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Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) is renowned for its high yield as forage and is primarily cultivated by small-scale farmers to nourish their livestock. When harvested at the recommended age, it can offer premium-quality feed. Conversely, sweet potato vines (SPV) are often treated as agricultural residue due to being underutilized, despite their potential nutritional benefits. This disregard for Sweet Potato vines stems from a lack of interest in further processing them into feed. This study aimed to assess the chemical composition and physical attributes of ensiled napier grass mixed with different proportions of Sweet Potato vines for 30 days. The experimental groups included 100% NG, 75% NG:25% SPV, 50% NG:50% SPV, 25% NG:75% SPV, and 100% SPV. The research utilized ordinary Napier grass and Bukit Naga Sweet Potato vines, both harvested at 6 weeks old during the second harvesting cycle. The quality of silage was evaluated through physical characteristics such as colour and pH. All treatments displayed optimal pH levels for quality silage, falling within the range of 3.5 to 4.0. The colour assessment indicated that all treatments had a greenish-brown hue with a discernible structure. Chemical composition analysis was performed using proximate analysis procedures. In conclusion, incorporating SPV elevated OM and CP content, demonstrating the potential benefits of combined ensiling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The usage of locally available forages such as agricultural by-products and native trees is the crucial thing for goat farmers to obtain good quality feed and to reduce cost of feeding. A study was conducted to investigate the performance of crossbred goats fed urea treated rice straw supplemented with different levels of Klienhovia hospita foliage, in particular to determine the nutrient feeding value of experimental feed diets, evaluate the growth performance, feed intake and digestibility of the diets by goats. The feeding trial conducted was divided into two sections: digestibility and animal performance. The digestibility test was performed using total faecal collection method. The treatment diets were based on urea treated rice straw (RS) supplemented with commercial concentrate (C) and Klienhovia hospita (KH) herbage: T1 with 85% RS and 15% C, T2 with 85% RS and 5% KH and 10% C, T3 with 85% RS, 10% KH and 5% C, and T4 with 85% RS and 15% KH. The feeding trial used 12 6-mo old crossbred male goats divided into 4 groups with the diets offered ad libitum and had access to clean drinking water. The left over feed was removed and weighed daily to determine voluntary DM intake. The initial average body weight of goats used ranged between 20.14�1.03 kg and 20.29�0.18 kg. The animals were placed in individual metabolic crates on slatted floor of 0.8 m above ground for 100 consecutive d. The results showed that there was no significant difference observed on body weight of goats among the treatments. ADG of goats was significantly higher in goats on diets T3 and T4 than those on control diet. Significant higher feed intake was observed in goats fed diet containing KH foliage than those fed with diet T1. Results for ASH, CP and ADF digestibility among different treatments were not significantly different whereas NDF digestibility was significantly higher in T2 treatment in comparison with T1, T3 and T4. The dry matter digestibility values of T1 and T2 diets were significantly higher than that of diet T4. Thus the study indicated that feeding goats with urea treated rice straw supplemented with KH foliage gave a positive effect on growing goats replacing concentrate fed with rice straw basal diet. It is concluded that the inclusion of KH foliage in the diet of goats has improved their growth performance and feed intake.

Napier grass was first introduced to Malaysia in the 1920?s and there were many cultivars introduced in Malaysia since 1950?s. However, there is a need to have comparative evaluation of these Napier cultivars so that definite recommendations can be made in the choice and management of the respective cultivars. The experiment was conducted to evaluate the in vitro digestibility and gas production characteristic of four Napier (Pennisetum purpureum) cultivars, namely Common, Silver, Red and Dwarf Napier. Common, Silver and Red Napier are classified as tall cultivars while Dwarf Napier is a short cultivar. Gas production was determined at 2, 4, 6, 8, 12, 24, 32, 36, 48, 72 and 96 h of incubation period and its kinetics was described using the equation p = a + b (1 ? e?ct). Dwarf Napier had the highest (P < 0.05) nutritive quality (16% CP; 75% IVDMD and 73% IVOMD) among the cultivars. Overall, tall cultivars were higher (P < 0.05) in NDF, ADF, and ADL content than Dwarf Napier cultivar. The potential gas production (A+B) at 96 h incubation period was higher (P < 0.05) in Dwarf Napier cultivar (65 mL/200 mg DM) compared to other tall cultivars (< 57 mL/200 mg DM). There were no significance differences (P > 0.05) in the rate of gas production (C) of Napier cultivars which ranged from 0.024 to 0.035 h-1. The metabolisable energy (ME) was significantly higher in Dwarf and Red Napier cultivars (8.7 MJ/kg DM) compared to Silver and Common Napier cultivars. The cumulative gas production within 32 h was highest (P< 0.05) in Red and Dwarf Napier cultivars. The total VFA concentration, acetic and butyric acid content of Napier cultivars (P>0.05) ranged from 52 to 73 mM, 88 to 70%, 6.2 to 6.8%, respectively.. Dwarf Napier cultivar had superior nutritional quality. Dwarf and Red Napier cultivars could be classified as high quality grasses due to their high digestibility, gas production and degradation rates compared to the other cultivars. The low quality of Common and Silver Napier cultivars is mainly reflected by the extensive lignification of their cell wall structure.

Most tropical roughage feeds are generally deficient in nitrogen, energy or some minerals and vitamins. A study was conducted to evaluate the effect of adding Gliricidia (Gliricidia sepium) leaves and molasses to Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) silage. Silage were prepared from Napier grass and mixed with Gliricidia and molasses. There were four treatments involved which were NG, containing Napier grass only which was the experiment control, GS containing Napier grass mixed with 5% Gliricidia leaves, ML containing the Napier grass mixed with 5% molasses, and MG containing Napier grass mixed with 5% molasses and 5% Gliricidia leaves. The treatments were analyzed for aerobic stability, dry matter (DM), crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fibre (NDF), acid detergent fibre (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL), and digestibility. There were no significant differences in aerobic stability of silage between treatments, and the treatments with Gliricidia were higher in crude protein (p

Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) is a herbaceous plant in the family of Malvaceae, native to Africa and India and primarily produced for its fibre. It has been suggested that the immature kenaf is suitable to be used as fodder for ruminants. The crude protein content of the kenaf depends on the soil nutrient levels and other environmental and management factors. The study aims to evaluate the use of inorganic nitrogen fertilizer at different levels on the plant height, yield, nutrient content and in vitro gas production of immature kenaf. There were five different levels of additional inorganic nitrogen fertilizer (urea: 0, 20, 40, 60, 80 kg/ha) and were given to Kenaf V36 which was initially fertilized with NPK (15:15:15). Kenaf V36 seeds were obtained from National Kenaf and Tobacco Board and used as planting materials. The kenaf plants were watered twice daily and fertilized with inorganic fertilizer on day 10 and 20 after planting. On day 35 after planting, the dry matter yield (DM yield), plant height, proximate analysis, Neutral detergent fibre (NDF), acid detergent fibre (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL) and in vitro gas production were determined. The result shows that the DM yield ranged from 0.55 to 0.62 tonnes per hectare. There was a significant difference (P<0.05) in CP, NDF and ash of kenaf fertilized with different levels of inorganic nitrogen fertilizer. There are highly significant differences (P<0.01) in plant height, DM content and gas production of kenaf fertilized with different levels of inorganic fertilizer application of immature kenaf fertilised with 40 kg/ha and harvested on day 35 post-planting was observed to reach the optimum performance and suitable as ruminant feed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Used cooking oil (UCO) is a waste, and creates environmental issues due to its hydrophobic property. UCO, with its high content of fatty acid, can be used as source material for animal feed. However, high unsaturated fatty acid in UCO is harmful to the ruminant's microflora. This can be resolved by transforming UCO into functional product such as ruminant's protected fat (PF). In the present work, the production of used cooking oil protected fat (UCOPF) using fusion method via saponification process was investigated. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to evaluate the effect of calcium oxide concentration (CaO), initial temperature (iTemp.), and percentage of water (H2O) on the solidification score and free fatty acid (FFA) content of PF. Results showed that all the studied parameters significantly affected the responses. The coefficient of determination (R 2) for solidification score and FFA were high at 0.9433 and 0.9599, respectively. The optimum condition to produced UCOPF by fusion method was CaO (20%), iTemp. (80°C), and percentage of water (30%), which yielded solidification score and FFA of 5.33 ± 0.53 and 0.85 ± 0.07%, respectively. The FFA content of the optimised PF was lower than permitted; thus, it can be used as animal supplement. In conclusion, the UCO can be converted into PF by using calcium fusion method. However, the property and stability of the produced PF should be assessed prior to commercialisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study was conducted to evaluate the agronomic properties of Aleman grass (Echinochloa polystachya), Para grass (Brachiaria mutica) and Setaria grass (Setaria splendida) mixture and its palatability in sheep. The objectives of the study were to evaluate the agronomic properties in mix planting of Aleman grass, Para grass, and Setaria grass and to evaluate the palatability of their mixture by sheep. The grass was planted in monocrop, two grass species mixture and three grass species mixture in a research area, Department of Animal Science Universiti Putra Malaysia. The grass was planted for two months in a randomized complete block design and was cut about 15 cm above ground level for each grass and the data was collected weekly. Botanical composition and grass tiller count showed there was no difference (P>0.05) among the grass planted as single grass to the planted two and three grass species. There was a significant difference (P<0.05) in grass height that decreased in two and three grass mixtures. The study on palatability was conducted using single-bowl and double-bowl methods. There were significant differences (P<0.05) in both tests that the single grass was more palatable than the mixture of two or three grasses. The mixture of three grass takes a long time for the sheep to finish grass compared to the mixture of two and single grass species. In conclusion, this result showed that different mixtures of planting and feeding to the animal affect agronomic properties and palatability in sheep. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermoset and biothermoset applications have been advancing tremendously in recent years due to their easy processing, versatility, and exceptional mechanical and thermal properties. Biothermoset is a type of thermoset that is produced using biological resources, either in portions by blending with the conventional resin, or completely. Various research has been employed to accommodate their high and rapidly growing demands and broaden their functions and implementation in numerous fields. One of these attempts is the reinforcement of nanofillers. Nanofillers such as nanoclay, graphene nanoplatelets, carbon nanotubes, nanodiamond, etc., possess diverse and outstanding properties and are also easily accessible. Recently, there has been a developing trend of hybridizing two or more types of nanofillers as a hybrid reinforcement system to address the limitations of single-filler reinforcement systems and to establish better-supporting properties of the nanocomposites. In this review, we discussed the use of hybrid nanofillers in different thermoset and biothermoset applications. Emphasis is given to the types of hybrids, their interactions with each other and the host polymer, and the effects of their contents and ratios. Limitations from the previous works are also discussed and the future undertaking of research on hybrid nanofillers is also proposed.

This experiment was conducted to determine the nutritive value, palatability and selectivity of 10 legume herbages by rabbits. Chemical analyses and legume intake by rabbits were evaluated for the suitability to fully or partially replace commercial rabbit diet. Ten species of legumes: Desmodium triflorum, Clitoria ternatea, Stylosanthes guianensis, Calopogonium mucunoides, Albizia falcate, Albizia saman, Centrosema pubescens, Leucaena leucocephala, Indigofera zollingeriana and Arachis pintoi were analysed for nutrient content. The legumes were analysed for proximate analysis which included dry matter (DM), crude protein (CP), crude fiber (CF), ether extract (EE) and ash (OM). Two methods of feed preference testing were carried out to evaluate the acceptability and preference of the 10 legume species by the rabbits. Five New Zealand White female adult rabbits aged more than 1 year old were allocated to individual cages. The first trial was a single bowl test in which one legume species was offered to each rabbit daily and evaluated for acceptability. The second trial was a double bowl test in which two species of legumes were presented to each rabbit at the same time and evaluated for preference. The testing period for each method lasted for 9 to 10 d, preceded by one week of adaptation. The proximate analysis results showed that all legume herbages had high nutrient, such as CP content. Indigofera zollingeriana had the highest CP content and Calopogonium mucunoids had the highest CF content compared to other legumes and commercial pellet feed. Meanwhile from the feed preference trials, Arachis pintoi, Indigofera zollingeriana and Centrosema pubescens were the most preferred legumes while Albizia saman was the least preferred by the rabbits. It can be concluded that not all legumes are suitable to fully replace commercial diet in rabbits, thus suggesting that legumes can be combined with other forages, and both forages and commercial feed can be included in diets for a successful rabbit production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gender inequality is recognised as an impediment to economic growth and development. In Nigeria, several policies have been enacted to eliminate gender inequality. However, studies show that women are grossly marginalised, exploited, and discriminated against in their socioeconomic life. This paper examines the impact of gender inequality and female labour participation in the Nigerian civil service on the economic growth of Nigeria using mix-methods. First, an estimation of the impact of gender inequality on economic growth using panel data regression, followed by content- and consistency-based analysis that examines the factors responsible for gender inequality and discrimination issues women experience in the Nigerian civil service using content- and consistency-based analysis. The findings suggest that gender inequality negatively impacts economic growth and distorts the pool of human capital available to the Nigerian civil service and recommends the use of education and outsourcing of some employment functions to eliminate it effectively.

Napier grass is a C4 type tropical grass and commonly used as ruminant feedstuffs due to its promising yield. The preservation of Napier grass is to ensure continuous feed supply for the animals during shortage of forages as well as preserving the quality of the grasses. The study on nutritive quality of fresh and ensiled Napier cultivars was conducted at March 2014 at Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia. Four Napier cultivars (Common Napier, Silver Napier, Red Napier and Dwarf Napier) were sown in a randomized complete block design with three replications. The Common, Silver and Red Napier were classified as tall types and Dwarf Napier as short cultivar. Results revealed that Common Napier and Red Napier had significantly higher (P≤0.05) dry matter yield (DMY). Both Silver and Dwarf Napier have the lowest DMY (P≤0.05) regardless of the grass height. Generally, Dwarf Napier had the highest leaf to stem ratio (3.18) and nutritive value (10% crude protein (CP); 66% in-vitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD); 56% in-vitro organic matter digestibility (IVOMD)) than tall cultivars. The process of fermentation clearly decreased the nutritive value of Napier cultivars. The ensiling process decreased (P≤0.05) neutral detergent fibre (NDF) content (72 to 67%), IVDMD (69 to 61%)and increased (P≤0.05) the IVOMD (52 to 58%) and gross energy (16 to 17 MJ/kg).Regardless of the feed types, the CP content of Napier cultivars surpassed 7% of the minimum requirement for rumen microbial sustainability. There were interaction (P≤0.05) between cultivars and feed types on CP, potential gas production (A+B), metabolisable energy (ME) and degradation rates (C). The CP content of Common, Red and Dwarf Napier increased numerically due to ensiling process. Nevertheless, the ME content and C value declined gradually after the ensiling process. The compaction during ensiling process could affect the quality of Napier cultivars in particular the IVDMD and the degradation rates due to leaching of nutrient. It is concluded that the nutritive value of Napier cultivars were generally decreased due to preservation mechanism. Despite, the CP content and total gas production of Common Napier increased significantly after ensiled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work presents the characterization of selected bioactive compounds of local herbs through their photonic spectrum. A Shimadzu spectrophotometer was used to map bioactive compounds extracted from Andrographis paniculata, Ficus deltoidea, Orthosiphon stamineus and Centella asiatica. Dominant peaks and repeatability were the determinant parameters in this study. Absorbance peaks of bioactive compounds were calibrated against respective standardized chemicals obtained from reputable suppliers. The results obtained indicated that absorbance peaks from different bioactive compounds could be identified by photonic spectrum. Most bioactive markers were detected within the wavelength range of 200 nm to 350 nm, using a Deuterium (190 nm to 450 nm) light source and corresponding refraction grating. A mathematical relationship of concentration versus absorbance at different wavelengths for selected bioactive compounds were identified. The significance of the photonic characterization of these phytochemicals forms the basis for a mathematical model in a decision support system of a proposed mobile sensor prototype development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The bending moment of tunnel lining can be influenced by non-uniform ground pressures and joint eccentricities. Influence of joint interaction that induces flexural moment behaviour in segmental tunnel lining was investigated for the project Circle Line Stage 3 (C852), Serangoon Interchange Station. By considering behaviour of segment joint (which can affects the tunnel circumferential and longitudinal safety in overall), the tunnel lining behaviour and displacement of the ground surrounding the tunnel were evaluated. The segment joint modelling in simplified dual-jointed model and in fully soil-tunnel model were developed to assess the effect of segment joint on the overall tunnel response. Ground deformation or settlement trough at the ground surface resulted from the effect of tunnel construction and interaction between soil, tunnel, segment joints and ring joints was predicted. Results showed that with different use of segment joints give different longitudinal settlement. Hinge-nonlinear model together with separated rings model lead to the highest resemblance of surface settlement pattern to the field data when compare to tie model.

Limited data are available regarding the effects of Brachiaria decumbens on sheep's growth performance at different times. Therefore, this current study focused on sheep's nutrient apparent digestibility, feed efficiency, body index, and growth hormone when they are fed with low and high levels of B. decumbens diets. A total of 30 six-month-old male Dorper cross sheep were divided randomly into three treatment groups with 10 sheep per treatment. Treatment 1 (control) sheep were fed with Pennisetum purpureum and pellets as the basal diet, whereas Treatment 2 and 3 sheep were fed with feed mixed with low (10%) and high (60%) levels of B. decumbens , respectively. The study was conducted in two phases consisting of short-term feeding (seven days) and long-term feeding (90 days). Throughout the experiment, daily fecal voided were collected in the morning for seven days continuous before the end of each feeding phases for the determination of nutrient apparent digestibility. The amount of feed offered and refusals plus body weight gain were recorded daily to determine the feed efficiency (FE). Besides, the body measurements of each sheep from every treatment were measured weekly and blood samples were collected for the analysis of growth hormone (GH) concentration. There were significant differences ( p < 0.05) in the nutrient apparent digestibility, growth performance, body measurement, and GH concentration among treatment sheep throughout the study period. Treatment 3 sheep fed with 60% of B. decumbens diet revealed the lowest dry matter (DM), crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), and acid detergent fiber (ADF) digestibility during the long-term feeding. Likewise, Treatment 3 (T3) sheep had the lowest total bodyweight gain, average daily gain, total feed intake, and daily feed intake among treatment sheep. The heart girth index (HGI) of T3 sheep was also significantly lower during the short-term feeding. Moreover, the GH concentration of T3 sheep was significantly lower as compared to the control that decreases steadily throughout the study period. In conclusion, high levels of B. decumbens showed the most significant results out of all three treatments indicating the presence of saponins, which produce negative effects on the sheep's overall performance., (© Penerbit Universiti Sains Malaysia, 2023.)

Background: Lately, smoking among adolescents is increasing despite various campaigns to address it being carried out. Previously, this habit was common among men, however, nowadays, smoking has become a habit for women as well. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence and its associated factors that influence smoking behavior among women inmates in Kelantan., Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out among women inmates from Pengkalan Chepa Women's Prison, Kota Bharu, Kelantan. A total of 274 respondents were needed to answer a self-administered questionnaire. The data were analyzed using Multiple Logistic Regression., Results: A total of 183 participants were smokers. Women who were single and divorced had a lower chance of being influenced to smoke compared to married women. Parents with smoking habits were more associated with children who smoked compared to parents who did not smoke. A participant with secondary level education had higher odds of smoking compared to a participant with primary level education. Smoking peers significantly influenced their friends and, therefore, peer practice was a main factor influencing smoking among women inmates., Conclusion: The prevalence of smoking among women inmates in Kelantan was found to be quite high. Religion (majority (90.5%) of women in the study were Muslims; it would be inappropriate to draw conclusion that religion is an influencing factor), marital status, parents' practice, peer practice and education significantly influenced women inmates to smoke.

Ammoniation of oil palm frond (OPF) with non-protein nitrogen (N) sources has been shown to improve the nutritional value and digestibility of OPF in ruminants. This study evaluated the effect of treating OPF without (control) or with different urea levels (1%-5%) on chemical composition and in vitro gas production, digestibility and fermentation properties using goat rumen fluids. The results showed that the treated OPF with urea (1%-5%) had significantly lower (p < 0.05) dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM) and ash contents than that of the control. The crude protein (CP) content of treated OPF increased (linear p < 0.05; quadratic p < 0.05) with increasing levels of urea inclusion (1%-5%), whereas the contents of neutral detergent fibre (NDF) and acid detergent lignin (ADL) were significantly (p < 0.05) decreased. The CH 4 (ml/500 mg DM incubated) production decreased (linear p < 0.05) with increasing levels of urea inclusion in treated OPF silage. However, in vitro DM and OM degradability were significantly (p < 0.05) increased by higher inclusion levels of urea (4% and 5%). OPF treated with 4% or 5% urea also revealed significantly (p < 0.05) higher total volatile fatty acids and ammonia-N than the control and OPFs treated with 1%-3% urea. Ammoniation of OPF with urea improved its nutritional value and in vitro rumen fermentation profiles in goats. The impact was more pronounced for 4% or 5% urea-treated OPF., (© 2021 Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Plant extracts are rich in various bioactive compounds exerting antioxidants effects, such as phenolics, catechins, flavonoids, quercetin, anthocyanin, tocopherol, rutin, chlorogenic acid, lycopene, caffeic acid, ferulic acid, p-coumaric acid, vitamin C, protocatechuic acid, vitamin E, carotenoids, β-carotene, myricetin, kaempferol, carnosine, zeaxanthin, sesamol, rosmarinic acid, carnosic acid, and carnosol. The extraction processing protocols such as solvent, time, temperature, and plant powder should be optimized to obtain the optimum yield with the maximum concentration of active ingredients. The application of novel green extraction technologies has improved extraction yields with a high concentration of active compounds, heat-labile compounds at a lower environmental cost, in a short duration, and with efficient utilization of the solvent. The application of various combinations of extraction technologies has proved to exert a synergistic effect or to act as an adjunct. There is a need for proper identification, segregation, and purification of the active ingredients in plant extracts for their efficient utilization in the meat industry, as natural antioxidants. The present review has critically analyzed the conventional and green extraction technologies in extracting bioactive compounds from plant biomass and their utilization in meat as natural antioxidants.

Background: With the development of today's technology, and as humans tend to naturally use hand gestures in their communication process to clarify their intentions, hand gesture recognition is considered to be an important part of Human Computer Interaction (HCI), which gives computers the ability of capturing and interpreting hand gestures, and executing commands afterwards. The aim of this study is to perform a systematic literature review for identifying the most prominent techniques, applications and challenges in hand gesture recognition., Methodology: To conduct this systematic review, we have screened 560 papers retrieved from IEEE Explore published from the year 2016 to 2018, in the searching process keywords such as "hand gesture recognition" and "hand gesture techniques" have been used. However, to focus the scope of the study 465 papers have been excluded. Only the most relevant hand gesture recognition works to the research questions, and the well-organized papers have been studied., Results: The results of this paper can be summarized as the following; the surface electromyography (sEMG) sensors with wearable hand gesture devices were the most acquisition tool used in the work studied, also Artificial Neural Network (ANN) was the most applied classifier, the most popular application was using hand gestures for sign language, the dominant environmental surrounding factor that affected the accuracy was the background color, and finally the problem of overfitting in the datasets was highly experienced., Conclusions: The paper will discuss the gesture acquisition methods, the feature extraction process, the classification of hand gestures, the applications that were recently proposed, the challenges that face researchers in the hand gesture recognition process, and the future of hand gesture recognition. We shall also introduce the most recent research from the year 2016 to the year 2018 in the field of hand gesture recognition for the first time., Competing Interests: The authors declare there are no competing interests., (©2019 Yasen and Jusoh.)

The objective of this study was to determine the effects of dietary supplementation of Nigella sativa L. seeds, Rosmarinus officinalis L. leaves and their combination on rumen metabolism, nutrient intake and digestibility, growth performance, immune response and blood metabolites in Dorper lambs. Twenty-four entire male Dorper lambs (18.68 ± 0.6 kg, 4-5 months old) were randomly assigned to a concentrate mixture containing on a dry matter basis either, no supplement (control, T1), 1% R. officinalis leaves (T2), 1% N. sativa seeds (T3) or 1% R. officinalis leaves +1% N. sativa seeds (T4). The lambs had ad libitum access to urea-treated rice straw (UTRS) and were raised for 90 days. Supplemented lambs had greater (P < 0.05) intake of DM and UTRS than the control lambs. The T4 lambs had lower (P < 0.05) nutrient digestibility than those fed other treatments. Total and daily weight gain was greater (P < 0.05) in T2 lambs than those fed other diets. The T3 and T4 lambs had greater (P < 0.05) ruminal pH than the T1 and T2 lambs. Supplemented lambs had lower (P < 0.05) ruminal total volatile fatty acids, acetate, propionate, NH 3 -N and C18:0 than the control lambs. The T4 lambs had lower (P < 0.05) population of Fibrobacter succinogenes, Ruminococcus albus, methanogens and total protozoa compared with those fed other diets. Supplemented lambs had lower (P < 0.05) neutrophils, basophils and serum urea and greater (P < 0.05) serum IgA and IgG compared with the control lambs. The current results emphasised the variation in the efficacy of medicinal plants in ruminant nutrition.

The effects of partial replacement of dietary protein by forages on rumen fermentation and microbiology in goats were examined. Four fistulated Boer bucks were used in a 4 × 4 Latin square design. The goats were fed 60% of urea-treated rice straw and 40% dietary treatment (Kleinhovia hospita (KH), Leucaena leucocephala (LL), mixture of K. hospita with L. leucocephala (KHLL)) and concentrate as the control. Rumen fluid from the animals was collected at 0, 2, 4, 6, and 12 h postprandial for analysis. The KHLL diet had a greater (P < 0.05) molar proportion of acetate than the control diet throughout the sampling period. At 6 h postprandial, the KHLL goats had a significantly lower (P < 0.05) ammonia nitrogen than the goats fed other diets. The molar proportion of propionate (24.7 and 25.8 mol/100 mol) was greater in the rumen of KHLL goats compared with those fed other diets at 2 and 12 h postprandial, respectively. The KHLL diet had lower (P < 0.05) butyrate than other dietary treatments. At 4 h postprandial, the control goats had a lower (P < 0.05) population of total bacteria while the KHLL goats had a greater (P < 0.05) population at 4 and 12 h postprandial compared with those fed other diets. The LL, KH, and KHLL goats had lower (P < 0.05) populations of protozoa and methanogens and a greater (P < 0.05) population of Ruminococcus albus compared with the control goats. The KHLL leaves could be fed to goats without compromising rumen metabolism.