bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
36 Effects of grinding method on ileal digestibility of amino acids in different short-season corn cultivars fed to growing pigs
Authors: Lee Jinyoung , Nyachoti Martin
Published: May 2024

Decreased corn production was previously observed in Manitoba due to the low climatic temperatures; however, corn production has increased by developing corn hybrids that require low corn heat units, and therefore can grow in areas with decreased heat units. Milling technology affects feed particle size and shape, which may affect the digestibility of nutrients and growth performance of pigs. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the effects of grinding methods on the apparent (AID) and standardized (SID) ileal digestibility of amino acids (AA) in selected short-season corn cultivars fed to growing pigs. A total of 18 ileal cannulated barrows (56.8 ± 2.9 kg) were assigned to 1 of 6 dietary treatments in a triplicate 6 × 2 incomplete Latin square design with 6 diets and 2 periods to give 6 observations per treatment. Dietary treatments were arranged in a 3 × 2 factorial design with three different corn cultivars [two Manitoba-origin short-season corns (A or B) or a US-origin corn] and two grinding methods [hammer mill or roller mill]. Each ingredient was included as the sole source of protein in the diets. All diets contained 0.3% titanium dioxide as an indigestible marker. Each experimental period lasted 7 d including the first 5 d for adaptation and the last 2 d for ileal digesta collection. After feeding the experimental diets, all pigs were fed a low-protein diet for 7 d to quantify endogenous losses of N and AA for determining the SID of N and AA. Pigs were fed the diets at 2.8 times the maintenance energy requirement based on their body weight at the beginning of each period. Data were analyzed using the PROC MIXED of SAS. The statistical model included diet as fixed effect and replication, animal within replication, and period within replication as random effects. The AID of Arg, Ala, Ser, and Gly were greater (P < 0.05) in short-season corn B compared with US-origin corn. The AID and SID of His in both short-season corns were greater (P < 0.05) than in US-origin corn. The AID of His and SID of Thr in hammer-milled corns were greater (P < 0.05) than in roller-milled corns. A significant interaction was found whereby AID of Ile in hammer-milled corn was not different between short-season corn B cultivar and US-origin corn but in roller-milled corn, short-season corn B cultivar had a greater (P < 0.05) digestibility than US corn. In conclusion, the digestibility of AA was greater in short-season corn than in US corn, and pigs had greater digestibility of AA in hammer-milled corn than roller-milled corn.
33 1-Carbon metabolism: Methionine and more
Authors: Van Milgen Jaap
Published: May 2024

Methionine, via S-adenosylmethionine, has an important role in the post-translational methylation of Arg, Lys, and His in proteins, methylation of DNA and RNA, and methylation of serotonin (to melatonin), noradrenaline (to adrenaline), and guanidinoacetate (to creatine). After the methyl-group of Met is transferred to an acceptor, the resulting homocysteine can transfer its sulfur group to Ser yielding Cys. Homocysteine can also be remethylated back to Met in the so-called Met salvage pathway, which requires betaine or N5-methyl tetrahydrofolate (THF) as a 1-carbon donor. Methionine is, thus, not necessarily the dietary source of 1-carbon in methylation reactions. N5-methyl THF is one of the “1-carbon flavors” of THF and the catabolism of Ser, Gly, His, and formate (e.g., from Trp catabolism) results in the formation of 1-carbon metabolites linked to THF. These amino acids (and choline and betaine) are thus potential dietary sources of 1-carbon groups, of which only Ser and Gly can be synthesized de novo. In recent years, there has been an increased interest in the role of Ser and Gly in 1-carbon metabolism. Glycine has the unique property that it is able to accept and donate 1-carbon groups and the high concentration of Gly in plasma may be indicative for its 1-carbon buffering capacity. Glycine is also one of the few non-essential amino acids for which the retention (e.g., for collagen synthesis) largely exceeds the dietary intake. However, the de novo synthesis of Gly has been considered “a weak link in metabolism” because it is always associated with the synthesis of a 1-carbon group, and the capacity of the animal to dispose of excess 1-carbon groups may be limited. An excess supply of 1-carbon groups may therefore lead to a dietary requirement for Gly.
34 DPP Lecture: Evidence of methionine effects on health and immune response of animals
Authors: Columbus Daniel A
Published: May 2024

Methionine is an essential amino acid that is commonly supplemented in livestock diets, including for swine and poultry. As with other amino acids, requirements for methionine have largely been based on maximizing growth performance; however, there is evidence that nutrient requirements, including for sulfur amino acids, are altered by immune status of the animal. As such, there has been significant interest in exploring the non-proteinogenic functions of amino acids and how these work to support animal health in addition to growth performance. While methionine has a key role in protein synthesis, it is involved in numerous biological functions, including participation in transsulfuration and transmethylation pathways, as a precursor of intermediates in metabolic pathways (e.g., carnitine, cystine), and in components of the immune response (e.g., acute-phase proteins), and in antioxidant status (i.e. glutathione, taurine). While undersupply and oversupply of methionine can lead to deficiency and toxicity, respectively, it is likely that supplementation with methionine above the current recommendations for growth would be beneficial for animal health, especially during times of stress or immune stimulation.
35 Role and mechanism of supplemental methionine in metabolic stress of broilers raised at high ambient temperature or stock density
Authors: Lei Xingen
Published: May 2024

Current poultry production practices may render fast-growing broilers prone to metabolic stresses induced by high ambient temperatures and(or) high stocking densities. As the first limiting amino acid of broilers fed corn-soy diets, methionine also serves as a free radical scavenger. Our laboratory has explored metabolic effects and biochemical mechanisms of supplemental methionine in grower and finisher diets for broilers raised at high temperature or high stock density. In Experiment 1, a total of 360 male, 1 d-old Cornish cockerel chicks were fed four diets (10 pens/treatment, 9 chicks/pen): 100 or 130% required methionine in the diets as DL-methionine (DL-MET) or 2-hydroxy-4-(methylthio)butanoate (HMTBA). The room was maintained at 4 to 13oC above the suggested thermoneutral temperature. The 130% DL-MET and HMTBA diets enhanced (P < 0.05) hepatic GSH concentrations of growers and plasma ferric reducing ability of finishers than the 100% diets. The DL-MET-fed growers had greater (P < 0.05%) muscle GSH and hepatic unsaturated fatty acid concentrations than those fed HMTBA. The methionine form and concentration exerted an interaction effect (P < 0.05) on the expression of inflammation-related genes in the liver of finishers. In Experiment 2, we determined if 30% extra DL-MET alleviated adverse effects of a greater stocking density on broilers. A total of 560 male, 1 d-old Cornish cockerels were housed at two stocking densities (9 and 12 birds/m2) and fed two concentrations of DL-MET (grower: 2.90 or 3.77 g/kg and finisher: 2.60 or 3.38 g/kg). The high stocking density decreased (P < 0.05) body weight and growth performance of growers and(or) finishers. Those differences were largely removed or attenuated by the 130% DL-MET diet. There were interaction effects (P < 0.05) between dietary DL-MET concentrations and stocking densities on activities of glutathione S-transferase in the liver of growers and the breast, thigh, and adipose tissue of finishers as well as on activities of glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase in the thigh of growers. The 130% DL-MET diet decreased (P < 0.05) hepatic gene expression of heat shock protein 90 (18%) and malondialdehyde concentrations in the thigh and breast of finishers (35%). In summary, the high ambient temperature-induced metabolic responses of broilers were mediated by the extra methionine supplementation. That function varied with the chicken age and(or) tissue and the methionine form. Meanwhile, the 30% extra DL-MET addition partially reversed adverse effects caused by the greater stocking density, partially via improving tissue redox status. (This research was supported in part by Evonik Nutrition & Care GmbH, and was published: J. Anim. Sci. 97:4883-4894; J. Anim. Sci. 98:skaa092. doi: 10.1093/jas/skaa092).
32 Overview over methionine metabolism: Implications in swine nutrition and health
Authors: Liao Shengfa F , Oladejo Emmanuel
Published: May 2024

Methionine (Met) can be referred to as a functional amino acid (AA) because besides serving as a building block for protein bio-syntheses, it also performs many other biochemical and physiological functions in swine body, simply due to its unique chemical structure and cellular metabolism. As a sulfur-containing AA (SAA), a Met molecule, as its name indicates, contains a methyl group covalently bonded to a sulfur atom via a thioether bond. In terms of its functions, first of all, Met is the initiator for virtually all protein bio-syntheses. Secondly, Met can be easily oxidized to a sulfoxide via a covalent modification, and the resulting Met sulfoxide can be readily reduced back to Met. In the case of protein-bound Met, both Met and cysteine (Cys) residues are most susceptible to oxidation and this nature can protect many proteins from oxidative damages. The biochemical metabolism of Met involves transmethylation, remethylation, transsulfuration, and transamination pathways. The initial step of transmethylation is generation of S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) which is an essential methyl donor in a myriad of metabolic events that include the methylation of DNA, RNA, proteins, phospholipids, and some small molecules. These various methylations dictate the replicational, transcriptional and translational fidelities, mismatch repair, chromatin modelling, epigenetic modification, imprinting, as well as detoxification of xenobiotics, which are all topics of great interest and importance in swine health and production performance. SAM is also a key metabolite to produce homocysteine which can be remethylated back to Met via the remethylation pathway (known as methyl cycle). The transsulfuration pathway firstly converts homocysteine to cystathionine via a condensation with serine, and then cystathionine is cleaved to Cys plus α-ketobutyrate and ammonia. Transsulfuration pathway is irreversible, and that is why Met is an indispensable AA whose deficiency cannot be remedied by Cys, whereas Cys is dispensable when more Met is provided. Because of this metabolic interconversion between Met and Cys in the body, these two are generally grouped together as SAA (Met + Cys) in swine nutrition practice. That said, when tissue Met concentration is too great, Met can be catabolized via its transamination pathway which is minor and SAM-independent. Met toxicity is mainly caused by methanethiol and H2S, two major toxic metabolites in the transamination pathway. Synthesized from Met, a myriad of proteins and peptides are involved in the functioning of immune system for maintaining animal health. For example, SAM is also a precursor for synthesis of polyamines which can enhance immune cell proliferation during an immune challenge. Cys and its derivatives (e.g., glutathione and taurine), in addition to their antioxidative capacity, can ameliorate inflammation during an immune response. In short, Met is a unique SAA that has numerous indispensable biological functions for supporting swine health and production performance.
299 Building and maintaining an engaged undergraduate equine research team
Authors: Staniar W Burton
Published: May 2024

An objective of the equine science program at Penn State is to provide the training and knowledge students need to solve problems in their lives and careers. The Equine Research Team at Penn State (PSERT) is a novel approach to meeting this objective, inspired by Dr. Max Kleiber’s “Tracer Team”, a group of faculty and graduate students that successfully studied kinetics of phosphorus and calcium metabolism in dairy cows at the University of California, Davis in the 1950s and 60s. The team allows us to address several objectives that are not easily approached using more traditional teaching environments found in the classroom or laboratory. These include 1) satisfying the demand for research experience from a large number of students, who come to research with an enormous range of ability and enthusiasm, 2) providing the hand on practice utilizing the scientific method to solve problems in the equine industry, 3) building a sense of personal responsibility and simultaneously cooperation by approaching research as a team, 4) creating an environment of academic and creative achievement outside the traditional grading system, and 5) blurring the lines that traditionally separate academic and social life at a university to create an environment much closer to what students will experience as graduates. In spring 2008, 10 undergraduate students sought formal research experience opportunities in the area of equine science. Students were organized into a team that met biweekly. Project leaders registered for independent study course credits and conducted 3 research studies in yr 1, while the rest of the team participated as volunteers. Fourteen years later, the team is still an important student organization with between 40 to 60 members on an annual basis. Over the years, the team has traveled to universities and important equine industry locations throughout the United States. Members have conceived, conducted, analyzed and presented research studies on a wide range of topics within the sphere of equine science. The team has two faculty advisors, an executive committee analogous to most student organizations, a group of research project leaders, and approximately 60 dues paying student members. The biweekly meeting is organized and led by the executive committee and generally contains the following components: update of activities, seminar provided by an outside speaker from industry or academia who has expertise in the area of equine research, presentation by one of the research project leaders, and group discussion of the project, planning of future research projects. This Equine Research Team has been and continues to be a model that can be utilized by others to successfully facilitate undergraduate student engagement in research.
228 The effect of temperature-humidity index in different pregnancy stages on litter traits in Taiwan Landrace sows
Authors: Lin Kai-Hsiang , Flowers Billy , Jiang Jicai , Knauer Mark , Lin En-Chung
Published: May 2024

Because of climate change, annual average temperatures are gradually rising. Hence, increasing heat stress can impair the litter traits of Taiwanese sows located in tropical and subtropical zones. However, some pregnancy stages may be impacted more by heat stress than other periods. Thus, the purpose of this study was to demonstrate the effect of temperature-humidity index (THI) in different pregnancy stages on total number born (TNB), number born alive (NBA), and stillborn rate (STB). Data were collected in two Taiwanese farms from 2008 to 2021 for TNB, NBA, and STB, while weather data were collected from the closest respective weather station. There were 4,247 and 6,812 pure line Landrace record from farm 1 and farm 2, respectively. Pregnancy stages included 28 d before mating (BEFORE), mating to 30 d of pregnancy (EARLY), 31 to 70 d of pregnancy (MIDDLE), and 71 d of pregnancy to farrowing (LATE). Average THI was calculated in each pregnancy stage and regression coefficients were estimated by linear mixed models within ASReml. A two-trait analysis was used to estimate regression coefficients and genetic correlations among TNB, NBA, and STB. Results showed THI impacted (P < 0.05) TNB and NBA BEFORE and EARLY, while THI influenced (P < 0.05) STB EARLY and MIDDLE. Regression coefficients for TNB were -0.0069 and -0.0228 for BEFORE and EARLY, respectively. For NBA, regression coefficients were 0.0106 and -0.0391 for BEFORE and EARLY, respectively. Regression coefficients for STB were -0.0651 and 0.1332 for EARLY and MIDDLE, respectively. Heritability estimates for TNB, NBA, and STB were 0.168, 0.113, and 0.069, respectively. Genetic correlations between TNB with NBA and STB were 0.913 and 0.539, respectively. While the genetic correlation between NBA and STB was 0.158. In conclusion, THI impacted BEFORE and EARLY stages for TNB and NBA, while the stages of EARLY and MIDDLE were impacted by THI for STB. Hence, control of the environments in these specific stages for sows could improve the performance of litter traits.
229 Effects of sire line on survivability traits of commercial pigs sired by PIC 800 or a North American competitor Duroc Line from birth to market
Authors: Spath Isaiah T , Little Erin , Edler Roy , Zaragoza Luis E , Wuebker Michelle , Spindler Matthew , Wilson-Wells Danielle
Published: May 2024

This study aimed to evaluate differences in survivability traits on pigs originating from two sire lines from birth to market. A total of 28,426 commercial pigs sired by either PIC 800 boars (n = 13,960 pigs) or a North American competitor Duroc line (Sire A; n = 14,466 pigs) were used in this study. PIC Camborough sows from 2 sister-sow farms were bred using semen from both genetic lines was mated equally and randomly across sows to ensure sire lines and parity of dams were balanced across farms. Pigs were individually identified at birth by genetic line and cross-fostering was done following standard farm practices. At weaning (average wean age 22 d of age, average body weight 6.8kg), pigs from both lines were sent to nurseries or Wean-to-finish sites (n = 11,541 PIC 800 and n = 11,922 Sire A), comingling in the same barns and pens. Starting inventories for each genetic line were recorded at weaning for all sites, end of nursery (4 wk post weaning), and 1 to 2 wk before start of marketing (target market weight 127kg at 160 d of age). For each production period, information on mortality and morbidity traits (n = 10,600 PIC 800 and n = 10,974 Sire A) was collected. Data were analyzed using R separately for each production period (i.e., Pre-weaning, Grow-to-finish, and Wean-to-finish) and not pooled from birth to market due to some groups not being kept intact. Morbidity and mortality data were analyzed using binomial models with a fixed effect of sire line and a random effect of sow farm or nursery/wean-to-finish site for pre-wean traits or post-weaning traits, respectively. Pigs from farms without removal reason record were excluded from analysis of removal reasons (Table 1). Overall pre-wean mortality was less (P ≤ 0.05) for PIC 800 pigs than Sire A pigs (8.5 vs. 9.6%, for PIC 800 and Sire A, respectively), mostly due to having fewer (P ≤ 0.05) pigs laid-on (4.8 vs 5.9%, respectively). At 4 wk post weaning, PIC 800 pigs had less (P ≤ 0.05) fallout rate than Sire A pigs (2.5 vs 3.5%, for PIC 800 and Sire A, respectively), with no differences (P > 0.05) in mortality rate (1.2 vs 1.3%, respectively). Grow-to-finish morbidity and mortality rates were less (P ≤ 0.05) for PIC 800 (2.1 and 1.3%, for morbidity and mortality rates, respectively) compared with Sire A (2.5 and 1.8%, respectively). Likewise, wean-to-finish morbidity and mortality rates were less (P ≤ 0.05) for PIC 800 (2.5 and 3.7%, for morbidity and mortality rates, respectively) compared with Sire A (3.0 and 4.7%, respectively). Results suggest PIC 800 sired pigs consistently had lower incidence of morbidity and mortality than Sire A pigs across all stages of production included in this study.
230 Using phenotypes with uncertain identification leveraging computer vision models
Authors: Shumaly Mina , Steibel Juan P
Published: May 2024

There has been an increase in high throughput phenotyping using sensors in livestock farming. The major obstacle when analyzing phenotypic data in studies using cameras is identifying the animals using computer vision. To overcome this problem, an analysis method that uses keypoint detection in conjunction with classification algorithms can identify animals in images. However, these algorithms generally output a prediction probability for different classes, reflecting uncertainty. In most practices, the highest probability will be assigned as the putative identification (ID). In some cases, this may introduce incorrect identification and affect downstream decisions. Here, we propose an analytical approach to incorporate all the uncertainty in the putative ID distribution into downstream inferences. We used a publicly available keypoint detection dataset of 17 keypoints detected in 3,226 images from 30 diverse thoroughbred horses. We performed feature engineering with Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) using 5-fold cross-validation to build horse classifiers. The best model selected had an accuracy of 88.12% to identify animals in the testing set. Afterward, we performed Monte Carlo simulations to add a phenotype that was assumed independent of the image keypoints. This generated a set of plasmodes to evaluate methods that accounted for ID uncertainty. Each simulation included different means for two groups of 15 horses. In total nine simulation scenarios were considered including varying effect sizes of group mean difference and various repeatability values (horse variance to total variance ratio). We analyzed the simulated data with three different mixed models: 1) Fixed and random effects were based on using ground truth assignment of ID, 2) Fixed and random effects were based on using the putative ID with the highest posterior probability from the best classifier, 3) Finally, prediction probabilities were used to account for putative ID uncertainty. As expected, the model that used ground truth ID had the highest power to detect group differences, and it had the lowest root mean square error (rMSE) to estimate variance components across all scenarios. The linear model that used highest posterior probability putative ID, showed the lowest power and highest rMSE. For instance, as shown in Table 1, the mean rMSE value for group mean differences in the model using ground truth is 0.01 and the model using highest posterior probabilities is 0.13. The model that incorporated ID uncertainty had intermediate properties, showing a rMSE of 0.03 for group differences. Overall, incorporating uncertainty in Animal ID results in improved performance in ultimate test statistics used in animal studies. This is very important in breeding and precision livestock farming contexts where animal identification is challenging. We will further investigate this.
123 Phenomics enabled quantitative genetic modeling of complex traits
Authors: Morota Gota
Published: May 2024

With the development of high-throughput technologies, particularly for genomics and phenomics, biology has become a large-scale, data-rich field. High-throughput phenotyping (HTP) is an innovative technology that integrates advances in engineering or computer science into agriculture to optimize production while ensuring sustainability. In particular, the use of image-based HTP technologies allows us to collect a large number of phenotypes in an automated manner with less human labor and reduced costs, allowing us to efficiently evaluate phenotypes that were previously difficult to measure manually. The advent of HTP, coupled with the wealth of genomic data generated by next-generation sequencing technologies, provides new and exciting resources for studying complex traits. These new technologies also bring new challenges to quantitative genetics, namely the development of robust statistical frameworks that can accommodate spatial, temporal, heterogeneous, and high-dimensional phenotypic data. However, the impact of HTP-derived traits on genetic analysis in animal breeding and genetics has been limited. In this talk some real data examples of quantitative genetic modeling of image-derived traits will be presented.
105 Water quality analysis and flow rate comparison between wean-finish swine barns
Authors: Kittle Olivia C S , Leonard Suzanne M , Knauer Mark , Almond Glen
Published: May 2024

Water is an essential nutrient to sustain life and a vital component of biological functioning, impacting regulation of pig body temperature along with transporting nutrients to the body. Drinker availability, position, design, water flow rate and pressure, and water quality are major components of pig water intake. The ideal water flow rate for wean-to-finish pigs is 1 L m-1. Excessive flow rates could limit pig water intake and increase humidity in the barn, while too little water flow can lead to a decrease in water intake and biological functioning of the pig. Water should not contain harmful substances and should be readily accessible to pigs. Compounds in water are highly variable depending on region, water source, and pH. Quality of water influences feed consumption along with pig health. Water can contain a variety of microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, algae, and protozoa; while not all microorganisms are harmful a highly contaminated water analysis is an index of poor water quality. In this study water quality and water flow rates were analyzed across five wean-finish sites comprising 16 barns for three turns of finishing pigs. Water flow rates were measured twice per turn, wk 1 and wk 17. Each barn contained 36 pens and flow rate measurements were collected in 8 pens evenly distributed within the barn. One suspended water source was available per pen, with two nipple drinkers per water source. Water flow rates were averaged over each turn within barns. Average water flow rates were 1.42 L m-1 with standard deviation of 0.44 L m-1. Overall barn water flow rates ranged from 0.78 to 2.19 L m-1. Barn flow rates were compared over time to evaluate performance and maintenance of facilities. Water quality samples were also collected and submitted for standard water analysis. Results will provide information on management strategies to assess water quality and water flow rates in wean-finish facilities.
100 Evaluating the effect of liver copper concentration on vaccine response in lightweight dairy-beef steers
Authors: Henderson Jacob A , McGill Jodi , Hansen Stephanie L
Published: May 2024

Dairy-beef crossbred calves often face greater copper (Cu) exposure than native beef calves, which may impact their response to vaccines. To investigate this, 28 weaned dairy-beef steers (90.25 ± 1.28 kg; ~8 wk old) were enrolled in a study to determine the effect of Cu status on the antibody response to vaccine. Steers were stratified by body weight (BW) and assigned to one of two dietary treatments: low Cu (no supplemental Cu) and high Cu (supplementing 20 mg Cu/kg DM). Steers were housed in pens of six to eight animals for 82 d before d 0 of the vaccination period to create distinct liver Cu groupings. Seven days before initial vaccine dose, liver biopsies were collected, and steers were grouped into low (n = 13) and high (n = 15) Cu treatments. Liver Cu for low Cu averaged 291 ± 24 mg/kg DM (range 240 to 376 mg/kg DM) and for high Cu averaged 665 ± 23 mg Cu/kg liver DM (range 519 to 893 mg/kg DM). All calves were vaccinated on d 0 and boostered 21 d later with Bovilis Vista 5 SQ (Merck Animal Health, Rahway, NJ) and an ovalbumin vaccine. Blood and BW were collected on these days and again on d 49 to end the study. Serum antibody titers for BRSV, BHV1, BVDV1, and BVDV2 were analyzed by the Iowa State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (Ames, IA). Response to ovalbumin vaccination was determined using an ELISA. Plasma Cu concentrations were determined on d 0, 21, and 49 via ICP-OES. Ovalbumin antibodies were determined by calculating the ratio of each sample to a positive control. Titers, ovalbumin response, and plasma Cu data from d 0, 21, and 49 were analyzed using the Mixed procedure of SAS 9.4 (Cary, NC) with the fixed effect of Cu treatment and day as repeated. Plasma Cu decreased across days (P = 0.0008). Given both treatments had adequate liver Cu, it is unsurprising plasma Cu did not differ by treatment (P = 0.2; 1.02 and 1.07 mg Cu/L for low and high Cu, respectively). Antibodies for BRSV, BHV1, and BVDV2 increased across days (P < 0.0001), but there were no differences by treatment (P ≥ 0.12). Ovalbumin antibodies were affected by treatment by day (P = 0.04), where high Cu had greater response to ovalbumin than low Cu on d 21, but by d 49 ovalbumin antibodies were similar between Cu treatments. These results suggest excessive liver Cu concentration may not affect response to vaccination in dairy-beef steers; however, more research is needed to determine the effects of increased liver Cu concentration on oxidative stress and immune system function.
103 Effects of partial or total replacement of dried distiller’s grain with soybean meal on growth performance, carcass characteristics, sera urea nitrogen, and net energy utilization in finishing beef steers
Authors: Ross Cassidy , DeHaan Erin R , Francis Forest L , Francis Becca Grimes , Ribeiro Thiago , Smith Zachary K , Rusche Warren C
Published: May 2024

The objective of this study was to determine if partial or complete replacement of dried distiller’s grains plus solubles (DDGS) with solvent-extracted soybean meal (SBM) influences growth performance, efficiency of dietary net energy utilization, sera urea-N (SUN) concentrations, or carcass traits in finishing beef steers. Continental × British steers [initial shrunk body weight (BW) = 382 ± 37 kg] were used in a 139-d experiment. Treatments included: DDGS fed at 20% DM (13.4% CP; DDGS), SBM replacing 50% of DDGS (14.4% CP; SBM50), and SBM replacing 100% of DDGS (15.4% CP; SBM100). Steers (n = 189) were weighed and allotted to 1 of 24 pens (n = 8 steers per pen; 8 pens per treatment) at the Ruminant Nutrition Center near Brookings, SD. Whole blood was collected and harvested as sera on d 77, 105, and 139 to determine SUN concentration. Growth and carcass data were analyzed as a randomized complete block design using the GLIMMIX procedure of SAS 9.4 with treatment and block (initial BW grouping) as fixed effects; SUN data were analyzed using repeated measures, pen was the experimental unit. Inclusion level was evaluated for linear and quadratic components by the method of orthogonal polynomials. Final BW was calculated by dividing hot carcass weight (HCW) by 0.625. No differences were noted (P ≥ 0.18) for final BW, average daily gain, dry matter intake, or feed efficiency. Dietary treatment tended to affect gain to feed ratio (G:F; quadratic; P = 0.10) and SBM increased the apparent efficiency of energy capture. Treatment had no effect (P ≥ 0.22) on HCW, rib fat, marbling score, USDA yield grade, or final BW adjusted to 28% empty body fat. Complete replacement of DDGS with SBM increased rib eye area by 1% (linear; P = 0.02), but decreased dressing percentage (linear, P = 0.03). Distribution of USDA quality or yield grades were unaffected by treatment (P ≥ 0.36). No treatment × day interaction was observed for SUN (P = 0.20). However, day (P < 0.01) and treatment (P < 0.01) effects were observed. Initial samples (d 77) differed between DDGS and SBM treatments, with the latter having greater SUN values (P < 0.01). On d 105, the SBM100 treatment had greater SUN than DDGS, and SBM50 was intermediate (P < 0.01). On d 139, steers from SBM100 had elevated increased SUN compared with SBM50 and DDGS treatments (P < 0.01). Net energy values calculated from animal performance for DDGS agreed closely with tabular estimates. In this experiment, replacement of DDGS with SBM increased the observed to expected ratio of dietary NE, increased muscularity and tended to decrease DP with no other observed effects on growth performance or carcass traits.
97 Effects of crude protein content and supplementing probiotics in late gestation and lactation sow diets on performance of sows and suckling pigs
Authors: Chrapun Leah E , Lee Jinyoung , Mendoza S M S , Htoo John K , Nyachoti Martin
Published: May 2024

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of crude protein (CP) content and supplementation with Bacillus-based probiotics (PRO) in late gestation and lactation sow diets on performance of sows and suckling pigs. Pregnant sows (n = 120; 60 gilts and 60 2+ parity) were assigned to 4 dietary treatments in a 2 x 2 factorial arrangement (2 CP levels, with or without probiotics) from d 85 of gestation to d 21 of lactation. The experiment was conducted in 4 consecutive periods (half sows and half gilts per period). The diets consisted of 1) a corn-soybean meal (SBM)-based low CP (LCP; 12% CP) diet; 2) LCP + 0.05% probiotic (LCP-PRO); 3) a corn-SBM-based high CP (HCP; 15% CP) diet; and 4) HCP + 0.05% probiotic (HCP-PRO). The diets were formulated for 2 phases: gestation (d 85 – 115) and lactation (d 1 – 21). Sow body weight (BW) and backfat thickness were recorded on d 85 and 111 of gestation and on d 1 and 21 of lactation. Sow blood and milk were sampled on d 1 and 21 of lactation to analyze plasma urea nitrogen (PUN) concentration, and milk fat, protein, and lactose, respectively. Data were analyzed using the PROC MIXED of SAS. The statistical model included diet as fixed effect and period as random effect. There were no significant effects of CP and PRO on sow BW or backfat thickness. There was an interaction (P < 0.05) between CP and PRO on the number of stillbirths, where the number of stillbirths did not differ between LCP and LCP-PRO groups, while the number decreased in sows fed HCP-PRO diet compared with HCP diet. Sows fed LCP diets had reduced (P < 0.05) PUN concentrations on d 1 and d 21 of lactation compared with those fed HCP diets. However, no difference was found in fat, protein, or lactose content in both colostrum (d 1) and milk (d 21). Piglets from the sows fed LCP diets showed heavier (P < 0.05) birth weights (1.58, 1.57, 1.53, and 1.52 kg for diets 1 to 4) than those in HCP groups, however, the average daily gain (ADG) of week 1 (188, 166, 187, and 187 g for diets 1 to 4) was less (P < 0.05) for piglets in LCP groups than HCP groups. No other effects were observed on piglet growth. In conclusion, CP and PRO did not affect sow BW and backfat thickness. There was an interaction effect of CP and PRO on reproductive performance, where stillbirths did not differ between LCP and LCP-PRO groups; however, stillbirths decreased with PRO in HCP diet. Moreover, feeding LCP diets to sows did not influence milk nutrient contents and overall growth performance in suckling piglets.
96 Evaluating the impact of macroenvironment temperature on thermoregulatory and milk quality parameters in lactating sows and their litter
Authors: Cecil Mekenzie R , Neeno Samantha M , Byrd MaryKate , field Tyler C C , Marchant Jeremy N , Schinckel Allan P , Richert Brian T , Ni Ji-Qin , III Robert M M Stwalley , Johnson Jay S
Published: May 2024

Farrowing facility macroenvironment temperatures (TMacro) are often maintained at the upper end of the thermoneutral zone (24–25°C) of lactating sows, which may result in heat stress and reduced milk quality and quantity. Therefore, the study objective was to evaluate the impact of TMacro on thermoregulatory and milk quality parameters in lactating sows and their litters. In two repetitions, 37 lactating sows (parity = 3.1 ± 1.7) and their litters (d 1 litter size = 12.0 ± 1.0) were housed within 1 of 3 farrowing rooms set to different TMacro: LOW (n = 12 sows and litters; 15.0 ± 0.4°C), MID (n = 13 sows and litters; 19.3 ± 0.2°C), and HIGH (n = 12 sows and litters; 24.6 ± 0.8°C). Lactating sows and litters were monitored from d 3 of lactation until weaning (19.8 ± 0.9 d of age). All litters were provided with a 0.34 × 1.52 m heating pad. Sow respiration rates (RR, breaths per minute, BPM) were measured daily at 0800, 1200, 1600 and 2000 h by counting the number of flank movements. Vaginal temperature (TV) was measured in all sows at 10-min intervals using implanted data loggers. One sentinel piglet from each litter was implanted with a temperature recording bolus at d 2 of age to monitor core body temperature in 15-min intervals. Milk samples were collected from all sows on d 6, 12, and 18 of lactation and analyzed for true protein %, total solid %, and fat %. Data were analyzed using PROC GLIMMIX. The litter was considered the experimental unit for piglet measures, and the sow was considered the experimental unit for sow measures. Respiration rates were greater (P < 0.01) for HIGH (48 ± 2 bpm) sows versus MID (33 ± 2 BPM) and LOW (27 ± 2 bpm) sows, but no differences were detected between MID and LOW sows. A TMacro treatment by lactation day effect was observed for TV (P = 0.02), where HOT sows had greater TV on lactation d 15 (+0.31°C), 18 (+0.43°C) and 19 (+0.34°C) versus MID and LOW sows. Piglet core body temperature was reduced (P < 0.01) in the HIGH (39.07 ± 0.06 °C) versus the MID (39.31 ± 0.06 °C) and LOW (39.33 ± 0.07 °C) treatment groups, but it was similar for MID and LOW litters. Fat % was reduced for COLD (6.15 ± 0.52%) versus MID (7.35 ± 0.50%) sows on d 12, but no differences were observed when compared with HIGH sows (6.97 ± 0.52%). In conclusion, the HIGH treatment resulted in physiological heat stress for lactating sows and lowered piglet core body temperature, but it had minimal effects on measures of milk quality.
101 Supplementation of valine, isoleucine, and tryptophan may overcome the negative effects of dietary excess leucine in high protein corn protein when fed to weanling pigs
Authors: Mallea Andrea P , Lee Su A , Cristobal Minoy , Torres-Mendoza Leidy J , Stein Hans H
Published: May 2024

Inclusion of high protein corn protein (HPCP) in diets for weanling pigs may result in diets with excess Leu being formulated, which may reduce growth performance. However, it was hypothesized that the negative effect of using HPCP in diets for weanling pigs may be overcome if diets are fortified with crystalline Val, Trp, and (or) Ile. A total of 320 weanling pigs were randomly allotted to 10 dietary treatments in a randomized complete block design. Day 1 to 14 was phase 1 and d 15 to 28 was phase 2. Within each phase, a corn-soybean meal control diet and 2 diets based on corn and 10% HPCP or corn and 20% HPCP were formulated. Seven additional diets were formulated by adding Val, Ile, Trp, Val and Ile, Val and Trp, Ile and Trp, or Val, Ile, and Trp to the diet with 20% HPCP. Fecal scores were recorded every other day. Blood samples were collected on d 14 and d 28. Data were analyzed using the PROC MIXED of SAS; diet was the fixed effect and block and replicate within block were random effects. Inclusion of 10 or 20% HPCP in diets reduced (P < 0.05) final body weight (BW) on d 28, and also reduced (P < 0.05) average daily gain (ADG) and average daily feed intake (ADFI) in phase 2 and for the overall experiment (Table 1). However, pigs fed the HPCP diet supplemented with Val, Ile, and Trp had a greater (P < 0.05) final BW and ADG in phase 2 and for the overall experiment than pigs fed the HPCP diets without AA or with Ile, Trp, or Ile and Trp, and results for this diet were not different from results for the control diet. Fecal scores in phase 2 were reduced (P < 0.05) if 20% HPCP was included in the diets except if Ile and Val were also included (Table 2). On d 28, pigs fed the diet with 20% HPCP and only Val, Val and Trp, or Val, Trp, and Ile had reduced (P < 0.01) blood urea N compared with pigs fed the control diet or the other HPCP-based diets, and pigs fed the control diet and the diet with 20% HPCP and Val, Ile and Trp had a greater (P < 0.05) albumin concentration than pigs fed the other diets (Table 3). Thus, the increased catabolism of Val, and reduced Trp transport into the brain that are caused by excess Leu from HPCP may be overcome by adding Val, Ile, and Trp to HPCP-based diets. In conclusion, up to 20% HPCP may be included in diets for weanling pigs without affecting growth performance or blood characteristics if diets are fortified with extra Val, Ile, and Trp.
99 Phytochemicals as medical growth promoter replacement on growth performance in wean to finisher pigs
Authors: Grogan Hannah G , Allen Rebecca , Story Robert , Sam Bernard , Isaza Jamie Andrés Ángel , Martinez Blanca Cecilia , Uribe Álvaro José , Maxwell Charles V V , Tsai Tsungcheng Cheng
Published: May 2024

Stress can disturb the ecological balance of the microbiota residing in the GI tract of piglets leading to dysbiosis. This unhealthy imbalance causes the piglets to be more vulnerable to deleterious effects induced by opportunistic pathogens. Antibiotics and increased zinc levels have often been used as dietary supplements to help minimize these stressors in pigs. Emerged evidence suggests that phytochemicals can promote growth by boosting nutrient digestibility, immune cell activity, and possessing bactericidal characteristics. We evaluated two phytochemicals formulations as safer and more environmentally friendly dietary alternatives for postweaning pigs. We used a total of 240 weaned piglets [average body weight (BW): 6.26 ± 0.36 kg] which were blocked (n = 8) by BW and then randomly assigned to 1 of 5 dietary treatments. Treatments were negative control (NC), Mecadox 10 (Phibro Animal Health Corp., Teaneck, NJ) + ZnO positive control (PC), Mecadox + phytochemical 1 (Lippia origanoides; Phyt1+AB), phytochemical 1 alone (Phyt1), and phytochemical 2 (Lippia origanoides + Rosmarinus officinalis + Sodium humates; Phyt2). The pigs were fed a 7-phase feeding regime: Nursery phase (NP) 1, 2, and 3, Grower phase 1 and 2 (Grower), and Finisher phase 1 and 2 (Finisher). The antibiotic and ZnO were withdrawn at the end of NP3, while Phyt1 and Phyt2 remained in feed throughout the entire study period. Data were analyzed using Mixed procedure of SAS (Cary, NC) with treatments as the main effect and BW blocks as the random effect. Pen was the experimental unit. Supplemental phytochemicals (Phyt1+AB, Phyt1, Phyt2) had greater average daily gain (ADG) and gain to feed ratio (G:F) during NP1 when compared with the pigs fed NC, but were still less than pigs fed PC (P < 0.0001). Pigs fed PC maintained a greater ADG during nursery overall than NC, Phyt1, and Phyt2 with pigs fed Phyt1+AB as intermediate (P < 0.0001). Phyt1 exerted an adverse effect (Phyt1+AB and Phyt1) on ADG during relatively mild stress in Grower phase (Grower, P = 0.0146), and resulted in the lighter BW at the end of Grower than pigs fed PC (P = 0.031). Notably, the pigs experienced summer heat stress during the Finisher phase, of which, the presence of phytochemicals minimized. Pigs fed Phyt2 had a greater ADG during Finisher than pigs fed NC with pigs fed PC, Phyt1+AB, and Phyt1 as intermediates (Finisher, P = 0.0419), while pigs fed Phyt1+AB and Phyt2 had greater G:F when compared with pigs fed PC and NC with pigs fed Phyt1 as intermediate (Finisher, P = 0.0032). Collectively, we demonstrated that phytochemical 2 can be a safer medication diet replacement to help pigs sustain weaning and heat stress. The mode of action and the optimum concentrations of these phytochemicals to achieve maximum benefits need further investigation.
76 Effect of 0.79% top-dressed arginine supplementation at different gestation periods and seasons on the colostrum composition and productive performance of sows and piglets
Authors: Virdis Sara , Luise Diana , Correa Federico , Palumbo Francesco , Negrini Clara , Orazzo Gabriella , Graziosi Maria Vittoria , Rolla Umberto , Trevisi Paolo
Published: May 2024

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of supplementation with 0.79% top-dressed arginine (Arg) at different gestation periods and seasons on the productive performance and colostrum composition of sows. A total of 320 sows were divided into 4 feeding groups (80 sows/group) under 2 different seasons (summer and winter): a control group (CO) fed a standard diet and 3 groups supplemented with 0.79% Arg either for the first 35 d of gestation (TRT35), the last 45 d of gestation (TRT45), or the entire gestation period (TRTCOM). Colostrum was collected at farrowing from 12 sows per group per season. Productive performance and individual piglet body weight (BW) were recorded at birth (d 0), d 6 of age, weaning (d 28) and 14 d post-weaning (d 14p). Data were analyzed using a general linear mixed model including diet, season, their interaction, and parity class as fixed factors. At the end of the gestation, sows from the TRTCOM group had a greater BW (P = 0.003) and average daily gain (ADG; P = 0.009) than the CO group. The diet did not influence the number of total born and total born alive piglets. The stillborn % was less in the TRT35 group than CO and TRTCOM groups (P < 0.001). The TRTCOM group had a greater crushed % and hypo-vital % than CO group (P < 0.001). Colostral IgG was reduced in the Arg groups compared with the CO group (P < 0.001) while no differences were found for IgA and IgM between the groups. The BW of pilets at d 0, d 6, d 28 and d 14p and ADGs were not affected by the diet; however, the TRT35 had a reduced % of low-birth BW piglets than CO (P = 0.02). The TRT45 tended to have greater % in low-birth BW piglets than CO (P = 0.051) and greater % in high-birth BW piglets than the other groups (P < 0.001). The sows having the gestation in summer had decreased BW at the beginning of gestation, a greater final BW and ADG (P < 0.001), a lower number of total born (P = 0.003), mummified % but a greater crushed % (P < 0.01). Piglets BW at birth, d 28 and d 14p was greater in winter. Lactose (P = 0.001) and IgG (P < 0.001) were greater in the winter. In conclusion, 0.79% of on top-dressed Arg had a negative effect on the productive performance of the sows during the entire gestation period. Conversely, supplementing Arg during the first 35 d of gestation led to a decrease in the percentage of stillborn and low-birth BW piglets.