PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL QUALITY OF MARKET MILK SOLD AT TANDOJAM, PAKISTAN

The present study was conducted to evaluate the quality of milk sold at Tandojam, Pakistan. A total of 125 milk samples (25 samples from each source) collected from five milk marketing agencies viz direct seller (DS), milk collection center(MCC), milk vendor shop (MVS), hotel (HT) and buffalo dairy farm (DF), which served as control. Acidity of milk obtained from DS, MCC, MVS and HT averaged 0.13, 0.15, 0.12 and 0.13, respectively compared to 0.14 for DF milk. The pH values of milk from MVS (6.54) and HT (6.53) were significantly different (P<0.01) from DS (6.65) and MCC (6.66) and relatively similar (P>0.05) to that of DF milk i.e. 6.65. Viscosity, specific gravity and freezing point of milk procured from DS (1.48, 1.026 and –0.460, respectively), MCC (1.58, 1.026 and –0.470, respectively), MVS (1.34, 1.026 and –0.440, respectively) and HT (1.46, 1.027 and –0.480, respectively) were significantly (P<0.001) lower than DF milk (1.86, 1.031 and -0.551, respectively). Chemical quality of milk procured from DS, MCC, MVS and HT compared to DF milk (control) averaged 13.45, 14.18, 13.19 and 14.06% vs. 16.30% for TS content, 8.25, 8.81, 8.06 and 8.51% vs. 9.79% for SNF content, 5.20, 5.41, 5.13 and 5.54% vs. 6.51% for fat content, 3.85, 3.96, 3.91 and 4.23% vs. 4.35% for protein content, 2.70, 2.77, 2.56 and 3.20% vs. 3.56% for casein content, 3.65, 4.03, 3.34 and 3.52% vs. 4.53% for lactose content and 0.75, 0.78, 0.74 and 0.76% vs. 0.91% for ash content, respectively. All the attributes of chemical quality of milk supplied through four agencies were significantly lower (P<0.05) than DF milk

Effect of various dopant elements on primary graphite growth

Five spheroidal graphite cast irons were investigated, a usual ferritic grade and four pearlitic alloys containing Cu and doped with Sb, Sn and Ti. These alloys were remelted in a graphite crucible, leading to volatilization of the magnesium added for spheroidization and to carbon saturation of the liquid. The alloys were then cooled down and maintained at a temperature above the eutectic temperature. During this step, primary graphite could develop showing various features depending on the doping elements added. The largest effects were that of Ti which greatly reduces graphite nucleation and growth, and that of Sb which leads to rounded agglomerates instead of lamellar graphite. The samples have been investigated with secondary ion mass spectrometry to enlighten distribution of elements in primary graphite. SIMS analysis showed almost even distribution of elements, including Mg and Al (from the inoculant) in the ferritic grade, while uneven distribution was evident in all doped alloys. Investigations are going on to clarify if the uneven distribution is associated with structural defects in the graphite precipitates

Heat stress develops with increased total-tract gut permeability, and dietary organic acid and pure botanical supplementation partly restores lactation performance in Holstein dairy cows

To evaluate the effects of heat stress (HS) conditions and dietary organic acid and pure botanical (OA/PB) supplementation on gut permeability and milk produc- tion, we enrolled 46 multiparous Holstein cows [208 ± 4.65 dry matter intake (DMI; mean ± SD), 3.0 ± 0.42 lactation, 122 ± 4.92 d pregnant, and 39.2 ± 0.26 kg of milk yield] in a study with a completely randomized design. Cows were assigned to 1 of 4 groups: thermo- neutral conditions (TN-Con, n = 12), HS conditions (HS-Con, n = 12), thermoneutral conditions pair-fed to HS-Con (TN-PF, n = 12), or HS supplemented with OA/PB [75 mg/kg of body weight (BW); 25% citric acid, 16.7% sorbic acid, 1.7% thymol, 1.0% vanillin, and 55.6% triglyceride; HS-OAPB, n = 10]. Supple- ments were delivered twice daily by top-dress; all cows not supplemented with OA/PB received an equivalent amount of the triglyceride used for microencapsulation of the OA/PB supplement as a top-dress. Cows were maintained in thermoneutrality [temperature-humidity index (THI) = 68] during a 7-d acclimation and covari- ate period. Thereafter, cows remained in thermoneutral conditions or were moved to HS conditions (THI: diur- nal change 74 to 82) for 14 d. Cows were milked twice daily. Clinical assessments and BW were recorded, blood was sampled, and gastrointestinal permeability measurements were repeatedly evaluated. The mixed model included fixed effects of treatment, time, and their interaction. Rectal and skin temperatures and res- piration rates were greater in HS-Con and HS-OAPB relative to TN-Con. Dry matter intake, water intake, and yields of energy-corrected milk (ECM), protein, and lactose were lower in HS-Con relative to HS-OAPB. Nitrogen efficiency was improved in HS-OAPB relative to HS-Con. Compared with TN-Con and TN-PF, milk yield and ECM were lower in HS-Con cows. Total- tract gastrointestinal permeability measured at d 3 of treatment was greater in HS-Con relative to TN-Con or TN-PF. Plasma total fatty acid concentrations were reduced, whereas insulin concentrations were increased in HS-Con relative to TN-PF. We conclude that expo- sure to a heat-stress environment increases total-tract gastrointestinal permeability. This study highlights important mechanisms that might account for milk production losses caused by heat stress, independent of changes in DMI. Our observations also suggest that dietary supplementation of OA/PB is a means to partly restore ECM production and improve nitrogen efficiency in dairy cattle experiencing heat stress

A role for SETD2 loss in tumorigenesis through DNA methylation dysregulation

SETD2-dependent H3 Lysine-36 trimethylation (H3K36me3) has been recently linked to the deposition of de-novo DNA methylation. SETD2 is frequently mutated in cancer, however, the functional impact of SETD2 loss and depletion on DNA methylation across cancer types and tumorigenesis is currently unknown. Here, we perform a pan-cancer analysis and show that both SETD2 mutation and reduced expression are associated with DNA methylation dysregulation across 21 out of the 24 cancer types tested. In renal cancer, these DNA methylation changes are associated with altered gene expression of oncogenes, tumour suppressors, and genes involved in neoplasm invasiveness, including TP53, FOXO1, and CDK4. This suggests a new role for SETD2 loss in tumorigenesis and cancer aggressiveness through DNA methylation dysregulation. Moreover, using a robust machine learning methodology, we develop and validate a 3-CpG methylation signature which is sufficient to predict SETD2 mutation status with high accuracy and correlates with patient prognosis

Effect of Ce and Sb on Primary Graphite Growth in Cast Irons

It is well-known that if certain trace elements are present in cast iron melts the morphology of the graphite precipitates can be altered. In order to understand the effect of doping elements on primary growth of graphite, pure Fe–Sb alloys were prepared by induction melting. They were then placed in graphite crucibles and heated to a temperature above the Fe–C eutectic so that the charge became saturated in carbon and melted. To obtain Fe–Ce alloys, metallic Ce was added at the bottom of a graphite crucible and covered with iron, and then heated as for the Fe–Sb charge. In both cases, the melt was then cooled and held slightly above the eutectic temperature so that primary graphite crystals, which had nucleated on the crucible walls and then detached from it, could grow freely in the melt. The influence of the added elements on graphite growth was revealed by the change in the shape and distribution of the crystals compared to those obtained in similar experiments carried out with pure Fe. The experiments were made in air and vacuum so as to point out possible interactions between the elements present in the melt and oxygen

Observational Constraints on the Ultra-high Energy Cosmic Neutrino Flux from the Second Flight of the ANITA Experiment

The Antarctic Impulsive Transient Antenna (ANITA) completed its second long-duration balloon flight in January 2009, with 31 days aloft (28.5 live days) over Antarctica. ANITA searches for impulsive coherent radio Cherenkov emission from 200 to 1200 MHz, arising from the Askaryan charge excess in ultra-high energy neutrino-induced cascades within Antarctic ice. This flight included significant improvements over the first flight in the payload sensitivity, efficiency, and a flight trajectory over deeper ice. Analysis of in-flight calibration pulses from surface and sub-surface locations verifies the expected sensitivity. In a blind analysis, we find 2 surviving events on a background, mostly anthropogenic, of 0.97+-0.42 events. We set the strongest limit to date for 1-1000 EeV cosmic neutrinos, excluding several current cosmogenic neutrino models.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.