Emergy assessment of tilapia cage farming in a hydroelectric reservoir

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Supplementation based on protein or energy ingredients to beef cattle consuming low-quality cool-season forages: I. Forage disappearance parameters in rumen-fistulated steers and physiological responses in pregnant heifers

Two experiments evaluated the influence of supplement composition on ruminal forage disappearance, performance, and physiological responses of Angus x Hereford cattle consuming a low-quality cool-season forage (8.7% CP and 57% TDN). In Exp. 1, 6 rumen-fistulated steers housed in individual pens were assigned to an incomplete 3 x 2 Latin square design containing 2 periods of 11 d each and the following treatments: 1) supplementation with soybean meal (PROT), 2) supplementation with a mixture of cracked corn, soybean meal, and urea (68:22:10 ratio, DM basis; ENER), or 3) no supplementation (CON). Steers were offered meadow foxtail (Alopecurus pratensis L.) hay for ad libitum consumption. Treatments were provided daily at 0.50 and 0.54% of shrunk BW/steer for PROT and ENER, respectively, to ensure that PROT and ENER intakes were isocaloric and isonitrogenous. No treatment effects were detected on rumen disappearance parameters of forage DM (P >= 0.33) and NDF (P >= 0.66). In Exp. 2, 35 pregnant heifers were ranked by initial BW on d -7 of the study, allocated into 12 feedlot pens (4 pens/treatment), and assigned to the same treatments and forage intake regimen as in Exp. 1 for 19 d. Treatments were fed once daily at 1.77 and 1.92 kg of DM/heifer for PROT and ENER, respectively, to achieve the same treatment intake as percent of initial BW used in Exp. 1 (0.50 and 0.54% for PROT and ENER, respectively). No treatment effects (P = 0.17) were detected on forage DMI. Total DMI was greater (P < 0.01) for PROT and ENER compared with CON and similar between PROT and ENER (P = 0.36). Accordingly, ADG was greater (P = 0.01) for PROT compared with CON, tended to be greater for ENER compared with CON (P = 0.08), and was similar between ENER and PROT (P = 0.28). Heifers receiving PROT and ENER had greater mean concentrations of plasma glucose (P = 0.03), insulin (P <= 0.09), IGF-I (P <= 0.04), and progesterone (P = 0.01) compared to CON, whereas ENER and PROT had similar concentrations of these variables (P >= 0.15). A treatment x hour interaction was detected (P < 0.01) for plasma urea N (PUN), given that PUN concentrations increased after supplementation for ENER and PROT (time effect, P < 0.01) but did not change for CON (time effect, P = 0.62). In conclusion, beef cattle consuming low-quality cool-season forages had similar ruminal forage disappearance and intake, performance, and physiological status if offered supplements based on soybean meal or corn at 0.5% of BW.

Support area as an indicator of environmental load: Comparison between Embodied Energy, Ecological Footprint, and Emergy Accounting methods

Environmental aspects have been acknowledged as an important issue in decision making at any field during the last two decades. There are several available methodologies able to assess the environmental burden, among which the Ecological Footprint has been widely used due to its easy-to-understand final indicator. However, its theoretical base has been target of some criticisms about the inadequate representation of the sustainability concept by its final indicator. In a parallel way, efforts have been made to use the theoretical strength of the Emergy Accounting to obtain an index similar to that supplied by the Ecological Footprint. Focusing on these aspects, this work assesses the support area (SA) index for Brazilian sugarcane and American corn crop through four different approaches: Embodied Energy Analysis (SA(EE)), Ecological Footprint (SA(EF)), Renewable Empower Density (SA(R)), and Emergy Net Primary Productivity (SA(NPP)). Results indicate that the load on environment varies accordingly to the methodology considered for its calculation, in which emergy approach showed the higher values. Focusing on crops comparison, the load by producing both crops are similar with an average of 0.04 ha obtained by SA(EE), 1.86 ha by SA(EF), 4.24 ha by SA(R), and 4.32 ha by SA(NPP). Discussion indicates that support area calculated using Emergy Accounting is more eligible to represent the load on the environment due to its global scale view. Nevertheless, each methodology has its contribution depending of the study objectives, but it is important to consider the real meaning and the scope of each one. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Body Composition and Net Energy Requirements for Maintenance of Non-Castrated Water Buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis)

The research aimed to estimate body contents of protein and energy and net requirements of energy for maintenance of buffaloes, slaughtered at different stages of maturity. There were used 14 Mediterranean intact males with initial average body weight of 352.2 +/- 24.3 kg and average age of 24 months. The animais were randomly divided into four experimental groups. One group was designed to slaughter at the beginning of the experimental period (IS). The animals of another group were restricting fed, receiving, individually, levels of protein and energy 15% above maintenance (RF). The animals of the two remaining groups were individually fed ad libitum (SW450 and SW500) to reach weights corresponding to 100 and 110 percent of the mature weight of the buffalo cows (respectively 450 and 550 kg). The ration contained ground-corn cobs, soybean meal, urea, minerals, and signal-grass (Brachiaria decumbens) hay, with a concentrate: roughage ratio of 50: 50 and 13% of crude protein on a dry matter basis. To estimate changes in body composition inside the range of weights included in the trial, linear regression equations of log protein (kg), fat (kg) and energy (Mcal) as a function of log empty-body-weight (EBW), in kg, were fitted. Energy requirements for maintenance were obtained as estimated heat production at zero level of energy intake. Buffaloes submitted to fattening in feedlot presented early body fat deposition, and had with the same live weight lower protein content and higher fat content and energy per unit weight than european-zebu crossbred cattle.

Relationship between chronological and bone ages and pubertal stage of breasts with bone biomarkers and bone mineral density in adolescents

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Metabolic syndrome reduces bone mineral density in overweight adolescents

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Heating value of eucalypt wood grown on SRC for energy production

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Energy requirements for maintenance and growth of Caninde goat kids

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Release of Cyanopyridine from a Ruthenium Complex Adsorbed on Gold: Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering, Electrochemistry, and Density Functional Theory Analyses

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Separation of particles leading either to decay or unlimited growth of energy in a driven stadium-like billiard

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Energy Requirements for Maintenance and Growth of Male Saanen Goat Kids

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Energy Requirements in Early Life Are Similar for Male and Female Goat Kids

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Energy and protein requirements of male and female saanen goats

Pós-graduação em Zootecnia - FCAV

Supercritical carbonation treatment on extruded fibre-cement reinforced with vegetable fibres

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Protein and energy requirements of castrated male Saanen goats

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)