Effect of Parenteral Vitamin D3 Supplementation in Several Doses During a Six-day Period on Total Antioxidant Capacity in Healthy Holstein Bulls

Vitamin D3 is one of the most important vitamins that can be used either as an injection or as an oral supplement, alone or in combination with other vitamins in cows. Vitamin D3 has known effects on calcium regulation and bone health, and also has several non-calcium effects, including improving immune function and therapeutic and preventive effects on many chronic diseases.

Many of these non-classical effects of vitamin D appear to be due to the effect of vitamin D on improving the body's antioxidant system. This positive effect on the antioxidant status can be due to the effect of vitamin D on the expression of many genes, including genes related to proteins involved in the antioxidant system such as Superoxide dismutase (SOD) and Catalase.

In the present study, 15 bulls were divided into 3 groups and by intramuscular injection of 3 doses of vitamin D3, their serum levels of total antioxidant capacity (TAC) were calculated before injection and in two, four and six days after injection. The amounts of vitamins used in groups A, B and C were 3300000, 6600000 and 9900000 units, respectively.

The results of the study showed that TAC levels increase in groups depending on the dose. Total anti-oxidant capacity levels will also increase in the following days.

Therefore, it can be concluded that TAC in cattle is time-dependent and dose-dependent, and regardless of the therapeutic dose of vitamin D3 the use of higher doses of vitamin D3 can improve the antioxidant status.