The Brazilian semi-arid region has 928 km2 ranging from the northern portion of Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo States, the semi-arid lands of Bahia, Sergipe, Alagoas, Pernambuco, Paraíba, Rio Grande do Norte, Ceará, and Piauí States, and 45 counties from southeastern Maranhão State. Population is mainly concentrated in rural areas and the major occupation is agriculture and livestock production. Dairy production is one of the few options in these areas, mainly in northeast Brazil, where the feeding systems are based […]

Considering that the world-wide trend is to produce what is consumed and that the science of the meat looks for the highest degree of satisfaction of the consumer, the study approaches the characteristics that propitiate this satisfaction in the sheep meat.The use of the human senses in the perception of the characteristics that provoke the highest consumer acceptability determines the definition of “quality”; this indicates important sensorial characteristics of lamb: the succulence (water holding capacity), colour, texture (tenderness), odour and […]

There is currently an increased consumer demand for information on herbivore production factors, particularly animal diet. To meet these demands, producers and commercial entities develop specifications via quality certifications. There is therefore a need for analytical tools that may guarantee that the specification commitments have been fully met or to help with constructing them. The present paper reviews the current state of knowledge concerning diet authentication in sheep meat and milk, the different approaches that have been investigated, some leading […]

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of the European and Zebu age of the bull and semen collection periods on the physical and morphological characteristics of the semen produced by animals in an artificial insemination station, from 1993 to 1999. The semen production data were grouped in five age classes: 12 to 36 months, 37 to 60 months, 61 to 84 months, 85 to 108 months and 109 to 142 months; and in four collection periods: […]

It was studied the better digestible lysine:metabolizable energy (LIS:ME) and the effects of LIS and ME levels on performance and nitrogen retention in nursery piglets. In assay 1, 216 commercial piglets from 6.98 ± 1.16 kg (initial weight) at approximately 12 ± 0.62 kg were used and in the assay 2, 48 similar piglets at 9.31 ± 2.09 kg. The LIS levels were: 1.223, 1.302, 1.390 and 1.497% and ME: 3,510, 3,700 and 3,830 kcal/kg and were assigned in 3 […]

Nutritional advances as discussed in these proceedings embrace historical perspective as well as futuristic perspectives. Indeed, we must have a clear understanding of the past to identify key “advances” that will mold the future of poultry nutrition. Early nutrition research is discussed with reference to in ovo nutrition and nutritional needs up to day seven post-hatch. In addition, the nutrition of the hen is key in early nutrition of chicks. Key advances that have impacted diet formulation are energy and […]

In recent years there has been much focus on the use of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) fine genome mapping to identify causative mutations for traits of interest; however, many studies focus only on the marginal effects of markers, ignoring potential gene interactions. Simulation studies have show that this approach may not be powerful enough to detect important loci when gene interactions are present. While several studies have examined potential gene interaction, they tend to focus on a small number of […]

The action of different concentrations of sodium chloride, benzocaine and clove oil in the survival of fingerling and juvenile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus),chitraladalineage, was tested during 5 hours for transportation. A total of 1350 fingerlings were used ( weight 9.74 ± 0.04 g and length 6.79 ± 0.01 cm) and 270 juveniles (average weight 29.6 ± 0.06 g and length 11.52 ± 0.01 cm). The fish were maintained without food for 24 hours in four 500L asbestos boxes with constant aeration. […]

Major gaps in knowledge on fish larval nutritional requirements still remain, what leads to high mortalities and quality problems in marine larviculture. This paper reviews a range of new tools, such as tracer studies, population genomics, nutritional programming, functional genomics and proteomics, as well as some examples of their present use, and potential future applications in the study of fish larvae nutrition.

This study was carried out to evaluate intake, apparent nutrient digestibility and water balance in horses fed on different forms of coast-cross hay. Four crossbreed horses, 30 months of age and 200 kg body weight were used. Horses were fed coast-cross hay in four physical forms: long hay; chopped hay (5 cm); ground hay (5 mm) and ground hay (3 mm). The experiment was performed in a 4 × 4 Latin Square design with 15 days for each experimental period […]