Measurement of Blood Vitamin A Level for Beef Cattle Using Color Images of the Pupil and Retina

Abstract

Marbling score is an important index of beef quality. Vitamin A (VA) in blood inhibits differentiation of preadipose cells into adipose cells. High VA level lowers the marbling score of beef. Therefore, breeders are trying to optimize the blood VA level to improve marbling score (ca. 30 IU/dl). Monitoring the blood VA level is essential, however, a currently available method of blood VA level is blood sampling which is expensive, invasive, and time-consuming. Therefore, an alternative method is desirable. In the previous study, there was a linear relationship between the blood VA level of cattle and the light intensity at 470nm which was reflected from cattle eye. The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between the blood VA level and the color of cattle eye, especially the pupil color. The final goal of this project is to develop a non-invasive monitoring system of VA level in cattle blood using image processing technique. The image of cattle eye was captured using a CCD camera and analyzed with WinRoof software. The relationships between the blood VA level and the mean RGB value or chromaticity value, “rgb„, or HIS value of pupil were examined for twenty-five cattle with different blood VA level which were ranged between 15 IU/dl and 120 IU/dl. The image of cattle retina was also captured and analyzed in the same way. The blood VA level of test cattle was ranged between 15 IU/dl to 105 IU/dl. Comparing the pupil data with the retina data, Intensity value (I) showed a similar tendency for both pupil and retina images.