Immune-associated traits measured in milk of Holstein-Friesian cows as proxies for blood serum measurements
Abstract
Previous work has highlighted that immune-associated (IA) traits measurable in blood are associated with health, productivity, and reproduction in dairy cows. The aim of the present study was to determine relationships between IA traits measured in blood serum and those simultaneously measured in milk as well as their association with disease phenotypes. All animals were Holstein-Friesian cows from the Langhill research herd (n = 546) housed at the SRUC Dairy Research Centre in Scotland. Milk and serum samples were collected on 20 separate occasions between July 2010 and March 2015 and analyzed by ELISA for haptoglobin (Hp), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and natural antibodies binding keyhole limpet hemocyanin (NAbKLH) and lipopolysaccharide (NAbLPS). Data were analyzed using mixed linear models that included pedigree information. Analyses revealed positive phenotypic correlations between milk and serum NAb (0.59 ≤ r ≤ 0.77), Hp (r = 0.37), and TNF-α (r = 0.12). Milk and serum NAb were also found to have a strong genetic correlation (0.81 ≤ r ≤ 0.94) and were genetically correlated with cow lameness (0.66 and 0.79 for milk NAbKLH and serum NAbLPS, respectively). Clinical mastitis was found to be phenotypically correlated wit...Continue Reading
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