Supplementation of one-carbon metabolites influences fetal maintenance energy and programming of energy utilization in fetal liver during early pregnancy in heifers

Authors: SAFAIN, KAZI - North Dakota State University; HIRCHERT, MARA - North Dakota State University; WARD, ALISON - North Dakota State University; CATON, JOEL - North Dakota State University; ENTZIE, YSSI - North Dakota State University; SYRING, JESSICA - North Dakota State University; ANAS, MUHAMMAD - North Dakota State University; KING, LAYLA - North Dakota State University; Crouse, Matthew; DAHLEN, CARL - North Dakota State University; SWANSON, KENDALL - North Dakota State University

Submitted to: Current Developments in Nutrition
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/15/2023
Publication Date: 7/1/2023
Citation: Safain, K., Hirchert, M., Ward, A., Caton, J., Entzie, Y., Syring, J., Anas, M., King, L., Crouse, M., Dahlen, C., Swanson, K. 2023. Supplementation of one-carbon metabolites influences fetal maintenance energy and programming of energy utilization in fetal liver during early pregnancy in heifers. Current Developments in Nutrition. 7 (Supplement 1):311. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cdnut.2023.100809.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cdnut.2023.100809

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Objectives: The overall objective of this study was to investigate the influence of maternal plane of nutrition and supplementation of one-carbon metabolites (OCM) on fetal development of key tissues such as liver and muscle in beef cattle. Herein, the specific objective was to examine the effects on mitochondrial function in fetal liver and muscle. Twenty-seven cross-bred Angus heifers were bred via artificial insemination. At breeding, heifers were assigned to one of 4 nutritional treatments (2 × 2 factorial). The first factor was gain, which included control diet (CON; 0.60 kg/day ADG) versus restricted diet (RES; -0.23 kg/day). The second factor was OCM: supplementation (+OCM; methionine [10 g/day] and ruminal protected choline [0.60 g/day] in a ground corn carrier, and injections of 20 mg vitamin B12 and 320 mg folate weekly) or no supplementation (-OCM; injection of saline and corn carrier). At 161 days of gestation, fetal liver and muscle from the hindlimb were collected. From the fresh tissues, mitochondria were isolated and analyzed (based on isolated mitochondrial protein concentration) for key parameters of mitochondrial function using the Agilent Seahorse XFe Cell Mito Stress Test by directly measuring the oxygen consumption rate (OCR). State 3 was initiated with addition of ADP, whereas State 4o was induced with injection of oligomycin. FCCP was injected to induce maximal uncoupler-stimulated respiration allowing for the calculation of respiratory control ratio (RCR: State 3/State 4o) to be assessed. Data were analyzed using the MIXED procedure of SAS. Results: The OCR for state 3 and state 4o was greater in CON + OCM than RES + OCM (interaction P = 0.004 and P = 0.04, respectively) in liver mitochondria; however, maternal dietary treatment did not influence (P > 0.05) measures of mitochondrial function for muscle tissue. Additionally, RCR was not influenced by gain or OCM supplementation in hepatic and muscle mitochondria (P = 0.76 and P = 0.37, respectively). Conclusions: These results indicate that supplementation of OCM improved the mitochondrial function in the liver of control beef heifers, which could suggest changes in the function of mitochondrial respiration and a more favorable metabolic control. Funding Sources: Supported by USDA.