Impact of a blend of amino acids and essential fatty acids on the modulation of the ruminal microbiota and methane emissions of dairy calves

• Grant number: 24/17631-8
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: April 01, 2025
• End date: March 31, 2027
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Animal Husbandry - Animal Nutrition and Feeding
• Principal Investigator: Ives Cláudio da Silva Bueno
• Grantee: Ives Cláudio da Silva Bueno
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Zootecnia e Engenharia de Alimentos (FZEA). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Pirassununga , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: Alexandre Berndt ; Janaína Silveira da Silva ; Luciana Correia de Almeida Regitano ; Matheus Deniz ; Nara Regina Brandão Cônsolo ; Sergio Raposo de Medeiros ; Teresa Cristina Alves

Abstract

Given the global emphasis on reducing enteric methane (CH4) emissions by the livestock sector, several mitigation strategies are being studied. In Brazil, much animal production takes place extensively on pastures, often with some level of degradation and high CH4 emissions. Thus, the need to mitigate these emissions is essential to ensure the sustainability of pasture-based cattle production, as the sector's future depends on increasing productivity sustainably. In this context, the inclusion of a blend of amino acids and essential fatty acids in the diet of ruminants presents itself as an alternative to make livestock management more productive and sustainable. Evidence suggests that changes in microbial colonization of the rumen before weaning of dairy calves, influenced by nutrition during the growth phase, can affect the establishment of the ruminal microbiota and the phenotypes expressed in adulthood. However, there are few studies evaluating the use of a blend of amino acids and fatty acids in the diet of dairy calves under tropical and grazing conditions. Therefore, this project aims to investigate how dietary manipulation from birth to six months old can influence performance, microbial protein synthesis, CH4 production, serum and ruminal metabolome, and the ruminal microbial population of dairy calves, by modulating the ruminal microbiome. The experiment will be conducted at Embrapa Pecuária Sudeste's Milk Production System in São Carlos/SP. Twenty newborn Jersolando calves will be randomly assigned to two collective rearing groups: treatment and control. The treatment group will receive a daily blend of amino acids and essential fatty acids at a dose of 3.0 g/animal/day, orally, from birth to three months old, while the control group will receive a placebo at the same dose. The results of this project are expected to contribute to the sustainability of Brazilian livestock production by promoting increased food production with a reduced environmental impact. (AU)