Effect of Dietary Fat and Vitamin E on α-Tocopherol in Milk from Dairy Cows

Abstract

Diets with different fat treatments and with 25, 125, or 250 IU of supplemental vitamin E (all-rac alpha-tocopheryl acetate)/kg of dry matter (DM) were fed for 28 d to midlactation Holstein cows to determine factors affecting concentrations of alpha-tocopherol in milk. Diets contained no supplemental fat or 2.25% added fat from roasted soybeans or tallow. Vitamin E treatment had no effects on production, but fat supplementation increased milk yield (37.2 vs. 35.1 kg/d). Cows fed RSB ate more DM (24.0 vs. 21.9 kg/d) and produced more milk fat than cows fed tallow. Supplemental fat increased plasma concentrations of alpha-tocopherol and cholesterol. Increased intake of alpha-tocopherol linearly increased concentrations of alpha-tocopherol in plasma but the rate of increase was 1.9 times greater when fat was fed. Plasma alpha-tocopherol concentrations were linearly related to concentrations in milk, but a change in plasma alpha-tocopherol resulted in a smaller change in milk alpha-tocopherol when fat was fed than when it was not. Fat treatment did not affect plasma alpha-tocopherol expressed relative to plasma cholesterol (mg alpha-tocopherol/g cholesterol) or relationships between plasma alpha-tocopherol/g of cholesterol and milk alpha-tocopherol. These data suggest that concentrations of alpha-tocopherol in milk are a function of the alpha-tocopherol enrichment of the plasma lipid fraction and enrichment of that fraction is saturable.

Influence of increased lipid content in diet in the form of treated rapeseed meal on the metabolism and milk yield of dairy cows in the first third of lactation

“…The concentration of total cholesterol exceeds the physiological range which is 2.6-5.2 mmol/l (Vrzgula et al, 1990). Similar results were obtained by other authors (Grummer and Carroll, 1991;Weiss and Wyatt, 2003), which assumed that this is due to a stimulatory effect of the fat on cholesterol synthesis. Significant differences were also seen in the proportion of HDL-cholesterol to total cholesterol, which was during the 2 nd and 3 rd month, less in the experimental group, than in the control group.…”

“…We suggest that this is due to capacity of the plasma lipoproteins ability to carry α-tocopherol and the amounts of vitamin E in the daily ration. In comparison with Weiss and Wyatt (2003), the amount of vitamin E in our daily ration was low. One of the positive impacts of higher vitamin E concentration in the blood serum consists in the protection of cells against oxidative damage.…”

“…It can be concluded that higher amounts of lipid in the diet improves absorption and utilisation of vitamin E, because in the content of vitamin E in these two diets were very small differences (in the experimental diet there was only about 5% more vitamin E than in the control diet). Weiss and Wyatt (2003) monitored the influence of various vitamin E supplements in the diet with and without supplementary lipids. Concentrations of α-tocopherol in plasma were higher for cows fed fat, and concentrations increased linearly with increasing dietary vitamin E. Dietary fat supplementation affected plasma concentration of α-tocopherol expressed per litre, but did not affect plasma concentration per unit of cholesterol.…”

Effect of incremental amounts of camelina oil on milk fatty acid composition in lactating cows fed diets based on a mixture of grass and red clover silage and concentrates containing camelina expeller

“…Camelina oil contains α-and γ-tocopherols (28.1 and 742 ppm, respectively; Zubr and Matthäus, 2002), which may account for the stable peroxide concentrations during prolonged storage of butter despite a higher concentration of PUFA in milk fat from cows fed CO treatments. Milk α-and γ-tocopherol concentrations can be modified by diet (Kanno et al, 1968;Havemose et al, 2004), but the efficiency of transfer of α-tocopherol from the diet into milk gradually declines at high inclusion rates (Weiss and Wyatt, 2003).…”

Effects of supplementation of maize silage diets with extruded linseed, vitamin E and plant extracts rich in polyphenols, and morning v. evening milking on milk fatty acid profiles in Holstein and Montbéliarde cows

“…The choice of the dose of vitamin E (ca. 7500 IU/d) was based on the doses used in the literature (5500 to 12 000 IU/d per cow) (Weiss and Wyatt, 2003;Focant et al, 1998;Pottier et al, 2006). The fourth group received the ELE diet plus 10 g/kg diet DM of PERP (patent no.…”