Impact of Teat Order on Feed Consumption in Swine from Birth to Nursery

A relationship between teat order and feed consumption has been assumed in pigs, but no study has looked at this exact relationship. Pigs were observed shortly after birth to be in either a cranial, middle, or caudal teat positon. Growth performance data and active and total plasma ghrelin concentrations were analyzed at birth, weaning, and at the end of the nursery stage of production to see if a relationship with teat order was present. Overall, no effect of teat order was found on average daily gain, average daily feed intake, gain-to-feed ratio, or body weight among pigs from each section of the udder. Differences did occur during certain stages of nursery, which can be of economic importance to producers. No difference was seen in active or total ghrelin levels or the active-to-total ghrelin ratio in relation to teat order, although there were differences in active and total ghrelin concentrations among the sampling days. Further research should be carried out to investigate what factors would contribute to this data contradicting previous inferences about the relationship of teat order and feed consumption in pigs

Effect of pig weaning age and commingling after the nursery phase on humoral and behavioral indicators of well-being and on growth performance

Two hundred and sixteen pigs were weaned at 14 or 21 d of age to determine the effect of weaning age and commingling after the nursery phase on growth and behavior of pigs in a wean-tofinish facility. Pigs were divided into older and younger age groups and allotted 12 pigs/pen with nine replications of each group. At the end of the nursery phase (d 34 after weaning), one-half of the pigs in each group were removed and commingled for the grower/finisher phase and the other half remained in their original pens. Beginning at weaning (d 0), pigs were monitored via camera surveillance following weaning, commingling, and on d 65 after weaning. While in the nursery phase, older pigs had greater gain and feed intake than younger pigs, however, younger pigs were more efficient throughout the nursery phase than older pigs. Toward the end of the grower/finisher period, younger pigs had greater gain, feed intake, and gain:feed than older pigs and reached a common weight 4 d sooner. Younger pigs spent more time standing or moving during the nursery phase than older pigs. Immediately following commingling, the younger, unmixed pigs spent more time feeding. However on d 65 after weaning, the older, commingled pigs and younger, unmixed pigs spent more time feeding than older, unmixed pigs and younger, commingled pigs. In conclusion, younger pigs grew slower than older pigs during the nursery phase; however, younger pigs gained more during the finishing period. Additionally, weaning age and commingling influenced feeding behavior during the grower/finisher period

Systematic assessment of HER2/neu in gynecologic neoplasms, an institutional experience.

BackgroundHER2/neu overexpression and/or amplification has been widely studied in a number of solid tumors, primarily in the breast. In gynecologic neoplasms, determination of HER2/neu status has not been well studied as a predictive biomarker in anti-HER2/neu treatment.MethodsWe systematically evaluated the HER2/neu reactions by immunohistochemistry and fluorescent in situ hybridization in malignant gynecologic neoplasms as experienced in our institution.ResultsThe HER2/neu overexpression or amplification occurred in 8 % of the cancers of the gynecological organs in our series. Majority of the HER2/neu overexpression and/or amplification occurred in clear cell (27 %) and serous (11 %) carcinomas. HER2/neu positivity was also seen in undifferentiated as well as in mixed clear cell and serous carcinomas. Discordant IHC and FISH results (positive by FISH but not IHC) was seen in 2 cases. Majority of the HER2/neu overexpression and/or amplification occurs in the endometrium rather than the ovary. Heterogeneity of the HER2/neu by IHC staining was in < 2 % of the tumors in our series.ConclusionsWe recommend the HER2/neu studies on Müllerian carcinomas of clear cell, serous, and undifferentiated types, particularly when they arise in the endometrium. Since there are some discordant IHC/FISH results, we also propose performing the HER2/neu testing by FISH when the IHC score is less than 3 + 

CRISPR/Cas-based screening of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in macrophages with an NF-κB reporter.

The innate immune system protects against infections by initiating an inducible inflammatory response. NF-κB is one of the critical transcription factors controlling this complex response, but some aspects of its regulation remain unclear. For example, although long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been shown to critically regulate gene expression, only a fraction of these have been functionally characterized, and the extent to which lncRNAs control NF-κB expression is unknown. Here, we describe the generation of a GFP-based NF-κB reporter system in immortalized murine bone marrow-derived macrophages (iBMDM). Activation of this reporter, using Toll-like receptor ligands, resulted in GFP expression, which could be monitored by flow cytometry. We also established a CRISPR/Cas9 gene deletion system in this NF-κB reporter line, enabling us to screen for genes that regulate NF-κB signaling. Our deletion-based approach identified two long intergenic non-coding(linc)RNAs, lincRNA-Cox2 and lincRNA-AK170409, that control NF-κB signaling. We demonstrate a potential novel role for lincRNA-Cox2 in promoting IκBα degradation in the cytoplasm. For lincRNA-AK170409, we provide evidence that this nuclearly-localized lincRNA regulates a number of inflammation-related genes. In conclusion, we have established an NF-κB-GFP iBMDM reporter cell line and a line that stably expresses Cas9. Our approach enabled the identification of lincRNA-Cox2 and lincRNA-AK170409 as NF-κB regulators, and this tool will be useful for identifying additional genes involved in regulating this transcription factor critical for immune function

Warm water temperature regimes in eelgrass beds (Z. marina and Z. japonica) of Padilla Bay, WA

Padilla Bay, WA has over 3300 hectares of eelgrass with vast areas of intermixed beds of the native Zostera marina and non-native Zostera japonica. Water temperature is thought to be one of the primary influences on eelgrass distribution, and long term monitoring shows that temperatures in Padilla Bay have increased substantially (mean increase \u3e2°C) from 2011 through 2016. We were interested to see if changes in eelgrass distribution were correlated with the changes we observed in water temperature in Padilla Bay, however, our long term temperature monitoring station is located in a shallow channel within the eelgrass beds. Because of this sensor placement, we first needed to determine if these data were representative of temperatures experienced by eelgrass on the vegetated flats. To test this, we deployed 45 temperature loggers throughout the intertidal and subtidal distribution of Z. marina and Z. japonica. We found that temperatures recorded at our long term monitoring site greatly underestimated the high temperatures experienced by the intertidal eelgrass. In Padilla Bay, Zostera marina was exposed to temperatures above 8°C, the optimal temperature reported for Z. marina growth in the PNW, for over 90% of the time during the peak growing season (March – Sept.). Furthermore, Z. marina experienced extended periods of time above 15°C, temperatures thought to cause stress to local plants. Despite these elevated temperatures, Z. marina remain robust, suggesting that Z. marina in Padilla Bay may have a higher tolerance for warmer water temperatures than other beds in the PNW or may be living near the upper limits of tolerance for PNW plants. This study characterizes – on a fine spatial scale – the duration and intensity of temperatures extremes that eelgrass experience in shallow systems and ultimately provides insight into the health and performance of eelgrass in a warmer future ocean

Perceived Apparel Fit Issues of High School Adolescents: Comparison of Fit Differences between Athletes and Non-Athletes Using 3D Body Scan Technology

Athletes have problems with fit of their clothing caused by body changes resulting from exercise regimens (Andreoli, et al., 2001). This begins during the high school years, when the importance of body image and body satisfaction have a greater impact (Caglar & Asci, 2010). Tselepis and de Klerk (2004) reported that adolescents use clothing not only to fit in, but to increase body satisfaction. Adolescents reported dissatisfaction with clothing fit, (de Klerk and Tselepis\u27s, 2007). Objectives of the study were to determine (1) whether high school students have the perception that they have problems finding clothing that fits; (2) if the problem is common among both athletes and non-athletes and (3) if body image and body satisfaction are related to athletes and non-athletes reporting problems with fit of clothing

Homologous evolution in the post-collapse expansion of globular clusters

We examine the evolution of globular star clusters, modelled as spherically symmetric stellar systems, using various techniques. Such clusters possess a central region of approximately uniform density which is referred to as the core. We concentrate our analysis on the evolution of the cluster after the core has undergone core collapse; a process where its radius decreases and its density increases. After this collapse, the system as a whole can expand in a self-similar fashion (homologous post-collapse evolution) which has long been thought to be due to gravitational interactions between different populations of single stars and binary stars in the core. We confirm this assumption by constructing a simple analytical model which combines much of the theoretical knowledge of previous research in the field. This model consists of two stellar populations, each defined by the mass of the individual stars, and a separate core. Our simple model is itself constructed from two simpler models – a twocomponent model without a core and a single mass model with a core – and takes into account the main gravitational interactions thought to drive the post-collapse evolution. To ensure that no important mechanisms have been neglected in our simple model, we will compare it with an N-body simulation. We compute our N-body models with NBODY6 (using a GPU version for large N). When we compare the N-body model with the simple model, we find qualitative agreement between them for most cases. Even though some mechanisms (e.g. escape of stars) are neglected in our simple model, we find that both models show homologous post-collapse evolution. We also review the homologous post-collapse Fokker-Planck model in the case of equal stellar masses derived by H´enon (1961) with the intention of extending this for the two-component case. We present our numerical solutions for H´enon’s model and find that our numerical solutions are in satisfactory agreement with the results shown in this paper. When we extend this work for a general two-component model (i.e. with no restriction on the number of heavier stars), we find that a homologous solution cannot be found with this approach. By contrast, we suggest that it would be possible to find a homologous two-component solution by extending the one-component solution published later by H´enon (1965), which differs from the earlier model by neglecting the external tidal field of the parent galaxy. Much of the work shown in this thesis would be relevant for such future study

Creating E-Textile Activities in a Textile Design Course to Engage Female Middle School Students in STEM Learning: An Undergraduate Design Experience

Widespread agreement exists that the United States faces a serious challenge in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). There is a particular deficit of females (Watt, 2010) and members of underserved groups like rural populations (Smith, Nelson, Trygstad, & Banilower, 2013) who are interested in STEM topics and qualified to pursue STEM careers. Initiatives are needed to encourage more students, especially females and rural students, to go into STEM fields. In this project, e-textile activities were designed by a senior level undergraduate textile design class to engage female middle-school students in STEM learning. E-textile activities have the potential to increase enjoyment of and interest in STEM activities, taking STEM courses, consideration of STEM careers, and confidence in STEM ability

Mapping eelgrass (Zostera sp.) habitat in Padilla Bay, WA, using an unmanned aerial system (UAS)

Eelgrass (Zostera marina) monitoring and restoration is important to commercial and ecological management in the Salish Sea. In the southern Salish Sea (Puget Sound, WA), eelgrass distribution overall has not changed in acreage but local eelgrass habitats have declined whereas others have increased. Additionally, coexistence with non-native dwarf eelgrass (Z. japonica) motivates tracking the spatial patterns of change in distribution of both Zostera species on a seasonal and interannual basis. Past efforts to map eelgrass communities have involved the use of satellite imagery and imagery acquired from manned aircraft. Imagery acquired using these platforms typically has a spatial resolution ranging from ~30m to ~1 m. UAS technology offers a new approach to obtain imagery with a spatial resolution of a few centimeters, at very low cost and the image acquisition can be carefully timed to take advantage of low tides. The Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (PBNERR) includes one of the largest expanses of eelgrass on the west coast, which has been monitored long-term along permanent transects for Z. marina and Z. japonica coverage, shoot density, and biomass. This provides an ideal setting for the evaluation of alternative methods for mapping eelgrass communities using UAS technology. During the summer of 2017, we collected imagery from a 200 m by 2500 m transect overlapping the permanent plots that make up the PBNERR long-term monitoring transect. We collected imagery using both a multirotor and fixed-wing UAS and two different camera systems with different spectral and spatial resolutions. Here we discuss the logistical challenges of conducting these surveys and present preliminary results of our image classification efforts