Epidemiologic studies associate maternal docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)/DHA-containing seafood intake with enhanced cognitive development; although, it should be noted that interventional trials show inconsistent findings. We examined perinatal DHA supplementation on cognitive performance, brain anatomical and functional organization, and the brain monoamine neurotransmitter status of offspring using a piglet model. Sows were fed a control (CON) or a diet containing DHA (DHA) from late gestation throughout lactation. Piglets underwent an open field test (OFT), an object recognition test (ORT), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to acquire anatomical, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), and resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) at weaning. Piglets from DHA-fed sows spent 95% more time sniffing the walls than CON in OFT and exhibited an elevated interest in the novel object in ORT, while CON piglets demonstrated no preference. Maternal DHA supplementation increased fiber length and tended to increase fractional anisotropy in the hippocampus of offspring than CON. DHA piglets exhibited increased functional connectivity in the cerebellar, visual, and default mode network and decreased activity in executive control and sensorimotor network compared to CON. The brain monoamine neurotransmitter levels did not differ in healthy offspring. Perinatal DHA supplementation may increase exploratory behaviors, improve recognition memory, enhance fiber tract integrity, and alter brain functional organization in offspring at weaning.

The microbiota’s influence on host (patho) physiology has gained interest in the context of Gulf War Illness (GWI), a chronic disorder featuring dysregulation of the gut–brain–immune axis. This study examined short- and long-term effects of GWI-related chemicals on gut health and fecal microbiota and the potential benefits of Lacto-N-fucopentaose-III (LNFPIII) treatment in a GWI model. Male C57BL/6J mice were administered pyridostigmine bromide (PB; 0.7 mg/kg) and permethrin (PM; 200 mg/kg) for 10 days with concurrent LNFPIII treatment (35 μg/mouse) in a short-term study (12 days total) and delayed LNFPIII treatment (2×/week) beginning 4 months after 10 days of PB/PM exposure in a long-term study (9 months total). Fecal 16S rRNA sequencing was performed on all samples post-LNFPIII treatment to assess microbiota effects of GWI chemicals and acute/delayed LNFPIII administration. Although PB/PM did not affect species composition on a global scale, it affected specific taxa in both short- and long-term settings. PB/PM elicited more prominent long-term effects, notably, on the abundances of bacteria belonging to Lachnospiraceae and Ruminococcaceae families and the genus Allobaculum. LNFPIII improved a marker of gut health (i.e., decreased lipocalin-2) independent of GWI and, importantly, increased butyrate producers (e.g., Butyricoccus, Ruminococcous) in PB/PM-treated mice, indicating a positive selection pressure for these bacteria. Multiple operational taxonomic units correlated with aberrant behavior and lipocalin-2 in PB/PM samples; LNFPIII was modulatory. Overall, significant and lasting GWI effects occurred on specific microbiota and LNFPIII treatment was beneficial.

Rapid scientific advances are increasing our understanding of the way complex biological interactions integrate to maintain homeostatic balance and how seemingly small, localized perturbations can lead to systemic effects. The ‘omics movement, alongside increased throughput resulting from statistical and computational advances, has transformed our understanding of disease mechanisms and the multi-dimensional interaction between environmental stressors and host physiology through data integration into multi-dimensional analyses, i.e., integrative interactomics. This review focuses on the use of high-throughput technologies in farm animal research, including health- and toxicology-related papers. Although limited, we highlight recent animal agriculture-centered reports from the integrative multi-‘omics movement. We provide an example with fescue toxicosis, an economically costly disease affecting grazing livestock, and describe how integrative interactomics can be applied to a disease with a complex pathophysiology in the pursuit of novel treatment and management approaches. We outline how ‘omics techniques have been used thus far to understand fescue toxicosis pathophysiology, lay out a framework for the fescue toxicosis integrome, identify some challenges we foresee, and offer possible means for addressing these challenges. Finally, we briefly discuss how the example with fescue toxicosis could be used for other agriculturally important animal health and welfare problems.