April 20, 2023

Interpretive Summary: Metabolome of purulent materials of liver abscesses from crossbred cattle and Holstein steers fed finishing diets with or without in-feed tylosin

Interpretive Summary: Metabolome of purulent materials of liver abscesses from crossbred cattle and Holstein steers fed finishing diets with or without in-feed tylosin

By: Raghavendra G Amachawadi, Samuel Bohney, T G Nagaraja

Liver abscesses in feedlot cattle, a consequence of feeding a diet of high-grain and low-roughage, are a mixed bacterial infection with Fusobacterium necrophorum, a ruminal bacterium as the primary causative agent. Cattle with liver abscesses do not exhibit clinical signs and the abscesses are detected only at slaughter. The study analyzed purulent materials of liver abscesses of feedlot cattle collected at slaughter for biochemical molecules. A total of 759 biochemicals were identified and a majority belonged to biochemical classes of lipids and amino acids and their metabolites. Biochemicals unique to liver abscesses that enter blood circulation may have the potential to be used as biomarkers in cattle with liver abscess before slaughter.

Read the full article in the Journal of Animal Science.