the influence of pregnancy and the beginning of lactation on pelage traits in cashmere goats

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of pregnancy followed by the beginning of lactation on fibre traits incashmere goats. Two groups of cashmere-bearing goats aged between 2-3 years were used. The control group (A) included12 non-lactating, non-pregnant subjects. The experimental group (B) included 12 goats mated during the first weekof June, in order to have pregnancy and the beginning of lactation coincide with the period when cashmere normallygrows. As expected, Liveweight significantly varied in Group B during the last two months of pregnancy, when foetalgrowth reaches its maximum, and following delivery. Hair patch weight, because of the continuous growth of primary andsecondary fibres, increased significantly during the trial (P<0.001). The physiological status considered negatively affected(P<0.05) the total mean growth rate of cashmere fibres and, as a result, their length. Cashmere daily growth ratevalues varied significantly (P<0.05) throughout the experiment, while the effect of the physiological status was notedonly in November – December. Furthermore, this parameter also seems to be influenced by climatic factors and, in particular,environmental temperature, as shown by the negative correlation (r = - 0.28; P<0.05) between cashmere dailygrowth rate and environmental temperature. Guard hair length and growth rate did not differ between the two groups,however, they were influenced by time. Cashmere yield and cashmere production were lower in group B (P<0.05). Nodifferences between groups were observed for cashmere diameter. Overall, pregnancy and the consequent period of lactationnegatively influenced cashmere rather than guard hair fibres. These negative effects were noted in quantitativeterms as yield and production dropped by 37% and 43%, respectively. We hypothesise that the complete overlap of pregnancyand lactation with the period of cashmere growth reduced the number of secondary active follicles and their degreeof activity and caused an increase in competition for the partitioning of nutrients between hair follicles and the graviduterus, first, and then the mammary gland, later

Erratum: "Qualità delle carni di cinghiale allevato e selvatico" (Progress in Nutrition (2007) vol. 9 (4)(248-252))

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Quality of the meat of wild and raised wild boar

In order to study the meat quality of wild boars and in particolar their fatty acid composition 8 carcasses of male wild boars have been analized, 4 of which come from hunting territorle and the remaining 4 reared in outdoor pens, till 9 months of age. Every right half part, of each carcass, has been divided into commercial cuts and from each of them a sample of I "Longissimus dorsi," has been taken, on which chemical and physical analises have been carried out. On the fat extracted from this muscle, tha fatty acid composition has been determined. Our results show that the cooked meat of wild wild boars have the highest (P < 0,05) presence of omega 3 (2,28% vs 1,13%) and, even if without significance, the best ratio omega 6/omega 3 (7,07 vs 10,04) and the highest percentage presence of omega 6 (15,63% vs 10,48%). Moreover the cooked meat of wild animals has been showed the best (P < 0,05) TI (0,96 vs 1,39), and the best ratio unsaturated/saturated (1,76 vs 1,32); saturated/polyunsaturated (2,13 vs 4,05) and PCL/PCE (1,72 vs 1,25), even if they are not significant

The Effect of Traumatic Brain Injury on Sleep Architecture and Circadian Rhythms in Mice—A Comparison of High-Frequency Head Impact and Controlled Cortical Injury

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a significant risk factor for the development of sleep and circadian rhythm impairments. In this study we compare the circadian rhythms and sleep patterns in the high-frequency head impact (HFHI) and controlled cortical impact (CCI) mouse models of TBI. These mouse models have different injury mechanisms key differences of pathology in brain regions controlling circadian rhythms and EEG wave generation. We found that both HFHI and CCI caused dysregulation in the diurnal expression of core circadian genes (Bmal1, Clock, Per1,2, Cry1,2) at 24 h post-TBI. CCI mice had reduced locomotor activity on running wheels in the first 7 d post-TBI; however, both CCI and HFHI mice were able to maintain circadian behavior cycles even in the absence of light cues. We used implantable EEG to measure sleep cycles and brain activity and found that there were no differences in the time spent awake, in NREM or REM sleep in either TBI model. However, in the sleep states, CCI mice have reduced delta power in NREM sleep and reduced theta power in REM sleep at 7 d post-TBI. Our data reveal that different types of brain trauma can result in distinct patterns of circadian and sleep disruptions and can be used to better understand the etiology of sleep disorders after TBI