Multi-omics and intervention analyses reveal a hindgut microbiota–secondary bile acid–mammary axis linked to milk yield in dairy cows_serum

ABSTRACT:

Shotgun metagenomics, untargeted metabolomics, and targeted metabolomics of high versus normal-yield cows revealed that high-yield animals harbored distinct hindgut microbial communities enriched in bile salt hydrolase–positive taxa, and elevated levels of deoxycholic acid (DCA). Fecal microbiota transplantation from high-yield donors into antibiotic-treated recipient mice increased their milk production, accompanied by a shift in circulating bile acid profiles towards higher DCA. Oral administration of DCA to antibiotic-treated mice partially recapitulated these mammary and lactation phenotypes, supporting a causal contribution of bile acids downstream of the microbiota. In lactating cows, supplementation with a rumen-protected DCA formulation enhanced cumulative energy-corrected milk yield and tended to increase daily milk yield. DCA can directly upregulate the expression of genes related to the cell cycle progression in dairy cow mammary glands, thereby promoting and maintaining the activity of mammary epithelial cells in mid-lactation cows to support milk production.

INSTRUMENT(S): Liquid Chromatography MS - alternating - reverse-phase

PROVIDER: MTBLS14061 | MetaboLights | 2026-04-15

REPOSITORIES: MetaboLights