This research paper compares fertility traits, health indicators and health management routines of Swiss dairy farms characterized by short vs. long productive lifespans (SPL vs. LPL). We evaluated whether a longer productive lifespan will result in poorer cow health based on herdbook data from breeders associations (n = 142), farm questionnaire data (n = 67), veterinary treatment data (n = 64) and data obtained during farm visits (n = 30). Dairy farms were selected in such a way that they contrasted in terms of length of productive lifespan, but were representative of the Swiss dairy sector. Fertility performance was better on farms with LPL indicated by a lower number of inseminations per heifer, shorter average number of days open and shorter calving intervals. Consistently, the proportion of antibiotic veterinary treatments due to fertility problems was by tendency higher on SPL farms, as was the number of antibiotic treatments due to other problems (i.e. other than fertility, udder or locomotion problems). Other types of veterinary medical treatments did not differ by productive lifespan profiles. Average somatic cell score and proportions of test day records with elevated somatic cell count (SCC) were significantly higher on farms with LPL. However, this increase was smaller than what could be expected due to the age difference between contrasting productive lifespan profiles and was not associated with higher treatment incidences for clinical mastitis. Locomotion scores and lameness incidence did not differ by productive lifespan profile. Apart from a slightly higher proportion of farms with LPL practicing abrupt drying off, cow health management routines did not differ significantly between farms of contrasting productive lifespans. We conclude that a longer productive lifespan is not at the expense of health, even if the SCC level increased with age. Fertility, limb and udder health should be the main focus when aiming for a long productive lifespan.

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of marine-based rumen buffer (Lithothamnium calcareum) supplementation on rumen health as well as milk yield and composition and also behavioural and metabolic parameters of dairy cows. Thirty-six lactating multiparous Holstein cows were used with a milk yield average of 39 kg/d and 64 d in milk. The experiment was conducted over 60 d using two groups: control (CON; n = 18) was supplemented with sodium bicarbonate at 1.1% dry matter and a treatment group that received Lithothamnium calcareum at 0.5% of dry matter (LITHO; n = 18). Each group was fed daily with the buffers mixed to the total mixed ration containing 29.28% starch. Ruminal fluid collections were performed weekly to evaluate pH and volatile fatty acids. Feeding behaviour data were obtained through automatic feeders, while overall behavioural data were obtained using monitoring collars. Milk yield was recorded daily and adjusted for fat and energy. Milk samples were retrieved once weekly for analysis of fat, protein, lactose and total solids. Blood samples were collected weekly for metabolic analysis and faecal samples were collected weekly to evaluate pH and starch concentrations. LITHO produced more fat- and energy-corrected milk (P ≤ 0.01) as well as the highest percentage of fat and solids (P < 0.05) when compared to the CON group. Data on feeding behaviour showed an increased eating time (P ≤ 0.01) in the LITHO group but a higher eating rate (P < 0.01) in the CON group. Animals from the LITHO group had lower faecal pH (P < 0.05). The treatment did not affect dry matter intake, animal behaviour, ruminal acid–base balance, or faecal starch. In summary, Lithothamnium calcareum supplementation at 0.5% of dry matter improved milk yield, milk composition and, presumably, feed conversion efficiency.

In this research paper we introduce and validate an enhanced method for the detection of sodium benzoate and potassium sorbate in milk. Sodium benzoate and potassium sorbate are widely employed as preservatives in the food industry; however, their use to restrict microbial growth in milk is prohibited. Our novel method achieved performance indicators in accordance with the criteria outlined by the International Conference on Harmonization. The extraction process involved sample dilution in acetonitrile (1:1 v/v), followed by subsequent centrifugation, filtration and injection into a high-performance liquid chromatography system with a photodiode array detector. The detection and quantification limits for sodium benzoate were determined to be 0.204 and 0.618 mg/l, respectively, while for potassium sorbate, these values were 0.108 and 0.328 mg/l, respectively. The accuracy ranged from 92.67 to 99.53%, with pH 4.0 selected as the optimal condition to ensure adequate resolution of the preservatives. The proposed method stands out due to its simplicity and speed, using a single reagent in modest quantities during sample preparation. This approach reduces toxicity and minimizes the production of pollutants during disposal. Furthermore, the novel method requires less raw material and energy consumption, aligning with the principles of green chemistry. Its lower quantitation limits render it more sensitive when compared to the official analysis. The preparation, separation, and simultaneous detection of these preservatives in a short period of time make this method suitable for integration into industrial workflows.

We address the hypothesis that bioinformatics analysis can effectively identify miRNAs and target genes associated with the innate immune response to Staphylococcus aureus-induced mastitis in cows. Gram-positive bacteria, such as S. aureus, are some of the mastitis pathogens that cause subclinical infection and pose one of the most severe threats to dairy cattle due to their contagiousness and incidence. Therefore, newer molecular markers must be identified to predict bovine mastitis non-invasively with low error and high specificity. To address this, we conducted in-silico analysis to identify hub genes related to the innate immune system specific to the S. aureus pathogen in subclinical mastitis infections in cows, and experimental validation of the miRNAs of these determined hub genes was completed. As a result of bioinformatic analysis, we identified five hub genes (TLR2, MYD88, CASP4, NOD2 and TBK1) related to the innate immune system that are specific to the S. aureus pathogen. We investigated the expression levels of miRNAs associated with these genes (bta-miR-15a, bta-miR-16b, bta-miR-23a, bta-miR-27a-3p, bta-miR-103, bta-miR-146b, and bta-mir-374b) using real-time quantitative PCR. Except for bta-miR-15a and bta-miR-23a, all miRNAs studied varied in expression between healthy cows and cows with subclinical mastitis infected with S. aureus. This is the first study to bioinformatically determine hub genes specific to the innate immune system and the S. aureus pathogen in subclinical mastitis infections and then validate the determined miRNAs in milk between healthy and subclinical mastitis infected cows. The findings of our study expand our understanding of the roles of these miRNAs in cows with S. aureus-infected subclinical mastitis.

Nonfat set yogurts are very popular in Japan because of their health properties, but have the disadvantage of being hard and having large curd particles compared to fat-containing yogurts. We investigated the effect of lactose hydrolysis on nonfat set yogurt to determine whether this technique can improve the sensory evaluation and the texture of a nonfat set yogurt. We prepared nonfat yogurt mixes with 0, 50, 75, and 100% lactose hydrolysis and fermented them. The sensory properties, physical properties, fermentation characteristics, extracellular polysaccharide (EPS) concentration and lactic acid bacteria count were then assessed. The results demonstrated that the lactose hydrolysis rate had no effect on the fermentation time. The 75% lactose hydrolysis increased the EPS concentration and inhibited post-acidification. The 100% lactose hydrolysis increased the number of Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus (L. bulgaricus) and further increased the EPS concentration, and despite the increase in the number of L. bulgaricus, the 100% lactose hydrolysis suppressed post-acidification. The results of a sensory evaluation showed that the 100% lactose hydrolysis increased the yogurt's viscosity and overall acceptability and suppressed its acidity. The physical-properties evaluation revealed that when the lactose hydrolysis rate was ≥75%, the curd hardness decreased, and the curd particles became smaller. We inferred that these sensory and physical changes originated from an increase in the EPS concentration, and we thus speculate that a 100% lactose hydrolysis rate before fermentation would be a useful means of solving the hardness and large curd particles of nonfat set yogurt.

Meeting the buffer requirements of concentrate-fed dairy cows is a challenging task. We evaluated the effect of supplementing different feed additives to diets containing K2CO3 on feed intake, nutrient digestion and milk production of dairy cows. Eight peak lactation high yielding Holstein cows were used in a replicated 4 × 4 Latin square design with 4 periods of 21 d (14 d for diet adaptation and 7 d for sampling and data collection). Treatments comprised control (a diet containing a rumen buffer with the active component of K2CO3 at 6% of dietary dry matter (DDM) and containing 10% K); yeast, the control diet supplemented with live Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast (0.06% of DDM); essential oils (EO), the control diet supplemented with essential oils (0.02% of DDM) and; peptides, the control diet supplemented with biogenic peptides (0.16% of DDM). Feed intake was greater (P < 0.001) in the yeast treatment (33.2 kg/d) compared to the others (30.9 to 32.1 kg/d). Dry matter and starch digestibilities were similar across the treatments. Cows that were supplemented with EO had a greater energy-corrected milk yield than control, and those supplemented with yeast and peptides were intermediate. Milk protein production was greater (P < 0.01) in EO and peptide treatments than in the control, with yeast treatment intermediate. In high-concentrate diets containing K2CO3, supplementing with yeast increased feed intake while supplementing wth essential oils increased energy-corrected milk yield, with small effects on milk protein yield.

Milk fat synthesis is tightly regulated by hormones and growth factors. Leptin is a versatile peptide hormone that exerts pleiotropic effects on metabolic pathways. In this study, we evaluated the expression and function of leptin and its long form receptor OB-Rb in dairy cow mammary tissues from different physiological stages and in cultured mammary epithelial cells. The results showed that the expression of leptin and OB-Rb were significantly higher in the mammary tissues of lactating cows as compared with dry cows, suggesting that they are related to milk component synthesis. In cultured dairy cow mammary epithelial cells, leptin treatment significantly increased OB-Rb expression and intracellular triacylglycerol content. Transcriptome analysis identified the difference in gene expression between leptin treated cells and control cells, and 317 differentially expressed genes were identified. Gene ontology and pathway mapping showed that lipid metabolism-related gene expression increased and signal transduction pathway-related genes were the most significantly enriched. Mechanistic studies showed that leptin stimulation enhanced sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1 expression via activating the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of rapamycin (PI3K/AKT/mTOR) signaling pathway, which in turn up-regulated the expression of genes related to milk fat synthesis. Moreover, we found that fatty acid synthesis precursors, acetate and β-hydroxybutyrate, could positively regulate the expression of leptin and OB-Rb in bovine mammary epithelial cells, thereby potentially increasing milk fat synthesis. Our study provided novel evidence in the regulation of leptin on milk fat production in mammary glands of dairy cows, as well as experimental basis for artificial regulation of milk fat

This Research Communication describes the frequency of occurrence of P. fluorescens, P. putida and P. aeruginosa in raw goat milk stored at 4 and 9°C, to evaluate the spoilage potential and capacity of these species and the presence of the aprX gene, responsible for the synthesis of metalloprotease aprX. Samples of raw goat milk stored at 4 and 9°C for 72 h were plated on Pseudomonas CFC agar base (25°C for 48 h). The presence of P. fluorescens, P. putida, P. aeruginosa and aprX gene were confirmed by polymerase chain reaction. The isolates were evaluated for their proteolytic and lipolytic spoilage capacity and potential using milk agar (10%) and tributyrin agar base (1%), respectively (21°C for 72 h). A total of 184 strains of Pseudomonas spp. were obtained. At both temperatures, P. fluorescens was the most frequent, mostly proteolytic, and the only one to express high proteolytic and lipolytic potentials. Regardless of the temperature, all isolated strains of P. putida were lipoproteolytic, with a predominance of protease synthesis. Strains of P. aeruginosa (4,3%) were isolated occasionally (4.3% of total isolates) but only at 4°C, and 75% of these were lipoproteolytic. The storage temperature of raw goat milk influenced the frequency of P. aeruginosa, but not its spoilage potential. The presence of the aprX gene was verified in most strains isolated from all species at the two temperatures evaluated, although some of these strains did not express proteolytic capacity. Most isolates of Pseudomonas spp. showed lipoproteolytic capacity, which emphasizes the importance of ensuring low initial populations of this genus in raw chilled goat milk when it is used to produce dairy products.

Hybrid yoghurts combining dairy and plant-based derivatives present a novel approach to enhancing consumer acceptance of plant-based products, which is increasingly significant due to dietary trends and lactose intolerance. This study investigates the production of hybrid yoghurt blending cow's milk (CM) with soy (C:S) and oat (C:O) drinks in various ratios (90%, 70%, and 50% cow's milk), assessing their acceptability and quality. Notably, the C:S (70:30) and C:O (70:30) ratios resulted improved viscosity over time, although still less than CM. The hybrid yoghurts exhibited a favourable pH gradient, enhancing the acidic environment critical for flavour. Sensory analysis revealed that C:O (70:30) offered more favourable attributes on the just-about-right scale, scoring overall 6.86/10. Importantly, microbial analysis confirmed the safety of all hybrid products for consumption, with no harmful microorganisms detected.

This research paper focuses on enrichment of yoghurt containing probiotic Lactobacillus casei with persimmon (Diospyros kaki) powder in concentrations of 0 (Control) and then 0.5, 1.0, 1.5 and 2.0% (A–D respectively) and determination of some characteristics of the product during refrigerated storage for 21 d. Powder addition affected the color characteristics, textural properties, titratable acidity and water-holding capacity values. The viability of both yoghurt bacteria (Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus) and L. casei increased proportionally to adding persimmon powder for all storage days. Furthermore, addition of fruit powder increased short-chain fatty acid and polyunsaturated fatty acid contents. According to sensory analysis results, sample D had the lowest scores from the panelists, whereas the Control together with samples B and C were the most liked yoghurts in terms of flavor characteristics. In terms of overall acceptability, all of the samples received scores over three points on a five-point scale throughout storage. This study indicates that persimmon powder enriched yoghurt is a good vehicle for L. casei and yoghurt bacteria with improved fatty acid profile and acceptable sensory characteristics.