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Simple Summary: It is well known that the thermal environment has an integral role in maintaining the health and productivity of cattle. Although cold stress has been identified to negatively influence cattle comfort and productivity, the predominant focus herein has been describing the influence of heat stress on bovines. The impact of heat stress is particularly important due to the changing global environment. Global warming is likely to occur, however, the nature and magnitude of environmental changes, both climatic and non-climatic, are difficult to elucidate. Therefore a predominant focus on the impact of hot environments on cattle is warranted. This review provides an overview of the dynamic relationship that exists between the thermal environment and bovines. Heat stress and cold stress have a negative influence on cattle welfare and productivity. There have been some studies investigating the influence of cold stress on cattle, however the emphasis within this review is the influence of heat stress on cattle. The impact of hot weather on cattle is of increasing importance due to the changing global environment. Heat stress is a worldwide phenomenon that is associated with reduced animal productivity and welfare, particularly during the summer months. Animal responses to their thermal environment are extremely varied, however, it is clear that the thermal environment influences the health, productivity, and welfare of cattle. Whilst knowledge continues to be developed, managing livestock to reduce the negative impact of hot climatic conditions remains somewhat challenging. This review provides an overview of the impact of heat stress on production and reproduction in bovines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Genomic association analyses for milk yield and milk quality traits including mastitis were accomplished in a dairy cattle population from the harsh and challenging tropical savanna climate of Bengaluru, India. A further effect of selection was due to social–ecological drivers, i.e., specific constraints that are prevalent in small-sized family farms. As a time report, this study identified footprints of selection among the dairy cattle breeds in this region. The genome-wide association study (GWAS) identified two SNPs, rs109340659 and rs41571523, significantly associated with test-day milk yield. Fibrosin-like 1 (FBRSL) and calcium voltage-gated channel auxiliary subunit gamma 3 (CACN) were the respective annotated potential candidate genes. Furthermore, the genomic regions under selection were associated with pathways and mechanisms involving ubiquitination, cell signaling and immune response. Hence, contrasting dairy breeds genomically contributed to the detection of genomic regions under selection, with strong effects on adaptation and overall disease resistance. A study was designed to identify the genomic regions associated with milk production traits in a dairy cattle population reared by smallholder farmers in the harsh and challenging tropical savanna climate of Bengaluru, India. This study is a first-of-its-kind attempt to identify the selection sweeps for the dairy cattle breeds reared in such an environment. Two hundred forty lactating dairy cows reared by 68 farmers across the rural–urban transiting regions of Bengaluru were selected for this study. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) was performed to identify candidate genes for test-day milk yield, solids-not-fat (SNF), milk lactose, milk density and clinical mastitis. Furthermore, the cross-population extended haplotype homozygosity (XP-EHH) methodology was adopted to scan the dairy cattle breeds (Holstein Friesian, Jersey and Crossbred) in Bengaluru. Two SNPs, rs109340659 and rs41571523, were observed to be significantly associated with test-day milk yield. No significant SNPs were observed for the remaining production traits. The GWAS for milk lactose revealed one SNP (rs41634101) that was very close to the threshold limit, though not significant. The potential candidate genes fibrosin-like 1 (FBRSL) and calcium voltage-gated channel auxiliary subunit gamma 3 (CACN) were identified to be in close proximity to the SNP identified for test-day milk yield. These genes were observed to be associated with milk production traits based on previous reports. Furthermore, the selection signature analysis revealed a number of regions under selection for the breed-group comparisons (Crossbred-HF, Crossbred-J and HF-J). Functional analysis of these annotated genes under selection indicated pathways and mechanisms involving ubiquitination, cell signaling and immune response. These findings point towards the probable selection of dairy cows in Bengaluru for thermotolerance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A genomic study was conducted to identify the effects of urbanization and environmental contaminants with heavy metals on selection footprints in dairy cattle populations reared in the megacity of Bengaluru, South India. Dairy cattle reared along the rural–urban interface of Bengaluru with/without access to roughage from public lakeshores were selected. The genotyped animals were subjected to the cross-population–extended haplotype homozygosity (XP-EHH) methodology to infer selection sweeps caused by urbanization (rural, mixed, and urban) and environmental contamination with cadmium and lead. We postulated that social-ecological challenges contribute to mechanisms of natural selection. A number of selection sweeps were identified when comparing the genomes of cattle located in rural, mixed, or urban regions. The largest effects were identified on BTA21, displaying pronounced peaks for selection sweeps for all three urbanization levels (urban_vs_rural, urban_vs_mixed and rural_vs_mixed). Selection sweeps are located in chromosomal segments in close proximity to the genes lrand rab interactor 3 (RIN3), solute carrier family 24 member 4 (SLC24A4), tetraspanin 3 (TSPAN3), and proline-serine-threonine phosphatase interacting protein 1 (PSTPIP1). Functional enrichment analyses of the selection sweeps for all three comparisons revealed a number of gene ontology (GO) and KEGG terms, which were associated with reproduction, metabolism, and cell signaling-related functional mechanisms. Likewise, a number of the chromosomal segments under selection were observed when creating cattle groups according to cadmium and lead contaminations. Stronger and more intense positive selection sweeps were observed for the cadmium contaminated group, i.e., signals of selection on BTA 16 and BTA19 in close proximity to genes regulating the somatotropic axis (growth factor receptor bound protein 2 (GRB2) and cell ion exchange (chloride voltage-gated channel 6 (CLCN6)). A few novel, so far uncharacterized genes, mostly with effects on immune physiology, were identified. The lead contaminated group revealed sweeps which were annotated with genes involved in carcass traits (TNNC2, SLC12A5, and GABRA4), milk yield (HTR1D, SLCO3A1, TEK, and OPCML), reproduction (GABRA4), hypoxia/stress response (OPRD1 and KDR), cell adhesion (PCDHGC3), inflammatory response (ADORA2A), and immune defense mechanism (ALCAM). Thus, the findings from this study provide a deeper insight into the genomic regions under selection under the effects of urbanization and environmental contamination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: An understanding of the way that animals respond to heat stress is key to the development of adaptation and mitigation strategies for a changing climate. The response of mammals to heat exposure involves changes at every level of organization from molecular and cellular to systemic and behavioral. The concert of events involves many genes and gene products. The Na+/K+ ATPase ∝1 (ATP1A1), a product of the ATP1A1 gene, is important for the response to heat because it determines the activity of the Na+/K+ pump that is ubiquitous in cell membranes. It was shown recently that ATP1A1 is important in combating the oxidative stress that a cell faces and that it modulates the Src signaling pathway that is involved in the response to many stressors. Vechur cattle (dwarf Bos taurus indicus) are well known for their adaptability to the tropical heat and humidity that persists in their native state of Kerala, India. We here analyze the comparative expression profile of the ATP1A1 gene in heat-tolerant Vechur and Kasaragod (another dwarf B. t. indicus) cattle and a heat-intolerant crossbreed (B. t. taurus × B. t. indicus) and characterize the sequence of ATP1A1 mRNA in the Vechur genotype. Environmental stress and heat tolerance were measured. Expression profiling indicated that ATP1A1 was differentially expressed in the phenotypically disparate cattle breeds. A molecular evolutionary genetic analysis revealed that the divergent origin of dwarf cattle was adaptive in response to heat stress and suggests the potential use of ATP1A1 as a marker for heat tolerance. Climate change is an imminent threat to livestock production. One adaptation strategy is selection for heat tolerance. While it is established that the ATP1A1 gene and its product play an important role in the response to many stressors, there has been no attempt to characterize the sequence or to perform expression profiling of the gene in production animals. We undertook a field experiment to compare the expression profiles of ATP1A1 in heat-tolerant Vechur and Kasaragod cattle (Bos taurus indicus) with the profile of a heat-susceptible crossbreed (B. t. taurus × B. t. indicus). The cattle were exposed to heat stress while on pasture in the hot summer season. The environmental stress was quantified using the temperature humidity index (THI), while the heat tolerance of each breed was assessed using a heat tolerance coefficient (HTC). The ATP1A1 mRNA of Vechur cattle was amplified from cDNA and sequenced. The HTC varied significantly between the breeds and with time-of-day (p < 0.01). The breed–time-of-day interaction was also significant (p < 0.01). The relative expression of ATP1A1 differed between heat-tolerant and heat-susceptible breeds (p = 0.02). The expression of ATP1A1 at 08:00, 10:00 and 12:00, and the breed–time-of-day interaction, were not significant. The nucleotide sequence of Vechur ATP1A1 showed 99% homology with the B. t. taurus sequence. The protein sequence showed 98% homology with B. t. taurus cattle and with B. grunniens (yak) and 97.7% homology with Ovis aries (sheep). A molecular clock analysis revealed evidence of divergent adaptive evolution of the ATP1A1 gene favoring climate resilience in Vechur cattle. These findings further our knowledge of the relationship between the ATP1A1 gene and heat tolerance in phenotypically incongruent animals. We propose that ATP1A1 could be used in marker assisted selection (MAS) for heat tolerance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]