Placenta ontwikkeling bij Holstein dieren is gecorreleerd met moeder karakteristieken en beta-cel functie bij het pasgeboren kalf.

This study investigated the relation between placental characteristics, intra-uterine calf development and dam characteristics. Therefore, expelled placentas of Holstein heifers (n = 28) and cows (n = 66) were collected and weighed, and all cotyledons were individually measured in length and width. The association between placental outcomes and both calf and dam attributes (including MilkBot
lactation parameters) were investigated. The mean placental weight was 5.3 ± 1.24 kg and significantly correlated with calf weight (r = 0.54, p = 0.001). Placental efficiency, as determined by calf weight/placental weight, was negatively correlated with dam weight in heifers (r = -0.39, p = 0.04), but no such correlation was found in cows. The mean cotyledonary area (CotA, 0.56 ± 0.11 m2) was significantly correlated with calf weight (r = 0.72, p = 0.001); and was higher in cows than in heifers (0.59 ± 0.11 vs. 0.49 ± 0.08 m2; p = 0.001). In cows, CotA was positively correlated with dam milk production during their third trimester of gestation (r = 0.29, p = 0.02). The cotyledons were, therefore, less efficient (as calculated on calf weight/CotA) in cows than heifers (7.7 vs. 8.5; p = 0.001). The
CotA in heifers was also positively correlated with the basal glucose level of the newborn calves (r = 0.47, p = 0.03); and tended to be negatively correlated with the pancreatic b-cell function as assessed by homeostatic model assessment (HOMA-B, I0 · 3.33/(G0-3.5), r = -0.4, 0.07). The association of placental measures with dam characteristics and with basal metabolic parameters of the newborn calf emphasize its probable importance in programming of the calf
well-being.