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ARS Home » Plains Area » Bushland, Texas » Conservation and Production Research Laboratory » Livestock Nutrient Management Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #409286
Research Project: Strategies to Manage Feed Nutrients, Reduce Gas Emissions, and Promote Soil Health for Beef and Dairy Cattle Production Systems of the Southern Great Plains

Location: Livestock Nutrient Management Research

Title: Association of glucose metabolism and insulin resistance with feed efficiency and production traits of finishing beef steers

Author
item FOOTE, ANDREW - Oklahoma State University
item SALISBURY, CARLEE - Oklahoma State University
item KING, MINDY - Oklahoma State University
item RATHERT-WILLIAMS, ABIGAIL - Oklahoma State University
item MCCONNELL, HUNTER - Oklahoma State University
item Beck, Matthew

Submitted to: Journal of Animal Science
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/23/2024
Publication Date: 2/24/2024
Citation: Foote, A.P., Salisbury, C.M., King, M.E., Rathert-Williams, A.R., McConnell, H.L., Beck, M.R. 2024. Association of glucose metabolism and insulin resistance with feed efficiency and production traits of finishing beef steers. Journal of Animal Science. 102. Article skae050. https://doi.org/10.1093/jas/skae050.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jas/skae050

Interpretive Summary: Increasing nutrient utilization efficiency is an important component to enhancing the sustainability of beef cattle production. There remain gaps in the understanding of metabolic processes that may regulate beef cattle growth and feed efficiency. For example, until now, there has been no investigation into the influence of insulin resistance in beef cattle on growth and feed efficiency. Accordingly, scientists from Oklahoma State University and ARS at Bushland, Texas set out to investigate the associations of insulin resistance with metrics of animal performance and feed efficiency. We determined that cattle who had greater insulin resistance prior to the feeding trial began had greater average daily gain and gain-to-feed ratio throughout the feeding trial. Ultimately, these findings provide novel insights into underlying metabolic processes that may regulate animal growth performance and feed efficiency.

Technical Abstract: Increasing nutrient utilization efficiency is an important component to enhancing the sustainability of beef cattle production. The objective of this experiment was to determine the association of glucose metabolism and insulin resistance on dry matter intake (DMI), average daily gain (ADG), the gain-to-feed ratio (G:F), and residual feed intake (RFI). Steers (n = 57; initial body weight (518 ± 27.0 kg) were subjected to an intravenous glucose tolerance test (IVGTT) where glucose was dosed through a jugular catheter and serial blood samples were collected. Three days after the final IVGTT, steers began a 63-d DMI and ADG test. Body weight was measured on d 0, 1, 21, 42, 62, and 63, and DMI was measured using an Insentec Roughage Intake Control system (Insentec, Marknesse, The Netherlands). Using the CORR procedure of SAS 9.4 (SAS Inst. Inc., Cary, NC), variables from the IVGTT were analyzed for Pearson correlations with DMI, ADG, G:F, and RFI. Limited association between DMI and IVGTT parameters was observed with only a tendency for the peak glucose concentration to be negatively correlated (r=0.25; P = 0.10), and no significant differences were detected when classifying cattle as having Low, Medium, or High DMI. Peak insulin concentration in response to the IVGTT tended to be correlated with ADG (r = 0.28; P = 0.07) indicating cattle with greater ADG tend to require a greater insulin release in response to glucose. Glucose nadir concentrations tended to be positively correlated with ADG (r = 0.25; P = 0.10). Additionally, when steers within 0.5 standard deviations of the mean for ADG are classed as displaying High- or Low-ADG, glucose nadir was greater in High-ADG steers (P = 0.003). The association of greater glucose nadir with High-ADG could indicate that High-ADG steers do not clear glucose as efficiently as Low-ADG steers, potentially indicating increased insulin resistance. Further, RFI revealed no significant correlation with IVGTT parameters nor were significant differences observed when classifying cattle as Low, Medium, or High. Feed efficiency was correlated with glucose area under the curve (r = 0.29; P = 0.050), glucose nadir (r = 0.38; P = 0.011) and insulin time to peak (r = 0.39; P = 0.010). These results indicate that glucose metabolism and insulin signaling are associated with growth and efficiency, but the molecular mechanisms that drive these effects need to be elucidated.