Does the level of forage neutral detergent fiber affect the ruminal fermentation,digestibility and feeding behavior of goats fed cactus pear?

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of forage neutral detergent fiber (fNDF) levels on the voluntary feed intake, digestibility, ruminal fermentation and feeding behavior of goats fed diets with cactus pear. Five non‐lactating ruminally cannulated goats fed ad libitum were randomly assigned to a 5 × 5 Latin square design. Treatments consisted of levels of fNDF at 0, 109, 222, 339 and 463 g/kg of dry matter (DM) in cactus pear‐based diets. The intakes of DM and NDF were quadratically affected (p ≦ .045) by fNDF levels. Voluntary water intake (VWI) increased linearly as the fNDF levels increased in the diet. The digestibility coefficients of organic matter, NDF and ether extract and total digestible nutrients concentration were quadratically affected (p ≦ .048) by fNDF levels. The ruminal pH linearly increased (p = .001) with fNDF levels, ranging from 5.44 to 5.81 for diets containing 0 and 463 g fNDF/kg DM, respectively. The fNDF levels promoted a linear increase (p = .006) in chewing time, linearly decreased (p = .007) resting time and quadratically affected (p = .033) rumination time. The inclusion of fNDF in the diets provided favorable conditions for ruminal function, digestibility and feeding behavior in goats fed diets containing cactus pear.     

Effect of Electric Field Treatment on Unsaturated Fatty Acid in Crude Avocado Oil

The objective of this study was to evaluate the stability of the fatty acids in avocado oil when the product is subjected to different conditions of electric field treatment (voltage: 5 kV cm^?1; frequency: 720 Hz; treatment time: 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 min). Fatty acids were analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in the mid-infrared region. Electric field is a suitable method to preserve the oil quality and composition with minimal modifications in unsaturated fatty acids.     

Relationship between inbreeding and milk production traits in two Italian dairy sheep breeds

The effects of inbreeding in livestock species breeds have been well documented and they have a negative impact on profitability. The objective of this study was to evaluate the levels of inbreeding in Sarda (SAR, n = 785) and Valle del Belice (VdB, n = 473) dairy sheep breeds and their impact on milk production traits. Two inbreeding coefficients (F) were estimated: using pedigree (F_PED), or runs of homozygosity (ROH; F_ROH) at different minimum ROH lengths and different ROH classes. After the quality control, 38,779 single nucleotide polymorphisms remained for further analyses. A mixed-linear model was used to evaluate the impact of inbreeding coefficients on production traits within each breed. VdB showed higher inbreeding coefficients compared to SAR, with both breeds showing lower estimates as the minimum ROH length increased. Significant inbreeding depression was found only for milk yield, with a loss of around 7 g/day (for SAR) and 9 g/day (VdB) for a 1% increase of F_ROH. The present study confirms how the use of genomic information can be used to manage intra-breed diversity and to calculate the effects of inbreeding on phenotypic traits.     

Environmental factors related to damage by Heterobasidion abietinum in Abies alba forests in Southern Italy

A study was carried out in southern Italy to determine the role of some factors in favouring Heterobasidion annosum s. l. spread and damage in eight Silver-fir (Abies alba Mill.) forests. All the studied stands were colonised by H. abietinum. The presence of the fungus (as carpophores on colonised wood) was detected by means of transects and varied from 7.0 to 56.0% of trees. Stand history, precipitation and forest origin, analysed by the χ²-test, had a significant effect on rot severity. Damage was more severe in stands more xerophytic where the woods were planted on pasturelands.     

Effect of cold storage treatments and transplanting stress on gas exchange, chlorophyll fluorescence and survival under water limiting conditions of Pinus radiata stock-types

The capacity of radiata pine seedlings to overcome planting shock in wet and dry conditions and their dependence on previous history was analysed by studying post-planting resumption of gas exchange and photochemical reactions, and survival 2 months later. Even under well-irrigated soil conditions, seedlings showed the effects of stress: gas exchange was reduced, but a clear difference between soil-plugged (PR) seedlings and bare-root (BR) seedlings was observed. Drought enhanced the severity of photosynthesis deprivation. Photochemical reactions, analysed by chlorophyll a fluorescence parameters, were not affected by planting shock in conditions of available soil water, but altered dramatically when drought stress was raised, suggesting structural damage of photosynthetic machinery. Despite the dramatic sensitivity of radiata pine to water availability, rewatering produced remarkable recovery, indicating good photosynthetic components repair capacity, which depended, however, on stock quality at the moment of planting. The ability of radiata pine to cope with drought in terms of post-planting performance depended on both storage conditions and water availability at the planting site. These findings provide information for tree physiologists and foresters as to how the management of radiata pine seedlings before planting can affect post-planting performance potential under wet or dry environmental conditions.     

Variability in the content of active constituents and biological activity of Glycyrrhiza glabra

Nine samples of Glycyrrhiza glabra were collected in various sites of Calabria, Italy, with the aim to determine the variability in the confront of active constituents and in antibacterial and antifungal activities of the extracts. The samples showed remarkable differences in chemical composition and biological activity.     

应用遥感数据识别意大利沿海松林灾害级别

分析了LandsatTM和ERS-1SAR数据用于识别意大利沿海松林污染灾害级别的潜在能力，结果显示出夏季获取的TM数据在森林灾害制图上远比冬季获取的TM数据和SAR影像有效，但SAR影像的贡献也是不可忽略的，文中给出了应用人工神经元网络B-P模型得到的对意大利沿海松林污染灾害级别划分的结果和应用FINDKAPP程序得到的精度评价结果。     

Evaluation of the influence of thermal oxidation on the phenolic composition and on the antioxidant activity of extra-virgin olive oils

A comparison between the results obtained by using HPLC-UV, HPLC-MS, and CE-UV for characterizing the deterioration of extra-virgin olive oil during heating (180 degrees C) was investigated, taking into account phenolic compounds. The concentration of several compounds belonging to four families of phenols (simple phenols, lignans, complex phenols, and phenolic acids) was determined in the samples after the thermal treatment by all three techniques. Hydroxytyrosol, elenolic acid, decarboxymethyl oleuropein aglycon, and oleuropein aglycon reduced their concentration with the thermal treatment more quickly than other phenolic compounds present in olive oil. HYTY-Ac and Lig Agl were demonstrated to be quite resistant to this kind of treatment, and the behavior of lignans could be outstanding, as they belong to the family most resistant to thermal treatment. Several "unknown" compounds were determined in the phenolic profiles of the oils after the thermal treatment, and their presence was confirmed in refined olive oils. The oxidative stability index (OSI time) was reduced from 25 to 5 h after 3 h of heating, whereas the peroxide value showed a minimum after 1 h of heating.