Low protein intake during the preconception period in beef heifers affects offspring and maternal behaviour

Maternal low protein diets prior to conception alter embryo and fetal development and are associated with detrimental outcomes in the offspring in many species. The aim of this study in beef cattle was to investigate the effect of preconception dietary protein upon maternal and offspring behaviour at birth concomitant with the associated hormonal profile. Sixty days prior to conception, nulliparous yearling heifers (n = 85) were fed either a High (PreH: 18%; n = 43) or Low (PreL: 10%; n = 42) crude protein diet, followed by a control diet throughout gestation. After calving, each cow-calf pair was penned individually, accelerometers fitted, and each pen observed continuously via video recordings. Cows fed on the low protein diet during preconception showed an increase in standing time (P [less than] 0.01); while calves born to heifers receiving the PreL diet showed an increase in suckling time (P = 0.04). These calves were also heavier at birth than calves from PreH mothers (P [less than] 0.01). In conclusion, low maternal dietary protein prior to conception in beef heifers modifies both offspring feeding behaviour and birth weight, and cow’s standing times

Bovine sperm defects are affected by breed, age, season and region

This study reports the distribution of sperm morphology defects by breed, age, season and region of 11,387 bulls in 500 herds in Australia and near Pacific Islands during annual BBSE. Bull location was divided into 4 broad climatic regions based upon temperature, vegetation and climatic risk. Taking into account the impact of age, season, region, and breed there were differences between breeds in both percent morphologically normal sperm and in some individual categories of sperm abnormality (P < 0.001). Independent of breed, season and region, proximal droplets were significantly increased in bulls less than 20 months of age. This is the first study to comprehensively collect data from this wide geographical area and compare sperm morphology profiles among the Bos indicus and Bos taurus breeds. The findings of this study will act as a guide for veterinary practitioners and cattle breeders in the proportion of bulls that can be expected to pass the PNS test, by breed, age and region, based on a robust data set

Whole genome sequencing of Shigella sonnei through PulseNet Latin America and Caribbean: advancing global surveillance of foodborne illnesses

Objectives Shigella sonnei is a globally important diarrhoeal pathogen tracked through the surveillance network PulseNet Latin America and Caribbean (PNLA&C), which participates in PulseNet International. PNLA&C laboratories use common molecular techniques to track pathogens causing foodborne illness. We aimed to demonstrate the possibility and advantages of transitioning to whole genome sequencing (WGS) for surveillance within existing networks across a continent where S. sonnei is endemic. Methods We applied WGS to representative archive isolates of S. sonnei (n = 323) from laboratories in nine PNLA&C countries to generate a regional phylogenomic reference for S. sonnei and put this in the global context. We used this reference to contextualise 16 S. sonnei from three Argentinian outbreaks, using locally generated sequence data. Assembled genome sequences were used to predict antimicrobial resistance (AMR) phenotypes and identify AMR determinants. Results S. sonnei isolates clustered in five Latin American sublineages in the global phylogeny, with many (46%, 149 of 323) belonging to previously undescribed sublineages. Predicted multidrug resistance was common (77%, 249 of 323), and clinically relevant differences in AMR were found among sublineages. The regional overview showed that Argentinian outbreak isolates belonged to distinct sublineages and had different epidemiologic origins. Conclusions Latin America contains novel genetic diversity of S. sonnei that is relevant on a global scale and commonly exhibits multidrug resistance. Retrospective passive surveillance with WGS has utility for informing treatment, identifying regionally epidemic sublineages and providing a framework for interpretation of prospective, locally sequenced outbreaks

Non-AIDS defining cancers in the D:A:D Study-time trends and predictors of survival : a cohort study

BACKGROUND:Non-AIDS defining cancers (NADC) are an important cause of morbidity and mortality in HIV-positive individuals. Using data from a large international cohort of HIV-positive individuals, we described the incidence of NADC from 2004-2010, and described subsequent mortality and predictors of these.METHODS:Individuals were followed from 1st January 2004/enrolment in study, until the earliest of a new NADC, 1st February 2010, death or six months after the patient's last visit. Incidence rates were estimated for each year of follow-up, overall and stratified by gender, age and mode of HIV acquisition. Cumulative risk of mortality following NADC diagnosis was summarised using Kaplan-Meier methods, with follow-up for these analyses from the date of NADC diagnosis until the patient's death, 1st February 2010 or 6 months after the patient's last visit. Factors associated with mortality following NADC diagnosis were identified using multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression.RESULTS:Over 176,775 person-years (PY), 880 (2.1%) patients developed a new NADC (incidence: 4.98/1000PY [95% confidence interval 4.65, 5.31]). Over a third of these patients (327, 37.2%) had died by 1st February 2010. Time trends for lung cancer, anal cancer and Hodgkin's lymphoma were broadly consistent. Kaplan-Meier cumulative mortality estimates at 1, 3 and 5 years after NADC diagnosis were 28.2% [95% CI 25.1-31.2], 42.0% [38.2-45.8] and 47.3% [42.4-52.2], respectively. Significant predictors of poorer survival after diagnosis of NADC were lung cancer (compared to other cancer types), male gender, non-white ethnicity, and smoking status. Later year of diagnosis and higher CD4 count at NADC diagnosis were associated with improved survival. The incidence of NADC remained stable over the period 2004-2010 in this large observational cohort.CONCLUSIONS:The prognosis after diagnosis of NADC, in particular lung cancer and disseminated cancer, is poor but has improved somewhat over time. Modifiable risk factors, such as smoking and low CD4 counts, were associated with mortality following a diagnosis of NADC

Colloid retention at the meniscus-wall contact line in an open microchannel

PubMedID: 22130000Colloid retention mechanisms in partially saturated porous media are currently being researched with an array of visualization techniques. These visualization techniques have refined our understanding of colloid movement and retention at the pore scale beyond what can be obtained from breakthrough experiments. One of the remaining questions is what mechanisms are responsible for colloid immobilization at the triple point where air, water, and soil grain meet. The objective of this study was to investigate how colloids are transported to the air-water-solid (AWS) contact line in an open triangular microchannel, and then retained as a function of meniscus contact angle with the wall and solution ionic strength. Colloid flow path, meniscus shape and meniscus-wall contact angle, and colloid retention at the AWS contact line were visualized and quantified with a confocal microscope. Experimental results demonstrated that colloid retention at the AWS contact line was significant when the meniscus-wall contact angle was less than 16°, but was minimal for the meniscus-wall contact angles exceeding 20°. Tracking of individual colloids and computational hydrodynamic simulation both revealed that for small contact angles (e.g., 12.5°), counter flow and flow vortices formed near the AWS contact line, but not for large contact angles (e.g., 28°). This counter flow helped deliver the colloids to the wall surface just below the contact line. In accordance with DLVO and hydrodynamic torque calculations, colloid movement may be stopped when the colloid reached the secondary minimum at the wall near the contact line. However, contradictory to the prediction of the torque analysis, colloid retention at the AWS contact line decreased with increasing ionic strength for contact angles of 10-20°, indicating that the air-water interface was involved through both counter flow and capillary force. We hypothesized that capillary force pushed the colloid through the primary energy barrier to the primary minimum to become immobilized, when small fluctuations in water level stretched the meniscus over the colloid. For large meniscus-wall contact angles counter flow was not observed, resulting in less colloid retention, because a smaller number of colloids were transported to the contact line. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd.National Science Foundation: 2006-0635954 2008-35102-04462, 2005-03929 United States - Israel Binational Agricultural Research and Development Fund: IS-3962-07This research was supported by funding from the USDA-National Research Initiative (project 2005-03929 and 2008-35102-04462), Binational Agricultural Research and Development Fund, Project No. IS-3962-07, and the National Science Foundation (project 2006-0635954). The authors acknowledge the expert guidance of Carol Bayles, the manager of the Cornell University Biotechnology Center’s Microscopy and Imaging Facility. Appendi

Peptidomic analysis of healthy and subclinically mastitic bovine milk

A variety of proteases release hundreds of endogenous peptide fragments from intact bovine milk proteins. Mass spectrometry-based peptidomics allows for high throughput sequence assignment of a large number of these peptides. Mastitis is known to result in increased protease activity in the mammary gland. Therefore, we hypothesized that subclinically mastitic milks would contain higher concentrations of released peptides. In this work, milks were sampled from three cows and, for each, one healthy and one subclinically mastitic teat were sampled for milk. Peptides were analyzed by nano-liquid chromatography quadrupole time of flight tandem mass spectrometry and identified with database searching. In total, 682 peptides were identified. The total number of released peptides increased 146% from healthy to subclinically mastitic milks (p <0.05), and the total abundance of released peptides also increased significantly (p <0.05). Bioinformatic analysis of enzyme cleavage revealed increases in activity of cathepsin D and elastase (p <0.05) with subclinical mastitis

European Community Atlas of ‘Avoidable Death’ -- 1

info:eu-repo/semantics/published

Avaliação ultra-sonográfica da dinâmica folicular e lútea em vacas da raça Guzerá Ultrasonographic evaluation of follicular dynamics and luteal function in Guzerá cows

Caracterizaram-se o padrão de crescimento folicular e a função lútea ao longo do ciclo estral em vacas da raça Guzerá (n=5), multíparas, não-lactantes. Os animais utilizados apresentavam idade e condição corporal semelhantes e peso corporal médio de 518± 48.5kg. A dinâmica folicular foi monitorada diariamente a partir do dia da ovulação, durante dois ciclos consecutivos, utilizando-se um aparelho de ultra-sonografia equipado com uma probe linear retal de 5MHz. Amostras de sangue foram coletadas a cada 48h, a partir do momento da ovulação, durante os dois ciclos. O primeiro ciclo foi sincronizado pela administração de um luteolítico (cloprostenol), e o segundo foi natural. Os folículos foram identificados e mensurados; e os dados obtidos, registrados em função do dia do ciclo. O comprimento do ciclo estral foi de 19,10± 1,86 dias. Observou-se maior incidência de ciclos com três ondas de crescimento folicular (50%), mas ciclos com duas (37,5%) ou quatro ondas (12,5%) também foram identificados. O diâmetro máximo dos folículos dominantes não ovulatórios foi de 11,60± 2,37 mm, e dos folículos ovulatórios de 14,4± 0,5 mm. A taxa de crescimento dos folículos dominantes da primeira, segunda, terceira e quarta onda foi de 1,48± 0,60; 0,81± 0,13; 1,10± 0,27 e 1,33mm/dia, respectivamente. A concentração máxima de progesterona no diestro foi de 5,50± 0,92ng/ml. A raça Guzerá apresenta características da dinâmica folicular semelhantes àquelas observadas em outras raças zebuínas, como a tendência ao maior número de ondas de crescimento associadas à menor taxa de crescimento, diâmetro máximo e persistência dos folículos dominantes das ondas intermediárias.<br>The follicular growth pattern and luteal function during the estrous cycle were studied using multiparous, non-lactating Guzerá cows (n=5). The animals presented similar age, body score condition, and mean body weight of 518 ± 48.5kg. Follicular dynamics was daily monitored between ovulations during two consecutive estrous cycles, using an ultrasound device equipped with a linear rectal 5MHz transducer. Blood samples were collected each 48h after ovulation, during the evaluated cycles. The first cycle was synchronized using a luteolytic agent (cloprostenol), and the second estrous cycle was natural. Follicles were identified and measured, and data were individually recorded according to the day of the cycle. The mean length of the cycles was 19.10 ± 1.86 days. There was a higher incidence of cycles presenting three follicular growth waves (50%), but cycles presenting two (37.5%) or three (12.5%) waves were also observed. The maximum diameter of non-ovulatory follicles was 11.60± 2.37mm, and that of ovulatory follicles was 14.40± 0.50mm. The growth rate of dominant follicles during the first, second, third and fourth waves were 1.48 ± 0.60; 0.81 ± 0.13; 1.10 ± 0.27 and 1.33mm/day, respectively. Progesterone maximum concentration during diestrus was 5.50± 0.92ng/ml. These results show that the Guzera breed presents characteristics of the follicular dynamics similar to those observed in other Zebu breeds, like the trend to a higher number of follicular waves associated with lower growth rate, maximum diameter and persistence of the dominant follicles emerging during non-ovulatory waves