Nutritional Characteristics of \u3ci\u3eBrachiaria ruziziensis\u3c/i\u3e (Germain & Evrard) Subjected to Different Doses of Gamma Rays

Appropriate methods of mutation induction are of high importance in pastures for increased genetic variability and improved forage performance. The objective of this research was to improve agronomic and nutritive performance of mutant lines through induced mutagenesis to seeds of a local landrace Brachiaria ruziziensis. The seeds were irradiated with 0, 10, 20, 30, and 40Gy doses of gamma radiation from Cobalt 60 (60Co). Treatments were; KE 0Gy, KE 10Gy, KE 20Gy, KE 30Gy, and KE 40Gy resulting into M1 seeds. The seeds were planted in the greenhouse in germination pots then transplanted to the field. Seeds of M6 plants (M7 seeds) were used to establish field experiment in a completely randomized block design, with three replications. Parameters measured included; tillering, leaf-stem ratio, dry matter, mineralogy, digestibility, and crude protein. Data collected was analyzed using Genstat version 18 software. Growth parameters that were affected by radiation included tillering and days to 50% flowering. Radiation increased neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), and crude protein (CP). NDF had high positive correlation with ADF, CP had high positive correlation with leaf length. Results from agronomic performance, nutrient profiles indicated that the mutant lines differed from their parents. The mutant lines could be selected, multiplied and used in feeding trials to determine reproductive performance of dairy cattle fed on the mutant lines. Future studies should focus on total mixed ration formulation using the mutant lines, designed feeding trials, fractionation of amino and fatty acids from the lines for incorporation in poor forages and national performance trials of mutant lines with an aim of forage variety release. Application of nuclear technology to other grasses would lead to increased biomass and improved nutrition for increased animal productivity leading to food and nutrition security

Title Evaluation of Yields and Nutritive Composition of Dual Purpose Sweet Potato Vine Cultivars for Forage Use

The sweet potato vine (SPV) is a widely grown but underutilized feed resource for livestock. The vines have desirable characteristics suitable for fodder production due to high contents of protein and digestible energy. The objective of this study was to evaluate the yield and nutritive composition of five dual purpose cultivars based on vine production for forage use. The experimental design was arranged in randomized complete block design where six cultivars of sweet potato were established in plots of 2.5m x 2.5m in three replicates. The cultivars used were; Kenspot 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. An improved forage type cultivar (Wagbolige) served as a control. Data was subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) using a general linear model (SAS, 2002). Results showed that there was no significant difference (p \u3c 0.05) in dry matter (DM) among the cultivars. Wagabolige (control) was much superior in yield (p \u3c 0.05) compared to the others cultivars. There was no significant difference (p \u3c 0.05) in yield between Kenspot 1, 3, 4 and 5. Kenspot 2 had the lowest yields. Kenspot 1 had the highest CP (p \u3c 0.05) compared with the other 5 cultivars. However, there was no significant difference (p \u3c 0.05) in CP between Kenspot 5, Kenspot 2 and Wagabolige. Kenspot 3 had the lowest CP content among the cultivars. Energy was highest in Kenspot 1 and lowest in Kenspot 2. NDF and ADF were highest in Kenspot 2 and lowest in Kenspot 4. There was no significant difference (p \u3c 0.05) in Ca, P, K and Mg. This study concluded that the five dual purpose cultivars demonstrated excellent potential in terms of quality for forage use. Biomass production however, was the main limitation

Frequency-dependent changes in sensorimotor and pain affective systems induced by empathy for pain

Yoshimasa Motoyama,1,2,* Katsuya Ogata,1,* Sumio Hoka,2 Shozo Tobimatsu1 1Department of Clinical Neurophysiology, Neurological Institute, 2Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan *These authors contributed equally to this work Background: Empathy for pain helps us to understand the pain of others indirectly. To better comprehend the processing of empathic pain, we report the frequency-dependent modulation of cortical oscillations induced by watching movies depicting pain using high-density electroencephalography (EEG), magnetoencephalography (MEG), and motor evoked potentials (MEP). Methods: Event-related desynchronization of EEG and MEG was assessed while participants viewed videos of painful (needle) or neutral (cotton swab) situations. The amplitudes of MEPs were also compared between the needle and cotton swab conditions.Results: The degree of suppression in α/β band power was significantly increased, whereas that of γ band power was significantly decreased, in the needle condition compared with the cotton swab condition. EEG revealed that significant differences in α/β band were distributed in the right frontocentral and left parietooccipital regions, whereas significant γ band differences were distributed predominantly over the right hemisphere, which were confirmed by source estimation using MEG. There was a significant positive correlation between the difference in γ power of the two conditions and the visual analog scale subjective rating of aversion, but not in the α/β band. The amplitude of MEPs decreased in the needle condition, which confirmed the inhibition of the primary motor cortex.Conclusion: MEP suppression supports that modulation of cortical oscillations by viewing movies depicting pain involves sensorimotor processing. Our results suggest that α/β oscillations underlie the sensory qualities of others’ pain, whereas the γ band reflects the cognitive aspect. Therefore, α/β and γ band oscillations are differentially involved in empathic pain processing under the condition of motor cortical suppression. Keywords: empathy for pain, pain matrix, neural oscillations, electroencephalography, magnetoencephalography, motor-evoked potential