Yao Songyang, Wu Hao, Ma Hui, Fu Yao, Wei Wenjuan, Wang Tiankun, Guan Shengyu, Yang Hai, Li Xiubo, Guo Jiangpeng, Lu Yongqiang, Zhang Lu, He Changwang, Chang Yi, Liu Guoshi
Beijing Key Laboratory of Animal Genetic Improvement, Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics and Breeding of the Ministry of Agriculture, National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China.
Beijing Shounong Animal Husbandry Development Co. LTD, Beijing, China.
PeerJ. 2020 May 14;8:e9147. doi: 10.7717/peerj.9147. eCollection 2020.
Cow mastitis is a major problem frequently encountered by dairy farmers and it is manifested by the high number of somatic cells and the low quality of the milk. The conventional treatment for mastitis is use of antibiotics. In the current study, a new approach is applied to target this disorder: rumen bypass melatonin feeding (RBMF). The RBMF significantly reduced milk somatic cell count and improved milk nutritional values with the elevated protein, fat and dry matter levels. This approach also suppresses the stress and proinflammatory responses of the cows indicated by the reduced serum cortisol, TNF-α and IL-6 and increased IL-10 levels. Importantly, the beneficial effects of RBMF have lasted for several days after termination of the treatment. The effects of melatonin on the mastitis are probably attributed to the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of melatonin. Considering the none or low toxicity of melatonin to organisms and the no invasive nature of this approach, we recommend that RBMF could be used in large scale in the dairy farming to target the cow mastitis.
奶牛乳腺炎是奶农经常遇到的一个主要问题，其表现为体细胞数量高和牛奶质量低。乳腺炎的传统治疗方法是使用抗生素。在当前的研究中，一种新的方法被应用于治疗这种疾病：瘤胃旁路褪黑素饲喂（RBMF）。RBMF显著降低了牛奶体细胞计数，并提高了牛奶的营养价值，蛋白质、脂肪和干物质水平升高。这种方法还抑制了奶牛的应激和促炎反应，表现为血清皮质醇、TNF-α和IL-6水平降低，IL-10水平升高。重要的是，RBMF的有益效果在治疗终止后持续了几天。褪黑素对乳腺炎的作用可能归因于褪黑素的抗氧化和抗炎活性。考虑到褪黑素对生物体无毒性或低毒性以及这种方法的非侵入性，我们建议RBMF可在奶牛养殖中大规模用于治疗奶牛乳腺炎。
