Multiple osteochondromas of the antlers and cranium in a free-ranging white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus)

This paper reports a case of multiple osteochondromas affecting the antlers and the left zygomatic bone of a free-ranging adult white-tailed buck (Odocoileus virginianus) from Georgia, USA. Along with a few postcranial bones, the antlered cranium of the individual was found in a severely weathered condition and devoid of any soft tissue. The antlers exhibited five pedunculated exostoses that were composed of cancellous bone and, in their peripheral portions, also mineralized cartilage. The largest of the exostoses, located on the right antler, had a maximum circumference of 55 cm. The exostosis arising from the zygomatic bone was broad-based and much smaller than the exophytic outgrowths on the antlers. Diagnosis of the exostoses as osteochondromas was based on their overall morphology, the normal bone structure in their stalk regions, and the continuity of their spongiosa and cortex with the respective components of the parent bones. Antleromas, i.e., pathological outgrowths developing on antlers as a result of insufficient androgen production, were excluded in the differential diagnosis, based on (1) the apparent maturity and, except for the tumors, normal shape of the antlers and (2) the fact that exostosis formation had also affected the zygomatic bone. Previously only a single case of solitary osteochondroma of an antler has been described in the scientific literature. The case presented here is the first report of multiple osteochondromas in a deer. As antlers are regularly collected as trophies, and huge numbers of them are critically inspected each year, the fact that thus far only two cases of antler osteochondromas have been reported suggests that these tumors are very rare

Patološki prijelom roga jelena običnog kao posljedica gnojne upale - prikaz slučaja.

A case of unilateral hard antler fracture in a red deer stag from Croatia is presented. The antler stump that remained, following the loss of the distal fracture fragment, shows evidence of purulent inflammation. The most likely cause of the inflammation is an injury to the velvet antler. We conclude that the fracture resulted from the impaired mechanical stability of the antler caused by the inflammation and its sequelae and thus represents a case of pathological fracture.U radu je prikazan slučaj jednostranog prijeloma mineraliziranog roga (lijeva grana) jelena običnog podrijetlom iz Hrvatske. Na preostalom proksimalnom ulomku roga vidljivi su znaci gnojnog upalnog procesa koji je zahvatio rog tijekom faze rasta (rogovlje u bastu). Najvjerojatniji uzrok navedenog stanja je ozljeda rastućeg roga s posljedičnom infekcijom. Iz navedenog zaključujemo da je prijelom posljedica narušene mehaničke stabilnosti roga izazvane upalnim procesom i njegovim posljedicama te stoga predstavlja primjer patološkog prijeloma

Bone resorption and formation in the pedicles of European roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) in relation to the antler cycle—A morphological and microanalytical study

We analyzed pedicle bone from roe bucks that had died around antler casting or shortly before or during the rutting period. Pedicles obtained around antler casting were highly porous and showed signs of intense osteoclastic activity that had caused the formation of an abscission line. Following the detachment of the antler plus a portion of pedicle bone, osteoclastic activity in the pedicles continued for some time, and new bone was deposited onto the separation plane of the pedicle stump, leading to partial pedicle restoration. Pedicles obtained around the rutting period were compact structures. The newly formed, often very large secondary osteons, which had filled the resorption cavities, exhibited a lower mineral density than the persisting older bone. The middle zones of the lamellar infilling frequently showed hypomineralized lamellae and enlarged osteocyte lacunae. This indicates a deficiency in mineral elements during the formation of these zones that occurred along with peak antler mineralization. We suggest that growing antlers and compacting pedicles compete for mineral elements, with the rapidly growing antlers being the more effective sinks. The competition between the two simultaneously mineralizing structures is probably more severe in Capreolus capreolus than in other cervids. This is because roe bucks regrow their antlers during late autumn and winter, a period of limited food and associated mineral supply. The pedicle is a heavily remodeled bone structure with distinct seasonal variation in porosity. Pedicle remodeling differs in several aspects from the normal bone remodeling process in the mammalian skeleton.18 página

Probing the Magnetized Medium of Galaxies and AGNs using Wideband Radio Polarimetry

I performed an observational study of diffuse linearly polarized synchrotron emission of a nearby galaxy and of extragalactic background sources in order to study cosmic magnetism. The speciality of my work is given by the polarimetric observations using broadband and multi-channel capabilities of the observing instrument. With these new broadband observations, depolarization mechanisms were used as a powerful new tool to probe the 3D structure of magnetic fields in a spiral galaxy. After an introduction to the research field of cosmic magnetism and observational techniques used for my work, I describe the new high angular resolution and broadband polarization observations of the nearby face-on oriented spiral galaxy M51 at S-band (2 – 4 GHz) using the Very Large Array (VLA). I discuss in detail the different imaging parameters used for wideband polarimetric data. I present new images of the total intensity, the polarized intensity, the magnetic field structure, and the rotation measure (RM) of M51. The observed frequency range probes the magnetic field in a so far unknown layer of the transition region between the disk and the halo in M51. Surprisingly, I found the observed RM in the disk-halo transition region to be dominated by fluctuations. This was also shown by the RM structure function at S-band. A fluctuating RM pattern indicates that the magnetic field in the disk-halo transition region is dominated by vertical (with respect to the galaxy plane) magnetic fields. I combined the new S-band polarization data with radio polarization VLA+Effelsberg data at 4.85GHz and 8.35GHz and with broadband L-band (1–2GHz) VLA data. The observed degree of polarization as a function of wavelength was compared to an analytical depolarization model developed by Shneider et al. (2014a). The model makes distinct predictions of a two-layer (disk – halo) and three-layer (far-side halo – disk – near-side halo) system. I show that a two-layer system is more likely for M51. In a second project, I investigate magnetic fields of unresolved extragalactic radio sources (EGSs). I observed 77 sources with the VLA at L-band (1– 2 GHz) which were selected to have degrees of polarization > 30 % at 1.4 GHz. Polarized emission of EGSs is believed to be produced in the jets and radio lobes of AGNs. The degrees of polarization of my sample are exceptionally high and thus could originate from extremely well-ordered magnetic fields. I found a linearly increasing degree of polarization with increasing synchrotron spectral index with a correlation coefficient of 0.7 (I ∝ να, with spectral index α). I propose this to be related to the jet location traced by the observation: The radio emission of EGSs with flat spectral indices may originate from the region near the central core of the AGN where the jet is collimated and hence the magnetic field is well- ordered. Furthermore, I found all Faraday spectra to be simple with only one prominent peak (given the resolution in Faraday depth of 126 rad m−2). This shows that the sources probably experience only little Faraday depolarization intrinsic to the source and along the line-of-sight which is in agreement with the observed high degrees of polarization. In my thesis, I successfully probed the 3D structure of magnetic fields in the nearby spiral galaxy M51 and in a sample of extragalactic polarized background sources. I used modern tools such as wavelength-dependent depolarization mechanisms and RM-Synthesis technique and devised new ways of analyzing and interpreting broadband multi-channel polarimetric data. This thesis is one of the first projects analyzing broadband polarization data and provides important insights towards studying magnetic fields during the new era of radio astronomy provided by upcoming new instruments

Dental pulp exposure, periapical inflammation and suppurative osteomyelitis of the jaws in juvenile Baltic grey seals (<i>Halichoerus grypus grypus</i>) from the late 19th century

<div><p>The systematic analysis of museum collections can provide important insights into the dental and skeletal pathology of wild mammals. Here we present a previously unreported type of dental defect and related skull pathology in five juvenile Baltic grey seals that had been collected in the course of a seal culling program along the Danish coast in 1889 and 1890. All five skulls exhibited openings into the pulp cavities at the crown tips of all (four animals) or two (one animal) canines as well as several incisors and (in one animal) also some anterior premolars. The affected teeth showed wide pulp cavities and thin dentin. Pulp exposure had caused infection, inflammation, and finally necrosis of the pulp. As was evidenced by the extensive radiolucency around the roots of the affected teeth, the inflammation had extended from the pulp into the periapical space, leading to apical periodontitis with extensive bone resorption. Further spreading of the inflammation into the surrounding bone regions had then caused suppurative osteomyelitis of the jaws. The postcanine teeth of the pathological individuals typically had dentin of normal thickness and, except for one specimen, did not exhibit pulp exposure. The condition may have been caused by a late onset of secondary and tertiary dentin formation that led to pulp exposure in anterior teeth exposed to intense wear. Future investigations could address a possible genetic causation of the condition in the studied grey seals.</p></div

Macrophage-derived upd3 Cytokine causes impaired glucose homeostasis and reduced lifespan in drosophila fed a lipid-rich diet

Long-term consumption of fatty foods is associated with obesity, macrophage activation and inflammation, metabolic imbalance, and a reduced lifespan. We took advantage of Drosophila genetics to investigate the role of macrophages and the pathway(s) that govern their response to dietary stress. Flies fed a lipid-rich diet presented with increased fat storage, systemic activation of JAK-STAT signaling, reduced insulin sensitivity, hyperglycemia, and a shorter lifespan. Drosophila macrophages produced the JAK-STAT-activating cytokine upd3, in a scavenger-receptor (crq) and JNK-dependent manner. Genetic depletion of macrophages or macrophage-specific silencing of upd3 decreased JAK-STAT activation and rescued insulin sensitivity and the lifespan of Drosophila, but did not decrease fat storage. NF-κB signaling made no contribution to the phenotype observed. These results identify an evolutionarily conserved “scavenger receptor-JNK-type 1 cytokine” cassette in macrophages, which controls glucose metabolism and reduces lifespan in Drosophila maintained on a lipid-rich diet via activation of the JAK-STAT pathway

Distribution, structure, and mineralization of calcified cartilage remnants in hard antlers

Antlers are paired deciduous bony cranial appendages of deer that undergo a regular cycle of growth, death and casting, and constitute the most rapidly growing bones in mammals. Antler growth occurs in an appositional mode and involves a modified form of endochondral ossification. In endochondral bones, calcified cartilage is typically a transient tissue that is eventually completely replaced by bone tissue. We studied the distribution and characteristics of calcified cartilage in hard antlers from three deer species (Capreolus capreolus, Cervus elaphus, Dama dama), i.e., in antlers from which the skin (velvet) had been shed. Remnants of calcified cartilage were regularly present as part of the trabecular framework in the late formed, distal antler portions in all three species, whereas this tissue was largely or completely missing in the more proximal antler portions. The presence of calcified cartilage remnants in the distal antler portions is attributed to the limited antler lifespan of only a few months, which is also the reason for the virtual lack of bone remodeling in antlers. The calcified cartilage matrix was more highly mineralized than the antler bone matrix. Mineralized deposits were observed in some chondrocyte lacunae and occasionally also in osteocyte lacunae, a phenomenon that has not previously been reported in antlers. Using synchrotron radiation-induced X-ray fluorescence (SR-XRF) mapping, we further demonstrated increased zinc concentrations in cement lines, along the inner borders of incompletely formed primary osteons, along the walls of partly or completely mineral-occluded chondrocyte and osteocyte lacunae, and in intralacunar mineralized deposits. The present study demonstrates that antlers are a promising model for studying the mineralization of cartilage and bone matrices and the formation of mineralized deposits in chondrocyte and osteocyte lacunae

Reliability Scores from Saliency Map Clusters for Improved Image-based Harvest-Readiness Prediction in Cauliflower

Cauliflower is a hand-harvested crop that must fulfill high-quality standards in sales making the timing of harvest important. However, accurately determining harvest-readiness can be challenging due to the cauliflower head being covered by its canopy. While deep learning enables automated harvest-readiness estimation, errors can occur due to field-variability and limited training data. In this paper, we analyze the reliability of a harvest-readiness classifier with interpretable machine learning. By identifying clusters of saliency maps, we derive reliability scores for each classification result using knowledge about the domain and the image properties. For unseen data, the reliability can be used to (i) inform farmers to improve their decision-making and (ii) increase the model prediction accuracy. Using RGB images of single cauliflower plants at different developmental stages from the GrowliFlower dataset, we investigate various saliency mapping approaches and find that they result in different quality of reliability scores. With the most suitable interpretation tool, we adjust the classification result and achieve a 15.72% improvement of the overall accuracy to 88.14% and a 15.44% improvement of the average class accuracy to 88.52% for the GrowliFlower dataset.Comment: Preprint, 8 pages, 6 figure

The Magnetized Disk-Halo Transition Region of M51

An excellent laboratory for studying large scale magnetic fields is the grand de- sign face-on spiral galaxy M51. Due to wavelength-dependent Faraday depolarization, linearly polarized synchrotron emission at different radio frequencies gives a picture of the galaxy at different depths: Observations at L-band (1-2 GHz) probe the halo region while at C- and X- band (4-8 GHz) the linearly polarized emission probe the disk region of M51. We present new observations of M51 using the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) at S-band (2-4 GHz), where previously no polarization observations existed, to shed new light on the transition region between the disk and the halo. We discuss a model of the depolarization of synchrotron radiation in a multilayer magneto-ionic medium and compare the model predictions to the multi-frequency polarization data of M51 between 1-8GHz. The new S-band data are essential to distinguish between different models. Our study shows that the initial model parameters, i.e. the total reg- ular and turbulent magnetic field strengths in the disk and halo of M51, need to be adjusted to successfully fit the models to the data.Comment: 4 Pages, 3 Figures, Conference Proceeding to IAU Focus Meeting 8: New Insights in Extragalactic Magnetic Field