Weaning age influences the severity of gastrointestinal microbiome shifts in dairy calves

Meale, S. J.; Li, S. C.; Azevedo, Paula; Derakhshani, Hooman; DeVries, T.J.; Plaizier, J.C.; Steele, M.A.; Khafipour, Ehsan

doi:10.1038/s41598-017-00223-7

Cited by 99 publications

(103 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…Eckert et al (2015) also showed that delayed weaning promoted beneficial effects on intake and growth in dairy cows during their weaning and thereafter. This delay in weaning clearly facilitated a more gradual shift in microbial diversity in both the rumen and feces of the dairy calves when feeding a high plane of preweaning nutrition (Meale et al, 2017).…”

Section: Intake and Growth Performancementioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of preweaning total plane of milk intake and weaning age on intake, growth performance, and blood metabolites of dairy calves

Mirzaei

Dadkhah

Baghbanzadeh-Nobari

et al. 2018

Journal of Dairy Science

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The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of preweaning total plane of milk intake and weaning age on intake, growth performance, and blood metabolites of dairy calves. A total of 48 Holstein calves (40 ± 1.6 kg of body weight) were used in a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement with the factors of weaning age (d 60 vs. 75) and the total plane of milk intake (medium vs. high) during the preweaning period. Calves were assigned to 1 of 4 treatments: (1) calves fed medium plane of milk (MPM) intake and weaned on d 60 of age (MPM-60d, 4 L/d of milk from d 3 to 10, 6 L/d of milk from d 11 to 55, and 3 L/d of milk from d 56 to 60 of age; total milk intake = 317 L), (2) calves fed MPM intake and weaned on d 75 of age (MPM-75d, 4 L/d of milk from d 3 to 10 and 4.5 L/d of milk from d 11 to 70 of age followed by feeding 2.25 L/d of milk from d 71 to 75 of age; total milk intake = 313 L), (3) calves fed high plane of milk (HPM) intake and weaned on d 60 of age (HPM-60d, 4 L/d of milk from d 3 to 10, 6 L/d of milk from d 11 to 20, and 8.5 L/d of milk from d 21 to 55 followed by feeding 4.25 L/d of milk from d 56 to 60 of age; total milk intake = ∼411 L); and (4) calves fed HPM intake and weaned on d 75 (HPM-75d, 4 L/d of milk from d 3 to 10, and 6 L/d of milk from d 11 to 70 of age followed by feeding 3 L/d of milk from d 71 to 75 of age; total milk intake = 407 L) with no milk refusals. All of the calves were monitored up to d 90 of age. Regardless of weaning age, starter feed intake and dry matter intake (% of body weight) were lower in calves fed HPM compared with those receiving MPM. A tendency for the plane of milk intake × weaning age interaction was observed for metabolizable energy intake with the highest value was recorded with the HPM-75d calves. The lowest efficiency of metabolizable energy intake and average feed efficiency was observed in HPM-60d calves throughout the experimental period as compared with the other groups. An interaction was found between the total plane of milk intake and weaning age regarding effects on total average daily gain, average daily gain/metabolizable energy intake, feed efficiency, final body weight, and plasma β-hydroxybutyrate levels with the highest values measured in HPM-75d calves. Weaning on d 75 versus d 60 improved wither height and hip width, which tended to increase body length at the end of the trial. The results suggest that calves fed high amounts of milk during their preweaning period benefit from extending the time of weaning from 60 to 75 d of age based on average daily gain, feed efficiency, and final body weight.

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Section: Intake and Growth Performancementioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of preweaning total plane of milk intake and weaning age on intake, growth performance, and blood metabolites of dairy calves

Mirzaei

Dadkhah

Baghbanzadeh-Nobari

et al. 2018

Journal of Dairy Science

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“…The gut microbiota of mammals, such as pigs, has numerous roles benefiting the host, including maintenance of physiological functions of the intestinal villi, regulation of immune responses, protection from pathogenic bacteria, digestion and fermentation of carbohydrates and production of vitamins [3]. Furthermore, a recent report demonstrated that weaning induced a shift in the intestinal microbiome due to abrupt dietary shifts [4]. During the suckling period, milk provides an environment for the population of Lactobacillus.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

β-Carotene prevents weaning-induced intestinal inflammation by modulating gut microbiota in piglets

Pan

et al. 2021

Anim Biosci

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Objective: Weaning is an important stage in the life of young mammals, which is associated with intestinal inflammation, gut microbiota disorders, and even death. β-Carotene displays anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities, which can prevent the development of inflammatory diseases. However, whether β-carotene can affect intestinal microbiota remains unclear. Methods: Twenty-four piglets were distributed into four groups: the normal suckling group (Con), the weaning group (WG), the weaning+β-carotene (40 mg/kg) group (LCBC), and the weaning+β-carotene (80 mg/kg) group (HCBC). The serum, jejunum, colon, and faeces were collected separately from each group. The effects of β-carotene on the phenotype, overall structure, and composition of gut microbiota were assessed in weaning piglets. Results: The results showed that β-carotene improved the growth performance, intestinal morphology and relieved inflammation. Furthermore, β-carotene significantly decreased the species from phyla Bacteroidetes and the genus Prevotella, and Blautia, and increased the species from the phyla Firmicutes and the genera p-75-a5, and Parabacteroides compared to the WG group. Spearman's correlation analysis showed that Prevotella and Blautia were positively correlated, and Parabacteroides and Synergistes were negatively correlated with the levels of interleukin-1β (IL-1β), IL-6, and tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), while p-75-a5 showed negative correlation with IL-6 in serum samples from piglets. Conclusion: These findings indicate that β-carotene could alleviate weaning-induced intestinal inflammation by modulating gut microbiota in piglets. Prevotella may be a potential target of β-carotene in alleviating the weaning-induced intestinal inflammation in piglets.

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“…S5a). These developmental features have already been described for calves with the same characteristics (age, sex, and breed) fed milk replacers [10], as well as for females of the same breed in Canada [10,13], the USA [14,15], and Japan [16] and for dairy calves of a different breed in Austria [17]. These shared ndings suggest that the fecal microbiota of calves undergoes a predictable age-dependent trend that is common to distinct calf populations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 54%

Temporal dynamics of the fecal microbiota in veal calves in a 6-month field trial

Haenni

Nguyễn

Madec

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Background Little is known about maturation of calves’ gut microbiome in veal farms, in which animals are confined under intensive-farming conditions and the administration of collective antibiotic treatment in feed is common. We conducted a field study on 45 calves starting seven days after their arrival in three veal farms. We collected monthly fecal samples over six months and performed 16S rRNA gene sequencing and quantitative PCR of Escherichia coli to follow the dynamics of their microbiota, including that of their commensal E. coli populations. We used mixed-effect models to characterize the dynamics of α-diversity indices and numbers of E. coli, and searched for an effect of collective antibiotic treatments on the estimated parameters. On two farms, we also searched for associations between recommended daily doses of milk powder and bacterial abundance. Results There was high heterogeneity between calves’ microbiota upon their arrival at the farms, followed by an increase in similarity, starting at the first month. From the second month, 16 genera were detected at each sampling in all calves, representing 67.5% (± 9.9) of their microbiota. Shannon diversity index showed a two-phase increase, an inflection occurring at the end of the first month. Calves receiving antibiotics had a lower intercept estimate for Shannon index (-0.17 CI95%[0.27; -0.06], p = 0.003) and a smaller number of E. coli/ gram of feces during the treatment and in the 15 days following it (-0.37 log10 (E. coli/g) CI95%[-0.66; -0.08], p = 0.01) than unexposed calves. There were moderate to strong positive associations between the dose of milk powder and the relative abundances of the genera Megasphaera, Enterococcus, Dialister and Mitsuokella, and the number of E. coli (rs ≥ 0.40; Bonferroni corrected p < 0.05).Conclusions This observational study shows early convergence of the developing microbiota between veal calves and associations between the dose of milk powder and members of their microbiota. It suggests that administration of collective antibiotic treatment results in a reduction of diversity and size of the E. coli population and highlights the need for additional work to fully understand the impact of antibiotic treatment in the veal industry.

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Weaning age influences the severity of gastrointestinal microbiome shifts in dairy calves

Cited by 99 publications

References 48 publications

Effects of preweaning total plane of milk intake and weaning age on intake, growth performance, and blood metabolites of dairy calves

Effects of preweaning total plane of milk intake and weaning age on intake, growth performance, and blood metabolites of dairy calves

β-Carotene prevents weaning-induced intestinal inflammation by modulating gut microbiota in piglets

Temporal dynamics of the fecal microbiota in veal calves in a 6-month field trial

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