Titolo: Use of hormones in dairy cow reproduction: when are really necessary? Automatic monitoring systems and biological markers for precision reproductive management

Bando: PRIN

Durata:  24 mesi

Coordinatore: PROF.SSA LUDOVICA MARIA EUGENIA MAMMI

Budget BCA: € 42.000,00

Responsabile scientifico: prof.ssa Elisa Giaretta

Research Team: Giaretta Elisa

Abstract: The main purpose of the present project is to achieve a significant reduction of the use of unnecessary hormones in dairy cow farming. This goal could be achieved avoiding synchronization of all animals and restricting hormonal treatments exclusively to cows with fertility failures, in a precision farming approach. Therefore, this project aims to a) optimize the use of automatic monitoring systems and define a standard protocol to manage dairy cow reproduction without the use of hormones; b) identify parameters through metabolomic and lipidomic technique that can explain fertility loss in dairy cows and that could be associated to specific behavioural pattern detected by monitoring systems, in order to precociously identify animals for which hormonal treatment is necessary; c) evaluate the economic and social impact of this kind of approach on farmers and consumers. In the first part of the project, in 4 selected dairy farms, a standardised protocol of reproductive management based on behaviour and production monitoring systems will be adopted, for a period of 8 months, in parallel with a synchronisation protocol. At the end of the experimental period, data obtained by automatic systems and reproductive performance will be compared. In 2 of the selected farms, particularly suitable for research trials, will be additionally performed sampling of blood and milk to define biomarkers that characterise cows with fertility problems through metabolomic and lipidomic technique. These markers will be associated with data obtained by automatic monitoring systems, that will be recorded continuously during the experimental farm trial. The mainly expected result of this part of the project is to find a relationship between metabolomic and lipidomic profile, oxidative stress markers and data recorded by on farm automatic systems. The identification of biomarkers predictive of reproductive failure may ameliorate the identification of the problem and optimize the interventions strategies assigning hormonal treatment exclusively to subfertile cows, allowing a precision management perspective of dairy cows reproduction and a significant reduction of hormonal treatments. This result could potentially concur in increasing consumers credibility towards animal productions, that will be explored in the last part of project.