Grains produced by low-phytate barley and corn isolines homozygous for each species' respective low phytic acid 1-1 allele were compared to grain produced by near-isogenic normal or wild-type barley and corn in broiler chick feeds. Cobb x Cobb (384) chicks were used in a 10-d study. A randomized complete block design with a factorial arrangement of 2 x 2 x 3 was used with 4 replicates (8 chicks / replicate) per treatment. Twelve isocaloric and isonitrogenous treatment diets were formulated to contain 2 types of grain (barley and corn), 2 levels of grain (40% and 60%), and 3 sources of available P (wild-type grain, wild-type P-supplemented grain, and low-phytate grain). Growth parameters, bone parameters, total bone mineral, and apparent digestibilities were measured. The mean growth and bone responses were 1) higher for barley diets compared to corn diets, 2) higher for 60% grain inclusion compared to 40%, 3) higher for low-phytate compared to wild-type grains, and 4) not different for low-phytate compared to P-supplemented wild-type grain diets. Chicks fed low-phytate-based diets excreted 33 and 43% less P than chicks fed wild-type and P-supplemented wild-type diets, respectively. Correlations between percentage bone ash, total bone ash, and bone strength indicated a strong relationship and appear to support the use of bone strength analysis as a simpler method than ash content determination as an indication of P status. Feeding low-phytate grains will reduce the need for supplemental P in chick diets.
The broiler farms have been emphasizing the importance of moisture management in broiler litter. However, in farms, it is hard to manage the moisture of broiler litter during the breeding period due to lack of labor. In order to automate the moisture management of broiler litter, a method of monitoring the moisture of the litter is needed. This study analyzed the spectral characteristics of broiler litter according to moisture content using hyperspectral imaging to check the possibility of identifying the moisture content by camera image. Hyperspectral images of litter with moisture content of 0%, 19.3%, 31.1%, and 39.8% were acquired using a hyperspectral imaging system and spectral characteristics of them were comparatively analyzed according to preprocessing. The effective wavelengths were selected base on the pearson correlation coefficient between the images and the moisture content. Then, the best preprocessing and wavelength was selected by the standard deviation of reflectance from images. The result of the analysis showed that 556~580, 1176~1237, 1327~1647 nm bands with SG+2nd derivatives were best for identifying the moisture content of broiler litter.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.