A Comparison of Wintering Bird Populations in Three Open Field Types in Central Ohio

Author Institution: Department of Zoology, The University of Illinois, Champaign, Illinoi

Disproportionate subclass numbers in tables of multiple classification

Under the stimulus of some of the newer methods of experimentation there is a decided tendency toward the grouping of classes of data into smaller and more homogeneous sub-classes. The weights of swine, for example, may be simultaneously classified according to the sex as well as the litter of the individual animals. Corn yields may be entered in a three-way table by applying the criteria of variety, treatment and soil type. From the resulting tables of multiple classification can be derived information not only of the main effects, such as sex and litter, but also of the interactions between them. Analysis of variance is the most convenient and effective method of reducing such classified data to summary form and testing the significance of the various effects

Amino Acid Supplementation of Low Protein Corn-Soy Diets for Young Weaned Pigs

The objectives of this experiment were to determine the need for tryptophan supplementation of low protein starter diets supplemented with lysine and methionine and to determine the value of N-acetyl-DL-tryptophan as a source of tryptophan

The Effect of Extended Use of Banminth in Swine Diets

Banminth has been shown to kill the adult roundworms and also to stop the second stage larvae, thus preventing the damage caused by migration to the liver and lungs. The objective of this experiment was to determine the effect of feeding Banminth on performance of swine when fed to 75, 125 or 220 lb. and on comparative liver and lung damage

A Method of Hospital Infection Surveillance Incorporating the Use of the Computer

The records of all patients in the hospital on a particular date were studied for hospital-acquired infections. Results were compared with a continuing surveillance based on discharge reporting. Collection of data was programmed for analysis by using the hospital computer. Thirteen per cent of the patients manifested an infection after admission, but before or on the survey day. Results elsewhere are similar. Areas of the hospital with a relatively higher incidence of infection did not have clusters of particular pathogens

Influence of Season, Occupancy Pattern, and Technology on Structure and Composition of Nitrifying and Denitrifying Bacterial Communities in Advanced Nitrogen-Removal Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems

Advanced onsite wastewater treatment systems (OWTS) use biological nitrogen removal (BNR) to mitigate the threat that N-rich wastewater poses to coastal waterbodies and groundwater. These systems lower the N concentration of effluent via sequential microbial nitrification and denitrification. We used high-throughput sequencing to evaluate the structure and composition of nitrifying and denitrifying bacterial communities in advanced N-removal OWTS, targeting the genes encoding ammonia monooxygenase (amoA) and nitrous oxide reductase (nosZ) present in effluent from 44 advanced systems. We used QIIME2 and the phyloseq package in R to examine differences in taxonomy and alpha and beta diversity as a function of advanced OWTS technology, occupancy pattern (seasonal vs. year-round use), and season (June vs. September). Richness and Shannon’s diversity index for amoA were significantly influenced by season, whereas technology influenced nosZ diversity significantly. Season also had a strong influence on differences in beta diversity among amoA communities, and had less influence on nosZ communities, whereas technology had a stronger influence on nosZ communities. Nitrosospira and Nitrosomonas were the main genera of nitrifiers in advanced N-removal OWTS, and the predominant genera of denitrifiers included Zoogloea, Thauera, and Acidovorax. Differences in taxonomy for each gene generally mirrored those observed in diversity patterns, highlighting the possible importance of season and technology in shaping communities of amoA and nosZ, respectively. Knowledge gained from this study may be useful in understanding the connections between microbial communities and OWTS performance and may help manage systems in a way that maximizes N removal

Identification of Candidate Driver Genes in Common Focal Chromosomal Aberrations of Microsatellite Stable Colorectal Cancer

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide. Chromosomal instability (CIN) is a major driving force of microsatellite stable (MSS) sporadic CRC. CIN tumours are characterised by a large number of somatic chromosomal copy number aberrations (SCNA) that frequently affect oncogenes and tumour suppressor genes. The main aim of this work was to identify novel candidate CRC driver genes affected by recurrent and focal SCNA. High resolution genome-wide comparative genome hybridisation (CGH) arrays were used to compare tumour and normal DNA for 53 sporadic CRC cases. Context corrected common aberration (COCA) analysis and custom algorithms identified 64 deletions and 32 gains of focal minimal common regions (FMCR) at high frequency (>10%). Comparison of these FMCR with published genomic profiles from CRC revealed common overlap (42.2% of deletions and 34.4% of copy gains). Pathway analysis showed that apoptosis and p53 signalling pathways were commonly affected by deleted FMCR, and MAPK and potassium channel pathways by gains of FMCR. Candidate tumour suppressor genes in deleted FMCR included RASSF3, IFNAR1, IFNAR2 and NFKBIA and candidate oncogenes in gained FMCR included PRDM16, TNS1, RPA3 and KCNMA1. In conclusion, this study confirms some previously identified aberrations in MSS CRC and provides in silico evidence for some novel candidate driver gene

Simple model for tuberculosis in cattle and badgers

As an aid to the study of bovine tuberculosis (TB), a simple model has been developed of an epidemic involving two species, cattle and badgers. Each species may infect the other. The proportion of animals affected is assumed relatively small so that the usual nonlinear aspects of epidemic theory are avoided. The model is used to study the long-run and transient effect on cattle of culling badgers and the effect of a period without routine testing for TB, such as occurred during the 2001 epidemic of foot-and-mouth disease in Great Britain. Finally, by examining the changes in cattle TB over the last 15 years, and with some other working assumptions, it is estimated that the net reproduction number of the epidemic is 1.1. The implications for controlling the disease are discussed

Nitrifying and Denitrifying Microbial Communities in Centralized and Decentralized Biological Nitrogen Removing Wastewater Treatment Systems

Biological nitrogen removal (BNR) in centralized and decentralized wastewater treatment systems is assumed to be driven by the same microbial processes and to have communities with a similar composition and structure. There is, however, little information to support these assumptions, which may impact the effectiveness of decentralized systems. We used high-throughput sequencing to compare the structure and composition of the nitrifying and denitrifying bacterial communities of nine onsite wastewater treatment systems (OWTS) and one wastewater treatment plant (WTP) by targeting the genes coding for ammonia monooxygenase (amoA) and nitrous oxide reductase (nosZ). The amoA diversity was similar between the WTP and OWTS, but nosZ diversity was generally higher for the WTP. Beta diversity analyses showed the WTP and OWTS promoted distinct amoA and nosZ communities, although there is a core group of N-transforming bacteria common across scales of BNR treatment. Our results suggest that advanced N-removal OWTS have microbial communities that are sufficiently distinct from those of WTP with BNR, which may warrant different management approaches