Abstract
BackgroundHigh-yielding dairy cows are prone to oxidative stress due to the high metabolic needs of homeostasis and milk production. Oxidative stress and inflammation are tightly linked; therefore, anti-inflammatory and/or natural antioxidant compounds may help improve mammary cell health. Baicalin, one of the major flavonoids in Scutellaria baicalensis, has natural antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties in various cell types, but its effects on bovine mammary epithelial cells (BMECs) have not been investigated.MethodsExplants from bovine mammary glands were collected by biopsy at the peak of lactation (approximately 60 days after the start of lactation) (n = three animals) to isolate BMECs corresponding to mature secretory cells. Cell viability, apoptosis, proliferative capacity and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production by BMECs were measured after increasing doses of baicalin were added to the culture media in the absence or presence of H2O2, which was used as an in vitro model of oxidative stress.ResultsLow doses of baicalin (1–10 µg/mL) had no or only slightly positive effects on the proliferation and viability of BMECs, whereas higher doses (100 or 200 µg/mL) markedly decreased BMEC proliferation. Baicalin decreased apoptosis rate at low concentrations (10 µg/mL) but increased apoptosis at higher doses. ROS production was decreased in BMECs treated with increasing doses of baicalin compared with untreated cells, and this decreased production was associated with increased intracellular concentrations of catalase and NRF-2. Irrespective of the dose, baicalin pretreatment attenuated H2O2-induced ROS production.DiscussionThese results indicate that baicalin exerts protective antioxidant effects on bovine mammary cells. This finding suggests that baicalin could be used to prevent oxidative metabolic disorders in dairy cows.
Highlights
The early lactation period in dairy cows is marked by severe metabolic stress due to high energy demand of milk production and due to concomitant limited feed intake, How to cite this article Perruchot M-H, Gondret F, Robert F, Dupuis E, Quesnel H, Dessauge F. 2019
Because the development of oxidative stress in dairy cows during the transition period generally results in various alterations in metabolic and cell survival mechanisms in the mammary gland (Piantoni et al, 2010), we focused on the potential effects of baicalin on bovine mammary epithelial cells (BMECs) reactive oxygen species (ROS) production under either normal or challenged conditions
We demonstrated that baicalin has positive effects on BMECs in vitro by regulating cell proliferation, apoptosis, cell viability and the antioxidant response and that these effects were generally observed at low concentrations of baicalin (1–10 mg/mM)
Summary
The early lactation period in dairy cows is marked by severe metabolic stress due to high energy demand of milk production and due to concomitant limited feed intake, How to cite this article Perruchot M-H, Gondret F, Robert F, Dupuis E, Quesnel H, Dessauge F. 2019. High demand for energy and nutrients requires large amounts of molecular oxygen for aerobic metabolism, which is accompanied by increased rates of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production (Aitken et al, 2009). This excessive production of ROS during the periparturient period can overwhelm the systemic and organ-specific antioxidant defenses, resulting in development of oxidative stress (Bernabucci et al, 2005; Castillo et al, 2005; Sordillo et al, 2007) and various alterations in metabolic and cell survival mechanisms within the mammary gland (Piantoni et al, 2010). This finding suggests that baicalin could be used to prevent oxidative metabolic disorders in dairy cows
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