Anatomical studies of claw conformation in New Zealand dairy cattle : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Veterinary Science, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand

The aim of the studies reported in this thesis was to extend our current knowledge on estimating and monitoring claw conformation under New Zealand conditions. Initially post mortem material was used to: (1) evaluate the utility of claw volume estimation with data from cull dairy cows; (2) validate the use of a portable ultrasound machine in the estimation of internal claw dimensions; and (3) apply morphometry to quantify vascular change in histological sections from the collected claw material. Analysis of the relationship between claw volume and hoof conformation revealed differences between the claws of dairy cattle used for this study and those of beef cattle which had been used previously. This necessitated the development of a different predictive model for dairy cattle which was subsequently used in the live animal studies. Validation of ultrasound estimates for sole and soft tissue thickness against calliper measurements in the sectioned claw, found that the portable machine used accurately estimated mean distance to distal phalanx (DP) and was thus suitable for categorising claws as having thin, marginal or adequate sole thickness. Morphometrical techniques were successfully applied to sections from frozen claw material; the ratio of vessel lumen area to overall vessel area was found to vary depending on site, claw and overall vessel size. No relationship was found between the ratio and claw horn haemorrhages, but the level of such lesions was low in the animals available for analysis. Subsequently, selected conformation traits were assessed on-farm in two consecutive cohorts of first lactation heifers. Some variables were identified as being useful to evaluate conformational change within a pasture-based system. These demonstrated dynamic change over the course of lactation. However, fluctuation in these variables at pasture means that any intervention study would need to have a greater impact on the claw than the variations produced by the background environment. Other variables showed stability over lactation and between years of study, and are therefore potentially suited to the investigation of claw size in relation to the development of lesions and lameness. In Year 1, ultrasound estimates of DP were recorded as a proxy for sole thickness. Values decreased significantly after calving to a nadir at approximately Day 110. The change in DP between Days 10 and 110 was associated with the initial value of DP on Day 10. The study concluded that thin soles increased in depth while thick soles wore to become thinner, indicating that heifers with thinner soles were able to accommodate to the changes occurring around and after calving and that the response of the claw to encountering tracks, collecting yards and milking parlours is not simply an increase in net wear. In Year 2, a novel method to capture changes in heel conformation was successfully trialled. Non-weight bearing heel length was found to alter rapidly after calving while other measures responded slowly in comparison and suggested extended monitoring was advisable. The on-farm studies established that, for most conformational variables, there is value in recording information from all four claws of the hind feet in a pasture based system

Banking on a digital revolution

The age of big data, combined with novel uses of cutting-edge technologies, has opened a new landscape for emerging businesses in the financial services. Modern finance applications are just emerging and there are divergent expectations of what will happen. In this post Mike Laven, CEO of The Currency Cloud, presents his view of the emerging financial services in light of the research that we have been conducting at the LSE under a NEMODE (RCUK Digital Economy) grant. Mike suggests that we shall expect to see disruptions and changes, mostly on the retail banking sector

Color-coordinate system from a 13th-century account of rainbows.

We present a new analysis of Robert Grosseteste’s account of color in his treatise De iride (On the Rainbow), dating from the early 13th century. The work explores color within the 3D framework set out in Grosseteste’s De colore [see J. Opt. Soc. Am. A 29, A346 (2012)], but now links the axes of variation to observable properties of rainbows. We combine a modern understanding of the physics of rainbows and of human color perception to resolve the linguistic ambiguities of the medieval text and to interpret Grosseteste’s key terms

Relationships between Circulating Urea Concentrations and Endometrial Function in Postpartum Dairy Cows

Both high and low circulating urea concentrations, a product of protein metabolism, are associated with decreased fertility in dairy cows through poorly defined mechanisms. The rate of involution and the endometrial ability to mount an adequate innate immune response after calving are both critical for subsequent fertility. Study 1 used microarray analysis to identify genes whose endometrial expression 2 weeks postpartum correlated significantly with the mean plasma urea per cow, ranging from 3.2 to 6.6 mmol/L. The biological functions of 781 mapped genes were analysed using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis. These were predominantly associated with tissue turnover (e.g., BRINP1, FOXG1), immune function (e.g., IL17RB, CRISPLD2), inflammation (e.g., C3, SERPINF1, SERPINF2) and lipid metabolism (e.g., SCAP, ACBD5, SLC10A). Study 2 investigated the relationship between urea concentration and expression of 6 candidate genes (S100A8, HSP5A, IGF1R, IL17RB, BRINP1, CRISPLD2) in bovine endometrial cell culture. These were treated with 0, 2.5, 5.0 or 7.5 mmol/L urea, equivalent to low, medium and high circulating values with or without challenge by bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). LPS increased S100A8 expression as expected but urea treatment had no effect on expression of any tested gene. Examination of the genes/pathways involved suggests that plasma urea levels may reflect variations in lipid metabolism. Our results suggest that it is the effects of lipid metabolism rather than the urea concentration which probably alter the rate of involution and innate immune response, in turn influencing subsequent fertility

Demystifying the cocoa sector

Demystifying the cocoa sector This paper brings together the main results of a large scale research project led by the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT), in partnership with Sudwind Institute, CIRAD, the Jacobs Foundation, IDH, UTZ, the Lindt Cocoa Foundation and GISCO. The aim of the research is to demystify many of the myths and assumptions about the cocoa sector in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana. The researchers investigated three research areas, and their interlinkages: 1) dominant and subsidiary crop & livelihoods options; 2) differentiation of farming households in cocoa regions; and 3) intra-household dynamics, gender and nutrition. The following mixed methods were used for data collection: a systematic desk-study of 200 research papers, a household survey conducted with 1500 households in cocoa growing areas in Ghana, and 1500 households in Côte d'Ivoire (>30% female respondents), 76 focus group discussions and an ethnographic study in 3 cocoa growing communities. This paper aims to share the main findings of this major research trajectory. Several hypothesis have been tackled under the headings of Enabling environment; Farmer heterogeneity; The choice to grow cocoa; Options for income diversification; Production practices; Marketing practices; Gender and Intra household dynamics; Nutrition; and The future of cocoa. The paper will include recommendations, and the complete dataset will be made publically available in late 2017. (Résumé d'auteur