Conception rate of artificially inseminated holstein cows affected by cloudy vaginal mucus, under intense heat conditions.

The objective of this work was to obtain prevalence estimates of cloudy vaginal mucus in artificially inseminated Holstein cows raised under intense heat, in order to assess the effect of meteorological conditions on its occurrence during estrus and to determine its effect on conception rate. In a first study, an association was established between the occurrence of cloudy vaginal mucus during estrus and the conception rate of inseminated cows (18,620 services), raised under intense heat (mean annual temperature of 22°C), at highly technified farms, in the arid region of northern Mexico. In a second study, data from these large dairy operations were used to assess the effect of meteorological conditions throughout the year on the occurrence of cloudy vaginal mucus during artificial insemination (76,899 estruses). The overall rate of estruses with cloudy vaginal mucus was 21.4% (16,470/76,899; 95% confidence interval = 21.1?21.7%). The conception rate of cows with clean vaginal mucus was higher than that of cows with abnormal mucus (30.6 vs. 22%). Prevalence of estruses with cloudy vaginal mucus was strongly dependent on high ambient temperature and markedly higher in May and June. Acceptable conception rates in high milk-yielding Holstein cows can only be obtained with cows showing clear and translucid mucus at artificial insemination.Título em português: Taxa de concepção de vacas Holandesas inseminadas artificialmente e afetadas por muco vaginal turvo, sob condições de intenso calor

Effect of Social Rank upon Estrus Induction and Some Reproductive Outcomes in Anestrus Goats Treated With Progesterone + eCG

We evaluated the possible role of the social rank [R] (i.e., low—LSR, middle—MSR, or high—HSR) in anestrus goats exposed to a P4 + eCG [D] (i.e., 100 or 350 IU) estrus induction protocol (EIP). Adult, multiparous (two to three lactations), multiracial, dairy-type goats (Alpine–Saanen–Nubian x Criollo goats (n = 70; 25°51′ North) managed under stall-fed conditions were all ultrasound evaluated to confirm anestrus status while the R was determined 30 d prior to the EIP. The variables of estrus induction (EI, %), estrus latency (LAT, h), estrus duration (DUR, h), ovulation (OVU, %), ovulation rate (OR, n), corpus luteum size (CLS, cm), pregnancy (PREG, %), kidding (KIDD, %), and litter size (LS, n) as affected by R, D, and the R × D interaction, were evaluated. While OVU and CLS favored (p 0.05; 38.5%) KIDD. However, EI, LAT, DUR, OR, and PREG were affected by the R × D interaction. The HSR group had the largest (p < 0.05) EI % and DUR h, irrespective of D. The shortest (p < 0.05) LAT occurred in D350, irrespective of R. While the largest (p < 0.05) OR occurred in HSR and MSR within D350, the HSR + D350 group had the largest PREG (p < 0.05). These research outcomes are central to defining out-of-season reproductive strategies designed to attenuate seasonal reproduction in goats

Precision Betacarotene Supplementation Enhanced Ovarian Function and the LH Release Pattern in Yearling Crossbred Anestrous Goats

The possible out-of-season effect of beta-carotene supplementation on ovulation rate (OR), antral follicles (AFN), and total ovarian activity (TOA = OR + AFN) as related to the LH release pattern in yearling anestrous goats was evaluated. In late April, Alpine-Saanen-Nubian x Criollo goats (n = 22, 26 N) were randomly allotted to: (1) Beta-carotene (BETA; n = 10, orally supplemented with 50 mg/goat/d; 36.4 ± 1.07 kg live weight (LW), 3.5 ± 0.20 units, body condition score (BCS) or (2) Non-supplemented (CONT; n = 12, 35.2 ± 1.07 kg LW, 3.4 ± 0.2 units BCS). Upon estrus synchronization, an intensive blood sampling (6 h × 15 min) was accomplished in May for LH quantifications; response variables included (pulsatility-PULSE, time to first pulse-TTFP, amplitude-AMPL, nadir-NAD and area under the curve-AUC). Thereafter, an ultrasonography scanning was completed to assess OR and AFN. The Munro algorithm was used to quantify LH pulsatility; if significant effects of time, treatment or interaction were identified, data were compared across time. Neither LW nor BCS (p > 0.05) or even the LH (p > 0.05); PULSE (4.1 ± 0.9 pulses/6 h), NAD (0.47 ± 0.13 ng) and AUC (51.7 ± 18.6 units) differed between treatments. Nonetheless, OR (1.57 vs. 0.87 ± 0.18 units) and TOA (3.44 vs. 1.87 ± 0.45 units) escorted by a reduced TTFP (33 vs. 126 ± 31.9 min) and an increased AMPL (0.55 vs. 0.24 ± 0.9 ng), favored to the BETA supplemented group (p < 0.05), possibly through a GnRH-LH enhanced pathway and(or) a direct effect at ovarian level. Results are relevant to speed-up the out-of-season reproductive outcomes in goats while may embrace translational applications

Targeted glutamate supply boosts insulin concentrations, ovarian activity, and ovulation rate in yearling goats during the anestrous season

The neuroendocrine regulation of the seasonal reproductive axis requires the integration of internal and external signals to ensure synchronized physiological and behavioral responses. Seasonal reproductive changes contribute to intermittent production, which poses challenges for optimizing goat product yields. Consequently, a significant objective in seasonal reproduction research is to attain continuous reproduction and enhance profitability in goat farming. Glutamate plays a crucial role as a modulator in several reproductive and metabolic processes. Hence, the aim of this study was to evaluate the potential impact of exogenous glutamate administration on serum insulin concentration and ovarian function during the out-of-season period in yearling goats. During the anestrous season, animals were randomly located in individual pens to form two experimental groups: (1) glutamate (n = 10, live weight (LW) = 29.1 ± 1.02 kg, body condition score (BCS) = 3.4 ± 0.2 units) and (2) control (n = 10; LW = 29.2 ± 1.07 kg, BCS = 3.5 ± 0.2), with no differences (p < 0.05) regarding LW and BCS. Then, goats were estrus-synchronized, and blood sampling was carried out for insulin quantification. Ovaries were ultrasonographically scanned to assess ovulation rate (OR), number of antral follicles (AFs), and total ovarian activity (TOA = OR + AF). The research outcomes support our working hypothesis. Certainly, our study confirms that those yearling goats treated with exogenous glutamate displayed the largest (p < 0.05) insulin concentrations across time as well as an augmented (p < 0.05) out-of-season ovarian activity

Goats as Valuable Animal Model to Test the Targeted Glutamate Supplementation upon Antral Follicle Number, Ovulation Rate, and LH-Pulsatility

The potential effect of intravenous administration of glutamate on the ovarian activity and the LH secretion pattern, considering the anestrous yearling goat as an animal model, were assessed. In late April, yearling goats (n = 20) were randomly assigned to either (1) Glutamate supplemented (GLUT; n = 10, Live Weight (LW) = 29.6 ± 1.02 kg, Body Condition (BCS) = 3.4 ± 0.2 units; i.v. supplemented with 7 mg GLUT kg−1 LW) or (2) Non-supplemented (CONT; n = 10; LW = 29.2 ± 1.07 kg, BCS = 3.5 ± 0.2 units; i.v. saline). The oats were estrus-synchronized; blood sampling (6 h × 15 min) was carried out for LH quantification. Response variables included pulsatility (PULSE), time to first pulse (TTFP), amplitude (AMPL), nadir (NAD), and area under the curve (AUC) of LH. Ovaries were ultra-sonographically scanned to assess ovulation rate (OR), number of antral follicles (AF), and total ovarian activity (TOA = OR + AF). LH-PULSE was quantified with the Munro algorithm; significant treatment x time interactions were evaluated across time. The variables LW and BCS did not differ (p > 0.05) between the experimental groups. Nevertheless, OR (1.77 vs. 0.87 ± 0.20 units), TOA (4.11 vs. 1.87 ± 0.47 units) and LH-PULSE (5.0 vs. 2.2 pulses 6 h-1) favored (p < 0.05) to the GLUT group. Our results reveal that targeted glutamate supplementation, the main central nervous system neurotransmitter, arose as an interesting strategy to enhance the hypothalamic–hypophyseal–ovarian response considering the anestrous-yearling goat as an animal model, with thought-provoking while promising translational applications

Does Size Matters? Relationships among Social Dominance and Some Morphometric Traits upon Out-of-Season Reproductive Outcomes in Anestrus Dairy Goats Treated with P4 + eCG

The possible role of the social rank (R) (i.e., low-LSR, middle-MSR, or high-HSR) in anestrus goats exposed to a P4 + eCG (D) (i.e., 100 or 350 IU) estrus induction protocol (EIP) was evaluated. Goats (Alpine-Saanen-Nubian × Criollo; n = 70; 25° North) managed under stall-fed conditions were all ultrasound evaluated to confirm anestrous status, while the social rank was determined 30 d prior to the EIP. The response variables included estrus induction (EI, %), duration of estrus (DUR, h), ovulation rate (OR, n), live weight (LW, kg), thoracic perimeter (TP, cm), thoracic diameter (TD, cm), body length (BL, cm), height at withers (HW, cm), beard length (BEA, cm), compactness index (COM, cm), and anamorphosis index (ANA, cm), as affected by R, D, and the R × D interaction were evaluated, while the correlation coefficients among reproductive and morphometric variables were quantified. An R × D interaction (p 0.05) with any response variable, either reproductive or morphometric. As expected, LW had high correlation coefficients (p < 0.01) with TP (0.86), TD (0.88), BL (0.82), HW (0.75), BEA (0.51), COM (0.97), and ANA (0.75). In general, the morphometric variables as a whole demonstrated important correlation coefficients among them (p < 0.01), ranging from 0.38 up to 0.84. To estimate the importance of the morphometric differences between social rank upon estrus induction, a principal component (PC) analysis was performed based on the correlation matrix derived from the corporal measurements. The PC1 and PC2 explained 70.3% and 17.6% of the morphometric variation, respectively. The PC1 was a measure of the goat size (i.e., small, medium, large) and its association with estrus occurrence was evaluated using a logistic regression model; the bigger the goat, the increased probability of being in estrus, by up to five times compared to small goats. Our results confirm that the higher social ranked, larger goats amalgamated some fundamental factors to be successful: aggressiveness, primacy to food access, augmented live weight, and corporal size; all of these were able to modulate out-of-season reproductive success in crossbred dairy goats subjected to an estrus induction protocol and managed under stall-fed conditions in Northern Mexico

The structure of Chariklo's rings from stellar occultations

Two narrow and dense rings (called C1R and C2R) were discovered around the Centaur object (10199) Chariklo during a stellar occultation observed on 2013 June 3. Following this discovery, we planned observations of several occultations by Chariklo's system in order to better characterize the physical properties of the ring and main body. Here, we use 12 successful occulations by Chariklo observed between 2014 and 2016. They provide ring profiles (physical width, opacity, edge structure) and constraints on the radii and pole position. Our new observations are currently consistent with the circular ring solution and pole position, to within the $\pm 3.3$ km formal uncertainty for the ring radii derived by Braga-Ribas et al. The six resolved C1R profiles reveal significant width variations from $\sim 5$ to 7.5 km. The width of the fainter ring C2R is less constrained, and may vary between 0.1 and 1 km. The inner and outer edges of C1R are consistent with infinitely sharp boundaries, with typical upper limits of one kilometer for the transition zone between the ring and empty space. No constraint on the sharpness of C2R's edges is available. A 1$\sigma$ upper limit of $\sim 20$ m is derived for the equivalent width of narrow (physical width <4 km) rings up to distances of 12,000 km, counted in the ring plane

Latin American consumption of major food groups: Results from the ELANS study

Background The Latin American (LA) region is still facing an ongoing epidemiological transition and shows a complex public health scenario regarding non-communicable diseases (NCDs). A healthy diet and consumption of specific food groups may decrease the risk of NCDs, however there is a lack of dietary intake data in LA countries. Objective Provide updated data on the dietary intake of key science-based selected food groups related to NCDs risk in LA countries. Design ELANS (Latin American Study of Nutrition and Health) is a multicenter cross-sectional study assessing food consumption from an urban sample between15 to 65 years old from 8 LA countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela). Two 24-HR were obtained from 9, 218 individuals. The daily intake of 10 food groups related to NCDs risk (fruits; vegetables; legumes/beans; nuts and seeds; whole grains products; fish and seafood; yogurt; red meat; processed meats; sugar-sweetened beverages (ready-to-drink and homemade)) were assessed and compared to global recommendations. Results Only 7.2% of the overall sample reached WHO's recommendation for fruits and vegetables consumption (400 grams per day). Regarding the dietary patterns related to a reduced risk of NCDs, among the overall sample legumes and fruits were the food groups with closer intake to the recommendation, although much lower than expected (13.1% and 11.5%, respectively). Less than 3.5% of the sample met the optimal consumption level of vegetables, nuts, whole grains, fish and yogurt. Largest country-dependent differences in average daily consumption were found for legumes, nuts, fish, and yogurt. Mean consumption of SSB showed large differences between countries. Conclusion Diet intake quality is deficient for nutrient-dense food groups, suggesting a higher risk for NCDs in the urban LA region in upcoming decades. These data provide relevant and up-to-date information to take urgent public health actions to improve consumption of critically foods in order to prevent NCDs. Copyright

Tenacidad a la fractura de compuestos cermets 3Al2O3*2SiO2/Ag manufacturados por molienda de alta energía

La fabricación de materiales compuestos de matriz cerámica reforzados con partículas metálicas han propiciado la formación de nuevos materiales conocidos como compuestos CERMETS, materiales que debido a sus elementos precursores poseen propiedades distintas a las de los materiales convencionales. En este trabajo se establece la ruta de fabricación de materiales compuestos cermets base 3Al2O3*2SiO2 reforzados con partículas metálicas de Ag a partir de la formación de la composición química en peso de polvos de 3Al2O3*2SiO2 / 1% Ag en busca de un aumento en la tenacidad a la fractura con respecto al cerámico base. La composición química de polvos es sometida a un proceso de mezcla molienda de alta energía en seco en un molino tipo planetario por 2 horas a 200 rpm. Los polvos posteriormente son conformados en muestras cilíndricas de 20 mm de diámetro y 3 mm de espesor mediante la aplicación de carga uniaxial en frío de 200 MPa. Las muestras son sinterizadas a 1500°C y 1600°C por una y dos horas en un horno de resistencia eléctrica en atmósfera controlada de gas nitrógeno. Los compuestos fabricados son analizados microestructuralmente por microscopia óptica y electrónica de barrido. Se determina la densidad y las propiedades mecánicas de dureza y tenacidad a la fractura, las dos últimas por el método de indentación. Los resultados muestran la viabilidad de fabricación de materiales compuestos cermets así como los cambios en la densidad, la dureza y la tenacidad a la fractura, con respecto al cerámico 3Al2O3*2SiO2 sin refuerzo metálico