Administering an Appeasing Substance to Improve Performance, Neuroendocrine Stress Response, and Health of Ruminants

Abstract

The present review demonstrates the main attributes of stress-related responses in ruminants, and the potential interaction with the immune system of the host is also presented, demonstrating that alternatives that reduce the response to stressful situations are warranted to maintain adequate health and performance of the herd. In this scenario, pheromones and their modes of action are presented, opening space to a recent technology being used for ruminants: bovine appeasing substance (BAS). This substance has been used in different species, such as swine, with positive behavioral, health, and performance results. So, its utilization in ruminants has been reported to improve performance and inflammatory-mediated responses, promoting the productivity and welfare of the livestock industry.

Administering the maternal appeasing substance before slaughter to improve carcass characteristics of finishing cattle

“…Plasma concentration of cortisol upon slaughter was decreased ( P < 0.01) by 44% in mBAS steers compared to CON+ ( Table 3 ). This outcome supports our hypothesis and provides initial evidence that mBAS administration alleviated the stress elicited during processing for slaughter ( Cappellozza and Cooke, 2022 ). Cortisol is paramount to the adrenocortical stress response ( Sapolsky et al., 2000 ) and directly stimulates glycogen and muscle tissue breakdown ( Nelson and Cox, 2005 ).…”

“…2020 ; Schubach et al., 2020 ), BW gain was not expected to differ herein given the short length of mBAS administration and the lack of major stressors during the final 7 days on feed. The mBAS replicates the composition of the original bovine appeasing pheromone that has calming effects when perceived by the animal, and shown to improve welfare and productivity of cattle exposed to stressful procedures ( Cappellozza and Cooke, 2022 ). No treatment differences were observed ( P = 0.73) for proportion of carcasses that graded Choice or Prime ( Table 2 ), as mBAS was also not expected to affect marbling during the last week on feed.…”

“…The maternal bovine appeasing substance ( mBAS ) is a mixture of fatty acids that replicate the composition of the original bovine appeasing pheromone, and shown to alleviate the physiological consequences elicited by stressful management procedures ( Cappellozza and Cooke, 2022 ). Research from our group reported that mBAS administration reduced cortisol concentrations and inflammatory reactions in beef calves upon weaning ( Schubach et al., 2020 ) and in feedlot steers during the receiving period ( Colombo et al., 2020 ).…”

Effects of an Appeasing Substance Application at Weaning on Growth, Stress, Behavior, and Response to Vaccination of Bos indicus Calves

“…The mechanism through which BAS administration leads to reduced cortisol production is still unclear. However, it is known that BAS target organs involved in pheromone perception include the main olfactory epithelium (MOE) and vomeronasal organ (VNO; [28,29]). The MOE is responsible for the recognition of traditional odor molecules and chemical and environmental signals without specificity or meaning, whereas the VNO is related to pheromone recognition, carrying specific chemosensory signals through the receptors [30], leading to the occurrence of a neuroendocrine cascade [29].…”

Dynamics of hematological and oxidative parameters characterizing the nonspecific resistance of cows under technological stress

“…However, industrial environmental conditions for animals lead to technological stresses leading to performance and health losses that cause higher susceptibility to pathogens iincrease's their exposure to viral and bacterial agents that causes mastitis, salmonellosis. Stressors have been proven to alter the permeability of intestinal barriers, gene and protein profiles of pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines in mucosal membranes in animals that increase plasma concentrations of proinflammatory cytokines and acute-phase proteins [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10].…”