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Veterinary Sciences
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Impact of Maternal Nutrition on Offspring Development and Health in...
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Impact of Maternal Nutrition on Offspring Development and Health in Ruminants

A special issue of Veterinary Sciences (ISSN 2306-7381). This special issue belongs to the section "Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases in Veterinary Medicine".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 April 2026) | Viewed by 4381

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Ana Clara Baião Menezes

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Animal Science, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD 57007, USA
Interests: beef cattle nutrition; fetal programming; nutritional physiology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Manuel Vasquez-Hidalgo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD 57007, USA
Interests: developmental programming; blood flow; sheep

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue of Veterinary Sciences will focus on advancing our knowledge on the impacts of maternal mineral nutrition on offspring development and health in ruminants, including both large ruminants (e.g., cattle and buffalo) and small ruminants (e.g., sheep and goats). Maternal nutrient intake is one of the main factors that influence the availability of nutrients to the fetus, and an inadequate nutrient supply can have a long-lasting impact on offspring growth and health. Therefore, it is important to evaluate the effects of nutritional management strategies on the supply of essential nutrients delivered to the fetus. Thus, we encourage the submission of original research articles and reviews that provide novel insights into the role of nutrition during gestation and/or lactation on offspring performance and health, as well as potential epigenetic modifications.

We welcome and look forward to your contributions.

Dr. Ana Clara Baião Menezes
Dr. Manuel Vasquez-Hidalgo
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Veterinary Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2100 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • developmental programming
  • gestation
  • lactation
  • nutrition
  • offspring performance

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

21 pages, 4872 KB  
Article
Exploring the Influence of Parity on Metabolic Profile, Performance and Offspring Growth in Bos indicus Beef Cows
by Isabela I. Rodrigues, Matheus L. Ferreira, Luciana N. Rennó, Naiara A. Marcos, Ronaldo G. da Silva Júnior, Isabelle P. Siqueira, Camila de P. Magalhães, Edenio Detmann and Sebastião de C. Valadares Filho
Vet. Sci. 2025, 12(12), 1215; https://doi.org/10.3390/vetsci12121215 - 18 Dec 2025
Viewed by 635
Abstract
The objective of this study was to evaluate how parity (primiparous vs. multiparous) influences metabolic profile, performance, and offspring growth in grazing Nellore cows, and to explore potential associations among key metabolic traits, milk yield, and performance indicators. Thirty-four pregnant Nellore cows at [...] Read more.
The objective of this study was to evaluate how parity (primiparous vs. multiparous) influences metabolic profile, performance, and offspring growth in grazing Nellore cows, and to explore potential associations among key metabolic traits, milk yield, and performance indicators. Thirty-four pregnant Nellore cows at approximately 230 ± 20 days of gestation were sorted by parity group and randomly allocated into one of six Uruchloa decumbens pastures, totaling 17 multiparous cows (597.8 ± 39 kg; age = 4 to 6 yrs) and 17 primiparous cows (407 ± 33 kg, age = 2 to 3 yrs). Considering calving day as day 0, cow full BW and BCS were collected on days −63, −21, −7, 0, 7, 21, 63, 91, 140 and 203. Cow blood samples were collected on days −21, −14, −7, 0, 7, 14, 21, 42, 63, 91, 140 and 203. Milk yield was measured in the following day after all blood collections. Primiparous cows had higher glucose on days −7 and 0 (p = 0.04), greater NEFA concentration from −14 to 63 days (p < 0.001), and lower IGF-1 concentration from days 7 to 42 but higher on days 140 and 203 (p < 0.001). They also exhibited lower total proteins, albumin, and globulins, but higher serum urea N concentration (p < 0.001). Primiparous cows also had lower milk yield (p = 0.02), calf birth (p = 0.02) and weaning weights (p = 0.01) compared with multiparous cows. Pearson correlation analysis revealed distinct metabolic and physiological interrelationships across gestational and lactational stages in multiparous and primiparous cows. Overall, multiparous cows showed a less catabolic metabolic profile during the periparturient period to lactation. Primiparous cows experienced a more intense mobilization of body reserves during the early lactation period, but a more positive nutritional status towards late lactation, evidenced by recovery of IGF-1 levels and body weight gain. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Maternal Nutrition on Offspring Development and Health in Ruminants)
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20 pages, 586 KB  
Article
Effects of Maternal Nutrition and One-Carbon Metabolite Supplementation on Fetal Jejunal Morphology and Hexose Transporter Expression in Beef Cattle
by Mojtaba Daneshi, Pawel P. Borowicz, Virginia Montgomery, Yssi L. Entzie, Jessica G. Syring, Layla E. King, Kazi Sarjana Safain, Muhammad Anas, Lawrence P. Reynolds, Alison K. Ward, Carl R. Dahlen, Matthew S. Crouse and Joel S. Caton
Vet. Sci. 2025, 12(9), 884; https://doi.org/10.3390/vetsci12090884 - 13 Sep 2025
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1276
Abstract
The small intestine, particularly the jejunum, is a key site for nutrient absorption and metabolic activity in mature and growing ruminants [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Maternal Nutrition on Offspring Development and Health in Ruminants)
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Figure 1

14 pages, 3345 KB  
Article
Late Gestation Maternal Nutrition Has a Stronger Impact on Offspring Liver Transcriptome than Full-Gestation Supplementation in Beef Cattle
by Guilherme Henrique Gebim Polizel, Maria Elis Perissin dos Santos, Aline Silva Mello Cesar, Wellison J. S. Diniz, German D. Ramírez-Zamudio, Paulo Fantinato-Neto, Arícia Christofaro Fernandes, Barbara Carolina Teixeira Prati, Édison Furlan, Gabriela do Vale Pombo and Miguel Henrique de Almeida Santana
Vet. Sci. 2025, 12(5), 406; https://doi.org/10.3390/vetsci12050406 - 26 Apr 2025
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1850
Abstract
Maternal nutrition’s impact on liver transcriptome in beef cattle offspring is still underexplored. We investigated the long-term effects of maternal nutrition strategies on the liver transcriptome of pre-slaughter Nelore bulls. Pregnant cows were divided into three groups, each receiving different nutritional regimens: NP [...] Read more.
Maternal nutrition’s impact on liver transcriptome in beef cattle offspring is still underexplored. We investigated the long-term effects of maternal nutrition strategies on the liver transcriptome of pre-slaughter Nelore bulls. Pregnant cows were divided into three groups, each receiving different nutritional regimens: NP (control, only mineral supplementation), PP (late gestation protein–energy supplementation), and FP (protein–energy supplementation throughout pregnancy). Liver samples were collected from male offspring aged 22.5 ± 1 months and analyzed using RNA-Seq (n = 5 per treatment). Principal component analysis (PCA) and differential gene expression analysis were carried out in an R statistical environment. Genes were considered significant when FDR < 0.05. The over-representation analysis (ORA) was performed using the clusterProfiler package from R. Metabolic pathways were considered significant when the Q-value < 0.1. The PCA showed overlapping clusters among the groups. We identified 16 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) associated with PP × NP contrast, four with FP × NP, and two with FP × PP. The ORA revealed two significant pathways (thiamine and butanoate metabolism). The identified genes and pathways were associated with vitamins, energy, oxidative metabolism, and immune function. This study emphasizes the more significant long-term effects of the PP treatment on the offspring’s liver transcriptome compared to the FP treatment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Maternal Nutrition on Offspring Development and Health in Ruminants)
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