Response of lactating dairy cows fed different supplemental zinc sources with and without evaporative cooling to intramammary lipopolysaccharide infusion: metabolite and mineral profiles in blood and milk

Abstract The objective of this study was to determine the effect of evaporative cooling and dietary supplemental Zn source on blood metabolites, insulin and mineral concentrations, and milk mineral concentrations following intramammary lipopolysaccharide (LPS) infusion. Seventy-two multiparous Holstein cows were assigned to one of four treatments with a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement. Treatments included two environments: with or without evaporative cooling using fans and misters over the freestall and feedbunk, and two dietary sources of supplemental Zn: 75 mg/kg of dry matter (DM) supplied by Zn hydroxychloride (inorganic Zn; IOZ) or Zn hydroxychloride (35 mg of Zn/kg of DM) + Zn–Met complex (ZMC; 40 mg of Zn/kg of DM). A subset of cows (n = 16; 263 ± 63 d in milk) was infused with 10 μg of LPS or a saline control in the left or right rear quarters on day 34 of the environmental treatment. Individual milk samples collected from LPS-infused quarters at −4, 0, 6, 12, 24, 48, 72, 96, and 144 h relative to infusion were analyzed for minerals. Blood samples were collected at the same time with an additional sample collected at 3 h post-infusion to analyze glucose, nonesterified fatty acids (NEFA), insulin, and minerals. Cooling by time interactions (P ≤ 0.07) were observed for plasma glucose, NEFA, and serum insulin. Compared with cooled cows, non-cooled cows had lower concentrations of plasma glucose except at 3 h following intramammary LPS infusion, greater serum insulin at 3 and 12 h, and lower plasma NEFA at 24 and 48 h after infusion. Relative to cooled cows, non-cooled cows tended (P = 0.07) to have lower serum K concentration and had lower (P < 0.01) serum Zn 6 h following infusion (cooling by time interaction: P < 0.01). Relative to ZMC cows, IOZ cows had greater (P ≤ 0.09) concentrations of plasma Se, skim milk Na and Se, and skim milk Na to K ratio. Regardless of treatment, intramammary LPS infusion reduced (P < 0.01) serum or plasma concentrations of Ca, Mg, Zn, Fe, and Se, but increased (P < 0.01) their concentration in skim milk. In conclusion, deprivation of cooling resulted in more rapid and prolonged insulin release and influenced the systemic and mammary mineral metabolism during mammary inflammation induced by LPS of lactating dairy cows. Dietary supplementation of Zn–Met complex reduced blood and milk Se concentrations compared with cows fed Zn from an inorganic source.