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A Multicriteria Assessment Of Forage Or Concentrate-Based Finishing Diets For Temperate Pasture-Based Suckler Beef Production Systems, P. R. Doyle, Edward G. O’Riordan, Mark Mcgee, Paul Crosson, A. K. Kelly, A. P. Moloney

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

This study evaluated the effect of contrasting ‘finishing’ diets on animal performance, meat nutritional value, land use, food-feed competition, farm economics and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in temperate pasture-based suckler weanling-to-steer beef systems. Post-weaning, eight-month-old, spring-born, late-maturing breed steers (333 kg) were assigned to one of three systems: (1) Grass silage + 1.2 kg concentrate DM (148 days), followed by pasture (123 days) and finished on ad libitum concentrates (120 days) - slaughter age, 21 months (GRAIN); (2) as per (1) but pasture (196 days) and finished on grass silage ad libitum + 3.5 kg concentrate DM (124 days) - …

Nutrient Cycling And Crop Responses On Integrated Crop-Livestock Systems, José C. B. Dubeux Jr., E. R. S. Santos, J. E. Portuguez-Acuna, L. M. D. Queiroz

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Integrated crop-livestock systems (ICLS) can bring numerous benefits to crops or livestock systems, such as increase soil C sequestration, farm profitability, and provisioning of ecosystem services. In a changing world, production systems need to become more resilient and sustainable. Specialized agriculture is characterized by a high level of inputs and outputs, and oftentimes specialize in a single crop to simplify management. However, such operational systems stray away from sustainable standards. Furthermore, specialized cropping systems may face problems such as persistence of pests and diseases, loss of biodiversity, stagnant yields, development of herbicide-resistant weeds, soil erosion and consequently loss of soil …

Forage Brassica Use In New Zealand And Australia Farming Systems, A. Dumbleton, H. G. Judson

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Forage brassica, genus Brassica, are annual feed crops grown on farming enterprises throughout New Zealand and Australia. These crops provide a source of high-yielding, high-quality feed, which is particularly useful to complement pasture production during periods when pasture growth is reduced. There are six forage brassica species and subspecies of agricultural importance including bulb turnip, swede, kale, forage rape, leafy turnip, and raphanobrassica. All of these, as well as interspecific crosses and individual cultivars, offer a range of characteristics to fit various environmental and livestock production challenges. Consumption of forage brassica crops in ruminant animals may reduce methane emissions …

Evaluation Of Mulberry Leaf Meal Feeding On The Growth And Hematological Profile Of Cross Bred Heifers, Rohit Bishist, Irfana Quadiri, Krishan Lal Gautam, Kamal Kishore

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Mulberry (Morus alba) is a multipurpose fodder tree with a high voluntary intake. Mulberry foliage is characterized by high digestibility and excellent level of protein which makes it comparable to commercial concentrates for dairy cattle. o evaluate the effect of dietary inclusion of mulberry leaf meal as a concentrate replacement (20%) in the crossbred heifers ration the present investigation was carried out at dairy farm Dr YSPUHF Nauni Solan. In the study, a total of 12 cross bred heifers (1-2 yr) were divided into two equal groups of 6 animals each, on the basis of body weight. The …

Fruit Forage Integrated Systems For Diversification And Other Ecosystem Services, S. Ahmad, N. H. Mir, S. S. Bhat

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The interspaces (alleyways) in fruit orchards are generally not utilized for cultivation of perennial forage crops by a majority of farmers. These alleyways are often occupied by weeds or kept bare or clean with repeated tillage. The weeds may act as alternate/collateral hosts, thereby harboring pests and pathogens that may harm the fruit trees. In addition to this, the frequent tillage may subject the soil to erosion losses. Intercropping of perennial forage grasses and/or legumes with fruit crops is thus beneficial for not only providing high quality forage but also for providing various ecosystem services.Owing to an ever burgeoning population, …

Comparison Of Two Low-Input Cow/Calf Production Systems On Temperate Grassland, W. B. Bryan, Mata Padrino, E. Felton, E. C. Prigge, V. W. Temu, O. J. Gekara

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Two systems of grass farming were compared in an eight-year experiment in West Virginia, USA. The grassland consisted primarily of cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerara L.), Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.), tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.), and red (Trifolium pretense L.) and white clover (T. repens L.). The objective was to compare two systems of beef cow calf production. The experiment was a randomized complete block with two replicated treatments. The grassland of treatment 1 (system 1) was overseeded with legumes, grazing started 1 wk earlier and continued 1 wk later than treatment 2 (system 2) and …

Grazing Cover Crops In The Eastern Us: Performance Of Sheep, Goats, And Cattle Grazing Brassica Cover Crops, K. Cassida

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Grazing annual forage crops has attained new interest with the increase in use of cover crops. Grazing annual forages grown as cover crops not only allows livestock producers to extend the grazing season but also gives row crop growers a way to recoup the cost of planting cover crops through grazing leases. Species in the Brassicaceae family (turnip, rape, kale, radish, and hybrids) have wide adaptability across the eastern US, excellent forage yield potential, and extremely high nutritional value. Brassicas are sometimes described as “high-moisture concentrates.” Their low effective fiber content drives the common recommendation to grow them with annual …

Isoflavones In Legumes As Functional Forages And Feeds In Ruminant Grazing Systems, B. E. Davis, Michael D. Flythe, T. A. Hamilton, D. G. Ely, L. H. Anderson, J. R. Weinert-Nelson

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Legumes are often utilized in livestock grazing systems to improve diet quality, diversity, and consequently animal performance. In addition to their nutritional utility, legumes contain phytoestrogenic isoflavones that have selective antimicrobial activity in the rumen and once absorbed can cause arterial vasodilation. These added bioactive functions of isoflavones suggest that legumes could be strategically utilized in grazing systems as functional forages to improve ruminant performance and health. The objective of this presentation will be to discuss past and current research on the application of isoflavones via legumes as an antimicrobial for growth promotion and as a mitigation strategy for fescue …

Cool-Season Annual Legumes And Forbs For Grazing And Cover Crop Systems, S. L. Dillard

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Annual forage legumes and non-leguminous forbs can be used to interseed into perennial forage grasses or as a short-term grazing option between row crop rotations. Diversification of cropping systems by increasing number or type of cover crops in crop rotation plays an important role in improving land-use efficiency and in promoting sustainable agriculture. Legumes and other broadleaf forages provide increased forage digestibility and crude protein as a result of their greater leaf-to-stem ratio. In the Southeast U.S, few novel cultivars have been released in the last 20 years, resulting in the reliance on only a few forage cultivars and species. …

Animal And Forage Performance Of Integrated Crop-Livestock Systems, S. L. Dillard

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Grazing of cool-season cover crops has been shown to be a viable tool for extending the grazing season while mitigating environmental risks associated with row-crop farming systems. Grazing cover crops is not novel, but most recent information available on this practice focuses on soil health as opposed to forage production and animal performance. Research has shown that forage quality of cool-season annual cover crops is sufficient to maintain an average daily gain of at least 1 kg/d and as high as 1.5 kg/d. Forage species selection plays an important role in the success of an integrated crop-livestock system. Grasses typically …

Swath Grazing: Feeding “Hay” Without The Production Expenses, V. Baron, A. C. Dick, A. Omaha

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Swath grazing is a practice for overwintering beef cows on small grain forage left in the field to graze through snow, but annual variation occurs. The objective is to review 18 years of research at Lacombe, Alberta (AB) to describe how production attributes are related to cost mitigation and cow performance. Five trials compared swath grazing management options to pen-fed controls to determine feasibility. Associated studies monitored forage quality, soil fertility requirements and planting date impacts on yield. Mean, standard deviation, coefficient of variation, maximum and minimum values (n=18) for forage yield, pasture days, carrying capacity and percent utilization were …

Preliminary Results: Complementary C4:C3 Grazing Systems, M. Berry, P. Keyser, S. Jagadamma, H. Nauman, K. Coffey, C. Nieman, P. Owens, A. Ashworth, E. Bisangwa

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Native warm-season grasses (NWSG) can produce high quality forage and high rates of gain for beef cattle. However, little data is available on how NWSG affect the productivity of cow-calf operations on a farm scale. Therefore, we implemented an experiment at three sites, Booneville, AR, Linneus, MO and Louisville, TN, with cow-calf pairs (mature cows over ≥ 3 years old, spring calving). We evaluated two forage systems that mix either a drought or drought/flood tolerant native C₄ species [big bluestem (BB) blend or eastern gamagrass (EG)] with a cool-season perennial, tall fescue (TF), and compared them to the most …

Fodder Scenario And Hortipastoral Opportunities To Enhance Fodder Production In India, Nagaratna Biradar, C. Lakshmi Devi, Vinod Kumar, Narendra S. Kulkarni, G. K. Kumar Anil, S. S. Guledagudda, A. Bheemappa

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Food grain production and livestock production are closely related in India as crop-residue forms the major source of fodder for livestock. It’s thus assumed that increase in food grain production has positive effect on availability of dry matter to the livestock. Using land use classification, crop production (2015 to 2020) and livestock census (2019) data, dry matter (DM) availability for livestock for 28 states of India was estimated. Hortipastoral opportunities by estimating area available under orchards in southern India were done to assess the possibility of introducing fodder crops in orchards. Some of the fodder crops were introduced in orchards …

Determining The Surface PKA Of Perfluorooctanoic Acid, Lila J. Musegades, Owen P. Curtin, Jenée D. Cyran

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) is an environmentally prevalent and persistent organic pollutant with toxic and bioaccumulative properties. Despite the known importance of perfluorinated pollutants in the global environment, molecular-level details of the physicochemical behavior of PFOA on aqueous interfaces remain poorly understood. Here, we utilized two surface-specific techniques, vibrational sum frequency generation spectroscopy (SFG) and surface tensiometry, to investigate the pH-induced structural changes of PFOA and octanoic acid (OA) and determined the apparent pK_a at the air–water surface. The SFG spectra and surface activity model were investigated over a wide range of pHs. With the surface tension measurements, the …

Dynamic Prognosis Prediction For Patients On Dapt After Drug-Eluting Stent Implantation: Model Development And Validation, Fang Li, Laila Rasmy, Yang Xiang, Jingna Feng, Ahmed Abdelhameed, Xinyue Hu, Zenan Sun, David Aguilar, Abhijeet Dhoble, Jingcheng Du, Qing Wang, Shuteng Niu, Yifang Dang, Xinyuan Zhang, Ziqian Xie, Yi Nian, Jianping He, Yujia Zhou, Jianfu Li, Mattia Prosperi, Jiang Bian, Degui Zhi, Cui Tao

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: The rapid evolution of artificial intelligence (AI) in conjunction with recent updates in dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) management guidelines emphasizes the necessity for innovative models to predict ischemic or bleeding events after drug-eluting stent implantation. Leveraging AI for dynamic prediction has the potential to revolutionize risk stratification and provide personalized decision support for DAPT management.

METHODS AND RESULTS: We developed and validated a new AI-based pipeline using retrospective data of drug-eluting stent-treated patients, sourced from the Cerner Health Facts data set (n=98 236) and Optum's de-identified Clinformatics Data Mart Database (n=9978). The 36 months following drug-eluting stent implantation were …

Investigating The Mass Mortality Induced Factors Of Pearl Oyster (Pinctada Radiata) At Abu Dhabi Pearls Farm, Uae, Hamad Ahmed Almansoori

Theses

The aquaculture of shellfish plays a crucial role in enhancing maritime environments by mitigating algal blooms and improving water quality through the filtration of organic matter, nutrients, and bacteria. This study investigated the environmental factors influencing oyster (Pinctada radiata) mortalities through a comprehensive analysis of water quality in Al Mirfa and Al Mughirah farming sites of Abu Dhabi (UAE), from February 2021 to February 2022. To reach such understanding of the main factors led to mass mortalities of cultivated oysters, different monthly sampling and both chemical and biological analyses of the farm water, sediments as well as for both living …

Foodmask: Real-Time Food Instance Counting, Segmentation And Recognition, Huu-Thanh Nguyen, Yu Cao, Chong-Wah Ngo, Wing-Kwong Chan

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Food computing has long been studied and deployed to several applications. Understanding a food image at the instance level, including recognition, counting and segmentation, is essential to quantifying nutrition and calorie consumption. Nevertheless, existing techniques are limited to either category-specific instance detection, which does not reflect precisely the instance size at the pixel level, or category-agnostic instance segmentation, which is insufficient for dish recognition. This paper presents a compact and fast multi-task network, namely FoodMask, for clustering-based food instance counting, segmentation and recognition. The network learns a semantic space simultaneously encoding food category distribution and instance height at pixel basis. …

From Canteen Food To Daily Meals: Generalizing Food Recognition To More Practical Scenarios, Guoshan Liu, Yang Jiao, Jingjing Chen, Bin Zhu, Yu-Gang Jiang

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

The precise recognition of food categories plays a pivotal role for intelligent health management, attracting significant research attention in recent years. Prominent benchmarks, such as Food-101 and VIREO Food-172, provide abundant food image resources that catalyze the prosperity of research in this field. Nevertheless, these datasets are well-curated from canteen scenarios and thus deviate from food appearances in daily life. This discrepancy poses great challenges in effectively transferring classifiers trained on these canteen datasets to broader daily-life scenarios encountered by humans. Toward this end, we present two new benchmarks, namely DailyFood-172 and DailyFood-16, specifically designed to curate food images from …

Integration Of Field- And Space-Based Observations Toward Assessing Drivers Of Biogeochemical Variability Across Vulnerable Coastal Ecosystems, Alana B. Menendez

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This thesis uses new field datasets and satellite ocean color products to quantify biogeochemical variability in three coastal regions: Long Island Sound estuary, the coastline of the Bay of Bengal extending east to the Mekong Delta, and the Yukon River Delta. These three study regions have vastly different size domains, climates, populations, and economies, but all require enhanced coastal water monitoring in the face of climate change. These regions are all naturally dynamic and experience strong seasonal phenomena but are also subject to changing hydrological forcings and direct anthropogenic perturbations. This leaves these coastal areas vulnerable to altered biogeochemical cycling, …

Public Acceptance Of Using Artificial Intelligence-Assisted Weight Management Apps In High-Income Southeast Asian Adults With Overweight And Obesity: A Cross-Sectional Study, Han Shi Jocelyn Chew, Palakorn Achananuparp, Palakorn Achananuparp, Nicholas W. S. Chew, Yip Han Chin, Yujia Gao, Bok Yan Jimmy So, Asim Shabbir, Ee-Peng Lim, Kee Yuan Ngiam

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Introduction: With in increase in interest to incorporate artificial intelligence (AI) into weight management programs, we aimed to examine user perceptions of AI-based mobile apps for weight management in adults with overweight and obesity. Methods: 280 participants were recruited between May and November 2022. Participants completed a questionnaire on sociodemographic profiles, Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 (UTAUT2), and Self-Regulation of Eating Behavior Questionnaire. Structural equation modeling was performed using R. Model fit was tested using maximum-likelihood generalized unweighted least squares. Associations between influencing factors were analyzed using correlation and linear regression. Results: 271 participant responses were …

Dynamic Prognosis Prediction For Patients On Dapt After Drug-Eluting Stent Implantation: Model Development And Validation, Fang Li, Laila Rasmy, Yang Xiang, Jingna Feng, Ahmed Abdelhameed, Xinyue Hu, Zenan Sun, David Aguilar, Abhijeet Dhoble, Jingcheng Du, Qing Wang, Shuteng Niu, Yifang Dang, Xinyuan Zhang, Ziqian Xie, Yi Nian, Jianping He, Yujia Zhou, Jianfu Li, Mattia Prosperi, Jiang Bian, Degui Zhi, Cui Tao

School of Medicine Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: The rapid evolution of artificial intelligence (AI) in conjunction with recent updates in dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) management guidelines emphasizes the necessity for innovative models to predict ischemic or bleeding events after drug-eluting stent implantation. Leveraging AI for dynamic prediction has the potential to revolutionize risk stratification and provide personalized decision support for DAPT management. METHODS AND RESULTS: We developed and validated a new AI-based pipeline using retrospective data of drug-eluting stent-treated patients, sourced from the Cerner Health Facts data set (n=98 236) and Optum’s de-identified Clinformatics Data Mart Database (n=9978). The 36 months following drug-eluting stent implantation were …

Effect Of Soil Source And Variety On The Heavy Metal Contents Of Guinea Grass, C. C. Anotaenwere, P. O. Bankole, P. A. Dele, Alaba O. Jolaosho

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The aim of this study was to evaluate the heavy metal content in soils and grasses planted on selected contaminated soils. The study was a 3 x 2 factorial experiment in a completely randomized design comprising of two factors which are: 3 soil sources (i.e., industrial site, dump site and Fadama (a lowland around a river/stream) which was used as the control) and 2 varieties of Megathyrsus maximus (var. Local and Ntchisi) replicated four times. Soils were collected from the three sites and planting was done in a greenhouse. Soil samples were collected before and after planting. Samples of the …

Effect Of Nitrogen Source And Age At Harvest On The In Vitro Digestibility Of Oba Super Ii Maize Fodder, C. C. Anotaenwere, P. A. Dele, F. E. Salawu, B. T. Akinyemi, O. A. Okukenu, Alaba O. Jolaosho

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

This experiment was carried out in the Pasture Section of the Directorate of University farms and the laboratory of Department of Pasture and Range Management, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria, to evaluate the effect of nitrogen source (Swine manure, N.P.K. 15:15:15 as well as the control) and age at harvest on the in vitro gas production and digestibility of Oba Super II maize fodder. The experiment was in a split plot design. The nitrogen source was applied at the rate of 120 kgN/ha two weeks after planting. Maize was harvested at 8, 10 and 12 weeks after planting, oven …

Harvest Time Determine Biomass And Nutritive Value Of Forage Soybean In The Northwestern Loess Plateau Of China, An Dong, Jean Marie Vianney Nsigayehe, Y. Y. Shen

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Soybean is a critical legume crop, which can be used as high protein forage in a crop-forage rotation system to supplement forage and increase system productivity. According to the actual production demand, selecting a suitable harvest time and the best feeding variety of soybean can provide a theoretical basis for applying forage soybean in a rotation system. In this study, four forage soybean varieties were selected in the Loess Plateau of northwest China. They were harvested on three dates suitable for local rotation conditions, and their biomass and nutritive value were evaluated. At the early harvest (20 August), the nutritive …

Developing A Simple Bioassay For Detection Of Alfalfa Autotoxicity In Field Soils, P. Baisley, K. Cassida, S. Gruss, E. Hill

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Alfalfa autotoxicity causes yield reductions in alfalfa production by inhibiting plant establishment and decreasing plant productivity. Accurate predictions regarding autotoxic potential of the soil in a given field at a given time are an essential tool for alfalfa growers to make appropriate planting decisions. To address this issue, we are developing a soil bioassay that can be conducted as a mail-in soil test for alfalfa growers through plant diagnostic service laboratories. We hypothesize that we will detect differences in seed germination, emergence, root length, and root morphology between control and autotoxic soils. A preliminary trial testing alfalfa field soils and …

Phyllochron And Growth Dynamic Of Lolium Perenne L. And Bromus Valdivianus Phil. As Affected By Soil Ph, Phosphorus And Nitrogen Restriction, Oscar A. Balocchi, M. F. Alonso, I. Calvache

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Permanent grasslands are the main food for livestock production systems in Southern Chile. Therefore, it is essential to develop management tools that optimize the use of pastures. Among these tools, the phyllochron could be a better method to control grazing frequency. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of three levels of soil pH, phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N) on the phyllochron and growth dynamic of Lolium perenne and Bromus valdivianus. Nine monophytic mini-swards of each species were established in 125 L containers for three different pH, P and N levels. For one year we measured: …

Mass Production And Morphology Of Marandu Brachiaria Under Different Nitrogen Rates In The Brazilian Savannah, V. L. Banys, A. O. Matos, A. L. Bocchi, I. I. Silva, L. V. D. Ribeiro

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Nitrogen is the nutrient that most contributes to increase forage productivity and quality. The objective was to evaluate Marandu brachiaria submitted to nitrogen doses in the Brazilian savannah through the total and green mass production, leaf:stem and brachiaria:weed ratio. Plots were established in a randomized block design, with four replications and four N doses 0, 50, 100 and 150 kg N/ha). After the uniformization cut, the data collect cycles occurred when the canopy reached 30 cm average height. Samples were taken until 15 cm from the ground in an area of 0.25 m². Fractions were separated according botanical …

Grazing Management For Alfalfa Persistence And Productivity In Warm-Climate Regions, D. Basigalup

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Alfalfa is the most important cultivated forage crop in Argentina, where about 3 million hectares are grown. Even though the use of direct grazing is coming down during the last 15 years, it is still important for both beef and dairy production. Alfalfa grazing can play an important role in reducing operative costs and decreasing quality loss due to forage conservation (hay or silage). In this paper, the main concepts necessary to implement adequate and practical rotational grazing systems are briefly discussed. Particular attention is given to issues such as grazing frequency, grazing period, pasture use efficiency, and alfalfa quality …

Amphicarpic Legumes For Tropical Pasture Persistence, R Schultze-Kraft, A Schmidt, H Hohn

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Amphicarpy, by which a plant produces underground seeds in addition to aerial fruits, is found in many plant families and in species of at least 15 legume genera. First studies on the tropical Centrosema rotundifolium and subtropical Macroptilium panduratum revealed for both species, besides their stoloniferous growth habit, two important mechanisms for survival under unfavorable conditions: (1) Underground meristems and reserve organs, and (2) regeneration from a soil seed reserve based on underground, aerial-flowering independent, seed production. Underground seed production was for both species particularly high on very sandy soils, but amphicarpy enables the plants to exhibit a plasticity response …

Virgin Coconut Oil (Vco) Supplementation Relieves Symptoms And Inflammation Among Covid-19 Positive Adults: A Single-Blind Randomized Trial, Imelda Angeles-Agdeppa, Jacus S. Nacis, Fabian M. Dayrit, Keith V. Tanda

Chemistry Faculty Publications

A clinical study conducted in 2020 showed that virgin coconut oil (VCO) has been found effective in the rapid relief of COVID-19 symptoms and normalization of the C-reactive protein (CRP) concentration among probable and suspected cases of COVID-19. This present study aimed to validate those results and to evaluate the effects of VCO among COVID-19 patients through a 28-day randomized, single-blind trial conducted among 76 SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR (reverse transcription-polymerase chain report)-confirmed adults, with VCO given as a COVID-19 adjunct therapy. The results showed that VCO recipients were free from symptoms and had normal CRP concentrations by day 14. In comparison, …