bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The rumen simulation technique (Rusitec) as a method to determine thein vitrocarry-over period following monensin treatment by measuring volatile fatty acid molar proportions
Authors: Mackintosh E. D. , Phipps R. H. , Grubb H. J. 
Published: June 2019

Ruminant and ruminal responses to feeding the gram-positive ionophore, monensin, have been researched extensively over the past 20 years. A proportion of many suchin vivoexperiments have used a change-over design. In doing so, the researcher either paid no attention to or was reasonably confident that any possible carry-over effects would have dissipated. Evidence does exist which leads to an estimation of duration to maximum treatment effects but such comparable evidence surrounding the duration of carry-over to monensin treatment is not available.Anin vivotrial was proposed at the Centre for Dairy Research (CEDAR), to investigate the ruminal effects of feeding monensin to lactating dairy cows with 4-week periods of which 3 weeks was for change-over and adaptation. Therefore, before conducting such an expensive experiment, in terms of both time and money, anin vitrostudy using the rumen simulation technique (Rusitec) was carried out to determine if 3 weeks was considered adequate to eliminate carry-over effects when measuring volatile fatty acid (VFA) molar proportions.
Development of the gas production technique to assay for anti-nutritive compounds in temperate tree fodders with polyphenol adsorbents using inoculum based on fresh cattle faeces
Authors: Lane I. R. , Boying W. 
Published: June 2019

The polyphenol concentration in various tree fodders has been assayed by the gas production technique using rumen fluid inoculum either by fermentation of whole samples +/- a polyphenol adsorbent (Khazaal et al., 1994) or simply by the reduction of gas production caused by acetone extracts of the fodders (Wood and Plumb, 1995). Successful replacement of rumen fluid as a source of anaerobic bacteria by faeces from ruminant animals has been reported both for two-stage Tilley and Terry dry-matter digestibility (DMD) (El Shaer et al., 1987) and for the gas production technique (Davies, 1991). The use of faeces based inoculum +/- polyphenol adsorbents was therefore tested and optimized for fallen paulownia and poplar leaves using the gas production technique (the trees were commercial hybrids of Paulownia and Populus species respectively). A series of trials was carried out to: develop the use of preliminary incubation of the faeces inoculum; optimize the adsorbent type, molecular weight (MW) and quantity; optimize the faeces concentration in the inoculum and the use of glucose as a pre-incubation stimulant; and evaluate the use of differences in Tl /2 for gas production and end DMD +/- adsorbent to assess the effect of anti-nutritive compounds (ANCs) on the relative rate and extent of fermentation.All trials were carried out using 100 ml plastic vaccine flexibottles as containers maintained at 39°C in water baths. Gas was manually extracted with disposable syringes, generally at 3, 6, 9,12,15,18, 21, 24, 30, 36, 42, 48, 60, 72 h and bottles were well shaken at these times.
Relationship between in vitro gas production and in situ degradability for forage components
Authors: Ichinohe T. , Shand W. J. , Kyle D. J. , Chen X. B. , Ørskov E. R. 
Published: June 2019

Recently in vitro and in situ techniques have been used for assessing forage nutritive value for ruminants instead of laborious in vivo trials. Although, Blummel and Ørskov (1993) have shown that an in vitro gas production technique gives reliable estimates of forage nutritive value, whether the estimates could be correlated with in situ degradation are not well established. There is little known about the differences in degradation characteristics of neutral-detergent fibre (NDF) and cellular contents (CC: soluble carbohydrates, lipids and crude protein) in the rumen, and also about the relationships between component degradation rate in the rumen and gas production rate for different forages. This is because most in situ kinetic studies have followed the disappearance of insoluble cell wall constituents and comparative studies of in vitro and in situ estimates was not performed sufficiently.The objective of this experiment was to investigate the relationship between in situ degradation of forage components and in vitro gas production rate for the three forages.
Estimation of in vitro degradation of dietary proteins in ruminants by using enzymes
Authors: Chaudhry A. S. 
Published: June 2019

Protein degradation in the rumen determines the supply of dietary nitrogen (N) to microbes and undegraded amino acids for direct absorption. The current systems of feeding ruminants identify rumen degradable protein (RDP) from undegraded protein (UDP) which is digestible post ruminally (Agricultural and Food Research Council (AFRC), 1992; Huntington and Givens 1995). The in sacco method has been useful to estimate RDP, UDP and rate of degradation of proteins in ruminants. However, its use is constrained by the fact that it requires surgically modified animals, is laborious, inconsistent and does not differentiate between proteins that disappear from the bag or which are digested by microbes. It is therefore important to develop rapid, robust and reproducible alternatives (in vitro) to simulate ruminal digestion of proteins. Chaudhry (1998) has shown a potential in Streptomyces griseus protease (enzyme) to estimate ruminal digestion in vitro given its consistently high proteolytic activity with purified proteins. This study examined the validity of this enzyme to estimate degradability of food proteins.Buffer, enzyme and foods A potassium phosphate buffer (buffer) with a pH 6-8 was used to prepare protein suspensions and a solution of the protease (P5147, SIGMA). Samples of sunflower meal (SF), maize-gluten meal (MG), distillers’ dark grains (DG) and field beans (FB) were dried and ground through 1 or 4 mm sieves for in vitro enzyme and in sacco studies respectively.
Potential application of cellulase and hemicellulase assay techniques for assessing the forage quality and performance of rumen micro-organisms
Authors: Bhat M. K. 
Published: June 2019

Cellulose and hemicellulose are the major structural polysaccharides of plant cell wall. The efficient utilization of these polysaccharides by ruminants is often restricted by the presence of lignin. Cellulose and hemicellulose are hydrolysed by a group of enzymes called cellulases and hemicellulases. The present paper describes the cellulase and hemicellulase assay methods and their potential applications.Carboxymethyl (CM)-cellulose, Avicel, cellobiose, xylobiose, p-nitrophenyl-p β-D-glucoside (pNPG), p-nitrophenyl-β-D-cellobioside (pNPC), p-nitrophenyl-β-D-xyloside (pNPX) and p-nitrophenyl- α-L-arabinofuranoside (pNPAf) were from Sigma. Birchwood xylan and filter paper are from Carl Roth GmbH and Co., Germany and Whatman International Ltd, UK, respectively. H3P04-Swollen cellulose and 4-O-methyl-α-D-glucuronyl-xylotriose (mGpA-Xyl3) were prepared as described (Wood, 1988; Khandkeet al., 1989a).
The effect of animal species on the ruminal degradation of dry matter and nitrogen fractions in urea-treated whole-crop wheat
Authors: Adesogan A. T. , Abdalla A. L. , Dhanoa M. S. , Givens D. I. , Owen E. , Sutton J. D. 
Published: June 2019

At maintenance at least, the whole tract digestibility of several foods in sheep and cattle is similar, consequently much of the information on the nutritive value of dairy cow foods in food composition tables is derived from studies conducted in sheep. However, Adesogan (1996) reported that in whole-crop wheat (WCW), starch digestibility is higher in sheep than in dairy cows. This study examined the validity of using sheep to model the ruminal degradation of WCW in cows by comparing the degradability of dry matter (DM) and nitrogen (N) of urea-treated WCW in both species.Winter wheat (cv.Hussar) was harvested at 540 g DM per kg and conserved following urea application at target rates of 20 or 40g/kg DM (WCW2 and WCW4 respectively). The degradability of the forages was examined in dairy cows given 6 kg dairy concentrate and grass silagead libitumand in wethers given 2.4 kg/day of grass silage supplemented with 0.36kg/day of rolled, mineralized barley.
Relationship betweenin vitrosolubility and rumen degradability of forage nitrogen
Authors: Komwihangilo D. M. , Deaville E. R. , Givens D. I. , Owen E. 
Published: June 2019

It is widely accepted that robust and accuratein vitrotechniques are required to predict the proportion of food nitrogen (N) degraded in the rumen. One such technique is to estimate the solubility of food N. In these experiments, relationships between solvent soluble N andin siturumen degradability of forage N were investigated.Samples of 11 fresh grasses (FG) (mainly perennial ryegrass) and their corresponding silages (GS) were used. GS was prepared from material ensiled in laboratory scale silos for 90 days. Prior to the experiments, FG and GS samples were initially hand chopped to approximately 1 cm lengths. In thein situstudy a fresh sample equivalent to 0-5 g DM was weighed into polyester bags (pore size 43 μ 200 X 90 mm internal diameter). Duplicate bags for each of FG or GS were incubated in the rumen of three wethers for 0, 3, 8, 16, 24, 45 and 72 h. The incubated residues including the 0 h samples were washed in a washing machine and freeze-dried for 48 h. Rumen degradability characteristics and effective degradability (ED, at rumen outflow rate of 0.08 per h) of N were calculated using the exponential model of Ørskov and McDonald (1979).In vitrosolubility of N (S) was determined by incubating for 1 h (at room temperature) the fresh sample (0.5 g on dry matter basis) in each of the four solvents: Borate phosphate buffer (BFB), Durand's buffer (DB), clarified rumen fluid (CRF) and distilled water within a balanced three way factorial design (three operators; four solvents; 11 forages; Deavilleet al., 1997). Residues from S were filtered under vacuum and the filter paper plus residue were oven dried for 18 h at 100°C. All samples and residues were analysed for total N using Kjeldahl method (Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, 1986). Factorial analysis on the general linear model (Minitab®, 1994) was used in the analysis of variance(ANOVA) forin vitrodata and regression analyses ofin situandin vitrodata were performed (Minitab®, 1994). Only the regression results are reported here.
The degradation of protein and non-starch polysaccharides from botanically diverse sources of dietary fibre by ponies as measured by the mobile bag technique
Authors: Moore-Colyer M. , Longland A. C. , Hyslop J. J. , Cuddeford D. 
Published: June 2019

Fibrous foods are major sources of energy and protein for equids. The potentially energy yielding fraction of dietary fibre consists of non-starch polysaccharides (NSP). NSP cannot be digested by equine enzymes and in order for the animal to obtain energy from NSP it must be fermented by the gut microflora to yield volatile fatty acid. This fermentation process is less efficient in terms of yield of ATP than the digestion of starch to glucose, and is generally believed to occur solely in the large intestine. Plant protein may be associated with the NSP or the protoplast. However, horses can only utilize that protein which has been digested and absorbed in the small intestine. Thus, knowledge of the site and extent of nutrient degradation is important to enable the accurate formulation of diets for horses. Therefore in the current study the site and extent of NSP and crude protein (CP) degradation from four fibrous foods commonly given to horses in the United Kingdom were determined in caecally fistulated ponies using mobile bags.The trial was a 4 X 3 incomplete Latin square design with three caecally fistulated Welsh X pony geldings (ca. 250 kg live weight) and four botanically diverse sources of dietary fibre. The ponies were maintained on a basal diet of hay and grass nuts and water was available ad libitum. Bags (6X1 cm) of monofilament polyester mesh pore size 4 μm were filled with 350 mg of either unmolassed sugar-beet pulp (SB), hay cubes (HC), soya hulls (SH) or oat hulls : naked oats (2:1) (OH: NO), which had been ground to pass a 1-mm steel mesh. On two consecutive mornings 20 bags were introduced into the ponies via a naso-gastric tube. Each bag contained two 100 mg steel washers which enabled their capture by a magnet placed inside the caecal fistula: the cannulae were positioned just posterior to the ileo-caecal junction. Between 10 and 16 bags were recovered on the magnet, the remaining bags were allowed to continue through the hind-gut and were subsequently collected in the faeces.
Walking the animal welfare tight-rope: an egg industry view
Authors: Jorêt A. D. 
Published: June 2019

AbstractThere is a wealth of animal welfare legislation affecting the egg industry. Legislation can be over-prescriptive and can be a barrier to progress even where welfare benefits would result. Codes of practice (e.g. Freedom Food; The Lion) present a more flexible way forward, but to be effective they have to be both understood and credible in the eyes of the consumer.With the increasing globalization of trade, welfare legislation must be framed to protect domestic industry from unfair competition.
Striking the balance: a chicken meat producer's view
Authors: Hopley P. T. 
Published: June 2019

AbstractWe are now trading in a world market and it is vital we are aware of the chicken meat production systems and ethics employed in other European and third world countries. All these countries have generally a lower cost of production than the United Kingdom. The strength of the United Kingdom industry is the level of efficiency and biological performance and we must be careful not to load excessive additional cost onto our industry by the introduction of onerous welfare legislation. One of the major points of difference between the United Kingdom and the rest of the world is that of stocking density. In the United Kingdom stocking density is laid down in the ‘Codes of Recommendations for the Welfare of Livestock — Domestic Fowls’. The pace of change within the industry has made this single figure approach obsolete. Industry bodies, such as the British Poultry Meat Federation and the National Farmers' Union, have an important rôle in representing producers' views to Government and consumers. We need more concentration and funding on research and finding solutions, and less on ever more ways of measuring problems.
The producer's view — ruminants
Authors: Lowman B. 
Published: June 2019

AbstractRuminant producers blame almost equally supermarkets and Government for welfare legislation for many reasons but mainly because legislation incurs additional administrative and policing costs. All of these are eventually paid for by the producer, increasing their production costs but not those of their overseas competitors. There is little doubt that the final responsibility for legislation lies with each of us as individual consumers. A significant factor influencing our view of animal welfare is our upbringing, associating ‘nice animals’ with similar feelings to ourselves. However, such instinctive principles are generally forgotten when we are asked to pay a premium for them in the supermarket. Hence the main activators of welfare legislation are the ‘evangelical few’. Supermarkets claim that the demands they impose on their suppliers are simply a reflection of their customers’ demands. However another reason is to allow supermarkets clearly to differentiate their ruminant products to encourage consumers through the door but it has been difficult for them to pass on a premium to their suppliers for meeting tighter specifications for which the consumer will not pay a premium. This dilemma has recently reached breaking point in the pig industry with the ending of the Malton pig contract. To move farm animal welfare forward requires a firm basis of ‘systems’ welfare research which would also act as an effective vehicle for technology transfer to producers. Nevertheless, the main dilemma, our reluctance as consumers to pay for high welfare products, will continue to restrict progress. If, however, high welfare systems could be shown to improve product eating quality for which consumers will pay a premium, developments in animal welfare will be rapidly and willingly accepted by producers.
Quality assurance
Authors: Simpson B. M. 
Published: June 2019

AbstractA description is provided of the development of quality assurance in the Scottish beef and lamb industry during the period 1988-98. The contributions of many organizations and individuals are explained and three essential development phases are identified: setting the standards, gaining commitment from the industry and establishing independent credible assessment procedures. While Scotland has achieved some economic advantage, the author acknowledges that much has still to be done to reward all participating sectors.
Rôle of research in the formulation of ‘rules’ to protect the welfare of farm animals during road transportation
Authors: Cockram M. S. , Mitchell M. A. 
Published: June 2019

AbstractThis paper explains how research can contribute to an understanding of the welfare issues associated with transportation and the value of basing legislation to protect the welfare of animals on scientific evidence.However, it also indicates the limitations of existing research methodology and identifies where research can make a clear contribution to the amendment of existing legislation. The research should accurately reflect commercial practice and should focus upon the provision of readily transferable technological improvements and relevant legislation that will optimize both welfare and productivity. Research into the effects of transport on the welfare of animals involves the investigation of a multicomponent process which can potentially affect the welfare of animals in many ways. The research should identify and quantify those components of transport environments and practices which constitute a major risk to the welfare of animals and determine the optimum conditions for transportation based upon matching the conditions and procedures to the animals’ biological requirements. A range of different measurements have been made to evaluate the responses of farm animals to transportation. Physiological and biochemical variables should be selected to reflect responses or disturbances in the major homeostatic systems influenced by transport environments and practices. The value of the different measurements is strengthened by an understanding of the action and functional significance of the responses. Animal welfare legislation should be based upon sound scientific evidence relating to the animals’ physiological and behavioural requirements and their interaction with their immediate environment. Nowhere is this more important than in animal transportation.
Information and technology transfer in farm animal welfare
Authors: Goddard P. J. 
Published: June 2019

AbstractConsiderable information is available on which to base practical recommendations for enhanced animal welfare. There is evidence of a reasonable flow of information between researchers, farmers, producers' organizations, legislators and the public, although more readily assimilated forms of information are required. New approaches to welfare assessment may allow the public to evaluate production systems in a more balanced way. As the urbanization of society increases, the rôle of education becomes more important to provide information about the reality of on-farm practices. Increasing use will be made of information technology to implement technological advances. Using interactive methods of on-farm assessment of welfare and decision support tools, it would seem possible to engage the producer to a greater extent in the process of improving standards. Measures of public willingness to pay for enhanced welfare provide valuable information about the utility value of animal welfare, influence the views of politicians and producers and ultimately determine production systems.
Metabolic responses of muscle to exercise
Authors: Essén–Gustavsson B 
Published: June 2019

AbstractMuscle is a tissue with a great plasticity due to the fact that it is composed of fibres having different contractile and metabolic properties. In horses, muscle metabolic responses to exercise are studied by taking biopsies from the gluteus medius muscle. Histochemical stains are used to identify slow contracting type I fibres and fast contracting type IIA and type IIB fibres and to evaluate fibre areas, capillary supply, oxidative capacity, glycogen and lipid content in a muscle. Biochemical analyses of substrates, metabolites and enzyme activities are performed either on a whole piece of muscle, on pools of fibres or on single fibres of identified type.All fibres contain glycogen whereas lipid is mainly found in type I and type IIA fibres that have smaller cross–sectional areas and a higher oxidative capacity than type IIB fibres. Large variations can be seen in metabolic profile between and within fibre types. The most common muscular adaptation to training is an increase in oxidative capacity, capillary density and an increase in the type IIA/IIB ratio. The order of recruitment of fibres during most types of exercise is from type I to type IIA and type IIB.The higher the intensity of exercise, the faster is the breakdown of glycogen. After racing (1640-2640m), and after high intense treadmill exercise, concentrations of lactate and inosine monophosphate (IMP) are increased in the muscle and concentrations of glycogen, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and creatine phosphate (CP) decreased. Extremely low ATP and high IMP concentrations especially in some type II fibres are observed after racing.After exercise of low intensity and long duration glycogen and triglyceride stores in muscle are utilised, amino acid metabolism is enhanced and protein degradation may occur. After submaximal treadmill exercise to fatigue and after endurance rides glycogen is degraded and depletion occurs mainly in type I and type IIA fibres.Fibre type composition, substrate sources and differences in metabolic properties among fibres and the extent to which fibres are recruited are all factors that influence the metabolic responses of muscle to exercise. Biochemical analyses on whole muscle must be interpreted with caution since large variations in metabolic response to exercise occur among different fibres.
Muscle morphology heterogeneity: control, significance for performance and responses to training
Authors: Rivero J L L 
Published: June 2019

The skeletal musculature of the horse is highly developed and adapted to match the animal's athletic potential. More than half of a mature horse's body weight comprises skeletal muscle and the total muscle blood flow during maximal exercise represents 78% of total cardiac output. Exercise requires the co–ordinated application of many different body systems under the control of the nervous systems. Metabolites and oxygen reach skeletal muscle fibres via the respiratory, cardiovascular and haematological systems. The muscle fibres produce energy in the form of ATP that, via the contractile machinery, is converted into mechanical work. The structural arrangements of the musculoskeletal system provides the means with which to harness this energy to move the horse's limbs in a characteristic rhythmical pattern that is well established for each gait.Equine skeletal muscle is considerably heterogeneous and this diversity reflects functional specialisation and is the basis of its adaptive plasticity. Cellular and molecular diversity of equine muscle and the response of this tissue to exercise and training have been studied extensively over the past 30 years.