Effect of heat stress on sow fertility and health

Abstract only availableHigh summer temperatures increase the chance that sow herds will be exposed to heat stress. Heat stress in sows causes a longer weaning to estrus interval, decreased farrowing rates and failure to maintain pregnancy. Conception rates of sows are also particularly lower in the summer than any other breeding season. When sows are bred in the summer, they farrow smaller litters and the average piglet weaning weight is significantly smaller than other seasons. The purpose of this research project is to directly test the effect of heat stress on sow health and fertility at the South Farm Complex in coordination with the Animal Science Research Center (ASRC) at the University of Missouri. Thermal temperatures were taken at the ear, shoulder, rump, tail and rectum for a group of sixteen sows on alternating days for two months. Sow body weight, loin muscle area (LMA) and backfat (BF) measurements were taken at three specific points during the study: the first day of the trial, the day the sows were moved into farrowing, and the day sows were moved into breeding .Once parturition occurred, information regarding the number, health and weight of each piglet was recorded. The results from this project will be compared to a previous heat stress study performed at the Brody Environmental Center within the ASRC. The study concludes that heat stress affects the sow's reproductive efficiency and health, but when and where the elevated temperatures specifically affect each sow and her offspring will be further discussed.F.B. Miller Undergraduate Research Program in Animal Science

The Effect of Low Temperature Laundering and Detergents on the Survival of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus on Textiles Used in Healthcare Uniforms

The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the DOI link.Aims: To determine the survival of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus on cotton and polyester and the effectiveness of low temperature laundering and detergents on the removal of microorganism from healthcare laundry. Methods and Results: Survival of E. coli and S. aureus on polyester or cotton was assessed over 3 weeks and the efficacy of a domestic wash (40°C and 60°C) and a range of detergents was also determined. Both bacteria were able to survive on cotton (5 log(10)) and polyester (0.28 log(10)) for up to 3 weeks. Laundering at 40°C resulted in a 3.5 log(10) removal of the initial 7.7 log(10) inoculum and some cross contamination to sterile fabrics (3 log(10). Increasing the temperature to 60°C resulted in the complete removal of the initial inoculum. Conclusions: This study shows that most of the microorganisms are removed at 40°C however, those cells still remaining may have the potential for further contamination to the clinical environment and patients Significance and Impact of Study: National Health Service (NHS) nurses are required to domestically launder their uniforms at 60°C to ensure safe removal of microorganisms, 33% of NHS staff questioned said they launder their uniforms at 40°C, which could potentially result in transmission of Hospital Acquired Infections (HAIs)

Gravitational Radiation from Nonaxisymmetric Instability in a Rotating Star

We present the first calculations of the gravitational radiation produced by nonaxisymmetric dynamical instability in a rapidly rotating compact star. The star deforms into a bar shape, shedding $\sim 4\%$ of its mass and $\sim 17\%$ of its angular momentum. The gravitational radiation is calculated in the quadrupole approximation. For a mass $M \sim 1.4$ M$_{\odot}$ and radius $R \sim 10$ km, the gravitational waves have frequency $\sim 4$ kHz and amplitude $h \sim 2 \times 10^{-22}$ at the distance of the Virgo Cluster. They carry off energy $\Delta E/M \sim 0.1\%$ and radiate angular momentum $\Delta J/J \sim 0.7\%$.Comment: 16 pages, LaTeX with REVTEX macros, reprints available - send mailing address to [email protected]. Published: PRL 72, 1314 (1994

Regulation of Synthesis and Roles of Hyaluronan in Peritoneal Dialysis

Hyaluronan (HA) is a ubiquitous extracellular matrix glycosaminoglycan composed of repeated disaccharide units of alternating D-glucuronic acid and D-N-acetylglucosamine residues linked via alternating beta-1, 4 and beta-1, 3 glycosidic bonds. HA is synthesized in humans by HA synthase (HAS) enzymes 1, 2, and 3, which are encoded by the corresponding HAS genes. Previous in vitro studies have shown characteristic changes in HAS expression and increased HA synthesis in response to wounding and proinflammatory cytokines in human peritoneal mesothelial cells. In addition, in vivo models and human peritoneal biopsy samples have provided evidence of changes in HA metabolism in the fibrosis that at present accompanies peritoneal dialysis treatment. This review discusses these published observations and how they might contribute to improvement in peritoneal dialysis

Exploring weight loss services in primary care and staff views on using a web-based programme

Although primary care staff felt they should deliver weight loss services, low levels of faith in the efficacy of current treatments resulted in provision of under-resourced and 'ad hoc' services. Integration of a web-based weight loss programme that promotes service evaluation and provides a cost-effective option for supporting patients may encourage practices to invest more in weight management service

Randomised controlled feasibility trial of a web-based weight management intervention with nurse support for obese patients in primary care

<b>Background</b><p></p> There is a need for cost-effective weight management interventions that primary care can deliver to reduce the morbidity caused by obesity. Automated web-based interventions might provide a solution, but evidence suggests that they may be ineffective without additional human support. The main aim of this study was to carry out a feasibility trial of a web-based weight management intervention in primary care, comparing different levels of nurse support, to determine the optimal combination of web-based and personal support to be tested in a full trial.<p></p> <b>Methods</b><p></p> This was an individually randomised four arm parallel non-blinded trial, recruiting obese patients in primary care. Following online registration, patients were randomly allocated by the automated intervention to either usual care, the web-based intervention only, or the web-based intervention with either basic nurse support (3 sessions in 3 months) or regular nurse support (7 sessions in 6 months). The main outcome measure (intended as the primary outcome for the main trial) was weight loss in kg at 12 months. As this was a feasibility trial no statistical analyses were carried out, but we present means, confidence intervals and effect sizes for weight loss in each group, uptake and retention, and completion of intervention components and outcome measures.<p></p> <b>Results</b><p></p> All randomised patients were included in the weight loss analyses (using Last Observation Carried Forward). At 12 months mean weight loss was: usual care group (n = 43) 2.44 kg; web-based only group (n = 45) 2.30 kg; basic nurse support group (n = 44) 4.31 kg; regular nurse support group (n = 47) 2.50 kg. Intervention effect sizes compared with usual care were: d = 0.01 web-based; d = 0.34 basic nurse support; d = 0.02 regular nurse support. Two practices deviated from protocol by providing considerable weight management support to their usual care patients.<p></p> <b>Conclusions</b><p></p> This study demonstrated the feasibility of delivering a web-based weight management intervention supported by practice nurses in primary care, and suggests that the combination of the web-based intervention with basic nurse support could provide an effective solution to weight management support in a primary care context

Radio emission models of Colliding-Wind Binary Systems

We present calculations of the spatial and spectral distribution of the radio emission from a wide WR+OB colliding-wind binary system based on high-resolution hydrodynamical simulations and solutions to the radiative transfer equation. We account for both thermal and synchrotron radio emission, free-free absorption in both the unshocked stellar wind envelopes and the shocked gas, synchrotron self-absorption, and the Razin effect. The applicability of these calculations to modelling radio images and spectra of colliding-wind systems is demonstrated with models of the radio emission from the wide WR+OB binary WR147. Its synchrotron spectrum follows a power-law between 5 and 15 GHz but turns down to below this at lower and higher frequencies. We find that while free-free opacity from the circum-binary stellar winds can potentially account for the low-frequency turnover, models that also include a combination of synchrotron self-absorption and Razin effect are favoured. We argue that the high-frequency turn down is a consequence of inverse-Compton cooling. We present our resulting spectra and intensity distributions, along with simulated MERLIN observations of these intensity distributions. From these we argue that the inclination of the WR147 system to the plane of the sky is low. We summarise by considering extensions of the current model that are important for models of the emission from closer colliding wind binaries, in particular the dramatically varying radio emission of WR140.Comment: 18 pages, 18 figures; Accepted by Astronomy and Astrophysics, July 8, 200

Relation between falciparum malaria and bacteraemia in Kenyan children: a population-based, case-control study and a longitudinal study.

BACKGROUND: Many investigators have suggested that malaria infection predisposes individuals to bacteraemia. We tested this hypothesis with mendelian randomisation studies of children with the malaria-protective phenotype of sickle-cell trait (HbAS). METHODS: This study was done in a defined area around Kilifi District Hospital, Kilifi, Kenya. We did a matched case-control study to identify risk factors for invasive bacterial disease, in which cases were children aged 3 months to 13 years who were admitted to hospital with bacteraemia between Sept 16, 1999, and July 31, 2002. We aimed to match two controls, by age, sex, location, and time of recruitment, for every case. We then did a longitudinal case-control study to assess the relation between HbAS and invasive bacterial disease as malaria incidence decreased. Cases were children aged 0-13 years who were admitted to hospital with bacteraemia between Jan 1, 1999, and Dec 31, 2007. Controls were born in the study area between Jan 1, 2006, and June 23, 2009. Finally, we modelled the annual incidence of bacteraemia against the community prevalence of malaria during 9 years with Poisson regression. RESULTS: In the matched case-control study, we recruited 292 cases-we recruited two controls for 236, and one for the remaining 56. Sickle-cell disease, HIV, leucocyte haemozoin pigment, and undernutrition were positively associated with bacteraemia and HbAS was strongly negatively associated with bacteraemia (odds ratio 0·36; 95% CI 0·20-0·65). In the longitudinal case-control study, we assessed data from 1454 cases and 10,749 controls. During the study period, the incidence of admission to hospital with malaria per 1000 child-years decreased from 28·5 to 3·45, with a reduction in protection afforded by HbAS against bacteraemia occurring in parallel (p=0·0008). The incidence of hospital admissions for bacteraemia per 1000 child-years also decreased from 2·59 to 1·45. The bacteraemia incidence rate ratio associated with malaria parasitaemia was 6·69 (95% CI 1·31-34·3) and, at a community parasite prevalence of 29% in 1999, 62% (8·2-91) of bacteraemia cases were attributable to malaria. INTERPRETATION: Malaria infection strongly predisposes individuals to bacteraemia and can account for more than half of all cases of bacteraemia in malaria-endemic areas. Interventions to control malaria will have a major additional benefit by reducing the burden of invasive bacterial disease. FUNDING: Wellcome Trust

Hospital Episode Statistics and trends in ophthalmic surgery 1998 – 2004

BACKGROUND: Hospital episode statistics (HES) is a UK national database for the National Health Service (NHS), now available online. The purpose of this study was to observe trends in ophthalmic operations performed during the period from 1998 to 2004, using this data. METHODS: From the 'Main Operation' codes within the 'Free data' section of the HES website we analysed data in regard to 28 specific ophthalmic operations. These represented each sub speciality within ophthalmology. RESULTS: The figures show a change in the total number and proportions of operations performed for many of the procedures. For example, there was an increase in numbers of orbital decompressions, but a decrease in numbers of glaucoma filtering operations. Changing trends could be seen in different surgical areas such as the change in operations used for corneal grafting and in retinal surgery. CONCLUSION: The HES database represents an important, potentially useful source of information. There are imitations in interpretation of and validity of such data related to coding inconsistencies. We suggest the benefit of the data comes from observing trends rather than exact numbers. As other studies using this data have suggested, it is important that clinicians are involved in improving the quality of this data

‘Paris with snakes’? The future of communication is/as ‘Cultural Science’

What if communication has been pursuing the wrong kind of science? This article argues that the physics-based or ‘transmission’ model derived from Claude Shannon and criticised by James Carey does not explain how communication works. We argue instead for a model derived from the evolutionary and complexity sciences. Here, communication is based on dynamic systems of meaning (not individual ‘particles’ of information), and relations among knowledge-producing agents in culture-made groups. We call this sign-based evolutionary and systems model of communication ‘cultural science’ (Hartley and Potts, 2014), and invite communication scholars to assist in its development as a ‘modern synthesis’ for communication, along the lines of Huxley’s synthesis of botany and zoology as evolutionary bioscience