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The objectives of this study were to examine the effect of supplying post-ruminal L-glutamine in mid-lactation Holstein dairy cows on plasma amino acid profile, dry matter intake, milk yield and milk composition. The experiment was designed as a 4 × 4 Latin square with four 2-wk periods. Cows were continuously infused post-ruminally with graded levels of L-glutamine (L-Gln) for 5 consecutive days during the second week of each period. During the last 24 h of the infusion, blood plasma was collected every 6 h for the determination of plasma amino acid concentrations. Plasma Gln concentration increased (P < 0.05) with increasing L-Gln daily infusions. Infusion of 0, 100, 200, and 300 g d–1 resulted in blood plasma Gln concentrations of 289.5, 299.2, 356.4 and 386.2 mmol L–1, respectively. The level of Gln infusion also resulted in a decrease in the blood plasma concentration of phenylalanine, but the concentrations of all other amino acids were not affected. The administration of Gln did not affect dry matter intake, milk yield and milk composition. Key words: Post-ruminal, L-glutamine, plasma amino acids, milk constituents

Feeding forages containing condensed tannins (CT) can reduce intestinal absorption of amino acids (AA) and peptides. This experiment tested the hypothesis that CT in Lotus pedunculatus altered small intestinal mucosal morphology reducing absorptive capacity of the gut. Thirteen young Romney wethers were fed ad libitum either Lotus pedunculatus (cv. Grasslands Maku, N = 7) containing 5.5% CT in the dry matter (DM) or white clover-perennial ryegrass pasture (N = 6), which did not contain CT, for 4 wk. The wethers were euthanized at the end of the feeding trial and samples were collected for histological examination from the proximal and distal duodenum, proximal, mid-, and distal jejunum and ileum, and ventral rumen. There was no effect of feeding L. pedunculatus containing 5.5% CT (P > 0.05) on rumen or gut morphological parameters in sheep. The cause of reduced AA absorption in the presence of CT is not known, but this study suggests it is not due to changes in intestinal morphology. Key words: Lotus pedunculatus, condensed tannins, gut morphology, sheep

Urinary 3 methyl-histidine excretion was measured in high yielding dairy cows between 10 and 3 d precalving and between 3 and 9 d postcalving. Cows received a sodium monensin controlled-release capsule or a placebo 3 wk before calving. Monensin did not affect urinary 3 methyl-histidine. Average urinary 3 methyl-histidine excretion was significantly higher postcalving (4.11mmol d –1 ) than precalving (2.48 mmol d –1 ). This increase is assumed to be predominantly due to the negative nitrogen balance in the postcalving period caused by insufficient nutrient intake to meet nutrient requirements, which necessitates catabolism of mainly myofibrillar protein.

The discharges of auditory nerve fibers in kittens 4-37 days of age were recorded from micropipette electrodes. Tuning curves, thresholds, and the degree of tuning (Q 10) are compared over this age range. The tuning curves for fibers during the first postnatal week are relatively flat, with thresholds above 100 dB SPL. The response areas of VIII-nerve fibers during this period are restricted to low-to-middle frequencies. With increasing age there is a reduction in threshold and an increase in the sharpness of tuning which is dependent on fiber CF. Response characteristics similar to adult VIII-nerve fibers were observed first for fibers with CFs near 5 kHz. For the response measures used here, VIII-nerve fibers in kittens are adultlike by the third to fourth postnatal week. The results are discussed in relation to the morphological development of the cochlea reported by other investigators.

The acoustic pressures produced by a band of noise were measured at the entrance to the auditory canal and near the tympanum. The stimuli was produced by a TDH‐39 earphone activated by a noise band tailored to produce an approximately flat spectrum between 0.1 and about 4 kHz at the entrance to the ear canal. A computer program calculated the output power spectra, the signal/noise, the cross‐power spectrum, the transfer function, the coherence function, and the phase between the input and output power spectra. The transfer function in each animal shows an upper frequency peak, the location of which varies with the apparent volume of the canal, being highest for the guinea pig and lowest for man. The magnitude of the resonance is largest for the cat and smallest for the guinea pig. [Supported in part by DAMD 17‐78C‐8067 and NSF‐77‐16907.]