Association between biochemical parameters and pathological findings in the diagnosis of fatty liver in dairy cows

Subject Areas : Veterinary Clinical Pathology

Mehran Shojaei ¹ , shahin Nejat ² , maryam karimi dehkordi ³ , Abdolrasool Namjoo ⁴

1 - D.V.M. Graduate, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Shahrekord Branch, Islamic Azad University, Shahrekord, Iran
2 - استادیار بیماری های داخلی دام های بزرگ
3 - Assistant Professor, Department of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Shahrekord Branch, Islamic Azad University, Shahrekord, Iran.
4 - Pathobiology Deptment, Islamic Azad University, Shahrekord Branch, Shahrekord, Iran

Received: 2023-10-07 Accepted : 2024-05-26 Published : 2024-02-08

Keywords: biochemical parameters, dairy cows, fatty liver, pathological findings,

Abstract :

The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of some serum parameters in the diagnosis of fatty liver in cattle with special attention to its degree and to determine the best cut point of these parameters in order to predict the occurrence of fatty liver. Blood and liver samples of 28 cows were taken at the time of slaughter. Serum concentrations of liver enzymes, bilirubin, protein, and lipid profile were determined and the ratio of blood lipids to HDL was calculated. BCS and age of the cows were also recorded. ROC statistical model was used to determine critical thresholds for fatty liver prediction. As the severity of fatty liver increases, AST, GGT, cholesterol and HDL increases, and these can be used as a biomarker to identify severe and mild fatty liver. Also, the severity of the disease increases as the BCS decreases and age increases. ROC analysis showed that AST, GGT, protein, cholesterol to HDL, BCS and age are suitable for predicting the disease. The best cut-off point for predicting fatty liver was suggested as 55.05 IU/L for AST, 14 U/L for GGT, 6.55 mg/dl for total protein and 3.18 for cholesterol to HDL ratio. The best cut point for BCS and age was 4.25 and 6.5 years, respectively. The result showed that measurement of liver enzymes and lipid profile is of acceptable diagnostic importance in determining the degree of fatty liver in cows in field conditions and can be a suitable method to replace liver biopsy.