.

The experiment was to explore the effect of chronic heat stress on immune function and antioxidant capacity of Simmental cattle fed in captivity. Ten Simmental cattle fed in captivity with similar health body condition were selected, and the test period was divided into cold stress period and non-stress period according to changes in the ambient temperature and humidity of cattle shed. The results showed that compared with the non-stress period, IgA, IgG, IgM and IL-2 in serum of Simmental cows fed in captivity under heat stress were significantly decreased (P<0.05), IL-1β, IL-6,and TNF-α content was significantly increased (P<0.05). CAT, GSH-Px, SOD activity and T-AOC in serum of Simmental cows under heat stress were significantly decreased under heat stress (P<0.05), and the content of MDA in serum was significantly increased (P<0.05). The content of INS in serum of simmental cows fed in captivity was significantly increased under heat stress (P<0.05), and the content of GLU, NEFA, GH and IGF-1 was significantly decreased (P<0.05). The study indicates that chronic heat stress inhibits the immune function and antioxidant capacity of cows fed in captivity, and may cause inflammatory reaction in the body of beef cattle, damage to the tissue cells of the organs of the Simmental cattle.

The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of Mongolian veterinarymedicine Babu-7 compound effective ingredient (BSEIC) on intestinal mucosal barrier related indexes of calves with diarrhea. Eighteen calves were randomly divided into healthy group (NC group), diarrhea group (EC group), antibiotic group (CIP group), BSEIC low dose group (BSEIC-L group), BSEIC medium dose group (BSEIC-M group), BSEIC high dose group (BSEIC-H group), with three calves in each group. The calves were dosed twice daily for 7 d. Except NC group, the calves in other five groups were given 2.50×1011 CFU/mL of pathogenic E. coli O1, 100 mL/head orally on the 5th day. The results showed that compared with EC group, the T-AOC, the content of IL-4 and IL-10, the activity of CAT, GSH-Px and SOD in duodenum of BSEIC-M group were significantly increased (P<0.05), the content of IL-2 was extremely increased (P<0.01), and the content of MDA was extremely decreased (P<0.01), the content of IFN-γ, TNF-α, TGF-β and IL-1β were significantly decreased (P<0.05), and the number of duodenal goblet cells was extremely increased (P<0.01). Compared with EC group, DAO activity and D-LA content in serum of calves in all treatment groups were significantly decreased (P<0.05). The study indicates that the compound effective ingredient of Mongolian veterinary medicine Babu-7 can regulate the immune responseof calves, protect the permeability of intestinal mucosa and strengthen the function of intestinal mucosal barrier.

The experiment was to study the effect of different energy and protein levels on growth and development, serum biochemical indices and intestinal flora of growing cows. Twenty-four Simmental 10-month-old cows with an average body weight of 275.54 kg were randomly divided into three groups, with eight replicates in each group and one cow in each replicate. The ME and CP of control group (CON group) diet was 9.96 MJ/kg, 11.7%, ME and CP of high-energy group (ENE group) diet was 10.93 MJ/kg, 11.7%, ME and CP of high protein group (PRO group) diet was 9.96 MJ/kg, 12.9%. The pre-trial period lasted for 15 d, and the experimental period lasted for 60 d. The results showed that different dietary nutrient levels had no significant effect on DMI, ADG of cows (P>0.05). The chest girth of cows in PRO group was significantly higher than that in ENE group (P<0.05), and the cross height in PRO group and CON group was significantly higher than that in ENE group (P<0.05). The serum urea nitrogen content in PRO group and ENE group was significantly lower than that in CON group (P<0.05), and the total cholesterol content and glutamic-pyrulol transaminase activity in PRO group were significantly lower than those in CON group (P<0.05). Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes were the most abundant in three groups. The top three genera in the three groups were UCG-005(UCG-005), Rikenellaceae_RC9_gut_group (Rikenellaceae_RC9_gut_group) and the unknown genus f-type UCG_010 (norank_f_UCG-010). The experiment indicates that increasing dietary protein level has better effect on growth, nutrient metabolism and absorption of beef cows during growing period than increasing energy level.