Expressions 2009

https://openspace.dmacc.edu/expressions/1043/thumbnail.jp

Comparison of Winter Cow Feeding Strategies on Offspring Carcass Characteristics and Meat Quality

Objective The objective of this research was to investigate effects of maternal prepartum dietary energy source (forage vs. concentrate) during mid and late gestation on carcass composition, and meat quality of offspring.Study Description Angus-based cows from 2 sources [n = 129 from SDSU (Experiment 1) and n = 70 from North Dakota State University (Experiment 2)] were stratified by body weight and age and placed into two treatment groups at a drylot facility during mid- and late-gestation: Concentrate (dams fed a concentrate-based diet) or Forage (dams fed a forage-based diet). Calves were finished and carcass data was collected. Striploins were collected for meat quality evaluation

Maternal Nutrition and Meat Quality of Progeny

The concept of fetal programming is based on the idea that nutritional status and environmental conditions encountered by the dam during pregnancy can have lifetime impacts on her offspring. These changes in the gestational environment have been shown to influence fetal development and subsequent growth performance, carcass composition, and meat quality characteristics. Beef fetuses can be particularly prone to experiencing variations in the maternal environment during development owing to a relatively long duration of pregnancy potentially exposing the dam to environmental temperature stress and/or seasonal conditions that can compromise feed quality or quantity. If feed is limited or forage conditions are poor, a maternal deficiency in protein and/or energy can occur as well as fluctuations in body condition of the dam. As a result, the fetus may receive inadequate levels of nutrients, potentially altering fetal development. There are critical windows of development during each stage of gestation in which various tissues, organs, and metabolic systems may be impacted. Skeletal muscle and adipose tissue are particularly vulnerable to alterations in the gestational environment because of their low priority for nutrients relative to vital organs and systems during development. The timing and severity of the environmental event or stressor as well as the ability of the dam to buffer negative effects to the fetus will dictate the developmental response. Much of the current research is focused on the influence of specific nutrients and timing of nutritional treatments on offspring carcass composition and meat quality, with the goal of informing strategies that will ultimately allow for the use of maternal nutritional management as a tool to optimize performance and meat quality of offspring

Barred Galaxies in the Abell 901/2 Supercluster with STAGES

We present a study of bar and host disk evolution in a dense cluster environment, based on a sample of ~800 bright (MV <= -18) galaxies in the Abell 901/2 supercluster at z~0.165. We use HST ACS F606W imaging from the STAGES survey, and data from Spitzer, XMM-Newton, and COMBO-17. We identify and characterize bars through ellipse-fitting, and other morphological features through visual classification. (1) We explore three commonly used methods for selecting disk galaxies. We find 625, 485, and 353 disk galaxies, respectively, via visual classification, a single component S'ersic cut (n <= 2.5), and a blue-cloud cut. In cluster environments, the latter two methods miss 31% and 51%, respectively, of visually-identified disks. (2) For moderately inclined disks, the three methods of disk selection yield a similar global optical bar fraction (f_bar-opt) of 34% +10%/-3%, 31% +10%/-3%, and 30% +10%/-3%, respectively. (3) f_bar-opt rises in brighter galaxies and those which appear to have no significant bulge component. Within a given absolute magnitude bin, f_bar-opt is higher in visually-selected disk galaxies that have no bulge as opposed to those with bulges. For a given morphological class, f_bar-opt rises at higher luminosities. (4) For bright early-types, as well as faint late-type systems with no evident bulge, the optical bar fraction in the Abell 901/2 clusters is comparable within a factor of 1.1 to 1.4 to that of field galaxies at lower redshifts (5) Between the core and the virial radius of the cluster at intermediate environmental densities, the optical bar fraction does not appear to depend strongly on the local environment density and varies at most by a factor of ~1.3. We discuss the implications of our results for the evolution of bars and disks in dense environments.Comment: accepted for publication in ApJ, abstract abridged, for high resolution figures see http://www.as.utexas.edu/~marinova/STAGES/STAGES_bars.pd

Galaxy and Mass Assembly (GAMA): the wavelength dependence of galaxy structure versus redshift and luminosity

We study how the sizes and radial profiles of galaxies vary with wavelength, by fitting Se´rsic functions simultaneously to imaging in nine optical and near-infrared bands. To quantify the wavelength dependence of effective radius we use the ratio, R, of measurements in two rest- frame bands. The dependence of Se´rsic index on wavelength, N , is computed correspondingly. Vulcani et al. have demonstrated that different galaxy populations present sharply contrasting behaviour in terms of R and N . Here we study the luminosity dependence of this result. We find that at higher luminosities, early-type galaxies display a more substantial decrease in effective radius with wavelength, whereas late types present a more pronounced increase in Se´rsic index. The structural contrast between types thus increases with luminosity. By considering samples at different redshifts, we demonstrate that lower data quality reduces the apparent difference between the main galaxy populations. However, our conclusions remain robust to this effect. We show that accounting for different redshift and luminosity selections partly reconciles the size variation measured by Vulcani et al. with the weaker trends found by other recent studies. Dividing galaxies by visual morphology confirms the behaviour inferred using morphological proxies, although the sample size is greatly reduced. Finally, we demonstrate that varying dust opacity and disc inclination can account for features of the joint distribution of R and N for late-type galaxies. However, dust does not appear to explain the highest values of R and N . The bulge–disc nature of galaxies must also contribute to the wavelength dependence of their structure. Key words: galaxies: formation – galaxies: fundamental parameters – galaxies: general – galaxies: structure

Barriers to obesity management: a pilot study of primary care clinicians

BACKGROUND: Obesity is an increasing epidemic in both the US and veteran populations, yet it remains largely understudied in the Veteran's Health Administration (VHA) setting. The purpose of our study was to identify barriers to the effective management of obesity in VHA primary care settings. METHODS: Three focus groups of clinicians from a Veteran's Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) and an affiliated Community Based Outpatient Center (CBOC) were conducted to identify potential barriers to obesity management. The focus groups and previously published studies then informed the creation of a 47-item survey that was then disseminated and completed by 55 primary care clinicians. RESULTS: The focus groups identified provider, system, and patient barriers to obesity care. Lack of obesity training during medical school and residency was associated with lower rates of discussing diet and exercise with obese patients (p < 0.05). Clinicians who watched their own diets vigorously were more likely to calculate BMI for obese patients than other clinicians (42% vs. 13%, p < 0.05). Many barriers identified in previous studies (e.g., attitudes toward obese patients, lack of insurance payments for obesity care) were not prevalent barriers in the current study. CONCLUSION: Many VHA clinicians do not routinely provide weight management services for obese patients. The most prevalent barriers to obesity care were poor education during medical school and residency and the lack of information provided by the VHA to both clinicians and patients about available weight management services

2019 American College of Rheumatology/Arthritis Foundation Guideline for the Management of Osteoarthritis of the Hand, Hip, and Knee

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/153772/1/acr24131.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/153772/2/acr24131_am.pd

Under- and Over-Nutrition Among Refugees in San Diego County, California

Resettled refugees often arrive in their host country with little knowledge of nutrition or available food choices. We explored nutrition-related issues of recent refugee arrivals to San Diego County—the second largest California resettlement site. In-depth interviews (n = 40) were conducted with refugees, health care practitioners, and refugee service organizations. Content analysis identified nutrition-related themes. Unhealthy weight gain after arrival was the most common concern and was attributed to social pressures among adolescents, food choices and a more sedentary lifestyle. Conversely, undernutrition remained a concern due to poor diets. Factors influencing nutritional problems included continuation of past habits, acculturation, unfamiliarity with available foods and socio-economic influences. The nutritional concerns encountered by resettled refugees in San Diego are not unique to this group but are aggravated by their past experiences, and abrupt changes to food choices and behavior. Addressing contextual factors of poor food choices may prevent some of the long term health consequences of poor nutrition

A IMPORTÂNCIA DA ATIVIDADE FÍSICA NA VIDA DAS CRIANÇAS PRÁTICA VIVENCIAL 1ª FASE DO CURSO DE ENFERMAGEM UNOESC XANXÊRE

INTRODUÇÃO: A prática vivencial realizada pela 1ª fase do curso de graduação em enfermagem, trata sobre os exercícios físicos, os quais, são essenciais na infância. A aprendizagem e a prática de exercícios são de extrema importância para a criança, uma vez que, vive uma fase de desenvolvimento da criança. Os exercícios físicos realizados com as crianças podem ser feito através de brincadeiras e alongamentos que são formas de promover uma vida saudável à elas. O foco do presente trabalho foi incentivar as atividades físicas em crianças de 0 a 4 anos de idade por intermédio de brincadeiras e alongamentos. Além de visar, prioritariamente, o desenvolvimento e o aprimoramento de mediadores, ou seja, de elementos básicos que influem significativamente na vida intelectual da criança e que se encontram subjacentes ao aprendizado da leitura e da escrita. OBJETIVO: Orientar as crianças sobre como realizar atividades físicas no ambiente escolar. METODOLOGIA: Para desenvolvimento das atividades, foi necessário, primeiramente, a busca por material bibliográfico auxiliar, afim de buscarmos nos aprofundar em conhecimento para poder repassá-lo às crianças, perante a isso, foi elaborado um informativo ilustrativo para ser colocado nas agendas das crianças. Foi montado, também, um plano de ação para que  houvesse uma sequência de atividades a serem realizadas com as crianças presentes no espaço escolar, pelos os acadêmicos da 1ª fase do curso de Enfermagem, no componente curricular Saúde Coletiva I. RESULTADOS E DISCUSSÃO: Ao chegar no local combinado, primeiramente, foi direcionado o trabalho a ser realizado na turma do berçário, que pelo fato de, apresentar crianças de 0 a 1 ano, houve a necessidade de mudança nos planos de desenvolvimento das atividades. Ao conhecermos as crianças, houve  uma interação mais lúdica com elas, através de luvas enchidas em forma de balão e com brinquedos que haviam disponíveis, sendo que ao fim das atividades, foi auxiliado na organização da turma e sala. Posterior a isso, em um segundo momento, direcionamos o trabalho ao maternal, iniciando assim, com a apresentação programada e, em seguida, com a abordagem ao tema escolhido para realização da atividade. Após isso, foi iniciado a parte prática, onde foi ensinado métodos de alongamento e em seguida  uma maior interação e com a turma, com realização de atividades e brincadeiras. Por fim, como forma de gratidão pela oportunidade nos dada, distribuímos pirulitos às crianças e nos despedimos abrindo espaço para que novos grupos pudessem usar de seu tempo para as apresentações dos temas. CONSIDERAÇÕES FINAIS: Apesar do conteúdo e as atividades não terem sido feitas de maneira como foi planejado, devido a baixa idade dos alunos do berçário, conseguimos concluir a ação de maneira satisfatória, uma vez que, o trabalho realizado fez com que nos sentíssemos bem junto com as crianças divertindo-as durante o período que estivemos em sua companhia.

Asymmetric Bidirectional Transcription from the FSHD-Causing D4Z4 Array Modulates DUX4 Production

Facioscapulohumeral Disease (FSHD) is a dominantly inherited progressive myopathy associated with aberrant production of the transcription factor, Double Homeobox Protein 4 (DUX4). The expression of DUX4 depends on an open chromatin conformation of the D4Z4 macrosatellite array and a specific haplotype on chromosome 4. Even when these requirements are met, DUX4 transcripts and protein are only detectable in a subset of cells indicating that additional constraints govern DUX4 production. Since the direction of transcription, along with the production of non-coding antisense transcripts is an important regulatory feature of other macrosatellite repeats, we developed constructs that contain the non-coding region of a single D4Z4 unit flanked by genes that report transcriptional activity in the sense and antisense directions. We found that D4Z4 contains two promoters that initiate sense and antisense transcription within the array, and that antisense transcription predominates. Transcriptional start sites for the antisense transcripts, as well as D4Z4 regions that regulate the balance of sense and antisense transcripts were identified. We show that the choice of transcriptional direction is reversible but not mutually exclusive, since sense and antisense reporter activity was often present in the same cell and simultaneously upregulated during myotube formation. Similarly, levels of endogenous sense and antisense D4Z4 transcripts were upregulated in FSHD myotubes. These studies offer insight into the autonomous distribution of muscle weakness that is characteristic of FSHD