Journal Articles on Category: Agriculture and Food Sciences

The present study was planned to determine the macro-mineral status (calcium, phosphorus and magnesium) in riverine buffaloes suffering with prepartum vaginal prolapse (n=100) in comparison with control (n=100) buffaloes kept in irrigated and rain fed (Barani) agro-ecological zones of Punjab, Pakistan. Serum macro-mineral status was determined by spectrophotometer using commercially available kits. Mean serum calcium and phosphorus levels were lower in buffaloes suffering with prepartum vaginal prolapse compared with their healthy counterparts (P<0.01), while reverse was true for serum magnesium concentration. Mean serum calcium was significantly higher (P<0.01) and phosphorus was non-significantly lower in control and vaginal prolapse affected buffaloes kept in irrigated zone compared to their counterparts in rain fed zone. However, magnesium concentration was non-significantly higher in control buffaloes and significantly lower in vaginal prolapse affected buffaloes belonging to irrigated zone compared to their counterparts in rain fed zone. It may be inferred that deficiency of calcium and phosphorus and higher levels of magnesium may possibly be the contributing factors in causing prepartum vaginal prolapse in buffaloes. The levels of calcium, phosphorus and magnesium were, at least partially, zone dependent.

Issn:02538318

Keywords: Buffaloes ; vaginal prolapse ; calcium ; phosphorus ; magnesium ; serum

Volume: 28

Pages: 107-110

Papaya (Carica Papaya L.) fruits index 2 were treated with 1.5, 2.5 and 3.5% solutions of calcium chloride by dipping and vacuum infiltration (-33 Kpa) or untreated (0%) as control. Effects of these treatments were evaluated on storage life and postharvest quality characteristics of papaya. After 21 days of storage at 13±1°C, the fruits were removed from storage for physicochemical analysis. Following additional five days holding in the storage condition for fruits used for evaluation of the rate of disease incidence and storage life. Postharvest dip treatments at different concentrations of calcium prolonged storage life, slowed down the ripening processes and maintained the quality of papaya. Whereas, it was effectively greater with calcium infiltration treatments than that for dip treatments. Calcium infiltration extended the storage life and retained the quality as calcium concentrations increased up to 2.5% and then declined. The desired effect was obtained at 2.5% infiltration compared with other treatments. The least disease incidence was found in those fruits infiltrated with 2.5% calcium. Hence, it can be concluded that postharvest infiltration of calcium at 2.5% has the potential to control disease incidence, prolong the storage life and preserve valuable attributes of postharvest papaya, presumably because of its effects on inhibition of ripening and senescence process and loss of the fruit firmness of papaya.

Issn:15574989

Keywords: Papaya ; postharvest ; calcium chloride ; papaya storage life ; papaya quality

Volume: 3

Pages: 526-533

Influence of soil reaction on phosphorus, potassium, calcium and magnesium dynamics in grapevine was studied on the variety Sauvignon Blanc in 2007, in the Plešivica wine-growing region. Investigations were conducted on three vitisol subtypes: dystric cambisol (pHKCl 3.73-3.76), pseudogley (pHKCl 4.67-4.69) and rendzina on marl (pHKCl 7.21-7.27). To establish the amount and dynamics of P, K, Ca and Mg in plant material, leaf samples were taken three times during the growing period: at the flowering and veraison stages and at the end of the growing period. At all sampling times, significantly higher leaf contents of P, Ca and Mg were found on alkaline soil compared to acid soils, while differences in K levels were not statistically significant. Differences in P contents may be explained by better solubility and thereby better availability of P from Ca-phosphates compared to Al, Mn and Fe-phosphates in acid soils. In addition, the cation ratio K/(Ca+Mg) that has a significant influence on grape quality, was also determined in leaves. Compared to optimal values (0.30–0.40), the least favourable ratio K/ (Ca+Mg) was recorded at flowering on acid soils (0.38–0.77) and at harvest on calcareous soil (0.12–0.27). Differences in the content of sugar and total acids in must indicate a positive correlation between leaf contents of P, Ca and Mg and sugar content of must, and a negative correlation between leaf contents of P, Ca and Mg and the total acid content of must.

Issn:13317768

Keywords: grapevine ; soil reaction ; leaf ; must

Volume: 74

Pages: 39-43

El objetivo fue comparar varios modelos matemáticos para describir la tasa de digestión del almidón. Se analizó la información de la degradación ruminal del almidón de sorgo rolado, maíz rolado, maíz con alto contenido de humedad y trigo, proveniente de tres experimentos in vitro. Los modelos comparados con base en la suma de cuadrados de los residuales y a la interpretación biológica, fueron: el de cinética de primer orden (CPO), primer orden con fase de retraso (CPO-R) y con fracción indigestible (CPO-I), dos modelos compartamentales y el de cinética de saturación (CS). No se pudieron usar los modelos compartamentales. En términos generales los modelos investigados permiten detectar las diferencias en la tasa de digestión del almidón. El modelo de CS presentó los menores valores residuales, seguido por el de CPO. El modelo de CS estimó algunos parámetros sin significado biológico. La inclusión de la fase de retraso (CPO-R) o la fracción indigestible (CPO-I) presentaron mayores desviaciones. Se concluye que el modelo de cinética de primer orden es el más adecuado para describir la digestión ruminal del almidón.

Issn:00401889

Keywords: Almidón ; Tasa de digestión ; Modelos matemáticos ; Rumen.

Volume: 38

Pages:

Se utilizaron cuatro novillos Holstein (157 kg PV) habilitados con cánulas en el rumen y duodeno proximal para comparar las características de la digestión del maíz, trigo, cebada y sorgo en hojuelas en dietas con 81% de grano. La digestión ruminal de la materia orgánica (MO) fue menor (P 0.10) en la digestibilidad posruminal del almidón, la digestibilidad posruminal de la MO fue menor (P < 0.05) para cebada comparada con el trigo (61% vs. 67%, respectivamente). La digestibilidad ruminal de nitrógeno (N) fue mayor (P < 0.05) para trigo (80%) y cebada (72%), seguido de maíz (60%) y sorgo (46%).La digestibilidad posruminal del N fue diferente (P < 0.05) para todos los tratamientos, de menor a mayor: sorgo (71%), maíz (74%), cebada (76%) y trigo (79%). En tracto total, la digestibilidad de MO fue mayor (P < 0.05) para el trigo (85%), seguido de maíz (82%), cebada (80%) y sorgo (79%), mientras que la digestibilidad de N fue mayor para el trigo (80%), seguido de cebada (76%), y por último sorgo y maíz (69% y 68%, respectivamente). En tracto total, todos los granos obtuvieron digestibilidades del almidón por encima del 98%. La energía digestible (ED, Mcal/kg) fue mayor (P < 0.05) para las dietas que contenían maíz y trigo (3.52 y 3.59 Mcal/kg) comparado con aquellas que contenían cebada y sorgo (3.35 y 3.34 Mcal/kg, respectivamente). Dado que los valores que asigna el NRC para el contenido de ED y proteína de escape para el maíz en hojuelas son de 4.10 Mcal/kg y 57%, respectivamente, los valores calculados por remplazo para el trigo, cebada y sorgo correspondieron a 4.19 Mcal/kg y 21.5%, 3.89 Mcal/kg y 34.8% y de 3.88 Mcal/kg y 63.4%,respectivamente. Se concluye que los actuales estándares del NRC subestiman el contenido de

Issn:03015092

Keywords: PROCESAMIENTO CON VAPOR ; MAÍZ ; TRIGO ; CEBADA ; SORGO ; NOVILLOS ; METABOLISMO.

Volume: 33

Pages: 371-386

Animal performance is the most direct measure in the evaluation of feed quality. However, performance data are often insufficient to determine possible interactions that may take place in the ruminal environment. The purpose of the present trial was to evaluate the possible associative effects on the concentrations of volatile fatty acids (VFAs), ammoniacal nitrogen (N-NH3) and pH in the remaining liquid fraction from the dry matter (DM) digestion for exclusive roughages: sugarcane (SC), 60- (EG60) and 180-day elephantgrass (EG180), and corn silage (SIL), as well as for combined roughages: sugarcane+corn silage (SCSIL), sugarcane+60-day elephantgrass (SCEG60), sugarcane+180-day elephantgrass (SCEG180), corn silage+60-day elephantgrass (SILEG60), corn silage+180-day elephantgrass (SILEG180) associated at equal DM proportions (50%). These associative effects present positive or negative effects on bovine performance. Concentrations of VFAs and N-NH3, as well as pH for the treatments were, respectively: SC= 56.9 mmol L-1, 50.1 mg dL-1, 5.7; SCSIL= 61.4 mmol L-1, 50.7 mg dL-1, 5.8; SCEG60= 54.7 mmol L-1, 47.6 mg dL-1, 5.8; SCEG180= 45.4 mmol L-1, 49.4 mg dL-1, 6.0; SIL= 57.2 mmol L-1, 54.0 mg dL-1, 5.8; SILEG60= 57.1 mmol L-1, 53.1 mg dL-1, 5.9; SILEG180= 55.9 mmol L-1, 52.3 mg dL-1, 6.0; EG60= 58.1 mmol L-1, 49.4 mg dL-1, 5.9; and EG180= 44.0 mmol L-1, 46.4 mg dL-1, 6.1. Nonstructural carbohydrates and starch, associated with fiber and protein, contributed to positive associative effect on the 50:50 sugarcane/corn silage mixtures. The high fermentative aspect of such mixture may have promoted the best results in bovine performance.

Issn:01039016

Keywords: VFAs ; N-NH3 ; elephantgrass ; corn silage ; sugarcane

Volume: 59

Pages: 573-579

An experiment was carried out to study the effect of duration of incubation on the digestibility with the aim to reduce the time of incubation of the first stage digestion. This could be achieved if method for improving the potency of faecal liquor is evolved and verified. To estimate the time required to complete digestion of forages, triplicate samples of ryegrass and two varieties of straw were incubated in the faecal liquor for digestion for the periods of 0, 3, 6, 9, 24, 34, 48, 58, 72, 80 or 96 hours. It was observed that the incubation time required to complete digestion in faecal liquor for ryegrass and straw was 58 and 96 hours, respectively. The rate of digestion was maximal from 9 to 48 hours during which time approximately 1.11 mg/hour were solublised.

Issn:02538318

Keywords: Forages ; in vitro digestibility ; faecal liquor

Volume: 23

Pages: 11-14

A nutritional evaluation was carried out to determine the effects of red palm oil and refined palm olein on digestion of nutrients in animals. Four-week-old Wistar albino rats (n = 8 per group) were maintained for 28 days on standard dry rat food supplemented (10, 20 and 30% by weight) with red palm oil (RPO) and refined palm olein (REFPO). The digestion of nutrients (measured from the differences between nutrient intake and fecal nutrient) by rats fed 10% oil-supplemented diets was comparable to that of the control (p>0.01). There were inverse dose-effect relationships between the level of dietary fat and digestion of protein, fat, carbohydrate, calcium, potassium, sodium, magnesium, manganese and copper. In comparison with other experimental groups, animals fed 30% oil diets exhibited the lowest digestion of proximate nutrients (p0.01). The above findings suggest that consumption of palm in moderate amounts may impact growth and development through effects on nutrient retention.

Issn:16805194

Keywords: Red palm oil ; refined palm olein ; nutrient digestion

Volume: 2

Pages: 271-278

Con el objetivo de comparar el efecto del genotipo y época de corte sobre la producción de materia seca (MS) y su calidad nutricional, se evaluaron cinco líneas de pasto buffel y el híbrido Nueces. Los genotipos se establecieron en condiciones de temporal, con un diseño completamente al azar con tres repeticiones. Los pastos se cosecharon en agosto y noviembre de 1999. Se estimó el rendimiento de MS ha-1 y se determinaron los componentes de la pared celular, la proteína cruda (PC) y el contenido de minerales. Se evaluó la digestibilidad in situ y degradabilidad efectiva de la MS, PC y fibra detergente neutro mediante la técnica de la bolsa nylon, los datos se utilizaron para estimar la producción de materia seca digestible y la producción de proteína digestible por hectárea. Se encontraron mayores diferencias, en valor nutritivo, entre épocas de corte que entre líneas. El contenido de PC fue bajo y la concentración de minerales fue insuficiente para satisfacer las necesidades de rumiantes en pastoreo. Las líneas de pasto buffel PI409375 y PI409443 produjeron, en promedio, 45 y 42 % más materia seca y proteína cruda digestible, respectivamente, que el híbrido Nueces, lo que las convierte en opciones válidas para sustituirlo en siembras comerciales.

Issn:00401889

Keywords: Pasto buffel ; Líneas de buffel ; Contenido de nutrientes ; Degradabilidad efectiva.

Volume: 41

Pages: 209-218

Three Jersey x Holstein steers (215 4.8 kg ) with cannulas in the rumen and proximal duodenum were used in a 3 x 3 Latin squares design experiment to evaluate the level of fat supplementation (0, 4, and, 8% yellow grease) on characteristics of duodenal chyme, bile production, and digestion of fatty acids. Dry matter intake was restricted to 2.15% of BW. Characteristics of bile obtained during evisceration of 18 beef carcasses were as follows: pH = 7.48±0.29; total solids = 8.32%±0.66; density, 1.012±0.02 g/mL and total lipids, 1468±82 mg/dL. Increasing level of fat supplementation decreased (linear effect, P = 0.07) postruminal fatty acid digestion, due primarily to decreased absorption of saturated fatty acids. The estimated NEm (Mcal/kg) of yellow grease averaged 5.87 and 5.46 for the 4, and 8% of level supplementation, respectively. There were no treatment effects (P&gt;0.20) on pH and density of duodenal chyme. Although, pH was lower (2.34 vs 3.81, P&lt;0.01), and density was greater (1.3% P&lt;0.01) for proximal duodenum than for distal duodenum chyme. Bile production averaged 31.9±0.35 mL/kg BW. Increasing level of fat intake increased (linear effect, P = 0.07) bile production. Increasing the level of supplemental fat from 4 to 8% increased bile production and duodenal lipid flow by 10.3 and 35.7%, respectively. Thus, with increasing level of fat supplementation, the bile:lipid ratio (mL of bile/g of lipid in duodenum) of distal duodenal chyme decreased (linear effect, P&lt;0.01) from 23.4 to 16.7. The bile:lipid ratio of distal duodenal chyme explained 69% of the variation in intestinal fatty acid digestion. We conclude that the decrease in NE value of supplemental fat with increasing level of fat intake is largely due to disproportionate increases in bile production, and hence, decreased bile:lipid ratios.

Issn:16805593

Keywords:

Volume: 3

Pages: 763-768