Oxidative stress and anti-oxidants for dairy animals Sravani B.1, Kishore K. Raja2,*, Kumar D. Srinivas3 Department of Animal NutritionNTR College of Veterinary ScienceSri Venkateswara Veterinary University (SVVU)Gannavaram - 521102 (Andhra Pradesh) 1Post Graduate Scholar Department of Animal NutritionNTR College of Veterinary ScienceSri Venkateswara Veterinary University (SVVU)Gannavaram - 521102 (Andhra Pradesh) 2Assistant Professsor Department of Animal NutritionNTR College of Veterinary ScienceSri Venkateswara Veterinary University (SVVU)Gannavaram - 521102 (Andhra Pradesh) 3Professor and Head Department of Animal NutritionNTR College of Veterinary ScienceSri Venkateswara Veterinary University (SVVU)Gannavaram - 521102 (Andhra Pradesh) *Corresponding author. E-mail: dr_rajakishore@yahoo.co.in
Online Published on 20 April, 2022. Abstract Stress leads to decreased animal productive and reproductive performance which may be due to malnutrition, oxidative damage and environmental factors. Oxidative stress occurs due to over production of free radicals and is responsible for lipid peroxidation and cell death. Oxidants i.e. free radicals are able to reduce themselves and oxidize other molecules. They are of two categories-reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS). ROS plays an important role in host immune response and leads to oxidative stress when produced in excess. RNS are derived from nitric oxide and superoxide and damage cells causing nitrosative stress. Oxidative stress may impair health in dairy animals causing sepsis, mastitis, enteritis, pneumonia and joint disease. Antioxidants prevent the chain reaction of reactive free radicals or oxidative stress and maintain the health and integrity of cells within the body. Several antioxidants viz. vitamin C, glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, trace elements, carotenoids, herbs and spices protect animal body as a natural defence against oxidative damage. Hence, it is important to have a proper balance between free radical production and their detoxification for maintaining the health and productive potential of dairy animals. Top Keywords Animal performance, Antioxidant, Oxidative damage, Stress. Top |