Feasibility of Cordia trichotoma (Vell.) wood and its by-products for particleboard manufacturing

The wood panel industry uses a large volume of wood and it is essential to research the use of new tree species for these types of products. As such, the aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of Cordia trichotoma (Vell.) wood, both on its own and as a mixture with Pinus spp., as well as to understand the effect on particleboard quality when adding the species’ bark and shavings. The experimental design included nine treatments that assessed various mixture proportations of C. trichotoma and Pinus; for example, 10% bark, and 10% shavings of C. trichotoma with Pinus spp. and C. trichotoma particles, as well as mixtures of these two species in proportions of 25/75%, 50%/50%, and 75/25%. The results indicate that the Cordia trichotoma specie is technically feasible when manufacturing particleboards in pure form. The incorporation of bark (at 10% of the mixture) is also technically feasible. It is also feasible to use the shavings of C. trichotoma. In general, all treatments produced outputs that showed dimensional stability and mechanical strength statistically equal or higher than control treatments (Pinus spp.); thus, these products may be used for non-structural applications in dry and/or moist conditions.     

Aerobic Biological Treatment of Chestnut Processing Wastewater

Chestnut agro-industrial companies consume a high volume of water for washing and processing fruit, generating a large volume of wastewater. This work studied the biodegradation of chestnut processing wastewater through aerobic assays, varying substrate, and biomass concentrations. In general, this wastewater presents a good biodegradability, especially in experiments with relatively low chemical oxygen demand (COD) (0.4 and 0.6?g O₂ L^?1) allowing a COD removal of 85?C90?%. The best results were obtained in the reactor initially loaded with 2?g?L^?1 of biomass and 0.4 or 0.6?g O₂ L^?1 of COD. These experiments also showed high COD removal rates: 4.25 and 3.88?g COD g^?1 volatile suspended solids (VSS) h^?1, respectively. The sedimentation rate, evaluated for different initial values of biomass (1, 2, and 3?g?L^?1), always presented higher values in the experiments with 2 and 3?g?L^?1 of biomass, regardless of the initial COD value used. After comparing different kinetic models (Monod, Contois, and Haldane), it was observed that the Haldane inhibition model satisfactorily describes the COD biodegradation. AQUASIM software allowed calculating the kinetic constant ranges: K _s, 1.59?C6.99?g COD L^?1; ?? _max, 25?C40?g COD g^?1 VSS day^?1; and K _i values, 0.07?C0.11. These kinetic constants corresponds to maximum rates (??*) between 1.48 and 4.25?g COD g^?1 VSS day^?1 for substrate concentrations (S*) from 0.38 to 0.88?g COD L^?1.     

Cross comparison of seminal plasma proteins from cattle and buffalo (Bubalus bubalis)

The objective of this study was to evaluate seminal plasma proteins from cattle and buffalo (Bubalus bubalis), to identify differences between related species. Sixteen buffaloes and 16 cattle between 30 and 60 months of age were used. Semen collection was performed by electroejaculation, followed by macroscopic and microscopic subjective analyses. After analysis, the samples were centrifuged at 800 g for 10 min, and the supernatant (seminal plasma) was recentrifuged at 10,000 g for 30 min at 4°C. The total protein concentration was determined by the Bradford method, and the proteins were digested in solution for mass spectrometry (nLC-MS/MS). Multivariate statistical analysis was used to evaluate the proteomics results by non-hierarchical clustering the considering exponentially modified protein abundance index (emPAI). Principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) were used for clustering. Proteomics identified 78 proteins, and multivariate analysis showed 4 that were over-expressed in buffaloes (cystatin C, prosaposin, peptide YY and keratin type II cytoskeletal 5) and 9 in cattle (spermadhesin-1, seminal plasma protein PDC-109, ribonuclease 4, metalloproteinase inhibitor 2, acrosin inhibitor 1, seminal ribonuclease, C-type natriuretic peptide, angiogenin-1 and osteopontin). Among the proteins identified in seminal plasma, the C-type natriuretic peptide and metalloproteinase inhibitors were described for the first time in buffaloes. Some protease inhibitors were found over-expressed in buffaloes, and important proteins in seminal plasma of cattle were not identified or were found at lower expression levels in buffaloes, which can contribute to reproductive performance in this species.     

Histological effects on the kidney,spleen, and liver of Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus fed different concentrations of probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum

Tropical Animal Health and Production - The aims of this study were to evaluate the inclusion of different concentrations of Lactobacillus plantarum in Nile tilapia diet and to verify histological...     

Combinations of cactus pear with different roughage sources on the production,chemical composition,and milk fatty acid profile of F1 Holstein/Zebu cows

Tropical Animal Health and Production - The qualities of food, mainly of animal origin, have always been of concern to consumers. It is known that the composition of animals’ diets can...     

Neural networks in climate spatialization and their application in the agricultural zoning of climate risk for sunflower in different sowing dates

ABSTRACT

Sunflower is a species that is sensitive to local climate conditions. However, studies that use artificial neural networks (ANNs) to evaluate this influence and create tools such as agricultural zoning of climate risk (ZARC) have not been conducted for this species. Due to the importance of sunflower as a human food source and for biodiesel production, and also the necessity of conducting research to evaluate the suitability of this oleaginous species under different climatic conditions. Thus, we seek to construct a ZARC for sunflower in Brazil simulating sowing on different dates and using meteorological elements spatialized by ANNs. Climate data were used: air temperature (T), rainfall (P), relative air humidity (UR), solar radiation (MJ_m^?2_d^?1) and wind velocity (U²). Climatic regions considered suitable for the cultivation of sunflower had average annual values for T between 20 and 28°C, P between 500 and 1.500 mm per cycle, and soil water deficit (DEF) below 140 mm per cycle. A neural network is an efficient tool that can be used in spatialization of climate variables quickly and accurately. Sunflower sowing in the spring and summer are the ones that provide the largest suitable areas in southeastern Brazil, with 58.13 and 64.36% of suitable areas, respectively.