In vitro and in vivo expression of foreign genes by transmissible gastroenteritis coronavirus-derived minigenomes

A helper-dependent expression system based on transmissible gastroenteritis coronavirus (TGEV) has been developed using a minigenome of 3·9 kb (M39). Expression of the reporter gene {beta}-glucuronidase (GUS) (2–8 µg per 106 cells) and the porcine respiratory and reproductive syndrome virus (PRRSV) ORF5 (1–2 µg per 106 cells) has been shown using a TGEV-derived minigenome. GUS expression levels increased about eightfold with the m.o.i. and were maintained for more than eight passages in cell culture. Nevertheless, instability of the GUS and ORF5 subgenomic mRNAs was observed from passages five and four, respectively. About a quarter of the cells in culture expressing the helper virus also produced the reporter gene as determined by studying GUS mRNA production by in situ hybridization or immunodetection to visualize the protein synthesized. Expression of GUS was detected in the lungs, but not in the gut, of swine immunized with the virus vector. Around a quarter of lung cells showing replication of the helper virus were also positive for the reporter gene. Interestingly, strong humoral immune responses to both GUS and PRRSV ORF5 were induced in swine with this virus vector. The large cloning capacity and the tissue specificity of the TGEV-derived minigenomes suggest that these virus vectors are very promising for vaccine development

Fish health challenge after stress : indicators of immunocompetence

Changes in the nervous and endocrine systems of fish after stress episodes have consequences on their immune system and thereby affect the ability to maintain immunocompetence. Fish mainly depend upon innate immune responses, which include a rich and powerful array of mechanisms, that appear to be more potent than in higher vertebrates. Thus, fish provide a unique model to understand the evolution of immune defence system. When the organism is challenged by an antigen or by stressors, a number of responses of reactive nature are engaged in an attempt to counteract the threat and recover homeostasis. However, if the challenge is maintained, changes in the immune system become chronic, and suppression can be observed in several key immune mechanisms, leading to maladaptation. Therefore, the time factor is of key importance in immune assessment. Taking into account this dynamic pattern of infection and stress, specific indicators should be identified in order to detect functional changes in the immune system. Furthermore, there is a need for specific markers that reflect either activation in the initial stages or suppression in response to a chronic challenge.Els canvis en els sistemes nerviós i endocrí després d'episodis d'estrès generen conseqüències en el sistema immunitari que influeixen en la capacitat de mantenir la immunocompetència. Els peixos depenen especialment de la resposta immunitària innata, un ampli conjunt de mecanismes que sembla que actuïn amb més potència que en vertebrats superiors. Així, els peixos es troben en una posició evolutiva única per a comprendre els models de mecanismes de defensa en els vertebrats. Quan l'organisme és afectat per un antigen o per situacions que provoquen estrès, s'inicien una sèrie de respostes de naturalesa reactiva per a contrarestar-ne els efectes i recobrar l'homeòstasi. Altrament, els canvis en el sistema immunitari esdevenen crònics i es pot observar una depressió en alguns mecanismes immunitaris que acaben amb una mala adaptació. Per tant, el factor temps és clau en la determinació de la resposta immunitària. Tenint en compte aquest patró dinàmic en la infecció i l'estrès, és important determinar indicadors específics que detectin canvis funcionals del sistema immunitari dels peixos. Els marcadors més apropiats són els que indiquen tant una activació dels mecanismes immunitaris en els estadis inicials com una depressió en situacions cròniques

Mechanical Thinning of Mandarins with a Branch Shaker

[EN] Thinning is the process of removing some flowers or fruit to increase fruit size at harvest. In the Valencia region of Spain, the thinning operation for citrus fruit (Citreae) is performed for some mandarin varieties. This is always performed manually; however, this method is very expensive. The goal of this research study was to assess the mechanical thinning of mandarin ( Citrus reticulata) using a hand-held branch shaker. Different thinning treatments were conducted over a 3-year period. The gasoline-powered branch shaker was capable of detaching fruit four- to five-times faster than manual thinning. Final fruit size was significantly higher using manual and mechanical thinning compared with a no thinning treatment. Similar final fruit size was obtained with manual and mechanical thinning. However, no significant differences were found in final fruit yield by weight among no thinning, mechanical thinning, and manual thinning treatments. The use of a branch shaker could be recommended for thinning operations to increase efficiency, reduce labor costs, and obtain larger and higher-quality fruit.This work was supported by funding from the Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Agrarias (INIA) and European FEDER (Project RTA2014-00025-C05-02). Fontestat provided the experimental fields.Ortiz Sánchez, MC.; Torregrosa, A.; Ortí García, E.; Balasch Parisi, S. (2020). Mechanical Thinning of Mandarins with a Branch Shaker. HortTechnology. 30(6):745-750. https://doi.org/10.21273/HORTTECH04451-20S74575030

Dynamic responses of B acteroides thetaiotaomicron during growth on glycan mixtures

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/98163/1/mmi12228-sup-0001-si.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/98163/2/mmi12228.pd

Influence of age, gender and obesity on pressure discomfort threshold of the foot: A cross-sectional study

[EN] Background: Foot pain is a highly prevalent health problem for which measures such as a pattern of Pressure Discomfort Threshold of the foot plantar surface can provide valuable information for orthosis design. This study aimed to describe such pattern as a tool for the assessment of painful conditions of the feet and to analyse how it modifies according to age, gender and obesity. Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed with participants allocated in: Group 1 people aged 20 to 35 years, Group 2 aged 50 to 65 years and Group 3 aged over 65. Pressure Discomfort Threshold on twelve points of the foot plantar surface was measured with an adapted manual dynamometer. Inferential analyses of the data were performed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) considering foot areas, age group, gender and obesity. Findings: 36 participants were analysed. The pattern of Pressure Discomfort Threshold for all individuals showed a significantly higher threshold on the heel and external foot (P < 0.001, eta(2) = 0.124) and was statistical significantly influenced by age (P < 0.001, eta(2) = 0.17), especially in participants aged over 65; by gender, with women having higher values (P < 0.001, eta(2) = 0.13), and by obesity (P < 0.001, eta(2) = 0.19). Interpretation: A Pressure Discomfort Threshold pattern exists in the foot plantar surface. The characteristics of the discomfort pattern of the foot and its association with aging, gender and obesity may have considerable implications for orthosis and footwear design.Dueñas, L.; Arnal-Gómez, A.; Aparicio, I.; Balasch-Bernat, M.; López-Bueno, L.; Gonzalez Garcia, JC.; Solves Camallonga, C.... (2021). Influence of age, gender and obesity on pressure discomfort threshold of the foot: A cross-sectional study. 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W. (2008). Prevalence and correlates of foot pain in a population-based study: the North West Adelaide health study. Journal of Foot and Ankle Research, 1(1). doi:10.1186/1757-1146-1-2Hills, A., Hennig, E., McDonald, M., & Bar-Or, O. (2001). Plantar pressure differences between obese and non-obese adults: a biomechanical analysis. International Journal of Obesity, 25(11), 1674-1679. doi:10.1038/sj.ijo.0801785Hong, W.-H., Lee, Y.-H., Chen, H.-C., Pei, Y.-C., & Wu, C.-Y. (2005). Influence of Heel Height and Shoe Insert on Comfort Perception and Biomechanical Performance of Young Female Adults During Walking. Foot & Ankle International, 26(12), 1042-1048. doi:10.1177/107110070502601208Le Johansson, L., Kjellberg, A., Kilbom, A., & Hagg, G. M. (1999). Perception of surface pressure applied to the hand. Ergonomics, 42(10), 1274-1282. doi:10.1080/001401399184947Kwan, R. L.-C., Zheng, Y.-P., & Cheing, G. L.-Y. (2010). 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Does the addition of recombinant LH in WHO group II anovulatory women over-responding to FSH treatment reduce the number of developing follicles? A dose-finding study. Hum Reprod 20

BACKGROUND: In anovulatory women undergoing ovulation induction, addition of recombinant human LH (rLH) to FSH treatment may promote the dominance of a leading follicle when administered in the late follicular phase. The objective of this study was to find the optimal dose of rLH that can maintain the growth of a dominant follicle, whilst causing atresia of secondary follicles. METHODS: Women with infertility due to anovulation and over-responding to FSH treatment were randomized to receive, in addition to 37.5 IU recombinant human FSH (rFSH), either placebo or different doses of rLH (6.8, 13.6, 30 or 60 mg) daily for a maximum of 7 days. The primary efficacy endpoint was the proportion of patients who had exactly one follicle $16 mm on hCG day. RESULTS: Among 153 enrolled patients, the five treatment groups were similar in terms of baseline characteristics. The proportion of patients with exactly one follicle$16 mm ranged from 13.3% in the placebo group to 32.1% in the 30 mg rLH group (P 5 0.048). The pregnancy rate ranged from 10.3% in the 60 mg group to 28.6% in the 30 mg rLH group. Adverse events were similar between groups. CONCLUSIONS: In patients over-responding to FSH during ovulation induction, doses of up to 30 mg rLH/day appear to increase the proportion of patients developing a single dominant follicle ($16 mm). Our data support the &apos;LH ceiling&apos; concept whereby addition of rLH is able to control development of the follicular cohort

Secure Multiplication for Bitslice Higher-Order Masking: Optimisation and Comparison

In this paper, we optimize the performances and compare several recent masking schemes in bitslice on 32-bit arm devices, with a focus on multiplication. Our main conclusion is that efficiency (or randomness) gains always come at a cost, either in terms of composability or in terms of resistance against horizontal attacks. Our evaluations should therefore allow a designer to select a masking scheme based on implementation constraints and security requirements. They also highlight the increasing feasibility of (very) high-order masking that are offered by increasingly powerful embedded devices, with new opportunities of high-security devices in various contexts

Descriptive analyses of maternally-derived antibody levels against porcine circovirus 2 (PCV-2) in 3- and 21-day-old piglets from farms of four European countries using different vaccination protocols in sows

Background Up to now, information on the levels of maternally-derived antibodies (MDA) against PCV-2 in suckling piglets born to sows vaccinated with different strategies is scarce in the literature. In the present observational study, the PCV-2-specific MDA titres from piglets from 109 farms (thirty 3-day-old and thirty 21-day-old piglets per farm) across four different European countries (France n = 30, Germany n = 27, Italy n = 22 and Spain n = 30) using different sow vaccination strategies (during gestation, as a gilt, as a piglet or never) were assessed. Results In all four countries, mean log PCV-2 MDA titres were higher in 3-day-old piglets than in the 3-week-old ones, being significant in most of all the comparisons performed. Within each country, the highest PCV-2-specific MDA titres were observed in the 3-day-old piglets born to sows vaccinated during gestation. Indeed, in the four countries, more than 60% of this subpopulation (3-day-old piglets from sows vaccinated during pregnancy) had the highest log PCV-2 titres detectable with the ELISA technique used in this study. The lowest MDA titres were more variable. Whereas in France and Germany the lowest titres corresponded to 21-day-old piglets born from sows vaccinated as a piglet, in Italy, they corresponded to 21-day-old piglets derived from sows vaccinated as a gilt and in Spain to 21-day-old piglets born from non-vaccinated sows. In this study, PCV-2-specific MDA titres at 3 and 21 days of age were not affected by sow parity. Conclusions Data obtained could be considered as a European global overview of PCV-2-specific MDA titres present in the pre-vaccinated piglet populations in different European countries, with titres tending to be higher in younger piglets, but with values variable among countries and sow vaccination strategies

Constructing TI-Friendly Substitution Boxes Using Shift-Invariant Permutations

The threat posed by side channels requires ciphers that can be efficiently protected in both software and hardware against such attacks. In this paper, we proposed a novel Sbox construction based on iterations of shift-invariant quadratic permutations and linear diffusions. Owing to the selected quadratic permutations, all of our Sboxes enable uniform 3-share threshold implementations, which provide first order SCA protections without any fresh randomness. More importantly, because of the shift-invariant property, there are ample implementation trade-offs available, in software as well as hardware. We provide implementation results (software and hardware) for a four-bit and an eight-bit Sbox, which confirm that our constructions are competitive and can be easily adapted to various platforms as claimed. We have successfully verified their resistance to first order attacks based on real acquisitions. Because there are very few studies focusing on software-based threshold implementations, our software implementations might be of independent interest in this regard