bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
62 Sulphur Amino Acids: Assessing Requirements and Utilization in Dogs and Cats
Authors: Pezzali Julia Guazzelli
Published: November 2023

Methionine (Met), cyst(e)ine (Cys), homocysteine and taurine are the four sulfur-containing amino acids. Met can serve as a substrate for protein synthesis or to produce homocysteine, which can be remethylated to Met or irreversibly catabolized to Cys. Unlike dogs, cats are unable to further metabolize Cys to taurine, making the latter an indispensable amino acid for the cat. Met, on the other hand, is a dietary indispensable amino acid for all mammals with Cys having the ability to spare part of the Met requirement (total sulfur amino acid requirement; Met + Cys). The amount of Met that cannot be replaced by Cys is defined as the Met requirement (NRC, 2006). Empirical determinations of the Met requirement in adult dogs and cats are still limited and the recommendations proposed by the NRC (2006) are based on studies that used insensitive techniques for mature animals. When a more robust technique, the indicator amino acid oxidation, and more practical experimental diets were used to empirically determine the Met requirement, a greater estimate was found in adult cats (Pezzali et al., 2022) and adult Labrador Retrievers and Beagles, but not in miniature Dachshunds (Mansilla et al., 2020), compared with the current recommendations proposed by the NRC (2006) and AAFCO (2023). Harrison et al. (2020), however, found a decreased estimate for the Met requirement in adult Labrador Retrievers compared with Mansilla et al. (2020), likely due to differences in experimental design and diet composition. This discrepancy highlights the need to standardize methodologies and to investigate the effect of other dietary factors on the Met and total sulfur amino acid requirements owing to their complex metabolism. Indeed, the metabolism of sulfur amino acids may differ between dog breeds, resulting in differences in Met requirements and potentially making taurine a conditionally indispensable amino acid in some breeds under specific dietary conditions. While dietary Met is usually provided in excess in commercial diets, excess of Met may lead to hyperhomocysteinemia, which has been associated with detrimental health effects in other species. Due to the complex metabolism of sulfur amino acids and the complex matrix of pet foods, determining the ideal provision of sulfur amino acids in commercial diets to maximize animal health is a challenge. More long-term studies investigating the effect of different doses and ratios (Met:Cys) of sulfur amino acids on overall metabolism are necessary, in addition to requirement studies, to optimize the dietary delivery of sulfur amino acids in dogs and cats.
237 Evaluation of Thermal Variation During Early-Stage Incubation on Broiler Chicken Pectoralis Major Muscle Satellite Cell Mitotic Activity and Heterogeneity at 28 Days Post-Hatch
Authors: Fiallos Orlando B , Hutson Brittany , Rueda Martha , Davis Jeremiah D , Purswell Joseph , Starkey Charles , Starkey Jessica D
Published: November 2023

Muscle satellite cells (SC) have an essential role in post-hatch skeletal muscle growth. To evaluate the effects of thermal variation (TV) during early-stage incubation (ESI) on Pectoralis major (PM) muscle SC heterogeneity of broiler chickens reared to 28 d post-hatch a randomized complete block design experiment with a 3 × 2 factorial treatment structure was conducted. Yield Plus × Ross 708 broiler breeder eggs (n = 2,160) ranging from 54 to 59 g were allotted equally by weight into 90-egg trays (n = 4 trays per incubator). All eggs were pre-warmed at 24 °C for 8 h and incubated at 37.5 °C from embryonic day (ED) 0 to 4. From ED 4 to 11, eggs were incubated at 1 of 3 temperatures (n = 2 incubators per TV treatment); 37.5 °C (CTL), 36.4 °C (COLD), or 38.6 °C (HOT). On ED 11, all incubators were returned to the CTL (37.5 °C) set point until ED 18. On ED 18, all eggs were transferred to baskets in hatchers set to 36.7 °C. After 514 h of incubation, all chicks were removed simultaneously, vent sexed, and weighed. Chicks were randomly allotted to floor pens (6 pens per treatment per sex) blocked by location and reared on a common diet. On d 28, birds (n = 10 per TV x sex treatment) were injected with bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) before PM sample collection. Cryosections were immunofluorescence stained to facilitate taxonomy of SC populations expressing the myogenic regulatory factors Pax7 and MyoD as well as the proliferation marker BrdU by fluorescence microscopy. Data were analyzed as a 2-way ANOVA using SAS PROC GLIMMIX with TV treatment and broiler sex as main effects. Means were separated with the PDIFF option at P ≤ 0.05. Tendencies were declared when 0.0501 ≤ P ≤ 0.10. A TV × sex interaction was observed only for the MyoD+: Pax7+ SC density (P = 0.0232); however, none of the pairwise mean comparisons were significant at P < 0.05. Though CTL male and COLD female chicks had twice the density of MyoD+:Pax7+ SC as CTL females (P = 0.0535) and HOT males (P = 0.0645), respectively. There is no clear explanation for this observation. There were no interactive or main effects on density of MyoD+, Pax7+, MyoD+:BrdU+, Pax7+:BrdU+, MyoD+:Pax7+:BrdU+ SC (P ≥ 0.1258) or nuclear density (P = 0.1017) in 28-d-old broilers. These data suggest that if TV during ESI impacts SC myogenic regulatory factor heterogeneity and mitotic activity in broilers, the effects have concluded by d 28 post-hatch in commercial broilers. Further exploration of earlier time points will be necessary to determine whether the previously observed effects of TV during ESI on growth performance and meat yield are SC-mediated post-hatch.
250 The Impact of Altering Fatty Acid Combinations in Vitro on Bovine Preadipocyte Hyperplasia
Authors: Udoka Aliute-Nkoyo S , Duckett Susan K
Published: November 2023

In the cattle industry, fat deposited on a carcass can have advantages and disadvantages depending on location and amount. Excess subcutaneous fat deposition reduces carcass red meat yield, while intramuscular fat (IMF) deposition, or marbling, increases carcass value and enhances tenderness and flavor. Two distinct adipocyte growth cycles can be attributed to total fat deposition: hypertrophy and hyperplasia. Hyperplasia refers to the adipogenic side of growth where there is an increase in preadipocyte cell number before cell differentiation. This study aimed to investigate the effects of altering fatty acid composition of cell culture media in vitro on preadipocyte hyperplasia. Subcutaneous fat was harvested from Angus-cross yearling steers (n = 4). Subcutaneous preadipocytes were isolated and propagated for a series of six passages. Preadipocytes were subsequently seeded, and eight different treatment mixtures with combinations of different fatty acids (C16:0, C18:0, C18:1cis-9, and C18:2cis-9,12) at varying ratios were added to the basal media (DMEM F12, 10% bovine fetal serum, 1% HEPES, 1% AB/AM) for a period of four days. Cell culture treatment media was changed daily. Each individual media mix was applied at the same total molar concentration (200 ug). At the end of the four-day treatment period, cells were harvested for RNA extraction and fatty acid analysis. The expression of critical adipogenic and lipogenic genes was evaluated. Treatments displayed differences (P < 0.05) in total fatty acid content (ug), which would suggest that the addition of fatty acids to media could push primary bovine preadipocytes into differentiation. Mix 8 (75% 18:1cis-9 - 25% 18:2cis-9,12) exhibited the greatest (P < 0.05) fatty acid content (ug), while mix 5 (50% C16:0- 50% C18:0) had the least (P < 0.05) fatty acid amount (ug). The expression of fatty acid binding protein-4 (FABP4) and stearoyl Co-A desaturase-1 (SCD-1) differed (P < 0.05) across treatments. The expression of peroxisome proliferating-activated receptor gamma (PPARy), sterol-regulatory element-binding protein (SREB-1c), and SREBP cleavage-activating protein (SCAP) were all downregulated (P < 0.05) in the fully saturated fatty acid mix, mix 5 (50% C16:0- 50% C18:0), compared with all other treatments. Based on the data, it appears that the addition of fatty acids at different ratios to media can affect molecular mechanisms, hyperplastic growth, and potentially the differentiation of primary bovine adipocytes. Additional examination of fatty acid supplementation in vitro could provide valuable insight into their effects on adipocyte growth and how it could be applied to alter fat deposition in vivo.
271 Effect of Different Inclusions of a Multi-Component Enzyme on Performance, Nutrient Digestibility, and Ileal Amino Acid Digestibility of Young Broiler Chickens
Authors: Abascal-Ponciano Gerardo A , Ventura Diego E , Gregg Caroline R , Hutson Brittany , Flees Joshua J , Stefanello Catarina , Starkey Jessica D , Starkey Charles
Published: November 2023

Previous studies demonstrated that dietary carbohydrases maintain optimal broiler performance. The objective of this experiment was to evaluate the effects of a commercial carbohydrase (ENZ) at 4 concentrations on growth performance, nutrient, and amino acid digestibility of 22-d-old broilers. The 10 experimental corn and soybean meal-based treatments were: 1) a positive control diet (PC) with phytase at 500 FTU/kg of feed (PHY), 2) a mid-control diet (MC) with a 115 kcal/kg reduction in energy + PHY, 3) a negative control diet (NC1) with a 223 kcal/kg reduction in metabolizable energy, 4-5) NC1 + ENZ at 1,000 or 3,000 xylanase units (XU)/kg (NC1A and NC1B, respectively), 6) NC1 + PHY (NC2), and 7-10) NC2 + ENZ at 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, or 4,000 XU/kg (ENZ1, ENZ2, ENZ3, and ENZ4, respectively). Day-old chicks (n = 1,000) were randomly allotted to raised floor pens with 5 birds/pen and 20 replicate pens/treatment. Pens had perforated metal platforms to allow excreta collection. On day 22, broilers were euthanized, and ileal digesta samples were collected from the entire ileum. Protein retention, nitrogen-corrected apparent metabolizable energy (AMEn), and ileal digestibility of protein and amino acids (AA) were determined. Performance data were calculated from d 6 to 22. Means were separated with the PDIFF option of SAS V9.4 PROC GLIMMIX at P ≤ 0.05. On d 22, broilers from PC and MC treatments had greater body weight (BW) than all other treatments (P < 0.0001). The least feed intake was reported in birds fed ENZ1 diet, but it was similar to NC1, NC1B, and ENZ3-fed broilers (P < 0.0472). Broilers fed PC and MC had the greatest BW gain; however, ENZ2-fed broilers were able to gain similarly as MC treatment (P < 0.0001). Broilers fed PC diet had the best feed efficiency, followed by MC-fed broilers, but these were similar to ENZ3 (P < 0.0001). Protein retention was the greatest for MC-fed broilers but was similar for NC1B and ENZ3 (P < 0.0001). AMEn was greatest for broilers fed PC and MC diets, followed by both diets that included 3,000 XU/kg (P < 0.0001). Protein digestibility was greatest for ENZ2-fed broilers (P < 0.0001) but similar to MC, NC1B, NC2, ENZ3, and ENZ3. Treatments with added PHY, excluding ENZ1, had greater lysine digestibility compared with all other treatments (P < 0.0001). Apart from threonine, ENZ4-fed broilers exhibited the greatest AA digestibility but were similar to broilers fed 2,000 or 3,000 XU/kg of ENZ (P < 0.0001). Therefore, ENZ inclusion above 1,000 XU/kg supported AA digestibility. Overall, broilers fed diets with 223 kcal/kg energy reduction and supplemented with 2,000 and 3,000 XU/kg outperformed the negative controls, which could be partially due to the utilization of dietary energy and nutrients.
291 Impact of Early Resynchronization in Combination with Color Doppler Ultrasonography on Cumulative Pregnancy Rates in Postpartum Beef Cows
Authors: Burato Samir , Dias Nicholas Wege , Pancini Stefania , Goncalves Lucas Melo , Walker Madison B B , Henry Darren D H , Messias Ciriaco Francine M , Mercadante Vitor R G , Harvey Kelsey M M , Fontes Pedro L P
Published: November 2023

The objective of this study is to evaluate a GnRH and progesterone-based early resynchronization strategy combined with color Doppler ultrasonography for early pregnancy diagnosis. Postpartum Bos taurus beef cows (n = 375) from four locations were enrolled in a completely randomized design, where cows were randomly assigned to 1 of the 2 treatments: 1) Natural Service (NS), cows were exposed to a 7-d CO-Synch + CIDR protocol followed by fixed-time artificial insemination (day 0). On day 15, cows were exposed to natural service for the remainder of the study; or 2) Early Resynchronization (ER), cows were exposed to a 7-d CO-Synch + CIDR protocol followed by fixed-time artificial insemination (day 0). On day 15, a controlled internal drug release (CIDR) device was inserted. On day 20, CIDR was removed, and pregnancy was estimated based on luteal blood perfusion using color Doppler ultrasonography. Non-pregnant cows received a 25-mg injection of prostaglandin F2α at CIDR removal and were fixed-timed-AI concurrently with a 100-μg injection of GnRH 60 to 66 h later. Pregnancy diagnosis and fetal aging were performed on day 53 using conventional ultrasonography. Pregnancy rate to the first AI was greater (P = 0.03) for NS compared with ER (70.25% vs 59.29%, respectively). Pregnancy rates for the second service were also greater (P = 0.01) for NS compared with ER (65.67 vs 42.93%, respectively). Cumulative pregnancy rates to AI did not differ between treatments (P = 0.38); however, cumulative pregnancy rates (first and second service) were greater (P < 0.01) for NS compared with ER (90 vs 77.73%, respectively). In conclusion, the proposed early resynchronization strategy using color Doppler ultrasonography resulted in fewer pregnancies compared with natural service as the second service strategy. Moreover, the proposed ER decreased pregnancy rates to the first insemination, indicating a detrimental effect of ER on pregnancy establishment.
298 Interleukin-6 Family Members Improve Pre-Implantation Bovine Blastocyst Composition
Authors: Oliver Mary A , Speckhart Savannah L , Ealy Alan
Published: November 2023

Inner cell mass (ICM) size is a predictor of bovine blastocyst quality and post-transfer pregnancy success. In vitro produced (IVP) embryos have reduced ICM cell numbers compared with in vivo produced embryos, and we propose this is one reason pregnancy success is compromised in IVP embryos. Our recent work found that human recombinant interleukin-6 (IL6) supplementation during in vitro embryo culture increased ICM cell numbers. We hypothesized that other human recombinant members of the IL6 cytokine family, specifically interleukin-11 (IL11) and leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF), will have a similar response. In vitro maturation, fertilization and culture procedures were used to produce embryos that were treated with 100 ng/mL recombinant human recombinant IL6, IL11, LIF, or carrier [control; 1% (wt/vol) SOF-BSA] beginning at day 6 post-fertilization (25 embryos/50 mL drop; 3 drops/treatment; 5 replicates). A subset of day 8 blastocysts (n = 28 to 29) was fixed and processed for cell counting. Analyses were performed by least-squares ANOVA using the general linear model. No treatment differences in overall blastocyst rates, trophectoderm (TE) cell numbers, and total cell numbers were observed at day 8. Treatment with IL6 (P = 0.09) and LIF (P = 0.06) tended to increase ICM cell numbers when compared with the control, whereas IL11 was not different from the control. Treatment with IL6 increased the ICM:TE ratio (P < 0.05) but the other cytokines did not influence this ratio. Several treatment by stage interactions were observed. In regular day 8 blastocysts (n = 10 to 14), none of the treatments affected ICM numbers or the ICM:TE ratio, but LIF increased TE number (P < 0.05) and IL6 increased total cell number (P < 0.05). When grouping expanded and hatched blastocysts together (n = 14 to 18), each treatment increased ICM cell numbers and IL6 increased the ICM:TE ratio (P < 0.05). Furthermore, both IL11 (P = 0.08) and LIF (P = 0.08) tended to increase the ICM:TE ratio. Only LIF increased total cell numbers (P < 0.05). None of the other treatments affected total cell numbers. These observations suggest that IL6, IL11, and LIF are capable of influencing ICM cell numbers in IVP bovine embryos, but they may possess different abilities in affecting TE and overall cell numbers. These findings differ from previous findings from our lab. We suspect that transitioning from bovine recombinant preparations with undefined purity and bioactivity to using purified human recombinant proteins with high bioactivity allowed us to detect these responses for each cytokine. Collectively, this work implicates several members of the IL6 cytokine family as embryokines that may be used to improve bovine IVP embryo quality. Funding for this work was provided by USDA-NIFA (2017-67015-2646 and 2021-67015-34485) and by NIH (R21-OD026516-01).
301 Determining Individual Dry Matter Intake of Charolais Bulls from Ingestion Time Recorded with Rgb-D Cameras
Authors: Guarnido Lopez Pablo P , Ramirez-Agudelo Fredy , Ribeira-Ferreiro Emilia , Aouda Mohammed Ben
Published: November 2023

Monitoring individual dry matter intake (DMI) may help decision-making of cattle producers to improve feed efficiency, health and welfare; however, classic methods to record DMI are expensive and time-consuming (Davison et al., 2021). Thus, since the last years new technologies, such as cameras and Deep Learning (DL) algorithms have been developed to capture individual animal performance in an easier and cheaper way. The aim of this work is to evaluate the capability of an RGB-D camera coupled to a DL algorithm to predict individual DMI of beef cattle. For this, 12 young Charolais bulls (581 ± 37) were recorded during 10 days after meal distribution though an Intel Realsense (TMD455) camera (12 mins per video at 5 frames per second) and their DMI was individually measured. The DL algorithm for video processing was the YOLO (V8). We first trained the model to characterize activity of the animals (biting, chewing, visiting, ruminating and others; Table 1) through manual labelling using 650 images randomly extracted form videos. The images were divided into three sets for training, validation, and testing, (60, 20, and 20%, respectively) and metrics used to evaluate the model were Precision (P), Recall (R) and the average precision (AP). Then, we estimated the ingestion time (IT) by summing predicted biting and chewing time. This predicted IT was compared with the real IT measured through a chronometer. Finally, a mixed effects model was used to predict individual DMI from IT. Results showed an average high precision for all activities predicted (P = 0.62, R = 0.83, AP = 0.81). In addition, activities encompassed on the IT also showed a high precision (AP > 0.84). However, the confusion matrix showed a slight confusion between chewing and visiting (r = 0.14) activities. After processing activity of the animal, we observed a high correlation (r = 0.82, P = 0.001) between predicted and measured IT. Finally, we obtained a significant relationship between DMI and predicted IT (R² = 0.45, P = 0.001, RMSE = ±0.18kg DMI). The present work shows how new technologies such as RGB-D cameras associated to a trained DL algorithm could facilitate data acquisition on cattle farms, which may help decision-making of producers in terms of efficiency, health and welfare of the animal.
352 Effects of Including a Novel High-Anthocyanin Corn Cob Meal in a High-Roughage Diet on Performance and Gas Flux of Beef Cattle
Authors: Long Nathan S , Proctor Jarret A , Xu Wenwei W , Molsbee Morgan K , Piñeiro Juan M , Gouvea Vinicius N , Duhatschek Douglas , Foster Ryan C , Beck Matthew R , Griffin MacKenzie L , Smith Jason K
Published: November 2023

Methane (CH4) is a greenhouse gas emitted by cattle that is produced as a byproduct of ruminal fermentation. Dietary inclusion of anthocyanins has previously decreased in vitro CH4 production from both high- and low-roughage diets. Anthocyanins potentially sequester hydrogen in the rumen which may limit CH4 production from methanogenic bacteria. As such, feeding anthocyanins represents a promising CH4 mitigation strategy. Thus, the objective of this preliminary experiment was to determine the effects of replacing conventional [CONV; 0.04 mg anthocyanin×g-1 of dry matter (DM)] corn cob meal (CCM) with a novel high-anthocyanin (Hi-A) CCM [TAMZ101 corn hybrid (4.99 mg anthocyanin×g-1 DM; Texas A&M AgriLife Research; Lubbock, TX)] in a high-roughage (40% DM) diet on growth performance and gas flux of beef cattle. Steers (n =14; average initial body weight = 286 kg ± 17 kg) were trained to individual Calan bunks and randomly assigned to dietary treatments on d 0 using a completely randomized design, where 20% of total diet DM was either Hi-A or CONV CCM. The trial consisted of a 63-d feeding period in which carbon dioxide (CO2) emission, CH4 emission, and oxygen (O2) consumption (g×animal×d-1) were measured using a GreenFeed system (C-Lock Inc.; Rapid City, SD). Statistical analyses were conducted using JMP Pro v.16 (SAS Institute Inc.; Cary, NC) where individual animal served as the experimental unit and treatment was a fixed effect. Cook’s distance values were used to identify and remove outliers for each individual response variable. Statistical significance was set at P ≤ 0.05 with a tendency toward significance defined as 0.05 < P ≤ 0.10. Due to insufficient statistical power, 10.2% and 5.7% numeric increases were statistically undetectable in total dry matter intake (DMI; P = 0.13; 1-ß = 0.31) and average daily gain (ADG; P = 0.19; 1-ß = 0.25) when CONV CCM was replaced with Hi-A CCM. Similarly, marginal numeric differences in feed efficiency, CO2 emission, daily CH4 emission, and O2 consumption were statistically undetectable across treatments (P ≥ 0.18; 1-ß ≤ 0.22). Numeric differences in DMI of steers fed Hi-A CCM contributed to a 7.5% decrease (P = 0.05; 1-ß = 0.51) in CH4 yield (g CH4×kg DMI-1) when compared with steers fed CONV CCM. Treatment did not affect CH4 emission intensity (g CH4×kg ADG-1; P = 0.26; 1-ß = 0.19). Results from this preliminary experiment and a previous in vitro experiment indicate that anthocyanins from Hi-A CCM have CH4 mitigation potential in high-roughage diets. Further research is warranted to determine if anthocyanins are effective at reducing CH4 yield across a range of diet compositions and if anthocyanins from Hi-A CCM can be extracted, condensed, and repackaged into a delivery system that is both economically and logistically feasible.
PSV-16 Different Late Gestation Heat Stress Time-Windows and Their Effects on Newborn Holstein Calves from Northwest México
Authors: Del Río-Avilés Andrea D , Valles-Ibarra Dulce C , González-Valdéz1 Milagros G , Morales-Pablos Marcela I , Leyva-Corona José C , Sánchez-Castro Miguel A
Published: November 2023

Exposure to heat stress (HS) during the dry period not only exerts negative effects on the welfare of pregnant cows, but also impairs the development of the fetus in the utero. When dams are subjected to late-gestation HS, affectations to their placental function and blood placental flow occur, generating fetal hypoxia and growth retardation of their calves. Since on the last 60 d of gestation bovine fetuses undergo through a phase of accelerated growth where they accrue around 60% of their birth weight, the number of days that their dams become exposed to HS during this period could affect differently their body weight and oxygenation status at birth. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine the effects of different late-gestation HS time-windows on the birth weight and oxygen saturation of newborn Holstein calves. The study was conducted at the Yaqui valley in northwest México, a semiarid zone where the temperature and humidity index (THI) exceeds the dairy cattle thermal threshold from mid-March to mid-October (~7 months). Under such environmental dynamic, all cows within this geographical zone experience HS at some point during their gestation; nonetheless, depending on the conception date of the cow, different late-gestation HS time-windows arise. To assess the influence of the number of days of intrauterine HS exposure during late gestation (e.g., days with an average THI > 72 units), three intrauterine heat-stressed groups of calves were formed: G1 = calves born to dams exposed to HS less than 20 d within the last 60 d of gestation (n = 30), G2 = calves born to dams exposed to HS between 21 and 40 d within the last 60 d of gestation (n = 20), and G3 = calves born to dams exposed to HS for more than 40 d within the last 60 d of gestation (n = 16). Upon calving, variables such as sex, birth weight (BW, kg) and oxygen saturation (SpO2, %) were recorded. A general linear model that included the effects of sex of the calf and intrauterine HS calves’ group was implemented to analyze BW and SpO2. Harmonic means were compared via the Tukey-Kramer test. Harmonic means (±SE) for BW and SpO2 among groups were 42.42 ± 0.92, 40.84 ± 1.11, and 34.73 ± 1.24 kg, and 78.16 ± 2.71, 82.52 ± 3.28, and 82.29 ± 3.68 %, for G1, G2 and G3, respectively. Significant differences (P < 0.001) were found only for BW, with calves of G3 exhibiting the lowest BW in comparison to calves within G1 and G2, which were not statistically different among themselves (P > 0.05). Results of this study indicated that intrauterine HS exposures of >40 d strive deleterious effects on fetal growth and reduce the BW of newborn Holstein calves from northwest México.
PSXI-16 Nitrogen Excretion and Urine Ph in Growing Pigs Decreased By Reducing Dietary Protein Concentrations
Authors: Kim Beob G , Son Jeonghyeon
Published: November 2023

The objective of the present work was to determine effects of reducing dietary crude protein (CP) concentrations with indispensable amino acid (AA) supplementation on nitrogen balance and urinary pH in growing pigs. Three experiments were conducted using 12 barrows with an initial body weight of 29.9, 50.2, and 78.2 kg (standard deviation = 1.8, 2.2, and 3.7, respectively) individually housed in metabolism crates. In each experiment, a quadruplicated 3 × 2 incomplete Latin square design with 3 diets varying CP concentrations in each experiment and 2 periods per square was employed. In experiments 1 and 2, experimental diets based on corn, soybean meal, corn distillers dried grain with solubles, and rapeseed meal were formulated to contain 16.8, 15.0, and 13.2% CP as-fed basis and 16.8, 14.9, and 13.1% CP as-fed basis, respectively. In experiment 3, experimental diets based on corn and soybean meal were formulated to contain 15.1, 13.2, and 11.4% CP as-fed basis. All diets were supplemented with indispensable AA to meet all indispensable AA requirements. Each period consisted of a 5-day adaptation period followed by a 4-day collection period. On days 6 and 10, chromic oxide was added at 0.5% in morning meals as a marker and the marker-to-marker procedure was used for the quantitative collection of feces. Urine collection was initiated at 10:00 on day 6 and terminated at 10:00 on day 10. Polynomial contrasts were performed to test linear and quadratic effects of dietary CP concentrations on the response variables in each experiment. In all experiments, daily N intake was linearly decreased (P < 0.05) with decreasing dietary CP concentrations. Decreasing dietary CP concentrations resulted in linear reduction in daily fecal N excretion (P < 0.05) in experiment 2 and linear reductions in daily urinary N excretion (P < 0.05) in all experiments. Total N excretion linearly decreased (P < 0.05) with decreasing dietary CP concentration in all experiments. The urinary pH obtained from 30- and 50-kg pigs was linearly decreased (P < 0.05) with decreasing dietary CP concentrations. In conclusion, lowering dietary CP concentrations decreased N excretion and urinary pH in 30-, 50-, and 78-kg pigs.
PSXI-4 Study on Semantic Segmentation Technology for Efficient Manure Treatment in Pig Barn By Intelligent Cleaning Machine
Authors: Lee Sangho , Won Jin-ho , Jeon Jintack , Yang Changju , Kim Gookhwan
Published: November 2023

In most pig barns, intensive breeding is being carried out, and social problems such as manure disposal and large-scale infectious diseases have emerged due to this livestock farming method. In particular, organic matter from the manure is decomposed and odorous gases such as ammonia and hydrogen sulfide are emitted. The emitted harmful gases cause problems such as causing stress in pig barns, reducing immunity, and causing various diseases. To solve these problems, cleaning robots for handling manure in pig barns have been developed, and algorithms for planning optimal routes for autonomous driving or methods for cost reduction due to efficient cleaning are being studied. Most cleaning robots currently in use, employ a method of treating accumulated manure by spraying high-pressure water from a stored water tank. If water can be sprayed only on areas that need cleaning, water consumption can be reduced, so we propose a technology that can determine this through a camera. If it is possible to determine whether cleaning is necessary by segmenting only manure from the image into objects, it is expected to significantly reduce unnecessary water consumption. The purpose of this study is to determine whether cleaning is necessary by dividing excrement into objects from images taken during autonomous driving with a camera mounted on the front of a cleaning robot. The final goal is to obtain a segmented image capable of recognizing only the manure part requiring cleaning from the captured image. The first step acquires image information using an RGB camera. At the beginning of the study, when the number of images is insufficient, the segmentation performance is checked through semantic segmentation using the difference between manure and other objects or backgrounds using image information. Depending on the segmentation performance and the number of acquired images, we plan to use a deep learning-based algorithm in the future. The ultimate goal of this study is to develop a technology for obtaining segmented images capable of recognizing excreta by utilizing image information from captured images. In addition, if only the manure part can be accurately recognized through this study, we plan to apply the technology of spraying water only to the necessary part by using it as information to determine whether cleaning is necessary from the segmented image. Through this, the company plans to apply the technology to self-driving cleaning robots to develop high-efficiency intelligent cleaning robots capable of efficiently handling manure. This achievement was made by the support of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, R&D project(421044043HD030)
PSIII-24 Effect of Curing Extent on Red Clover Hay and Silage in Situ Degradability Kinetics in Dairy Cattle
Authors: Ayala Diego Zamudio , De Castro Raphaella Alexandra , Jimenez Ana Paula , Cardoso Marcus , Poblete Joe B , Knight Colt W , Romero Juan Jose J
Published: November 2023

This objective was to evaluate the effects of insufficient (WET) or ample (CUR) curing on red clover silage (29.4 and 45.3% DM, respectively) and hay (65.1 and 89.1% DM, respectively) ruminal degradation. The red clover field was divided into 5 blocks and each block was divided into 2 plots and then assigned randomly to silage and hay. Hay was packed into mini-bales (~500 fresh g; ~232 kg DM/m3) and silage into mini-silos (19.5 L; ~214 kg DM/m3). Measurements were taken once storage processes had stabilized for hay and silage (50 and 78 d, respectively). Samples were ground to pass 4-mm screen and weighed (5 g DM) into 10 x 20 cm ANKOM R1020 in situ bags. Bags were hooked to a rope, placed in the ventral sac of the rumen of 2 dairy cows for 0, 3, 6, 12, 24, 48, 72, and 96 h. All bags were removed simultaneously, washed, dried, and weighed. This procedure was conducted separately for each block. Data were analyzed as a randomized complete block design (5 blocks) with a 2 (curing extents) x 2 (storage methods) factorial. Differences were declared at P ≤ 0.05. Discrete lag times were higher for WET than CUR (0.23 vs. 0 ± 0.08 h, respectively). The potentially degradable fraction was greater in hay than in silage (50.2 vs. 45.1 ± 1.32% of DM, respectively). Moreover, WET had a greater potentially degradable fraction than CUR (49.6 vs. 45.7 ± 1.32% of DM, respectively). The degradation rate was less in hay than silage (5 vs. 8 ± 0.4%/h, respectively). The WET treatment had a decreased degradation rate than CUR (5 vs. 7, respectively). The undegradable fraction was not different between WET and CUR hay (x̅ = 23.3 ± 1.13% of DM). In contrast, WET silage had a decreased undegradable fraction than CUR silage (17.1 vs. 20, respectively). In conclusion, haymaking increased the potentially degradable fraction relative to ensiling but reduced the rate of digestion. For both storage methods, curing reduced the potentially degradable fraction but increased the rate of digestion.
PSVI-24 A Phytogenic Feed Additive Improves Performance By Nellore Growing Bulls Grazing on Tropical Pastures
Authors: de Matos Isabelle Errobidarte , de Carvalho Victor Valério , Acedo Tiago S S , Perdigão Alexandre , Santana Yohana Clara Siqueira , Timóteo Silvia Isabella , Ferreira Cecília Ayala , Turner Tyler , da Silva Aline Gomes , Fernandes Henrique Jorge
Published: November 2023

Our objective was to evaluate the effect of including a phytogenic additive in protein supplement on performance of grazing Nellore bulls during growing phase in the rainy season. One hundred and fourteen animals (iBW, 273 ± 4.46 kg) were allocated for 152 days in six paddocks of Brachiaria brizantha cv. Marandu (~7 ha each), with automatic feeders and scales (in drinkers, Intergado, Brazil); and randomly distributed in six treatments fed on protein supplement (30% Crude protein): 1) Negative Control (CON), with no additive; 2) Monensin (MON; positive control, 15 ppm) 3) Digestarom (DSM Nutritional Products) at 0.2 g· animal-1· /day-1 (D0.2); 4) Digestarom at 0.4 g· animal-1· /day-1 (D0.4); 5) Digestarom at 0.6 g· animal-1· /day-1 (D0.6) and 6) Digestarom at 0.8 g· animal-1· /day-1 (D0.8). Supplement offered and additives inclusion were adjusted weekly, based on the intake of the previous week. Supplement intake (SI, measured by the automatic feeders) and Average Daily Gain (ADGs; measured subtracting final and initial fast BW, divided by 152 days; and ADGf; measured by the automatic scales) were evaluated during this study. Data were analyzed by SAS PROC GLIMMIX and significance of 5% was adopted. Means of Digestarom levels were compared with the CON and MON, and of the MON was compared with the CON using a Dunnett test. MON reduced (P < 0.05) SI (175 g/d) compared with CON (433 g/d) and all Digestarom levels (423, 303, 468 and 332 g/d respectively). D0.4 and D0.8 also reduced SI when compared with CON. The ADGs and the ADGf of animals on D0.6 (927 and 1.262 g/d) were greater (P < 0.05) compared with CON (0.860 and 1.127 g/d) and MON (0.840 and 1.114 g/d). The other levels of Digestarom [D0.2 (0.886 and 1.107 g/d), D0.4 (0.823 and 1.054 g/d), and D0.8 (0.853 and 1.071 g/d)] did not differ from CON and MON. D0.6 did not reduce SI (compared with CON; P > 0.05) and increased ADGs and ADGf (compared with CON and MON; P < 0.05). Feeding Digestarom at the dose of 0.6 g· animal-1· /day-1 may increase BW gain of grazing growing bulls during rainy season.
PSXIII-16 Selected Feed Additives to Improve Diet Digestibility and Carcass Quality of Feedlot-Finished Angus Crossbred Steers
Authors: Neumann Mikael , de Souza André Martins , de Carvalho Victor Valério , Acedo Tiago S S , Marafon Fabiano , Semchechem Rogerio , Venancio Bruno José , da Costa Luísa , Baldissera Ellen
Published: November 2023

Our objective was to evaluate the effects of supplementation using different feed additives on the apparent digestibility and carcass traits of feedlot-finished steers fed a diet consisting of 35% forage and 65% concentrate. This study was a randomized block experimental design with two treatments: Diet containing sodium monensin + virginiamycin (MO+VM, 20 ppm and 15 ppm, respectively); and Diet with a blend of essential oils (Crina Ruminants, 90 ppm) + exogenous α-amylase (Ronozyme Rumistar, 560 ppm) + 25-hydroxy-vitamin-D3 (Hy-D, 0.1 ppm), (EO+ENZ+HYD), with nine repetitions each (pens), where each experimental unit was represented by a pen (with two animals each). Thirty-six 50% Angus blood steers with an average initial weight of 400 kg were evaluated along an experimental period of 112 days, with 28 adaptation days and 84 evaluation days, divided into 3 periods of 28 days each. The digestibility evaluation was carried out at the end of the first and third experimental periods, both in a continuous time of 48 hours. For this, daily intake and leftovers were measured, total feces were collected, diets and leftovers from each pen were sampled for laboratory analysis. At the beginning and end of the experiment, using ultrasound, carcasses were analyzed for loin eye area, marbling ratio, subcutaneous fat thickness (SFT), and rump fat thickness (RFT). Means were compared by ANOVA using the GLM procedure (SAS, 1993), adopting a significance level of 5%. Fecal output (kg· day-1), both in dry matter and natural matter, and fecal DM content were similar between treatments (P > 0.05). Feeding EO+ENZ+HYD reduced (P < 0.05) fecal starch percentage by 20% and improved (P < 0.05) the apparent digestibility of DM and starch (5.16%, 67.40% and 95.50%) compared with the use of MO+VM (6.41%, 66.47% and 94.27%). These better results suggest an effect of a more favorable fermentation of the diet caused by modulation of the ruminal microbiota, optimization in the use of starch and increase in microbial protein synthesis caused by supplementation with EO+ENZ+HYD. Animals supplemented with EO+ENZ+HYD had greater (P < 0.05) RFT (12.22 mm) at slaughter compared with those supplemented with MO+VM (10.42 mm), and greater marbling and RFT gain over the finishing period (0.58 points and 7.50 mm) than those supplemented with MO+VM (0.32 points and 5.93 mm) after 112 days of feedlot. In conclusion, the blend of essential oils + exogenous α-amylase + 25-hydroxy-vitamin-D3 was effective in replacing the combination sodium monensin + virginiamycin, improving the apparent digestibility of DM and starch, as well as increasing marbling and carcass cover fat deposition of feedlot-finished steers.
Prediction of body condition in Jersey dairy cattle from 3D-images using machine learning techniques
Authors: Stephansen Rasmus B , Manzanilla-Pech Coralia I V , Gebreyesus Grum , Sahana Goutam , Lassen Jan
Published: November 2023

The body condition of dairy cows is a crucial health and welfare indicator that is widely acknowledged. Dairy herds with a well-management body condition tend to have more fertile and functional cows. Therefore, routine recording of high-quality body condition phenotypes is required. Automated prediction of body condition from 3D images can be a cost-effective approach to current manual recording by technicians. Using 3D-images, we aimed to build a reliable prediction model of body condition for Jersey cows. The dataset consisted of 808 individual Jersey cows with 2,253 phenotypes from three herds in Denmark. Body condition was scored on a 1 to 9 scale and transformed into a 1 to 5 scale with 0.5-unit differences. The cows’ back images were recorded using a 3D camera (Microsoft Xbox One Kinect v2). We used contour and back height features from 3D-images as predictors, together with class predictors (evaluator, herd, evaluation round, parity, lactation week). The performance of machine learning algorithms was assessed using H2O AutoML algorithm (h2o.ai). Based on outputs from AutoML, DeepLearning (DL; multi-layer feedforward artificial neural network) and Gradient Boosting Machine (GBM) algorithms were implemented for classification and regression tasks and compared on prediction accuracy. In addition, we compared the Partial Least Square (PLS) method for regression. The training and validation data were divided either through a random 7:3 split for 10 replicates or by allocating two herds for training and one herd for validation. The accuracy of classification models showed the DL algorithm performed better than the GBM algorithm. The DL model achieved a mean accuracy of 48.1% on the exact phenotype and 93.5% accuracy with a 0.5-unit deviation. The performances of PLS and DL regression methods were comparable, with mean coefficient of determination of 0.67 and 0.66, respectively. When we used data from two herds for training and the third herd as validation, we observed a slightly decreased prediction accuracy compared to the 7:3 split of the dataset. The accuracies for DL and PLS in the herd validation scenario were > 38% on the exact phenotype and > 87% accuracy with 0.5-unit deviation. This study demonstrates the feasibility of a reliable body condition prediction model in Jersey cows using 3D-images. The approach developed can be used for reliable and frequent prediction of cows’ body condition to improve dairy farm management and genetic evaluations.
Deterministic surface roughness effects on elastic material contact with shear thinning fluid media
Authors: Jang Siyoul
Published: November 2023

The formation of lubrication films is described using the hydrodynamic lubrication theory, which is based on the Reynolds equation that includes shear thinning behaviors of lubricant. Contacting surfaces are considered to undergo elastic deformation owing to concentrated contact pressures that exceed 1.0 GPa in most engineering applications. Under the contact condition of a high load on a relatively small contact area, elastic deformation of contacting bodies directly influences the formation of the lubricated film. Elastohydrodynamic lubrication (EHL) analysis is applied to correctly analyze the lubricated contact. Under an EHL contact, the scale of the lubrication film thickness is frequently less than that of the surface roughness that results from either the manufacturing or running-in processes. In this work, surface roughness is considered in detail, and two-dimensional surface roughness is measured as that characterizing general engineering surface roughness. The deterministic method regarding the surface roughness is considered for computing EHL film formation under several contact conditions such as load, contact velocity, and elasticity of contacting materials.
Lion Localizer: A software tool for inferring the provenance of lions (Panthera leo) using mitochondrial DNA
Authors: Au Wesley C , Dures Simon G , Ishida Yasuko , Green Cory E , Zhao Kai , Ogden Rob , Roca Alfred L
Published: November 2023

The illegal poaching of lions for their body parts poses a severe threat to lion populations across Africa. Poaching accounts for 35% of all human-caused lion deaths, with 51% attributed to retaliatory killings following livestock predation. In nearly half of the retaliatory killings, lion body parts are removed, suggesting that high demand for lion body parts may fuel killings attributed to human-lion conflict. Trafficked items are often confiscated in transit or destination countries far from their country of origin. DNA from lion parts may in some cases be the only available means for examining their geographic origins. In this paper, we present the Lion Localizer, a full-stack software tool that houses a comprehensive database of lion mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences sourced from previously published studies. The database covers 146 localities from across the African continent and India, providing information on the potential provenance of seized lion body parts. Lion mtDNA sequences of 350 or 1,140 bp corresponding to the cytochrome b region can be generated from lion products and queried against the Lion Localizer database. Using the query sequence, the Lion Localizer generates a listing of exact or partial matches, which are displayed on an interactive map of Africa. This allows for the rapid identification of potential regions and localities where lions have been or are presently being targeted by poachers. By examining the potential provenance of lion samples, the Lion Localizer serves as a valuable resource in the fight against lion poaching. The software is available at https://lionlocalizer.org.
Significance of tumor size and number of positive nodes in patients with FIGO 2018 stage IIIC1 cervical cancer
Authors: Maeda Michihide , Mabuchi Seiji , Sakata Mina , Deguchi Satoki , Kakubari Reisa , Matsuzaki Shinya , Hisa Tsuyoshi , Kamiura Shoji
Published: November 2023

Objective

This study aimed to investigate the prognostic significance of tumor size and number of positive pelvic lymph nodes (PLN) in International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) 2018 stage IIIC1 cervical cancer patients.

Methods

Clinical data from 626 women with cervical cancer treated at Osaka International Cancer Center in 2010–2020 were retrospectively reviewed. Using the cutoff value obtained on the receiver operating characteristic analysis, the prognostic significance of tumor size and number of positive PLN in stage IIIC1 patients was first evaluated via uni- and multivariate analyses. Then, the impact of incorporating tumor size and number of positive PLN into the FIGO staging system was investigated using the Kaplan–Meier method.

Results

Among 196 women with Stage IIIC1 disease, larger tumors (>4 cm) and multiple PLN metastases (≥4) were independent predictors of progression-free survival (PFS) in patients with stage IIIC1 cervical cancer. The PFS of patients with stage IIIC1 disease was inversely associated with the number of risk factors. Although patients with stage IIIC1 disease had significantly increased survival rates compared to those with stage IIIA or IIIB disease in the original FIGO 2018 staging system, this reversal phenomenon was resolved by incorporating larger tumors (>4 cm) and multiple PLN metastases (≥4) into the revised staging system.

Conclusions

Incorporating tumor size and number of metastatic lymph nodes into the FIGO staging system allows additional risk stratification for women with stage IIIC1 cervical cancer and improves survival prediction performance.
Bayesian kernel machine regression for count data: modelling the association between social vulnerability and COVID-19 deaths in South Carolina
Authors: Mutiso Fedelis , Li Hong , Pearce John L , Benjamin-Neelon Sara E , Mueller Noel T , Neelon Brian
Published: November 2023

The COVID-19 pandemic created an unprecedented global health crisis. Recent studies suggest that socially vulnerable communities were disproportionately impacted, although findings are mixed. To quantify social vulnerability in the US, many studies rely on the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI), a county-level measure comprising 15 census variables. Typically, the SVI is modelled in an additive manner, which may obscure non-linear or interactive associations, further contributing to inconsistent findings. As a more robust alternative, we propose a negative binomial Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) model to investigate dynamic associations between social vulnerability and COVID-19 death rates, thus extending BKMR to the count data setting. The model produces a ‘vulnerability effect’ that quantifies the impact of vulnerability on COVID-19 death rates in each county. The method can also identify the relative importance of various SVI variables and make future predictions as county vulnerability profiles evolve. To capture spatio-temporal heterogeneity, the model incorporates spatial effects, county-level covariates, and smooth temporal functions. For Bayesian computation, we propose a tractable data-augmented Gibbs sampler. We conduct a simulation study to highlight the approach and apply the method to a study of COVID-19 deaths in the US state of South Carolina during the 2021 calendar year.