Pre-weaning plane of nutrition and Mannheimia haemolytica dose influence inflammatory responses to a bovine herpesvirus-1 and Mannheimia haemolytica challenge in post-weaning Holstein calves

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to determine whether plane of nutrition (PON) of milk replacer previously provided to calves, and dosage level of Mannheimia haemolytica (MH), influenced inflammatory responses to a combined viral-bacterial respiratory challenge. Holstein calves (1 d of age; n = 30) were assigned to treatments in a 2 × 3 factorial with preweaning PON and MH dose as main effects (n = 5 per treatment). Calves were fed either a low (LPN; n = 15) or a high PON (HPN; n = 15) from birth through weaning. Calves fed LPN were fed 436 g of dry matter (DM) per day of milk replacer until weaning, and HPN calves were fed 797 g of DM per day of milk replacer from d 1 to 10 and 1,080 g of DM per day from d 11 until weaning. Calf starter and water were offered ad libitum. Calves were step-down weaned beginning at d 54 and moved into an enclosed barn at d 70. Indwelling rectal temperature (RT) recording devices and jugular catheters were inserted at d 80. Calves were challenged with 1.5 × 10 8 plaque-forming units (pfu) per mL of bovine herpesvirus-1 (BHV-1) in each nostril at d 81 and with either 10 6 , 10 7 , or 10 8 cfu of MH at d 84. Blood samples were collected at varying intervals relative to BHV-1 and MH challenges. Four LPN calves either died or were euthanized soon after the 144-h observation period, whereas all HPN calves survived the entire observation period. As dosage of MH administered increased, acute and systemic inflammatory responses increased. Higher doses of MH resulted in increased leukocyte, neutrophil, and haptoglobin concentrations in infected calves. Data from the current study suggest that the highest dose, 10 8 cfu, triggered weaned calves' acute disease response, whereas the lower doses, 10 6 and 10 7 cfu, caused more moderate inflammation and disease. The effects of PON on inflammation responses to the disease challenge indicated that calves previously fed the LPN diet had more severe pathophysiological responses. Calves fed LPN showed higher peripheral neutrophil and leukocyte counts and serum haptoglobin concentrations following the BHV-1 challenge. Additionally, following the MH challenge, LPN calves had higher peripheral neutrophil counts, neutrophil-tolymphocyte ratios, and serum tumor necrosis factor-α concentrations. These data demonstrate that higher doses of MH increase the acute inflammatory response and prolong inflammation, and that calves previously fed LPN responded more severely to the combined viral-bacterial respiratory challenge.

Prevalence of BRD-Related Viral Pathogens in the Upper Respiratory Tract of Swiss Veal Calves

“…Both scenarios might be found in intense animal production systems. Controversially, others have found that low planes of nutrition negatively influence the responses to pathogen challenges [82]. Calf nutrition and its effects on BRD were not within the focus of the present study.…”

Effects of milk replacer feeding levels on performance and metabolism of preweaned dairy calves during summer

“…Reduced energy and nutrient consumption has implications for calf immunity and disease resistance as well. Compared with preweaned calves fed a low plane of nutrition of milk replacer (MR), calves fed a higher plane of nutrition had lower blood neutrophil activity before weaning (Obeidat et al, 2013;Ballou et al, 2015) but displayed stronger resistance to disease challenges during the postweaning period (Ballou et al, 2015;Sharon et al, 2019). Thus, management and nutrition strategies need to be developed to improve performance of calves raised during summer.…”

Overview of common practices in calf raising facilities

“…Moreover, BRD during the pre-weaning period was associated with lower BW gain until 400 days of age ( Hurst et al, 2021 ), reproductive losses, and increased culling prior to first lactation ( Teixeira et al, 2017b ). Sharon et al (2019) reported that calves that were previously fed greater quantities of milk solids during the pre-weaning period had improved responses to a BRD challenge 1 month after weaning. Growth and health of calves originated from dairy herds during the pre-weaning period is impacted by many factors, including nutrition, management, and environment.…”

“…Proper nutrition is a major pilar supporting health and growth of pre-weaned calves, having long-lasting impacts in the performance of calves raised for dairy purposes ( Soberon and Van Amburgh, 2013 ; Gelsinger et al, 2016 ; Sharon et al, 2019 ). In cow-calf operations, calves can suckle their dams throughout their pre-weaning period, which usually lasts up to 8 months.…”

“…Conversely, the amount of milk fed per day by dairy farms that raise their own calves is greater then what is observed in off-site calf raising facilities ( Urie et al, 2018 ). As discussed earlier, there are some potential long-term economic advantages in feeding more milk to calves to accelerate their growth during the pre-weaning period, which will result in long-term benefits in weight gain and lactational performance ( Soberon et al, 2012 ; Sharon et al, 2019 ; Hurst et al, 2021 ). However, the long-term impact of accelerated growth during the pre-weaning period on the adult performance of dairy-beef animals is unknown, and more research in this area is warranted.…”