Hormone prolactin concentration, milk production performance and milk quality of Holstein Friesian dairy cows supplementing the diet with various levels of mung bean sprouts

Rara Mufliha¹, Renny Fatmyah Utamy² and Ambo Ako²

¹ Animal Science and Technology, Faculty of Animal Science, Hasanuddin University, Makassar, South Sulawesi, Indonesia (90245)
rennyfatmyahutamy@unhas.ac.id
² Department of Animal Production, Faculty of Animal Science, Hasanuddin University, Makassar, South Sulawesi, Indonesia (90245)

Abstract

The research aimed to examine the impact of incorporating varying levels of mung bean sprouts into the diets of Holstein Friesian dairy cows on prolactin (PRL) hormone concentrations, milk production and milk quality. Sixteen Holstein Friesian dairy cows, each 4–5 years old and in their first 1–4 months of lactation, were included in the research, weighing around 500 kg. The experiment followed a completely randomized design (CRD) with four levels of mung bean sprout supplementation: 0% (MBS0), 5% (MBS5), 10% (MBS10) and 15% (MBS15), each with four replicates. The findings indicated that as the level of mung bean sprouts in the diet increased, improvements were observed in Hormone PRL concentrations, milk production, feed conversion efficiency (FCE) and milk protein levels (p<0.05). Conversely, feed consumption remained consistent across all treatments and similarities were observed in the physical quality of milk (including pH, specific gravity and viscosity), the milk fat content and the levels of milk minerals such as calcium and phosphorus (p>0.05). In conclusion, supplementing the diet of Holstein Friesian dairy cows with up to 15% mung bean sprouts can positively influence production levels, FCE and milk quality.

Keywords: Holstein Friesian dairy cow, mung bean sprouts, hormone PRL, production and milk quality

Introduction

The milk production of dairy cows in Indonesia remains low, as de Vries et al (2019) reported. One contributing factor to this is the insufficient availability and management of feed. Another influential factor is the Hormone PRL secretion concentration, as Sigit et al (2021) highlighted. PRL is a vital hormone that regulates milk production, as demonstrated by Ollier et al (2014). The Hormone PRL stimulates alveolus cells to generate milk (Suksesty and Ikhlasiah 2017). Mung bean sprouts are recognized for promoting the formation of Hormones PRL in livestock due to active compounds such as polyphenols and flavonoids, as documented by Bolanos et al (2021). These compounds elevate the hormone PRL, boosting milk secretion and production (Suksesty and Ikhlasiah 2017). Mung bean sprouts have a protein content ranging from 20% to 31% and contain amino acids that facilitate milk secretion (Silva and Senanayake 2023; Suksesty and Ikhlasiah 2017). Given the necessity of high protein levels for dairy cows, particularly during lactation, this research evaluated Holstein Friesian dairy cows' hormone PRL concentration, production performance and milk quality supplemented with mung bean sprouts at varying levels.

Materials and methods

The research was conducted in Enrekang Regency, South Sulawesi, Indonesia, at a smallholder dairy farm; this research involved collecting milk samples for testing at the Feed Chemistry Laboratory of the Faculty of Animal Science and blood samples at the Hasanuddin University Hospital Research Laboratory, Makassar, South Sulawesi, Indonesia.

This experiment used sixteen Holstein Friesian dairy cows, aged between 4 and 5 years, within 1 to 4 months of lactation, averaging around 500 kg in body weight. The cows were fed elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum), equivalent to 3% of their body weight as dry matter (DM). Additionally, the concentrate feed of bran and tofu pulp, totaling 3.5 kg of DM, was supplemented with varying mung bean sprouts. A CRD was employed, segmenting the treatments into four with four replicates each: 0%, 5%, 10% and 15% mung bean sprouts supplementation of the concentrate (MBS0, MBS5, MBS10, MBS15, respectively). The mung bean sprouts were prepared by soaking for 12 hours, followed by sowing in a closed container for two days of germination, during which they were watered twice a day before being used as feed. The research spanned 45 days, preceded by a 7-day habituation period to the diets. Forage and concentrate were administered twice daily, in the morning and afternoon, with continuous access to drinking water.

The parameters assessed included Hormone PRL concentration, production performance (i.e. milk production, DM intake and FCE), the physical and chemical quality of milk (i.e. pH, specific gravity, SG, viscosity, protein and fat content) and milk mineral content (i.e. calcium, Ca and phosphorus, P). Hormone PRL concentrations were determined using a prolactin ELISA Kit from Wuhan Fine Biotech Co. Ltd, China. FCE was gauged by dividing the total milk production by DM intake (Arndt et al 2015). Milk pH, SG and viscosity were measured according to Ibrahim et al (2023), SNI (1992) and the Ostwald viscometer method (Rizqiati et al 2020), respectively. The crude protein (CP) concentration was analyzed using the Indirect Kjeldahl method (AOAC International 2005, method 991.23) and fat was determined following the Babcock method (AOAC International 2005, method 989.04). Lastly, the milk's macro minerals (i.e. Ca and P) content was measured using atomic absorption spectrophotometry (SSA) according to Mahfudloh and Tironove (2010).

Results and discussion

Hormone prolactin concentration and production performance

Hormone Prolactin concentration and production performance of Holstein Friesian dairy cows supplemented with mung bean sprouts were presented in Table 1.

Figure 1. Correlation between hormone PRL and milk production	Figure 2. Correlation between level of mung bean sprouts and hormone PRL
Figure 3. Correlation between level of mung bean sprouts and milk production

Supplementing Holstein Friesian dairy cows' diet with various mung bean sprouts in feed concentrate impacted Hormone PRL concentration, milk production and FCE (p<0.05), but it had similarities in the DM intake between treatments (p>0.05) (Table 1).

Hormone Prolactin concentrations were notably different across the treatments; the research recorded Hormone PRL concentrations ranging from 2794.96 to 4495.45 pg/ml, similar to findings by Hawra et al (2024), which ranged between 315.21 to 387.34 pg/ml. Each increase in the level of mung bean sprouts can increase hormone PRL by 1.6132 pg/ml (Figure 2). The presence of active compounds such as polyphenols and flavonoids in mung bean sprouts influences these high PRL concentrations (Dewi et al 2022). These active compounds affect PRL levels and thus play a role in increasing milk production. This is evident by the positive correlation between Hormone PRL and milk production (Figure 1). which are vital in boosting milk production, as evidenced by the positive correlation between hormone PRL concentrations and milk output (Hawra et al 2024). PRL enhances mammary gland activity, udder growth and milk production readiness (Khalid et al 2022).

Milk production increased with higher levels of mung bean sprouts supplementation. Each increase in the level of mung bean sprouts can increase milk production by 0.0027 kg/d (Figure 3), indicating that mung bean sprouts, which contain high protein levels ranging from 20 to 31%, can effectively enhance milk production (Silva and Senanayake 2023). The high protein content in the feed facilitates the availability of amino acids necessary for milk production (Gidlun et al 2015). Similar observations have been noted in previous studies showing that mung bean intake in lactating improves milk production (Pan et al 2023). Ako et al. (2023) also highlighted the benefits of feeding dairy cows high-protein, green legume concentrates for boosting milk production and FCE.

Feed conversion efficiency, which measures the ratio of milk output to feed intake, showed values between 0.71 and 0.95, with the highest FCE observed in the P3 treatment, indicating superior nutritional content and digestibility in this treatment. Løvendahl et al (2018) mentioned that nutrient quality and digestibility influence FCE. Mung bean sprouts are rich in protein and B vitamins (B1, B6), with thiamine (B1) being particularly notable for its solubility and rapid absorption in the small intestine, enhancing nutrient digestibility and feed utilization efficiency (Mariati et al 2019).

Milk quality

The milk quality of Holstein Friesian dairy cows supplemented with mung bean sprouts is presented in Table 2.

The supplementation of mung bean sprouts in dairy cow feed concentrate had similarities (p>0.05) to the physical quality of Holstein Friesian dairy milk, including pH, SG, viscosity, milk fat content and mineral quality such as Ca and P. However, there was a notable impact (p<0.05) on the protein content of Holstein Friesian dairy cow milk across different treatments.

The protein content ranged from 4.22% to 4.49%, which aligns with previous research from Cornell University (2018), which reported that cow's milk typically contains 3.25% protein (2.3% to 4.4%). The protein content increased with higher amounts of mung bean sprouts, especially in the P3 treatment, compared to P0, P1 and P2. This implies that mung bean sprout supplementation positively influences milk protein levels. Research by Chandran et al (2023) suggests that mung bean sprouts are rich in easily digestible protein, significantly enhancing protein intake quality. Furthermore, milk protein levels are affected by the type of feed provided (Zurriyati et al 2011), with high-protein feed also increasing energy and prompting amino acid formation from microbial protein (Sukarini 2006), subsequently influencing milk protein biosynthesis (Sanh et al 2002).

Conclusion

The research found that supplementing mung bean sprouts in the diet of Holstein Friesian dairy cows led to increased Hormone Prolactin concentration, milk production and feed conversion efficiency as the level of mung bean sprouts increased. No differences in feed consumption were observed across different treatments. Furthermore, a positive correlation was noted between Hormone Prolactin concentration and milk production. Additionally, higher concentrations of mung bean sprouts were associated with an increasing trend in milk protein levels. However, there were similarities in the physical quality of milk (including pH, specific gravity and viscosity), milk fat content and the levels of milk minerals (calcium and phosphorus) among the treatments. Overall, the results indicate that incorporating mung bean sprouts up to 15% of the concentrate in the diet can potentially improve production levels, feed conversion efficiency and overall milk quality in Holstein Friesian dairy cows.

Acknowledgement

The authors thank Beasiswa Unggulan from the Ministry of Education Culture Research and Technology with the number contract 1029/J5.2.2/BP/PKS/X/2023. Thank to Sipatuo Farmer Group in Panette Village, Cendana Subdistrict, Enrekang District, for facilitating this research. Thank you to the Livestock and Fisheries Service Office of Enrekang District for facilitating this research activity. Thank you also to Hasanuddin University Hospital for facilitating prolactin analysis.

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