Sub-acute ruminal acidosis (SARA) is known to enhance the systemic inflammatory response that most likely occurs due to the translocation of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from the digestive tract into the blood stream. The objective of the present study was to explore whether sodium butyrate could minimize the negative effects of high-grain diet-induced inflammation in the goat uterus and to explore the differences between high-concentrate diet alone and high-concentrate diet supplemented with sodium butyrate. Eighteen mid-lactating goats surgically installed with a rumen fistula were divided into two groups: a group receiving a high-concentrate diet (HC) (60% concentrate + 40% forage) as a control and a group receiving a high-concentrate diet with sodium butyrate (HC+Na B) (60% concentrate+40% forage+sodium butyrate) as the treatment group. The LPS concentrations in the rumen fluid were 234653 EU/ml and 431564 EU/ml in the HC+Na B and HC groups, respectively, whereas in peripheral blood, LPS concentrations were 0.013 EU/ml and 0.039 EU/ml in the HC+Na B and HC groups, respectively, indicating a significant decrease in LPS in the HC+Na B group. The concentrations of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1β and IL-6 were significantly lower, with concomitant down-regulation of the expression of the inflammatory genes TLR4, MyD-88, NF-κB, TRAF-6, IL-6 and IL-1β in the uteri of HC +Na B group. Therefore, supplementing sodium butyrate with a high-concentrate diet reduced the degree of uterine inflammation and played a vital role in combating the inflammatory effects of LPS migration from the digestive tract.

Key words: High-concentrate diet with sodium butyrate, Immune gene expression, Lipopolysaccharide, Sub-acute ruminal acidosis, Uterus