Schwarz Tomasz, Scheeres Nelia, Małopolska Martyna M, Murawski Maciej, Agustin Tristan D, Ahmadi Bahareh, Strzałkowska Nina, Rajtar Patrycja, Micek Piotr, Bartlewski Pawel M
Department of Genetics, Animal Breeding and Ethology, Faculty of Animal Science, University of Agriculture in Kraków, 24/28 Mickiewicza Ave., 30-120 Cracow, Poland.
Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Rd., Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada.
Animals (Basel). 2020 Oct 30;10(11):2005. doi: 10.3390/ani10112005.
Thirty clinically healthy Holstein-Friesian cows underwent twice daily machine milking and ultrasonographic examinations of the udder just prior to and after milking. Digital ultrasonographic images of each udder quarter were subjected to computer-assisted echotextural analyses to obtain mean numerical pixel values (NPVs) and pixel heterogeneity (PSD) of the mammary gland parenchyma. The average milk yield and pH were higher ( < 0.05) in the morning, whereas crude fat, total solids, solids non-fat and citric acid content were higher ( < 0.05) during the evening milking period. Mean NPVs and PSDs of the mammary gland parenchyma were greater ( < 0.05) after than before milking. There were significant correlations among echotextural characteristics of the udder and protein percentage, lactose content and freezing point depression determined in the milk samples collected in the morning and crude protein, casein, lactose and solids non-fat in the evening. Our results can be interpreted to suggest that computerized analysis of the mammary gland ultrasonograms has the makings of a technique for estimating non-fat milk constituents in cows. However, future validating studies are necessary before this method can be employed in commercial settings and research. Moreover, significant inter-quarter differences in udder echogenicity may necessitate further echotextural studies of separate quarters.
30头临床健康的荷斯坦-弗里生奶牛每天进行两次机械挤奶，并在挤奶前后对乳房进行超声检查。对每个乳房象限的数字超声图像进行计算机辅助回声纹理分析，以获得乳腺实质的平均数字像素值（NPV）和像素异质性（PSD）。早晨的平均产奶量和pH值较高（P<0.05），而晚上挤奶期间的粗脂肪、总固体、非脂固体和柠檬酸含量较高（P<0.05）。挤奶后乳腺实质的平均NPV和PSD大于挤奶前（P<0.05）。乳房回声纹理特征与早晨采集的牛奶样本中测定的蛋白质百分比、乳糖含量和冰点降低以及晚上的粗蛋白、酪蛋白、乳糖和非脂固体之间存在显著相关性。我们的结果可以解释为，乳腺超声图像的计算机分析具有估计奶牛非脂乳成分的技术潜力。然而，在该方法应用于商业环境和研究之前，未来需要进行验证研究。此外，乳房回声性的象限间显著差异可能需要对各个象限进行进一步的回声纹理研究。
