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Probiotic use has increased as the use of antibiotics in broiler feeds has decreased. This has largely occurred due to a desire to maintain improvements in growth and feed conversion which had typically been observed from subtherapeutic use of antibiotics. As such, two (2) commercially applicable trials were conducted to examine the response from a proprietary blend of five (5) encapsulated Lactobacillus organisms (1-GP; Life Products, Inc.; Norfolk, NE), fed at different dosages across feed phases. In Trial 1, diets supplemented with 1-GP at 0.1%, providing 1,000,000 CFU/g of feed, gave the highest BW at d 14 and 42. In Trial 2, diets supplemented with 1-GP at or above 0.075% gave the best BW and FCRa at d 28. When 1-GP was removed from the diet between d 29 and 49, performance was the lowest, suggesting that 1-GP needs to be fed till time of market. When data were combined from the 2 trials and Quadratic Polynomial (QP) and Quadratic Broken Line (QBL) models were fit, diets supplemented with 1-GP at or above 0.075% gave the best BW and FCRa at d 28 as noted in Trial 2. Model analysis indicated, on average, that the optimal 1-GP inclusion was 0.115% and 0.100% for BW and FCRa, respectively for the 0 to 28 d growing period. Inclusion which maximized or minimized response was shown to be 0.130 and 0.155%, on average, for BW and FCRa, respectively for the 28 to 42 d growing period. This suggests that 1-GP inclusion should not be decreased in the latter phases of production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phosphorus (P) cycles rapidly in lowland tropical forest soils, but the process have been proven difficult to quantify. Recently it was demonstrated that valuable data on soil P transformations can be derived from the natural abundance of stable oxygen isotopes in phosphate (δ18OP). Here, we measured the δ18OP of soils that had received long-term nutrient additions (P, nitrogen, and potassium) or litter manipulations in lowland tropical forest in Panama and performed controlled incubations of fresh soils amended with a single pulse of P. To detect whether δ18OP values measured in the incubations apply also for soils in the field, we examined the δ18OP values after rewetting dry soils. In the incubations, resin-P δ18OP values converged to ∼3.5‰ above the expected isotopic equilibrium with soil water. This contrasts with extra-tropical soils in which the δ18OP of resin-P matches the expected equilibrium with soil water. Identical above-equilibrium resin-P δ18OP values were also found in field soils that did not receive P additions or extra litter. We suggest that the 3.5‰ above-equilibrium δ18OP values reflect a steady state between microbial uptake of phosphate (which enriches the remaining phosphate with the heavier isotopologues) and the release of isotopically equilibrated cell internal phosphate back to the soil. We also found that soil nutrient status affected the microbial turnover rate because in soils that had received chronic P addition, the original δ18OP signature of the fertilizer was preserved for at least eight weeks, indicating that the off-equilibrium δ18OP values produced during microbial phosphate turnover was not imprinted in these soils. Overall, our results demonstrate that ongoing microbial turnover of phosphate mediates its biological availability in lowland tropical soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Common understanding of the causes of land-use and land-cover changeis dominated by simplifications which, in turn, underlie many environment-development policies. This article tracks some of the major myths on driving forces of land-cover change and proposes alternative pathways of change that are better supported by case study evidence. Cases reviewed support the conclusion that neither population nor poverty alone constitute the sole and major underlying causes of land-cover change worldwide. Rather, peoples' responses to economic opportunities, as mediated by institutional factors, drive land-cover changes. Opportunities and constraints for new land uses are created by local as well as national markets and policies. Global forces become the main determinants of land-use change, as they amplify or attenuate local factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land histories originate in multiple disciplines. The corpus of thisresearch, however, does not link well to the science of global environmental change, despite explicit recognition by that science to incorporate land history. History and global change science would both benefit by such linkages, which necessitates the development of 'integrated land history.' This interdisciplinary research subject is identified here, illustrated through the Southern Yucatan Peninsular Regionproject. This project addresses tropical deforestation and agricultural change in a frontier 'hot spot' of biotic diversity. It seeks to inform environmental and global change science, including its human and modeling dimensions. Emphasis is placed on the mutual benefits forboth land history and global change studies created by the integration in question. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When a forest stand is thinned, its growth characteristics change. Forest analysts who model growth are then faced with the challenge of developing models that can predict stand growth in the post-thinned period, regardless of the particular thinning regime. Using Pinus patula Schl. et Cham., data from the Nelshoogte (South Africa) thinning experiment, a novel dynamical model describing stand basal area growthwas developed. The model has the form of a first-order difference equation with coefficients that are dependent on stand density. The model is compared against previously published basal area models (developed from the same data as the dynamical model). It is concluded that the dynamical modeling structure offers superior flexibility and accuracy in predicting stand basal area response in the post-thinning period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peripheral T-Cell Lymphoma (PTCL) is a rare subset of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma (NHL), that carries poor prognostic outcomes. Questions assessed the number and subtype of patients treated, guidelines used, standard treatment approach, expected efficacy of treatments and success rates of bridging to stem cell therapy (SCT). ALK+ve ALCL patients are generally treated with CHOP-based chemotherapy, and consolidative SCT is not considered, as their expected outcomes are better due to their good risk profile. [Extracted from the article]

The effects of bird age and the cooking process on the levels of several taste-active compounds, including inosine 5-monophosphate (IMP), glutamic acid, cysteine, reducing sugars, as well as oleic, linoleic, arachidonic, and docosahexaenoic acids (DHA), in the breast and leg meats from a certified meattype commercial Korean native chicken (KNC) strain (Woorimatdag) were investigated. KNC cocks were raised under similar standard conditions at a commercial chicken farm, and breast and leg meats from birds of various ages (10, 11, 12, 13, and 14 wk; 10 birds/age group) were obtained. After raw and cooked meat samples were prepared, they were analyzed for the aforementioned taste-active compounds. Compared to the leg meat, KNC breast meat had higher levels of IMP, arachidonic acid, and DHA, but lower levels of the other taste-active compounds (P < 0.05). KNC meat lost significant amounts of all the tasteactive compounds, excluding oleic and linoleic acids, during the cooking process (P < 0.05). However, bird age only had a minor effect on the levels of these taste-active compounds. The results of this study provide useful information regarding the levels of tasteactive compounds in KNC meat from birds of different ages, and their fate during the cooking process. This information could be useful for selection and breeding programs, and for popularizing native chicken meat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]