Working conditions contribute to fertility-related quality of life: a cross-sectional study in Japan.

RESEARCH QUESTION: Is there an association between employment conditions and fertility-related quality of life among women undergoing fertility care? DESIGN: The study was a cross-sectional survey of 721 women in Japan recruited via an online social research panel. Participants included women aged 25-44 years with paid employment who were undergoing fertility diagnosis or treatment. They completed online questionnaires to assess fertility quality of life (FertiQoL) and job stress based on the demand-control-support model (Brief Job Stress Questionnaire). Information was also collected on individual and partner employment conditions (e.g. working hours per week, access to time off) and partner support of fertility treatment. RESULTS: The mean FertiQoL scores were low, ranging from 42 (emotional) to 65 (relational). A multivariable linear regression model showed that the total FertiQoL score was significantly associated with several work-related variables, including the participants' self-employment status (ß = 0.11), job demand (ß = -0.18), co-worker support (ß = 0.14) and access to time off (ß = 0.22), as well as their partner's access to time off (ß = 0.11), number of working hours (ß = -0.11) and level of cooperation (ß = 0.18), after adjusting for clinical and socioeconomic factors, including age (ß = 0.10), diagnosis of male infertility (ß = -0.07), long duration of treatment (ß = -0.12) and frequent clinic visits (ß = -0.10) (all Ps < 0.05, adjusted R2 = 0.27). CONCLUSIONS: Fertility-related quality of life is significantly associated with certain employment conditions among both women and their partners. Easy access to time off, lighter workloads and supportive co-workers could contribute to higher fertility-related quality of life by helping employees effectively manage their work and fertility treatments.

Weaning age influences indicators of rumen function and development in female Holstein calves.

BACKGROUND: Prenatal and postnatal conditions are crucial for the development of calves. Primiparous cows are still maturing during pregnancy, thus competing with the nutritional needs of their offspring. Therefore, mature cows might provide a superior intrauterine condition. Furthermore, weaning calves at an older age might affect them positively as well by reducing stress and offering time for various organs and their functions to develop. We aimed to evaluate effects of mothers' parity and calves' weaning age on gastrointestinal development and corresponding acid-base balance. Fifty-nine female German Holstein calves (about 8 days old) were investigated in a 2 × 2 factorial experiment with factors weaning age (7 vs. 17 weeks) and parity of mother (primiparous vs. multiparous). Calves were randomly assigned to one of these four groups. Animal behavior that was observed included resting, chewing and active behavior. RESULTS: Behavioral patterns were interactively affected by time and weaning age. Rumen sounds per 2 min increased in early-weaned calves during their weaning period. In late-weaned calves a consistently increase in rumen sounds was already recorded before their weaning period. Urinary N-containing compounds (creatinine, hippuric acid, uric acid, urea, allantoin) were interactively affected by time and weaning age. Concentrations of all measured compounds except urea increased during early weaning. All except hippuric acid concentration decreased in early-weaned calves after weaning. In late-weaned calves allantoin and uric acid increased before weaning and did not change during weaning. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that late-weaned calves developed adequate rumen functions and acid-base balance, whereas early-weaned calves might have suffered from ruminal acidosis and catabolism. Weaning calves at 7 weeks of age might be too early for an adequate rumen development.

Correction: Schwarzkopf et al. Weaning Holstein Calves at 17 Weeks of Age Enables Smooth Transition from Liquid to Solid Feed. Animals 2019, 9, 1132.

The authors wish to make the following correction to their paper [...].

Evolution of rumen and oral microbiota in calves is influenced by age and time of weaning.

BACKGROUND: The rumen bacterial communities are changing dynamically throughout the first year of calf's life including the weaning period as a critical event. Rumen microbiome analysis is often limited to invasive rumen sampling procedures but the oral cavity of ruminants is expected to harbour rumen microbes due to regurgitation activity. The present study used buccal swab samples to define the rumen core microbiome and characterize the shifts in rumen and oral microbial communities occurring as result of calf's age as well as time of weaning. RESULTS: Buccal swab samples of 59 calves were collected along the first 140 days of life and compared to stomach tubing sample of the rumen at day 140. Animals were randomly divided into two weaning groups. Microbiota of saliva and rumen content was analysed by 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. Our study showed that most rumen-specific bacterial taxa were equally observed in rumen samples as well as in the buccal swabs, though relative abundance varied. The occurrence of rumen-specific OTUs in buccal swab samples increased approximately 1.7 times from day 70 to day 140, indicating the gradual development of rumen as calf aged. The rumen-specific bacterial taxa diversity increased, and inter-animal variations decreased with age. Early weaning (7 weeks of age) rapidly increased the rumen microbial diversity from pre- to post-weaned state. Rumen microbiota of early-weaned calves seemed to have a suppressed growth of starch- and carbohydrate-utilizing bacteria and increased fibre degraders. Whereas, in late-weaned calves (17 weeks of age) no impact of dietary modifications on rumen microbiota composition was observed after weaning. Oral-specific bacterial community composition was significantly affected by calf's age and time of weaning. CONCLUSIONS: The present study showed the significant impact of calf's age and weaning on the establishment of rumen- and oral-specific bacterial communities utilizing buccal swab samples. The results emphasize the possibility of using buccal swab samples as a replacement of complex stomach tube method for large-scale predictive studies on ruminants. For in-depth rumen microbiome studies, the time of sampling should be carefully considered using an active phase of regurgitation.

Domestic work stress and self-rated psychological health among women: a cross-sectional study in Japan.

BACKGROUND: Despite the huge burden of domestic work on women in Japan, its effects on their health have been poorly investigated. We aimed to assess the association between domestic work stress and self-rated psychological health among women. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional survey using an online social research panel in February 2018. Participants were 2,000 women with paid work (the "workers" group) and 1,000 women without paid work (the "homemakers" group), aged between 25 and 59 years old and living with a partner. Self-rated psychological health (Mental Health and Vitality scales of the Japanese SF-36), occupational and domestic work stress (the Brief Job Stress Questionnaire), the 10-item Work-Family Conflict Scale, and sociodemographic factors were assessed. RESULTS: The workers had lower domestic job control and higher support from a partner and their parents than the homemakers (p < 0.001), whereas domestic job demand and psychological health were similar between the groups. After adjustment for the covariates using multiple linear regression models, better psychological health was significantly associated with lower domestic job demand, higher domestic job control, and having a young child in both groups. In addition, work-family conflicts and occupational job stress among the workers and caregiving among the homemakers showed negative associations with psychological health. CONCLUSION: Self-rated psychological health in women was associated with domestic work stress regardless of employment status. To promote women's health, we need to take into account the effects of domestic work, work-family conflicts, and social support from families, as well as occupational factors.

Weaning Holstein Calves at 17 Weeks of Age Enables Smooth Transition from Liquid to Solid Feed.

Development of calves depends on prenatal and postnatal conditions. Primiparous cows were still maturing during pregnancy, which can lead to negative intrauterine conditions and affect the calf's metabolism. It is hypothesized that weaning calves at higher maturity has positive effects due to reduced metabolic stress. We aimed to evaluate effects of mothers' parity and calves' weaning age on growth performance and blood metabolites. Fifty-nine female Holstein calves (38.8 ± 5.3 kg birth weight, about 8 days old) were used in a 2 × 2 factorial experiment with factors weaning age (7 vs. 17 weeks) and parity of mother (primiparous vs. multiparous cows). Calves were randomly assigned one of these four groups. Live weight, live weight gain and morphometry increased over time and were greater in calves weaned later. Metabolic indicators except total protein were interactively affected by time and weaning age. Leptin remained low in early-weaned calves born to primiparous cows, while it increased in the other groups. The results suggest that weaning more mature calves has a positive effect on body growth, and calves born to primiparous cows particularly benefit from this weaning regimen. It also enables a smooth transition from liquid to solid feed, which might reduce the associated stress of weaning.

Inter-individual variation in adaptive capacity at onset of lactation: Linking metabolic phenotype with mitochondrial DNA haplotype in Holstein dairy cows.

Modern-day dairy cows express great variation in metabolic capacity to adapt to the onset of lactation. Although breeding programs increased the breeding value for longevity and robustness in the sires, a respective phenotype in female offspring has not been improving as predicted. Fundamental energy generating pathways such as mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation might have a crucial role for robustness and metabolic efficiency in dairy cows. Therefore, mitochondrial enzyme expression was examined in liver samples of one set of animals before and after calving. Furthermore, the mitochondrial DNA sequence was determined for each individual of a second set of animals using liver samples. Results from the first trial indicate that the expression and extent of phosphorylation of acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC) is the major key step for modulating fatty acid flux into the mitochondria at early onset of lactation in Holstein dairy cows. In the second trial, mitochondrial DNA sequencing and identification of mutation patterns yielded three major haplotypes. Haplotype H2 was closely associated with liver fat content, plasma glycerol and acyl-carnitine concentrations. The mitochondrial DNA haplotype, which is a feature of the maternal lines, might be related to the inter-individual variation in metabolic capacity of Holstein dairy cows.

Chronic Effects of Fusarium Mycotoxins in Rations with or without Increased Concentrate Proportion on the Insulin Sensitivity in Lactating Dairy Cows.

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of long-term exposure to a Fusarium toxin deoxynivalenol (DON, 5 mg/kg DM) on the energy metabolism in lactating cows fed diets with different amounts of concentrate. In Period 1 27 German Holstein cows were assigned to two groups and fed a control or mycotoxin-contaminated diet with 50% concentrate for 11 weeks. In Period 2 each group was further divided and fed either a diet containing 30% or 60% concentrate for 16 weeks. Blood samples were collected in week 0, 4, 8, 15, 21, and 27 for calculation of the Revised Quantitative Insulin Sensitivity Check Index and biopsy samples of skeletal muscle and the liver in w 0, 15, and 27 for analysis by real-time RT-qPCR. The DON-fed groups presented lower insulin sensitivities than controls at week 27. Concomitantly, muscular mRNA expression of insulin receptors and hepatic mRNA expression of glucose transporter 2 and key enzymes for gluconeogenesis and fatty acid metabolism were lower in DON-fed cows compared to the control. The study revealed no consistent evidence that DON effects were modified by dietary concentrate levels. In conclusion, long-term dietary DON intake appears to have mild effects on energy metabolism in lactating dairy cows.

Insulin Signaling in Liver and Adipose Tissues in Periparturient Dairy Cows Supplemented with Dietary Nicotinic Acid.

The glucose homeostasis in dairy cattle is very well controlled, in line with the metabolic adaptation during the periparturient period. Former studies showed that nicotinic acid (NA) lowered plasma non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) concentrations and increased insulin sensitivity in dairy cows. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate whether the expression of proteins involved in hepatic and adipose insulin signaling and protein expression of hepatic glucose transporter 2 (GLUT2) were affected by dietary NA and dietary concentrate intake in periparturient dairy cows. Twenty pluriparous German Holstein cows were fed with the same diet from about 21 days before the expected calving date (d-21) to calving. After calving, cows were randomly assigned in 4 groups and fed with diets different in concentrate proportion ("HC" with 60:40% or "LC" with 30:70% concentrate-to-roughage ratio) and supplemented with NA (24 g/day) (NA) or without (CON) until d21. Biopsy samples were taken from the liver, subcutaneous (SCAT) and retroperitoneal (RPAT) adipose tissues at d-21 and d21. Protein expression of insulin signaling molecules (insulin receptor (INSR), phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K), protein kinase Cζ (PKCζ)) and hepatic GLUT2 was measured by Western Blotting. The ratio of protein expression at d21/at d-21 was calculated and statistically evaluated for the effects of time and diet. Cows in HC had significantly higher dietary energy intake than cows in LC. In RPAT a decrease in PI3K and PKCζ expression was found in all groups, irrespectively of diet. In the liver, the GLUT2 expression was significantly lower in cows in NA compared with cows in CON. In conclusion, insulin signaling might be decreased in RPAT over time without any effect of diet. NA was able to modulate hepatic GLUT2 expression, but its physiological role is unclear.

Associations between Forkhead Box O1 (FoxO1) Expression and Indicators of Hepatic Glucose Production in Transition Dairy Cows Supplemented with Dietary Nicotinic Acid.

Forkhead box protein O1 (FoxO1) is a transcription factor which promotes hepatic glucose production (HGP) by up-regulating the transcription of gluconeogenic enzymes in monogastric species. The activity of FoxO1 is inhibited by insulin-induced phosphorylation. The aims of the present study were to find associations between FoxO1 expression and variables associated with HGP as affected by feeding regimen in dairy cows during the transition period. Twenty one healthy German Holstein cows were allocated to four groups (LC-CON, HC-CON, LC-NA with 5 cows/group and HC-NA with 6 cows/group, respectively). Cows received 0 (LC-CON and HC-CON) or 24 (LC-NA and HC-NA) g/d nicotinic acid with high (HC) or low (LC) concentrate proportion from -42 days (-41.8 + 4.8; mean + standard deviation) relative to expected calving date (d-42) to d24. Liver biopsy was taken at d-42, 1, 21, and 100. The total protein expression of FoxO1 (tFoxO1) and the extent of phosphorylation of FoxO1 at serine 256 (pFoxO1) were analysed semiquantitatively by Western Blotting. The expression of hepatic mRNA of FoxO1 and seven genes associated with HGP was measured by real-time RT-PCR. Mixed model and Pearson's correlation were used for statistical evaluation with the level of significance at P<0.05. No dietary effect was observed either on feed intake, energy balance, or on the concentration of blood metabolites. Neither time nor diet affected the expression of FoxO1 total protein and mRNA. A NA × concentrate interaction was found in pFoxO1. However, no corresponding dietary effect was found in the mRNA expression of investigated genes. Different patterns of correlations between FoxO1-related variables and investigated indicators for HGP were found at d21 and 100. The results indicated that the regulation of HGP did not take place on the levels of mRNA and protein expression and the phosphorylation of FoxO1 in dairy cows in early lactation.

Zearalenone (ZEN) metabolism and residue concentrations in physiological specimens of dairy cows exposed long-term to ZEN-contaminated diets differing in concentrate feed proportions.

A long-term feeding experiment with dairy cows was performed to investigate the effects of feeding a Fusarium toxin contaminated (FUS) and a background-contaminated control (CON) ration with a mean concentrate feed proportion of 50% during the first 11 weeks after parturition (Groups FUS-50, CON-50, Period 1), and with concentrate feed proportions of 30% or 60% during the remaining 17 weeks (Groups CON-30, CON-60, FUS-30 and FUS-60, Period 2), on zearalenone (ZEN) residue levels in blood serum, milk, urine and bile. ZEN, α-zearalenol (α-ZEL) and ß-zearalenol (ß-ZEL), zearalanone (ZAL), α-zearalanol (α-ZAL) and ß-zearalanol (ß-ZAL) were determined by HPLC with fluorescence detection. The ZEN concentrations of the rations fed to Groups CON-50, FUS-50 (Period 1), CON-30, CON-60, FUS-30 and FUS-60 (Period 2) amounted to 53.1, 112.7, 35.0, 24.4, 73.8 and 72.5 µg/kg dry matter, respectively. The concentrations of ZEN, α-ZEL, ß-ZEL, ZAN, α-ZAL and ß-ZAL in serum, urine and milk were lower than 1, 1, 4, 100, 50 and 200 ng/g, respectively, while ZEN, α-ZEL and ß-ZEL were detected in bile. Their levels changed with oral ZEN exposure in the course of the experiment and in a similar direction with concentrate feed proportion (Period 2 only). Thus the proportions of the individual ß-ZEL, α-ZEL and ZEN concentrations of their sum varied only in narrow ranges of 68-76%, 6-13% and 12-20%, respectively. Interestingly, the bile concentrations of ß-ZEL, α-ZEL and ZEN of Groups CON-60 and FUS-60 amounted to only approximately 50%, 45% and 62%, respectively, of those of Groups CON-30 and FUS-30 despite a similar or even lower ZEN exposure. The results indicate that conversion of ZEN to its detectable metabolites was not changed by different dietary concentrate feed proportions while their absolute levels were decreased. These findings might suggest concentrate feed proportion-dependent and rumen fermentation-mediated alterations in ZEN/metabolite degradation, and/or liver associated alterations in bile formation and turnover.

Longitudinal profiling of the tissue-specific expression of genes related with insulin sensitivity in dairy cows during lactation focusing on different fat depots.

In dairy cows the milk associated energy output in early lactation exceeds the input via voluntary feed intake. To spare glucose for mammary lactose synthesis, peripheral insulin sensitivity (IS) is reduced and fat mobilization is stimulated. For these processes a link between IS and the endocrine functions of adipose tissue (AT) is likely; we thus aimed to characterise the mRNA expression from bovine AT derived proteins and receptors that are related to IS according to the literature in metabolically active tissues plus systemic IS throughout lactation. Conjugated linoleic acids (CLA) reduce milk fat thus decreasing the milk drain of energy and potentially dampening lipolysis, but may also affect IS. Subcutaneous (s.c.) AT and liver from pluriparous cows receiving either control fat or CLA supplement (100 g/day from 1 to 182 days in milk each) were biopsied covering week -3 to 36 relative to parturition. In an additional trial with primiparous cows treated analogously and slaughtered on days in milk 1, 42 or 105, samples from liver, udder, skeletal muscle and 3 visceral and 3 s.c. AT were obtained and assayed for mRNA abundance of adiponectin, its receptors, leptin, leptin receptor, PPARγ, PPARγ2, IL-6, and TNF-α. In pluriparous animals, the mRNA abundance of most of the target genes decreased after parturition in s.c. AT but increased in liver. In primiparous cows, AT depot specific differences were mostly related to retroperitoneal AT; adiponectin receptor 1 and TNF-α were affected predominantly. CLA effects in primiparous cows were largely limited to decreased PPARγ2 mRNA abundance in udder tissue. In pluriparous cows, insulin secretion was increased by CLA resulting in decreased systemic IS but without consistent changes in tissue target mRNA abundance. The temporal gene expression profiles from the adipokines and related receptors support their coactive function in adapting to the needs of lactation.

Hemorrhagic hydrocephalus (hhy): a novel mutation on mouse chromosome 12.

A novel mouse hemorrhagic hydrocephalus mutation (hhy) inherited in an autosomal recessive manner on chromosome 12 has been found at the Osaka Prefecture University. The hhy homozygous mutant had dilated lateral ventricles and a communicating aqueduct, with no histological abnormalities either in the subarachnoid space or in the choroid plexus. Multiple hemorrhages in the meninges and throughout the brain parenchyma of the mutant were relevant to advanced stages of hydrocephalus. Subcortical heterotopia was detected unexceptionally in the mutants. Thus, the hhy mutation is characterized by three different abnormalities, i.e. hydrocephalus, intracranial hemorrhage and subcortical heterotopia.