Net release of degraded N as NH3 and total AA plus microbial protein synthesis, quantified from incorporation of 15NH3 into microbial protein, was used to estimate the rate and extent of in vitro degradation of protein fractions isolated from alfalfa hay and silage. Seven proteins (casein, alfalfa hay, alfalfa silage, extracts from alfalfa hay and silage, and residues from alfalfa hay and silag...

Current Alfalfa Cultivation and Utilization ........................................................80 Development and Cultivation of Alfalfa for Biomass........................................82 Chemical Composition of Alfalfa.......................................................................83 Genetic Impacts on Composition ....................................................................

The complete amino acid sequence of ferredoxin isolated from a green alga, Scenedesmus species, was determined by analyses of tryptic and chymotryptic digests, and cyanogen bromide cleavage of the S-carboxymethylcysteinylferredoxin. The total number of amino acid residues is 96, one less than for the higher plant ferredoxins. It is the first chloroplasttype ferredoxin found lacking in tryptopha...

The role of mutualistic interactions in adaptive diversification has not been thoroughly examined. Lycaenid butterflies provide excellent systems for exploring mutualistic interactions, as more than half of this family is known to use ants as a resource in interactions that range from parasitism to mutualism. We investigate the hypothesis that protection from predators offered to caterpillars b...

The Egyptian alfalfa weevil (alfalfa weevil in some areas) during most years is the most severe insect pest of alfalfa in California. These pests feed on alfalfa leaflets and stems, reducing hay yields. Several insecticides provide acceptable control of this pest. Historically, product choice has been driven by efficacy on the pest, cost, presence of other pests, i.e., aphids, days before harve...

Interseeding alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) into corn (Zea mays harvested as silage can increase rotation productivity and reduce negative environmental impacts, but the importance of N fertilizer management for successful implementation interseeding system remains unexplored. Nitrogen enhanced leaf chlorophyll content, yield, total content with interseeded conventional solo-seeded at two locatio...

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) is an important legume forage crop with great economic value. However, as the growth of alfalfa is seriously affected by an inadequate supply of water, drought is probably the major abiotic environmental factor that most severely affects alfalfa production worldwide. In an effort to enhance alfalfa drought tolerance, we transformed the Arabidopsis Enhanced Drought T...

BACKGROUND Feeding alfalfa hay is often recommended for its buffering components, like protein and calcium, to prevent lesions of the gastric mucosa in horses. Until now, there has been no information regarding the influence of alfalfa particle size on the gastric mucosa. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of feeding two alfalfa preparations with different particle sizes (alfa...

A field experiment was conducted to study the effects of inoculation with the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus Glomus caledonium and/or Rhizobium meliloti on phytoremediation of an agricultural soil contaminated with weathered PCBs by alfalfa grown for 180 days. Planting alfalfa (P), alfalfa inoculated with G. caledonium (P + AM), alfalfa inoculated with R. meliloti (P + R), and alfalfa co-inocula...

Carbon transfer to milk in Holstein cows in late lactation was measured by introducing changes in the natural stable carbon isotope composition of the feed. Six Holstein cows in mid-lactation were placed on a diet naturally low in 13C (-25.0% vs Pee Dee belemnite [PDB] an international carbon isotope standard), based on alfalfa-barley, and six others were placed on a diet naturally enriched in ...