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Evaluation Of Different Ensiling Methods On Storage And Feeding Value Of The Residual Material From Edamame Soybean Processing, Ellen Herring

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Use of organic waste material by ruminant animals from food processing operations potentially reduces costs and reduces environmental issues from disposal of these residues. Therefore, 2 experiments were conducted to evaluate the storage and feeding value of residual from edamame soybean processing for ruminant animals. Two types of waste streams, waste during harvest time and waste from processing stored material, were ensiled (on a laboratory scale) using various methods and effects on post-ensiling nutritive value were examined. Material from both waste streams were ensiled either without wilting or after wilting; each moisture level was ensiled with and without an inoculant. …

Evaluation Of Selected Bacillus Direct-Fed Microbial Candidates In Reduced Energy Diets On Live Performance, Carcass Characteristics, And Foot Pad Dermatitis, Kyle Teague

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Bacillus spp. are ubiquitous, Gram-positive, spore forming bacteria that are commonly recovered from the environment and gastrointestinal tract (GIT) of poultry. These spores are capable of withstanding harsh condition such as feed pelletization, which facilitates inclusion in poultry feeds. Once ingested by the bird, spores germinate into metabolically active vegetative cells which can produce extracellular enzymes which can hydrolyze otherwise indigestible components of the feed. Soybean meal (SBM) is the gold standard vegetable protein source for non-ruminant animals worldwide and is included in practically all poultry diets in the United States at levels ranging from 10 to more than 30%. …

Functional And Physiological Role Of Extra-Hypothalamic Corticotropin Releasing Hormone Neurons In The Nucleus Of The Hippocampal Commissure In Regulation Of Stress Response, Hakeem Kadhim

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH) neurons located within the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) are known to be involved in regulation of stress responses. Recently, CRH neurons were identified above the PVN within the nucleus of the hippocampal commissure (NHpC) that located in the septum. We hypothesized that CRH neurons in the NHpC play a critical role in the stress response due to their rapid activation and could be a part of the traditional hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. The dissertation addresses the role of 1) CRH expressing neurons in the NHpC compared with those within the PVN utilizing two different stressors, food deprivation (FD) …

The Effect Of Epa And Dha On Skeletal Muscle Physiology And Energy Balance, Saeed Jebor Ghnaimawi

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supplementation commonly suggested during pregnancy confers many health benefits on offspring and more recently improves fetal BAT development and induces myoblast trans-differentiation into adiopocytes through activating PPARs expression. Embryonic myoblast is a highly flexible cell showing great capacity to change its phenotype into adipocyte in response to EPA and DHA supplementation in many in vitro models. However, a little is known about the identity of derived adipocytes, whether, they change into brown or white adipocyte, and in vivo evidence is still missing. Given that the myogeneis process is initiated at the mid of …

Examining Pathogenesis And Preventatives In Spontaneous And Staphylococcus-Induced Bacterial Chondronecrosis With Osteomyelitis In Broilers, Nnamdi Simon Ekesi

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Bacterial chondronecrosis with osteomyelitis is the most important cause of lameness in broilers. This is important to poultry production, as it poses animal welfare issues, and causes a significant loss in revenue. The remediation of this disease requires the study of its etiology with fitting models and evaluating preventatives. The research reported herein covers genomic virulence analysis of BCO isolates, mainly Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli retrieved from lame birds. We found that S. aureus isolates were closest to chicken strains in Europe but may have been in the Arkansas area for a decade. Phylogenomics suggest our S. aureus is …

Optimization Of In-Vessel Food Waste Composting: Enzyme Activity And Microbial Dynamics, Ayawovi Selom Ametepe

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A series of greenhouse-based, rotary-drum bioreactor experiments was designed to study microbial dynamics and enzyme activity during optimization of food waste composting. This work aims to optimize food waste composting by defining the best food waste-to-bulking agent proportion controlling conditions and by evaluating the food waste composting process when inoculated by a bacterial inoculant product compared to uninoculated compost. Three experiments were run in total. The two first experiments were conducted for 48 days with sampling at each step of composting, while the third experiment last 50 days and included one extra sampling date. In the first experiment, 50:50, 65:35 …

Characterization Of Growth Patterns And Meat Quality Characteristics Of Four Commercial Broiler Strains In Small Bird And Large Bird Programs In The United States, Clay Johnny Maynard

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Through current trends in animal protein consumption, the United States poultry industry has seen a drastic rise in production and popularity. Over the last few decades, poultry meat has surpassed both beef and pork production to become the most widely consumed animal protein. This rise may be accredited to an increased transition to more health-conscious consumers. As more consumers purchase poultry as a lean source of protein, the need for a superior quality product is of great interest to poultry integrators.

Relationships between commercial broiler lines have been well documented in previous years, but constant and intensive genetic selection in …

Characterization Of Genetic Sources Associated With Restorability And Seed Dimension In Arkansas Restorer Rice Lines, Ozgur Azapoglu

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Hybrid rice (Oryza sativa L.) breeding offers a significant opportunity to enhance rice production, and the cultivation of a male sterile line is the most important factor in the success of cross-breeding. One of the key elements of hybrid rice production is to develop a restorer line that is assigned as the male parent. The restorer lines provide viable pollen for fertilization of the male sterile plant due to the presence of a restorer gene (Rf) in their genomes. Any superior restorer line applied to hybrid rice production must contain genes/quantitative trait loci (QTL) associated with the desirable agronomic traits …

The Effects Of Multiple Stressors On Stream Communities: The Convergence Of Drought, Nutrient Pollution, And Invasive Species, Robert Joseph Fournier Iii

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Freshwater systems experience multi-faceted degradation from a variety of ecological and environmental stressors. Three common stressors in these systems, drought, nutrient pollution, and invasive species, have wide-ranging effects on stream population- community- and ecosystem dynamics. We have a broad understanding of how each of these stressors works to influence stream systems independently. However, we still know relatively little about if, and how, these stressors might interact when they co-occur. Though drought is a natural part of many stream systems, all three of these stressors can be exacerbated or facilitated by anthropogenic actions. Accordingly, as human population and resource use continue …

Conceptualizing Social Capital As Access To Social Network And Mobilization Of Network Resources: A Study Of Workplace Literacy Programs And Low-Income Somali Refugee Workers, Angela Uchechukwu Nwude

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

There is a substantial body of literature on the economic benefits of workplace literacy programs, and much less empirical studies on the social or non-economic outcomes of workplace literacy programs, particularly in the context of low-income refugee workers. Adopting a social network approach, this study examines the impact of workplace literacy programs on the social capital development of Somali refugee workers. Social capital can be defined as the network of relationships possessed by an individual or social group that facilitates their access to emotional, instrumental, or informational resources, essential for their daily survival, stability, or upward mobility. This study takes …

Biogeography Of The Bovine Respiratory Microbiome And Its Relationship With Bovine Respiratory Disease, Jianmin Chai

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Bovine respiratory disease (BRD) is the most common and costly disease in the beef cattle industry, leading to high morbidity, mortality and huge economic loss. Despite the recent advances in vaccination and antimicrobial techniques, no significant health-improved outcomes have developed. Due to a deep investigation of the microbiome, respiratory microbiotas are known to have important roles for host health and disease. However, BRD specific pathogens have not yet been identified since they are found in both healthy and diseased animals. A systemic and comprehensive study of the biogeography of the bovine respiratory microbiome and its relationship with BRD is lacking …

Antioxidant Properties And Anti-Cancer Effects Of Polyphenols In Sweetpotato Leaves, Josue Bolanos

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Although the root is widely consumed, sweetpotato leaves (SPL) are often discarded and are only consumed in a few countries. In the United States, SPL consumption is limited to private gardens, particularly in the Southeastern United States. Not only are SPL a good source of nutrients such as vitamins and minerals, but they also contain polyphenol compounds including the caffeoylquinic acid derivatives and carotenoids such as lutein. Several studies have shown the polyphenol contents and antioxidant capacities of SPL, which vary based on year and variety, while few studies have shown anti-colon cancer effects of SPL. Therefore, this study investigated …

Projecting Water Available For Irrigation Use And Identifying Water Supply Stress Under Climate Change Scenarios In Selected U.S. Fruit And Vegetable Production Regions, Andrew Shaw

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Climate change affects water resources differently across geospatial regions in the United States (U.S). There is a concern of how water availability will be affected by changes in long-term temperature and precipitation patterns, specifically in major production regions for eight fruit and vegetable crops. The effects on surface water available for irrigation use and supply stress in five regions containing 31 Agricultural Statistics Districts (ASDs) were assessed. The Water Supply Stress Index Model was used and modified to project water available for irrigation use across nine climate scenarios driven by historical data, five General Circulation Models, two population scenarios, and …

Mitochondrial Contributions To Disuse Atrophy: Let’S Talk About Sex, Megan Rosa-Caldwell

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Skeletal muscle atrophy is a hallmark of many pathologies and is associated with disease prognosis, quality of life, and mortality. Specifically, lack of contractile activity of the muscle can result in disuse-associated atrophy. Disuse-induced atrophy is a common phenomenon in intensive care unit (ICU) patients and significantly impacts patient prognosis and ability to transition of out of intensive care. However, effective therapeutics to mitigate disuse-associated atrophy do not exist, clearly demonstrating the scientific and clinical need to further understand mechanisms contributing to disuse atrophy. In particular, a significant portion of the scientific literature has utilized male models, yet there is …

The Effects Of Excess Dietary Sulfur Using Supplemental Sodium Sulfate On Beef Steer, Heifer, And Progeny Productive And Physiological Responses, Jamie Hawley

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

For studies 1 through 3, 20 steers of predominantly Angus breeding, were stratified by body weight (279 ± 13.2 kg), assigned randomly to 6 paddocks, and fed a low S ground corn and soybean meal supplement that did not contain any byproduct feeds (0.31% total dietary S; LS) or LS supplement with an additional 0.25% S provided from sodium sulfate (Na2SO4; 0.58% total dietary S; HS) for a 114-d growing phase. Steers were moved to feedlot (373 ± 0.2 kg), remained on prior dietary S treatments, and fed corn and soybean meal diets (0.19 and 0.42% total dietary S; LS …

Consumer Food Socialization In The School And Home, Ashley Deutsch Cermin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Consumer socialization literature has focused on individual socialization agents and their isolated effects. However, as John (1999) pointed out, children do not grow up in a social vacuum. Instead, the multitude of agents socializing children find their narratives interacting and their effects continually shaped and co-created. To understand how school-age children learn about food, I interrogate the complexity of socialization in three essays.

In the first essay, I take an ethnographic approach to investigate the interactive effect peers and adults, namely service workers, have on children’s food socialization in a public-school lunchroom. By combining a Loseke’s (2007) layered narrative model …

Elucidating Collagen Degradation Synergy Between Col G And Col H From Hathewaya (Clostridium) Histolytica And Identifying Novel Structural Features In Hpt And Rec Domains From Vars Histidine Kinase In V. Alginolyticus, Perry Caviness

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this research the mechanisms by which Hathewaya (Clostridia) histolytica collagenases are secreted and work together to degrade collagens are investigated. While H. histolytica collagenases Col G and Col H have similar multi-domain structures the difference in number of and orientation of the domains hint that the two target different regions in collagen. Study small angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) was used to give a low-resolution envelope of full-length Col G and Col H and Col G/Col H non-catalytic domains bound to a collagen-like peptide (mini-collagen). SAXS derived envelopes along with structural information was used to tease out the mechanisms by …

Effects Of Supplementing Crystalline L-Valine And L-Isoleucine And A Novel Threonine Biomass In Reduced Crude Protein Diets Fed To Broilers, Derrell Trevor Lee

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Poultry nutritionists continue to identify methods to lower feed price without compromising broiler growth performance, processing yields, or animal well-being. A common approach is to reduce dietary crude protein (CP), the second most expensive component in a broiler diet. Subsequently, reducing CP will reduce the inclusion levels of intact protein sources (e.g., soybean meal [SBM]), which can be accomplished by supplementing individual amino acids (AA). This methodology not only reduces diet cost, pending if feed-grade AA are more economical, but can contribute to improving broiler health and environmental sustainability. Therefore, two experiments were conducted to evaluate individual feed-grade AA in …

The Emotional Toil Of Paying For College: Lower Socioeconomic Status White Women’S College Experiences, 1880-1920, Heidi A. Jaeckle

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Typically historical inquiries in higher education have been centered on privileged individuals from wealthier backgrounds who had the opportunity of attending primarily prestigious institutions. The experiences of college women from lower to middle class socioeconomic backgrounds have been for the most part ignored. This dissertation explores how socioeconomic backgrounds shaped the experiences of college women from the late nineteenth century to the early twentieth century, focusing on lower class students. With no universal financial aid program, the majority of these women were from families who could afford to pay tuition. Women from lower socioeconomic backgrounds did attend college, but their …

Phenotypic Switching Of Bacterial Cells In Extreme Environments, Sudip Nepal

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A large number of terrestrial microbial lives thrive in extremes of environmental conditions, including extremes of pressure, temperature, salinity, pH, and a combination of them. For example, all the marine biomass thrive at high hydrostatic pressure depending on depth. The temperature in the ocean can be very high near the hydrothermal vents and salinity and pH depends on the composition of salt in the surrounding areas. On the surface, hot springs, lakes and geysers provide high temperature conditions, while many places are permafrost regions with subzero temperatures. There is an emerging body of work on the viability, genomics, and metagenomics …

Distillers Dried Grains With Solubles: Determination Of Metabolizable Energy Values Using Regression-Based Assays And Their Correlation With Chemical Composition, Kenia Mitre

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The inherent variability and lack of standardization of in vivo assays to determine the metabolizable energy (ME) of DDGS has led to inconsistent values and limited its potential to use in broiler diets. Therefore, two experiments were conducted to characterize the content of nitrogen-corrected ME (MEn) in 11 DDGS sources obtained from various ethanol plants using a regression-based broiler assay and to attempt to develop equations to predict MEn based on its chemical composition. In experiment 1, the objectives were to determine the influence of inclusion level and feed intake on the resulting ME and MEn values of a single …

The Impact Of Dietary Egg Intake On Metabolic Health In Food Insecure Households, Sam Walker

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Food Insecurity (FI) is defined as a condition in which individuals lack access to adequate food due to limited financial resources. FI is estimated to impact 12% of households in United States. Adults and children who experience FI are an increased risk for developing metabolic disease such as type 2 diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease. The negative health outcomes associated with FI are multi-factorial, however, many of them may be caused by limited nutritional intake and poor diet quality. Efforts to better understand the obstacles food insecure populations face is critical in order to improve nutrient intake and minimize …

Heat And Mass Transfer In Parboiled Rice During Heating With 915 Mhz Microwave Energy And Impacts On Milled Rice Properties, Deandrae L.W. Smith

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Microwave (MW) heating offers an energy-efficient, fast method to dry high moisture content (MC) parboiled rice to safe storage MC. However, there is limited research that describes the fundamentals of heat and mass transport in rice kernels exposed to MW energy at 915 MHz, the most promising heating frequency for industrialized processing. This information is vital to explain the implications of MW technology on dried rice quality. The overall objective of this study was to develop a microwave heating technology that can sufficiently dry high MC parboiled rough rice kernels in one pass using a 915-MHz industrial microwave system. An …

Nutritional Strategies For Feeding Broiler Breeders On Hen And Progeny Performance, Antonio Beitia

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Over the last 60 plus years, broiler breeders have been under an incredible amount of genetic pressure. This genetic pressure comes from the continually increasing consumer demand for poultry products. The objective of this dissertation is to understand the effects of different nutritional and management practices on broiler breeder’s performance. The first series of experiments investigate the impact of broilerization on hen and early progeny performance. Broilerization is a process only used by genetic companies. The results from these experiments showed the adverse effects of broilerization on chick quality and hen performance. Follow up trials were performed to determine the …

Introducing An Indigenous Non-Toxigenic Aspergillus Flavus Strain Isolated From Iraqi Corn Grains As A Bio-Control Agent To Reduce Aflatoxin Contamination In Corn Grains, Ali Almatakeez

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Mycotoxin contamination of cereal crops, such as maize and sorghum, is a global concern because of the potential health effects on humans and animals. Although substantial research has been conducting regarding mycotoxin prevention and mitigation, little information is available about the association of mycotoxin-producing fungi with corn and sorghum grain in Iraq. Identifying and refining indigenous atoxigenic strains to reduce mycotoxin contamination of maize and sorghum has the potential to enhance the nutritional value of these grains while reducing economic losses. However, to our knowledge, this tactic has not yet been adopted by agricultural authorities and farmers in Iraq. To …

Outcomes Of Platform Openness In Complementary Markets, Franck Loic Soh Noume

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Mobile platform ecosystems are hyper-competitive environments. They provide important entrepreneurial opportunities for businesses that develop mobile apps. Platform openness is foundational in mobile platform ecosystems as it enables interactions between complements and platform. Although there are several studies on the impact of platform openness, our understanding of the outcomes of platform openness remains limited. In this dissertation, we examine thoroughly underexplored facets of platform openness as well as understudied outcomes. In the first essay, we investigate the impact of platform openness on incumbent complements’ performance outcomes. We unravel important causal mechanisms related to competition dynamics between new entrants and incumbent …

Visualizing Interdisciplinary Collaborations Within Exercise Science: A Pilot Study, Elizabeth Bjornsen

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Exercise science is a growing field with sub-disciplines exploring various aspects of physical activity. Diverse perspectives allow the field to answer complex research questions, but little is known about the collaborative nature of exercise science today. Research practices have implications on undergraduate curriculum, likely incorporating experiential knowledge into course subject matter and providing diverse experiences for students entering the workforce. Therefore, the purpose of the pilot study is to visualize and quantify interdisciplinary collaborations within exercise science. Journal citation analysis and an adaptation of social networking theory were utilized to examine collaborative practices of exercise science faculty at the University …

Rice Fortification By Parboiling In Limited-Water Soaking To Alleviate Mineral And Vitamin Deficiency, Annegret Jannasch

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Fortification of rice by parboiling is considered a potential alternative to currently available fortification technologies to produce rice with higher mineral and vitamin content significantly contributing to nutrient intake in populations with high prevalence of micronutrient deficiencies. Higher nutrient retention rates and improved sensory characteristics are advantages of fortified parboiled rice compared to fortified rice obtained by currently used fortification technologies including dusting, coating, and extrusion. However, conventional parboiling processes employ excess water that presents an environmental hazard if discarded without treatment. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate a limited-water soaking method for the fortification of rice …

Respiratory Chain Activity And Protein Expression In Skeletal Muscles From High And Low Feed Efficient Swine Within The Same Genetic Line, Earsie L. Alcorn De Feliz

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Current as well as past studies have provided evidence for a connection between macroeconomic/agricultural and cellular/biochemical basis of feed efficiency (FE; gain:feed) in farm animal production. Our investigation of respiratory chain activity, mitochondrial protein oxidation and protein expression was an expansion to the subcellular/molecular level. In this study we investigated the entire complex (Cx) of the electron transport chain (ETC) for differences in Cx activities in mitochondria isolated from skeletal muscle in high (HFE) and low (LFE) feed efficient swine within the same genetic line. Review of literature provided information for the connection between feed efficiency, mitochondrial function, and muscle …

Developing A High-Throughput Method To Screen Soybean Germplasm For Hypoxia Tolerance In Hydroponic Systems, Derrick Harrison

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Soybean [Glycine max (Merr.)], the second most planted crop in the United States, is sensitive to field flooding due to depletion of oxygen and accumulation of CO2 in the rhizosphere. There is a need to breed cultivars that are adapted to areas prone to flooding, but field evaluations in the U.S. are limited because of time (one generation per year) and availability of resources (impermeable soils, irrigation, equipment to build levees). The purpose of this study was to develop and execute a protocol of germplasm screening for hypoxia tolerance using hydroponics in a controlled greenhouse environment. Germination rates and vigor …