Effect of whole sesame seeds dietary inclusion levels on transcriptional signatures of lipid metabolism in mammary gland of goats

Abstract

Sesame, a polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA)-rich oilseed, can be a highly efficient animal feed to enriched ruminants’ milk with unsaturated fatty acids (UFAs). However, oils and oilseeds inclusion in ruminants’ diets can modify lipid metabolism in the mammary gland and affect milk chemical composition. Although the topic has been well-documented in cattle, a limited number of studies are available in small ruminants, particularly in goats. Given that, twenty-four goats (BW = 44.9 ± 5.4 kg) at 80 ± 10 days in milk were split up into three homogeneous groups (n = 8). The control (CON) group was fed a diet with a Forage/Concentrate ratio = 50/50 with no sesame seeds, while the groups S5 and S10 included whole sesame seeds at a level of 5 % and 10 % of concentrates, respectively, by partially substituting both soybean meal and corn grain. Mammary tissues were sampled on the 100th experimental day using a core needle biopsy. Significant increases (p < 0.05) in the gene expression of COX4I1 and AGPAT1 were observed in the S10 group, while none of the gene’s transcription was adversely affected by the whole sesame seed inclusion. In conclusion, sesame seed inclusion in goats’ diet (up to 10 % of concentrate) has a negligible effect on the transcription profile regulating lipid metabolism in the mammary gland.