283. Award Talk: From Biology to the Barn: Translating Science into Practical Management Solutions for Swine Producers.

Abstract Modern swine production depends on management approaches that couple foundational biological principles with practical, on-farm solutions to support animal welfare, health, and economic viability amid increasing environmental variability. Progress in behavioral and physiological research has expanded insight into how pigs detect and respond to production- relevant challenges, allowing for more accurate identification of stressors that negatively influence welfare and performance throughout the production cycle. Integrating information on thermal preference, physiological limits, and stress responses with barn-level management has enhanced the capacity to predict periods of elevated environmental risk and to deploy mitigation strategies proactively. Data-driven decision-support tools emerging from this work translate complex biological interactions into actionable recommendations for environmental regulation, ventilation, and cooling systems. In parallel, advances in developmental stress biology have shown that heat stress experienced during gestation induces persistent alterations in offspring behavior, physiology, and productivity, highlighting the critical role of effective thermal management during pregnancy. Additional research targeting nutrition-based heat stress resilience, precision cooling technologies, and genomic strategies for improving thermotolerance demonstrates how biologically informed approaches can be integrated across dietary, engineering, and breeding frameworks to alleviate heat stress without sacrificing efficiency. Together, these developments establish a model in which behavioral and physiological knowledge directly informs management practices, enabling evidence-based interventions that enhance resilience, performance, and well-being in contemporary swine production systems.