Seasonal variations of vitamin A, D and E levels in serum of female camels (Camelus dromedarius) and their calves raised in five geographic regions of Saudi Arabia

Hashim M Abdullah; Faisal Almathen; Abdullah Sheikh; Mohammed Alfattah; Ahmed M Khalid; Amel O Bakhiet; Mutassim M Abdelrahman

doi:10.1016/j.sjbs.2023.103675

Seasonal variations of vitamin A, D and E levels in serum of female camels (Camelus dromedarius) and their calves raised in five geographic regions of Saudi Arabia

Saudi J Biol Sci. 2023 Jun;30(6):103675. doi: 10.1016/j.sjbs.2023.103675. Epub 2023 May 5.

Authors

Hashim M Abdullah¹, Faisal Almathen^{1

2}, Abdullah Sheikh¹, Mohammed Alfattah³, Ahmed M Khalid^{2

4}, Amel O Bakhiet⁵, Mutassim M Abdelrahman⁶

Affiliations

¹ Camel Research Center, King Faisal University, P.O. Box 400, Al-Hofuf 31982, Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia.
² Department of Veterinary Public Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, King Faisal University, P.O. Box 400, Al-Hofuf 31982, Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia.
³ Department of Biology, College of Science, Jazan University, Jazan, Saudi Arabia.
⁴ Department of Genetics and Animal Breeding, Faculty of Animal Production, University of Khartoum, Shambat 13314, Sudan.
⁵ Dean of the Deanship of Scientific Research, Sudan University of Science and Technology, P.O. Box 407, Khartoum, Sudan.
⁶ Department of Animal Production, College of Food and Agriculture Science, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2460, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the serum level of fat-soluble vitamins A, D and E in clinically healthy lactating female camel (Camelus dromedarius) and suckling calf > one-year-old during winter and summer seasons in five main regions of Saudi Arabia. 60 sera samples were collected and tested for vitamins A, D and E levels and the results were statistically analyzed. The statistical mean value of vitamin A was within the reported range but for D and E, there were minor variations. The effect of season was insignificant (p > 0.05) for vitamins A and E in the combined results of the dam and newborn together. This seasonal effect was highly significant in dam serum (p < 0.05). Region effect was significant for vitamin A in the northern area (p < 0.05) and for vitamin E in the southern region (p < 0.05). Correlations analysis revealed significant results in the season vs vitamin A and E p < 0.05. Mean values of vitamins A, D and E in dam and newborn did not observe significant variations however, in the season and regions there were significant variations which can be attributed to the climate difference, availability of balanced rations and camel management in each location of the five main regions of Saudi Arabia. There is a great need for further studies and the consequent development of supplementation programs and camel feed manufacturers awareness of such results is highly recommended.

Keywords: Camelus dromedarius; Dam; Fat-soluble vitamins; Newborn; Season.