Fecal, nasopharyngeal, rumen, and vaginal samples from heifers and calves Targeted loci
This project evaluated how altering maternal microbiota through high-forage (75 percent forage) or high-concentrate (75 percent concentrate) diets during heifer development and gestation influences offspring microbiome establishment. A total of 119 beef heifers were assigned to dietary treatments prior to breeding with sexed semen from a single sire to generate male pregnancies. Animals were longitudinally monitored across gestation, with subsets followed through calving and weaning or sampled at mid-gestation, alongside non-pregnant controls. Comprehensive microbiome sampling (ruminal, fecal, vaginal, and nasal) was conducted from pre-breeding through late gestation and postpartum. Additionally, 41 male calves were followed from birth through weaning and finishing, with serial sampling to characterize microbiome development. This study provides a longitudinal maternal-offspring microbiome dataset to assess dietary programming effects on early-life microbial establishment and development.