Cadmium Exposure Affects Serum Metabolites and Proteins in the Male Guizhou Black Goat

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Cadmium (Cd), a toxic heavy metal, can extensively pollute the environment after long-term accumulation in the natural environment. After Cd is absorbed by the human body through the food chain, it can also bring great harm to human health. In this study, goats were taken as the research object to study the key pathways and potential therapeutic targets of Cd metabolism to ultimately provide technical support for the prevention and treatment of Cd exposure. ABSTRACT: Food safety and environmental pollution are the hotspots of general concern globally. Notably, long-term accumulation of trace toxic heavy metals, such as cadmium (Cd), in animals may endanger human health via the food chain. The mechanism of Cd toxicity in the goat, a popular farmed animal, has not been extensively investigated to date. Therefore, in this study, ten male goats (Nubian black goat × native black goat) were exposed to Cd via drinking water containing CdCl(2) (20 mg Cd·kg(−1)·BW) for 30 days (five male goats per group). In this study, we used an integrated approach combining proteomics and metabolomics to profile proteins and metabolites in the serum of Cd-exposed goats. It was found that Cd exposure impacted the levels of 30 serum metabolites and 108 proteins. The combined proteomic and metabolomic analysis revealed that Cd exposure affected arginine and proline metabolism, beta-alanine metabolism, and glutathione metabolism. Further, antioxidant capacity in the serum of goats exposed to Cd was reduced. We identified CKM and spermidine as potential protein and metabolic markers, respectively, of early Cd toxicity in the goat. This study details approaches for the early diagnosis and prevention of Cd-poisoned goats.