Development and permeability of equine blastocysts

Equine embryo cryopreservation is unsuccessful in larger, more easily collected, day-7 embryos. It is imperative that methods to successfully cryopreserve large equine embryos or develop reliable methods to determine embryo size before collection. Therefore the objectives for this study were to quantify the amount of tritiated glycerol that would permeate various sizes of equine embryos and to determine if circulating progesterone concentration was correlated with in utero embryo size. Mean embryo diameter (± SEM) across treatments (1.4M and 3.4M tritiated glycerol) was 696.5µm ± 108.6µm and 925.9 µm ± 214.1µm, respectively and were not different (P=0.44). The percent permeation for 1.4M and 3.4M glycerol were not different (P=0.68). Embryos \u3c400 µm in the 1.4M glycerol treatment group had higher (P=0.002) permeation than embryos \u3e400 µm, 8.32% ± 3.85% and 0.35% ± 0.11%, respectively. Length of time, 60 or 120 minutes, did not affect amount of glycerol uptaken (P=0.26. Serum progesterone concentrations on day 7 post-ovulation were higher (P=0.009) for mares who produced two viable embryos from double ovulation (24.17±2.82ng/ml) compared with mares from which a single embryo (14.04±0.99ng/ml) was collected and control mares (13.53±1.80ng/ml). No differences (P=0.91) were detected in serum progesterone concentration on day 7 post-ovulation between mares from which a single embryo (14.04±0.99ng/ml) was collected and control mares (13.53±1.80ng/ml). Mares producing embryos \u3e400µm tended to have higher (P=0.08) circulating progesterone concentrations than mares producing embryos \u3c400µm. Serum progesterone concentrations day 7 post-ovulation in mares producing embryos \u3e400µm and \u3c400µm were not different (P=0.61 and P=0.68, respectively) than control mares. Single embryos \u3c1000µm in diameter were correlated with circulating progesterone concentration day 7 post-ovulation (r=0.46, P=0.006). There was no significant correlation between embryo diameter, corpus luteum diameter, and serum progesterone concentration day 7 post-ovulation.This is the first study to quantify the amount of glycerol permeating into equine blastocysts and suggests that the capsule may be a barrier to cryoprotectant permeability. Maternal progesterone concentrations day 7 post-ovulation could be utilized in predicting embryo stage and size prior to collection for cryopreservation and in diagnosis of twin pregnancies as a result of double ovulation

Preliminary Analysis of ULPC Light Curves Using Fourier Decomposition Technique

Recent work on Ultra Long Period Cepheids (ULPCs) has suggested their usefulness as a distance indicator, but has not commented on their relationship as compared with other types of variable stars. In this work, we use Fourier analysis to quantify the structure of ULPC light curves and compare them to Classical Cepheids and Mira variables. Our preliminary results suggest that the low order Fourier parameters of ULPCs show a continuous trend defined by Classical Cepheids after the resonance around 10 days. However their Fourier parameters also overlapped with those from Miras, which make the classification of long period variable stars difficult based on the light curves information alone.Comment: 6 pages, 3 tables and 4 figures. Published in IEEE Xplore for 2013 IEEE International Conference on Space Science and Communication (IconSpace2013

Circumpolar Diversity and Geographic Differentiation of mtDNA in the Critically Endangered Antarctic Blue Whale (Balaenoptera musculus intermedia)

To the best of our knowledge, one or more authors of this paper were federal employees when contributing to this work.\ud This is the publisher’s final pdf. The published article is copyrighted by the Public Library of Science and can be found at: http://www.plosone.org/home.action.The Antarctic blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus intermedia) was hunted to near extinction between 1904 and 1972, declining from an estimated initial abundance of more than 250,000 to fewer than 400. Here, we describe mtDNA control region diversity and geographic differentiation in the surviving population of the Antarctic blue whale, using 218 biopsy samples collected under the auspices of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) during research cruises from 1990-2009. Microsatellite genotypes and mtDNA sequences identified 166 individuals among the 218 samples and documented movement of a small number of individuals, including a female that traveled at least 6,650 km or 131 degrees longitude over four years. mtDNA sequences from the 166 individuals were aligned with published sequences from 17 additional individuals, resolving 52 unique haplotypes from a consensus length of 410 bp. From this minimum census, a rarefaction analysis predicted that only 72 haplotypes (95% CL, 64, 86) have survived in the contemporary population of Antarctic blue whales. However, haplotype diversity was relatively high (0.968 +/- 0.004), perhaps as a result of the longevity of blue whales and the relatively recent timing of the bottleneck. Despite the potential for circumpolar dispersal, we found significant differentiation in mtDNA diversity (F-ST = 0.032, p<0.005) and microsatellite alleles (F-ST = 0.005, p<0.05) among the six Antarctic Areas historically used by the IWC for management of blue whales

Comparing Older and Younger Siblings’ Teaching Strategies and their Use of Internal State Language during Naturalistic Home Observations

The bidirectional nature of siblings’ influence on each other’s cognitive development was examined within the context of naturalistic teaching. The purpose of the present study was to compare 38 sibling dyads from four to seven years of age on measures of teaching strategies, initiation of teaching, learner’s response to teaching, and children’s use of internal state language. Pearson correlations revealed that the older sibling’s age was not related to these variables, while younger siblings’ age was negatively associated with their use of positive feedback. No gender effects were found using a series of t-tests. A repeated measures ANOVA was used to compare older and younger siblings’ teaching strategies. Results indicated that older siblings used more demonstration, positive feedback and negative feedback compared to younger siblings during teaching. Significant main effects were found for children’s use of internal state language, who initiated teaching, and learner response. Overall, both siblings’ referenced more goals than cognitions during teaching. Furthermore, the majority of sibling teaching sequences were initiated by the teacher rather than requested by the learner. Older siblings’ references to cognitions were positively associated with younger siblings’ active involvement and younger siblings’ use of planning was positively correlated with their older siblings’ active involvement. These findings have a number of implications for understanding how siblings contribute to each other’s social-cognitive development

Sexuality, Sports, and Body Image: Perception of Female Athletes

Throughout history, both women and homosexuals have been marginalized and subjected to ideals of appearance and gender roles of the patriarchal society of Western culture. Because some people may believe lesbians should exude a masculine appearance, and female athletes challenge traditional gender roles by their participation in sports, the two groups intersect in the world of athletics. The media often emphasize the sexuality of female athletes by focusing on their sexual orientation or femininity. This thesis sought to understand how sexual orientation or appearance of female athletes may influence perceptions about the athletes. The thesis used two photos of female athletes to examine perceptions about the sexuality and appearance of female athletes. A total of 344 participants, including college students at a Midwest university and participants on social media websites, responded to an online survey that used fictitious magazine features with pictures of hypothetical female athletes (hyper-feminine, neutral) in which the feature focused on the heterosexuality or homosexuality of the athlete, or did not focus on the athlete's sexual orientation at all. In answering six research questions posed about participant attitudes toward women, female athletes, sexual orientation beliefs, and perceptions about the athletes pictured, independent t-tests and analysis of variance tests were conducted to analyze participant responses. Consistent with examined literature, participants perceived the sexualized athlete to be more feminine and more likely to be straight, and the neutral athlete as more masculine and more likely to be a lesbian. Interestingly, participants believed that both athletes were equally skilled, regardless of their appearance or sexual orientation. These findings suggest that although the media may focus on a female athlete's appearance or sexual orientation, people are more likely to focus on the athlete's skill and athleticism.Mass Communication

Synthesis and MALDI-ToF characterization of dendronized poly(ethylene glycol)s

Well-defined hybrids of linear poly(ethylene glycol)s (PEGs) and dendritic polyesters were prepared via the dendronization of the alcohol end groups of the mono and difunctional linear PEGs. Though useful for rudimentary product characterization, GPC and NMR could not verify the overall structural purity of these linear-dendritic hybrids. On the other hand, the detailed data provided by MALDI-ToF mass spectrometry enabled confirmation of the high structural purity of the dendronized PEGs at each step of the dendronization procedure. The well-defined number of functionalities on these dendronized PEGs, renders them particularly useful for research in the biomedical sphere where functionality and purity are of the utmost importance. The MALDI-ToF mass spectrometric approach described herein represents a valuable technique for detailed monitoring of these dendronization reactions, as well as a variety of other polymer end group modifications.Híbridos bem definidos de poli(etilenoglicol) lineares (PEGs) e poliésteres dendriméricos foram preparados via "dendronização" de álcool e grupos de PEGs lineares mono e bifuncionais. Embora úteis para a caracterização rudimentar de produtos, Cromatografia por Permeação em Gel e RMN podem não demonstrar a pureza estrutural global desses híbridos lineares dendríticos. Por outro lado, informações detalhadas provenientes de espectrometria de massas MALDI-ToF permitiram a confirmação de elevada pureza estrutural de PEGs "dendronizados" em cada passo do processo de "dendronização". O número de funcionalidades bem definidas destes PEGs "dendronizados", torna-os particularmente úteis para pesquisa na área biomédica, na qual funcionalidade e pureza são de grande importância. A abordagem de espectrometria de massas MALDI-ToF descrita aqui representa uma técnica valiosa para o monitoramento detalhado destas reações de "dendronização", bem como diversas modificações de outros polímeros e grupos

Influence of Differences in Exercise-intensity and Kilograms/Set on Energy Expenditure During and After Maximally Explosive Resistance Exercise

With resistance exercise, greater intensity typically elicits increased energy expenditure, but heavier loads require that the lifter perform more sets of fewer repetitions, which alters the kilograms lifted per set. Thus, the effect of exercise-intensity on energy expenditure has yielded varying results, especially with explosive resistance exercise. This study was designed to examine the effect of exercise-intensity and kilograms/set on energy expenditure during explosive resistance exercise. Ten resistance-trained men (22±3.6 years; 84±6.4 kg, 180±5.1 cm, and 13±3.8 %fat) performed squat and bench press protocols once/week using different exercise-intensities including 48% (LIGHT-48), 60% (MODERATE-60), and 72% of 1-repetition-maximum (1-RM) (HEAVY-72), plus a no-exercise protocol (CONTROL). To examine the effects of kilograms/set, an additional protocol using 72% of 1-RM was performed (HEAVY-72MATCHED) with kilograms/set matched with LIGHT-48 and MODERATE-60. LIGHT-48 was 4 sets of 10 repetitions (4x10); MODERATE-60 4x8; HEAVY-72 5x5; and HEAVY-72MATCHED 4x6.5. Eccentric and concentric repetition speeds, ranges-of-motion, rest-intervals, and total kilograms were identical between protocols. Expired air was collected continuously throughout each protocol using a metabolic cart, [Blood lactate] using a portable analyzer, and bench press peak power were measured. Rates of energy expenditure were significantly greater (p≤0.05) with LIGHT-48 and HEAVY-72MATCHED than HEAVY-72 during squat (7.3±0.7; 6.9±0.6 \u3e 6.1±0.7 kcal/min), bench press (4.8±0.3; 4.7±0.3 \u3e 4.0±0.4 kcal/min), and +5min after (3.7±0.1; 3.7±0.2 \u3e 3.3±0.3 kcal/min), but there were no significant differences in total kcal among protocols. Therefore, exercise-intensity may not effect energy expenditure with explosive contractions, but light loads (~50% of 1-RM) may be preferred because of higher rates of energy expenditure, and since heavier loading requires more sets with lower kilograms/set