The current study aimed to select the strains of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolated from forage cactus plants and silage and assess their effects on silage fermentation and aerobic stability. Forty wild isolates from plant and cactus silage, classified as LAB, were evaluated for metabolite production and identified by 16S ribosomal DNA sequencing. These wild isolates were identified as Lactobacillus plantarum, Weissella cibaria, Weissella confusa and Weissella paramesenteroides and the LAB populations differed among the silage. The use of microbial inoculants did not influence gas or effluent losses in forage cactus silage. The silage inoculated with the microbial strain GP15 showed the highest number of LAB populations. The amounts of water-soluble carbohydrates (WSC) and ammonia nitrogen differed among the silage. The silage inoculated with the GP1 strain presented the highest WSC. Populations of enterobacteria and yeasts and moulds were below the minimum detection limit (<2.0 log cfu/g silage) in all the silage studied. The predominant action of inoculants was to maximize dry matter recovery of the silage, which could be the criterion adopted to select the strains of LAB for use as inoculants in Opuntia silage.

RESUMONeste trabalho objetivou-se verificar a influência do uso de tela de polipropileno com 80% de retenção luminosa nas respostas fisiológicas de ovinos da raça Santa Inês submetidos a pastejo; para isto, um experimento foi montado em Petrolina, PE, no período de junho a novembro de 2010 e adotados dois tratamentos (com sombreamento e sem sombreamento) com 20 animais em cada um. Aferiu-se a temperatura retal, a temperatura da superfície cutânea e a frequência respiratória, às 7 h e 15 h, duas vezes por semana. Foram medidos dados meteorológicos visando à determinação do índice de temperatura de globo negro e umidade, a cada 2 h, por 24 h durante todo o experimento. Verificou-se, após análise dos dados, que os ovinos do tratamento com sombreamento sofreram redução em todas as variáveis fisiológicas avaliadas, quando comparados com os do tratamento sem sombreamento. A utilização do sombreamento é justificada, em especial no período da tarde visto que todas as variáveis sofrem maior alteração.Palavras-chave: ambiência, fisiologia, radiação, temperatura retal, termorregulação Physiological parameters of Santa Inês sheep submitted to shaded environment by polypropylene mesh ABSTRACT In order to verify the influence of the use of polypropylene fabric with light retention 80 in physiological responses of Santa Inês sheep under grazing, an experiment was conducted in Petrolina, PE, between June to November of 2010. Two treatments (with and without shading) were adopted with 20 animals in each. Rectal temperature, skin surface temperature and respiratory rate at 7:00 am and 3:00 pm twice a week were measured. Meteorological data were recorded for the determinations of the temperature index of black globe and humidity, every 2:00 hours during 24 hours, throughout the experiment. It was verified after analysis of the data that sheep under shade treatment had suffered reductions in all physiological variables evaluated, when compared with the treatment without shade. The use of shading is justified, in particular in the afternoon, since all variables showed greater change.

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The aim of this study was to determine the effect of the inclusion of sunflower cake in the diets of lambs on meat quality. Forty male, uncastrated Santa Ines lambs with an initial average body weight of 20.9 ± 0.41 kg were used in a completely randomized design with four treatments. The lambs were fed 500 g/kg hay and 500 g/kg concentrate (corn, soybean meal, urea, ammonium sulfate and sunflower cake) in their diet, and the experimental treatments were 0, 10, 20, and 30% sunflower cake inclusion (DM basis). The inclusion of sunflower cake in the diet did not affect (P > 0.05) the content of ash and protein, overall acceptance, or sensory aroma of the lamb meat. Total lipids and moisture content of the longissimus lumborum muscle increased linearly (P ≤ 0.05) with sunflower cake inclusion. The C16:0, ΣSFA, ΣMUFA:ΣSFA ratio, Δ–9 desaturase enzyme and atherogenicity index in the longissimus lumborum muscle decreased linearly (P ≤ 0.05) with sunflower cake inclusion in lamb diets, whereas a linear increase occurred (P ≤ 0.05) in C12:0, C18:0, ΣMUFA, ΣPUFA, ΣPUFA:ΣSFA and ΣPUFA:ΣMUFA ratios, Σn–6, Σn–3, desirable fatty acids, h:H index, elongase activity, and flavor, tenderness and juiciness sensory qualities in lamb meat. Among the panelists, the highest preference (35.9%) was for meat with 30% sunflower cake inclusion in the diet. Sunflower cake up to 30% of total DM can be included in the diet of Santa Ines lambs, because lipid nutritional quality and the sensory qualities of the lamb meat increase, in addition to improvement in nutraceutical compounds, such as the CLA content, and in the AI, PUFA:SFA and PUFA:MUFA ratios, desirable fatty acids content and h:H ratio, which are beneficial to the health of consumers.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the intake, digestibility, performance, and carcass characteristics of lambs fed different levels of replacement (0, 15, 30, and 45 % based on dry matter, DM) of soybean meal (SM) by detoxified castor meal (DCM). Twenty-four and 32 intact hair lambs of nondescript breed (21.7 ± 2.6 kg of initial average body weight and approximately 10 months old) were used, respectively, in the intake and digestibility and performance experiments. The diets were composed of buffel grass hay, ground corn grain, and different levels of SM, DCM, and urea, in a roughage-to-concentrate ratio of 40:60. There was no effect of treatments on DM intake. However, crude protein (CP) and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) intakes were higher at 30 and 45 % than at 0 and 15 % of DCM, which in turn showed higher intake of non-fiber carbohydrates (NFC) (P < 0.05). The organic matter, CP, and NDF digestibilities were not affected, but the digestibility of NFC was lower at 30 and 45 % than at 0 % of DCM (P < 0.05). The average daily gain, feed conversion, slaughter and carcass weights, chilling losses, ribeye area, and absolute values and yields of neck, ribs, loin, and leg were not affected. However, the carcass yield was lower at 45 % of DCM and the absolute value of shoulder was lower at 30 and 45 % of DCM (P < 0.05). The replacement of SM by DCM up to 45 % in the feed of lambs did not negatively affect the intake, digestibility, performance, and main carcass features.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the influence of water salinity on semen quality, and on the morphology and apoptosis of germinal epithelial cells in prepubertal Morada Nova male lambs. Thirty-two lambs were allocated into four treatments with different amounts of sodium chloride (NaCl) added to the drinking water to simulate different water salinities; consequently, the concentrations of total dissolved solids (TDS) were as follows: 640 (control), 3188; 5740 and 8326 mg/L TDS. After 78 days, sperm was collected for analysis. The animals were slaughtered and histological and morphometric analyses and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labelling (TUNEL) assay were performed on the testis tissue. The thickness of the germinal epithelium and diameter of the seminiferous tubules were measured. A quadratic effect (P < 0.05) was observed in regard to semen volume and sperm abnormalities. There was an increase in the sperm count in the treatment containing 3188 mg/L TDS, compared with the control (640 mg/L TDS); however, this treatment did not differ (P > 0.05) from the other salinity treatments. Moreover, treatments with 3188 mg/L or 5740 mg/L TDS showed a higher (P < 0.05) spermatic vigour than did the other treatments. There was an increase (P < 0.05) in the number of TUNEL-positive cells in the treatment with the highest salinity (8326 mg/L TDS) compared with the control and other treatments. In conclusion, water used for drinking should contain between 3188 and 5740 mg/mL TDS so as to improve the concentration, vigour, motility and volume of semen, and to decrease sperm abnormalities in germinal cells of seminiferous tubule of Morada Nova ram lambs.

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