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Dairy cows undergo tremendous adaptive changes during the transition from late gestation to early lactation (Drackley et al., 2005). The importance of the periparturient period in determining health, productivity and profitability has been accurately described by Grummer (1995), Goff & Horst (1997), Drackley (1999) and Drackley et al. (2005). Many are in fact the metabolic and microbial diseases typical of this period: milk fever, metritis, rumen acidosis, lameness (Drackley, 1999). Furthermore, the well known reduction of immune competence increases the susceptibility to mastitis and other infections. The risk of diseases seems to be increased as much as milk yield is genetically increased (Müller et al., 1999). This could be due to the metabolic stress consequences of high milk yield compared with nutrients intake, which is likely the cause of an impairment of the defence systems (Pond & Newsholme 1999). Another possibility, suggested by Drackley et al. (2005), is that multiple stressors, as much as they are severe and prolonged, can divert enough resources (energy, amino acids, etc.) and cause immune system depression. This mechanism could account for the increase of risks in case of poor management, heat stress conditions, excessive rain and mud, etc. The hypothesis of multiple stressors combined with the general observation that many cows, in the same farm, are able to meet the challenge of the transition period, suggests that a genetic component is important for metabolic adaptation and, contemporaneously, that an improved management of farms could reduce the risks of affections. Therefore, according to Goff & Horst (1997), “the well-being and profitability of the cow could be greatly enhanced by understanding those factors that account for the high disease incidence in periparturient cows”. Regarding these aspects, particularly intriguing are the following issues: how do some metabolic diseases increase the risk (Erb & Gröhn, 1988) of further metabolic and microbial diseases?

Inflammatory Response and Acute Phase Proteins in the Transition Period of High-Yielding Dairy Cows