Research and Expertise
UNH is part of collaborative effort among universities in New England to offer more research-based information to a growing organic dairy and feed industry. A goal of the Organic Dairy is to build on the unique specializations of the New England universities.
A $829,000 grant from United States Department of Agriculture was recently awarded jointly to UNH and the University of Maine to study ways to reduce New England dairies’ reliance upon imported grains. Rotational grazing of the animals and research on grazing and feeding options will be a focus of the organic dairy farm.
The Universities
Specialization | University of… |
Plant, Soil, and Environmental Sciences | |
Dairy management, nutrition, | |
Agricultural Economics | |
Sustainable Agriculture |
UNH Research Areas
Dairy Nutrition Research focuses on aspects of nutrition and feeding that have immediate application to the dairy industry and includes (1) establishment and refinement of protein and amino acid requirements, (2) characterization and evaluation of feeds, and (3) evaluation of feed additives. Our work contributes to improved accuracy of feeding standards, reduced losses of nutrients to the environment, and more efficient and profitable growth and milk production.
Immunology Research ranges from immunogenetics of retroviral and oncogenic tumor regression in chickens to the influence of immune response mechanisms on ovarian function in rats and in cattle. Topics of study include the importance of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes in tumor regression, identification of cell adhesion molecules involved in immune cell trafficking, and the role of chemotaxis in immune cell recruitment.
Nutritional Physiology Research focuses on the biochemical consequences of metabolism that has been altered by diet and/or exercise – at the whole animal, tissue, cellular, and subcellular levels. Humans and animal models are used in this research. Topics of study range from the cellular and subcellular changes in adipose tissue due to exercise-training, mechanisms of zinc transport across the blood-brain barrier during zinc deficiency or toxicity, influence of dietary carotenoid intake on eye health, amino acid absorption, and the role of steroid hormones in regulating adiposity and cardiovascular health.
