No abstract

El objetivo del estudio fue evaluar el efecto de clorhidrato de zilpaterol (CZ) sobre la ganancia de peso y las características de la canal en corderos finalizados en pradera de alfalfa y suplementados con concentrado en corral. Un total de 24 corderos machos enteros Dorper x Pelibuey, con peso vivo inicial de 25.0 ± 0.24 kg, fueron divididos en dos grupos (n=12) y alimentados con 0 o 10 mg/cabeza/día de CZ los últimos 30 días antes del sacrificio. Durante el periodo experimental, todos los corderos pastorearon en alfalfa 8 h/día y se suplementaron con 450 g/d de concentrado. El CZ no afectó (P>0.05) el peso vivo. Las ganancias de peso diaria y total fueron similares (P>0.05) entre ambos grupos. Las características de canal y el rendimiento de cortes primarios no fueron afectados (P>0.05) por el CZ. En conclusión, el clorhidrato de zilpaterol a una dosis de 10 mg/cabeza/día no mejoró el crecimiento ni las características de canal en corderos finalizados en pradera de alfalfa y suplementados con concentrado.

Frente al problema del calentamiento global y cambio climático, los pequeños rumiantes serán clave para mantener la producción de proteína de origen animal, ya que tienen superioridad en la tolerancia al calor en comparación con otros animales domésticos. Los ovinos de pelo han demostrado ampliamente su habilidad para crecer y reproducirse en escenarios naturales de altas temperaturas y baja disponibilidad de nutrientes. La adaptación que presentan estos ovinos al estrés calórico está dada por una compleja interacción entre los mecanismos de termorregulación y la presencia de factores genéticos, lo cual les confiere una plasticidad fisiológica para tolerar climas calientes sin afectar drásticamente la productividad. Bajo condiciones de México, los ovinos de pelo se encuentran distribuidos en los diferentes climas debido a que no presentan una estacionalidad reproductiva, y esta característica permite a la industria ovina mantener una producción de carne constante a través del año; sin embargo, poca atención se ha puesto sobre su habilidad para producir en condiciones de estrés calórico. En este sentido, la presente revisión tiene como objetivo hacer una descripción de los efectos del estrés calórico sobre el comportamiento reproductivo, el crecimiento de corderos y la termorregulación de ovinos de pelo.

The main objective of this study was to assess the effect of month of breeding on reproduction performance of Holstein heifers and cows inseminated with sex-sorted or conventional semen in a hot environment. Pregnancy per artificial insemination (P/AI; 64,666 services over an 8-year period) both in heifers (n = 22,313) and cows (n = 42,353) from a large dairy herd in northern Mexico (26°N) were evaluated with the GENMOD procedure of SAS, with respect to month of AI. Overall, P/AI with sex-sorted semen was greater (P < 0.01) in heifers (41.6 %) than cows (17.3 %). P/AI for cows serviced with conventional semen was 10 % points higher (P < 0.01) in January and December (31 vs. 21 %) than cows serviced with sex-sorted semen. While there was no difference in P/AI between the sex-sorted sperm and conventional semen in cows inseminated in July (16 and 18 %, respectively), P/AI plummeted for both groups of cows during the summer and fall (more severe heat stress). P/AI was not different between heifers serviced with sex-sorted or conventional semen during the hottest months of the year (July to October). However, during the coldest month of the year (January and February), P/AI was 10 percentage points greater (P < 0.01) in heifers serviced with conventional than sex-sorted semen. It was concluded that in this hot climate cow and heifer fertility declined in the summer and fall when inseminated with conventional semen. However, the use of sex-sorted semen during summer and fall did not compromise the breeding success in heifers. Thus, this data suggest that sex-sorted semen promotes some embryonic thermoprotective mechanism, which leads to a marginal summer and fall fertility depression with this type of semen in this particular hot environment.

No abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of ingestion of pasteurized and subsequently frozen-thawed pooled colostrum (≥50 mg Ig/mL) with different bacterial counts and immunoglobulin concentration (IgC) on the occurrence of diarrhea and pneumonia in 306 neonatal Holstein calves in a hot environment. Calves were assigned to be fed colostrum with total bacterial counts (TBC) lower or greater than 100 000 colony-forming units (cfu)/mL, total coliform counts (TCC) greater or lower than 10 000 cfu/mL, and IgC lower or higher than 85 mg Ig/mL. Calves fed colostrum with TBC ≥100 000 cfu/mL were more likely (risk ratio 1.34, confidence interval 1.05-1.71; P < 0.05) to present pneumonia than calves receiving colostrum with lower TBC (incidence 53.2 vs. 39.8%). Calves fed colostrum with high TCC had increased chances of suffering pneumonia (51.4 vs. 42.1%; P < 0.05) than calves fed colostrum with lower TCC. Calves fed colostrum with ≥85 mg Ig/mL tended to present higher daily weight gain (505 ± 113 vs. 484 ± 126 g; P = 0.09). TBC and TCC in colostrum did not influence the incidence rate of diarrhea. It was concluded that under the conditions of the present study, heavy contamination of on-farm pasteurized frozen-thawed colostrum is seemingly unavoidable and this contamination poses a threat for pneumonia, but not for diarrhea.

The possible effect of glutamate supplementation upon ovarian reactivation and serum concentrations of insulin (INS) and triiodothyronine (T3) in anestrous yearling goats was evaluated. Goats (n = 32, 12 mo., 26° North, 1117 m) with a similar live weight (LW) and body condition score (BCS) were blood sampled twice per week for two weeks (2 × 1 week × 2 weeks) to confirm the anestrus status (<1 ng P4/mL; RIA). Thereafter, goats were randomly assigned to either 1) Glutamate (GLUT; n = 16, LW = 27.1 ± 1.09 kg, 3.5 ± 0.18 units, IV-supplemented with 7 mg of glutamate kg−1 LW), or 2) Control (CONT; n = 16; LW = 29.2 ± 1.09 kg; BCS = 3.5 ± 0.18, IV saline). During the treatment period, 16 goats (eight/group) were blood sampled twice per week for six weeks. Such serum samples (2 × 1 week × 6 weeks) were quantified by their P4 content to evaluate the ovarian-luteal activity, whereas a sample subset (1 × 1 week × 6 weeks) was used to quantify their INS & T3 content to evaluate their metabolic status. Neither LW (28.19 kg; p > 0.05) nor BCS (3.51 units; p > 0.05) differed between treatments. Goats depicting ovarian reactivation favored the GLUT group (50 vs. 12.5%; p < 0.05). Neither INS (1.72 ± 0.15 ng mL−1) nor T3 (2.32 ± 0.11 ng mL−1) differed between treatments, yet a treatment x time interaction regarding INS & T3 concentration across time favored (p < 0.05) the GLUT group. The results unveil exogenous glutamate as an interesting modulator not only of ovarian reactivation, but of metabolic hormone synthesis.

No abstract