Biometeorological and Molecular Innovative Study for Modelling and Assessing the Impact of Heat Stress on Water Buffalo Dairy Production: Promising Adaptive Strategies to Cope with Climate Change in Egypt

Biometeorological and Molecular Innovative Study for Modelling and Assessing the Impact of Heat Stress on Water Buffalo Dairy Production: Promising Adaptive Strategies to Cope with Climate Change in Egypt | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Biometeorological and Molecular Innovative Study for Modelling and Assessing the Impact of Heat Stress on Water Buffalo Dairy Production: Promising Adaptive Strategies to Cope with Climate Change in Egypt Eman M. Ismail, Aly M. Aly, Heba S. Farag, Shaimaa Kamel, Karima M. Fahim This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-5737372/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Background Growing global warming significantly challenges buffalo dairy production, particularly in subtropical climates where summer heat exceeds their thermal comfort zone. Since 2014, Egypt's buffalo milk production has declined. However, few studies have addressed interventions to alleviate the underlying causes. This study proposed a short-term adaptation strategy based on enhancing environment and management practices to alleviate the impact of heat stress (HS) on the physiological and production performance of 12 lactating Egyptian buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) over 47 summer days in Mit Helfa, Egypt. Meteorological data were monitored daily, and temperature humidity index (THI) was calculated. The daily milk yield (DMY) was recorded alongside the rectal temperature (RT) and respiratory rate (RR). Milk samples were also collected for molecular, biochemical, and quality assessments. Results Two HS models were defined based on THI data. HS Model I (Group A) represented the critical, severe, and moderate HS zones (CHSZ, SHSZ, and MHSZ). Meanwhile, the HS Model II (modified, Group B) reflects the modulatory effects of adaptive interventions in reducing the THI and remodelling the CHSZ and SHSZ to non-HS zones (NHSZ). Additionally, this study provides the first transcriptional analysis of energy homeostasis genes in water buffaloes. It revealed significantly higher expression levels of AMPK, HRH1, and mTOR genes in the HS-Gp A compared to non-HS Gp B (p>0.05). Production data revealed a significant 53% increase in DMY (13 kg/day) in Gp B with lower oxidative stress and superior milk quality. Correlation and regression statistics indicated that higher THI increased RT and RR and significantly decreased DMY in HS Gp A. Conversely, lower THI in Gp B reduced physiological stress and significantly increased DMY (p>0.001). For each unit increase in THI above 69, the DMY decreases by 0.17 and 0.23 kg/day/buffalo, with total predicted decreases of 1.9 and 2.5 kg when the THI increases from 70 to 83 and 65 to 76 (maximum and minimum THI) in HS and Non-HS groups, respectively. Conclusion These findings highlight the negative impact of HS on buffalo health and productivity, emphasising the need for adaptive strategies and genetic research to maintain energy balance, support milk production, and develop heat-tolerant breeds. Animal Science Biochemical Research Methods Applied Biochemistry Ecological Modeling Health Economics & Outcomes Research Management Temperature‒humidity index (THI) Bubalus bubalis Oxidative stress biomarkers Milk quality Physiological indices Milk yield Stress gene expression analysis Environmental and nutritional interventions Full Text Additional Declarations The authors declare no competing interests. Supplementary Files SupplementaryFile1.pdf Supplementary file 1: Table S1. Meteorological data from 1st Sept to 17th Oct- 2023, study duration for the control group (Gp A) and modified group (Gp B). Table S2. Total and average Daily Milk production data sheets from 1st Sept to 17th Oct- 2023, study duration for each buffalo of the control (Gp A) and modified group (Gp B). Table S3. Physiological assessment: rectal temperature °C (RT) data sheets from 1st Sept to 17th Oct- 2023, study duration for each buffalo of the control (Gp A) and modified group (Gp B). Table S4. Physiological assessment: respiratory rate (RR) (Beat Per Minute, BPM) from 1st Sept to 17th Oct- 2023, study duration for each buffalo of the control (Gp A) and modified group (Gp B). Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-5737372","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":395954506,"identity":"81751a66-c884-4b06-890a-b22e13b149b1","order_by":0,"name":"Eman M. Ismail","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA70lEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDCCAxBKzr69GcxkbCBWi7EBz7EE0rQkbpDIMSBOC9/tA4yPbtTcYdzOkPPxMw+DjeyGA8yHX+DTInkugdk459gzZsuGs5uleRjSjDccYEuzwKfF4AwDm3QO22E2hoO925h5GA4nbjjAY2ZAQAv775x/h4GKeZ4BtfwHauH/RkgLG3Nu22EJg2M8bEAtB0C2MD/A65czDMzSuX2HDSR72Iwl5xgkG888zGaGTwcD3xkGxs853w7X98s/fvjhTYWdbN/x5scf8Oph4EeWB3mCmYFNAr8WLICZgC2jYBSMglEwwgAAEylMb6rnxOgAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6191-6950","institution":"Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Cairo University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Eman","middleName":"M.","lastName":"Ismail","suffix":""},{"id":395954507,"identity":"9af3e548-385d-4e25-891d-de97a9a61ea7","order_by":1,"name":"Aly M. Aly","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4245-6375","institution":"Faculty of African Postgraduate Studies, Cairo University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Aly","middleName":"M.","lastName":"Aly","suffix":""},{"id":395954508,"identity":"7349f636-05fa-4b30-a2ad-16bef13a10cf","order_by":2,"name":"Heba S. Farag","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Cairo University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Heba","middleName":"S.","lastName":"Farag","suffix":""},{"id":395954509,"identity":"4a8aeed5-0777-413b-89f1-b9f6e89950c3","order_by":3,"name":"Shaimaa Kamel","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7414-3034","institution":"Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Cairo University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Shaimaa","middleName":"","lastName":"Kamel","suffix":""},{"id":395954510,"identity":"415aa81a-2778-4c86-83fa-528738b3bb2c","order_by":4,"name":"Karima M. Fahim","email":"","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6039-0413","institution":"Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Cairo University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Karima","middleName":"M.","lastName":"Fahim","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2024-12-30 18:16:37","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":{"humanSubjects":false,"vertebrateSubjects":true,"conflictsOfInterestStatement":false,"humanSubjectEthicalGuidelines":false,"humanSubjectConsent":false,"humanSubjectClinicalTrial":false,"humanSubjectCaseReport":false,"vertebrateSubjectEthicalGuidelines":true},"doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5737372/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-5737372/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":72730500,"identity":"dc7ae4e3-1de6-41b6-a500-6c049f19296a","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-01-01 06:16:37","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":733255,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"BiometeorologicalHSmanuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-5737372/v1_covered_dfac10b8-b41b-4df9-a787-c2fa19b1087c.pdf"},{"id":72730332,"identity":"5c145f89-836f-4992-baca-d24e5409d75b","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-01-01 06:08:31","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":505391,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSupplementary file 1: Table S1\u003c/strong\u003e. Meteorological data from 1st Sept to 17th Oct- 2023, study duration for the control group (Gp A) and modified group (Gp B). \u003cstrong\u003eTable S2\u003c/strong\u003e. Total and average Daily Milk production data sheets from 1st \u0026nbsp;Sept to 17th \u0026nbsp;Oct- 2023, study duration for each buffalo of the control (Gp A) and modified group (Gp B). \u003cstrong\u003eTable S3\u003c/strong\u003e. Physiological assessment: rectal temperature °C (RT) data sheets from 1st Sept to 17th Oct- 2023, study duration for each buffalo of the control (Gp A) and modified group (Gp B). \u003cstrong\u003eTable S4.\u003c/strong\u003e Physiological assessment: respiratory rate (RR) (Beat Per Minute, BPM) from 1st Sept to 17th Oct- 2023, study duration for each buffalo of the control (Gp A) and modified group (Gp B).\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"SupplementaryFile1.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-5737372/v1/cec3a40f5c782c71d427360b.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"The authors declare no competing interests.","formattedTitle":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBiometeorological and Molecular Innovative Study for Modelling and Assessing the Impact of Heat Stress on Water Buffalo Dairy Production: Promising Adaptive Strategies to Cope with Climate Change in Egypt\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"Cairo University","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Temperature‒humidity index (THI), Bubalus bubalis, Oxidative stress biomarkers, Milk quality, Physiological indices, Milk yield, Stress gene expression analysis, Environmental and nutritional interventions","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5737372/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-5737372/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBackground\u003c/strong\u003e Growing global warming significantly challenges buffalo dairy production, particularly \u0026nbsp;in subtropical climates where summer heat exceeds their thermal comfort zone. Since 2014, Egypt's \u0026nbsp;buffalo milk production has declined. However, few studies have addressed interventions to alleviate \u0026nbsp;the underlying causes. This study proposed a short-term adaptation strategy based on enhancing \u0026nbsp;environment and management practices to alleviate the impact of heat stress (HS) on the physiological and production performance of 12 lactating Egyptian buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) over \u0026nbsp;47 summer days in Mit Helfa, Egypt. Meteorological data were monitored daily, and temperature humidity index (THI) was calculated. The daily milk yield (DMY) was recorded alongside the rectal \u0026nbsp;temperature (RT) and respiratory rate (RR). Milk samples were also collected for molecular, \u0026nbsp;biochemical, and quality assessments. \u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eResults\u003c/strong\u003e Two HS models were defined based on THI data. HS Model I (Group A) represented the \u0026nbsp;critical, severe, and moderate HS zones (CHSZ, SHSZ, and MHSZ). Meanwhile, the HS Model II \u0026nbsp;(modified, Group B) reflects the modulatory effects of adaptive interventions in reducing the THI and \u0026nbsp;remodelling the CHSZ and SHSZ to non-HS zones (NHSZ). Additionally, this study provides the first \u0026nbsp;transcriptional analysis of energy homeostasis genes in water buffaloes. It revealed significantly \u0026nbsp;higher expression levels of AMPK, HRH1, and mTOR genes in the HS-Gp A compared to non-HS Gp B (p\u0026gt;0.05). Production data revealed a significant 53% increase in DMY (13 kg/day) in Gp B with lower \u0026nbsp;oxidative stress and superior milk quality. Correlation and regression statistics indicated that higher \u0026nbsp;THI increased RT and RR and significantly decreased DMY in HS Gp A. Conversely, lower THI in Gp B \u0026nbsp;reduced physiological stress and significantly increased DMY (p\u0026gt;0.001). For each unit increase in THI \u0026nbsp;above 69, the DMY decreases by 0.17 and 0.23 kg/day/buffalo, with total predicted decreases of 1.9 \u0026nbsp;and 2.5 kg when the THI increases from 70 to 83 and 65 to 76 (maximum and minimum THI) in HS \u0026nbsp;and Non-HS groups, respectively.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eConclusion\u003c/strong\u003e These findings highlight the negative impact of HS on buffalo health and productivity, \u0026nbsp;emphasising the need for adaptive strategies and genetic research to maintain energy balance, \u0026nbsp;support milk production, and develop heat-tolerant breeds.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Biometeorological and Molecular Innovative Study for Modelling and Assessing the Impact of Heat Stress on Water Buffalo Dairy Production: Promising Adaptive Strategies to Cope with Climate Change in Egypt","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-01-01 06:08:26","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5737372/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"ccead3a7-37ef-4960-86d5-ef150d7ef574","owner":[],"postedDate":"January 1st, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[{"id":42187936,"name":"Animal Science"},{"id":42187937,"name":"Biochemical Research Methods"},{"id":42187938,"name":"Applied Biochemistry"},{"id":42187939,"name":"Ecological Modeling"},{"id":42187940,"name":"Health Economics \u0026 Outcomes Research"},{"id":42187941,"name":"Management"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2025-01-01T06:08:26+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-01-01 06:08:26","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-5737372","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-5737372","identity":"rs-5737372","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}