Early Developing Pig Embryos Mediate Their Own Environment in the Maternal Tract

The maternal tract plays a critical role in the success of early embryonic development providing an optimal environment for establishment and maintenance of pregnancy. Preparation of this environment requires an intimate dialogue between the embryo and her mother. However, many intriguing aspects remain unknown in this unique communication system. To advance our understanding of the process by which a blastocyst is accepted by the endometrium and better address the clinical challenges of infertility and pregnancy failure, it is imperative to decipher this complex molecular dialogue. The objective of the present work is to define the local response of the maternal tract towards the embryo during the earliest stages of pregnancy. We used a novel in vivo experimental model that eliminated genetic variability and individual differences, followed by Affymetrix microarray to identify the signals involved in this embryo-maternal dialogue. Using laparoscopic insemination one oviduct of a sow was inseminated with spermatozoa and the contralateral oviduct was injected with diluent. This model allowed us to obtain samples from the oviduct and the tip of the uterine horn containing either embryos or oocytes from the same sow. Microarray analysis showed that most of the transcripts differentially expressed were down-regulated in the uterine horn in response to blastocysts when compared to oocytes. Many of the transcripts altered in response to the embryo in the uterine horn were related to the immune system. We used an in silico mathematical model to demonstrate the role of the embryo as a modulator of the immune system. This model revealed that relatively modest changes induced by the presence of the embryo could modulate the maternal immune response. These findings suggested that the presence of the embryo might regulate the immune system in the maternal tract to allow the refractory uterus to tolerate the embryo and support its development

Results from the operation of an efficient and flexible large-scale biogas methanation system

This study reports the design and operation of a power-to-gas system producing 240 kW of synthetic natural gas (SNG) from biogas and PV electricity. The system is composed of a solar field, an electrolyser, a plate-type heat exchanger methanation reactor and the required ancillary units. Biogas is cleaned from undesired components (such as H2S) and the raw gas including methane and CO2 is directly processed in the reactor. The process consumes biogas and renewable electricity to produce SNG and high-pressure steam from the methanation waste heat. The process efficiency in this configuration is 76%. The methanation reactor produces grid compliant SNG in all the load cases tested and in all the biogas composition cases. The reactor shows an excellent flexibility at the start-up, as grid-compliant SNG is produced in less than 10 minutes from feed start in hot-standby. Additionally, the reactor adapts in few minutes to load changes. The reactor is modelled to better understand the origin of the excellent performance in the biogas methanation reaction. It was found that the plate-type heat exchanger operated with boiling water as cooling is an ideal solution for the methanation reaction as it approximates well the optimal reaction pathway in terms of temperature and conversion profile. Large cooling is available where needed, preventing the operation at too high temperature. Isothermal conditions are established at the end of the reactor, allowing reaching the required high conversion

Demonstration by Magnetic Resonance of Symptomatic Spinal Epidural Lipomatosis

Abstract In patients with Cushing's syndrome or morbid obesity, excessive accumulation of fat in the hips, upper back, abdomen, and mediastinum is well known (1, 3, 7). Excessive deposition of fat in the epidural space is less common, but must be recognized as a potential cause of neurological deficit (1-8). We report a patient with iatrogenic Cushing's syndrome, in whom magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) established the specific diagnosis of spinal cord compression secondary to excess epidural fat.</jats:p