Effect of total proteosopeptone content on the variability of bovine milk foaming property

Several authors demonstrated a strong linkage between proteose-peptones content and foaming properties of cow milk; this is of great interest for Italian dairy industries to create a new line of fresh milk characterized by a particular foaming property and, hence, particularly appreciate in catering industry. The aim of this trial was to quantify the relation between total concentration of proteose-peptones and the entity of foaming attitude in cow fresh milk. Ninety samples of raw bulk milk were analysed for proteose-peptones content, plasmin activity, fatty acid profile and foaming attitude. A negative relation was found among proteose-peptones percentage and foaming attitude which decreased with the increase of plasmin activity and somatic cell content in milk

Use of a citrus by-product in broilers diets

The European Union is about to ban antibiotics as growth promoters in animal feeds. Organic products have been recently revalued and the animal science research showed a great interest in the study of alternative natural nutraceutical products in animal feeding. Flavonoids are plant pigments able to inhibit or kill many bacterial strains, to destroy some pathogenic protozoa and to scavenge free radicals

Effect of forage /concentrate ratio and soybean oil supplementation on in vitro fatty acid profile of sheep rumen liquor.

In an in vitro trial, the effect of forage/concentrate ratio (F/C) and soybean oil (SO) supplementation on rumen liquor fatty acids profile was studied with the aim to evaluate changes in the profiles of biohydrogenation intermediates during the fermentation process. Feed samples of four diets were inoculated with sheep rumen liquor: i) high F/C and no SO; ii) high F/C and SO; iii) low F/C and no SO; iv) low F/C and SO. Fermentation times were 6, 12 h. Trans fatty acid were formed when oil supplement or a low forage content were present in the diets, but at different times of fermentation, as a consequence of a shift from the usual rumen biohydrogenation pathway. In fact, when a higher forage percentage was included in the diet, the alternative pathways of rumen biohydrogenation did not occur; trans10 C18:1 concentration was low and neither trans10, cis12 CLA nor trans, trans CLA appeared

Polyphenols and organic acids as alternatives to antimicrobials in poultry rearing: a review.

For decades antibiotics have been used in poultry rearing to support high levels of production. Nevertheless, several problems have arisen because of the misuse of antibiotics (i.e., antibiotic resistance, residues in animal products, environmental pollution). Thus, the European Union (EU) as well as the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) promote action plans to diminish the use of antibiotics in animal production. Alternatives to antibiotics have been studied. Polyphenols (PPs) or organic acids (OAs) seem to be two accredited solutions. Phenolic compounds, such as phenols, flavonoids, and tannins exert their antimicrobial effect with specific mechanisms. In contrast, short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and medium chain fatty acids (MCFAs), the OAs mainly used as antibiotics alternative, act on the pathogens depending on the pKa value. This review aims to collect the literature reporting the effects of these substances applied as antimicrobial molecules or growth promoter in poultry feeding (both for broilers and laying hens). Organic acids and PPs can be used individually or in blends, exploiting the properties of each component. Collected data highlighted that further research needs to focus on OAs in laying hens’ feeding and also determine the right combination in blends with PPs

Mixtures of mono-, di- and tri-glycerides as energy supplements to broilers' diets

Mixtures of mono-, di- and tri-glycerides from olive oil (MDT) were added to: palm oil (PO), olive oil (OO), soybean oil (SO), free fatty acids from palm oil (PFA), free fatty acids from olive oil (OFA). The compound mixtures were used as energy supplements in the diets of broiler chickens in comparison with plain SO and plain animal fat (AF). Two hundred and ten birds were randomly allotted to 7 dietary treatments with the diverse oil sources: 6 birds per cage, 5 cages per treatment. The effects of the treatments on growth rates, feed/gain ratios and acidic composition of abdominal fat of hybrid Ross 308 female chickens were studied. The animals were slaughtered at the end of the trial, at day 35. The breast meat quality was then evaluated by a panel of 15 trained members and analysed for shelf life duration. The AF treat- ment gave the highest weight gain, but only in the first week. MDT + OO (50/50) resulted the best combination, with slight, non significant, better performances and a decidedly better quality in terms of acidic composition of abdominal fat, taste and juiciness of breast meat and shelf life

Oral administration of chestnut tannins to reduce the duration of neonatal calf diarrhea

Background: Neonatal calf diarrhea is generally caused by infectious agents and is a very common disease in bovine practice, leading to substantial economic losses. Tannins are known for their astringent and anti- inflammatory properties in the gastro-enteric tract. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the oral administration of chestnut tannins (Castanea sativa Mill.) in order to reduce the duration of calf neonatal diarrhea. Twenty-four Italian Friesian calves affected by neonatal diarrhea were included. The duration of the diarrheic episode (DDE) was recorded and the animals were divided into a control group (C), which received Effydral® in 2 l of warm water, and a tannin-treated group (T), which received Effydral® in 2 l of warm water plus 10 g of extract of chestnut tannins powder. A Mann-Whitney test was performed to verify differences for the DDE values between the two groups. Results: The DDE was significantly higher in group C than in group T (p = 0.02), resulting in 10.1 ± 3.2 and 6.6 ± 3. 8 days, respectively. Conclusions: Phytotherapic treatments for various diseases have become more common both in human and in veterinary medicine, in order to reduce the presence of antibiotic molecules in the food chain and in the environment. Administration of tannins in calves with diarrhea seemed to shorten the DDE in T by almost 4 days compared to C, suggesting an effective astringent action of chestnut tannins in the calf, as already reported in humans. The use of chestnut tannins in calves could represent an effective, low-impact treatment for neonatal diarrhea

Monobutirryne: a novel feed additive in the diet of broiler chickens.

Purpose of the present work was to validate the monoglyceride of butyric acid (MB) as an alternative to antibiotics as growth promoters in the diet of broiler chickens. The approach is a kind of prolongation of previous works, in which a blend of mono-, di- and tri-glycerides of butyric acid have been previously tested. The results indicated that MB was very efficient in limiting the mortality of birds challenged with Eimeria spp., but did not appreciably impair the performance of unchallenged birds. In conclusion, the metabolisable energy content of MB appeared comparable with that of soybean oil and MB a reliable coccidiostat

NNLO QCD×EW corrections to Z production in the q q channel

We present the first results for the O(ααs) corrections to the total partonic cross section of the process qq→Z+X, with the complete set of contributions, that include photonic and massive weak gauge boson effects. The results are relevant for the precise determination of the hadronic Z boson production cross section. Virtual and real corrections are calculated analytically using the reduction to the master integrals and their evaluation through differential equations. Real corrections are dealt with using the reverse-unitarity method. They require the evaluation of a new set of two-loop master integrals, with up to three internal massive lines. In particular, three of them are expressed in terms of elliptic integrals. We verify the absence, at this perturbative order, of initial-state mass singularities proportional to a weak massive virtual correction to the quark-gluon splitting

Mixture of mono- di- and tri-glycerides as energy supplements to broilers diets.

Mixtures of mono-, di- and tri-glycerides from olive oil (MDT) were added to: palm oil (PO), olive oil (OO), soybean oil (SO), free fatty acids from palm oil (PFA), free fatty acids from olive oil (OFA). The compound mixtures were used as energy supplements in the diets of broiler chickens in comparison with plain SO and plain animal fat (AF). Two hundred and ten birds were randomly allotted to 7 dietary treatments with the diverse oil sources: 6 birds per cage, 5 cages per treatment. The effects of the treatments on growth rates, feed/gain ratios and acidic composition of abdominal fat of hybrid Ross 308 female chickens were studied. The animals were slaughtered at the end of the trial, at day 35. The breast meat quality was then evaluated by a panel of 15 trained members and analysed for shelf life duration. The AF treatment gave the highest weight gain, but only in the first week. MDT + OO (50/50) resulted the best combination, with slight, non significant, better performances and a decidedly better quality in terms of acidic composition of abdominal fat, taste and juiciness of breast meat and shelf lif

Transfer of dietary fatty acids from butyric acid fortified canola oil into the meat of broilers

The literature reported positive beneficial effects of butyric acid and canola oil on production performance traits of broiler chickens. Three hundred hybrid Ross 708 (150 males and 150 females) were randomly allotted to 10 pens per treatment with 5 males and 5 females per pen. Ten pens were administered a diet supplemented with soybean oil (control), ten pens the same basal diet but supplemented with a blend of mono-, di-, tri-glyceride of butyric acid added to soybean oil (T1) and ten pens the same basal diet supplemented with a mix of soybean and canola oil containing butyrate (T2). No differences in final body weight, dressing percentage, liver and thigh weight were found between groups. The T2 birds showed the highest feed/gain ratio (P<0.05). The control group showed the highest value for breast weight while the highest quantity of abdominal fat was in T2 carcasses. Fatty acid profile was significantly influenced by the presence of oil supplements, not only quantitatively but also qualitatively