Metabolizable energy requirement for maintenance estimated by regression analysis of body weight gain or metabolizable energy intake in growing pigs

Objective: Feed energy required for pigs is first prioritized to meet maintenance costs. Additional energy intake in excess of the energy requirement for maintenance is retained as protein and fat in the body, leading to weight gain. The objective of this study was to estimate the metabolizable energy requirements for maintenance (MEm) by regressing body weight (BW) gain against metabolizable energy intake (MEI) in growing pigs.Methods: Thirty-six growing pigs (26.3 +/- 1.7 kg) were allotted to 1 of 6 treatments with 6 replicates per treatment in a randomized complete block design. Treatments were 6 feeding levels which were calculated as 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90%, or 100% of the estimated ad libitum MEI (2,400 kJ/kg BW0.60 d). All pigs were individually housed in metabolism crates for 30 d and weighed every 5 d. Moreover, each pig from each treatment was placed in the open-circuit respiration chambers to measure heat production (HP) and energy retained as protein (REp) and fat (REf) every 5 d. Serum biochemical parameters of pigs were analyzed at the end of the experiment.Results: The average daily gain (ADG) and HP as well as the REp and REf linearly increased with increasing feed intake (p< 0.010). beta-hydroxybutyrate concentration of serum tended to increase with increasing feed intake (p = 0.080). The regression equations of MEI on ADG were MEI, kJ/kg BW0.60 d = 1.88xADG, g/d+782 (R-2 = 0.86) and MEm was estimated at 782 kJ/kg BW0.60 d. Protein retention of growing pigs would be positive while REf would be negative at this feeding level via regression equations of REp and REf on MEI.Conclusion: The MEm was estimated at 782 kJ/kg BW0.60 d in current experiment. Furthermore, growing pigs will deposit protein and oxidize fat if provided feed at the estimated maintenance level

T Cells Development Is Different between Thymus from Normal and Intrauterine Growth Restricted Pig Fetus at Different Gestational Stage

This experiment was conducted to evaluate the development of T cells in intrauterine growth retarded (IUGR) piglets at different gestational stages, and tentatively explore the relationship between T cells development and the Notch signaling pathway. A total of 18 crossbred (Landrace×Large white) primiparous sows were mated at similar weights and estruses and euthanized at d 60, 90 and 110 of gestation with six replicates for each time point. One IUGR and one normal fetus were picked from each litter. The T-cell subsets, mRNA expression of Delta-like1, Delta-like4, Jagged1, and Notch2 genes in the thymus were investigated. Compared to normal piglets, CD3+CD4−CD8+ cells in IUGR fetuses at d 90 was 0.13% lower (p<0.05). At d 110 of gestation CD8+ T cells in IUGR fetuses was 0.19% lower (p<0.05). The percentage of CD8+ T cells was 3.14% lower (p<0.05) of the total T cells in IUGR pigs at d 60. The abundance of Notch2 and Delta-like4 mRNA at d 110 was 20.93% higher and 0.77% (p<0.05) lower, and Delta-like1 mRNA at d 90 was 0.19% (p<0.05) higher compared to normal pigs. These results suggested that normal fetuses had a greater proportion of T-cell subsets at earlier gestation periods, and the Notch signaling pathway was likely partially responsible for these differences to some degree

Robust anomalous Hall effect in ferromagnetic metal under high pressure

Recently, the giant intrinsic anomalous Hall effect (AHE) has been observed in the materials with kagome lattice. In this study, we systematically investigate the influence of high pressure on the AHE in the ferromagnet LiMn6Sn6 with clean Mn kagome lattice. Our in-situ high-pressure Raman spectroscopy indicates that the crystal structure of LiMn6Sn6 maintains a hexagonal phase under high pressures up to 8.51 GPa. The anomalous Hall conductivity (AHC) {\sigma}xyA remains around 150 {\Omega}-1 cm-1, dominated by the intrinsic mechanism. Combined with theoretical calculations, our results indicate that the stable AHE under pressure in LiMn6Sn6 originates from the robust electronic and magnetic structure.Comment: 11 pages 5 figure

Effects of Replacing Fishmeal and Soybean Protein Concentrate with Degossypolized Cottonseed Protein in Diets on Growth Performance, Nutrient Digestibility, Intestinal Morphology, Cecum Microbiome and Fermentation of Weaned Piglets

The inclusion of high-quality proteins is commonly used in swine production, especially in weaned pigs. Our research investigated the effects of replacing fishmeal (FM) and soybean protein concentrate (SPC) with degossypolized cottonseed protein (DCP) on the growth performance, nutrient digestibility, intestinal morphology, cecum microbiota and fermentation in weaned pigs. A total of 90 pigs were used in a 4-week trial. Pigs were randomly assigned to three dietary treatments (initial BW 8.06 &plusmn; 0.26 kg; six pigs per pen; five pens per treatment), including a basal diet group (CON) with a 6% SPC and 6% FM; two experimental diets group (SPCr and FMr) were formulated by replacing SPC or FM with 6% DCP, respectively. There were no differences in growth performance and diarrhea rate among three treatments except for the ADFI during day 14 to day 28. Using the DCP to replace FM would weaken the jejunum morphology and decrease the nutrient digestibility of pigs during day 0 to day 14. However, replacing FM with DCP can improve the community structure of cecum microbiota, and may relieve these negative effects. In conclusion, DCP can be used as a cost-effective alternative protein supplement

A Methodology for Generating Items in Three or More Languages Using Automated Processes

Educational and psychological tests are administered to examinees in different languages across different cultures throughout the world.  The challenges inherent to translating and adapting multilingual and multicultural assessment are enormous.  The purpose of this paper is to describe and illustrate a new methodology that can be used to generate items in multiple languages.  The method is presented as a three-stage process where, first, context translation begins when the context of the model required for item generation is translated or adapted appropriately for each language group; second, words and key phrases are translated; third, content assembly occurs where computer algorithms place the words and key phrases into the context-specific item model.  Then, we demonstrate how the method can be applied to a diverse sample of item models in math and science to generate thousands of multilingual test items.  Finally, results are presented from a substantive review designed to evaluate item quality which revealed that 91% of the generated items were judged to be acceptable by two bilingual test development specialists.  Directions for future research are also presented

Endogenous Losses of Fat and Fatty Acids in Growing Pigs Are Not Affected by Vegetable Oil Sources but by the Method of Estimation

An experiment was conducted to determine the effect of oil sources with differing degrees of fatty acid saturation on endogenous losses of fat (ELF) and fatty acids (ELFA) in growing pigs, in which endogenous losses were estimated by two methods. Sixty-eight growing barrows (initial body weight 31.13 &plusmn; 4.44 kg) were randomly allotted to a completely randomized design with 17 diets. Sixteen added-oil diets were formulated by adding four levels (2%, 4%, 6% and 8%) of palm oil (PO), soybean oil (SBO), flaxseed oil (FSO) and rapeseed oil (RSO) to a diet poor in fat, respectively. One fat-free diet was formulated from cornstarch, soy protein isolate and sucrose. All diets contained chromic dioxide (0.4%) as an indigestible marker. Results indicated that, according to the regression equations, the amounts of ELF in PO, SBO, FSO and RSO were 6.28, 5.30, 4.17 and 4.84 g/kg of dry matter intake (DMI), respectively. The true total tract digestibility of fat was greater (p &lt; 0.05) for FSO and RSO than for PO, and the ELFA were different from 0 only for C16:0, C18:0 and C18:1 in FSO, and C16:0 and C18:0 in RSO (p &lt; 0.05). The estimated values for ELF and ELFAs in pigs fed PO, SBO, FSO or RSO were not different. The amount of ELF determined by the fat-free diet method was 2.60 g/kg DMI, and the amounts of C16:0, C18:0, C18:1 and C18:2 in ELFAs were 0.28, 0.26, 0.03 and 0.02 g/kg DMI, respectively. The fat-free diet method had lower ELF and ELFA values compared with the regression method (p &lt; 0.01). Collectively, dietary vegetable oil sources do not affect estimation of ELF and ELFA, but different evaluation methods lead to varying estimates of endogenous losses in pigs

Effect of inclusion level and adaptation duration on digestible energy and nutrient digestibility in palm kernel meal fed to growing-finishing pigs

Objective An experiment was conducted to evaluate effects of inclusion level of palm kernel meal (PKM) and adaptation duration on the digestible energy (DE) and apparent total tract digestibility (ATTD) of chemical constituents in diets fed to growing-finishing pigs. Methods Thirty crossbred barrows (Duroc×Landrace×Large White) with an average initial body weight of 85.0±2.1 kg were fed 5 diets in a completely randomized design. The diets included a corn-soybean meal basal diet and 4 additional diets in which corn and soybean meal were partly replaced by 10%, 20%, 30%, or 40% PKM. After 7 d of adaptation to the experimental diets, feces were collected from d 8 to 12, d 15 to 19, d 22 to 26, and d 29 to 33, respectively. Results The DE and ATTD of gross energy (GE), dry matter (DM), ash, organic matter (OM), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), and crude protein (CP) in diets decreased linearly as the dietary PKM increased within each adaptation duration (p 0.05). Considering a stable determination, 21 days of adaptation to a diet containing 19.5% PKM is needed in pigs and a longer adaptation time is recommended as dietary PKM increases

Evaluation on Net Energy of Defatted Rice Bran from Different Origins and Processing Technologies Fed to Growing Pigs

The study was conducted to determine and compare the net energy (NE) of defatted rice bran (DFRB) from different sources and different processing technology fed to growing pigs using indirect calorimetry. Thirty-six growing barrows (30.7 ± 3.9 kg) were randomly allotted to 1 of 6 diets with 6 replicate pigs per diet. Diets included a corn-soybean meal basal diet and 5 test diets containing 30% DFRB, respectively. These five samples come from 4 different provinces (i.e., Heilongjiang, Jiangsu, Jilin, and Liaoning province within China) and two of them with the same origin but different processing technologies (i.e., extruded or pelleted). During each period, pigs were kept individually in metabolism crates for 21 days, including 14 days to adapt to the diets. On day 15, pigs were transferred to the open-circuit respiration chambers for adaptation, and the next day were ready to determine daily total heat production (HP) and were fed 1 of the 6 diets at 2.3 MJ metabolizable energy (ME)/kg body weight (BW)0.6/day. Total feces and urine were collected for the determination of digestible energy (DE) and ME and daily total HP was measured from day 16 to day 20 and fasted on day 21 for the measurement of fasting heat production (FHP). The NE contents of extruded DFRB from different provinces were within the range of values (8.24 to 10.22 MJ/kg DM). There is a discrepancy of approximately 10.01% in the NE content between the DFRB origins. The NE contents of extruded DFRB and pelleted DFRB from the same province were 8.24 vs. 6.56 MJ/kg DM. Retained energy (RE) and FHP of diets containing extruded DFRB and pelleted DFRB were 1105 vs. 892 kJ/kg BW0.6/day and 746 vs. 726 kJ/kg BW0.6/day respectively, and those in extruded DFRB from different origins were within the range of values (947 to 1105 kJ/kg BW0.6/day and 726 to 755 kJ/kg BW0.6/day, respectively). In conclusion, NE values are affected by origin and processing technology of DFRB

Oligosaccharides are a key factor in prediction of amino acid digestibility in soybean meal of different origins when fed to growing pigs

Objective The objective of this experiment was to determine apparent ileal digestibility (AID) and standardized ileal digestibility (SID) of crude protein (CP) and amino acid (AA) in 15 sources of soybean meal (SBM) produced from soybeans from different countries and subsequently to establish equations for predicting the AID and SID in SBM based on their chemical composition. Methods Eighteen barrows (57.9±6.1 kg) fitted with a simple T-cannula were allotted into three 6×6 Latin square designs. Each period comprised a 6-d adaption period followed by a 2-d collection of ileal digesta. The 15 test diets included SBM as a sole source of AA in the diet. Another nitrogen-free diet was used to measure basal endogenous losses of CP and AA. Chromic oxide (0.3%) was used as an inert marker in each diet. Results The AID of lysine in SBM from China and USA tended to be greater than in SBM from Brazil (p<0.10). The SID of valine and proline in SBM from China was greater than in SBM from Brazil (p<0.05). The SID of lysine, threonine, cysteine and glycine in SBM from China tended to be greater than in SBM from Brazil (p<0.10). From a stepwise regression analysis, a series of AID and SID prediction equations were generated. The best fit equations for lysine in SBM were: AID lysine = 1.16 sucrose−1.81 raffinose+82.10 (R2 = 0.69, p<0.01) and SID lysine = 1.14 sucrose−1.93 raffinose−0.99 ether extract (EE)+85.26 (R2 = 0.77, p<0.01). Conclusion It was concluded that under the conditions of this experiment, the oligosaccharides (such as sucrose and raffinose) can be used to predict the AID and SID of AA in SBM with reasonable accuracy