Abstract
Postpartum diseases are a major animal welfare and economic concern for dairy producers. Dysregulated inflammation, which may begin as soon as the cessation of lactation, contributes to the development of postpartum diseases. The ability to regulate inflammation and mitigate postpartum health diseases relies, in part, on the production of inflammatory mediators known as oxylipids. The objective of this study was to examine associations between oxylipids and postpartum diseases. Plasma samples were collected from 16 cattle via coccygeal venipuncture at the following time points: 6 d before dry-off; dry-off (d 0); 1, 2, 6, and 12 d after dry-off; 14 ± 3 d before the expected calving date; and 7 ± 2 d after calving. After calving, cows were grouped according to if clinical disease was undetected throughout the sampling period (n = 7) or if they developed a disease postpartum (n = 9). Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry was used to analyze plasma concentrations of 63 oxylipid species. Of the 32 oxylipids detected, concentrations of 7 differed between cows with no detected disease and diseased cows throughout the sampling period. Thus, a variable oxylipid profile was demonstrated through 2 major physiological transitions of a lactation cycle. Further, the information gained from this pilot study using a small number of animals with diverse diseases from a single herd suggests that it may be possible to use oxylipids at early mammary involution to alert dairy producers of cows at risk for disease after calving. Future studies should be performed in larger populations of animals, including cows from diverse geographies and dairying styles, and focus on specific diseases to evaluate the utility of oxylipids as biomarkers. Furthermore, it is important to determine the clinical implications of variable oxylipid concentrations throughout the lactation cycle and if the oxylipid profile can be modulated to improve inflammatory outcomes.
Highlights
Periparturient diseases, which include numerous metabolic and infectious diseases such as ketosis, displaced abomasum, mastitis, and metritis, cause severe animal welfare concerns and economic losses for dairy producers
If inflammation is attenuated, such as when neutrophil function is diminished around the time of calving, it is more likely for diseases such as mastitis and metritis to occur (Cai et al, 1994, Sordillo 2016)
The concentrations of 25 oxylipids were affected by time in both apparently healthy (AH) and clinical disease (CD) cows (P < 0.05)
Summary
Periparturient diseases, which include numerous metabolic and infectious diseases such as ketosis, displaced abomasum, mastitis, and metritis, cause severe animal welfare concerns and economic losses for dairy producers. The incidence and severity of periparturient diseases is associated with dysregulated inflammation (Sordillo and Raphael 2013). Specific physiological circumstances during the periparturient period, such as uterine involution and adipose tissue remodeling, invoke inflammation without the presence of a pathogen (Chapwanya et al, 2012; Contreras et al, 2017). Dairy cows rely on a tightly regulated inflammatory response that is robust enough to promote tissue healing or pathogen elimination but not to an extent that tissue damage occurs (Sordillo 2016). Navigating the periparturient period successfully necessitates tight control of every aspect of inflammation from its initiation to its termination, a process facilitated by numerous soluble mediators (Sordillo 2018)
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