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Author Bannink, A.; van Lingen, H.J.; Ellis, J.L.; France, J.; Dijkstra, J.
Title The contribution of mathematical modeling to understanding dynamic aspects of rumen metabolism Type Journal Article
Year 2016 Publication Frontiers in Microbiology Abbreviated Journal Frontiers in Microbiology
Volume 7 Issue Pages 1820
Keywords lactating dairy-cows; milk urea concentration; fatty-acid production; ruminal fermentation; mechanistic model; holstein cows; beef-cattle; stoichiometric parameters; methane production; feeding frequency
Abstract All mechanistic rumen models cover the main drivers of variation in rumen function, which are feed intake, the differences between feedstuffs and feeds in their intrinsic rumen degradation characteristics, and fractional outflow rate of fluid and particulate matter. Dynamic modeling approaches are best suited to the prediction of more nuanced responses in rumen metabolism, and represent the dynamics of the interactions between substrates and micro-organisms and inter-microbial interactions. The concepts of dynamics are discussed for the case of rumen starch digestion as influenced by starch intake rate and frequency of feed intake, and for the case of fermentation of fiber in the large intestine. Adding representations of new functional classes of micro-organisms (i.e., with new characteristics from the perspective of whole rumen function) in rumen models only delivers new insights if complemented by the dynamics of their interactions with other functional classes. Rumen fermentation conditions have to be represented due to their profound impact on the dynamics of substrate degradation and microbial metabolism. Although the importance of rumen pH is generally acknowledged, more emphasis is needed on predicting its variation as well as variation in the processes that underlie rumen fluid dynamics. The rumen wall has an important role in adapting to rapid changes in the rumen environment, clearing of volatile fatty acids (VFA), and maintaining rumen pH within limits. Dynamics of rumen wall epithelia and their role in VFA absorption needs to be better represented in models that aim to predict rumen responses across nutritional or physiological states. For a detailed prediction of rumen N balance there is merit in a dynamic modeling approach compared to the static approaches adopted in current protein evaluation systems. Improvement is needed on previous attempts to predict rumen VFA profiles, and this should be pursued by introducing factors that relate more to microbial metabolism. For rumen model construction, data on rumen microbiomes are preferably coupled with knowledge consolidated in rumen models instead of relying on correlations with rather general aspects of treatment or animal. This helps to prevent the disregard of basic principles and underlying mechanisms of whole rumen function.
Address 2017-01-06
Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language English Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN 1664-302x ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes (up) LiveM, ft_MACSUR Approved no
Call Number MA @ admin @ Serial 4932
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Author Pulina, A.; Lai, R.; Salis, L.; Seddaiu, G.; Roggero, P.P.; Bellocchi, G.
Title Modelling pasture production and soil temperature, water and carbon fluxes in Mediterranean grassland systems with the Pasture Simulation Model Type Journal Article
Year 2018 Publication Grass and Forage Science Abbreviated Journal Grass Forage Sci.
Volume 73 Issue 2 Pages 272-283
Keywords grassland production; Mediterranean pastures; model calibration; PaSim; sheep grazing systems; soil respiration
Abstract Grasslands play important roles in agricultural production and provide a range of ecosystem services. Modelling can be a valuable adjunct to experimental research in order to improve the knowledge and assess the impact of management practices in grassland systems. In this study, the PaSim model was assessed for its ability to simulate plant biomass production, soil temperature, water content, and total and heterotrophic soil respiration in Mediterranean grasslands. The study site was the extensively managed sheep grazing system at the Berchidda‐Monti Observatory (Sardinia, Italy), from which two data sets were derived for model calibration and validation respectively. A new model parameterization was derived for Mediterranean conditions from a set of eco‐physiological parameters. With the exception of heterotrophic respiration (Rh), for which modelling efficiency (EF) values were negative, the model outputs were in agreement with observations (e.g., EF ranging from ~0.2 for total soil respiration to ~0.7 for soil temperature). These results support the effectiveness of PaSim to simulate C cycle components in Mediterranean grasslands. The study also highlights the need of further model development to provide better representation of the seasonal dynamics of Mediterranean annual species‐rich grasslands and associated peculiar Rh features, for which the modelling is only implicitly being undertaken by the current PaSim release.
Address
Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN ISBN Medium article
Area LiveM Expedition Conference
Notes (up) LiveM, ft_macsur Approved no
Call Number MA @ admin @ Serial 4973
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Author Özkan Gülzari, Ş.; Vosough Ahmadi, B.; Stott, A.W.
Title Impact of subclinical mastitis on greenhouse gas emissions intensity and profitability of dairy cows in Norway Type Journal Article
Year 2018 Publication Preventive Veterinary Medicine Abbreviated Journal Preventive Veterinary Medicine
Volume 150 Issue Pages 19-29
Keywords Dairy cow; Dynamic programming; Greenhouse gas emissions intensity; Profitability; Subclinical mastitis; Whole farm modelling
Abstract Impaired animal health causes both productivity and profitability losses on dairy farms, resulting in inefficient use of inputs and increase in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions produced per unit of product (i.e. emissions intensity). Here, we used subclinical mastitis as an exemplar to benchmark alternative scenarios against an economic optimum and adjusted herd structure to estimate the GHG emissions intensity associated with varying levels of disease. Five levels of somatic cell count (SCC) classes were considered namely 50,000 (i.e. SCC50), 200,000, 400,000, 600,000 and 800,000 cells/mL (milliliter) of milk. The effects of varying levels of SCC on milk yield reduction and consequential milk price penalties were used in a dynamic programming (DP) model that maximizes the profit per cow, represented as expected net present value, by choosing optimal animal replacement rates. The GHG emissions intensities associated with different levels of SCC were then computed using a farm-scale model (HolosNor). The total culling rates of both primiparous (PP) and multiparous (MP) cows for the five levels of SCC scenarios estimated by the model varied from a minimum of 30.9% to a maximum of 43.7%. The expected profit was the highest for cows with SCC200 due to declining margin over feed, which influenced the DP model to cull and replace more animals and generate higher profit under this scenario compared to SCC50. The GHG emission intensities for the PP and MP cows with SCC50 were 1.01 kg (kilogram) and 0.95 kg carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e) per kg fat and protein corrected milk (FPCM), respectively, with the lowest emissions being achieved in SCC50. Our results show that there is a potential to reduce the farm GHG emissions intensity by 3.7% if the milk production was improved through reducing the level of SCC to 50,000 cells/mL in relation to SCC level 800,000 cells/mL. It was concluded that preventing and/or controlling subclinical mastitis consequently reduces the GHG emissions per unit of product on farm that results in improved profits for the farmers through reductions in milk losses, optimum culling rate and reduced feed and other variable costs. We suggest that further studies exploring the impact of a combination of diseases on emissions intensity are warranted.
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Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN 0167-5877 ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes (up) LiveM, ft_macsur Approved no
Call Number MA @ admin @ Serial 5181
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Author Kipling, R.P.; Topp, C.F.E.; Bannink, A.; Bartley, D.J.; Blanco-Penedo, I.; Cortignani, R.; del Prado, A.; Dono, G.; Faverdin, P.; Graux, A.-I.; Hutchings, N.J.; Lauwers, L.; Gulzari, S.O.; Reidsma, P.; Rolinski, S.; Ruiz-Ramos, M.; Sandars, D.L.; Sandor, R.; Schoenhart, M.; Seddaiu, G.; van Middelkoop, J.; Shrestha, S.; Weindl, I.; Eory, V.
Title To what extent is climate change adaptation a novel challenge for agricultural modellers Type Journal Article
Year 2019 Publication Environmental Modelling & Software Abbreviated Journal Env. Model. Softw.
Volume 120 Issue Pages Unsp 104492
Keywords Adaptation; Agricultural modelling; Climate change; Research challenges; greenhouse-gas emissions; farm-level adaptation; land-use; food; security; adapting agriculture; livestock production; decision-making; change impacts; dairy farms; crop
Abstract Modelling is key to adapting agriculture to climate change (CC), facilitating evaluation of the impacts and efficacy of adaptation measures, and the design of optimal strategies. Although there are many challenges to modelling agricultural CC adaptation, it is unclear whether these are novel or, whether adaptation merely adds new motivations to old challenges. Here, qualitative analysis of modellers’ views revealed three categories of challenge: Content, Use, and Capacity. Triangulation of findings with reviews of agricultural modelling and Climate Change Risk Assessment was then used to highlight challenges specific to modelling adaptation. These were refined through literature review, focussing attention on how the progressive nature of CC affects the role and impact of modelling. Specific challenges identified were: Scope of adaptations modelled, Information on future adaptation, Collaboration to tackle novel challenges, Optimisation under progressive change with thresholds, and Responsibility given the sensitivity of future outcomes to initial choices under progressive change.
Address 2020-02-14
Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language English Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN 1364-8152 ISBN Medium Article
Area Expedition Conference
Notes (up) LiveM, ft_macsur Approved no
Call Number MA @ admin @ Serial 5223
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Author De Swaef, T.; Bellocchi, G.; Aper, J.; Lootens, P.; Roldan-Ruiz, I.
Title Use of identifiability analysis in designing phenotyping experiments for modelling forage production and quality Type Journal Article
Year 2019 Publication Journal of Experimental Botany Abbreviated Journal J. Experim. Bot.
Volume 70 Issue 9 Pages 2587-2604
Keywords Breeding; grassland modelling; identifiability analysis; perennial; ryegrass; phenotyping; sensitivity analysis; pasture simulation-model; practical identifiability; crop; water; parameters; systems; carbon; uncertainty; sensitivity; emissions
Abstract Agricultural systems models are complex and tend to be over-parameterized with respect to observational datasets. Practical identifiability analysis based on local sensitivity analysis has proved effective in investigating identifiable parameter sets in environmental models, but has not been applied to agricultural systems models. Here, we demonstrate that identifiability analysis improves experimental design to ensure independent parameter estimation for yield and quality outputs of a complex grassland model. The Pasture Simulation model (PaSim) was used to demonstrate the effectiveness of practical identifiability analysis in designing experiments and measurement protocols within phe-notyping experiments with perennial ryegrass. Virtual experiments were designed combining three factors: frequency of measurements, duration of the experiment. and location of trials. Our results demonstrate that (i) PaSim provides sufficient detail in terms of simulating biomass yield and quality of perennial ryegrass for use in breeding, (ii) typical breeding trials are insufficient to parameterize all influential parameters, (iii) the frequency of measurements is more important than the number of growing seasons to improve the identifiability of PaSim parameters, and (iv) identifiability analysis provides a sound approach for optimizing the design of multi-location trials. Practical identifiability analysis can play an important role in ensuring proper exploitation of phenotypic data and cost-effective multi-location experimental designs. Considering the growing importance of simulation models, this study supports the design of experiments and measurement protocols in the phenotyping networks that have recently been organized.
Address 2020-02-14
Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language English Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN 0022-0957 ISBN Medium Article
Area Expedition Conference
Notes (up) LiveM, ft_macsur Approved no
Call Number MA @ admin @ Serial 5231
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