Vitamin E supplementation improves post-transportation systemic antioxidant capacity in yak

Area of Science:

• Veterinary Medicine
• Animal Physiology
• Nutritional Biochemistry

Background:

• Long-distance transportation induces significant physiological stress in yaks.
• Assessing the impact of nutritional interventions on mitigating transportation stress is crucial for animal welfare.
• Vitamin E (VE) is a key antioxidant with potential to counteract stress-induced damage.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of post-transportation vitamin E (VE) supplementation in yaks.
• To investigate the effects of VE on health, blood biochemistry, antioxidant status, and metabolomics.
• To determine if VE can alleviate transportation-induced stress in yaks.

Main Methods:

• Five yaks underwent a 2100 km highway journey.
• Blood samples were collected pre- and post-VE injection (40 mg/kg).
• Analyses included blood biochemical parameters, antioxidant indices, and serum metabolomics.

Main Results:

• VE injection altered serum levels of liver enzymes, creatinine, urea, and glucose.
• Antioxidant indices improved, with decreased malondialdehyde and increased glutathione-related enzymes.
• Metabolomics identified 119 differentially altered metabolites linked to lipid metabolism, TCA cycle, and oxidative stress.

Conclusions:

• Post-transportation vitamin E supplementation effectively alleviates stress in yaks.
• VE protects liver and kidney function and enhances the antioxidant defense system.
• VE supplementation is a viable strategy to improve yak health and welfare post-transportation.