Evaluation of Electrostatic Particle Ionization and BioCurtain Technologies to Reduce Dust, Odor and other Pollutants from Broiler Houses Final Report

Confined poultry production has increased in Texas and along with it, complaints of odor and dust. These issues are a major problem in the United States not only for confined animal health but also for the increasing urban migration to the rural areas where the poultry industry is expanding. Particulate matter and volatile organic compound (VOC) produced in the poultry houses can be offensive to neighbors, and if not properly vented, pose a serious health hazard to the animals. Some technologies available attempt to strike a balance between reducing poultry house emissions and maintaining bird health; however there is a lack of sufficient pollutant- reduction data to make a sound fiscal judgment in the implementation of this equipment. Two possible management tools that have shown promise and were chosen for evaluation during this project were an Electrostatic Particle Ionization (EPI™) system and a BioCurtain™. The EPI™ system includes an antenna-like array of wire strung through the poultry house with a small electric charge running through it. The resulting electric field ionizes the particulate matter suspended in the air, causing it to attract to grounded materials. The BioCurtain™ consists of a black geotextile fabric stretched over a quadrant-shaped, metal frame skeleton, and placed over the exhaust fans of the poultry houses. Air moving out of the house flows down along the top of the quadrant and particulate matter settles out on the ground. The air, without the particulate matter, then flows vertically out through the top of the BioCurtain™. This project tested the effectiveness of a BioCurtain™ and Electrostatic Particle Ionization (EPI™) system in reducing NH3, H2S, and TSP emissions from a broiler house during short periods in September and December 2010. This project found: 1) A reduction of about 9%, in the emission of NH3 and H2S gases (1060 vs. 960 g/hr for NH3 and 9.3 vs. 8.5 g/hr. for H2S) in December when only the BioCurtain™ was active. 2) The BioCurtain™ resulted in a 34% (325 vs. 213 g/hr. in September) to 43% (396 vs. 227 g/hr in December) reduction in the TSP emission. 3) The EPI™ system reduced the NH3 and TSP emission rates by as much as 17% and 39%, respectively

Evaluation of Electrostatic Particle Ionization and Biocurtain™ Technologies to Reduce Air Pollutants from Broiler Houses

The continuing growth of poultry production, along with the increasing urbanization of rural areas, is leading to more odor-related complaints from neighboring communities and more scrutiny from policy makers. It is, therefore, in the best interest of poultry producers to look at control methods for abating odors. Previous studies have shown that substantial amounts of volatile and odorous compounds are adsorbed and transported by dust particles. Thus, by reducing the amount of dust emitted from poultry facilities such as broiler houses, odor may be reduced as well. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of two commercially available control technologies (BioCurtain™ and electrostatic particle ionization (EPI) system) in reducing the total suspended particulate matter (TSP), particulate matter \u3c10 \u3eμm in diameter (PM10), ammonia (NH3), and hydrogen sulfide (H2S) emitted from a broiler facility in Texas. The study was conducted at a broiler production facility in two identically designed, ventilated, and managed broiler houses where one served as the treatment house and the other, the control. Measurements were done on two consecutive days each in September and December 2010. BioCurtain™ was tested independently on the first day and in combination with and the EPI on the second day. Reductions in the NH3 and H2S emission rates by as much as 8% (1040 vs. 943 g/h for NH3 and 9.2 vs. 8.4 g/h for H2S) and by as much as 43% (396 vs. 227 g/h) for the TSP emission rates were achieved with the BioCurtain ™. The EPI system reduced the NH3, H2S, and TSP emission rates by as much as 17%, 34% and 39%, respectively. Economic analysis showed that operating the automated EPI and BioCurtain™ system for one 14 m wide and 152 m long broiler building housing an average of 23,000 birds will cost $0.06 per bird

Effect of local medicinal herbs as feed additives on production performance and faecal parameters in laying hens

Medicinal herbs are gaining importance in both human and animal nutrition due to their bioactive components that possess a wide range of beneficial effects on body health enhancement. To concord with the banning of antibiotic growth promoters in animal nutrition, research was carried out to utilize phytogenic feed additives in poultry nutrition as the alternative to improve their overall performance. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of dietary supplementation of the three selected herbs at the level of 1% on production performance and faecal parameters in laying hens. In this study, a total of 96 Bovans Brown layers of 32 wk old were subjected to four dietary treatments in the form of CRD, namely (T1) control, (T2) basal diet + 1% of turmeric rhizome powder, (T3) basal diet + 1% of Vietnamese coriander leaf powder, and (T4) basal diet + 1% of Dayak onion powder. The layers were given 7-d adaption period before the feeding trial started which lasted for 12 wk. The results showed that there was no significant difference (P>0.05) in the means of overall feed intake, egg mass, feed conversion efficiency as well as body weight gain among the treatment groups. The hen-day egg production and egg weight of birds in treatments T2 and T4 showed significant differences (P<0.05) compared to control group. Besides, the birds in the treatment groups supplemented with medicinal herbs (T2, T3 and T4) also showed significant reduction in faecal pH and faecal Entero bacteriaceae counts (P<0.05) compared to the control, while significantly improved (p<0.05) the faecal lactic acid bacteria counts as compared to those in the control group. Thus, the present study suggests that dietary supplementation of 1% of turmeric rhizome powder, Vietnamese coriander leaf powder and Dayak onion powder in layer diet can achieve better performance in terms of hen-day egg production and egg weight associated with favourable intestinal environment without any adverse effect

Type 1 diabetes genetic risk score discriminates between monogenic and Type 1 diabetes in children diagnosed at the age of < 5 years in the Iranian population

This is the final version. Available on open access from Wiley via the DOI in this recordAim To examine the extent to which discriminatory testing using antibodies and Type 1 diabetes genetic risk score, validated in European populations, is applicable in a non‐European population. Methods We recruited 127 unrelated children with diabetes diagnosed between 9 months and 5 years from two centres in Iran. All children underwent targeted next‐generation sequencing of 35 monogenic diabetes genes. We measured three islet autoantibodies (islet antigen 2, glutamic acid decarboxylase and zinc transporter 8) and generated a Type 1 diabetes genetic risk score in all children. Results We identified six children with monogenic diabetes, including four novel mutations: homozygous mutations in WFS1 (n=3), SLC19A2 and SLC29A3, and a heterozygous mutation in GCK. All clinical features were similar in children with monogenic diabetes (n=6) and in the rest of the cohort (n=121). The Type 1 diabetes genetic risk score discriminated children with monogenic from Type 1 diabetes [area under the receiver‐operating characteristic curve 0.90 (95% CI 0.83–0.97)]. All children with monogenic diabetes were autoantibody‐negative. In children with no mutation, 59 were positive to glutamic acid decarboxylase, 39 to islet antigen 2 and 31 to zinc transporter 8. Measuring zinc transporter 8 increased the number of autoantibody‐positive individuals by eight. Conclusions The present study provides the first evidence that Type 1 diabetes genetic risk score can be used to distinguish monogenic from Type 1 diabetes in an Iranian population with a large number of consanguineous unions. This test can be used to identify children with a higher probability of having monogenic diabetes who could then undergo genetic testing. Identification of these individuals would reduce the cost of treatment and improve the management of their clinical course.Wellcome TrustDiabetes U

A cluster randomised trial of a classroom communication resource program to change peer attitudes towards children who stutter among grade 7 students

Abstract Background Classroom-based stuttering intervention addressing negative peer attitudes, perceptions, teasing and bullying of children who stutter (CWS) is required as part of holistic stuttering management because of its occurrence in primary school. This study was conducted in 2017, in 10 primary schools in the Western Cape, South Africa within lower (second and third) and higher (fourth and fifth) quintiles. Objectives The primary objective of this study was to determine treatment effect at six months after intervention of grade 7 participants (Classroom Communication Resource [CCR] intervention versus no CCR) using global Stuttering Resource Outcomes Measure (SROM) scores in school clusters. The secondary objective was to determine grade 7 participant treatment effect on the SROM subscales including Positive Social Distance (PSD), Social Pressure (SP) and Verbal Interaction (VI). The subgroup objective was to determine any difference in the primary outcome between schools between and across quintile clusters (lower and higher). Methods Once schools were stratified into lower and higher quintile (which are defined according to geographical location, fee per school and resources) subgroup clusters, schools were assigned randomly to control and intervention groups consisting of grade 7 participants who were typically aged ≥ 11 years. Teachers received 1 h of training before administering the single-dose CCR intervention over a 60–90-min session. The CCR intervention included a social story, role-play and discussion. All participants viewed a video of a CWS and stuttering was defined at baseline. The SROM measured peer attitudes at six months after intervention. Randomisation was stratified by quintile group using a 1:1 allocation ratio. Full blinding was not possible; however, the outcome assessor was partially blinded and the analyst was also blinded. Generalised estimating equations (GEE) was used assuming an exchangeable correlation structure to analyse the data adopting an intention-to-treat principle. Multiple imputation was used to handle missing data. Criterion for statistical significance was set at alpha = 0.05. Results Ten schools were randomly allocated to control (k = 5) and intervention groups (k = 5), with n = 223 participants allocated to intervention and n = 231 to control groups. A total of 454 participants completed the SROMs in control (n = 231) and intervention (n = 223) groups and were analysed at baseline and six months after intervention. There was no statistically significant difference on the global SROM score (mean difference − 0.11; 95% confidence interval [CI] − 1.56–1.34; p = 0.88). There were also no significant differences on SROM subscales: PSD (mean difference 1.04; 95% CI − 1.02–311; p = 0.32), SP (mean difference − 0.45; 95% CI − 1.22–0.26; p = 0.21) and VI (mean difference 0.05; 95% CI − 1.01–1.11; p = 0.93). Additionally, there was no significant subgroup effect on the global SROM score (lower versus higher quintile subgroups) (interaction p value = 0.52). No harms were noted or reported. Conclusion No statistically significant differences were noted. It is possible that the time frame was too short to note changes in peer attitudes and that further study is required to confirm the findings of this study. Trial registration Clinicaltrials.gov, NCT03111524 . Registered on 9 March 2017

Toward An Understanding Of The Retinal Chromophore In Rhodopsin Mimics

Recently, a rhodopsin protein mimic was constructed by combining mutants of the cellular retinoic acid binding protein II (CRABPII) with an all-trans retinal chromophore. Here, we present a combine computational quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) and experimental ultrafast kinetic study of CRABPII. We employ the QM/MM models to study the absorption (lambda(a)(max)), fluorescence (lambda(f)(max)), and reactivity of a CRABPII triple mutant incorporating the all-trans protonated chromophore (PSB-KLE-CRABPII). We also study the spectroscopy of the same mutant incorporating the unprotonated chromophore and of another double mutant incorporating the neutral unbound retinal molecule held inside the pocket. Finally, for PSB-KLE-CRABPII, stationary fluorescence spectroscopy and ultrafast transient absorption spectroscopy resolved two different evolving excited state populations which were computationally assigned to distinct locally excited and charge-transfer species. This last species is shown to evolve along reaction paths describing a facile isomerization of the biologically relevant 11-cis and 13-cis double bonds. This work represents a first exploratory attempt to model and study these artificial protein systems. It also indicates directions for improving the QM/MM models so that they could be more effectively used to assist the bottom-up design of genetically encodable probes and actuators employing the retinal chromophore

Natural history of Arabidopsis thaliana and oomycete symbioses

Molecular ecology of plant–microbe interactions has immediate significance for filling a gap in knowledge between the laboratory discipline of molecular biology and the largely theoretical discipline of evolutionary ecology. Somewhere in between lies conservation biology, aimed at protection of habitats and the diversity of species housed within them. A seemingly insignificant wildflower called Arabidopsis thaliana has an important contribution to make in this endeavour. It has already transformed botanical research with deepening understanding of molecular processes within the species and across the Plant Kingdom; and has begun to revolutionize plant breeding by providing an invaluable catalogue of gene sequences that can be used to design the most precise molecular markers attainable for marker-assisted selection of valued traits. This review describes how A. thaliana and two of its natural biotrophic parasites could be seminal as a model for exploring the biogeography and molecular ecology of plant–microbe interactions, and specifically, for testing hypotheses proposed from the geographic mosaic theory of co-evolution

Physical properties of palm oil boiler ash modified bitumen with Rediset

This study examines the physical properties of a 60/70 penetration grade bitumen modified using warm mix asphalt (WMA) additive, Rediset and palm oil boiler ash (POBA) as a modifier. Modified binders were prepared by adding 2% of Rediset with different POBA contents (3, 5, 7, and 9%) through wet mixing process. Physical properties of modified bituminous binder were obtained from penetration, softening point, rotational viscosity and ductility tests. The addition of 7% POBA in WMA binder has the best characteristics in term of its physical properties. The penetration values, softening point temperatures and ductility characteristics show inconsistent patterns. However, the rotational viscosity of each combination had decreased with the increment of temperature even though the trend was not significantly constant. Penetration index (PI) showed an increment with 3 and 5% and decrement pattern on 7 and 9% as well as penetration viscosity number (PVN) showing an inconsistent decrement with the addition of POBA. From the results, it can be concluded that using POBA in WMA binder for pavement construction is a viable option and can be further investigate

Isolation and fine mapping of Rps6: An intermediate host resistance gene in barley to wheat stripe rust

A plant may be considered a nonhost of a pathogen if all known genotypes of a plant species are resistant to all known isolates of a pathogen species. However, if a small number of genotypes are susceptible to some known isolates of a pathogen species this plant maybe considered an intermediate host. Barley (Hordeum vulgare) is an intermediate host for Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici (Pst), the causal agent of wheat stripe rust. We wanted to understand the genetic architecture underlying resistance to Pst and to determine whether any overlap exists with resistance to the host pathogen, Puccinia striiformis f. sp. hordei (Psh). We mapped Pst resistance to chromosome 7H and show that host and intermediate host resistance is genetically uncoupled. Therefore, we designate this resistance locus Rps6. We used phenotypic and genotypic selection on F2:3 families to isolate Rps6 and fine mapped the locus to a 0.1 cM region. Anchoring of the Rps6 locus to the barley physical map placed the region on two adjacent fingerprinted contigs. Efforts are now underway to sequence the minimal tiling path and to delimit the physical region harbouring Rps6. This will facilitate additional marker development and permit identification of candidate genes in the region