Evaluation of the Composition of the Cholesterol, Tocopherols, ß-Carotene and Fatty Acids Profile of the Liver Tissue of Male Water Buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) Managed in Different Ecosystems of the Eastern Amazon.

The diet offered to animals has a great influence on the composition of tissues and, consequently, the quality. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of Amazonian ecosystems, in the dry and rainy periods of the year, on the composition of cholesterol, tocopherols, ß-carotene and the fatty acid profile of the livers of water buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) reared in the Eastern Amazon, in an extensive or intensive system. Total lipid content was influenced by the location and time of year (p < 0.05). Ninety-six male water buffaloes were used (12 per sampling period), aged between 24 and 36 months, with average weights of 432 kg (end of the rainy season) and 409 kg (end of the dry season). Total cholesterol, α-tocopherol and γ-tocopherol influenced the relationship between extensive vs intensive ecosystems, location, periods and the interaction between the location and period of the year (p < 0.05). Animals raised in a pasture ecosystem had the highest values of omega-3, and those raised in confinement, the highest values of omega-6 (p < 0.05). The proportions of n-6/n-3 and hypocholesterolemia (7.14) and hypercholesterolemia (3.08%) (h/H) were found in greater amounts in animals raised in confinement (p < 0.05). The atherogenic index (AI) had a higher value in the rainy season, in animals raised in Santarém (2.37%), with no difference between pasture and feedlot ecosystems, except in animals raised in the rainy season in Nova Timboteua, with a lower AI (1.53%). The thrombogenicity index (TI) was higher in the livers of confined animals (0.32%) and lower (0.18%) in those raised in Nova Timboteua (rainy season). Amazonian ecosystems influence the nutritional values of buffalo liver, with the best nutritional values in animals in the extensive system.

Deterministic solution of algebraic equations in sentiment analysis.

Text mining methods usually use statistical information to solve text and language-independent procedures. Text mining methods such as polarity detection based on stochastic patterns and rules need many samples to train. On the other hand, deterministic and non-probabilistic methods are easy to solve and faster than other methods but are not efficient in NLP data. In this article, a fast and efficient deterministic method for solving the problems is proposed. In the proposed method firstly we transform text and labels into a set of equations. In the second step, a mathematical solution of ill-posed equations known as Tikhonov regularization was used as a deterministic and non-probabilistic way including additional assumptions, such as smoothness of solution to assign a weight that can reflect the semantic information of each sentimental word. We confirmed the efficiency of the proposed method in the SemEval-2013 competition, ESWC Database and Taboada database as three different cases. We observed improvement of our method over negative polarity due to our proposed mathematical step. Moreover, we demonstrated the effectiveness of our proposed method over the most common and traditional machine learning, stochastic and fuzzy methods.

Architectural Aspects of a Data-Intensive System: A Covid-19 Related Case Study.

The Covid-19 pandemic caused serious turbulences in most aspects of humans activities. Due to the need to address the epidemic developments at extreme scales, ranging from the entire population of the country down to the level of individual citizens, a construction of adequate mathematical models faces substantial difficulties caused by lacking knowledge of the mechanisms driving transmission of the infections and the very nature of the resulting disease. Therefore, in modeling Covid-19 and its effects, a shift from the knowledge-intensive systems paradigm to the data-intensive one is needed. The current paper is devoted to the architecture of ProME, a data-intensive system for forecasting the Covid-19 and decision making support needed to mitigate the pandemics effects. The system has been constructed to address the mentioned challenges and to allow further relatively easy adaptations to the dynamically changing situation. The system is mainly based on open-source solutions so can be reproduced whenever similar challenges occur.

Assessing dairy goat welfare in intensive or semi-intensive farming conditions in Mexico.

We aimed to verify whether a low number of relevant animal-based indicators was able to discriminate 33 semi-intensive (grazing during the day and confinement during the night with access to an outdoor paddock; S-INT) and 8 intensive farms (permanent confinement with access to an outdoor paddock; INT) located in the Mexican semi-desert. In addition, we implemented the resource-based assessment scheme Animal Needs Index (ANI) with the identified animal-based indicators to compare the overall level of welfare in INT and S-INT. In particular, we used a protocol made up of 2 parts. The first comprised 4 evaluation sheets (locomotion, flooring, environment, management) and resource-based indicators derived from ANI, and the second one comprised a set of validated animal-based measures focusing on physical conditions and clinical signs of disease derived from the Animal Welfare Indicators scheme and reported in 2 additional sheets. The scoring system was also derived from ANI, with partial scores for each sheet to be summed to obtain the total score. A total of 1,116 dairy goats were assessed. All the observations and recordings were performed by an expert veterinarian evaluator assisted by an auxiliary, and longevity was retrieved from the farm records. The prevalence of animals displaying dirtiness, ocular discharge, abscesses, and claw overgrowth were higher in INT than in S-INT. Disbudding was routinely performed in INT only. Therefore, scurs, indicating improper disbudding, were recorded only in INT. In addition, the longevity of goats raised in S-INT was higher than in INT. Conversely, the prevalence of goats affected by anemia (i.e., FAMACHA scores >2) or lean (i.e., body condition score <2) tended to be higher in S-INT than in INT. No significant differences between the 2 groups of farms were detected for wounds, nasal discharge, integument alterations, fecal soiling, uterine prolapse, and subclinical mastitis. The results obtained using only animal-based measures were confirmed when resource-based variables were also included in the assessment, as 3 out of 6 sheets of the evaluation scheme (i.e., flooring, environment, and health-physical conditions) were scored higher in the S-INT than in the INT. As a consequence, the total score was also higher for S-INT than for INT. We conclude that the selected set of validated animal-based measures was able to discriminate between farms from different production systems. In particular, higher welfare levels were observed in S-INT farms, where the animals were allowed to spend most of the day on natural pasture, compared with INT farms, where the animals were constantly confined. Nevertheless, a certain degree of improvement should also be promoted in terms of anemia and body condition in S-INT farms.

Economic evaluation of the environmental impact of a dairy cattle intensive production cluster under arid lands conditions.

At a global level, dairy cow production systems (DCPS) are important sources of nourishment and profits, but they generate environmental impacts such as overexploitation of different resources including water, lands and fossil energy. Quantification of water and carbon footprint to define mitigation strategies and a more rational use of natural resources, is a reiterated claim. The aim of this study was to perform an economic evaluation of the environmental impact of the DCPS from the Comarca Lagunera, Mexico (24°N, 102°W, 220 mm, hot-semiarid climate) We contrasted the economic value (EV) generated by the DCPS with respect to the economic costs (EC) due to the greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) and the water footprint (WFP) of this DCPS. While quantifications of GHGE considered those proposed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the WFP involved the use of blue, gray and green water by the DCPS and related activities. Quantification of the EC of WFP considered an international average price of water. In the year 2017, the Comarca Lagunera registered a dairy cow inventory of 493 144 heads, with 227 142 lactating cows, which produced 2386 million liters of milk per year with an annual average EV of €525.3 million. The EC (€, millions) generated by the GHGE and WFP were €311.8 and €11 980.7, respectively, with a total EC of € 12 292.5 million. When the EV of milk production and the total environmental EC are compared, the contrast demonstrates not only the noteworthy environmental impact but also the significant and senseless biological and EC. In addition, having a large dairy cow concentration creates pollution concerns and the DCPS transfers both nutrients and water resources from an ecologically vulnerable arid region. Therefore, some mitigation strategies such as, better cow genotype, feed and manure management combined with the production of forages and grains in a different geographical region are suggested to promote an optimum use of water in order to uphold the social, economic and biologic sustainability of the Comarca Lagunera, Mexico.

Trace Element Concentrations in Beef Cattle Related to the Breed Aptitude.

Animal feed has traditionally been supplemented with trace elements at dietary concentrations well above physiological needs. However, environmental concerns have led to calls for better adjustment of mineral supplementation to actual physiological needs and, in this context, consideration of breed-related differences in trace element requirements. The aim of this study was to analyze trace element concentrations in the main breeds used for intensive beef production in northern Spain (Holstein-Friesian [HF], Galician Blonde [GB], and GB × HF cross). Samples of blood, internal organs, and muscle were obtained at slaughter from 10 HF, GB, and GB × HF cross calves in the same feedlot. Overall, trace element concentrations in serum and internal organs were within adequate ranges and did not differ between those of breeds, suggesting that trace mineral supplementation was adequate in all groups. The only exception to this was copper, and hepatic copper concentrations were above adequate levels in all calves. This was particularly evident in the HF calves, and the maximum recommended level for human consumption was exceeded in 90% of these animals. Copper, iron, manganese, selenium, and zinc concentrations in muscle were significantly higher in the HF than those in the GB calves, with intermediate values for the crosses. These breed-related differences in trace element concentrations in the muscle may be related to lower muscle mass and/or higher hepatic activity in the HF (dairy) calves than in GB (beef) calves. As meat is an essential source of highly available trace elements in human diets, breed-related differences in trace element concentrations in meat deserve further investigation.

Financial indicators to evaluate the economic performance of feedlot steers with different slaughter weights / Indicadores financeiros na avaliação do desempenho econômico do confinamento de novilhos com diferentes pesos de abate

ABSTRACT: The objective of this study was to evaluate various financial indicators, estimated deterministically (considering historical quotes twelve consecutive years - 2003 to 2014), on the economic feasibility of finishing steers commercialized with different weights, using the simulation technique. Performance data steers were simulated with average initial weight of 350kg, fed in feedlot and slaughtered with 410, 440, 470, 500, 530, 560 and 590kg. The feeding period varies from 46 to 185 days, respectively. Based in various economic indicators, the viability of the investment decreased linearly according to the increase in slaughter weight. The coefficient of simple linear regression and means from lowest to highest slaughter weight were, respectively: net present value (-0.538 and R$ 67.37, R$ 65.28, R$ 32.14, R$ -7.34, R$ 8.01, R$ -12.38, R$ -23.41); index benefit: cost (-0.0003 and R$ 1.042, R$ 1.039, R$ 1.014, R$ 1.006, R$ 1.003, R$ 0.995, R$ 0.991); additional return on investment (-0.009 and 1.38, 1.29, 0.35, 0.11, 0.05, -0.08, -0.13% per month); internal rate of return (-0.009 and 2.21, 2.10, 1.28, 0.80, 0.93, 0.78, 0.73% per month). Feedlot use as termination option to obtain the direct benefits of this technology is an alternative investment with low economic return.

RESUMO: O objetivo deste estudo foi avaliar diversos indicadores financeiros estimados de forma determinística (considerando cotações históricas de doze anos consecutivos - 2003 a 2014) na viabilidade econômica da terminação de novilhos em confinamento, comercializados em diferentes pesos, utilizando a técnica de simulação. Foram simulados dados de desempenho de novilhos com peso médio inicial de 350kg, alimentados em confinamento para serem abatidos com 410, 440, 470, 500, 530, 560 e 590kg. O período de alimentação variou de 46 a 185 dias, respectivamente. Baseada em vários indicadores, a viabilidade do investimento diminuiu linearmente de acordo com o aumento do peso. O coeficiente de regressão linear simples e as médias do menor para o maior peso de abate foram, respectivamente: valor presente líquido (-0,538 e R$ 67,37, R$ 65,28, R$ 32,14, R$ -7,34, R$ 8,01, R$ -12,38, R$ -23,41); índice benefício: custo (-0,0003 e R$ 1,042, R$ 1.039, R$ 1,014, R$ 1,006, R$ 1,003, R$ 0,995, R$ 0,991); retorno adicional sobre o investimento (-0,009 e 1,38, 1,29, 0,35, 0,11, 0,05, -0,08, -0,13% a.m.); taxa interna de retorno (-0,009 e 2,21, 2,10, 1,28, 0,80, 0,93, 0,78, 0,73% a.m.). O uso do confinamento como opção de terminação, visando obter os benefícios diretos desta tecnologia, representa a alternativa de investimento com baixo retorno econômico.