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Dutch HF cow colostrum quality based on IgG concentration and total bacterial cell count
Penterman, P.A.A.; Hoflack, G...
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Objectives: Because immunoglobulins cannot cross the epitheliochorial placenta of the cow during gestation, calves rely on the passive transfer of immunoglobulin G (IgG) through consumption of sufficient amounts of high quality colostrum within the first hours after birth. Besides by the concentration of IgG, colostrum quality is also determined by its bacterial contamination. To our knowledge, no recent data concerning the colostrum quality of Dutch Holstein Friesian (HF) cows are available. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess the colostrum quality from Dutch HF cows using different methods. The second aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of farm and veterinary practice on colostrum quality.
Materials & methods: Two large Dutch veterinary practices participated in this field study. 86 Dutch HF colostrum samples were collected at the time of first colostrum feeding on 19 different commercial dairy farms. For the quantification of the IgG’s in colostrum, a commercial competitive ELISA-test kit (BIO K420, MonoScreen QuantELISA Immunoglobulin Easy, Bio-X Diagnostics S.A., Rochefort, Belgium) was used. Indirect evaluation of the IgG concentration of the colostrum samples was performed using a digital Brix refractometer (Milwaukee Refractometer MA871, Milwaukee Instruments Inc., NC, USA). On each occasion, the mean of three consecutive Brix refractometric measurements was calculated and used for analysis. The relationship between the IgG concentration and the Brix value of colostrum was investigated with a Pearson’s correlation. The total bacterial cell count (TBCC) of the colostrum samples was determined using a bactoscan automatic bacterial count reader (BactoscanTM FC+, FOSS, Denmark). The relationship between the IgG concentration and the TBCC of colostrum was evaluated using a Spearman’s rank correlation. All statistical analyses were performed using R software (R Core Team, 2017).
Results: The number of colostrum samples collected per herd ranged from 2 to 5. The colostral IgG concentrations and the colostral Brix values followed a normal distribution with a mean of 53,19 ± 17,61 g IgG/l (range: 14,14 – 63,07 g Ig- G/l) and 21,10 ± 4,21 % (range: 9,33 – 29,27 %), respectively. The TBCC of the colostrum samples ranged from 4.000 to 1.000.000 CFU/ml with a median of 9.000 CFU/ml. Furthermore, 38,1% of the colostrum samples had an IgG concentration below 50 g/l and/or a TBCC exceeding 100.000 CFU/ml. A significant positive correlation was found between the IgG concentration and the Brix value of colostrum samples (rpearson= 0,65; CI95% [0,51 to 0,76]; p < 0,001). The colostral IgG concentration and the TBCC of the colostrum were negatively correlated (ρspearman= -0.30; CI95% [-0,49 to -0,09]; p = 0,005). The mean IgG concentration (48,30 ± 18,71 g IgG/l) and the mean Brix value (19,90 ± 4,4 %) of the colostrum samples from practice A were both below the recommended threshold of 50 g IgG/l and 22 %, respectively. Compared to practice A, the colostrum samples from practice B had a significantly higher IgG concentration (58,68 ± 14,65 g IgG/l; p= 0,01) and Brix value (22,45 ± 3,59 %; p < 0,001). The non-parametric comparison of the TBCC of the colostrum samples revealed significant (p < 0,001) differences between the two practices (median practice A : 16.000 CFU/ml , median practice B : 6.000 CFU/ml ). The mean colostral IgG concentration was lower than the 50 g IgG/l threshold in 8 out of 19 farms. Only 10 out of 19 farms had a mean colostral Brix value of at least 22%. The median TBCC of the colostrum samples was higher than 100.000 CFU/ml in 3 out of 19 farms. Between the farms, obvious differences were observed. Certain farms (n=3) consistently presented poor-quality colostrum (IgG below 50 g/l and / or TBCC above 100.000 CFU/ml) results, whereas other farms (n=4) showed colostrum samples that all were of good-quality.
Conclusion: The results of this field study indicate that the colostrum quality of Dutch HF cows in general is rather poor, with nearly 40% of all samples not meeting the minimal requirements for good-quality colostrum. The differences observed between the veterinary practices could indicate that in some practices more attention is paid to the colostrum management compared to others. Farm level analysis, however, indicates that focused attention on certain farms may be necessary.
Keywords: Dutch dairy cattle, Colostrum quality, IgG ELI- SA, Brix refractometer, Bactoscan.
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Affiliation of the authors at the time of publication
MSD Animal Health, Boxmeer, Netherlands;
MSD Animal Health, Brussels, Belgium;
Slingeland Dierenartsen, Varsseveld, Netherlands;
DGC Bekenland, Gelselaar, Netherlands.
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