bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Adaptations in muscle fibre characteristics induced by physical activity in pigs
Authors: Petersen J. S. , Henckel P. , Oksbjerg N. , Sørensen M. T. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractThe influence of regular exercise training and physical activity on distribution of muscle fibre types, fibre cross-sectional areas and the number of adjacent capillaries per fibre type and per fibre (capillarization) was studied in five muscles from 48 female and 48 entire male pigs. In the growth interval from 30 to 100 kg, the pigs were subjected to one of three treatments: individual housing in pens of 2·5 m2(treatment C), individual housing and treadmill training for 15 minlday at a speed of 4 kmlh, 5 days/week for a period of 70 days (treatment T), and housing in large pens (36 m2, 40 pigs per pen) allowing for spontaneous physical activity (treatment F). In m. longissimus dorsi, treatment F increased the ratio of fast-twitch oxidative (FTa-) to fast twitch glycolytic (FTb-) fibres, elevated the mean fibre cross-sectional area and the number of capillaries per fibre. In m. biceps femoris (BF) from female pigs, the only adaptation found was a marked training-induced (treatment T) increase in the cross-sectional area of the slow-twitch (ST-) fibres. In m. semitendinosus and BF from male pigs, treatments T and F increased the ratio of FTa- to FTb-fibres. Both training and spontaneous activity increased the proportion of ST-fibres in m. trapezius thoracis (0·48 in treatment C, 0·53 in T and 0·52 in F). Conversely in m. psoas major, treatment F increased the proportion of FTa-fibres (0·15 in C and 0·19 in F) at the expense of ST- and intermediate FTc-fibres. Spontaneous activity induced ST-fibre hypertrophy in the five muscles. For several muscles, the mean fibre cross-sectional area was significantly higher in female than in male pigs.
Cervix conformation: a first anatomical approach in baudet du poitou jenny asses
Authors: Vendramini O. M. , Guintard C. , Moreau J. , Tainturier D. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractMeasurements have been made of the length and diameter of the cervix and caudal ostium position in relation to the vaginal floor in 30 jenny asses of Baudet du Poitou breed and crosses. These measurements were obtained on the 4th, 5th and 6th days of oestrus and the 6th and 8th days of dioestrus. The observed anatomical modifications were mainly associated with the animal's physiological state, age and morphological type (size). The cervical anatomy of the female donkey differs from that of the mare not only in size but also in the existence of a large cervical protrusion into the vagina which can lead to the occurrence of cervical lesions during parturition or from the mechanical action of mating, especially when the female is small. This anatomical conformation also makes intrauterine ejaculation difficult whether by natural service or by artificial insemination.
Effect of photoperiod and light intensity on the performance of intact male turkeys
Authors: Lewis P. D. , Perry G. C. , Sherwin C. M. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractInjurious pecking can be a major cause of mortality in growing turkeys, particularly if given a long photoperiod. Consequently, birds are usually reared under low light intensity (<1 lux) and/or have their beaks trimmed. The influence of an 8, 12, 16 or 23 h photoperiod at an intensity of 1 or 10 lux on the performance of intact (not beak trimmed or de-snooded) BUT8 male turkeys was assessed in a 4 X2 empirical study.Excessive injurious pecking in groups exposed to 10 lux light intensity on >12 h photoperiods necessitated an unscheduled reduction to 1 lux light intensity. Overall, light intensity did not significantly affect food intake, food conversion efficiency, growth or carcass composition. Groups exposed to 10 lux light intensity for all or part of the trial had higher losses and a greater incidence of pecking than birds maintained on al lux light intensity.Growth was inconsistently affected by photoperiod, with birds on 12 h having the highest body weight at 108 days but no significant differences at 136 days. Patterns of food intake were variable but cumulatively to 136 days food intake was not significantly affected by daylength. Overall, but particularly after 108 days, birds on longer photoperiods converted food more efficiently. Mortality and the incidence of injurious pecking was positively correlated with photoperiod and breast meat yield and testicular weight were greater in birds on longer daylengths. There were no significant interactions between photoperiod and illuminance.
Automatic blood sampling equipment for use in studies of animal physiology
Authors: Goddard P. J. , Gaskin G. J. , Macdonald A. J. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractA device for the collection of discrete blood samples from large animals has been developed to allow studies of physiology to be undertaken without the confounding effect of restraint. A microprocessor controlled unit (measuring 180 × 110 × 90 mm), weighing less than 1-2 kg, is mounted on the back of the experimental subject using a simple harness. A sampling line is connected to a previously inserted jugular vein catheter. Samples of blood (approx. 5 ml) are collected at pre-determined times following a start time which can be delayed by up to 48 h to allow the subject to recover from any effects of attachment of the sampler. The results from three studies suggest that the device offers a novel way to overcome a number of difficulties which occur when conventional methods are used to collect blood in experiments.
Genotype differences in responses of growth and carcass characteristics to the intrauterine cohabitant phenomenon in twin lambs
Authors: Gill J. W. , Hosking B. J. , Holst P. J. , Fogarty N. M. , Hopkins D. L. , Egan A. R. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractThe preweaning growth and carcass characteristics offour lamb genotypes were analysed for variation attributable to the intrauterine cohabitant (IUC) phenomenon, where within-sex variation is attributed to the sex of a twin's womb-mate. The four genotypes resulted from the following matings: Poll Dorset rams × Merino ewes, Poll Dorset rams × (Border Leicester × Merino) ewes, Texel rams × Merino ewes and Texel rams × (Border Leicester × Merino) ewes. Four hundred and twenty twin lambs participated in the preweaning study and of these, 209 were slaughtered to generate carcass data. Some of these genotypes displayed within-sex variation in weaning weight and fat score, preweaning average daily gain, skin-fold thickness, carcass fatness and eye muscle dimensions attributable to the IUC phenomenon. Genotypic differences in the responses of lambs to the IUC phenomenon were also observed. The IUC phenomenon appears to involve prenatal programming, an hypothesis that attributes postnatal characteristics to events during differentiation. The IUC phenomenon is analogous to the intrauterine position phenomenon in fecund mammals, where variations in prenatal steroid concentrations programme for permanent alterations in postnatal reproductive characteristics. The growth responses reported in this paper provide evidence of variation due to prenatal programming. While the magnitude of the responses to the IUC phenomenon were not large, the data presented indicate that under field conditions, the magnitude of growth responses to the IUC phenomenon may be as great as those observed between breeds. If so, further examination of the role that an animal's IUC may have on its subsequent performance could aid the development of more sensitive indices for breed evaluation and progeny selection.
Heart rate responses and plasma cortisol concentrations in ewes: comparison between cervical and laparoscopic intrauterine insemination and their associated handling procedures
Authors: Khalid M. , Haresign W. , Bradley D. G. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractThis study consisted of two experiments. In experiment 1, stress responses of sheep which were restrained either in a laparoscopy cradle or a roll-over cradle were compared. The results of this experiment indicated that restraint in roll-over cradle is less (P < 0·05) stressful than that in a laparoscopy cradle when assessed in terms of the elevation and duration of both the mean heart rate and plasma cortisol responses. Experiment 2 compared the stress responses of sheep subjected to restraint in a laparoscopy cradle, restraint in a laparoscopy cradle with intrauterine artificial insemination (AI) by laparoscopy, minimal restraint with cervical AI or restraint in a roll-over cradle plus foot-trimming. All treatments resulted in significant elevations in both heart rate and plasma cortisol concentrations (F < 0·001). The peak heart rate was significantly (P < 0·05) higher in ewes subjected to cervical AI than in those subjected to intrauterine insemination, with other treatments intermediate. The peak cortisol response did not differ among different treatments. The duration over which both the mean heart rate and -plasma cortisol concentrations remained significantly elevated above pre-treatment concentrations did not differ among treatment groups. The results of this study suggest that while restraint using a laparoscopy cradle is more stressful than that using a rollover cradle, the stress inflicted by intrauterine insemination by laparoscopy itself is no greater than that due to restraint using the laparoscopy cradle alone, cervical AI or the management practice offoot-trimming using a rollover cradle.
The rôle of cortisol and β-endorphin in the response of the immune system to weaning in lambs
Authors: Rhind S. M. , Reid H. W. , McMillen S. R. , Palmarini G. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractThe relationship between weaning stress-induced changes in stress hormone profiles and immune function was investigated in groups of 10 lambs immunized against adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH; treatment A) or fi-endorphin (treatment B) to reduce the circulating concentrations of cortisol and fi-endorphin respectively. Control animals (treatment C) were immunized against a porcine thyroglobulin carrier protein. Application of weaning stress was associated with significantly elevated plasma cortisol concentrations but no significant increase in fi-endorphin concentrations in C lambs. Immunization against ACTH suppressed the post-weaning increase in cortisol concentration. This was associated with a transient reduction in the lymphocyte stimulation response to keyhole limpet haemocyanin (KLH) antigen in the A animals but there was no effect on the antibody response or interferon-y production by antigen stimulated lymphocytes. There were no significant effects of immunization against fi-endorphin on the capacity to mount antibody or cell-mediated immune responses. It is concluded that weaning stress-induced increases in cortisol did not inhibit the immune response. Since cortisol concentrations and the cell mediated immune response at 8 days after immunization were positively associated it is concluded that these indices are not independent measures of stress.
Competitive ability of rams selected for high and low levels of sexual performance
Authors: Erhard H. W. , Price E. O. , Dally M. R. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractThe objective of this study was to determine any differences in the competitive ability of rams differing in levels of sexual performance. Twenty sexually experienced Targhee-type rams were preselected from a population of 95 males for exhibiting relatively high and low ejaculation rates when individually exposed to oestrous ewes for 30 min. Each of 10 high performers (HP) were paired with each of 10 low performers (LP) on three occasions when competing for food (after food deprivation) and twice when competing for an oestrous female. Tests were 5 min in duration. Food-deprived HP and LP rams were equally aggressive when competing for a source offood that could only be accessed by one ram at a time. Time offeeding by HP and LP rams did not differ. HP rams spent more time with the oestrous ewe and attained more mounts in a greater number of pairings than LP rams even though HP and LP rams did not differ in number of successful agonistic interactions (active displacements and successful defences) when competing for the ewe. It was concluded that HP and LP rams, taken as groups, do not differ in their basic competitive ability and that the greater mating success of HP rams can be explained by their higher levels of libido.
Meat production from crossbred and domestic yaks in China
Authors: Jialin B. , Mingqiang W. , Zhonglin L. , Chesworth J. M. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractFemale domesticated yaks were artificially inseminated with semen taken from wild yaks and the offspring used to form a nucleus breeding herd of crossbred animals. The meat production of the first generation (F2 × F2) frombreeding within the nucleus herd was assessed by slaughter and carcass dissection of males. One group (no. = 14) was slaughtered at 6 months of age and the second (no. = 12) at 18 months. Crossbred yaks were significantly heavier (P < 0·01) at 6 months (74·7 (s.e. 10·41) kg v. 59·8 (s.e. 10·23) kg) and at 18 months (150·5 (s.e. 56·1) kg v. 117·7 (s.e. 17·4) kg) than domesticated ones. The killing-out proportion (0·47) was similar at both ages and for both groups of animals. Carcass weight, meat weight and the yield of prime cuts were higher for crossbred animals than for domestic yak at both ages.
The value of crossbreeding information in selection of poultry under a dominance model
Authors: Uimari P. , Gibson J. P. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractA stochastic simulation was used to investigate the value of crossbreeding information in a two line crossbreeding system in poultry under different genetic scenarios. Populations consisted of 25 sires and 250 dams, which were mated to produce both purebred and crossbred progeny. The next generation parents were selected either based on purebred information (PLS) (sib means, and own performance for females) or additional crossbred sib means were included (CCPS). The trait under selection was controlled by 20 loci with varying degree of dominance. Pure lines differed in initial allele frequencies. If the trait was controlled by loci with partial dominance, little or no extra benefit was obtained from including crossbred information over the pure line information. Under complete dominance and overdominance CCPS outperformed PLS. As a practical rule, CCPS is better than PLS if the ratio between dominance variance and total genetic variance is around 0·3 or higher. In this case the most probable cause of the dominance variation is loci with full or overdominance.
Supplementation of grass silage-based diets with small quantities of concentrates: strategies for allocating concentrate crude protein
Authors: Aston K. , Fisher W. J. , McAllan A. B. , Dhanoa M. S. , Dewhurst R. J. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractFifty-five multiparous Holstein-Friesian cows were used to evaluate the short- and long-term effects of varying the crude protein (CP) content of concentrates offered at a low level (5 kg/day) along withad libitumaccess to a high quality grass silage. Three dietary treatment groups in lactation weeks 4 to 22 received concentrates containing either 156 (L), 247 (M) or 338 (H) g CP per kg dry matter; from weeks 13 to 21, half of the L animals changed over to the H concentrate and vice versa so that there were five treatment groups (LL, LH, MM, HL and HH). Feeding M or H compared with L increased silage voluntary intakes (P<0·05) and the yields of milk (P<0·05), fat (P< 0·05) and protein (P< 0·01). Milk protein concentration increased with level of concentrate CP (P< 0·05). Pattern of concentrate CP supply (comparison ofLH, MM and HL) had no significant effect on intake or yields of milk and milk solids across the experiment (weeks 4 to 21), though cows gained less weight on treatment HL than on LH (P<0·05) or MM. Intake, milk and component yields were all markedly affected by a change in concentrate CP at week 13; there were positive effects of additional CP (LLv.LH) and negative effects of reduced CP (HHv.HL) on silage intake (P<0·05), as well as milk yield (P< 0·001), milk protein yield (P< 0·001) and milk protein concentration (P< 0·001). Responses to increased concentrate CP were of a similar magnitude in early and midlactation; extra concentrate CP can recover depressed yields and concentrations of milk protein in established lactation. Production responses to concentrate CP involved a concomitant increase in silage voluntary intake.
Effect of undernutrition and refeeding on digestion in Bos taurus and Bos indicus in a tropical environment
Authors: Grimaud P. , Richard D. , Kanwé A. , Durier C. , Doreau M. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractThe effect of underfeeding and ref eeding on digestion was studied in Bos taurus and Bos indicus cows. Eight nonlactating cows, four B. taurus and four B. indicus (live weight 156 kg and 207 kg respectively) were first given a forage-based diet at a level above energy maintenance requirements for 4 weeks (3·65 and 4·66 kg dry matter (DM) per day respectively for B. taurus and B. indicus). They were then restricted at a low level of intake for 2 months (1·83 and 2·33 kg DM per day respectively for B. taurus and B. indicus) and finally refed at the first level for 2 months. Digestion measurements were made before the underfeeding period, at 3 and 8 weeks of underfeeding and at 3 and 8 weeks ofref eeding. Organic matter apparent digestibility decreased with underfeeding and increased with refeeding (0·637, 0·591, 0·652, 0·692 and 0·669 in B. taurus and 0·674, 0·560, 0·580, 0·698 and 0·692 in B. indicus, respectively 1 week before, 3 and 8 weeks after underfeeding, and 3 and 8 weeks after refeeding). This lower apparent digestibility at low level of intake was not expected either by ruminal particle retention time, which increased when intake decreased, or by measurements ofmicrobial activity: DM degradability measured in situ and ruminal particle size did not vary with level of intake. An effect of the length of underfeeding and refeeding was seen: the apparent digestibility tended to increase after several weeks of undernutrition and was higher after refeeding than before underfeeding. No difference was observed between the two genotypes.
Growth and body composition of highly selected boars and gilts
Authors: Van Lunen T. A. , Cole D. J. A. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractAn experiment was conducted to measure the growth and body composition changes of highly selected boars and gilts from 10 to 150 kg live weight. Thirty boars and 30 gilts were given food ad libitum and two pigs of each sex were slaughtered at 10-kg increments from 10 kg to 150 kg live weight at which time the chemical composition of the body was determined. Boars and gilts exhibited different patterns of growth, nitrogen deposition rate (NDR) and lipid deposition rate (LDR) with boars exhibiting a sharp peak in daily live-weight gain and NDR while gilts exhibited almost a flat response curve over the age and weight range tested. Gilts experienced a peak in LDR at a lighter weight than boars (75·8 v. 100·5 kg) while NDR peaked at the same weight for both sexes (70·8 kg). Maximum NDR for boars and gilts was 37·7 and 28·1 glday (235·5 and 175·5 glday protein deposition rate) respectively. The Gompertz growth equation [Y = A + C × EXP (−EXP (−B ×(X−M)))] was shown to accurately represent the growth trajectory, while the logarithmic derivative of the allometric equation [Y = aXb] was used to determine live weight and body composition relationships. Combined sex relationships indicated that total body nitrogen and lipid concentrations increased at the same rate. A quadratic equation for the prediction of NDR based on live weight was developed for this genotype (NDR = 24·06 + 0·34 W − 0·002W2). In conclusion, the results provide a basis for comparison of body composition and growth patterns between the highly selected genotype tested and pigs from other genetic backgrounds. Sex effects exist for growth and body composition but combined sex prediction equations can be used to estimate NDR potential.
Ileal digestibility of amino acids in pigs given a barley-based diet with increasing inclusion of lucerne leaf meal
Authors: Reverter M. , Lindberg J. E. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractIleal digestibility of amino acids in barley-based diets with increasing inclusion of lucerne leaf meal (LLM; 0, 50, 100 and 200 g/kg) was studied in a change-over experiment with post-valve T-caecum cannulated growing pigs. The apparent Heal digestibility of crude protein, as well as of most of the essential (EAA) and non-essential amino acids (NEAA) was not significantly affected by the dietary inclusion of LLM. The exceptions were cystine, methionine, phenylalanine, glutamic acid and serine, all of which showed a significant (P< 0·05) reduction in apparent Heal digestibility with increasing inclusion of LLM. In contrast, the calculated true Heal digestibility of all EAA (with the exception of arginine and lysine) and the NEAA glutamic acid and serine were significantly (P< 0·05) reduced with the inclusion of LLM. Associated with an increased crude protein intake, there was a significant (P< 0·05) increase in the amount of absorbed EAA when the proportion of LLM was increased in the diet. With increasing proportion of fibre in the diet, there was a significant (P< 0·05) increase in the Heal flow of glucosamine.It can be concluded from the present data that the inclusion of LLM in a barley-based diet for growing pigs will result in an improvement in the absorbed amino-acid profile due to a significant increase in the absorption of all of the EAA.
The effects of including white clover in perennial ryegrass swards and the height of mixed swards on the milk production, sward selection and ingestive behaviour of dairy cows
Authors: Phillips C. J. C. , James N. L. 
Published: September 2010

AbstractTwo experiments were conducted with dairy cows to examine the effects of including white clover in perennial ryegrass swards and of offering the cows a choice between tall and short mixed perennial ryegrass/white clover swards. In the first experiment, cows grazed a perennial ryegrass sward (treatment Prg); a mixed sward of perennial ryegrass and white clover (treatment WC); treatment Prg during the night and treatment WC during the day (treatment Prg night/WC day); or they were offered a choice between Prg and WC (treatment Prg/WC). Cows in treatment WC produced more milk than cows in treatment Prg, with cows in Prg night/WC day and Prg/WC intermediate. The milk fat content of cows in treatment Prg was greater than in the other three treatments. When cows were offered both mixed grass/clover and pure grass swards (treatments Prg night/WC day and Prg/WC) they exhibited a partial preference for the WC sward and grazed it to a lower herbage height than the pure grass sward. In the second experiment, cows were offered a WC sward at 6 or 3·5 cm sward surface height, or a choice between pastures at the two heights. Cows offered only the tall sward produced most milk, and those offered only the short sward produced the least. Milk fat content was reduced for cows offered only the tall sward. Cows offered a choice of the tall or short swards spent longer grazing in total than the cows offered only tall or only short swards but there was no difference in the time spent grazing the tall and short swards.