Qualitative und quantitative Beurteilung des Verhaltens von Jungsauen während eines freiwilligen Annäherungstests

Free farrowing systems are required by organic standards (Commission regulation (EC) 889/2008). However, not only adequate housing design and good management but also sows which are able to rear piglets successfully in those systems are important. Several studies show a relation between approach time during behavioural tests and reproductive traits. So far behavioural traits are not considered when selecting gilts in Austria. The aim of this study was to perform a qualitative and quantitative behavioural assessment during a voluntary approach test at two organic gilt producers which could provide practical tools for behavioural assessment when selecting gilts. A total of 44 gilts was tested in a 3x3m arena and observed when approaching a test person. Qualitatively three components were found: “emotional state”, “proactiveness” and “self-confidence”. The second and third components were significantly related to quantitative parameters. The component “emotional state” may provide additional information. However, it remains to be investigated if this information is related to reproductive performanc

LETM1-Mediated K+ and Na+ Homeostasis Regulates Mitochondrial Ca2+ Efflux

HIGHLIGHTS \u2022 Monovalent cation homeostasis is dysregulated upon LETM1 depletion \u2022 K+/H+ exchange activity is decreased in LETM1 knockdown cells \u2022 LETM1 depletion results in K+ accumulation in the mitochondrial matrix \u2022 LETM1 knockdown does not affect expression of major mitochondrial Ca2+ transport modulators \u2022 LETM1-regulated mitochondrial Ca2+ fluxes are dependent on Na+ Ca2+ transport across the inner membrane of mitochondria (IMM) is of major importance for their functions in bioenergetics, cell death and signaling. It is therefore tightly regulated. It has been recently proposed that LETM1\u2014an IMM protein with a crucial role in mitochondrial K+/H+ exchange and volume homeostasis\u2014also acts as a Ca2+/H+ exchanger. Here we show for the first time that lowering LETM1 gene expression by shRNA hampers mitochondrial K+/H+ and Na+/H+ exchange. Decreased exchange activity resulted in matrix K+ accumulation in these mitochondria. Furthermore, LETM1 depletion selectively decreased Na+/Ca2+ exchange mediated by NCLX, as observed in the presence of ruthenium red, a blocker of the Mitochondrial Ca2+ Uniporter (MCU). These data confirm a key role of LETM1 in monovalent cation homeostasis, and suggest that the effects of its modulation on mitochondrial transmembrane Ca2+ fluxes may reflect those on Na+/H+ exchange activity

Genetic Parameters of Austrian Fleckvieh Cattle in Organic and Conventional Production Systems with Different Levels of Management Intensity

Improvement of breeding and management has resulted in a considerable improvement of production and many fitness traits in Austrian dairy cattle. Apart from that, a variety of different dairy production systems, comprising organic, extensive to intensive systems can be observed in Austria. It can be assumed that different breeding goals exist in different production systems which would cause differences in genetic parameters and would imply the necessity of adapted breeding objectives. Therefore, the aim of the study was to estimate genetic parameters of three different production systems (organic, conventional low and high level of farm intensity) for three productions (milk kg, fat kg, protein kg) and six fitness traits (persistency, somatic cell score, functional longevity, milking speed, udder health index and fertility index) using an approximate multivariate two-step approach. In general, heritabilities and genetic correlations were similar in all three production systems. Heritabilities ranged from 0.04 for fertility index for the farms with a low level of farm intensity to 0.65 for milk kg for farms with a high level of farm intensity. Almost no deviations were found between the genetic correlations across the defined production systems. Due to the similar results it can be concluded that breeding objectives are similar in different production systems and currently breeding objectives do not need to be adjusted

Genetic Parameters of Austrian Fleckvieh Cattle in Organic and Conventional Production Systems with Different Levels of Management Intensity

Improvement of breeding and management has resulted in a considerable improvement of production and many fitness traits in Austrian dairy cattle. Apart from that, a variety of different dairy production systems, comprising organic, extensive to intensive systems can be observed in Austria. It can be assumed that different breeding goals exist in different production systems which would cause differences in genetic parameters and would imply the necessity of adapted breeding objectives. Therefore, the aim of the study was to estimate genetic parameters of three different production systems (organic, conventional low and high level of farm intensity) for three productions (milk kg, fat kg, protein kg) and six fitness traits (persistency, somatic cell score, functional longevity, milking speed, udder health index and fertility index) using an approximate multivariate two-step approach. In general, heritabilities and genetic correlations were similar in all three production systems. Heritabilities ranged from 0.04 for fertility index for the farms with a low level of farm intensity to 0.65 for milk kg for farms with a high level of farm intensity. Almost no deviations were found between the genetic correlations across the defined production systems. Due to the similar results it can be concluded that breeding objectives are similar in different production systems and currently breeding objectives do not need to be adjusted

Textile based dye-sensitized solar cells with natural dyes

Natural dyes extracted from hibiscus petals, elderberries and mallow flowers were investigated in dye-sensitized solar cells. Two approaches were followed: 1. Hybrid glass/fabric cells with titanium dioxide on glass as working electrode and a textile counter electrode; 2. hybrid fabric/glass cells with zinc oxide as working electrode on textile and a glass counter electrode. The zinc oxide layer on cotton was prepared by electroless deposition whereas the titanium dioxide coated glass electrodes were obtained directly from the manufacturer. In both cases the redox couple consisted of iodine / triiodide and the counter electrode was based on an electrically conductive fabric

The effect of transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation in patients with polymyalgia rheumatica

(1) Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) is an inflammatory disease characterised by pain, morning stiffness, and reduced quality of life. Recently, vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) was shown to have anti-inflammatory effects. We aimed to examine the effect of transcutaneous VNS (t-VNS) on PMR. (2) Fifteen treatment-naïve PMR patients completed the study. Patients underwent a 5-day protocol, receiving 2 min of t-VNS stimulation bilaterally on the neck, three times daily. Cardiac vagal tone (CVT) measured on a linear vagal scale (LVS), blood pressure, heart rate, patient-reported outcome, and biochemical changes were assessed. (3) t-VNS induced a 22% increase in CVT at 20 min after initial stimulations compared with baseline (3.4 ± 2.2 LVS vs. 4.1 ± 2.9 LVS, p = 0.02) and was accompanied by a 4 BPM reduction in heart rate (73 ± 11 BPM vs. 69 ± 9, p p = 0.04). No changes in CRP or proinflammatory analytes were observed. (4) t-VNS modulates the autonomic nervous system in patients with PMR, but further investigation of t-VNS in PMR patients is warranted

Implementation of a C Library of Kalman Filters for Application on Embedded Systems

Having knowledge about the states of a system is an important component in most control systems. However, an exact measurement of the states cannot always be provided because it is either not technically possible or only possible with a significant effort. Therefore, state estimation plays an important role in control applications. The well-known and widely used Kalman filter is often employed for this purpose. This paper describes the implementation of nonlinear Kalman filter algorithms, the extended and the unscented Kalman filter with square-rooting, in the programming language C, that are suitable for the use on embedded systems. The implementations deal with single or double precision data types depending on the application. The newly implemented filters are demonstrated in the context of semi-active vehicle damper control and the estimation of the tire–road friction coefficient as application examples, providing real-time capability. Their per-formances were evaluated in tests on an electronic control unit and a rapid-prototyping platform