Application of Serum Lipoprotein Profiling in the Management of Hepatic Lipidosis in Transition Dairy Cows in Lagos State, South West Nigeria

Hepatic lipidosis is a metabolic complication of severe negative energy balance in periparturient dairy cattle, and lipoprotein profiling offers an advanced biochemical approach to disease identification and management monitoring. This study applied serum lipoprotein profiling in the management of hepatic lipidosis in transition dairy cows at a commercial dairy farm in Lagos State, South West Nigeria. Fifty Friesian-crossbred cows were monitored from three weeks prepartum through four weeks postpartum. Serial blood sampling was performed for serum non-esterified fatty acids, beta-hydroxybutyrate, total cholesterol, very-low-density lipoprotein, high-density lipoprotein, and triglycerides. Post-mortem liver biopsy fat scoring was conducted in cows that died or were culled during the study period to validate the biochemical predictors. Cows with hepatic lipidosis at biopsy had significantly elevated non-esterified fatty acids pre-calving and very-low-density lipoprotein immediately postpartum, alongside marked reductions in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. A non-esterified fatty acid threshold of above 0.4 mEq/L at one week prepartum predicted hepatic lipidosis with 79% sensitivity. The lipoprotein profile provided earlier and more specific prognostic information than single-analyte approaches. This study recommends integration of lipoprotein profiling into transition cow management protocols at commercial Nigerian dairy operations to enable targeted preventive interventions. Keywords: hepatic lipidosis, lipoprotein profiling, transition cows, non-esterified fatty acids, Lagos.