Effects of Morinda citrifolia extract on performance and morbidity of newly received beef heifers

Effects of Morinda citrifolia extract (MorindaMax, Morinda Agriculture, Provo, UT) on performance, health, and immune competence of newly received beef cattle were evaluated with 126 beef heifers (average BW = 191 kg). Treatments were fed as a daily top-dressed supplement for the first 10 d of the receiving period and included 1) control treatment [888 IU of a-tocopherol per 100 kg of BW daily, supplied in 83.6 g (DM basis) of a ground corn mixture per heifer] or 2) Morinda citrifolia extract (MorindaMax fed at 66.6 g of Morinda citrifolia extract per 100 kg of BW plus ground corn to equal that supplied by the control treatment). Final BW did not differ (P = 0.773) between treatments. No difference was observed in overall DMI (P = 0.796), but ADG for the 35-d period tended (P = 0.079) to be less in heifers treated with MorindaMax. Gain efficiency did not differ between treatments for the first 21 d of the experiment, but for the overall 35-d period, G:F was greater for control heifers than for those treated with MorindaMax (P = 0.018). The proportion of cattle treated for respiratory disease was not affected by treatments (P = 0.599). Supplementation of MorindaMax increased (P = 0.042) the oxidative burst intensity by the primary neutrophil population compared with the control treatment, and MorindaMax heifers had a greater (P = 0.045) total leukocyte count than did control heifers. Results from this experiment do not support an advantage of feeding MorindaMax on receiving period performance or health in these heifer calves that had low morbidity during the receiving period, but MorindaMax fed for the first 10 d of a 35-d receiving period seemed to have immunomodulatory effects that need further exploration.