| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
|
|
|
|||||||
|
|||||||||
1 Department of Animal Science and Technology, Seoul National University, Suweon 441-744 Korea
2 National Animal Breeding Institute, Chunan 333-800 Korea
3 Department of Dairy Science, Chonnam National University, Kwangju 500-757 Korea
The objective of this study was to improve the efficiency of growth and lactation performance of dairy heifers fed for a stair-step growth pattern. Twenty-four young Holstein heifers were randomly assigned to either control or test groups. The test group was fed according to a schedule of 3, 2, 4, 2, 5 and 2 mo in which feed intake was alternately 20% below or 25% above requirements.
Heifers that were subjected to the stair-step growth pattern gained more body weight and consumed less dry matter, resulting in improved efficiency of growth compared with that of controls (7.8% vs. 8.3%). First estrus, first conception, gestation period, services per conception, and calving difficulty (dystocia) were not affected by stair-step growth. Concentration of growth hormone in blood serum was elevated during feed restriction for the test heifers; however, during refeeding, growth hormone was decreased compared with that in the blood serum of control heifers. Mammary tissues obtained by biopsy from heifers in middle and late pregnancy were used for chemical composition analysis. Stair-step growth increased DNA, RNA, protein, the ratio of RNA to DNA, and the ratio of protein to DNA. Lipid decreased in the mammary tissue of test heifers in late pregnancy (9.5 mo). Heifers in the test group yielded approximately 9% more milk than did heifers in the control group. These results indicate that compensatory growth can contribute to the improvement of growth efficiency and lactation performance.
Key Words: compensatory growth • stair-step growth pattern • mammary gland • lactational performance
Submitted on August 29, 1994
Accepted on June 25, 1996
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  L. E. Davis Rincker, M. S. Weber Nielsen, L. T. Chapin, J. S. Liesman, and M. J. VandeHaar Effects of Feeding Prepubertal Heifers a High-Energy Diet for Three, Six, or Twelve Weeks on Feed Intake, Body Growth, and Fat Deposition J Dairy Sci, May 1, 2008; 91(5): 1913 - 1925. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
L. E. Davis Rincker, M. S. Weber Nielsen, L. T. Chapin, J. S. Liesman, K. M. Daniels, R. M. Akers, and M. J. VandeHaar Effects of Feeding Prepubertal Heifers a High-Energy Diet for Three, Six, or Twelve Weeks on Mammary Growth and Composition J Dairy Sci, May 1, 2008; 91(5): 1926 - 1935. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
M. P. Coffey, J. Hickey, and S. Brotherstone Genetic Aspects of Growth of Holstein-Friesian Dairy Cows from Birth to Maturity J Dairy Sci, January 1, 2006; 89(1): 322 - 329. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 C. S. Park Role of compensatory mammary growth in epigenetic control of gene expression FASEB J, October 1, 2005; 19(12): 1586 - 1591. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
K. A. Macdonald, J. W. Penno, A. M. Bryant, and J. R. Roche Effect of Feeding Level Pre- and Post-Puberty and Body Weight at First Calving on Growth, Milk Production, and Fertility in Grazing Dairy Cows J Dairy Sci, September 1, 2005; 88(9): 3363 - 3375. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 H. H. Kim and C. S. Park A Compensatory Nutrition Regimen during Gestation Stimulates Mammary Development and Lactation Potential in Rats J. Nutr., April 1, 2004; 134(4): 756 - 761. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
Y. S. Moon and C. S. Park Nutritionally-Directed Compensatory Growth Enhances Mammary Development and Lactation Potential in Rats J. Nutr., June 1, 1999; 129(6): 1156 - 1160. [Abstract] [Full Text]
|
|
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
