ABSTRACT A study on the use of bovine colostrum as an alternative source of immunoglobulin for lambs was carried out at the University of Ghana’s Agricultural Research Centre — Legon. The study involved a total o f fifty-six lambs. Thirty-three of them were bottle-fed with frozen bovine colostrum that was thawed whilst the remaining (twenty-three) were allowed to suckle their dams and served as the control. The mean serum immunoglobulin concentrations for the two groups of lambs were meas...
Reproductive inefficiency is a major challenge in rabbit production. Leaf meals such as Moringa oleifera rich in phytochemicals have been used to enhance reproductive performance in cattle and catfish. Information on the use of Moringa oleifera Leaf Meal (MoLM) to enhance reproductive efficiency in rabbits and its effect on organs has not been adequately documented. Therefore, the reproductive response of rabbits to supplemental MoLM was assessed. In a 24-week trial, sixty rabbits were ...
Conventional feedstuffs have not met the increasing demand of livestock industry. Rice plant, a food-feed cereal, can provide grains for humans and fodder for livestock. The potential of Rice Straw (RS) as fodder for sheep in Nigeria has not been adequately documented. Therefore, the potential of RS as fodder for West African Dwarf (WAD) sheep was investigated in this study. Using Lattice design, 49 rice varieties of five cultivars: Interspecific Upland (IU), Interspecific Lowland (IL),...
ABSTRACT Experiments were conducted to evaluate the nutritional and anti-microbial effects of dietary Moringa oleifera leaf meal (MOLM) in broilers and laying hens. Proximate analysis of the leaf meal showed that it contained 23.25% CP, 13.19% CF, 6.93% EE, 6.4% Ash and 47.10% NFE on dry matter basis. In the chicken broiler experiment, five broiler starter (23% CP) and five finisher (19% CP) diets were formulated to contain Moringa oleifera leaf meal at dietary levels of 0%, 2.5%, 5.0%, 7.5% ...
Inorganic feed additives are commonly used in small ruminant production to promote growth. However, the problem of bioaccumulation of chemical residues in animals fed inorganic feed additives has necessitated the search for organic alternatives such as Fossil Shell Flour (FSF). There is dearth of information on the use of fossil shell flour as a feed additive in the diet of small ruminants. Hence, growth performance of West African Dwarf (WAD) sheep fed diets supplemented with FSF were i...
Spermatozoon apoptosis in extended semen is a challenge to artificial insemination in poultry production. Chicken spermatozoa undergo damages in vitro due to lipid peroxidation among other factors. Extender supplementation with exogenous antioxidants could mitigate lipid peroxidation and improve semen quality. However, inclusion of antioxidants such as selenium and α-tocopherol in semen extender to improve quality of sperm cells has not been adequately documented. Therefore, effects of ...
Conventional vegetable protein ingredients in poultry feed are costly and relatively scarce. Moringa oleifera Seed Meal (MSM) is an oil seed rich in protein, which can be exploited as an alternative vegetable protein source. However, the potential of MSM as a protein source for broiler production has not been adequately documented. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the utilisation of MSM as a protein source in the diets of broiler chickens. Moringa seeds were harvested a...
Abstract Quantitative survey was carried out in five purposely selected districts in the Accra Plains of Ghana using focused group discussions and individual interviews to evaluate and document the existing farming practices, opportunities and constraints among smallholder farmers with particular interest on the probable animal feed resources and cyclical gaps with respect to sheep and goat production in study 1. Also the effect of supplementary feed packages based on Samanea saman, Acacia au...
ABSTRACT Three experiments were carried out at the university of Ghana Agricultural Research Station, Legon, from November, 1999 to November, 2000, to assess field establishment and seed yield of five forage crops at various harvest periods and how their germination can be enhanced to improve pasture production in the country. The studies also examined the influence of storage of the seeds at room temperature, fridge and cold room and duration of storage on seed viability. High seed yields w...
ABSTRACT This study was conducted to evaluate energy and protein feedstuffs for poultry. Proximate composition was estimated and metabolizable energy also investigated in experiments I and II respectively. Sorghum and Soybean oil meal were also evaluated as main energy and protein sources replacing maize and fish meal respectively for broilers in experiment III. Experiment III was conducted as a 3x3 factorial in a randomized complete block design with three replicates (blocks). There were thr...
ABSTRACT Xylopia aethiopica (African pepper) and Monodora myristica (African nutmeg) are used as spices in Ghanaian local dishes and as traditional medicine. The objective of this study was to substitute two spices in “normal” fresh pork sausage formulation with selected local spices and evaluate their effect on sensory and microbiological characteristics of the product. A 4x4 factorial design was used with 4 spice treatments (Control – Syzygium Gaertner (clove), Allium cepa (onion), Pi...
ABSTRACT The main objective of this study was to establish reference protein composition values for selected local feedstuffs such as dry brewers spent grain (DBSG), cassava meal (CAM), palm kernel cake (PKC) and groundnut cake (GNC) for the Nigerian feed industry by determining amino acids profiles and amino acids compositional quality scores. The selected local feedstuffs were each sourced from five locations from northern and southern parts of Nigeria such that there were five samples for...
Abstract The mechanisms underlying the deficiency in cellular immunity to eBL and its development have not been conclusively investigated. This study sought to examine T cell phenotypes and responses in eBL. Participants recruited for this study included; 19 healthy controls, 21 eBL patients and 26 malaria patients, PBMCs were isolated from peripheral blood samples collected from participants and combinations of T-cell subset, activation marker (CD25, CD69, CD95, HLA-DR), IFN-γ-, IL-4- or ...
ABSTRACT The effect of varying concentrations of essential oil (EO) extracts from T. tetraptera pods on the sensory characteristics and microbial quality of fresh pork sausages were evaluated. Gas chromatography-mass spectrophotometry (GC-MS) analysis of the extract revealed thirty-two (32) chemical compounds which included organic acids, phenols and alcohols, including eugenol. Sausages were prepared from de-boned ham, divided into four batches and mixed with black pepper and garlic (0.5% ea...
ABSTRACT Feed costs amount to about 70 – 80% of the total production costs of meat production in intensively managed production systems. In Ghana, the major ingredients of such feeds are maize, wheat bran and protein based concentrates based on fishmeal. Agro Industrial By-Products especially Palm Kernel Oil Residue (PKOR) is potentially useful as an energy and/or protein source for feeding all species of livestock. The study was therefore designed to examine the extent of use of PKOR in ...