Effects of feeding strategy, fiber source of the diet, and crude protein content on productive performance of broiler breeder hens

A 12-wk experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of feeding program, dietary fiber, and CP content of the diet on productive performance of Ross broiler breeder hens (41 wk of age). There were 12 treatments arranged factorially with 2 levels of CP (14.5 vs. 17.4%), 3 fiber sources (0 vs. 3% inulin vs. 3% cellulose), and 2 levels of feed intake (160 vs. 208 g/d) that corresponded to restricted (R) or ad libitum (AL) feeding systems. The experimental diets contained 2,800 kcal ME with either 0.65 (14.5% CP) or 0.78% Lys (17.4% CP).

Effect of level of fiber of the rearing phase diets on egg production, digestive tract traits, and body measurements of brown egg-laying hens fed diets differing in energy concentration

This research studied the effects of additional fiber in the rearing phase diets on egg production, gastrointestinal tract (GIT) traits, and body measurements of brown egg-laying hens fed diets varying in energy concentration from 17 to 46 wk of age. The experiment was completely randomized with 10 treatments arranged as a 5 × 2 factorial with 5 rearing phase diets and 2 laying phase diets. During the rearing phase, treatments consisted of a control diet based on cereals and soybean meal and 4 additional diets with a combination of 2 fiber sources (cereal straw and sugar beet pulp, SBP) at 2 levels (2 and 4%). During the laying phase, diets differed in energy content (2,650 vs. 2,750 kcal AMEn/kg) but had the same amino acid content per unit of energy. The rearing diet did not affect any production trait except egg production that was lower in birds fed SBP than in birds fed straw (91.6 and 94.1%, respectively; P < 0.05). Laying hens fed the high energy diet had lower feed intake (P < 0.001), better feed conversion (P < 0.01), and greater BW gain (P < 0.05) than hens fed the low energy diet but egg production and egg weight were not affected. At 46 wk of age, none of the GIT traits was affected by previous dietary treatment. At this age, hen BW was positively related with body length (r = 0.500; P < 0.01), tarsus length (r = 0.758; P < 0.001), and body mass index (r = 0.762; P < 0.001) but no effects of type of diet on these traits were detected. In summary, the inclusion of up to 4% of a fiber source in the rearing diets did not affect GIT development of the hens but SBP reduced egg production. An increase in the energy content of the laying phase diet reduced ADFI and improved feed efficiency but did not affect any of the other traits studied.

Influence of glycerin and lecithin inclusion in the diet on liver characteristics and lipid fraction in the serum of brownegg laying hens at 55 week of age

The effects of the inclusion of raw glycerin (GLYC) and raw lecithin, in the diet (23 to 55 wk) on liver characteristics and various serum lipid fractions were studied in brown egg-laying hens at 55 wk of age. The control diets were based on corn, soybean meal, and 4% supplemental fat and contained 2,750 kcal AMEn/kg, 16.5% CP, and 0.73% digestible Lys. The diets were arranged as a 2 × 3 factorial with 2 levels of GLYC (0 and 7%) and 3 animal fat to lecithin ratios (4:0, 2:2, and 0:4%). Each treatment was replicated 8 times and the experimental unit was a cage with 10 hens. At 55 wk of age, 2 hens per cage replicate were randomly selected, weighed individually, and slaughtered by CO2 inhalation. Liver was immediately removed and weighed and the color recorded by spectrophotometry. In addition, blood samples from one bird per replicate were collected from the wing vein and the concentration of total cholesterol, low and high density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglycerides were determined. The data were analyzed as a completely randomized design and the main effects of GLYC and lecithin content of the diet and the interactions were determined. No interactions between GLYC and lecithin content of the diets were detected for any of the variables studied. Liver characteristics and serum lipid traits were not affected by the inclusion of GLYC in the diet. The substitution of animal fat by lecithin, however, reduced the redness (a* 14.9 to 13.8) and yellowness (b* 8.60 to 7.20) values of the liver (P < 0.05) but did not affect the content of serum lipid fractions. It is concluded that the inclusion of GLYC and lecithin in the diet did not affect liver size or serum lipid fraction. However, the inclusion of lecithin reduced the a* and b* value of the liver

Architectural guidelines for the Curricula: 3 Layers, 3 New Dimensions, 2 Basic Orientations, Different levels in the Topics

Today, designing informatics curricula is a major problem. As a technology, informatics is experiencing a dramatic evolution, with its rapidly expanding areas of application and everincreasing impact on society. At first glance, it seems that if we might need several different curricula for facing very different practical educational situations, and not just one or two curricula. The current deep discrepancies among some of our more prestigious computer scientists in relation to the focus of informatics education are in fact a form of recognition of this necessity and at the same time, proof we are at a turning point.