Prenatal Supplementation in Beef Cattle and Its Effects on Plasma Metabolome of Dams and Calves
Fernando José Schalch Junior,
Guilherme Henrique Gebim Polizel,
Fernando Augusto Correia Queiroz Cançado,
Arícia Christofaro Fernandes,
Isabela Mortari,
Pedro Ratto Lisboa Pires,
Heidge Fukumasu,
Miguel Henrique de Almeida Santana,
Arlindo Saran Netto
Affiliations
Fernando José Schalch Junior
Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Av. Duque de Caxias Norte, 225, Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
Guilherme Henrique Gebim Polizel
Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Av. Duque de Caxias Norte, 225, Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
Fernando Augusto Correia Queiroz Cançado
Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Av. Duque de Caxias Norte, 225, Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
Arícia Christofaro Fernandes
Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Av. Duque de Caxias Norte, 225, Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
Isabela Mortari
Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Av. Duque de Caxias Norte, 225, Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
Pedro Ratto Lisboa Pires
Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Av. Duque de Caxias Norte, 225, Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
Heidge Fukumasu
Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Av. Duque de Caxias Norte, 225, Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
Miguel Henrique de Almeida Santana
Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Av. Duque de Caxias Norte, 225, Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
Arlindo Saran Netto
Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Av. Duque de Caxias Norte, 225, Pirassununga 13635-900, SP, Brazil
This study investigated the effect of different prenatal nutrition on the plasma metabolome of Nellore dams and their offspring. For that purpose, three nutritional treatments were used in 126 cows during pregnancy: NP—(control) only mineral supplementation; PP—protein-energy supplementation in the final third; and FP—protein-energy supplementation during the entire pregnancy. Targeted metabolomics were analyzed in plasma at the beginning of pregnancy and in pre-delivery of cows (n = 27) as well as in calves (n = 27, 30 ± 9.6 days of age). Data were analyzed by the analysis of variance, partial least squares discriminant analysis, and the principal component analysis (PCA). The PCA showed a clear clustering in the periods investigated only in cows (early gestation and pre-delivery). We found significant metabolites in both supervised analyses (p 1) for cows (Taurine, Glutamic acid, Histidine, and PC aa C42:2) and for calves (Carnosine, Alanine, and PC aa C26:0). The enrichment analysis revealed biological processes (p < 0.1) common among cows and calves (histidine metabolism and beta-alanine metabolism), which may be indicative of transgenerational epigenetic changes. In general, fetal programming affected mainly the metabolism of amino acids.
