Abundance of selected bacterial groups in healthy calves and calves developing diarrhea during the first week of life: Are there differences before the manifestation of clinical symptoms?

Abstract

BackgroundDiarrhea is still the most common and economically most significant disease of newborn calves.ObjectiveAnalysis of the development of selected bacterial groups in the feces of neonatal calves and its significance regarding diarrhea.AnimalsA total of 150 newborn Simmental calves reared in 13 Bavarian farms were included in the study.MethodsFecal samples of calves taken at 0/6/12/24/48/72/168 hours (h) since birth were analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively for aerobic and anaerobic bacteria, such as Enterobacteriaceae, E. coli, enterococci, and lactobacilli, using cultural, biochemical, and molecular-biological methods. Concurrently, the health status of the animals was recorded. The bacterial levels of healthy and diarrheic animals were compared using statistical methods. In addition, feces samples from calves that developed diarrhea were examined by ELISA for the presence of rotaviruses, coronaviruses, E. coli F5, and Cryptosporidium (Cr.) parvum.ResultsFifty-seven out of 150 calves (37.3 %) that were examined developed diarrhea within the first week of life. In the feces of calves with diarrhea on day 1 of life, the levels of aerobes, Enterobacteriaceae, and E. coli were significantly increased (p < 0.05), while no significant differences in enterococci and lactobacilli were found. In animals with the onset of diarrhea on day 2 after birth, the load of lactobacilli was significantly reduced up to 24 h before the manifestation of clinical symptoms compared to healthy calves. For enterococci, this was only the case on the day of the onset of diarrhea. In addition, the ratios of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria, Enterobacteriaceae or E. coli to lactobacilli, of calves with diarrhea starting on day 2 after birth are significantly higher than those of healthy calves. The detection frequency of specific pathogens in diarrheic calves increased over the first week of life.ConclusionThe results suggest that the incidence of neonatal diarrhea in calves is favored by low levels of lactobacilli in the feces. From this, the hypothesis can be derived that, in addition to an optimal supply of colostrum, the earliest possible administration of lactobacilli might reduce neonatal diarrhea in calves. However, this must be verified in a subsequent feeding experiment.

Lactobacillus (Limosilactobacillus) reuteri: a probiotic candidate to reduce neonatal diarrhea in calves

“…A closer look at the Lactobacillus group using the logit model revealed the important role of L. reuteri in gut health, since the probability of diarrhea decreased significantly with increasing concentrations of L. reuteri ( p = 0.036). Based on these results, we hypothesized that an earliest possible administration of L. reuteri might contribute to a reduced incidence of diarrhea ( Schwaiger et al, 2022 ). A total of 46 strains of L. reuteri [identified by MALDI-TOF MS using a Bruker Microflex ™ LT equipment (Bruker, 164 Billerica, USA) and the Biotyper Real Time Classification software v. 3.0 (Bruker Daltonics, Bremen, 165 Germany)] from the feces of 2-day-old calves ( n = 38) of Simmental breed was available for the present study.…”

“…The calves were housed in calf-igloos or weather-protected individual boxes in 11 Bavarian dairy farms. All details on calf breeding regimes, data collection, as well as isolation and identification of bacteria can be seen in Schwaiger et al (2020) and Schwaiger et al (2022) . Details on the breeding regimes of the present study are described below (see 2.5.1 Animals).…”

“…The lowest values are reported in Sweden and Denmark (9.8 and 10.3%) ( Probo and Veronesi, 2022 ). In a former study carried out in Bavaria (Germany) we showed that about 37% of newborn calves developed diarrhea within the first 8 days of life ( Schwaiger et al, 2022 ). Similar data were reported for Switzerland ( Pipoz and Meylan, 2016 ), while incidence values from France ( Lorino et al, 2005 ) and the Netherlands ( Bartels et al, 2010 ) were lower (14.4 and 19.1%).…”

“…Recently, we reported that Lactobacillus ( Limosilactobacillus ; L. ) reuteri is the dominant Lactobacillus species in the feces of healthy calves during the first week of life ( Schwaiger et al, 2020 ), which has since been confirmed ( Fan et al, 2021 ). In addition, we showed that (i) in calves with diarrhea on day 2 postpartum, lactobacilli were significantly reduced even up to 24 h before the onset of clinical signs, and (ii) in particular, when the concentration of L. reuteri in the feces increased, the probability of occurrence of diarrheal disease decreased ( Schwaiger et al, 2022 ). Several other studies described the probiotic effects of L. reuteri , e.g., vitamin and amino acid production, modulation of host immune responses and improvement of intestinal mucosa integrity ( Aureli et al, 2011 ).…”

Yaks Are Dependent on Gut Microbiota for Survival in the Environment of the Qinghai Tibet Plateau

“…During the early stages of rumen development, yaks exhibit functional links and synergistic effects between rumen epithelial cell genes and microbial genes [11]. Compared to adult yaks, pathways related to transport and catabolism are up-regulated in the rumen microbes of 5-to 180-day-old calves, which is beneficial to calf health and improves calf survival [12]. Yak rumen microorganisms alter accordingly to cope with changing diets at different growth stages, with greater relative abundances of Ascomycetes and Mesomycetes, that is, fungi adapted to early liquid rations during juvenile years [13,14].…”