192 research outputs found
Tannin treated lucerne silage in dairy cow feeding
The effects of the addition of tannins to lucerne silage were investigated. At ensiling, chestnut hydrolyzable tannins were added to lucerne forage (T=tannins treated lucerne silage vs C=control lucerne silage). Fifty lactating Holstein cows, fed two diets different for lucerne silage treatment (C or T), were used in a cross-over design. In situ rumen soluble protein fraction (%CP) was higher for C (67.9 vs 59.4; P<0.01), whereas potentially rumen degradable protein (%CP) was lower (24.5 vs 32.1 for C and T; P<0.01). Intestinal rumen escape protein digestibility (%) was numerically higher for T (48.3 vs 54.3). Dry matter intake (21.5 kg/d for both diets) and milk yield (29.8 and 30.2 kg/d for C and T) were not affected by dietary treatment, whereas FCM was slightly higher for T diet (27.5 vs 27.9 kg/d for C and T; P<0.10). Adding tannins to lucerne silage is effective in shifting part of N utilization from the rumen to the intestine, leading to similar productive performance in lactating cows
Effects of constant vs variable dietary protein content on milk production and N utilization in dairy cows.
Forty-two lactating Holstein cows were divided into two groups, control (C) and test (T), and used in a cross-over design. In each group cows were also divided in three subgroups on the basis of milk yield: low (L), medium (M) and high (H). C cows were fed a diet with 15.4% CP on DM. T cows were fed three diets with the CP content (% DM) adjusted to milk yield (13.6, 15.2 and 17.2 for diets TL, TM and TH). At the highest level of production TH diet improved milk yield (kg/d) (38.9 C vs 41.0 TH) and FCM (kg/d) (39.6 C vs 40.6 TH) (P<0.05). No differences were detected for TL and TM diets compared to C. For L and H subgroups milk urea (mg/dl) was increased by the higher CP diets (28 C vs 24 TL; 30 C vs 36 TH; P<0.05). N efficiency (milk N, %N intake) was higher with lower CP diets (22 C vs 25 TL; 32 C vs 29 TH) and for increased milk yield. An adequate CP content of the diet enhances milk production in high yielding dairy cows, but an excessive amount of dietary N increases milk urea and N excretion
Nutritive value of different hybrids of sorghum forage determinedin vitro
Eight hybrids of sorghum forage were tested in large plots of two farms in two consecutive years to evaluate their chemical characteristics, nutritive value and yield as a possible substitute for maize silage. Two or three cuts were made depending on climatic conditions. On forage samples taken at ensiling chemical analyses and 24 h gas production were performed, to predict the NEl content. In comparison with maize silage, the sorghum hybrids registered higher protein (13.7% on DM) and NDF (62.6% on DM) contents. Interestingly, the fibre fraction had a low lignin content (3.1% on DM). NEl content ranged from 4.53 to 5.28 MJ/kg DM, the latter for the hybrid with the lowest NDF content. Hybrid effect was significant for ash, NDF, ADF and NEl contents, whilst cut effect was significant for EE, CP, NDF and ADF. Yield was strongly influenced by fertilisation; when the latter was applied, it was in the range of 10-18 t DM, 1.7-2.8 t CP and 47-88 thousand MJ NEl per hectare, as a sum of the 2- 3 cuts. Sorghum forage seems to be a possible alternative to the fibrous maize silage fraction in diets of lactating cows, and an excellent forage for the rations of dry cows and heifers
Milk production, methane emissions, nitrogen, and energy balance of cows fed diets based on different forage systems
Comparison of Faecal versus Rumen Inocula for the Estimation of NDF Digestibility
Cow faeces have been investigated as alternative inoculum to replace rumen fluid to determine neutral detergent fibre (NDF) digestibility (NDFD). Aims of this study were to estimate: (1) the NDFD (48 h) of feed ingredients using a rumen inoculum in comparison with faecal inocula from cows fed diets with different forage basis; (2) the undigestible NDF (uNDF) at 240 and 360 h with ruminal fluid and faecal inocula from lactating cows fed two different diets. At 48 h incubation, the NDFD was affected both by feed and type of inoculum (p < 0.01) and by their interaction (p = 0.03). Overall, the mean NDFD was higher for rumen inoculum than for faecal inocula (585 vs. 389 g/kg NDF, p < 0.05), and faecal inoculum obtained from cows fed hay-based diets gave lower NDFD than those from cows fed maize silage (367 vs. 440 g/kg, p < 0.05). At long incubation times, the average uNDF was affected by substrate, inoculum and incubation time (p < 0.01), but not by their interactions. For each inoculum, significantly lower values were obtained at 360 than at 240 h. Regressions between uNDF with rumen and with the tested faecal inocula resulted in r2 65 0.98. Despite the differences at 48 h, the uNDF showed that faecal inoculum could replace rumen fluid at longer incubation times
Cosmology and astrophysics from relaxed galaxy clusters - IV: Robustly calibrating hydrostatic masses with weak lensing
This is the fourth in a series of papers studying the astrophysics and
cosmology of massive, dynamically relaxed galaxy clusters. Here, we use
measurements of weak gravitational lensing from the Weighing the Giants project
to calibrate Chandra X-ray measurements of total mass that rely on the
assumption of hydrostatic equilibrium. This comparison of X-ray and lensing
masses provides a measurement of the combined bias of X-ray hydrostatic masses
due to both astrophysical and instrumental sources. Assuming a fixed cosmology,
and within a characteristic radius (r_2500) determined from the X-ray data, we
measure a lensing to X-ray mass ratio of 0.96 +/- 9% (stat) +/- 9% (sys). We
find no significant trends of this ratio with mass, redshift or the
morphological indicators used to select the sample. In accordance with
predictions from hydro simulations for the most massive, relaxed clusters, our
results disfavor strong, tens-of-percent departures from hydrostatic
equilibrium at these radii. In addition, we find a mean concentration of the
sample measured from lensing data of c_200 = . Anticipated
short-term improvements in lensing systematics, and a modest expansion of the
relaxed lensing sample, can easily increase the measurement precision by
30--50%, leading to similar improvements in cosmological constraints that
employ X-ray hydrostatic mass estimates, such as on Omega_m from the cluster
gas mass fraction.Comment: 13 pages. Submitted to MNRAS. Comments welcom
Improved constraints on dark energy from Chandra X-ray observations of the largest relaxed galaxy clusters
We present constraints on the mean matter density, Omega_m, dark energy
density, Omega_de, and the dark energy equation of state parameter, w, using
Chandra measurements of the X-ray gas mass fraction (fgas) in 42 hot (kT>5keV),
X-ray luminous, dynamically relaxed galaxy clusters spanning the redshift range
0.05<z<1.1. Using only the fgas data for the 6 lowest redshift clusters at
z<0.15, for which dark energy has a negligible effect on the measurements, we
measure Omega_m=0.28+-0.06 (68% confidence, using standard priors on the Hubble
Constant, H_0, and mean baryon density, Omega_bh^2). Analyzing the data for all
42 clusters, employing only weak priors on H_0 and Omega_bh^2, we obtain a
similar result on Omega_m and detect the effects of dark energy on the
distances to the clusters at ~99.99% confidence, with Omega_de=0.86+-0.21 for a
non-flat LCDM model. The detection of dark energy is comparable in significance
to recent SNIa studies and represents strong, independent evidence for cosmic
acceleration. Systematic scatter remains undetected in the fgas data, despite a
weighted mean statistical scatter in the distance measurements of only ~5%. For
a flat cosmology with constant w, we measure Omega_m=0.28+-0.06 and
w=-1.14+-0.31. Combining the fgas data with independent constraints from CMB
and SNIa studies removes the need for priors on Omega_bh^2 and H_0 and leads to
tighter constraints: Omega_m=0.253+-0.021 and w=-0.98+-0.07 for the same
constant-w model. More general analyses in which we relax the assumption of
flatness and/or allow evolution in w remain consistent with the cosmological
constant paradigm. Our analysis includes conservative allowances for systematic
uncertainties. The small systematic scatter and tight constraints bode well for
future dark energy studies using the fgas method. (Abridged)Comment: Published in MNRAS. 20 pages, 11 figures. The data and analysis code
(in the form of a patch to CosmoMC) are now available at
http://www.stanford.edu/~drapetti/fgas_module
Observational constraints on low redshift evolution of dark energy: How consistent are different observations?
The dark energy component of the universe is often interpreted either in
terms of a cosmological constant or as a scalar field. A generic feature of the
scalar field models is that the equation of state parameter w= P/rho for the
dark energy need not satisfy w=-1 and, in general, it can be a function of
time. Using the Markov chain Monte Carlo method we perform a critical analysis
of the cosmological parameter space, allowing for a varying w. We use
constraints on w(z) from the observations of high redshift supernovae (SN), the
WMAP observations of CMB anisotropies and abundance of rich clusters of
galaxies. For models with a constant w, the LCDM model is allowed with a
probability of about 6% by the SN observations while it is allowed with a
probability of 98.9% by WMAP observations. The LCDM model is allowed even
within the context of models with variable w: WMAP observations allow it with a
probability of 99.1% whereas SN data allows it with 23% probability. The SN
data, on its own, favors phantom like equation of state (w<-1) and high values
for Omega_NR. It does not distinguish between constant w (with w<-1) models and
those with varying w(z) in a statistically significant manner. The SN data
allows a very wide range for variation of dark energy density, e.g., a
variation by factor ten in the dark energy density between z=0 and z=1 is
allowed at 95% confidence level. WMAP observations provide a better constraint
and the corresponding allowed variation is less than a factor of three.
Allowing for variation in w has an impact on the values for other cosmological
parameters in that the allowed range often becomes larger. (Abridged)Comment: 21 pages, PRD format (Revtex 4), postscript figures. minor
corrections to improve clarity; references, acknowledgement adde
Multiple CDM cosmology with string landscape features and future singularities
Multiple CDM cosmology is studied in a way that is formally a
classical analog of the Casimir effect. Such cosmology corresponds to a
time-dependent dark fluid model or, alternatively, to its scalar field
presentation, and it motivated by the string landscape picture. The future
evolution of the several dark energy models constructed within the scheme is
carefully investigated. It turns out to be almost always possible to choose the
parameters in the models so that they match the most recent and accurate
astronomical values. To this end, several universes are presented which mimick
(multiple) CDM cosmology but exhibit Little Rip, asymptotically de
Sitter, or Type I, II, III, and IV finite-time singularity behavior in the far
future, with disintegration of all bound objects in the cases of Big Rip,
Little Rip and Pseudo-Rip cosmologies.Comment: LaTeX 11 pages, 10 figure
A systematic review and meta-analysis of trials assessing PD-1/PD-L1 immune checkpoint inhibitors activity in pre-treated advanced stage malignant mesothelioma
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