A genome-wide association study for somatic cell score using the Illumina high-density bovine beadchip identifies several novel QTL potentially related to mastitis susceptibility

peer-reviewedMastitis is an inflammation-driven disease of the bovine mammary gland that occurs in response to physical damage or infection and is one of the most costly production-related diseases in the dairy industry worldwide. We performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) to identify genetic loci associated with somatic cell score (SCS), an indicator trait of mammary gland inflammation. A total of 702 Holstein-Friesian bulls were genotyped for 777,962 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and associated with SCS phenotypes. The SCS phenotypes were expressed as daughter yield deviations (DYD) based on a large number of progeny performance records. A total of 138 SNPs on 15 different chromosomes reached genome-wide significance (corrected p-value ≤ 0.05) for association with SCS (after correction for multiple testing). We defined 28 distinct QTL regions and a number of candidate genes located in these QTL regions were identified. The most significant association (p-value = 1.70 × 10−7) was observed on chromosome 6. This QTL had no known genes annotated within it, however, the Ensembl Genome Browser predicted the presence of a small non-coding RNA (a Y RNA gene) in this genomic region. This Y RNA gene was 99% identical to human RNY4. Y RNAs are a rare type of non-coding RNA that were originally discovered due to their association with the autoimmune disease, systemic lupus erythematosus. Examining small-RNA sequencing (RNAseq) data being generated by us in multiple different mastitis-pathogen challenged cell-types has revealed that this Y RNA is expressed (but not differentially expressed) in these cells. Other QTL regions identified in this study also encoded strong candidate genes for mastitis susceptibility. A QTL region on chromosome 13, for example, was found to contain a cluster of β-defensin genes, a gene family with known roles in innate immunity. Due to the increased SNP density, this study also refined the boundaries for several known QTL for SCS and mastitis.This material is based upon works supported by the Science Foundation Ireland under Grant No.[09/IN.1/B2642].We also acknowledge funding provided for this project through the Teagasc Walsh Fellowship scheme and Teagasc RMIS6018 as well as the Irish Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine Research Stimulus Fund(11/S/112)

Effect of trail bifurcation asymmetry and pheromone presence or absence on trail choice by Lasius niger ants

During foraging, ant workers are known to make use of multiple information sources, such as private information (personal memory) and social information (trail pheromones). Environmental effects on foraging, and how these interact with other information sources, have, however, been little studied. One environmental effect is trail bifurcation asymmetry. Ants forage on branching trail networks and must often decide which branch to take at a junction (bifurcation). This is an important decision, as finding food sources relies on making the correct choices at bifurcations. Bifurcation angle may provide important information when making this choice. We used a Y-maze with a pivoting 90° bifurcation to study trail choice of Lasius niger foragers at varying branch asymmetries (0°, [both branches 45° from straight ahead], 30° [branches at 30° and 60° from straight ahead], 45°, 60° and 90° [one branch straight ahead, the other at 90°]). The experiment was carried out either with equal amounts of trail pheromone on both branches of the bifurcation or with pheromone present on only one branch. Our results show that with equal pheromone, trail asymmetry has a significant effect on trail choice. Ants preferentially follow the branch deviating least from straight, and this effect increases as asymmetry increases (47% at 0°, 54% at 30°, 57% at 45°, 66% at 60° and 73% at 90°). However, when pheromone is only present on one branch, the graded effect of asymmetry disappears. Overall, however, there is an effect of asymmetry as the preference of ants for the pheromone-marked branch over the unmarked branch is reduced from 65%, when it is the less deviating branch, to 53%, when it is the more deviating branch. These results demonstrate that trail asymmetry influences ant decision-making at bifurcations and that this information interacts with trail pheromone presence in a non-hierarchical manner

The Assessment of the Blacksmithing Industry in Ghana (A Case Study of Suame Magazine, Kumasi)

The blacksmithing industry has been in existence for a long time, it offers employment to many people in, Ghana. The industry plays a major role in the socio-economic development of the country through the servicing of vehicles, carpentry, household, agricultural implements etc. Inspite of its contribution to the society, it has not made much impact to national development due to some challenges. This study assesses the performance of the blacksmithing industry of Suame Magazine in Kumasi, Ghana with respect to its designs, methods of production and nature of services provided. The descriptive method under the qualitative method of research which uses observation and interview was adopted to analyze and interpret data gathered. A simple random sampling technique was used to solicit for information and a structured interview and observation was used as data collection instruments. The study confirmed the industry’s positive contribution to socio-economic development of the country. It was however revealed that the quality of their product design was not only low, but almost non-existent and the industry still depended on old methods of production, thus affecting it. Possible recommendations include; liking the industry with academic institutions like KNUST and Polytechnics to help assist it upgrade its methods of production, provision of financial assistance by financial institutions and NGOs in the form of credit facilities which could help the industry contribute its quota effectively to national development. Keywords:Blacksmithing, designs, products, forging, fabrication, apprentic

AN EXPLORATION OF COMMUNITY AND CULTURE RELATED FIRE INJURY RISKS (8)

There can be different types and different levels of fire injury risks relating to different communities and cultures. In this paper we examine the fire injury risks associated with different communities and cultures in the Greater Manchester area within the UK over the period 2010 to 2015. Typically ethnicity data is only recorded for fire injuries rather than fire incidents. In particular, the research reported in this paper examines the fire injury risks relating to age, cooking practices, candle and incense use, alcohol consumption rates, and smoking rates across different communities and cultures. Overall there appeared to be significant differences between the injury risk of alcohol related fires, smoking related fires, and kitchen fires between the different community and cultural groups within the area studied over the given time period. In addition fire injury risk appears significantly higher for elderly individuals in the White British and White Irish community groups

Fruit of the Womb

https://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/feminist_zines/1048/thumbnail.jp

Monitoring attitude toward Christianity among year 5 and year 6 students attending Church in Wales primary schools

This study argues that assessment of student attitudes provides insight into the culture and climate of schools. The Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity was employed to explore the Christian culture and climate of Anglican church primary schools within the state-maintained sector across Wales. The analysis drew on responses from 1,899 students from year 5 and year 6. The data demonstrated that the majority of students held a positive attitude toward Christianity, that female students held a more positive attitude than did male students, and that a significant decline in positive attitude toward Christianity took place over the two year groups

The internal consistency reliability and construct validity of the Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity among 8- to 11-year-old students in Wales

The Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity was designed in the mid-1970s to assess individual differences in attitude through childhood, adolescence, and adulthood from the age of 8 years upwards. This study examines the internal consistency reliability, factor structure, and construct validity of the instrument 40 years later among 1511 year 4 students (8–9 years), 1544 year 5 students (9–10 years), and 1526 year 6 students (10–11 years) in Wales attending Church in Wales voluntary aided and voluntary controlled primary schools. The data support the internal consistency reliability and construct validity of the instrument among the age range and commend the instrument for continued use in research

Application of ultraviolet light-emitting diodes (UV-LED) to full-scale drinking-water disinfection

Ultraviolet light-emitting diodes (UV-LEDs) have recently emerged as a viable technology for water disinfection. However, the performance of the technology in full-scale drinking-water treatment systems remains poorly characterised. Furthermore, current UV disinfection standards and protocols have been developed specifically for conventional mercury UV systems and so do not necessarily provide an accurate indication of UV-LED disinfection performance. Hence, this study aimed to test the hypothesis that a full-scale UV-LED reactor can match the Cryptosporidium inactivation efficiency of conventional mercury UV reactors. Male-specific bacteriophage (MS2) was used as the Cryptosporidium spp. surrogate microorganism. The time-based inactivation efficiency of the full-scale reactor was firstly compared to that of a bench-scale (batch-type) UV-LED reactor. This was then related to mercury UV reactors by comparing the fluence-based efficiency of the bench-scale reactor to the USEPA 90% prediction interval range of expected MS2 inactivation using mercury UV lamps. The results showed that the full-scale UV-LED reactor was at least as effective as conventional mercury UV reactors at the water-quality and drive-current conditions considered. Nevertheless, comparisons between the bench- and full-scale UV-LED reactors indicated that improvements in the hydraulic flow profile and power output of the full-scale reactor could help to further improve the efficiency of UV-LED reactors for municipal drinking water disinfection. This represents the world’s first full-scale UV-LED reactor that can be applied at municipal water treatment works for disinfection of pathogenic microorganisms from drinking water

Literacy programs efficacy for developing children's early reading skills in familiar language in Zambia

This study investigated the comparative efficacy of a phonics-based reading program and a language experience approach based literacy program to develop reading skills among Zambian early childhood school learners. The learners (n = 1 986; Grade 2 level; females = 50.1%) took either the phonics-based reading program (n = 1 593) or the alternative language experience approach based program (n = 393). They were all assessed for reading skills utilising the Early Grade Reading Assessment test (EGRA) in four languages (Cinyanja, Icibemba, Kiikaonde, and Silozi). Results suggest that learners in phonics-based literacy program were significantly better in letter-sound knowledge in all the four languages. Additionally, they were significantly better in reading skills (non-word reading, oral passage reading, and reading comprehension), yet only in Icibemba and Silozi, as compared to those who took the alternative program. Results reveal that children in the Primary Literacy Program (PLP) had significantly better performance in most reading skills than in the Primary Reading Program (PRP). However, the effect sizes were small or medium. The high floor effect in all reading-related measures is an indication that by following either PRP or the recently implemented PLP, most children do not acquire basic reading skill of the transparently written language they are familiar with. Instruction of the sounds of letters requires special attention where digital training tools (such as GraphoGame) may provide the most effective help to both teachers and children.Peer reviewe