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ARS Home » Plains Area » Clay Center, Nebraska » U.S. Meat Animal Research Center » Nutrition, Growth and Physiology » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #345302
Research Project: Improve Nutrient Management and Efficiency of Beef Cattle and Swine

Location: Nutrition, Growth and Physiology

Title: Microarray analysis of subcutaneous adipose tissue from mature cows with divergent body weight gain after feed restriction and realimentation

Author
item CUNNINGHAM, HANNAH - University Of Wyoming
item CAMMACK, KRISTI - South Dakota State University
item Hales Paxton, Kristin
item Freetly, Harvey
item Lindholm-Perry, Amanda

Submitted to: Data in Brief
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/5/2017
Publication Date: 10/10/2017
Publication URL: https://handle.nal.usda.gov/10113/5922768
Citation: Cunningham, H.C., Cammack, K.M., Hales Paxton, K.E., Freetly, H.C., Lindholm-Perry, A.K. 2017. Microarray analysis of subcutaneous adipose tissue from mature cows with divergent body weight gain after feed restriction and realimentation. Data in Brief. 16:303-311. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dib.2017.10.016.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dib.2017.10.016

Interpretive Summary: Due to low quality and limited availability of feed during various times of the production year, beef cows often experience periods of nutrient restriction often due to seasonal changes. These periods are followed by increased plane of nutrition during the growing seasons. Because these periods often coincide with peak production or increased energy demands, it is critical to understand biological responses to nutrient restriction and realimentation, specifically in a metabolically active tissue like adipose tissue. It is crucial both economically and for optimal production to understand the mechanisms driving response to these periods of under-nutrition and subsequent full feed in order to improve production and feed utilization. The objective of this study was to determine whether cows that differ in their ability to gain weight during abundance of feed after feed restriction also differ in the relative abundance of gene transcripts in adipose tissue. Mature cows were subjected to feed restriction followed by ad libitum feed. This study allowed us to determine which genes and pathways are involved in variation in body weight gain at both low and high levels of nutrient abundance in the adipose tissue of beef cows. Genes involved in pathways including lipid metabolism, mitochondrial respiration and oxidative phosphorylation appear to be critical to mature cows during times of abundant feed after feed restriction.

Technical Abstract: Body weight response to periods of feed restriction and realimentation is critical and relevant to the agricultural industry. The purpose of this study was to evaluate differentially expressed genes identified in subcutaneous adipose tissue collected from cows divergent in body weight (BW) gain after feed restriction and realimentation. We compared adipose samples from cows with greater gain based on average daily gain (ADG) during realimentation with samples from cows with lesser gain. Specifically, there were four comparisons including two comparing the high and low gain animals across each feeding period (feed restriction and realimentation) and two that compared differences in feed restriction and realimentation across high or low gain classifications. Using microarray analysis, we provide a set of differentially expressed genes identified between the high and low gain at both periods of nutrient restriction and realimentation. These data identify multiple differentially expressed genes between these two phenotypes across both nutritional environments.