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    Changes in the Spectrum of Free Fatty Acids in Blood Serum of Dairy Cows during a Prolonged Summer Heat Wave
    (Basel : MDPI, 2021) Mylostyvyi, Roman; Sejian, Veerasamy; Izhboldina, Olena; Kalinichenko, Olena; Karlova, Lina; Lesnovskay, Olena; Begma, Natalia; Marenkov, Oleh; Lykhach, Vadym; Midyk, Svitlana; Cherniy, Nikolay; Gutyj, Bogdan; Hoffmann, Gundula
    This experiment was conducted to study the effect of a prolonged hot period on the fatty acid (FA) composition in blood serum of dairy cows. Eighteen multiparous Holstein cows were randomly assigned to the hyperthermia group (HYP, n = 8) in August (summer season) and the control group (CON, n = 10) in October (autumn season). Blood from animals of the HYP group was collected in one heat wave, which was preceded by a long period of heat stress (HS, temperature-humidity index (THI ≥ 72)). Blood from cows of the CON group was collected under thermal comfort conditions (THI < 68). The spectrum of free fatty acids (FFA) in the blood serum was analyzed by gas chromatography. The concentration of FFA increased, including saturated FAs and monounsaturated FAs, in the blood serum of cows under conditions of prolonged HS. This was associated with the mobilization of FA into the bloodstream from adipose tissue, as a consequence of negative energy balance. An increase in the ratio of n-6/n-3 polyunsaturated FAs may indicate biomembrane dysfunction and adversely affect dairy cows. This study showed that prolonged periods of heat can affect the FA composition of blood. How much this leads to changes in the FA composition of milk and the quality of food products remains to be seen in further research.
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    Sensor-based detection of the severity of hyperkeratosis in the teats of dairy cows
    (Basel : MDPI AG, 2018) Demba, S.; Hoffmann, G.; Ammon, C.; Rose-Meierhöfer, S.
    The aim of this study was to evaluate whether the severity of hyperkeratosis (HK) in the teats of dairy cows can be assessed by a dielectric measurement. The study focused on surveying the occurrence of hyperkeratosis in a total of 241 teats of lactating dairy cows. A scoring system consisting of four categories was used to macroscopically assess the severity of HK. Additionally, the dielectric constant (DC) of all teats with milkability was measured in a double iteration with the MoistureMeterD (Delfin Technologies, Kuopio, Finland) on four different days. The Spearman rank correlation coefficient revealed a negative correlation between the DC and HK score (rs = −0.55 to −0.36). The results of the regression analysis showed that the DC values differed significantly between healthy teat ends (≤2) and teat ends with HK (≥3). Thus, the non-invasive measurement of DC provides a promising method of objectively assessing the occurrence and severity of HK.