Pauline M. Makenzi

Research Interest Areas — Animal Nutrition & Feed Science

My research interests are centered on the nutritional quality assessment and analytical characterization of animal feeds and feedstuffs, with hands-on grounding in both classical and advanced analytical methodologies within the Department of Animal Production.

My analytical competencies encompass proximate analysis (moisture, crude protein, crude fibre, ether extract, ash, and nitrogen-free extractives) following standard AOAC protocols, as well as Van Soest detergent fibre analysis (NDF, ADF, and ADL) for the structural carbohydrate fractionation of roughages and fibrous feed materials — a critical framework for evaluating ruminant feed quality and digestibility.

I am further interested in digestibility and biological utilization of nutrients, with practical exposure to both in vitro fermentation and digestibility assays and in vivo animal feeding trials as complementary approaches for assessing the nutritional value and metabolic availability of feed components under simulated and actual physiological conditions.

In the area of mineral nutrition and elemental analysis, my interests extend to the quantitative determination of macro- and micro-minerals in feed and biological samples using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (AAS), flame photometry, and UV-Visible spectrophotometry, alongside direct volumetric titrations for selected analytes — equipping me with a multi-technique perspective on mineral profiling essential for formulating nutritionally balanced rations.

Collectively, these interests position me at the interface of feed chemistry, analytical science, and animal production, with a commitment to generating reliable, reproducible data that informs evidence-based feed evaluation and livestock nutrition management — with particular relevance to the productivity challenges facing animal production systems in East Africa.