Evaluation of Wet Distillers Grains for Finishing Cattle

A feeding trial was conducted with 870-lb steers fed 137 days to evaluate replacing cracked corn with dry and wet distillers grains with solubles (DGS) as feed for finishing cattle. Dry DGS was evaluated at 16% of diet dry matter. Wet DGS (WDGS) was evaluated at 14.6%, 26.2%, and 37.5% of diet dry matter. Control diets were supplemented with urea or a combination of urea and soybean meal. Feeding 16% dry DGS or 14.6% wet DGS increased rate of gain and tended to increase carcass fatness. Increasing the amount of wet DGS in the diet decreased feed intake, reduced gain, and improved feed conversion. The calculated net energy for gain values for dry and wet DGS were .92 and 1.5 times the energy value of corn grain. Economic returns declined slightly as the percentage of wet DGS increased in the diet, but remained above the two diets without DGS. The average benefits from feeding wet DGS averaged $25, $21, and $19 per head for steers fed 14.6%, 26.2%, and 35.7%, respectively, based on a formula price for wet DGS related to price of corn and including a charge for transportation of the wet feed.

Effects of Feeding Cobalt Dextro Lac (CDL) on Feedlot Performance and Carcass Value of Finishing Steers Fed Wet Corn Gluten Feed

A 192-day experiment involving 144 young Angus steers fed growing and finishing diets containing 20% corn gluten feed was conducted to evaluate feeding a soluble source of readily available cobalt. No benefits were observed in rate of gain, feed intake or carcass value by feeding the available source of cobalt.

The Effects of Feeding a Live Microbial Product on Feedlot Performance and Carcass Value of Finishing Steers Fed Wet Corn Gluten Feed

This experiment was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of daily feeding a live microbial preparation containing two live organisms to finishing cattle. One organism was a lactobacillus, and the other was a propionibacterium, thought to work in concert to improve fermentation in the rumen and overall digestion. The study was conducted with Angus steers with an average initial weight of 550 lbs that were fed a finishing ration containing 50% wet corn gluten feed on a dry basis for 184 days. Feeding the microbial product improved daily gain and feed efficiency 1.7% and 2.4%, respectively, but the differences were not statistically significant. The microbial preparation increased carcass weights 1% but had no effects on quality or yield grades. It is concluded that potential benefits of this product are more likely to be greater when cattle are fed high grain rations rather than diets containing high concentrations of corn gluten feed.

Relative Feeding Value of Wet Corn Steep Liquor When Fed to Finishing Cattle

Corn steep liquor is a liquid by-product containing condensed steep water and condensed distillers solubles from a wet corn milling plant. Finishing steers weighing nine hundred and seventy-five pounds were fed cornbased finishing diets containing 0%, 6%, or 12% corn steep liquor for 84 days. Feeding corn steep liquor did not affect performance of the steers or carcass characteristics. Based on value of feeds replaced in the diet, steep liquor had a value of $55 to $60/ton (50% dry matter) when used to replace corn and supplemental protein in a corn-based finishing diet.

Relative Feeding Value of Wet Corn Distillers Solubles as a Feed for Finishing Cattle

For 126 days, 850 lb. steers were fed diets of corn, corn silage, and ground hay containing either 0%, 4%, or 8% wet distillers solubles obtained from an Iowa dry mill ethanol plant. Addition of distillers solubles resulted in a linear decrease in feed consumption. Gains were increased 3.2% and decreased 6.4% by feeding 4% and 8% distillers solubles, respectively. Compared to the control diet, feed required per pound of gain was reduced 5% by low levels of distillers solubles and 1.5% by high levels. Feeding distillers solubles had no effect on carcass measurements. It was concluded that wet distillers solubles has value as a feed for cattle and can replace a portion of corn grain and supplemental nitrogen in a corn-based finishing diet for beef cattle. The decreased performance of steers fed the 8% level suggests that there might be a maximum amount of wet distiller solubles that can be fed to finishing cattle.

A comparison of estimated glomerular filtration rates using Cockcroft−Gault and the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration estimating equations in HIV infection

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to determine whether the Chronic Kidney Disease Epidemiology Collaboration (CKD-EPI)- or Cockcroft-Gault (CG)-based estimated glomerular filtration rates (eGFRs) performs better in the cohort setting for predicting moderate/advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD) or end-stage renal disease (ESRD). METHODS: A total of 9521 persons in the EuroSIDA study contributed 133 873 eGFRs. Poisson regression was used to model the incidence of moderate and advanced CKD (confirmed eGFR < 60 and < 30 mL/min/1.73 m(2) , respectively) or ESRD (fatal/nonfatal) using CG and CKD-EPI eGFRs. RESULTS: Of 133 873 eGFR values, the ratio of CG to CKD-EPI was ≥ 1.1 in 22 092 (16.5%) and the difference between them (CG minus CKD-EPI) was ≥ 10 mL/min/1.73 m(2) in 20 867 (15.6%). Differences between CKD-EPI and CG were much greater when CG was not standardized for body surface area (BSA). A total of 403 persons developed moderate CKD using CG [incidence 8.9/1000 person-years of follow-up (PYFU); 95% confidence interval (CI) 8.0-9.8] and 364 using CKD-EPI (incidence 7.3/1000 PYFU; 95% CI 6.5-8.0). CG-derived eGFRs were equal to CKD-EPI-derived eGFRs at predicting ESRD (n = 36) and death (n = 565), as measured by the Akaike information criterion. CG-based moderate and advanced CKDs were associated with ESRD [adjusted incidence rate ratio (aIRR) 7.17; 95% CI 2.65-19.36 and aIRR 23.46; 95% CI 8.54-64.48, respectively], as were CKD-EPI-based moderate and advanced CKDs (aIRR 12.41; 95% CI 4.74-32.51 and aIRR 12.44; 95% CI 4.83-32.03, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Differences between eGFRs using CG adjusted for BSA or CKD-EPI were modest. In the absence of a gold standard, the two formulae predicted clinical outcomes with equal precision and can be used to estimate GFR in HIV-positive persons.

Synthesis of bone-like micro-porous calcium phosphate/iota-carrageenan composites by gel diffusion

Brushite and octacalcium phosphate (OCP) crystals are well-known precursors of hydroxylapatite (HAp), the main mineral found in bone. In this report, we present a new method for biomimicking brushite and OCP using single and double diffusion techniques. Brushite and OCP crystals were grown in an iota-carrageenan gel. The aggregates were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), infrared spectroscopy (IR) and thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA). SEM revealed different morphologies of brushite crystals from highly porous aggregates to plate-shaped forms. OCP crystals grown in iota-carrageenan showed a porous spherical shape different from brushite growth forms. The XRD method demonstrated that the single-diffusion method favors the formation of monoclinic brushite. In contrast, the double diffusion method was found to promote the formation of the triclinic octacalcium phosphate OCP phase. By combining the different parameters for crystal growth in carrageenan, such as ion concentration, gel pH and gel density, it is possible to modify the morphology of composite crystals, change the phase of calcium phosphate and modulate the amount of carrageenan inclusion in crystals. This study suggests that iota-carrageenan is a high-molecular-weight polysaccharide that is potentially applicable for controlling calcium phosphate crystallization.

Upscaling of anisotropy in unsaturated Miller-similar porous media

Geological and pedological processes rarely form isotropic media as is usually assumed in transport studies. Anisotropy at the Darcy or field scale may be detected directly by measuring flow parameters or may become indirectly evident from movement and shape of solute plumes. Anisotropic behavior of a soil at one scale may, in many cases, be related to the presence of lower-scale directional structures. Miller similitude with different pore-scale geometries of the basic element is used to model macroscopic flow and transport behavior. Analytical expressions for the anisotropic conductivity tensor are derived based on the dynamic law that governs the flow problem at the pore scale. The effects of anisotropy on transport parameters are estimated by numerical modeling.

Development of light-responsive porous polycarbonate membranes for controlled caffeine delivery

For controlled caffeine release, light-responsive membranes were developed. It was possible to produce membranes that reduced their caffeine permeability resistance by about 97% when irradiated with UV-light compared to measurements at daylight. This was achieved by grafting polymers possessing photochromic units onto track-edged polycarbonate membranes. Covalently linked coatings on porous polycarbonate membranes were obtained by plasma activation of the membrane surface followed by plasma-induced graft polymerization. Copolymerization of spiro-compounds during the coating process as well as postmodification of preformed coatings with spiropyran resulted in photochromic membranes. For the copolymerization process, the synthesis of five photochromic methacrylic and acrylic spiropyrans and spirooxazines was successfully performed. Additionally, a spiropyran with carboxylic acid functionality was synthesized for the postmodification process. This enabled us to postmodify polymeric materials containing alcohol or amine groups to obtain photochromic materials. UV-irradiation of these light-responsive membranes resulted in a strong colouration of the membrane, in a reduction of surface tension, which resulted in a decreased caffeine permeability resistance. The membranes were characterized using XPS for the elemental composition of the coating, contact angle measurements for the surface tension, solid-state UV/VIS measurements for the determination of the kinetic and stability properties, and two-photon microscopy for the localisation of the photochromic substance in the porous membrane.

LGM Summer Climate on the Southern Margin of the Laurentide Ice Sheet: Wet Or Dry?

Regional climate simulations are conducted using the Polar fifth-generation Pennsylvania State University (PSU)-NCAR Mesoscale Model (MM5) with a 60-km horizontal resolution domain over North America to explore the summer climate of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM: 21 000 calendar years ago), when much of the continent was covered by the Laurentide Ice Sheet (LIS). Output from a tailored NCAR Community Climate Model version 3 (CCM3) simulation of the LGM climate is used to provide the initial and lateral boundary conditions for Polar MM5. LGM boundary conditions include continental ice sheets, appropriate orbital forcing, reduced CO2 concentration, paleovegetation, modified sea surface temperatures, and lowered sea level. The simulated LGM summer climate is characterized by a pronounced low-level thermal gradient along the southern margin of the LIS resulting from the juxtaposition of the cold ice sheet and adjacent warm ice-free land surface. This sharp thermal gradient anchors the midtropospheric jet stream and facilitates the development of synoptic cyclones that track over the ice sheet, some of which produce copious liquid precipitation along and south of the LIS terminus. Precipitation on the southern margin is orographically enhanced as moist southerly low-level flow (resembling a contemporary, Great Plains low-level jet configuration) in advance of the cyclone is drawn up the ice sheet slope. Composites of wet and dry periods on the LIS southern margin illustrate two distinctly different atmospheric flow regimes. Given the episodic nature of the summer rain events, it may be possible to reconcile the model depiction of wet conditions on the LIS southern margin during the LGM summer with the widely accepted interpretation of aridity across the Great Plains based on geological proxy evidence.

Factors other than the glomerular filtration rate that determine the serum beta-2-microglobulin level.

BACKGROUND β2-microglobulin has been increasingly investigated as a diagnostic marker of kidney function and a prognostic marker of adverse outcomes. To date, non-renal determinants of β2-microglobulin levels have not been well described. Non-renal determinants are important for the interpretation and appraisal of the diagnostic and prognostic value of any endogenous kidney function marker. METHODS This cross-sectional analysis was performed within the framework of the www.seniorlabor.ch study, which includes subjectively healthy individuals aged ≥ 60 years. Factors known or suspected to have a non-renal association with kidney function markers were investigated for a non-renal association with serum β2-microglobulin. As a marker of kidney function, the Berlin Initiative Study equation 2 for the estimation of the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR(BIS2)) in the elderly was employed. RESULTS A total of 1302 participants (714 females and 588 males) were enrolled in the study. The use of a multivariate regression model adjusting for age, gender and kidney function (eGFR(BIS2)) revealed age, male gender, and C-reactive protein level to be positively associated with β2-microglobulin levels. In addition, there was an inverse non-renal relationship between systolic blood pressure, total cholesterol and current smoking status. No association with markers of diabetes mellitus, body stature, nutritional risk, thyroid function or calcium and phosphate levels was observed. CONCLUSIONS Serum β2-microglobulin levels in elderly subjects are related to several non-renal factors. These non-renal factors are not congruent to those known from other markers (i.e. cystatin C and creatinine) and remind of classical cardiovascular risk factors.

Contrasting long-term records of biomass burning in wet and dry savannas of equatorial East Africa

Rainfall controls fire in tropical savanna ecosystems through impacting both the amount and flammability of plant biomass, and consequently, predicted changes in tropical precipitation over the next century are likely to have contrasting effects on the fire regimes of wet and dry savannas. We reconstructed the long-term dynamics of biomass burning in equatorial East Africa, using fossil charcoal particles from two well-dated lake-sediment records in western Uganda and central Kenya. We compared these high-resolution (5 years/sample) time series of biomass burning, spanning the last 3800 and 1200 years, with independent data on past hydroclimatic variability and vegetation dynamics. In western Uganda, a rapid (<100 years) and permanent increase in burning occurred around 2170 years ago, when climatic drying replaced semideciduous forest by wooded grassland. At the century time scale, biomass burning was inversely related to moisture balance for much of the next two millennia until ca. 1750 ad, when burning increased strongly despite regional climate becoming wetter. A sustained decrease in burning since the mid20th century reflects the intensified modern-day landscape conversion into cropland and plantations. In contrast, in semiarid central Kenya, biomass burning peaked at intermediate moisture-balance levels, whereas it was lower both during the wettest and driest multidecadal periods of the last 1200 years. Here, burning steadily increased since the mid20th century, presumably due to more frequent deliberate ignitions for bush clearing and cattle ranching. Both the observed historical trends and regional contrasts in biomass burning are consistent with spatial variability in fire regimes across the African savanna biome today. They demonstrate the strong dependence of East African fire regimes on both climatic moisture balance and vegetation, and the extent to which this dependence is now being overridden by anthropogenic activity.

Swiss tree rings reveal warm and wet summers during medieval times

We present a 1200 year drought reconstruction for the European Alpine region based on carbon isotope variations of tree rings from living larch trees and historic timber. The carbon isotope fractionation at the study site is sensitive to summer precipitation, temperature, and irradiance, resulting in a stable and high correlation with a drought index for interannual to decadal frequencies and possibly beyond (r(2)=0.58 for 1901-2004, July/August). When combining this information with maximum latewood density-derived summer temperature, a strongly reduced occurrence of summer droughts during the warm A.D. 900-1200 period is evident, coinciding with the Medieval Climate Anomaly (MCA), with a shift to colder and drier conditions for the subsequent centuries. The warm-wet MCA contrasts strongly with the climate of the drought-prone warm phase of the recent decades, indicating different forcing mechanism for these two warm periods and pointing to beneficial conditions for agriculture and human well-being during the MCA in this region.

Glomerular filtration rate, urine production, and fractional clearance of electrolytes in acute kidney injury in dogs and their association with survival.

BACKGROUND Acute kidney injury (AKI) is common in dogs. Few studies have assessed sequential changes in indices of kidney function in dogs with naturally occurring AKI. OBJECTIVE To document sequential changes of conventional indices of renal function, to better define the course of AKI, and to identify a candidate marker for recovery. ANIMALS Ten dogs with AKI. METHODS Dogs were prospectively enrolled and divided into surviving and nonsurviving dogs. Urine production was measured with a closed system for 7 days. One and 24-hour urinary clearances were performed daily to estimate solute excretion and glomerular filtration rate (GFR). Solute excretion was calculated as an excretion ratio (ER) and fractional clearance (FC) based on both the 1- and 24-hour urine collections. RESULTS Four dogs survived and 6 died. At presentation, GFR was not significantly different between the outcome groups, but significantly (P = .03) increased over time in the surviving, but not in the nonsurviving dogs. Fractional clearance of Na decreased significantly over time (20.2-9.4%, P < .0001) in the surviving, but not in the nonsurviving dogs. The ER and FC of solutes were highly correlated (r, 0.70-0.95). CONCLUSION AND CLINICAL IMPACT Excretion ratio might be used in the clinical setting as a surrogate marker to follow trends in solute excretion. Increased GFR, urine production, and decreased FC of Na were markers of renal recovery. The FC of Na is a simple, noninvasive, and cost-effective method that can be used to evaluate recovery of renal function.