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A group of milk components that has shown potential to be predicted with milk spectra is milk minerals. Milk minerals are important for human health and cow health. Having an inexpensive and fast way to measure milk mineral concentrations would open doors for research, herd management, and selective breeding. The first aim of this study was to predict milk minerals with infrared milk spectra. Additionally, milk minerals were predicted with infrared-predicted fat, protein, and lactose content. The second aim was to perform a genetic analysis on infrared-predicted milk minerals, to identify QTL, and estimate variance components. For training and validating a multibreed prediction model for individual milk minerals, 264 Danish Jersey cows and 254 Danish Holstein cows were used. Partial least square regression prediction models were built for Ca, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, P, Se, and Zn based on 80% of the cows, selected randomly. Prediction models were externally validated with 8 herds based on the remaining 20% of the cows. The prediction models were applied on a population of approximately 1,400 Danish Holstein cows with 5,600 infrared spectral records and 1,700 Danish Jersey cows with 7,200 infrared spectral records. Cows from this population had 50k imputed genotypes. Prediction accuracy was good for P and Ca, with external R2 ≥ 0.80 and a relative prediction error of 5.4% for P and 6.3% for Ca. Prediction was moderately good for Na with an external R2 of 0.63, and a relative error of 18.8%. Prediction accuracies of milk minerals based on infrared-predicted fat, protein, and lactose content were considerably lower than those based on the infrared milk spectra. This shows that the milk infrared spectrum contains valuable information on milk minerals, which is currently not used. Heritability for infrared-predicted Ca, Na, and P varied from low (0.13) to moderate (0.36). Several QTL for infrared-predicted milk minerals were observed that have been associated with gold standard milk minerals previously. In conclusion, this study has shown infrared milk spectra were good at predicting Ca, Na, and P in milk. Infrared-predicted Ca, Na, and P had low to moderate heritability estimates. A group of milk components that has shown potential to be predicted with milk spectra is milk minerals. Milk minerals are important for human health and cow health. Having an inexpensive and fast way to measure milk mineral concentrations would open doors for research, herd management, and selective breeding. The first aim of this study was to predict milk minerals with infrared milk spectra. Additionally, milk minerals were predicted with infrared-predicted fat, protein, and lactose content. The second aim was to perform a genetic analysis on infrared-predicted milk minerals, to identify QTL, and estimate variance components. For training and validating a multibreed prediction model for individual milk minerals, 264 Danish Jersey cows and 254 Danish Holstein cows were used. Partial least square regression prediction models were built for Ca, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, P, Se, and Zn based on 80% of the cows, selected randomly. Prediction models were externally validated with 8 herds based on the remaining 20% of the cows. The prediction models were applied on a population of approximately 1,400 Danish Holstein cows with 5,600 infrared spectral records and 1,700 Danish Jersey cows with 7,200 infrared spectral records. Cows from this population had 50k imputed genotypes. Prediction accuracy was good for P and Ca, with external R2 ≥ 0.80 and a relative prediction error of 5.4% for P and 6.3% for Ca. Prediction was moderately good for Na with an external R2 of 0.63, and a relative error of 18.8%. Prediction accuracies of milk minerals based on infrared-predicted fat, protein, and lactose content were considerably lower than those based on the infrared milk spectra. This shows that the milk infrared spectrum contains valuable information on milk minerals, which is currently not used. Heritability for infrared-predicted Ca, Na, and P varied from low (0.13) to moderate (0.36). Several QTL for infrared-predicted milk minerals were observed that have been associated with gold standard milk minerals previously. In conclusion, this study has shown infrared milk spectra were good at predicting Ca, Na, and P in milk. Infrared-predicted Ca, Na, and P had low to moderate heritability estimates.

Among the dairy sector's current concerns, the as-sessment of global animal health status is a complex challenge. Its multidimensionality means that global monitoring tools are rarely considered. Instead, specific disease detection is often studied separately and, due to financial and ethical issues, uses small-scale data sets focusing on few biomarkers. Several studies have already been conducted using milk Fourier transform mid-infrared (FT-MIR) spectroscopy to detect mastitis and lameness or to quantify health-related biomarkers in milk or blood. Those studies are relevant but they focus mainly on one biomarker or disease. To solve this issue and the small-scale data set, in this study, we proposed a holistic approach using big data obtained from milk recording, including milk yield, somatic cell count, and 27 FT-MIR-based predictors related to milk composition and animal health status. Using 740,454 records collected from 114,536 first-parity Holstein cows in southern Belgium, we performed repeated unsupervised learning algorithms based on Ward's agglomerative hierarchical clustering method to find potential interesting patterns. A divide-and-conquer approach was used to overcome the limitation of computational resources in clustering a relatively large data set. Five groups of records were identified. Differences observed in the fourth group suggested a relationship to metabolic disorders. The fifth group seemed to be related to mastitis. In a second step, we performed a partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) to predict the probability of belonging to those specific groups for the entire data set. The obtained global ac-curacy was 0.77 and the balanced accuracy (i.e., the mean between sensitivity and specificity) of discrimi-nating the fourth and fifth groups was 0.88 and 0.96, respectively. Then, a validation of the interpretation of those groups was performed using 204 milk and blood reference records. The predicted probability associated with the metabolic disorders issue had significant cor-relations of 0.54 with blood beta-hydroxybutyrate, 0.44 with blood nonesterified fatty acids, -0.32 with blood glucose, -0.23 with milk glucose-6-phosphate, and 0.38 with milk isocitrate. In contrast, the predicted prob-ability of belonging to the mastitis group had correla-tions of 0.69 with milk lactate dehydrogenase, 0.46 with milk N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase, -0.18 with milk free glucose, and 0.16 with milk glucose-6-phosphate. Consequently, these results suggest that the obtained quantitative traits indirectly reflect some of the main health disorders in dairy farming and could be used to monitor dairy cows on a large scale. By using unsuper-vised learning on large-scale milk recording data and then validating the pattern using reference laboratory measures, we propose a new approach to quickly assess dairy cow health status.

In high-yielding dairy cattle, severe postpartum negative energy balance is often associated with metabolic and infectious disorders that negatively affect production, fertility, and welfare. Mobilization of adipose tissue associated with negative energy balance is reflected through an increased level of nonesterified fatty acids (NEFA) in the blood plasma. Earlier, identification of negative energy balance through detection of increased blood plasma NEFA concentration required laborious and stressful blood sampling. More recently, attempts have been made to predict blood NEFA concentration from milk samples. In this study, we aimed to develop and validate a model to predict blood plasma NEFA concentration using the milk mid-infrared (MIR) spectra that are routinely measured in the context of milk recording. To this end, blood plasma and milk samples were collected in wk 2, 3, and 20 postpartum for 192 lactations in 3 herds. The blood plasma samples were taken in the morning, and representative milk samples were collected during the morning and evening milk sessions on the same day. To predict plasma NEFA concentration from the milk MIR spectra, partial least squares regression models were trained on part of the observations from the first herd. The models were then thoroughly validated on all other observations of the first herd and on the observations of the 2 independent herds to explore their robustness and wide applicability. The final model could accurately predict blood plasma NEFA concentrations 1.2 mmol/L NEFA, the model clearly underestimated the true level. Additionally, we found that morning blood plasma NEFA levels were predicted with significantly higher accuracy using MIR spectra of evening milk samples compared with MIR spectra of morning samples, with root mean square error of prediction values of, respectively, 0.182 and 0.197 mmol/L, and R2 values of 0.613 and 0.502. These results suggest a time delay between variations in blood plasma NEFA and related milk biomarkers. Based on the MIR spectra of evening milk samples, cows at risk for negative energy status, indicated by detrimental morning blood plasma NEFA levels (>0.6 mmol/L), could be identified with a sensitivity and specificity of, respectively, 0.831 and 0.800. As this model can be applied to millions of historical and future milk MIR spectra, it opens an opportunity for regular metabolic screening and improved resilience phenotyping. ispartof: JOURNAL OF DAIRY SCIENCE vol:103 issue:7 pages:6422-6438 ispartof: location:United States status: published

Background Infrared spectral analysis of milk is cheap, fast, and accurate. Infrared light interacts with chemical bonds present inside the milk, which means that Fourier transform infrared milk spectra are a reflection of the chemical composition of milk. Heritability of Fourier transform infrared milk spectra has been analysed previously. Further genetic analysis of Fourier transform infrared milk spectra could give us a better insight in the genes underlying milk composition. Breed influences milk composition, yet not much is known about the effect of breed on Fourier transform infrared milk spectra. Improved understanding of the effect of breed on Fourier transform infrared milk spectra could enhance efficient application of Fourier transform infrared milk spectra. The aim of this study is to perform a genome wide association study on a selection of wavenumbers for Danish Holstein and Danish Jersey. This will improve our understanding of the genetics underlying milk composition in these two dairy cattle breeds. Results For each breed separately, fifteen wavenumbers were analysed. Overall, more quantitative trait loci were observed for Danish Jersey compared to Danish Holstein. For both breeds, the majority of the wavenumbers was most strongly associated to a genomic region on BTA 14 harbouring DGAT1. Furthermore, for both breeds most quantitative trait loci were observed for wavenumbers that interact with the chemical bond C-O. For Danish Jersey, wavenumbers that interact with C-H were associated to genes that are involved in fatty acid synthesis, such as AGPAT3, AGPAT6, PPARGC1A, SREBF1, and FADS1. For wavenumbers which interact with –OH, associations were observed to genomic regions that have been linked to alpha-lactalbumin. Conclusions The current study identified many quantitative trait loci that underlie Fourier transform infrared milk spectra, and thus milk composition. Differences were observed between groups of wavenumbers that interact with different chemical bonds. Both overlapping and different QTL were observed for Danish Holstein and Danish Jersey.

Milk is an important protein source in human diets, providing around 32 g protein/l (for bovine milk, which constitutes some 85% of global consumption). The most abundant milk proteins are α-lactalbumin, β-lactoglobulin, αs-casein, β-casein, and κ-casein. Besides their nutritional value, milk proteins play a crucial role in the processing properties of milk, such as solubility, water bonding, heat stability, renneting and foaming, among others. In addition, and most importantly for this review, these proteins are the main source of bioactive components in milk. Due to the wide range of proposed beneficial effects on human health, milk proteins are considered as potential ingredients for the production of health-promoting functional foods. However, most of the evidence for bioactive effects comes from in vitro studies, and there is a need for further research to fully evaluate the true potential of milk-derived bioactive factors. Animal genetics and animal nutrition play an important role in the relative proportions of milk proteins and could be used to manipulate the concentration of specific bioactive peptides in milk from ruminants. Unfortunately, only a few studies in the literature have focused on changes in milk bioactive peptides associated to animal genetics and animal nutrition. The knowledge described in the present review may set the basis for further research and for the development of new dairy products with healthy and beneficial properties for humans.

The aim of this study was to estimate breed differences in milk fatty acid (FA) profile among 5 dairy cattle breeds present in the Netherlands: Holstein-Friesian (HF), Meuse-Rhine-Yssel (MRY), Dutch Friesian (DF), Groningen White Headed (GWH), and Jersey (JER). For this purpose, total fat percentage and detailed FA contents in milk (14 individual FA and 14 groups of FA) predicted from mid-infrared spectra were used. Mid-infrared spectrometry profiles were collected during regular milk recording from a range of herds with different combinations of breeds, including both purebred and crossbred cows. The data set used for the analyses contained 41,404 records from a total of 24,445 cows. In total 7,626 cows were crossbreds belonging to the breeds HF, MRY, DF, GWH, and JER; 1,769 purebreds (≥87.5%) belonging to the breeds MRY, DF, GWH, and JER; and the other 15,050 cows were HF. Breed effects were estimated using a single-trait animal model. The content in milk of short-chain FA C4:0, C6:0, C8:0, C10:0, C12:0, C14:0, and C16:0 was higher for JER and the content in milk of C16:0 was lower for GWH compared with the other breeds; when adjusting for breed differences in fat percentage, however, not all breed differences were significant. Breed differences were also found for cis-9 C14:1, cis-9 C16:1, C18:0, and a number of C18 unsaturated FA. In general, differences in fat composition in milk between HF, MRY, and DF were not significant. Jerseys tended to produce more saturated FA, whereas GWH tended to produce relatively less saturated FA. After adjusting for differences in fat percentage, breed differences in detailed fat composition disappeared or became smaller for several short- and medium-chain FA, whereas for several long-chain unsaturated FA, more significant breed differences were found. This indicates that short- and medium-chain FA are for all breeds more related to total fat percentage than long-chain FA. In conclusion, between breed differences were found in detailed FA composition and content of individual FA. Especially, for FA produced through de novo synthesis (short-chain FA, C12:0, C14:0, and partly C16:0) differences were found for JER and GWH, compared with the breeds HF, MRY, and DF.

With regard to human health aspects of milk fat, increasing the amount of unsaturated fatty acids in milk is an important selection objective. The cow's diet has an influence on the degree of unsaturation, but literature suggests that genetics also plays a role. To estimate genetic variation in milk fatty acid unsaturation indices, milk fatty acid composition of 1,933 Dutch Holstein Friesian heifers was measured and unsaturation indices were calculated. An unsaturation index represents the concentration of the unsaturated product proportional to the sum of the unsaturated product and the saturated substrate. Intraherd heritabilities were moderate, ranging from 0.23 +/- 0.07 for conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) index to 0.46 +/- 0.09 for C16 index. We genotyped the cows for the SCD1 A293V and DGAT1 K232A polymorphisms, which are known to alter milk fatty acid composition. Both genes explain part of the genetic variation in unsaturation indices. The SCD1 V allele is associated with lower C10, C12, and C14 indices, and with higher C16, C18, and CLA indices in comparison to the SCD1 A allele, with no differences in total unsaturation index. In comparison to the DGAT1 K allele, the DGAT1 A allele is associated with lower C10, C12, C14, and C16 indices and with higher C18, CLA, and total indices. We conclude that selective breeding can contribute to higher unsaturation indices, and that selective breeding can capitalize on genotypic information of both the SCD1 A293V and the DGAT1 K232A polymorphism.

Casein phosphorylation is a posttranslational modification catalyzed by kinase enzymes that attach phosphate groups to specific AA in the protein sequence. This modification is one of the key factors responsible for the stabilization of calcium phosphate nanoclusters in casein micelles and for the internal structure of the casein micelles. α(S1)-Casein (α(s1)-CN) is of special interest because it constitutes up to 40% of the total casein fraction in milk, and it has 2 common phosphorylation states, with 8 (α(S1)-CN-8P) and 9 (α(S1)-CN-9P) phosphorylated serine residues. Factors affecting this variation in the degree of phosphorylation are not currently known. The objective of this research was to determine the genetic background of α(S1)-CN-8P and α(S1)-CN-9P. The genetic and phenotypic correlation between α(S1)-CN-8P and α(S1)-CN-9P was low (0.18 and 0.19, respectively). This low genetic correlation suggests a different genetic background. These differences were further investigated by means of a genome-wide association study, which showed that both α(S1)-CN-8P and α(S1)-CN-9P were affected by a region on Bos taurus autosome (BTA) 6, but only α(S1)-CN-8P was affected by a region on BTA11 that contains the gene that encodes for β-lactoglobulin (β-LG), and only α(S1)-CN-9P was affected by a region on BTA14 that contains the diacylglycerol acyltransferase 1 (DGAT1) gene. Estimated effects of β-LG protein genotypes showed that only α(S1)-CN-8P was associated with the β-LG A/B polymorphism (g.1772G>A and g.3054C>T); the AA genotype of β-LG was associated with a lower concentration of α(S1)-CN-8P (-0.32% wt/wt) than the BB genotype (+0.41% wt/wt). Estimated effects of DGAT1 K232A genotypes showed that only α(S1)-CN-9P was associated with the DGAT1 gene polymorphism; DGAT1 AA genotype was associated with a higher α(S1)-CN-9P concentration (+0.53% wt/wt) than the DGAT1 KK genotype (-0.44% wt/wt). The results give insight in phosphorylation of α(S1)-CN-8P and α(S1)-CN-9P, which seem to be regulated by a different set of genes.

The protein and fat content of Dutch bulk milk has been monitored since the 1950s and has increased considerably, by 11 and 20%, respectively, whereas milk yield has more than doubled. The change in protein and fat content of milk is advantageous for the dairy industry, as these are the 2 most economically valuable constituents of milk. Increases in protein and fat content of milk have allowed increases in the yield of various products such as cheese and butter. However, for cheese and other applications where casein micelles play a crucial role in structure and stability, it is not only casein content, but also the properties of the casein micelles that determine processability. Of particular importance herein is the salt partition in milk, but it is unknown whether increased protein content has affected the milk salts and their distribution between casein micelles and milk serum. It was, therefore, the objective of this research to determine the salt composition and protein content for individual cow milk and bulk milk over a period of 1 yr and to compare these data to results obtained during the 1930s, 1950s, and 1960s in the last century. Calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, and phosphorus content were determined by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry and inorganic phosphate, citrate, chloride, and sulfate content by anion-exchange chromatography in bulk milk and milk ultracentrifugate. In addition, ionic calcium and ionic magnesium concentration were determined by the Donnan membrane technique. We concluded that historical increase in milk yield and protein content in milk have resulted in correlated changes in casein content and the micellar salt fraction of milk. In addition, the essential nutrients, calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus in milk have increased the past 75 yr; therefore, the nutritional value of milk has improved. Key words: milk protein , casein , calcium phosphate , magnesium

International audience; The aim of this study was to predict the fatty acid (FA) composition of bulk milk using data describing farming practices collected via on-farm surveys. The FA composition of 1,248 bulk cow milk samples and the related farming practices were collected from 20 experiments led in 10 different European countries at 44 degrees N to 60 degrees N latitude and sea level to 2,000 m altitude. Farming practice-based FA predictions [coefficient of determination (R-2) >0.50] were good for C16:0, C17:0, saturated FA, polyunsaturated FA, and odd-chain FA, and very good (R-2 >= 0.60) for trans-11 C18:1, trans-10 + trans-11 C18:1, cis-9,trans-11 conjugated linoleic acid, total trans FA, C18:3n-3, n-6:n-3 ratio, and branched-chain FA. Fatty acids were predicted by cow diet composition and by the altitude at which milk was produced, whereas animal-related factors (i.e., lactation stage, breed, milk yield, and proportion of primiparous cows in the herd) were not significant in any of the models. Proportion of fresh herbage in the cow diet was the main predictor, with the highest effect in almost all FA models. However, models built solely on conserved forage-derived samples gave good predictions for odd-chain FA, branched-chain FA, trans-10 C18:1 and C18:3n-3 (R-2 >= 0.46, 0.54, 0.52, and 0.70, respectively). These prediction models could offer farmers a valuable tool to help improve the nutritional quality of the milk they produce.

Since the 1980s, efforts have been made to develop sensors that measure a parameter from an individual cow. The development started with individual cow recognition and was followed by sensors that measure the electrical conductivity of milk and pedometers that measure activity. The aim of this review is to provide a structured overview of the published sensor systems for dairy health management. The development of sensor systems can be described by the following 4 levels: (I) techniques that measure something about the cow (e.g., activity); (II) interpretations that summarize changes in the sensor data (e.g., increase in activity) to produce information about the cow’s status (e.g., estrus); (III) integration of information where sensor information is supplemented with other information (e.g., economic information) to produce advice (e.g., whether to inseminate a cow or not); and (IV) the farmer makes a decision or the sensor system makes the decision autonomously (e.g., the inseminator is called). This review has structured a total of 126 publications describing 139 sensor systems and compared them based on the 4 levels. The publications were published in the Thomson Reuters (formerly ISI) Web of Science database from January 2002 until June 2012 or in the proceedings of 3 conferences on precision (dairy) farming in 2009, 2010, and 2011. Most studies concerned the detection of mastitis (25%), fertility (33%), and locomotion problems (30%), with fewer studies (16%) related to the detection of metabolic problems. Many studies presented sensor systems at levels I and II, but none did so at levels III and IV. Most of the work for mastitis (92%) and fertility (75%) is done at level II. For locomotion (53%) and metabolism (69%), more than half of the work is done at level I. The performance of sensor systems varies based on the choice of gold standards, algorithms, and test sizes (number of farms and cows). Studies on sensor systems for mastitis and estrus have shown that sensor systems are brought to a higher level; however, the need to improve detection performance still exists. Studies on sensor systems for locomotion problems have shown that the search continues for the most appropriate indicators, sensor techniques, and gold standards. Studies on metabolic problems show that it is still unclear which indicator reflects best the metabolic problems that should be detected. No systems with integrated decision support models have been found. Key words: automated

Chantier qualité GA; Mastitis, an inflammation of the mammary gland, is the most costly infectious disease of dairy ruminants worldwide. Although it receives considerable attention, the early steps of the host response remain poorly defined. Here, we report a noninvasive method using milk fat globules (MFG) as a source of mammary RNA to follow the dynamics of the global transcriptional response of mammary epithelial cells (MEC) during the course of a bacterial infection. We first assessed that RNA isolated from MFG were representative of MEG RNA; we then evaluated whether MFG RNA could be used to monitor the MEG response to infection. Sufficiently high yields of good-quality RNA (RNA integrity numbers ranging between 6.7 and 8.7) were obtained from goat MFG for subsequent analyses. Contamination of MFG by macrophages and neutrophils, which can be trapped during creaming, was assessed and when using quantitative real-time PCR for cell-type specific markers, was shown to be weak enough (

Background Identifying genomic regions, and preferably individual genes, responsible for genetic variation in milk fat composition of bovine milk will enhance the understanding of biological pathways involved in fatty acid synthesis and may point to opportunities for changing milk fat composition via selective breeding. An association study of 50,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) was performed for even-chain saturated fatty acids (C4:0-C18:0), even-chain monounsaturated fatty acids (C10:1-C18:1), and the polyunsaturated C18:2cis9,trans11 (CLA) to identify genomic regions associated with individual fatty acids in bovine milk. Results The two-step single SNP association analysis found a total of 54 regions on 29 chromosomes that were significantly associated with one or more fatty acids. Bos taurus autosomes (BTA) 14, 19, and 26 showed highly significant associations with seven to ten traits, explaining a relatively large percentage of the total additive genetic variation. Many additional regions were significantly associated with the fatty acids. Some of the regions harbor genes that are known to be involved in fat synthesis or were previously identified as underlying quantitative trait loci for fat yield or content, such as ABCG2 and PPARGC1A on BTA 6; ACSS2 on BTA 13; DGAT1 on BTA 14; ACLY, SREBF1, STAT5A, GH, and FASN on BTA 19; SCD1 on BTA26; and AGPAT6 on BTA 27. Conclusions Medium chain and unsaturated fatty acids are strongly influenced by polymorphisms in DGAT1 and SCD1. Other regions also showed significant associations with the fatty acids studied. These additional regions explain a relatively small percentage of the total additive genetic variance, but they are relevant to the total genetic merit of an individual and in unraveling the genetic background of milk fat composition. Regions identified in this study can be fine mapped to find causal mutations. The results also create opportunities for changing milk fat composition through breeding by selecting individuals based on their genetic merit for milk fat composition.

International audience; The aim of this work was to evaluate the effect of intramammary infection (IMI) on the endogenous proteolysis of milk. Four control checks were carried out in the half-udder milk of 10 ewes that acquired unilateral subclinical mastitis. Two of these checks were conducted before the infection was established and 2 after. Ten healthy ewes were tested as a control group. The presence of a subclinical IMI involved an increase of the products of casein hydrolysis, the proteose-peptone (p-p) fraction and minor (m) caseins, and a decrease of beta-casein. As a result, a significant increase in the proteolysis index (PI), calculated as the ratio of m-casein to the sum of caseins (alpha + beta + kappa), took place. a-Casein and K-casein were not significantly affected by IMI. Correlations confirmed the scenario: log(10) of somatic cell count (SCC) was positively correlated with p-p content and negatively with beta-casein, whereas log(10) SCC was not correlated with alpha-casein or kappa-casein. On the other hand, p-p content was positively correlated with m-casein and PI and negatively with beta-casein, but no correlation was detected between p-p content and alpha- or kappa-casein. Furthermore, between casein fractions, m-casein was only significantly correlated with beta-casein. These results suggest that use of indices of proteolysis of caseins such as p-p, m-casein, and PI, could be applied together with SCC to evaluate the cheese-making quality of milk.

Our objective was to perform a genome-wide association study for content in bovine milk of α(S1)-casein (α(S1)-CN), α(S2)-casein (α(S2)-CN), β-casein (β-CN), κ-casein (κ-CN), α-lactalbumin (α-LA), β-lactoglobulin (β-LG), casein index, protein percentage, and protein yield using a 50K single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) chip. In total, 1,713 Dutch Holstein-Friesian cows were genotyped for 50,228 SNP and a 2-step association study was performed. The first step involved a general linear model and the second step used a mixed model accounting for all family relationships. Associations with milk protein content and composition were detected on 20 bovine autosomes. The main genomic regions associated with milk protein composition or protein percentage were found on chromosomes 5, 6, 11, and 14. The number of chromosomal regions showing significant (false discovery rate

The objective of this study was to estimate heritabilities and repeatabilities for milk coagulation traits [milk coagulation time (RCT) and curd firmness (E(30))] and genetic and phenotypic correlations between milk yield and composition traits (milk fat percentage and protein percentage, urea, somatic cell count, pH) in first-lactation Estonian Holstein dairy cattle. A total of 17,577 test-day records from 4,191 Estonian Holstein cows in 73 herds across the country were collected during routine milk recordings. Measurements of RCT and E(30) determined with the Optigraph (Ysebaert, Frepillon, France) are based on an optical signal in the near-infrared region. The cows had at least 3 measurements taken during the period from April 2005 to January 2009. Data were analyzed using a repeatability animal model. There was substantial variation in milk coagulation traits with a coefficient of variation of 27% for E(30) and 9% for the log-transformed RCT. The percentage of variation explained by herd was 3% for E(30) and 4% for RCT, suggesting that milk coagulation traits are not strongly affected by herd conditions (e.g., feeding). Heritability was 0.28 for RCT and 0.41 for E(30), and repeatability estimates were 0.45 and 0.50, respectively. Genetic correlation between both milk coagulation traits was negligible, suggesting that RCT and E(30) have genetically different foundations. Milk coagulation time had a moderately high positive genetic (0.69) and phenotypic (0.61) correlation with milk pH indicating that a high pH is related to a less favorable RCT. Curd firmness had a moderate positive genetic (0.48) and phenotypic (0.45) correlation with the protein percentage. Therefore, a high protein percentage is associated with favorable curd firmness. All reported genetic parameters were statistically significantly different from zero. Additional univariate random regression analysis for milk coagulation traits yielded slightly higher average heritabilities of 0.38 and 0.47 for RCT and E(30) compared with the heritabilities of the repeatability model.

Defense mechanisms of dairy cows against diseases partly rest on their naturally present disease resistance capacity. Natural antibodies (NAb) form a soluble part of the innate immune system, being defined as antibodies circulating in animals without prior intentional antigenic stimulation. Genetic selection on NAb titers in milk, therefore, might improve disease resistance. We estimated genetic parameters of NAb titers binding lipopolysaccharide, lipoteichoic acid (LTA), peptidoglycan, and keyhole limpet hemocyanin, and titers of the NAb isotypes IgG1, IgM, and IgA binding LTA in milk of Dutch Holstein-Friesian heifers. Natural antibody titers were measured in 1 milk sample from each of 1,939 Holstein-Friesian heifers and used for estimating genetic parameters of NAb titers. The data show that phenotypic variation exists among heifers in NAb titers binding lipopolysaccharide, LTA, peptidoglycan, and keyhole limpet hemocyanin, and the NAb isotypes IgG1, IgM, and IgA binding LTA in milk. High genetic correlations among NAb (ranging from 0.45 to 0.99) indicated a common genetic basis for the levels of different NAb in bovine milk. Intra-herd heritability estimates for NAb ranged from 0.10 to 0.53. The results indicated that NAb levels have potential for genetic selection.

Selective breeding can change milk protein composition to improve the manufacturing properties of milk. However, the effects of such breeding strategies on other economically important traits should be investigated before implementation. The objectives of this study were to examine the association between cow fertility traits and (1) milk protein composition and (2) milk protein variants (β-lactoglobulin, β-casein, κ-casein, and β-κ-casein) in commercial Dutch Holstein-Friesian cattle. Data on 1,644 first-lactation cows were analyzed by fitting linear mixed models. Greater relative concentration of α(S1)-casein within total milk protein had a positive phenotypic relationship with nonreturn rates and calving rate after first insemination. Furthermore, results showed virtually no significant relationship between cow fertility and concentration of other milk proteins or milk protein variants. Results of this study can be used to assess the correlated effects of breeding for improved milk protein composition on reproduction, thereby allowing for better evaluation of breeding programs before implementation. Our findings suggest that selecting cows based on milk protein composition or milk protein variants for improved manufacturing properties would have no negative influence on reproductive performance.

Studies have reported genetic variation in milk urea nitrogen (MUN) between cows, suggesting genetic differences in nitrogen efficiency between cows. In this paper, the results of a genome-wide scan to identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) that contribute to genetic variation in MUN and MUN yield are presented. Two to 3 morning milk samples were taken from 1,926 cows, resulting in 5,502 test-day records. Test-day records were corrected for systematic environmental effects using a repeatability animal model. Averages of corrected phenotypes of 849 cows, belonging to 7 sire families, were used in an across-family multimarker regression approach to detect QTL. Animals were successfully genotyped for 1,341 single nucleotide polymorphisms. The QTL analysis resulted in 4 chromosomal regions with suggestive QTL: Bos taurus autosomes (BTA) 1, 6, 21, and 23. On BTA 1, 2 suggestive QTL affecting MUN were detected at 60 and 140 cM. On BTA 6, 1 suggestive QTL affecting both MUN and MUN yield was detected at 103 cM. On BTA 21, 1 suggestive QTL affecting MUN yield was detected at 83 cM. On BTA 23, 1 suggestive QTL affecting MUN was detected at 54 cM. Quantitative trait loci for MUN and MUN yield were suggestive and each explained between 2 and 3% of the phenotypic variance.

Recently, selective breeding was proposed as a means of changing the fatty acid composition of milk to improve its nutritional quality. Before implementing such breeding objectives, effects on other economically important traits should be investigated. The objectives of this study were to examine 1) the effect of milk fat composition, and 2) the effect of polymorphisms of DGAT1 and SCD1 genes on female fertility in commercial Dutch Holstein-Friesian cattle. Data on 1,745 first-lactation cows were analyzed by fitting linear mixed models. We found that higher concentrations of trans fatty acids within total milk fat negatively affected reproductive performance. Furthermore, results suggested a potential effect of the DGAT1 polymorphism on nonreturn rates for insemination 28 and 56 d after the first service. Our results can be used to assess the correlated effects of breeding for improved milk fat composition on reproduction, thereby allowing for better evaluation of breeding programs before implementation.

The objective of this study was to estimate genetic parameters for major milk proteins. One morning milk sample was collected from 1,940 first-parity Holstein-Friesian cows in February or March 2005. Each sample was analyzed with capillary zone electrophoresis to determine the relative concentrations of the 6 major milk proteins. The results show that there is considerable genetic variation in milk protein composition. The intraherd heritabilities for the relative protein concentrations were high and ranged from 0.25 for beta-casein to 0.80 for beta-lactoglobulin. The intraherd heritability for the summed whey fractions (0.71) was higher than that for the summed casein fractions (0.41). Further, there was relatively more variation in the summed whey fraction (coefficient of variation was 11% and standard deviation was 1.23) compared with the summed casein fraction (coefficient of variation was 2% and standard deviation was 1.72). For the caseins and alpha-lactalbumin, the proportion of phenotypic variation explained by herd was approximately 14%. For beta-lactoglobulin, the proportion of phenotypic variation explained by herd was considerably lower (5%). Eighty percent of the genetic correlations among the relative contributions of the major milk proteins were between -0.38 and +0.45. The genetic correlations suggest that it is possible to change the relative proportion of caseins in milk. Strong negative genetic correlations were found for beta-lactoglobulin with the summed casein fractions (-0.76), and for beta-lactoglobulin with casein index (-0.98). This study suggests that there are opportunities to change the milk protein composition in the cow's milk using selective breeding.

The objective of this study was to estimate genetic parameters for major milk fatty acids and milk production traits. One morning milk sample was collected from 1,918 Holstein-Friesian heifers located in 398 commercial herds in the Netherlands. Each sample was analyzed for total percentages of fat and protein, and for detailed fatty acid percentages (computed as fatty acid weight as a proportion of total fat weight). Intraherd heritabilities were high for C4:0 to C16:0, ranging from 0.42 for C4:0 to 0.71 for C10:0. Saturated and unsaturated C18 fatty acids had intraherd heritability estimates of approximately 0.25, except for C18:2 cis-9, trans-11, which was 0.42. Standard errors of the heritabilities were between 0.07 and 0.12. Genetic correlations were high and positive among C4:0 to C14:0, as well as among unsaturated C18, but correlations of C4:0 to C14:0 with unsaturated C18 were generally weak. The genetic correlation of C16:0 with fat percentage was positive (0.65), implying that selection for fat percentage should result in a correlated increase of C16:0, whereas unsaturated C18 fatty acids decreased with increasing fat percentage (¿0.74). Milk fat composition can be changed by means of selective breeding, which offers opportunities to meet consumer demands regarding health and technological aspects.

The digestive process transforms nutrients and bioactive compounds contained in food to physiologically active compounds. In vitro digestion systems have proven to be powerful tools for understanding and monitoring the complex transformation processes that take place during digestion. Moreover, the investigation of the physiological effects of certain nutrients demands an in vitro digestive process that is close to human physiology. In this study, human digestion was simulated with a 3-step in vitro process that was validated in depth by choosing pasteurized milk as an example of a complex food matrix. The evolution and decomposition of the macronutrients was followed over the entire digestive process to the level of intestinal enterocyte action, using protein and peptide analysis by SDS-PAGE, reversed-phase HPLC, size exclusion HPLC, and liquid chromatography-MS. The mean peptide size after in vitro digestion of pasteurized milk was 5-6 amino acids (AA). Interestingly, mostly essential AA (93.6%) were released during in vitro milk digestion, a significantly different relative distribution compared to the total essential AA concentration of bovine milk (44.5%). All TG were degraded to FFA and monoacylglycerols. Herein, we present a human in vitro digestion model validated for its ability to degrade the macronutrients of dairy products comparable to physiological ranges. It is suited to be used in combination with a human intestinal cell culture system, allowing ex vivo bioavailability measurements and assessment of the bioactive properties of food components.