Effects of protein supplementation on resistance and resilience of lambs naturally infected with gastrointestinal parasites

Abstract

In this study, the objective was to evaluate the efficacy of protein supplementation on gastrointestinal nematode control in lambs naturally infected. Sixty weaned Ile de France and Texel crossbred lambs, with 60 days of age, were divided into three groups (n=20) according to the level of protein in the concentrate: low protein (LP; 8.5%), moderate protein (MP; 15%), and high protein (HP; 25%). The daily amount of concentrate offered was based on 3% of live weight, which was continued throughout the experiment of 98 days. Evaluations were conducted biweekly from days 0 (D0) to 98 (D98). There were no significant differences (p > 0.05) in the average weight among the LP, MP and HP groups, which was 22.0, 21.4, and 21.1 kg, respectively, on D0 and 46.4, 48.3, and 48.2 kg, respectively, on D98. The daily weight gain was not significantly different among the groups (LP, 250 g; MP and HP, 276 g; p > 0.05). The average egg count per gram of feces (epg) of the LP group on D98 (6,765; an increase of 5,690 epg from D0) was higher than that of the MP and HP groups (1,617.5, p < 0.05 and 3,435, p > 0.05, respectively), which remained constant throughout the study. The hematocrit values decreased (p < 0.05) from D0 to D98 only in the LP group. Only in the HP group (p < 0.05), the mean serum total protein concentration increased from D0 (5.3 g dL-1) to D98 (5.8 g dL-1). The average albumin level on D98 (2.10 g dL-1) was lower than that on D0 (2.52 g dL-1) in the LP group (p < 0.05). During the study, 10 lambs overall were treated with anthelmintic because the epg values exceeded 10,000; six treated lambs were from the LP group, 3 from the HP group, and only 1 from the MP group. These results indicate that supplementation of diet with 15% protein increases the resistance and resilience of lambs to gastrointestinal parasites.

Pharmacopuncture with a low dosage of B complex vitamins in the Da Zhui acupoint (Governing Vessel 14) for controlling gastrointestinal parasitism in periparturient ewes

“…Although lactating ewes are susceptible to gastrointestinal parasitosis (Amarante, 2015;Salgado et al, 2019b), there was no need to perform any emergency treatment to avoid clinical signs or death of the animals in this study. It is possible that the concentrated protein supplementation provided the animals with a favorable host-parasite interaction, as proposed by Louvandini et al (2015) and Mendes et al (2018). In addition, the sheep used in this experiment were crossbred Santa Inês, considered in several studies to be more resistant to parasites (Albuquerque et al, 2017;Amarante, 2015).…”

Vertical migration of Haemonchus sp. infectant larvae on Stylosanthes spp. and Brachiaria brizantha (Syn. Urochloa brizantha) cv. Marandu forage

“…Forages can have an influence on sheep parasitism because of the microclimate for the development and surveillance of non-parasitic stages of GIN (Santos et al 2012;Troncha et al 2019). The nutritional support and quality of forage is also important to allow the development of a good immune response in the host (Mendes et al 2018;Oliveira et al 2009). Leguminous forages are an option for increasing the diet protein level in grazing livestock systems.…”

Optimum timing for assessing phenotypic resistance against gastrointestinal nematodes in Pelibuey ewes

“…Nowadays, the targeted selective treatment scheme is the rational option to continue using anthelmintic in the farms ( Aguirre-Serrano et al ., 2020 ). Other alternative control strategies against GIN include vaccination, dietary supplementation ( Mendes et al ., 2018 ), secondary plant metabolites, nematophagous fungi and the selection of GIN-resistant animals ( Vilela et al ., 2016 ). All the approaches could contribute to reducing the use of anthelmintic drugs.…”