The Research Column

by Heinz Meissner

Click on any of the publications below to read more about the specific topic:

 

Title Date Discipline Extract Keywords
Invited review: Somatotropin and lactation biology.
Animal Health and Welfare | Dairy Products and Nutraceuticals | Environment | Feed sources and Nutrition | Food Safety and Quality | Genetics, Physiology and Reproduction

Bovine somatotropin (bST) or popularly referred to as growth hormone, is a naturally produced hormone which is a key regulator of growth and milk production.

keyword 1, keyword 2
Impact of heat stress on dry matter intake and residual feed intake in mid-lactation dairy cows.
Animal Health and Welfare | Environment | Genetics, Physiology and Reproduction

Farm animals are now exposed to more heat-stress events due to an overall increase in global temperature than ever before, and the dairy industry is highly affected by climate change because Holstein cows, which comprise the vast majority of the global dairy population, are very sensitive to high temperatures. Heat-abatement technologies are often used on dairy farms to mitigate the effects of heat stress.

keyword 1, keyword 2
Global, regional, and national burden of disease attributable to a diet low in milk, 1990–2021: An updated analysis of the Global Burden of Disease study 2021.
Dairy Products and Nutraceuticals

Milk, a staple in many diets worldwide, is often considered a nutritional powerhouse. Being rich in calcium, phosphorus, vitamin D, and high-quality protein, it plays a pivotal role in bone health, immune function, and overall well-being. Numerous studies have linked adequate milk consumption to a reduced risk of various chronic diseases, including osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, and certain types of cancer.

prostate cancer, dietary patterns
Dry matter intake and production efficiencies of dairy cows rotationally grazing a perennial ryegrass monoculture, a perennial ryegrass-white clover sward, or a multispecies sward.
Environment | Feed sources and Nutrition

Achieving high levels of pasture utilization by pasture-based dairy cattle are the cornerstone of profitable grazing systems. Whereas the productivity of such systems is often considered in terms of milk output per cow or per ha, milk production efficiency necessitates that individual animal milk production and pasture DMI are evaluated simultaneously.

multispecies, pasture-based system, dry matter intake, white clover
Effects of preweaning calf daily gain and feed intake on first-lactation performance: A meta-analysis.
Feed sources and Nutrition | Genetics, Physiology and Reproduction

The productive performance of first-lactation cows is a crucial indicator of their overall productive potential and health. This is also linked to milk production in subsequent lactations and the cow’s productive performance, longevity, and ability to live a long life.

dairy calves, meta-analysis, milk yield, dry matter intake
Effects of peripartal rumen-derived direct-fed microbial supplementation on lactation performance, metabolism, ruminal fermentation, and microbial abundance in dairy cows.
Feed sources and Nutrition

Direct-fed microbials (DFM) defined as “live, naturally occurring microorganisms that have been used to improve digest

direct-fed microbials, feed additive, ruminal microbial abundance, transition cow
Influence of fat-to-protein ratio and udder health parameters on the milk urea content of dairy cows.
Animal Health and Welfare | Environment

The urea nitrogen excreted by animals with their urine, which is subsequently degraded by the microbial enzyme urease, is a major source of ammonia emissions. In case of an imbalance between protein and energy supply in the feed, the surplus of ammonia is detoxified to urea in the liver and enters the bloodstream, where it diffuses or is transported to other fluid pools, such as milk or rumen liquid.

metabolic health, protein metabolism, mastitis, nitrogen excretion, somatic cell count
Supplementation of isoacids to lactating dairy cows fed low- or high-forage diets: Effects on performance, digestibility, and milk fatty acid profile.
Feed sources and Nutrition

Research has shown that the dietary supplementation of specific branch-chain volatile fatty acids (BCVFA) (e.g., iso-butyrate, 2-methybutyrate, and iso-valerate), either individually or in combinations with another straight-chain FA, valerate (collectively known as isoacids; ISO), significantly improves cellulolytic bacterial grow

fiber digestibility, branched-chain volatile fatty acids, odd-chain fatty acid, milk production
Lactational performance effects of 3-nitrooxypropanol supplementation to dairy cows: A meta-regression.
Feed sources and Nutrition

Bovaer or 3-Nitrooxypropanol (3-NOP) is an anti-methanogenic feed additive that inhibits a key enzyme involved in the last step of methane (CH4) production by the rumen methane-producing organisms.

inhibitor, milk production, meta-analysis, methane
Reducing dietary crude protein levels while meeting metabolizable protein requirements: Performance of dairy cows over a full lactation period.
Feed sources and Nutrition

The nitrogen use efficiency (NUE; defined as N output in milk/N consumed) of dairy cows within pasture-based systems is rather low, often less than 25%. Excreted N, in particular the rather high urinary N, may thus be lost to the atmosphere as ammonia and nitrous oxide and to waterways as nitrates.

dairy cow, nitrogen use efficiency, protein, lactation