Test plan and test instrumentation, rf test console, appendix k part of the final report

Test plan and instrumentation for radio frequency test consol

Estimating Ribeye Area Using a Longitudinal Ultrasound Image of the 12th and 13th Rib Section

A study was performed to determine the feasability of using a measurement of ribeye depth (RED) from a longitudinal ultrasound image to estimate ribeye area (REA). The correlation between RED obtained with ultrasound and REA from a tracing was high for both implanted (r = .49) and non-implanted (r = .45) steers. The mean bias between predicted REA and actual REA was not different from zero. This analysis shows that RED could be an accurate indicator of REA

Use of Ultrasound Backfat Estimates to Form Marketing Groups Prior to Finishing for Feedlot Steers

An experiment was conducted using 95 Continental crossbred steers. The cattle were sorted by ultrasound 160 days before slaughter into a low backfat group (Low BF) and a higher backfat group (High BF). Half of the Low BF and half of the High BF were implanted whereas the other halves were not. Data from the experiment were used in two hypothetical markets. One market was a high yield beef program (HY) that did not allow the use of implants. The second market was a commodity beef program (CM) that allowed the use of implants. The cattle were priced as an unsorted group (ALL) and two sorted groups (Low BF and High BF) within the HY (non-implanted) and CM (implanted) markets. The CM program had a base price of $1.05/lb hot carcass weight (HCW) with a$0.15/lb HCW discount for quality grade (QG) Select and a $0.20/lb HCW discount for yield grade (YG) 4. The HY program used a base price of$1.07/lb HCW with premiums ($/lb HCW) paid for YG £ .9 (.15), 1.0 - 1.4 (.10), and 1.5 - 1.9 (.03). The carcasses were discounted ($/lb HCW) for YG 2.5 - 2.9 (.03), 3.0 - 3.9 (.15), and ³ 4.0 (.35). This data set provides good evidence that the end point at which to sell a group of cattle depends on the particular market. Sorting had an economic advantage over ALL in the HY Low BF and the CM High BF groups. The HY High BF cattle should have been sold sooner due to the discounts recieved for increased YG. The increased YG was directly affected by an increase in BF. Furthermore, the CM Low BF group should have been fed longer to increase the number of carcasses grading Choice

Long Versus Short Feeding Period for Steer Calves of Three Frame Sizes Fed High Energy Finishing Diets

An experiment was conducted using Angus cross steer calves of three frame sizes (small, medium, and large) to compare performance of two different grow/finish feeding programs. Half of the cattle in each frame size group were fed a high energy ration through the growing period, similar to calves going directly into the feedlot. The other half was fed a low energy ration, similar to a backgrounding diet, for a period prior to the finishing phase. All cattle were fed a high energy ration through the finishing period. The data showed the cattle fed the low energy growing diet experienced some compensatory gains as shown by ultrasound backfat and average daily gains coupled with intakes greater than the increases seen in the high energy treatment. Carcass data and overall performance data showed no ill effects due to the low energy growing ration

Use of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 and vitamin E to improve tenderness of beef from the longissimus dorsi of heifers

The objective of this trial was to determine whether a single bolus of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (25-OH D3), vitamin E, or a combination of the 2 would improve the tenderness of steaks from the LM of beef heifers. Forty-eight Angus crossbred heifers were allotted randomly to 8 pens. Six heifers were in each pen, and there were 2 pens per treatment. The 4 treatments included control (no 25-OH D3 or vitamin E); 25-OH D3 (500 mg of 25-OH D3 administered as a one-time oral bolus 7 d before slaughter); vitamin E (1,000 IU of vitamin E administered daily as a top-dress for 104 d before slaughter); or combination (500 mg of 25-OH D3administered as a one-time oral bolus 7 d before slaughter and 1,000 IU of vitamin E administered daily as a top-dress for 104 d before slaughter). Blood samples were obtained on the day that heifers were allotted to treatments, on the day 25-OH D3 was administered, and on the day before slaughter. Plasma calcium concentration was increased when 25-OH D3 was administered with or without vitamin E (P \u3c 0.007). In LM, calcium concentration tended to increase (P = 0.10) when 25-OH D3 was administered alone but not when 25-OH D3 was administered with vitamin E. Concentrations of 25-OH D3 and 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 in plasma were increased when 25-OH D3 was administered with or without vitamin E (P \u3c 0.001). Steaks from heifers treated with 25-OH D3or vitamin E, but not both, tended to have lower Warner-Bratzler shear force than steaks in the control group at 14 d postmortem (P = 0.08). Postmortem protein degradation as measured by Western blot of the 30-kDa degradation product of troponin-T was increased with all treatments after 3 d postmortem (P ≤ 0.07), but not at 7 or 14 d postmortem. Unexpectedly, the use of 500 mg of 25-OH D3 fed as an oral bolus 7 d before slaughter or 1,000 IU of vitamin E administered daily for 104 d before slaughter alone, but not in combination, effectively decreased Warner-Bratzler shear force

Validation of a Model for Prediction of Percent Intramuscular Fat on Live Feedlot Cattle

A prediction model from a previous study was utilized to evaluate the degree of fit when this model is applied to an independent data set. The degree of fit was evaluated using means, regression analysis, correlation coefficient, distribution of residuals, and mean square error of prediction (MSEP). The model provided a reasonably accurate prediction of intramuscular fat with a mean bias of 0.13%. For 47.1% of the steers, percent intramuscular fat was predicted within ± 0.5%, and for 77.6% of the steers, prediction of percent intramuscular fat was made within ± 1%. Pearson product moment correlation between predicted and actual percent intramuscular fat was 0.74 (p \u3c .01), and the square root of MSEP indicated a prediction error of 0.9%

The ERAD Inhibitor Eeyarestatin I Is a Bifunctional Compound with a Membrane-Binding Domain and a p97/VCP Inhibitory Group

Protein homeostasis in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) has recently emerged as a therapeutic target for cancer treatment. Disruption of ER homeostasis results in ER stress, which is a major cause of cell death in cells exposed to the proteasome inhibitor Bortezomib, an anti-cancer drug approved for treatment of multiple myeloma and Mantle cell lymphoma. We recently reported that the ERAD inhibitor Eeyarestatin I (EerI) also disturbs ER homeostasis and has anti-cancer activities resembling that of Bortezomib.Here we developed in vitro binding and cell-based functional assays to demonstrate that a nitrofuran-containing (NFC) group in EerI is the functional domain responsible for the cytotoxicity. Using both SPR and pull down assays, we show that EerI directly binds the p97 ATPase, an essential component of the ERAD machinery, via the NFC domain. An aromatic domain in EerI, although not required for p97 interaction, can localize EerI to the ER membrane, which improves its target specificity. Substitution of the aromatic module with another benzene-containing domain that maintains membrane localization generates a structurally distinct compound that nonetheless has similar biologic activities as EerI.Our findings reveal a class of bifunctional chemical agents that can preferentially inhibit membrane-bound p97 to disrupt ER homeostasis and to induce tumor cell death. These results also suggest that the AAA ATPase p97 may be a potential drug target for cancer therapeutics

Evaluation of Ultrasound Measurement of Fat Thickness and Ribeye Area, II. Repeatability of Measurements.

Data from two feeding trials were used to evaluate repeatability of ultrasound measurements of fat thickness and ribeye area. In each trial, steers were scanned three or four times by one technician. Two beef improvement federation (BIF)-certified technicians with different levels of experience interpreted images from the last scan. Each technician interpreted the image of an individual steer twice on two different days. Repeatability was evaluated as an intra-class correlation. Additional statistics used to evaluate repeatability were the slope and intercepts from a regression analysis, RMSE, and ESD. Ultrasound measurements of fat thickness and ribeye area were repeatable both within and across technicians. The only exception was the across-technician measurements of ribeye area, where an apparent difference in variances of measurements was observed

Evaluation of Ultrasound Measurements of Fat Thickness and Ribeye Area, I. Assessment of Technician Effect on Accuracy

Data from two feeding trials were used to estimate accuracy of ultrasound measurements of fat thickness and ribeye area. In each trial, steers were scanned three or four times by one technician. Two beef improvement federation (BIF)-certified technicians with different levels of experience interpreted images from the last scan taken just before slaughter. Each technician interpreted the image of an individual steer twice on two different days. Accuracy of interpretation was evaluated using simple statistical measures, including means, standard deviations, regression and correlation coefficients, RMSE, and ESD. The overall technician biases for ultrasound measurements of fat thickness and ribeye area were -0.17 cm and 0.63 cm2, respectively. Mean bias by technician indicated a similar direction and amount of bias (-0.14 vs -0.20 cm). However, bias in the measurement of ribeye area by the two technicians took an opposite direction ( -1.28 vs 2.54 cm2). In all cases, technician bias was within the acceptable range for BIF certification. Pearson product moment correlations between carcass and ultrasound measurements of fat thickness and ribeye area were 0.70 and 0.40, respectively. In general, fat thickness for 52% of the steers was measured within ±0.254 cm and for 85.2 % of the steers, fat thickness was measured within ±0.508 cm. For ribeye area, ±51.2 % and ±71.4 % of the steers had measurements within ±6.65 cm2 and ±12.99 cm2, respectively