Colostrum management is the single most important management factor in determining calf health and survival. Unfortunately, a significant proportion of North American dairy calves suffer from failure of passive transfer of antibodies from colostrum, contributing to excessively high preweaning mortality rates and other short- and long-term losses associated with animal health, welfare, and productivity. A successful colostrum management program requires producers to consistently provide calves with a sufficient volume of clean, high-quality colostrum within the first few hours of life. This article reviews the process of colostrogenesis and discusses important components of colostrum. The key components of delivering and monitoring a successful colostrum management program are discussed.

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Colostrum Management for Dairy Calves

Alteration in immune responsiveness during the peripartum period and its ramification on dairy cow and calf health

Objectives The reader of this review will learn about the mechanisms through which breastfeeding protects against infections during and most likely after lactation, as well as possibly against certain immunologic diseases, including allergy. Data sources I have followed the literature in the area closely for the last 30 to 40 years and have made repeated literature searches through MEDLINE, most recently in 1998. Textbooks and peer-reviewed journals have been sought for, as well as books representing meeting reports in English, French, German, and Spanish. Results Human milk protects against infections in the breastfed offspring mainly via the secretory IgA antibodies, but also most likely via several other factors like the bactericidal lactoferrin. It is striking that the defense factors of human milk function without causing inflammation, some components are even directly antiinflammatory. Protection against infections has been well evidenced during lactation against, eg, acute and prolonged diarrhea, respiratory tract infections, otitis media, urinary tract infection, neonatal septicemia, and necrotizing enterocolitis. There is also interesting evidence for an enhanced protection remaining for years after lactation against diarrhea, respiratory tract infections, otitis media, Haemophilus influenzae type b infections, and wheezing illness. In several instances the protection seems to improve with the duration of breastfeeding. Some, but not all studies have shown better vaccine responses among breastfed than non-breastfed infants. A few factors in milk like anti-antibodies (anti-idiotypic antibodies) and T and B lymphocytes have in some experimental models been able to transfer priming of the breastfed offspring. This together with transfer of numerous cytokines and growth factors via milk may add to an active stimulation of the infant's immune system. Consequently, the infant might respond better to both infections and vaccines. Such an enhanced function could also explain why breastfeeding may protect against immunologic diseases like celiac disease and possibly allergy. Suggestions of protection against autoimune diseases and tumors have also been published, but need confirmation. Conclusions Breastfeeding may, in addition to the well-known passive protection against infections during lactation, have a unique capacity to stimulate the immune system of the offspring possibly with several long-term positive effects

Breastfeeding provides passive and likely long-lasting active immunity

The acquisition of passive immunity in the new-born piglet

The nutritional and immunological importance of colostrum for the survival and development of the neonatal pig are reviewed. The pig is born with low body energy stores and devoid of serum immunoglobulins. Colostrum provides the piglet with both energy and maternal antibodies but its fat and protein composition is very variable. Colostrum is very digestible, and both colostral energy and nitrogen (N) are retained with a very high efficiency. Colostrum production by the sow assessed from the weight gain of the litter from birth to 24 h of age is very variable (from 1900 to 5300 g). There is no clear effect of litter size or parity, suggesting that colostrum production is a characteristic of the sow. Within a litter, colostrum consumption by the individual piglets varies considerably. It is independent of birth order, but related positively to birth weight and negatively to litter size. Other factors influencing colostrum consumption, including cold stress, premature birth and birth hypoxia, are discussed. Because of the epitheliochorial nature of the porcine placenta, the new-born piglet must acquire maternal immunoglobulin G (IgG) from ingested colostrum for passive immune protection until the immune system of the piglet becomes fully developed. Colostrum IgG concentrations in milk vary widely between individual sows both in initial concentration and in the rate at which concentrations decline during the first 24 h of life. The piglet can only absorb intact IgG prior to gut closure, which occurs in the first 24 h of life and is induced by intakes of colostrum which are insufficient to maintain piglet live-weight. As a result, the amounts of intact IgG absorbed by the piglet vary widely. The effects of colostrum consumption on neonatal survival are discussed. Consumption of colostrum in amounts sufficient to meet the energy requirement of the piglet is a major determinant for survival. Since most neonatal losses occur in the first 2 days of life, before acquisition of a maternal IgG for immune protection becomes important for survival, piglet serum IgG concentration does not correlate well with early survival but is important in later resistance to disease challenge. It is concluded that colostrum production is a good marker for the maternal quality of the sow. Future research should focus on the ability of the sow to produce more colostrum and on the possible delayed effects of passive immunisation on the health and performance of piglet at weaning and later in life.

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Nutritional and immunological importance of colostrum for the new-born pig

Intestinal absorption of colostral lymphoid cells in newborn piglets.

Two model experiments were conducted to study the intestinal absorption of colostral lymphoid cells and the role of these cells in the development of immune status in newborn lambs. In experiment I, 17 lambs of 14 Merino ewes were used. Suspensions of lymphoid cells separated from the colostrum (cell density: 5 x 10(6)/ml) and blood (3 x 10(6)/ml) were labelled with technetium (Na99mTcO4) of 37 MBq/ml radioactive concentration. In three groups of lambs, 10-ml volumes of the cell suspensions were injected directly into the duodenum after laparotomy, while in a fourth group (group Ia) the same volume was administered to the animals through an oesophageal tube. The labelled cells revealed that colostral cells of the lamb's own dam are absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract and get into the newborn lamb's lymph circulation irrespective of the route of application. In experiment II, involving 40 lambs of 40 ewes, we studied the effect of absorbed colostral lymphocytes on the development of the newborn lamb's immune status. Twenty ewes (group A) each were treated with 3 ml tetanus anatoxin twice, while the remaining animals (group B) were left uninoculated. Lambs of group A (designated A2) were separated from their dams immediately after birth, then were administered, through an oesophageal tube, 10 ml of a suspension of lymphoid cells (cell density: 5 x 10(6)/ml) separated from the maternal colostrum. Subsequently, the lambs were interchanged with lambs of nonimmunized ewes of group B (designated lambs B1), i.e. were mutually put out to nursing. At three days of age, lambs of groups A1, A2, B1 and B2 were inoculated with 3 ml tetanus anatoxin, then blood samples were taken from them 5 times in a period of 27 days for comparative examination of the humoral and cellular immune reactions. The results demonstrate that lymphoid cells from the colostrum of the lambs' own dam become absorbed into the newborn lambs' lymph circulation, remain immunologically active and may transfer, besides immunological memory, also cellular activity.

S. Tuboly

Papers

Intestinal absorption of colostral lymphoid cells in newborn piglets.

Intestinal absorption of colostral lymphocytes in newborn lambs and their role in the development of immune status.

Adenovirus-induced immune complexes in ovine fetuses

Some immune reactions induced in pigs by an attenuated Aujeszky's disease vaccine.