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Animals
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Impact of Nutrition on Reproduction and Fetal Programming of Beef...
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Impact of Nutrition on Reproduction and Fetal Programming of Beef Cattle

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Cattle".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2025 | Viewed by 6666

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Marcelo Vedovatto

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Guest Editor
Dean Lee Research & Extension Center, Louisiana State University, AgCenter, Alexandria, LA 71302, USA
Interests: nutrition; reproduction; fetal programming; welfare
Dr. Matheus Ferreira

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Guest Editor
AgCenter, Louisiana State University, Hill Farm Research Station, Homer, LA 71040, USA
Interests: nutrition; physiology; fetal programming; welfare

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Nutrition affects the overall performance, physiology, and reproduction of beef cattle. Furthermore, maternal nutrition has epigenetic effects that lead to short- and long-term impacts on the offspring. Beef cattle nutrition knowledge has improved considerably in recent years; however, most nutrition-focused research has evaluated growth and overall physiology, and fewer studies have evaluated the effects of nutrition on reproduction and fetal programming.

In this Special Issue, we welcome the submission of original research papers, reviews, or studies addressing the effects of different nutrients, feeds, or nutritional practices on reproduction (i.e., reproduction physiology, performance of bulls or females, measurement of reproductive organs, puberty achievement, etc.) or fetal programming (body or physiological measurements of pregnant females, and their effects on the performance, physiology, behavior, and omics of the offspring).

Dr. Marcelo Vedovatto
Dr. Matheus Ferreira
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • nutrients
  • pregnancy rate
  • epigenetics

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

8 pages, 829 KiB  
Communication
Effects of Short-Term Differences in Concentrate Feeding on the Recovery of In Vivo Embryos in Hanwoo Donor Cows through Superovulation Treatment
by Seungmin Ha, Namtae Kim, Mi-Ryung Park, Seyoung Lee, Sang-Rae Cho, Huimang Song, Daehyeok Jin, Ui-Hyung Kim and Yeoung-Gyu Ko
Animals 2024, 14(17), 2591; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14172591 - 6 Sep 2024
Viewed by 589
Abstract
Superovulation is a technique used to increase the number of oocytes released for fertilization. This study investigated the effects of short-term differences in concentrate feed intake on in vivo embryo production through superovulation in indigenous Korean (Hanwoo) cows. The cows were given fresh [...] Read more.
Superovulation is a technique used to increase the number of oocytes released for fertilization. This study investigated the effects of short-term differences in concentrate feed intake on in vivo embryo production through superovulation in indigenous Korean (Hanwoo) cows. The cows were given fresh water and hay ad libitum and randomly divided into three groups (control (CON, n = 9): 2.0 kg/day (unchanged diet); low concentrate (LC, n = 10): 0 kg/day; and high concentrate (HC, n = 8): 4.0 kg/day) according to the amount of formula they were fed. This feeding treatment began seven days before the start of the hormonal treatment for superovulation. From the results, the LC group had the greatest weight change and the lowest body condition score at harvest, followed by the CON and HC groups (p < 0.05). The LC group had the highest number of harvesting embryos, followed by the HC and CON groups (p < 0.05). Estradiol, progesterone, glucose, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein, total protein, and blood urea nitrogen concentrations did not differ between the groups, except for a temporary increase in the HC group on day 0. These findings suggest that more embryos may be harvested when short-term changes in concentrate intake are made during superovulatory responses in Hanwoo cows. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Nutrition on Reproduction and Fetal Programming of Beef Cattle)
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Figure 1

Figure 1
<p>Study timeline indicating the nutritional and hormone treatments and blood sampling. CIDR, controlled internal drug release; FSH, follicular stimulation hormone; AU, armor unit; PGF2α, prostaglandin F2 alpha; GnRH, gonadotropin-releasing hormone; AI, artificial insemination.</p> Full article ">Figure 2
<p>Effects of short-term nutritional differences on hormone and serum biochemical parameters. CON, control group; LC, low concentrate-fed group; HC, high concentrate-fed group. * <span class="html-italic">p</span> &lt; 0.017 (Mann–Whitney U test with Bonferroni’s method for the Kruskal–Wallis test).</p> Full article ">
14 pages, 885 KiB  
Article
Periparturient Changes in Voluntary Intake, Digestibility, and Performance of Grazing Zebu Beef Cows with or without Protein Supplementation
by Gabriel Santos Souza David, Ellém Maria de Almeida Matos, Bianca Rodrigues Domingos, Yuri Cesconetto Ebani, Luiz Carlos Oliveira de Sousa, Gabriela Duarte Oliveira Leite, Pedro Henrique Borba Pereira, Luciana Navajas Rennó, Sidnei Antônio Lopes, Sebastião de Campos Valadares Filho and Mário Fonseca Paulino
Animals 2024, 14(11), 1710; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14111710 - 6 Jun 2024
Viewed by 856
Abstract
We aimed to understand the changes in nutritional parameters and performance of beef cows during the peripartum, whether receiving or not receiving protein supplements. Forty cows were used, divided into two treatments: CON—mineral mix and SUP—protein supplementation. Digestibility trial was performed at 45, [...] Read more.
We aimed to understand the changes in nutritional parameters and performance of beef cows during the peripartum, whether receiving or not receiving protein supplements. Forty cows were used, divided into two treatments: CON—mineral mix and SUP—protein supplementation. Digestibility trial was performed at 45, 30, and 15 days (d) before the parturition and at 20 and 40 d of lactation. The ADG of cows pre- and postpartum was recorded along with the BCS in gestational (GT) and maternal (MT) tissues in the prepartum. There was an effect of treatment and period (p ≤ 0.044) for intakes of DM and CP. The forage intake was similar (p > 0.90) but varied with the effect of days related to parturition (p < 0.001). There was a 14.37% decrease in DM intake from d −30 to d −15 of prepartum. In the postpartum, at 20 d of lactation, there was an increase of 72.7% in relation to d −15 of prepartum. No differences were observed in postpartum ADG or BCS at parturition and postpartum (p ≥ 0.12). However, higher total and MT ADG (p ≤ 0.02) were observed in animals receiving supplementation, while ADG in GT remained similar (p > 0.14). In conclusion, there is a decrease in intake for pregnant cows close to parturition and greater performance of animals supplemented in prepartum. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Nutrition on Reproduction and Fetal Programming of Beef Cattle)
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Figure 1

Figure 1
<p>Intake of forage (solid line) and total dry matter (dotted line) in the peripartum grazing Nellore cows. Means followed by different lowercase letters (<span class="html-italic">p</span> &lt; 0.001) between forage intake periods are different. Means followed by different capital letters (<span class="html-italic">p</span> &lt; 0.001) between periods of total dry matter intake are different.</p> Full article ">Figure 2
<p>Apparent digestibility of organic matter (<b>A</b>), neutral detergent fiber corrected for ash and protein (<b>B</b>), and protein (<b>C</b>) throughout the peripartum of grazing Nellore cows. The treatment means (CON and SUP) within each period accompanied by * are different from each other (<span class="html-italic">p</span> &lt; 0.05).</p> Full article ">Figure 2 Cont.
<p>Apparent digestibility of organic matter (<b>A</b>), neutral detergent fiber corrected for ash and protein (<b>B</b>), and protein (<b>C</b>) throughout the peripartum of grazing Nellore cows. The treatment means (CON and SUP) within each period accompanied by * are different from each other (<span class="html-italic">p</span> &lt; 0.05).</p> Full article ">Figure 3
<p>Average daily gain in gestational tissues ((<b>A</b>); ADGgt), maternal tissue ((<b>B</b>); ADGmt), and total ((<b>C</b>); ADGt) during prepartum of grazing Nellore cows receiving or not protein supplementation.</p> Full article ">
17 pages, 2009 KiB  
Article
Fetal Programming Influence on Microbiome Diversity and Ruminal and Cecal Epithelium in Beef Cattle
by Evandro Fernando Ferreira Dias, Felipe Eguti de Carvalho, Guilherme Henrique Gebim Polizel, Fernando Augusto Correia Queiroz Cançado, Édison Furlan, Arícia Christofaro Fernandes, Fernando José Schalch Júnior, Gianluca Elmi Chagas Santos, José Bento Sterman Ferraz and Miguel Henrique de Almeida Santana
Animals 2024, 14(6), 870; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14060870 - 12 Mar 2024
Viewed by 1535
Abstract
We explored the influence of maternal nutritional strategies on the development of the rumen and cecum in offspring. Additionally, we investigated the potential repercussions of prenatal nutrition on the rumen and fecal microbiota composition, utilizing metagenomic 16S techniques, to understand the effects of [...] Read more.
We explored the influence of maternal nutritional strategies on the development of the rumen and cecum in offspring. Additionally, we investigated the potential repercussions of prenatal nutrition on the rumen and fecal microbiota composition, utilizing metagenomic 16S techniques, to understand the effects of fetal programming (FP) in Nellore cattle. A total of 63 bulls submitted to different prenatal nutrition strategies, namely, non-programming (NP), partial programming (PP), and complete programming (CP), were evaluated. The rumen epithelium was methodically evaluated based on the presence of rumenitis and structural irregularities. The assessment of cecum lesions was conducted post-evisceration, whereby all thoroughly cleaned ceca were methodically evaluated. Samples from 15 animals of rumen fluid at slaughter and feces during the finishing phase were collected, respectively. All DNA extraction were carried out using the Macherey Nagel NucleoSpin Tissue®, and 16S sequencing was conducted using the V4 primers on the MiSeq platform. Within the ruminal ecosystem, an estimated range of 90 to 130 distinct amplicon sequence variants was discerned, as distributed across 45,000 to 70,000 sequencing reads. Our metagenomic exploration unveils microbial communities that distinctly mirror gastrointestinal tract microenvironments and dietary influences. In sum, this comprehensive study advances our comprehension of FP, highlighting the interplay of maternal nutrition, gastrointestinal development, and microbial communities, contributing significantly to the fields of animal science. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Nutrition on Reproduction and Fetal Programming of Beef Cattle)
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Figure 1

Figure 1
<p>Rumenitis and cecum score of Nellore steers from different fetal programing.</p> Full article ">Figure 2
<p>Histogram of sequencing reads and amplicon sequence variants (ASV) for rumen and fecal samples.</p> Full article ">Figure 3
<p>Pie chart representing abundance in sample collection sites: (<b>A</b>) rumen; (<b>B</b>) feces.</p> Full article ">Figure 4
<p>Shannon’s alpha diversity and Curtis beta diversity of rumen (<b>A</b>) and feces (<b>B</b>).</p> Full article ">Figure 5
<p>Correlations heatmap chart between the quantitative rumen histological traits and the top 20 most abundant ASVs. The significant correlations (<span class="html-italic">p</span> &lt; 0.05) are circled.</p> Full article ">Figure 6
<p>Correlations heatmap chart between the quantitative cecum histological traits and the top 20 most abundant ASVs. The significant correlations (<span class="html-italic">p</span> &lt; 0.05) are circled.</p> Full article ">
15 pages, 2428 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of Muscle Long Non-Coding RNA Profile during Rearing and Finishing Phase of Bulls Subjected to Different Prenatal Nutritional Strategies
by Roberta Cavalcante Cracco, Pamela Almeida Alexandre, Guilherme Henrique Gebim Polizel, Arícia Christofaro Fernandes and Miguel Henrique de Almeida Santana
Animals 2024, 14(4), 652; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14040652 - 18 Feb 2024
Viewed by 1425
Abstract
Maternal nutrition has the ability of influence critical processes in fetal life, including muscle development. Also, in this period, epigenetic sensitivity to external stimuli is higher and produces long-lasting effects. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate epigenetic mechanisms, including the [...] Read more.
Maternal nutrition has the ability of influence critical processes in fetal life, including muscle development. Also, in this period, epigenetic sensitivity to external stimuli is higher and produces long-lasting effects. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate epigenetic mechanisms, including the identification and characterization of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) from animals that had undergone different strategies of prenatal supplementation. A group of Nellore cows (n = 126) were separated into three nutritional plans: NP (control)—Not Programmed, without protein–energy supplementation; PP—Partially Programmed, protein–energy supplementation in the final third of pregnancy; and CP—Complete Programming, protein–energy supplementation during the full period of gestation. A total of 63 male offspring were used in this study, of which 15 (5 per treatment) had Longissimus thoracis muscle at 15 (biopsy) and 22 months (slaughter). Biopsy samples were subjected to RNA extraction and sequencing. Differential expression (DE) of remodeling factors and chromatin-modifying enzyme genes were performed. For the identification and characterization of lncRNA, a series of size filters and protein coding potential tests were performed. The lncRNAs identified had their differential expression and regulatory potential tested. Regarding DE of epigenetic mechanisms, no differentially expressed gene was found (p > 0.1). Identification of potential lncRNA was successful, identifying 1823 transcripts at 15 months and 1533 at 22 months. Among these, four were considered differentially expressed between treatments at 15 months and 6 were differentially expressed at 22 months. Yet, when testing regulatory potential, 13 lncRNAs were considered key regulators in the PP group, and 17 in the CP group. PP group lncRNAs possibly regulate fat-cell differentiation, in utero embryonic development, and transforming growth factor beta receptor, whereas lncRNA in the CP group regulates in utero embryonic development, fat-cell differentiation and vasculogenesis. Maternal nutrition had no effect on differential expression of epigenetic mechanisms; however, it seems to impair lncRNA regulation of epigenetics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Nutrition on Reproduction and Fetal Programming of Beef Cattle)
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Figure 1
<p>Schematic of the experimental design and the biological samples collected in the experiment.</p> Full article ">Figure 2
<p>Diagram of RNA data processing, sequencing, and filtering.</p> Full article ">Figure 3
<p>Co-expression network for the PP group based on lncRNA key regulators. The co-expression networks based on the lncRNA key regulators found connections with 478 mRNA in the PP group. These mRNA were identified as being involved in fat-cell differentiation, in utero embryonic development, the transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) receptor signaling pathway, the semaphorin–plexin signaling pathway, and skeletal muscle tissue development processes.</p> Full article ">Figure 4
<p>Co-expression network for the CP group based on lncRNA key regulators. The co-expression networks based on the lncRNA key regulators found connections with 495 mRNA in the CP group. After functional enrichment, the involvement of lncRNA in in utero embryonic development, positive regulation of fat-cell differentiation, vasculogenesis, positive regulation of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition and negative regulation of the canonical Wnt signaling pathway were observed.</p> Full article ">
15 pages, 485 KiB  
Article
Effect of Different Herbage Allowances from Mid to Late Gestation on Nellore Cow Performance and Female Offspring Growth until Weaning
by Luciana Melo Sousa, William Luiz de Souza, Karla Alves Oliveira, Iorrano Andrade Cidrini, Philipe Moriel, Henrique César Rodrigues Nogueira, Igor Machado Ferreira, Germán Dario Ramirez-Zamudio, Ivanna Moraes de Oliveira, Laura Franco Prados, Flávio Dutra de Resende and Gustavo Rezende Siqueira
Animals 2024, 14(1), 163; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani14010163 - 4 Jan 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1597
Abstract
This study evaluated different herbage allowances from mid to late pregnancy on pre- and postpartum physiological responses, milk production, and the performance of Nellore cows and the preweaning growth of their female offspring. Sixty multiparous Nellore cows were blocked by their body weight [...] Read more.
This study evaluated different herbage allowances from mid to late pregnancy on pre- and postpartum physiological responses, milk production, and the performance of Nellore cows and the preweaning growth of their female offspring. Sixty multiparous Nellore cows were blocked by their body weight (BW; 425 ± 36 kg) and body condition score (BCS; 3.67 ± 0.23, scale 1–5) and randomly allocated to twelve pastures. Treatments consisted of two different herbage allowances (HA) during pregnancy: low HA (LHA; 2.80 kg DM/kg of BW) and high HA (HHA; 7.60 kg DM/kg of BW). Both treatment groups were fed 1 g/kg BW of a protein supplement. After calving, all cow–calf pairs were combined in a single group. The effects of maternal treatment × day of the study were detected for herbage mass and allowance, the stocking rate and forage crude protein, and for cow BW, BCS, and carcass measures (p < 0.01). Milk yield corrected to 4% fat, while the levels of fat total solids and cow plasma IGF-1 and urea were different (p ≤ 0.04) between treatments. HHA offspring was heavier (p ≤ 0.05) at 120 days and at weaning. A high herbage allowance can be implemented from mid-gestation until calving to increase cow prepartum performance, post-partum milk yield and composition, and positively modulate female offspring preweaning growth. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Nutrition on Reproduction and Fetal Programming of Beef Cattle)
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Figure 1

Figure 1
<p>Herbage mass (<b>a</b>), herbage allowance (<b>b</b>), stocking rate (<b>c</b>), and crude protein (<b>d</b>) of pastures provided to beef cows from day 0 to 150 (5 cows and 7.5 ha/pasture). Treatments consisted of two herbage allowances during pregnancy: low (LHA; 2.80 kg DM/kg of BW) and high herbage allowance (HHA; 7.60 kg DM/kg of BW). Treatments were provided to cows from day 0 to 150 (150 ± 11 d prepartum until parturition). On day 150, all cow–calf pairs were combined in a single group, transferred to a single pasture (10 ha), and managed similarly with free choice and access to trace mineral salt supplementation until day 390. Values with asterisks (*) are significantly different (<span class="html-italic">p</span> ≤ 0.05), and Ƭ represents a tendency to be different (<span class="html-italic">p</span> = 0.08).</p> Full article ">
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