Information related to the climate, sowing time, harvest, and crop development is essential for defining appropriate strategies for agricultural activities, which helps both producers and responsible bodies. Paraná, the second largest soybean producer in Brazil, has high climatic variability, which greatly influences planting, harvesting, and crop productivity periods. Therefore, the objective of this study was to regionalize the state of Paraná, considering decennial metrics associated with climate variables and the enhanced vegetation index (EVI) during the soybean cycle. Individual and global analyses of these metrics were conducted performed using multivariate techniques. These analyses were carried out in agricultural scenarios with low, medium, and high precipitation, corresponding to harvest years 2011/2012, 2013/2014, and 2015/2016, respectively. The results obtained from the scores of the retained factors and the cluster analysis were the profile of the groups, with Group 1 presenting more favourable climatic and agronomic conditions for the development of soybean crops for the three harvest years. The opposite occurred for Groups 2 (2011/2012 and 2013/2014) and Group 3 (2015/2016). During the soybean reproductive phases (R2 – R5), precipitation values were inadequate, especially for Group 2 (2011/2012 and 2013/2014) with high water deficit, resulting in a drop in soybean productivity. The climatic and agronomic regionalization of Paraná made it possible to identify the regions most suitable for growing soybeans, the effect of climatic conditions on phenological stages, and the variability of soybean productivity in the three harvest years.

In order to recognize the best nutrient supply options for profitable and sustainable production systems, observations were recorded from 2001 to 2020 (20 years) in a long-term fertilizer experiment initiated in 1995–96 with soybean–wheat cropping systems (SWCSs) under irrigated conditions. The experiment comprised of seven treatments including control, organic, inorganic and their combinations. A combined use of 10 Mg farmyard manure (FYM)/ha (M) along with 120 kg N/ha provided statistically (P < 0.05) similar yield and economic benefits to the M + NPK and also provided a positive yield trend (30.0 and 16.2 kg/ha/year) and net return (14.7 and 5.81 US$/ha/year) over the year in both wheat and soybean, respectively. The combined use of organic and chemical fertilizers, provided 32–41% higher production efficiency than their individual use. In contrast, long-term chemical fertilization provided a negative yield trend in both the crops with the highest reduction in sole N-fertilized plots ranged from −39 to −42 kg/ha/year. Water-use efficiency ranged from 3.20 to 12.3 kg/ha/mm in soybean–wheat rotation and increased almost 1.74–3.15 times in wheat and 1.30–1.80 times in soybean due to fertilizer application. A similar trend was observed for water-expense efficiency and remain closely associated with fertilization practice. Long-term chemical fertilizers declined the yield potential of the studied crops while their conjoint application with FYM in the winter season considered as an input efficient approach to sustain the overall productivity and profitability of SWCSs.

In order to improve the regional applicability of existing evaporative misting systems, a new evaporative misting system based on photovoltaic/thermal and ventilation heat exchange is proposed for sow farms. Compared to traditional systems, the proposed system can help to improve their regional applicability and reduce their energy consumption. Meanwhile, its simulation model is constructed and the reliability is verified for its core equipment. The maximum error is less than 14.5% for the above models. Through simulation, the optimal regulation variable ranges in the proposed system are determined for mass flow rate of working fluid (MFWF) and misting power by analysing its operating characteristics. The results show that its optimal ranges of MFWF and misting power are 7245–9245 kg/h and 40–45 kW, respectively. The annual performance is further quantified and analysed under different load ratios for the proposed system in Guangzhou. It can be found that the annual exergy loss, heat exchange coefficient and solar energy benefits of the proposed system in Guangzhou are negatively correlated with load ratio, but its annual energy consumption and energy efficiency ratio are positively correlated. Meanwhile, the system performance and benefits are not significantly improved by increasing device investment and sow density when load ratio exceeds 120% in sow farms. The above conclusion can contribute to improving the existing evaporative misting systems in sow farms and guiding the operating regulation of the proposed system.

This study aimed to investigate vetch genotypes’ responses to moderate and severe drought stress and identify stress tolerance markers in arid conditions. Ten vetch genotypes (Vicia dassycarpa Ten., V. pannonica Crantz., V. michauxii Spereng., V. sativa-Ardebil, V. sativa-Dashtyar, V. sativa-Fereydonshahr, V. sativa-Mashhad, V. sativa-Semirom, V. sativa-Shahrekord and V. villosa Roth.) were cultivated under three water-deficit conditions: control, moderate and severe drought stress. These conditions represented maximum allowable depletion levels of 30, 50 and 85% of soil available water, applied after the six-leaf stage in the 2019–20 and 2020–21 growing seasons. The findings highlight the vetch's response to drought stress is influenced by stress severity and genotype. The result indicated a wide range of genetic diversity in agro-physiological traits among the studied vicia germplasm. Vicia dassycarpa Ten. shows highest straw yield and shorter days to flowering and maturity. Vicia michauxii Spreng. demonstrates high grain yield and advantageous traits like increased water content, photochemical efficiency of photosystem II, chlorophyll b, carotenoids and membrane stability index. It has lower soluble carbohydrate, DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) and proline content. Additionally, V. michauxii Spreng. exhibits superior agronomic traits such as more seeds per pod, per plant and higher 1000 seeds weight, serving as reliable markers for drought tolerance. The results emphasize V. dassycarpa Ten. for fodder and V. michauxii Spreng. for grain production in water-limited regions. Further research on gene expression related to drought tolerance traits should enhance our understanding of vetch.

Understanding the water use of drought-tolerant crops of the drought-prone Mediterranean regions is important for sustainable agriculture. The aim of this study was to evaluate the yield and yield responses of amaranth (Amaranthus hybridus L.) to different irrigation strategies conducted in 2019 and 2020 under Mediterranean climatic conditions using surface drip (SD) and subsurface drip (SSD) systems. Strategies investigated were: regulated deficit irrigation (RDI), conventional deficit irrigation (DI25, DI50, DI75), full irrigation (FI) and rainfed treatment. The highest grain yield was observed in FI treatments; RDI treatments produced 5% lower grain yield than the FI treatments, although the RDI treatments resulted in water savings of 23 and 21% for SD and SSD systems, respectively. DI treatments resulted in lower leaf water potential (LWP) and higher crop water-stress index (CWSI) compared to FI in both systems values. The results showed that optimum irrigation conditions to obtain the highest amaranth grain yields were associated with an LWP of −1.0 MPa and an average CWSI of about 0.25. The FI treatments under SSD systems had the highest grain production, followed by FI under SD and RDI under both the drip systems. Under SD and SSD systems, RDI saved 23 and 21% water, respectively, and produced a yield statistically comparable to that of FI. The SSD methods generated higher net income than SD. From these results it can be concluded that both RDI and DI75 could be a good alternative to FI under the conditions of water scarcity in the Mediterranean region.

A growth monitoring study (0–7 day of age) was conducted involving 87, one-day old Ross 308 male broilers to evaluate organ weights, bone parameters and ileal transcriptomic profile of broiler chicks as influenced by day 7 bodyweight (BW) grouping. The chicks were raised in a deep-litter house under common controlled environmental conditions and commercial starter diet. Chicks were grouped on day 7 into two distinct BW, super performer (SP) and under performer (UP) with bodyweights >260, and <200 g respectively. Results revealed that the SP chicks had significantly higher bone ash, sodium (Na), phosphorus (P) and rubidium (Rb) concentrations compared to the UP chicks on D7. In contrast, the UP chicks had significantly higher tibial cadmium (Cd), caesium (Cs) and lead (Pb) compared to the SP group; the UP chicks also had proportionally heavier relative gizzard weight than the SP chicks. The ileal transcriptomic data revealed differentially expressed genes (DEG) between the two groups of chicks, with 150 upregulated and 83 down-regulated genes with a fold change of ≥1.25 or ≤ 1.25 in the SP chicks relative to the UP chicks. Furthermore, functional annotation and pathway analysis revealed that some of these DEG were involved in various pathways including calcium signalling, Wnt signalling, cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction and mucin type O-glycan biosynthesis. This study revealed that chicks of the same breed and of uniform environmental and diet management exhibited differences in digestive organ weights, tibial bone characteristics and ileal gene expression that may be related to BW.

Climate change is a global challenge to ecosystem services, altering crop yields and food security worldwide. In the context of climate change, Onobrychis viciifolia Scop. (sainfoin) can offer a multitude of ecosystem services conferred by its multifaceted beneficial properties. We reviewed the morphological, biochemical and physiological responses to environmental stressors of O. viciifolia, summarized its ecological, agronomic, nutritional and biological interests, and we discussed its use under climate change. Onobrychis viciifolia is a hemicryptophyte forage legume adapted to arid and semiarid regions by evolving a diverse array of protective mechanisms against abiotic stressors at morphological, biochemical and physiological levels. In the present scenario of climate change, O. viciifolia has desirable forage characteristics such as high nutritive value, high voluntary intake and palatability to grazing animals, leading to satisfying animal performance for milk, meat, honey and wool production. Recent studies suggest that O. viciifolia has several highly beneficial phytochemical properties including condensed tannins and polyphenol content, which have been demonstrated to have anthelmintic activities, enhance protein utilization, and prevent bloating. In addition, O. viciifolia also has the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and sequestrate atmospheric carbon and nitrogen into the soil. Ethnobotanical investigations show that O. viciifolia possesses antimicrobial, antiseptic and vulnerary activities. This review could be helpful for understanding of O. viciifolia characteristics, interests and uses, thus promoting its reasonable cultivation under a changing climate.

The objective was to develop equations to predict carcass weight (CW), use CW to predict empty body weight (EBW); and carcass gain (CG) to predict empty body weight gain (EBWG) and retained energy (RE) in hair sheep. To generate the prediction models, a data set was composed of individual measurements from 569 sheep encompassing intact males (n = 416), castrated males (n = 51), and females (n = 102). Validation analyses were performed by using the Model Evaluation System (MES). The prediction equations for CW, EBW, and EBWG were not influenced by sex class (P > 0.05), and the following equations were generated, respectively: CW (kg) = − 0.234 (±1.1358) + 0.485 (±0.0387) × FBW; EBW (kg) = 1.367 (±0.5472) + 1.681 (±0.0210) × CW and EBWG (kg) = 0.004 (±0.0026) + 1.679 (±0.0758) × CG. There was an effect of sex class on the intercept (P = 0.0013) of the relationship between RE and CG: RE (MJ/day) = 1.448 (±0.0657) × EBW0.75 × CG0.797 (±0.0399); RE (MJ/day) = 1.522 (±0.0699) × EBW0.75 × CG0.797 (±0.0399) and RE (MJ/day) = 1.827 (±0.0739) × EBW0.75 × CG0.797 (±0.0399) for intact males, castrated males and females, respectively. This study highlights the importance of incorporating carcass information into EBW, EBWG, and RE predictions. Replacing empty body weight gain with carcass gain might be a suitable alternative to estimate the retained energy of hair sheep. In addition, the generated equations will provide support for meat production systems in carcass weight prediction.

The age at first calving (AFC) is an important trait to be considered in breeding programmes of dairy buffaloes, where new approaches and technologies, such as genomic selection, are constantly applied. Thus, the objective of this study was to compare the predictive ability of different genomic single-step methods using AFC information from Murrah buffaloes. From a pedigree file containing 3320 buffaloes, 2247 cows had AFC records and 553 animals were genotyped. The following models were performed: pedigree-based BLUP (PBLUP), single-step GBLUP (ssGBLUP), weighted single-step GBLUP (WssGBLUP), and single-step Bayesian regression methods (ssBR-BayesA, BayesBπ, BayesCπ, Bayes-Lasso, and BayesRR). To compare the methodologies, the accuracy and dispersion of (G)EBVs were assessed using the LR method. Accuracy estimates for the genotyped animals ranged from 0.30 (PBLUP) to 0.39 (WssGBLUP). Predictions with the traditional model (PBLUP) were very dispersed from what was expected, while BayesCπ (0.99) and WssGBLUP (1.00) obtained the lowest dispersion. The results indicate that the use of genomic information can improve the genetic gain for AFC by increasing the accuracy and reducing inflation/deflation of predictions compared to the traditional pedigree-based model. In addition, among all genomic single-step models studied, WssGBLUP and single-step BayesA were the most advantageous methods to be used in the genomic evaluation of AFC of buffaloes from this population.

The interest in the search for alternatives to antibiotics in poultry production has been increasing, especially with the focus on essential oils due to their remarkable bioactive properties. This study aimed to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation of essential oils on the performance and gut morphometry of broilers, by using an approach of systematic review and meta-analysis. In the conduction of the systematic review, three electronic databases (PubMed, Science Direct and Scielo) were consulted in January 2023. Out of an initial amount of 162 papers, only 27 met the requisites to be included in the database. Furthermore, after the use of established criteria for the meta-analysis, only 16 papers were qualified for the evaluation of the aimed parameters. In the meta-analysis, it was observed that the supplementation had significant impact (P < 0.05) of 2.88% in weight gain, in comparison to the basal diet. In addition, the supplementation of essential oils significantly improved (P < 0.05) gut morphometry parameters such as villus height in the ileum (15.66% higher), and 8.26% increase in the villus height to crypt depth ratio in jejunum compared to the basal diet. Dietary essential oils improve the growth performance and gut histomorphometry of broilers, even when combined with antibiotics as growth promoters.

Early-season rice often faces limited market competition due to its lower quality, which diminishes farmers' incentives to cultivate it. Developing specific early-season rice varieties tailored for rice noodle production represents a practical solution to this challenge. However, limited information exists on the varietal differences regarding the yield and quality of noodles produced from early-season rice and their determinants. To address this gap, this study conducted field experiments with 15 early-season rice varieties during 2022 and 2023. The results revealed significant varietal differences in rice noodle yield per unit of land area and cooking and eating (texture) qualities of the noodles, with the variety Zhuliangyou 4024 standing out for its ability to produce rice noodles that are both high yielding and of superior cooking and eating qualities. Correlation analysis showed the yield of rice noodles per unit of land area was significantly related to grain yield per unit of land, which in turn was linked to grain weight. Additionally, the analysis showed the cooking loss rate of rice noodles and their chewiness were significantly correlated with both amylose and amylopectin content, whereas the hardness, springiness, and resilience of cooked rice noodles were significantly correlated only with amylose content. However, partial correlation analysis indicated that all these quality traits were significantly correlated solely with amylose content when controlling the influence of other chemical properties. These findings indicate that selecting early-season rice varieties with high grain weight and high amylose content can lead to the production of high-yield and high-quality rice noodles.

The spatial distribution of maize plants influences the number of kernels set per plant by modifying the radiation environment during the critical period for kernel number determination. A two-year field experiment was conducted in Sardinia to explore whether, in a Mediterranean environment, a reduction in row distance can have a positive effect on grain yield of full-season maize hybrids and, if it does, whether this effect is also affected by plant density. Treatments were a factorial combination of three plant densities (6, 8 and 10 plants/m2) and two row spacings (35 and 70 cm). Grain yield and grain number benefited from a reduction in row distance from the canonical 70 cm to 35 cm irrespective of plant density and yield level (14.7 t/ha on average in 2021, 9.9 t/ha in 2022 vs 13.7 and 8.8 t/ha with canonical row distance). Row distance did not affect either the coefficient of extinction of radiation or the intercepted photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) during the critical period for grain number determination. The higher grain number per unit area at the smaller row distance translated into a greater grain yield, which cannot solely be attributed to radiation interception and plant growth rate during the period of kernel number determination. Halving the common row distance is a valuable management option for full-season hybrids grown in Mediterranean environments without nitrogen and water limitations as it seems capable of increasing grain yield via an increase in kernel number per unit area, regardless of plant density and yield level.