Two component traits of litter size of pigs, ovulation rate and embryonic survival, were examined in Meishan and composite white crossbred gilts and sows. At puberty, an ovulation rate of 12.5 was similar for Meishan (118 +/- 3 d of age) and crossbred gilts (217 +/- 3 d of age). The number of corpora lutea (CL) increased (4.3 CL) markedly (P < .01) from puberty to the sixth estrous period (220 ...

Sixty entire male pigs from 2 distinct genotypes (30 Alentejano purebred, an autochthonous fatty genotype, and 30 commercial crossbred pigs, a lean genotype) were used to investigate the effects of dietary CP reduction and low-Lys levels on growth performance, carcass traits, and meat quality. Pigs with 59.9 ± 2.0 kg BW were randomly assigned within each genotype to 1 of 3 diets [normal CP diet...

Effects of ractopamine hydrochloride (RAC) supplementation on growth performance and carcass characteristics of feedlot steers differing in biological type were investigated using British, Continental crossbred, and Brahman crossbred calf-fed steers (n = 420). Steers of each type were weighed at reimplantation [British, mean BW = 375 kg (SD = 38 kg); Continental crossbred, mean BW = 379 kg (SD ...

Growth and carcass merit of Dorset-(DO) and Dorper-sired (DP) lambs were compared over 3 yr in matings with 50% Dorset, 25% Rambouillet, 25% Finnsheep ewes. The DP were slightly lighter (P = 0.09) at birth than the DO lambs. In the first year of the study, DP lambs produced by AI using imported South African sires were heavier than DO lambs when weaned at 60 d of age (21.7 vs. 19.5 kg; P = 0.05...

Memory is a property common to a diverse range of tissues. Cardiac memory has been demonstrated in the human, dog, rat and rabbit. This is a peculiar phenomenon, reflected in the T wave of the electrocardiogram. The heart is able to remember periods of alterations in the sequence of ventricular activation and once there is a return to a normal sequence of ventricular activation the T waves may ...

________________________________________________________________________________ Abstract The objective of this trial was to quantify the differences in average daily gain (ADG), backfat thickness (BFT), eye muscle area (EMA), fat thickness (FT) on different body parts, the feed conversion ratio (FCR), body measurements and the weight of internal organs of Dorper lambs exposed to supplemented l...

A genome-wide scan was performed to detect quantitative trait loci (QTL) for resistance to the gastrointestinal nematode Haemonchus contortus in a double backcross population of Red Maasai and Dorper sheep. The mapping population comprised six sire families, with 1026 lambs in total. The lambs were artificially challenged with H. contortus at about 6.5 months of age, and nine phenotypes were me...

Growth performance, body composition, body conformation and meat quality were evaluated in crossbred pigs originating from three sire lines selected for leanness and conformation. The crossbred P, which was based on Belgian Piétrain had a leaner carcass and a better ham conformation compared to the other crossbreds. The presence of the halothane gene resulted in poorer meat quality in compariso...

Lambs wool production and qualities from the progeny of 2 Merino and 2 Damara rams mated to Merino ewes were compared. The crossbred lambs produced about half the amount of wool and had high fibre diameter variation and medullated fibre components. Merino lambs wool was contaminated with pigmented and medullated fibres apparently transferred from continual exposure to the Damara crossbred lambs...