Brucellosis in Cameroon: Seroprevalence and risk factors in beef-type cattle

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Sensory quality of meat from lambs fed on different diets

The whole seed of sweet lupin var. Multitalia with a protein content higher than 35% and a low content in alkaloids constitutes a good protein source alternative to soybean meal, today deriving for more than 60% from OGM (Genetically Modified Organisms) cultivation. Moreover, the poor national production and the cost of feeds for animals forces the livestock compartment to utilize alternative biomasses the availability of which highly depends on from the environment and the season

Effect of ageing time on consumer-perceived quality of Italian Simmental beef

The aim of the experiment was to provide an objective indication on the optimal ageing time of meat from ItalianSimmental (IS) young bulls, the most important commercial category of the breed. The research was carried out on 10young bulls slaughtered at the average weight of 688 kg (SE: 7.3 kg). The right side of each carcass was stored for 7days and the left one for further 7 days, at normal refrigeration temperatures. At the end of the ageing period, the sideswere sampled at the loin for meat pH, color, cooking loss and shear force measurement. A central location, affective testinvolving 74 consumers was carried out to measure the degree of liking for grilled beef aged 7 or 14 days.The pH and color parameters were not significantly affected by the duration of post-mortem storage, while cooking lossincreased (31.4 vs 32.6 %; P<0.05) and shear force values diminished (56.7 vs 46.8 N; P< 0.01) when ageing timeincreased from 7 to 14 days. The degree of liking by the untrained respondents for the two types of cooked meat wasdifferent, considering that consumers gave the highest hedonistic scores to beef aged 14 days. Tenderness was the sensoryattribute that allowed the best discrimination between beef stored for periods of different length. In fact, while thedifference between 14-day-aged and 7-day-aged beef for flavour ratings (7.0 vs 6.9) did not reach the threshold of significance,the former meat was perceived as significantly finer than the latter regarding tenderness (6.5 vs 5.6; P= 0.01)and marginally preferred in overall terms (6.9 vs 6.5; P= 0.07). The classification test, carried out at the end of the quantitativetest by asking consumers to select from a list the most appropriate attributes describing the stimuli associatedwith meat consumption, confirmed the effectiveness of texture attributes in ranking different-aged beef acceptability. Infact, the number of ticks reported for chewiness and juiciness descriptors were different for the two types of meat: the14-day-aged beef was perceived as easier to chew (57 vs 34 ticks) and juicier (42 vs 24) than the shortest-aged beef.Ageing for 14 days should be recommended as a process control point for the beef industry to improve consumer acceptanceof IS young bull beef

Quality traits of fallow deer (Dama dama) dry-cured hams

Su prosciutti ricavati da cosce disossate di daini di due diverse età (18 e 30 mesi) e tenuti al pascolo con o senza integrazione alimentare, sono stati analizzati: composizione centesimale, acidi grassi, sale, indice di proteolisi, Texture Profile Analysis. I dati qualitativi evidenziano poche variazioni fra le 4 classi di animali e sono indici diun prodotto di elevato interesse nutrizionale

Effect of milk feeding system on carcass and meat quality of Frisa Valtellinese kids.

Sedici capretti di razza Frisa Valtellinese sono stati allattati naturalmente (N) ocon sostituto del latte (A) e macellati a circa 17 kg di peso. L’alimentazione artificiale ha prodotto un aumentodella resa lorda di macellazione (45,6 vs.. 48,6% per N e A), a causa soprattutto del minor contenuto dell’apparatodigerente. Il sistema di allattamento ha avuto una scarsa influenza sulla resa in tagli, mentre la carcassadei capretti A ha mostrato un maggior rivestimento adiposo (stato d’ingrassamento: 3,5 vs.. 2,2 punti). I principaliparametri di qualità della carne (pH finale, colore, perdite alla cottura, resistenza al taglio, analisi tipo)non sono stati modificati dalla dieta; tuttavia la carne dei capretti allattati naturalmente è risultata più riccadi C18:3 e C20:5, con un più favorevole rapporto n-3/n-6 (0,77 vs. 0,45)

Genetic characterization of alpine sheep breeds

The aim of this study was to characterize from the genetic point of view eight alpine sheep breeds reared in Italy (Bergamasca, Biellese, Schwarzbraunes Bergschaf and Tiroler Bergschaf), Germany (Brillenschaf and Weisses Bergschaf) and Slovenia (Bov\u161ka and Jezerzko-Sol\u10davska) through the use of microsatellite molecular markers. Allelic richness was rather high in each breed highlighting a considerable genetic diversity. However, the study evidenced a significant departure from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium in all analyzed breeds caused by a heterozygote deficiency. Such lack seems to be caused by a rather high level of inbreeding. The genetic differentiation among breeds was rather low (F ST = 0.064) but significant. The neighbour-joining tree obtained from Reynolds\u2019 genetic distance estimates, showed the presence of three groups formed by the three Bergschaf breeds, the Italian Bergamasca and Biellese and the two Slovenian breeds together with the German Brillenschaf. Such grouping is in accordance with the breeds\u2019 region of origin and with their known history. Concluding, microsatellite resulted to be a useful tool to investigate breed variability and to characterize alpine sheep breeds. Obtained findings suggest the need to set up a conservation plan aiming to safeguard and increase the genetic variability of the studied breeds compromised by the high level of inbreeding. Microsatellites genotyping could help to monitor breed variability and to organize matings

consumer preference for chicken breast may be more affected by information on organic production than by product sensory properties

ABSTRACT Conventional chicken from a fast-growing strain (CC), organic chicken from a slow-growing strain (OSG), and organic chicken from a fast-growing strain (OFG) were used to assess descriptive sensory differences between organic and conventional breasts, to verify whether differences were perceived by consumers and to evaluate the effect of information about organic production on liking. A conventional quantitative–descriptive analysis was performed by a trained panel of 10 members on breast slices (1 cm thick) grilled at 300°C. A 150-member consumer panel (from southern, central, and northern Italy) rated CC, OSG, and OFG breasts according to 3 types of evaluation: tasting without information (perceived liking), information without tasting (expected liking), and tasting with information (actual liking). Breasts from different sources were clearly discriminated by the trained panel as meat from CC was perceived more tender than OFG (

Effect of heat stress on dairy cow performance and on expression of protein metabolism genes in mammary cells

The aim of this study was to assess the effect of heat stress on dairy cow performance and on the expression of selected genes involved in milk protein metabolism. Eight Italian Holstein Friesian cows were kept under thermoneutral conditions (temperature\u2013humidity index (THI) 0.05), CSN3 (p > 0.05), HSPA8 (p > 0.05), and STAT5B (p > 0.05) mRNA. Mild heat stress reduced the performance of dairy cows without affecting the expression of genes coding for caseins

Meat quality of Italian Simmental young bulls as affected by the genes frequency of Montbéliarde origin

The aim of the research was the evaluation of carcass and meat quality traits of Italian Simmental young bulls, and their relationship with the degree of inclusion of genes of Montbéliarde origin

Do dairy farming systems differ in antimicrobial use?

The quantitative assessment of antimicrobial use (AMU) in food-producing animals contributes to the provision of essential information for developing relevant and effective policies to reduce use and to control antimicrobial resistance. Information on AMU is available mainly for intensive dairy farming systems and specialized high-yielding breeds. The aim of this study is to investigate AMU in different dairy farming systems by comparing the treatment incidence in mountain farms with specialized high-yield dairy breeds or with dual-purpose breeds raised for milk production to the treatment incidence in lowland farms with specialized high-yield dairy breeds or with dual-purpose breeds raised for milk production. Significant differences were found only between the overall treatment incidence, as well as the treatment incidence of highest-priority critically important antimicrobials for human medicine, in lowland farms with high-yielding breeds and mountain farms with dual-purpose breeds. Mountain farms have a generally lower milk production and smaller herd size than lowland farms, provide cows with access to pasture, and limit concentrates in the diet. These management practices and the use of local/dual-purpose breeds could reduce the risk of production diseases and the consequent need for AMU