Supra-nutritional copper influences blood parameters including antioxidant markers and immune response in Murrah buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) calves

Abstract

Copper (Cu) is an important trace element with a wide list of functions in the animal body. Due to wide interaction with various other macro and trace elements in the gastrointestinal tract, its requirement, as well as toxicity, remains always questionable. Higher amounts then routine recommendations in the ration remained an indicator of superior performance. In search of the positive impact of additional Cu on performance of growing male Murrah buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) calves (n = 10, 8–9 months, 111.60 ± 13.69 kg body weight), were divided equally into two groups of five each and fed either a control diet or supplemented with 10 ppm Cu through copper sulphate after mixing with same concentrate mixture used in control diet (Cu 10.4 ppm) for a period of 80 days. Blood samples were collected before starting supplementation (0 day) and at day 40 and 80 after starting supplementation and subjected to analysis of Haematology, plasma minerals, antioxidant profile as well as for cell-mediated and humoral immune response against antigen P. multocida. Supra-nutritional copper improved blood neutrophil (P = 0.048) and plasma selenium (P = 0.046) levels with reduced blood lymphocyte% (P = 0.029) on the 40th day (P < 0.05) after starting supplementation, while other hematological parameters and plasma minerals remained unaffected. Among antioxidant markers of blood, levels of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances were low (P = 0.004), while ceruloplasmin was high (P = 0.05) at the 80th day of observation as compared to control values. The values of enzyme superoxide dismutase (SOD) improved (P = 0.044) (from 40th day onwards), with their overall mean values (P = 0.005) due to Cu supplementation, while reduced glutathione, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, α tocopherol, retinol and β carotene concentrations remained unaffected due to supra-nutritional Cu. Although cell-mediated immune response remained comparable (P > 0.05) between groups, an improvement (P = 0.01) in overall mean values of antibody titer was reported in supra-nutritional Cu group. The study concluded that supra-nutritional Cu (@20.4 ppm of diet) in the ration of growing Murrah buffalo calves was helpful in improving the antioxidant potential as well as a humoral immune response in a short duration study, which highlighted the additional beneficial role of copper in a ration of growing buffalo calves as compared to its recommended dose.