Overview
Background
I am a Senior Lecturer in Animal Science and Production at The University of Queensland. My research integrates ruminant nutrition, gut microbiology, and sustainable livestock production, with a strong focus on improving feed efficiency and manipulating the rumen to reduce methane emissions. Passionate about early-life programming, my lab explores how targeted nutritional strategies from birth can optimise lifetime performance and environmental sustainability. The work we conduct spans the full spectrum of product development—from laboratory testing to animal trials—conducted in both controlled environments and large-scale grazing and feedlot systems, often in collaboration with industry partners.
Availability
- Dr Sarah Meale is:
- Not available for supervision
Fields of research
Qualifications
- Bachelor of Animal and Veterinary Bioscience, University of Sydney
- Doctor of Philosophy, University of Sydney
Works
Search Professor Sarah Meale’s works on UQ eSpace
2022
Journal Article
Rumen bacteria and feed efficiency of beef cattle fed diets with different protein content
Parra, M. C., Costa, D.F., Meale, S. J. and Silva, L. F. P. (2022). Rumen bacteria and feed efficiency of beef cattle fed diets with different protein content. Animal Production Science, 62 (10-11), 1029-1039. doi: 10.1071/an21508
2021
Journal Article
Impact of genetic potential for residual feed intake and diet fed during early- to mid-gestation in beef heifers on carcass characteristics and meat quality attributes of their castrated male offspring
Meale, S. J., Ruiz-Sanchez, A. L., Dervishi, E., Roy, B. C., Paradis, F., Juárez, M., Aalhus, J., López-Campos, , Das, C., Li, C., Block, H., Colazo, M. G., Straathof, C., Bruce, H. L. and Fitzsimmons, C. (2021). Impact of genetic potential for residual feed intake and diet fed during early- to mid-gestation in beef heifers on carcass characteristics and meat quality attributes of their castrated male offspring. Meat Science, 182 108637, 108637. doi: 10.1016/j.meatsci.2021.108637
2021
Journal Article
Early life dietary intervention in dairy calves results in a long-term reduction in methane emissions
Meale, S. J., Popova, M., Saro, C., Martin, C., Bernard, A., Lagree, M., Yáñez-Ruiz, D. R., Boudra, H., Duval, S. and Morgavi, D. P. (2021). Early life dietary intervention in dairy calves results in a long-term reduction in methane emissions. Scientific Reports, 11 (1) 3003, 3003. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-82084-9
2021
Journal Article
Review: Markers and proxies to monitor ruminal function and feed efficiency in young ruminants
Cheng, L., Cantalapiedra-Hijar, G., Meale, S. J., Rugoho, I., Jonker, A., Khan, M. A., Al-Marashdeh, O. and Dewhurst, R. J. (2021). Review: Markers and proxies to monitor ruminal function and feed efficiency in young ruminants. Animal, 15 (10) 100337, 100337. doi: 10.1016/j.animal.2021.100337
2021
Journal Article
Dose response of biochar and wood vinegar on in vitro batch culture ruminal fermentation using contrasting feed substrates
O'Reilly, Grace Celia, Huo, Yuxin, Meale, Sarah Jade and Chaves, Alex V. (2021). Dose response of biochar and wood vinegar on in vitro batch culture ruminal fermentation using contrasting feed substrates. Translational Animal Science, 5 (3) txab107, txab107. doi: 10.1093/tas/txab107
2021
Journal Article
Ensiling sorghum with unsalable pumpkin improves feed digestibility with minimal influence on the rumen microbial population using the rumen simulation technique
Forwood, Daniel L., Caro, Eleonora, Holman, Devin B., Meale, Sarah J. and Chaves, Alex V. (2021). Ensiling sorghum with unsalable pumpkin improves feed digestibility with minimal influence on the rumen microbial population using the rumen simulation technique. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, 105 (8), 3289-3300. doi: 10.1007/s00253-021-11220-2
2021
Journal Article
Feeding unsaleable carrots to lambs increased performance and carcass characteristics while maintaining meat quality
Forwood, Daniel L., Holman, Benjamin W.B., Hopkins, David L., Smyth, Heather E., Hoffman, Louwrens C., Chaves, Alex V. and Meale, Sarah J. (2021). Feeding unsaleable carrots to lambs increased performance and carcass characteristics while maintaining meat quality. Meat Science, 173 108402, 1-10. doi: 10.1016/j.meatsci.2020.108402
2021
Journal Article
The use of live yeast to increase intake and performance of cattle receiving low-quality tropical forages
Parra, M. C., Costa, D. F. A., Palma, A. S. V., Camargo, K. D. V., Lima, L. O., Harper, K. J., Meale, S. J. and Silva, L. F. P. (2021). The use of live yeast to increase intake and performance of cattle receiving low-quality tropical forages. Journal of Animal Science, 99 (2) skab017, 1-13. doi: 10.1093/jas/skab017
2021
Journal Article
Meat quality characteristics of lot-fed Australian Rangeland goats are unaffected by live weight at slaughter
Dieters, Luke S. E., Meale, Sarah J., Quigley, Simon P. and Hoffman, Louwrens C. (2021). Meat quality characteristics of lot-fed Australian Rangeland goats are unaffected by live weight at slaughter. Meat Science, 175 108437, 1-7. doi: 10.1016/j.meatsci.2021.108437
2020
Journal Article
Influence of probiotics on biofilm formation and diversity of bacteria colonising crop sorghum ensiled with unsalable vegetables
Forwood, Daniel L., Bryce, Elizabeth K., Caro, Eleonora, Holman, Devin B., Meale, Sarah J. and Chaves, Alex V. (2020). Influence of probiotics on biofilm formation and diversity of bacteria colonising crop sorghum ensiled with unsalable vegetables. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, 104 (20), 8825-8836. doi: 10.1007/s00253-020-10877-5
2020
Journal Article
Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation products (SCFP) stabilize the ruminal microbiota of lactating dairy cows during periods of a depressed rumen pH
Tun, Hein M., Li, Shucong, Yoon, Ilkyu, Meale, Sarah J., Azevedo, Paula A., Khafipour, Ehsan and Plaizier, Jan C. (2020). Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation products (SCFP) stabilize the ruminal microbiota of lactating dairy cows during periods of a depressed rumen pH. BMC Veterinary Research, 16 (1) 237, 237. doi: 10.1186/s12917-020-02437-w
2020
Journal Article
The origin of N isotopic discrimination and its relationship with feed efficiency in fattening yearling bulls is diet-dependent
Nasrollahi, Sayyed Mahmoud, Meale, Sarah Jade, Morgavi, Diego P., Schiphorst, Anne Marie, Robins, Richard J., Ortigues-Marty, Isabelle and Cantalapiedra-Hijar, Gonzalo (2020). The origin of N isotopic discrimination and its relationship with feed efficiency in fattening yearling bulls is diet-dependent. PLoS ONE, 15 (6) e0234344, e0234344. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0234344
2020
Conference Publication
Ensiling unsalable vegetables with crop sorghum to produce high quality feed
Forwood, Daniel L., Hooker, Kristian, Caro, Eleonora, Huo, Yuxin, Holman, Devin, Chaves, Alex V. and Meale, Sarah J. (2020). Ensiling unsalable vegetables with crop sorghum to produce high quality feed. The Third International Tropical Agriculture Conference TropAg 2019 , Brisbane, QLD Australia, 11-13 November 2019. Basel, Switzerland: MDPI. doi: 10.3390/proceedings2019036113
2019
Journal Article
Crop sorghum ensiled with unsalable vegetables increases silage microbial diversity
Forwood, Daniel, Hooker, Kristian, Caro, Eleonora, Huo, Yuxin, Holman, Devin, Meale, Sarah J. and Chaves, Alex (2019). Crop sorghum ensiled with unsalable vegetables increases silage microbial diversity. Frontiers in Microbiology, 10 2599, 2599. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2019.02599
2019
Journal Article
Microbial characterization and fermentative characteristics of crop maize ensiled with unsalable vegetables
Hooker, Kristian, Forwood, Daniel L., Caro, Eleonora, Huo, Yuxin, Holman, Devin B., Chaves, Alex V. and Meale, Sarah J. (2019). Microbial characterization and fermentative characteristics of crop maize ensiled with unsalable vegetables. Scientific Reports, 9 (1) 13183, 13183. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-49608-w
2019
Journal Article
Effects of hardwood biochar on methane production, fermentation characteristics, and the rumen microbiota using rumen simulation
Teoh, Rebecca, Caro, Eleonora, Holman, Devin B., Joseph, Stephen, Meale, Sarah J. and Chaves, Alex V. (2019). Effects of hardwood biochar on methane production, fermentation characteristics, and the rumen microbiota using rumen simulation. Frontiers in Microbiology, 10 (JULY) 1534, 1534. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2019.01534
2019
Journal Article
Effects of feeding frequency of an elevated plane of milk replacer and calf age on behavior, and glucose and insulin kinetics in male Holstein calves
MacPherson, J., Meale, S. J., Macmillan, K., Haisan, J., Bench, C. J., Oba, M. and Steele, M. A. (2019). Effects of feeding frequency of an elevated plane of milk replacer and calf age on behavior, and glucose and insulin kinetics in male Holstein calves. animal, 13 (07), 1385-1393. doi: 10.1017/s175173111800294x
2018
Journal Article
Correction to Exploration of biological markers of feed efficiency in young bulls
Meale, Sarah J., Morgavi, Diego P., Cassar-Malek, Isabelle, Andueza, Donato, Ortigues-Marty, Isabelle, Robins, Richard J., Schiphorst, Anne-Marie, Migné, Carole, Pétéra, Mélanie, Laverroux, Sophie, Graulet, Benoit, Boudra, Hamid and Cantalapiedra-Hijar, Gonzalo (2018). Correction to Exploration of biological markers of feed efficiency in young bulls. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 66 (17), 4580-4580. doi: 10.1021/acs.jafc.8b01910
2018
Journal Article
Fat accretion measurements strengthen the relationship between feed conversion efficiency and Nitrogen isotopic discrimination while rumen microbial genes contribute little
Meale, Sarah J., Auffret, Marc D, Watson, Mick, Morgavi, Diego P, Cantalapiedra-Hijar, Gonzalo, Duthie, Carol-Anne, Roehe, Rainer and Dewhurst, Richard J (2018). Fat accretion measurements strengthen the relationship between feed conversion efficiency and Nitrogen isotopic discrimination while rumen microbial genes contribute little. Scientific reports, 8 (1) 3854, 3854. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-22103-4
2017
Journal Article
Exploration of biological markers of feed efficiency in young bulls
Meale, Sarah J., Morgavi, Diego P., Cassar-Malek, Isabelle, Andueza, Donato, Ortigues-Marty, Isabelle, Robins, Richard J., Schiphorst, Anne-Marie, Laverroux, Sophie, Graulet, Benoit, Boudra, Hamid and Cantalapiedra-Hijar, Gonzalo (2017). Exploration of biological markers of feed efficiency in young bulls. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 65 (45), 9817-9827. doi: 10.1021/acs.jafc.7b03503
Funding
Current funding
Supervision
Availability
- Dr Sarah Meale is:
- Not available for supervision
Supervision history
Current supervision
-
Doctor Philosophy
Redirection of hydrogen from low emitting ruminants
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Anne Beasley
-
Doctor Philosophy
Novel alternatives to deliver anti-methanogenic compounds in neonatal and mature cattle
Principal Advisor
-
Doctor Philosophy
Investigation of an anti-methanogenic supplement in ruminant livestock
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Anne Beasley
-
Doctor Philosophy
Effect of physiological status on goat methane emissions
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Anne Beasley, Professor Louw Hoffman
-
Master Philosophy
Advanced Probiotic Solutions for Rumen Health and Feedlot Performance
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Anne Beasley, Associate Professor Luis Prada e Silva
Completed supervision
-
2024
Master Philosophy
Evaluation of fresh microalgae in ruminant nutrition: impact on rumen fermentation, productive performance and meat quality
Principal Advisor
-
-
2025
Doctor Philosophy
Gastrointestinal nematode infections in Australian meat goats; investigations of infection intensity, anthelmintic resistance and host immunity.
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Anne Beasley
-
2025
Master Philosophy
Ability of on-animal sensors to estimate individual intake of supplements in beef cattle
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Kieren McCosker, Associate Professor Luis Prada e Silva
-
2023
Doctor Philosophy
Molecular insights of plant-microbe interactions in chili bacterial leaf spot caused by Xanthomonas euvesicatoria pv. euvesicatoria
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Anthony Young
Media
Enquiries
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