080 Evaluation of Angus Cattle Hair Coat Length and Its Associations with Tolerance to Fescue Toxicosis

Abstract Background Heat stress and fescue toxicosis caused by ingesting tall fescue infected with the endophytic fungus Epichloë coenophiala represent two of the most prevalent stressors to beef cattle in the United States and cost the beef industry millions of dollars each year. The rate at which a beef cow sheds her winter coat early in the summer is an indicator of adaptation to heat and an economically relevant trait in temperate or subtropical parts of the world. Furthermore, research suggests that early-summer hair shedding may reflect tolerance to fescue toxicosis, since vasoconstriction induced by fescue toxicosis limits the ability of an animal to shed its winter coat. Both heat stress and fescue toxicosis reduce profitability partly via indirect maternal effects on calf weaning weight. Here, we developed parameters for routine genetic evaluation of hair shedding score in American Angus cattle, and identified genomic loci associated with variation in hair shedding score via genome-wide association analysis (GWAA). Results Hair shedding score was moderately heritable (h2 = 0.34 to 0.40), with different repeatability estimates between cattle grazing versus not grazing endophyte-infected tall fescue. Our results suggest modestly negative genetic and phenotypic correlations between a dam’s hair shedding score (lower score is earlier shedding) and the weaning weight of her calf, which is one metric of performance. Together, these results indicate that economic gains can be made by using hair shedding score breeding values to select for heat-tolerant cattle. GWAA identified 176 variants significant at FDR < 0.05. Functional enrichment analyses using genes that were located within 50 kb of these variants identified pathways involved in keratin formation, prolactin signalling, host-virus interaction, and other biological processes. Conclusions This work contributes to a continuing trend in the development of genetic evaluations for environmental adaptation. Our results will aid beef cattle producers in selecting more sustainable and climate-adapted cattle, as well as enable the development of similar routine genetic evaluations in other breeds.

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Clinical manifestations of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) and perennial ryegrass (lolium perenne) toxicosis in Oregon and Japan

NZGA: Research and Practice Series ◽

10.33584/rps.13.2006.3170 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 13 ◽

pp. 369-372

Author(s):

L.L. Blythe ◽

A.M. Craig ◽

C. Estill ◽

C. Cebra

Keyword(s):

Lolium Perenne ◽

Perennial Ryegrass ◽

Tall Fescue ◽

Festuca Arundinacea ◽

Clinical Manifestations ◽

Beef Cows ◽

Fescue Toxicosis ◽

Angus Cattle ◽

Multiple Vehicles ◽

Tall Fescue Toxicosis

There are multiple vehicles for endophyte toxicosis in animals including exposure from pasture, straw residues and seed screenings. This report discusses the clinical cases typically seen with tall fescue and perennial ryegrass toxicosis in Oregon and Japan. Case I involves a herd of 330 Black Angus cattle. Before the March calving season the owner wished to increase the protein content of the feed ration by feeding pellets made of seed screenings and grass hay. Forty two animals were lost to tall fescue toxicosis and dry gangrene of the feet and legs. Case II involves 1300 beef cows in Eastern Oregon fed grass straw; 485 animals were lost due to dry gangrene characteristic of tall fescue toxicosis. Case III describes 4 of 15 cases of both tall fescue and perennial ryegrass toxicosis in Japanese black cattle. Case IV involves llamas and alpacas on pasture and lawn paddocks where some animals were affected by tall fescue and some by perennial ryegrass. Keywords: tall fescue, Festuca arundinacea L., perennial ryegrass, Lolium perenne, endophyte, Neotyphodium coenophialum, Neotyphodium lolii

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94 Impact of a Hydrolyzed Yeast Product on Performance, Hair Coat Shedding, and Behavior of Cows Grazing Pastures Containing Endophyte-Infected Tall Fescue

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skz397.144 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 98 (Supplement_2) ◽

pp. 63-63

Author(s):

Patricia L Harrelson ◽

Rick Martin ◽

Brent Rogers ◽

Flint W Harrelson

Keyword(s):

Tall Fescue ◽

Lower Percentage ◽

Fescue Toxicosis ◽

Hair Coat ◽

Treatment Groups ◽

Beef Producers ◽

Mixed Grass ◽

Recorded Data ◽

Yeast Product ◽

And Behavior

Abstract Endophyte-infected tall fescue creates a multitude of problems for many beef producers, with supplementation being one management strategy to decrease these problems. Our research objective was to determine if supplementation with a hydrolyzed yeast product could alleviate some symptoms of fescue toxicosis in mature cows. Across the 3-yr study, Angus cow-calf pairs (n = 34, 38, 34) were stratified by cow age and body weight then randomly allotted to one of two treatments; control mineral (CON) or hydrolyzed yeast mineral (HYM). Cattle in both treatment groups grazed the same mixed grass pastures (n = 6, 8, 8; 1.21 ha each) which contained varying levels of endophyte (20 – 90%) as measured prior to each year, in a rotational pattern for 126, 133, or 140 d, depending upon year. Prior to entering a new pasture weekly, cows were weighed and assigned a BCS and hair coat score (HC) by two independent, trained personnel. Cow behavior was measured every 15-min within a 2-h block weekly. Percentage of cows active or inactive, outside or inside a barn was recorded. Data were analyzed using the MIXED procedure of SAS. Cow BW change was affected (P < 0.01) by a treatment×year interaction. Cow BCS increased in HYM vs. CON cows (0.34 vs. 0.06; P < 0.01; SEM = 0.08) across the entire trial. Cows consuming the HYM supplement also spent a greater percentage of time outside being active (P < 0.01) and a lower percentage of time inside being inactive (P < 0.01) compared to CON cows. Results from this trial indicate that the hydrolyzed yeast mineral may be an effective tool to aid in combating heat stress associated with fescue toxicosis.

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Hair coat characteristics and postweaning growth of Hereford and Angus cattle.

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.2527/1991.692498x ◽

1991 ◽

Vol 69 (2) ◽

pp. 498 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

R P Gilbert ◽

D R Bailey

Keyword(s):

Hair Coat ◽

Angus Cattle

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Evaluation of Resistance to Fescue Toxicosis in Purebred Angus Cattle Utilizing Animal Performance and Cytokine Response

Toxins ◽

10.3390/toxins12120796 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (12) ◽

pp. 796

Author(s):

Daniel H. Poole ◽

Kyle J. Mayberry ◽

McKayla Newsome ◽

Rebecca K. Poole ◽

Justine M Galliou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Tall Fescue ◽

Ergot Alkaloid ◽

Ergot Alkaloids ◽

Fescue Toxicosis ◽

Animal Performance ◽

Angus Cattle ◽

Study Support ◽

Genetic Tolerance ◽

Post Hoc ◽

The Impact

Fescue toxicosis is a multifaceted syndrome common in cattle grazing endophyte-infected tall fescue; however, varying symptomatic responses potentially imply genetic tolerance to the syndrome. It was hypothesized that a subpopulation of animals within a herd would develop tolerance to ergot alkaloid toxicity. Therefore, the goals of this study were to develop selection criteria to identify tolerant and susceptible animals within a herd based on animal performance, and then examine responsive phenotypic and cytokine profiles to fescue toxicosis. Angus cows grazed endophyte-infected tall fescue at two locations for 13 weeks starting in mid-April 2016. Forage measurements were collected to evaluate ergot alkaloid exposure during the study. A post hoc analysis of animal performance was utilized to designate cattle into either tolerant or susceptible groups, and weekly physiological measurements and blood samples were collected to evaluate responses to chronic exposure to endophyte-infected tall fescue. Findings from this study support the proposed fescue toxicosis selection method formulated herein, could accurately distinguish between tolerant and susceptible animals based on the performance parameters in cattle chronically exposed to ergot alkaloids, and provides evidence to warrant additional analysis to examine the impact of ergot alkaloids on immune responsiveness in cattle experiencing fescue toxicosis.

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Development of a genetic evaluation for hair shedding in American Angus cattle to improve thermotolerance

10.1101/2020.05.21.109553 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Harly J. Durbin ◽

Duc Lu ◽

Helen Yampara-Iquise ◽

Stephen P. Miller ◽

Jared E. Decker

Keyword(s):

Beef Cattle ◽

Tall Fescue ◽

The United States ◽

Early Summer ◽

Genetic Evaluation ◽

Functional Enrichment ◽

Fescue Toxicosis ◽

Beef Industry ◽

Angus Cattle ◽

Genetic Evaluations

AbstractBackgroundHeat stress and fescue toxicosis caused by ingesting tall fescue infected with the endophytic fungus Epichloë coenophiala represent two of the most prevalent stressors to beef cattle in the United States, costing the beef industry millions of dollars each year. The rate at which a beef cow sheds her winter coat early in the summer is an indicator of adaptation to heat and an economically relevant trait in many parts of the U.S. Further, research suggests that early-summer hair shedding may be reflective of tolerance to fescue toxicosis, as vasoconstriction induced by fescue toxicosis limits the ability of an animal to shed its winter coat. Here, we developed parameters for routine genetic evaluation of hair shedding score in American Angus cattle and identified genomic loci associated with variation in hair shedding score via genome-wide association analysis (GWAA).ResultsHair shedding score was found to be moderately heritable (h2 = 0.34 to 0.40), with differing repeatability estimates between cattle grazing versus not grazing endophyte-infected tall fescue. Our results suggest modestly negative genetic and phenotypic correlations between a dam’s hair shedding score (lower score is earlier shedding) and the weaning weight of her calf, one metric of performance. Together, these results indicate that economic gains can be made via the use of hair shedding score breeding values to select for heat tolerant cattle. GWAA identified 176 variants significant at FDR < 0.05. Functional enrichment analyses using genes within 50 Kb of these variants identified pathways involved in keratin formation, prolactin signaling, host-virus interaction, and other biological processes.ConclusionsThis work contributes to a continuing trend in the development of genetic evaluations for environmental adaptation. The results of this work will aid beef cattle producers in selecting more sustainable and climate-adapted cattle, as well as enable the development of similar routine genetic evaluations in other breeds.

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Hair coat score in Angus cattle: comparison of linear and threshold models, genetic gain and correlations with growth, morphological and reproductive traits

Livestock Science ◽

10.1016/j.livsci.2021.104512 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 104512

Author(s):

Daniel Duarte da Silveira ◽

Juan Salvador Andrade Tineo ◽

Patrícia Iana Schmidt ◽

Gabriel Soares Campos ◽

Fabio Ricardo Pablos de Souza ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Genetic Gain ◽

Reproductive Traits ◽

Threshold Models ◽

Hair Coat ◽

Angus Cattle

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123 Effect of a hydrolyzed yeast product on cow behavior, body eeight, body condition score, and hair coat score in cows grazing pastures containing endophyte-infected tall fescue

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skz053.117 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 97 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 52-52

Author(s):

Patricia L Harrelson ◽

C Brent Rogers ◽

Rick Martin ◽

Johnna Scott ◽

Brandi Banks ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Body Weight ◽

Tall Fescue ◽

Body Condition Score ◽

Fescue Toxicosis ◽

Hair Coat ◽

Trained Personnel ◽

Condition Score ◽

Mixed Grass ◽

Recorded Data ◽

Yeast Product

Abstract The objective of this study was to determine if the addition of a hydrolyzed yeast product would alleviate the symptoms of fescue toxicosis in beef cattle. Thirty-eight Angus cow-calf pairs were stratified by cow age and body weight then randomly allotted to one of two treatments; control mineral (CON) or hydrolyzed yeast mineral (HYM). Cattle in both groups were allowed access to mineral for 126 d while they grazed the same eight pastures (1.21 ha each) in a rotational pattern. Mineral was provided at a target rate of 113.4 g·hd-1·d-1 every 28 d. Each pasture was grazed by cattle groups for 7 d. Mixed grass pastures containing tall fescue were utilized and evaluated for endophyte level prior to the start of the project. Due to pasture endophyte level variability (44%-73% endophyte), both groups of cattle rotationally grazed each pasture at least 2 times starting in June. Prior to entering a new pasture weekly, cows were weighed and assigned a BCS and hair coat score (HC) by two independent, trained personnel. Cow behavior was measured every 15-min within a 2-h block weekly. Percentage of cows active or inactive, outside or inside was recorded. Data were analyzed using the MIXED procedure of SAS. Cow BW change was unaffected by treatment (P > 0.23). Cow BCS significantly increased in HYM vs. CON cows (0.4 vs. 0.1; P = 0.02; SEM = 0.1) through the 126 d project. No treatment effect was observed on HC (P > 0.19). Cow behavior was impacted by treatment, as HYM cows spent more time outside compared to CON cows (P < 0.01). Results of this trial suggest that HYM cows may have experienced less heat stress as a result of fescue toxicosis as they were willing to spend more time outside and increased BCS.

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84 Evaluation of hair coat shedding ability as an adaptive trait in Angus cattle in the southern U.S

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skz397.003 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 98 (Supplement_2) ◽

pp. 1-2

Author(s):

Randy H Burnett ◽

Morgan A Duvic ◽

Bryan R Kutz ◽

Avert H Brown ◽

Jermey G Powell ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Random Effect ◽

Production Performance ◽

Collaborative Effort ◽

Hair Coat ◽

Angus Cattle ◽

State Research ◽

Economic Trait ◽

Cow Performance ◽

Project Data ◽

Fall Calving

Abstract The objective of this study was to evaluate winter hair coat shedding ability and the association to cow production performance. This work was a collaborative effort from the S-1064 multi-state research project. Data were collected on spring and fall-calving purebred and commercial Angus females with calves (n = 1192) from March until July from 2008 to 2018 in Mississippi, Arkansas and Texas. Dams were observed once monthly by two trained technicians for winter hair coat shedding and give a visual hair shedding score of 1 to 5 with 1 indicating 100% shed, 2 = 75% shed, 3 = 50% shed, 4 = 25% shed, and 5 indicating 0% shedding of the winter hair coat. Month of first shedding (MFS) was determined once a female reached an average hair shedding score of ≤ 3.5 for any given month. Calf birth and weaning weights were considered as performance of the dam. For cow performance, the response variables included AdjBW and d205wt of the calf. Data were analyzed using the MIXED procedure of SAS with significance declared at P ≤ 0.05. The model included MFS as a fixed effect with calf sex as a covariate and calf sire as a random effect. Females that obtained a shedding score of ≤ 3.5 by May had heavier calves at birth (P ≤ 0.01) when compared with those that shed in June and July, with July weights being the lightest. Females that scored ≤ 3.5 by May has significantly heavier d205wt (P ≤ 0.01) when compared to those that shed by June and July. When comparing locations, females in Arkansas shed later (P ≤ 0.01) when compared with both Mississippi and Texas, which were similar. Shedding ability could be an important economic trait to be considered in cow-calf operations.

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Effect of Hair Coat Shedding Ability on Uterine Artery Hemodynamics in Angus Cattle

Journal of Animal Science ◽

10.1093/jas/skab096.002 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 99 (Supplement_2) ◽

pp. 3-3

Author(s):

Randy H Burnett ◽

Zully E Contreras-Correa ◽

Riley D Messman ◽

Kirsten A Midkiff ◽

Caleb O Lemley ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Repeated Measures ◽

Fixed Effects ◽

Uterine Artery ◽

Doppler Ultrasonography ◽

Color Doppler ◽

Random Effect ◽

Hair Coat ◽

Angus Cattle ◽

Subsequent Birth ◽

Fall Calving

Abstract The objective of this study was to evaluate winter hair coat shedding ability and its association with uterine artery hemodynamics. Fall calving, artificially inseminated purebred Angus females (n = 29) were observed once monthly by two trained technicians for winter hair coat shedding and given a visual hair shedding score of 1 to 5 with 1 indicating 100% shed, 2 = 75%, 3 = 50%, 4 = 25%, and 5 indicating 0% shedding of winter hair coat. Month of first shedding (MFS) was determined once a female reached an average hair shedding score of ≤ 3.5 from March until July of 2019 and 2020. Uterine artery blood flow (ABF) was determined using color Doppler ultrasonography at d 150, 180, 210, and 240 of gestation. Total uterine artery (summation of ipsilateral and contralateral arteries) and ipsilateral uterine ABF, diameter, resistance and pulsatility index (PI) were analyzed using repeated measures of the MIXED procedure of SAS with significance declared at P ≤ 0.05. Fixed effects included MFS, day, year, and the respected interactions with covariates of dam body weight, ambient temperature and order of cows ultrasonography examination considered as a random effect. No significant MFS by day of gestation interaction (P > 0.32) was observed for total or ipsilateral ABF (P > 0.23). A MFS by day of gestation (P < 0.04) interaction was observed for both ipsilateral artery diameter and PI, in which females that shed by May had smaller artery diameter (0.74 vs. 0.85 cm) at day 180 of gestation and greater PI (P < 0.02; 1.48 vs. 1.03) at day 150 of gestation compared to June. Shedding ability had an effect on ipsilateral uterine artery development and pulsatility during gestation, possibly affecting the amount of nutrients distributed to the prenatal fetus and subsequent birth weight of the calf from females that shed by May.

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