Hepatic triacylglycerols and serum non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA)variations in indigenous water buffalo in theprovince of Khuzestan, Iran

Fatty liver is a metabolic disorder of dairy cows in early lactation, andapproximately half of multi-parous dairy cows experience a moderate tosevere fatty liver at calving. Since the occurrence of fatty liver in buffalo isnot known, the aim of this study was to evaluate the hepatic content oftriacylglycerols (TAG) and total lipids (TL), and the serum content of nonesterifiedfatty acids (NEFA) in native buffalo at different stages ofproductivity. The relationship between body condition score (BCS), age,serum NEFAcontent and hepaticTAGandTLcontentwas also considered.Atotal of 119 blood and liver samples were randomly collected fromindigenous buffalo immediately after slaughter. Buffalo were divided into sixgroups: male, heifer, non-pregnant lactating, 1-8 months pregnant lactating,late pregnant and immediately post parturient. Serum NEFAconcentration inlate pregnant and recently calved buffalo was significantly higher than that ofmales and heifers. Liver TAG content rose significantly in the first monthsafter parturition, but liver TL content was not affected by the physiologicalstatus of the animals. Serum NEFA concentration was not associated withliver TAG or TL content. BCS had no significant correlation with eitherserum NEFAconcentration or age of the animals. The results showed that anincrease in liver TAG and serum NEFAwas seen in late pregnancy and afterparturition in buffalo, similar to results in cows. However, TAG and NEFAlevels were much lower than in dairy cattle and it can therefore be concludedthat there is no indication of fatty liver in buffalo.

Keywords:

Buffalo , hepatic triacylglycerols , serum , NEFA