Effect of selection for intramuscular fat on the fatty acid composition of rabbit meat

[EN] Intramuscular fat (IMF) content and composition are relevant for the meat industry due to their effect on human health and meat organoleptic properties. A divergent selection experiment for IMF of Longissimus dorsi (LD) muscle was performed in rabbits during eight generations. The aim of this study is to estimate the correlated responses to selection for IMF on the fatty acid composition of LD. Response to selection for IMF was 0.34 g/100 g of LD, representing 2.4 phenotypic SD of the trait. High-IMF line showed 9.20% more monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) and 0.39%, 9.97% and 10.3% less n-3, n-6 and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), respectively, than low-IMF line. The main MUFA and PUFA individual fatty acids followed a similar pattern, except for C18:3n-3 that was greater in the high-IMF line. We did not observe differences between lines for the percentage of total saturated fatty acids, although high-IMF line showed greater C14:0 and C16:0 and lower C18:0 percentages than low-IMF line. Heritability estimates were generally high for all fatty acids percentages, ranging from 0.43 to 0.59 with a SD around 0.08, showing an important genetic component on these traits. Genetic correlations between IMF and LD fatty acid percentages were strong and positive for C14:0, C16:1, C18:1n-9, and MUFA, ranging from 0.88 to 0.97, and strong and negative for C18:0, C18:2n-6, C20:4n6, n-6 and PUFA, ranging from ¿0.83 to ¿0.91. These correlations were accurately estimated, with SD ranging from 0.02 to 0.06. The genetic correlations between IMF and other fatty acids were estimated with lower accuracy. In general, phenotypic and genetic correlations were of the same order. Our experiment shows that selection for IMF strongly affects the fatty acid composition of meat, due the high heritabilities of fatty acids and their high genetic correlations with IMF.This work was supported by project AGL2014-55921-C2-01-P from the Spanish National Research Plan. M. Martinez-Alvaro acknowledges a FPI grant (BES-2012-052655) from the Economy Ministry of Spain. The authors thank Federico Pardo and Marina Morini for their technical assistance.Martinez Alvaro, M.; Blasco Mateu, A.; Hernández, P. (2018). Effect of selection for intramuscular fat on the fatty acid composition of rabbit meat. animal. 12(10):2002-2008. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1751731117003494S20022008121

Innovation in statistical learning: Friendly Bayesian inference in the R programming language

[EN] This paper presents the results of the first year of the implementation of the runRabbit program as an innovation tool in learning Bayesian inference applied to the subject of Quantitative Genetics III. The challenge faced by 14 students of the Animal Genetic Improvement Master of the Polytechnic University of Valencia consisted of solving a frequent statistical problem (calculating differences between groups by fitting a linear model) using runRabbit. This is didactic and interactive software programmed in the R language and designed to enhance the understanding of the bases of this branch of statistics. The results obtained by the students in the proposed practical exercise showed that the runRabbit tool helped them understand the subject. Regarding the value of runRabbit by students, the results of the surveys showed high satisfaction with the use of the program, as well as a desire to use Bayesian inference to solve new challenges. The experience of applying runRabbit as a learning tool has been very positive both from the point of view of understanding the theoretical bases of the subject, and from the potential of the software to solve new professional challenges.[ES] En este trabajo se presentan los resultados del primer año de implementación del programa runRabbit como herramienta innovadora en la enseñanza de la inferencia bayesiana, aplicada a la asignatura de Genética Cuantitativa III para 14 alumnos del Máster de Mejora Genética Animal en la Universitat Politècnica de València. El objetivo de la actividad fue resolver un problema estadístico frecuente, calcular las diferencias entre grupos ajustando un modelo lineal, usando runRabbit, un software didáctico e interactivo programado en el lenguaje R. El programa está diseñado para potenciar la comprensión de las bases de esta rama de la estadística. Los resultados obtenidos en el ejercicio práctico demostraron que runRabbit ayudó a los estudiantes a comprender mejor la asignatura. Además, los resultados de las encuestas indicaron que los estudiantes estuvieron altamente satisfechos con el uso de runRabbit y expresaron su deseo de aplicar la inferencia bayesiana en la resolución de nuevos desafíos.La experiencia de la aplicación de runRabbit como herramienta de aprendizaje fue muy positiva, tanto en términos de la comprensión de las bases teóricas de la asignatura, como en cuanto al potencial del software para resolver nuevos retos profesionales.Martinez Alvaro, M.; Casto-Rebollo, C. (2023). Innovación en el aprendizaje estadístico: inferencia bayesiana amigable en el lenguaje de programación R. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. 1145-1151. https://doi.org/10.4995/INRED2023.2023.166841145115

Correlated responses to selection for intramuscular fat in several muscles in rabbits

[EN] The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of six generations of selection for intramuscular fat (IMF) in muscle Longissimus thoracis et lumborum (LTL) at 9 wk. in IMF and fatty acid (FA) composition of muscles with diverse metabolic profile in rabbits. Direct response to selection was 0.33 g of IMF/ 100 g of LTL, around 0.4 SD per generation. A positive correlated response was observed in IMF of Biceps femoris, Supraspinatus and Semimembranosus proprius muscles at 9 wk., representing around 0.2 SD of the trait per generation. Selection affected similarly the FA composition of all muscles at 9 wk., high-IMF line showing greater monounsaturated but lower polyunsaturated FA percentages than low-IMF line, whereas no differences were observed for saturated FA. Traits were also measured at 13 wk. and correlated responses were in the same direction. Our results suggest a common genetic background for IMF and FA composition in muscles with different metabolic profile in rabbits.This work was supported by project AGL2014-55921-C2-01-P from the Spanish National Research Plan. M. Martinez-Alvaro acknowledges a FPI grant (BES-2012-052655) from the Economy Ministry of Spain.Martinez Alvaro, M.; Hernández, P.; Agha, SA.; Blasco Mateu, A. (2018). Correlated responses to selection for intramuscular fat in several muscles in rabbits. Meat Science. 139:187-191. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.meatsci.2018.01.026S18719113

Liver metabolism traits in two rabbit lines divergently selected for intramuscular fat

[EN] Intramuscular fat (IMF) has a large effect in the sensory properties of meat because affects tenderness, juiciness and flavour. A divergent selection experiment for IMF in Longissimus dorsi (LD) muscle was performed in rabbits. As liver is the major site of lipogenesis in rabbits, the objective of this work is to study the liver metabolism in the two rabbit lines selected for high and low IMF. Intramuscular fat content, perirenal fat weight, liver weight, liver lipogenic activities and plasma parameters related to liver metabolism were measured in the eight generation of selection. Direct response on IMF was 0.34 g /100 g of LD, which represented 2.7 SD of the trait, and selection showed a positive correlated response in the perirenal fat weight. High-IMF line showed greater liver size and greater liver lipogenic activities of enzymes glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and malic enzyme (EM), although the difference between lines for EM activity was not relevant, whereas we did not find differences between lines for fatty acid synthase lipogenic activity. With regard to plasma parameters, low-IMF line showed greater plasma concentration of triglycerides, cholesterol, bilirubin and alkaline phosphatase than high-IMF line, whereas high-IMF line showed greater albumin and alanine transaminase concentrations, and all the differences between lines were relevant except for cholesterol concentration. We did not observe differences between lines for glucose, total protein and plasma concentrations. Phenotypic correlations between fat (IMF and perirenal fat weight) and liver traits suggested that liver lipogenesis affects fat deposition in both, muscle and carcass. None of the plasma parameters measured was strongly correlated with IMF.This work was supported by project AGL2014-55921-C2-01-P from the Spanish National Research Plan. M.M.A. acknowledges a FPI (grant no: BES-2012-052655) from the Economy Ministry of Spain. The authors thank Federico Pardo for its technical assistance.Martinez Alvaro, M.; Paucar, Y.; Satué, K.; Blasco Mateu, A.; Hernández, P. (2018). Liver metabolism traits in two rabbit lines divergently selected for intramuscular fat. animal. 12(6):1217-1223. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1751731117002695S1217122312

Linking Two Immuno-Suppressive Molecules: Indoleamine 2,3 Dioxygenase Can Modify HLA-G Cell-Surface Expression1

Nonclassical human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I molecule HLA-G and indoleamine 2,3 dioxygenase (INDO) in humans and mice, respectively, have been shown to play crucial immunosuppressive roles in fetal-maternal tolerance. HLA-G inhibits natural killer and T cell function by high-affinity interaction with inhibitory receptors, and INDO acts by depleting the surrounding microenvironment of the essential amino acid tryptophan, thus inhibiting T cell proliferation. We investigated whether HLA-G expression and INDO function were linked. Working with antigen-presenting cell (APC) lines and monocytes, we found that functional inhibition of INDO by 1-methyl-tryptophan induced cell surface expression of HLA-G1 by HLA-G1- negative APCs that were originally cell-surface negative, and that in reverse, the functional boost of INDO by high concentrations of tryptophan induced a complete loss of HLA-G1 cell surface expression by APCs that were originally cell-surface HLA-G1-positive. This mechanism was shown to be posttranslational because HLA-G protein cell contents remained unaffected by the treatments used. Furthermore, HLA-G cell surface expression regulation by INDO seems to relate to INDO function, but not to tryptophan catabolism itself. Potentia

Overview of recent TJ-II stellarator results

The main results obtained in the TJ-II stellarator in the last two years are reported. The most important topics investigated have been modelling and validation of impurity transport, validation of gyrokinetic simulations, turbulence characterisation, effect of magnetic configuration on transport, fuelling with pellet injection, fast particles and liquid metal plasma facing components. As regards impurity transport research, a number of working lines exploring several recently discovered effects have been developed: the effect of tangential drifts on stellarator neoclassical transport, the impurity flux driven by electric fields tangent to magnetic surfaces and attempts of experimental validation with Doppler reflectometry of the variation of the radial electric field on the flux surface. Concerning gyrokinetic simulations, two validation activities have been performed, the comparison with measurements of zonal flow relaxation in pellet-induced fast transients and the comparison with experimental poloidal variation of fluctuations amplitude. The impact of radial electric fields on turbulence spreading in the edge and scrape-off layer has been also experimentally characterized using a 2D Langmuir probe array. Another remarkable piece of work has been the investigation of the radial propagation of small temperature perturbations using transfer entropy. Research on the physics and modelling of plasma core fuelling with pellet and tracer-encapsulated solid-pellet injection has produced also relevant results. Neutral beam injection driven Alfvénic activity and its possible control by electron cyclotron current drive has been examined as well in TJ-II. Finally, recent results on alternative plasma facing components based on liquid metals are also presentedThis work has been carried out within the framework of the EUROfusion Consortium and has received funding from the Euratom research and training programme 2014–2018 under Grant Agreement No. 633053. It has been partially funded by the Ministerio de Ciencia, Inovación y Universidades of Spain under projects ENE2013-48109-P, ENE2015-70142-P and FIS2017-88892-P. It has also received funds from the Spanish Government via mobility grant PRX17/00425. The authors thankfully acknowledge the computer resources at MareNostrum and the technical support provided by the Barcelona S.C. It has been supported as well by The Science and Technology Center in Ukraine (STCU), Project P-507F

Rhinitis associated with asthma is distinct from rhinitis alone: TARIA‐MeDALL hypothesis

Asthma, rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis (AD) are interrelated clinical phenotypes that partly overlap in the human interactome. The concept of “one-airway-one-disease,” coined over 20 years ago, is a simplistic approach of the links between upper- and lower-airway allergic diseases. With new data, it is time to reassess the concept. This article reviews (i) the clinical observations that led to Allergic Rhinitis and its Impact on Asthma (ARIA), (ii) new insights into polysensitization and multimorbidity, (iii) advances in mHealth for novel phenotype definitions, (iv) confirmation in canonical epidemiologic studies, (v) genomic findings, (vi) treatment approaches, and (vii) novel concepts on the onset of rhinitis and multimorbidity. One recent concept, bringing together upper- and lower-airway allergic diseases with skin, gut, and neuropsychiatric multimorbidities, is the “Epithelial Barrier Hypothesis.” This review determined that the “one-airway-one-disease” concept does not always hold true and that several phenotypes of disease can be defined. These phenotypes include an extreme “allergic” (asthma) phenotype combining asthma, rhinitis, and conjunctivitis.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

ARIA digital anamorphosis : Digital transformation of health and care in airway diseases from research to practice

Digital anamorphosis is used to define a distorted image of health and care that may be viewed correctly using digital tools and strategies. MASK digital anamorphosis represents the process used by MASK to develop the digital transformation of health and care in rhinitis. It strengthens the ARIA change management strategy in the prevention and management of airway disease. The MASK strategy is based on validated digital tools. Using the MASK digital tool and the CARAT online enhanced clinical framework, solutions for practical steps of digital enhancement of care are proposed.Peer reviewe

Les droits disciplinaires des fonctions publiques : « unification », « harmonisation » ou « distanciation ». A propos de la loi du 26 avril 2016 relative à la déontologie et aux droits et obligations des fonctionnaires

The production of tt‾ , W+bb‾ and W+cc‾ is studied in the forward region of proton–proton collisions collected at a centre-of-mass energy of 8 TeV by the LHCb experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 1.98±0.02 fb−1 . The W bosons are reconstructed in the decays W→ℓν , where ℓ denotes muon or electron, while the b and c quarks are reconstructed as jets. All measured cross-sections are in agreement with next-to-leading-order Standard Model predictions.The production of $t\overline{t}$, $W+b\overline{b}$ and $W+c\overline{c}$ is studied in the forward region of proton-proton collisions collected at a centre-of-mass energy of 8 TeV by the LHCb experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 1.98 $\pm$ 0.02 \mbox{fb}^{-1}. The $W$ bosons are reconstructed in the decays $W\rightarrow\ell\nu$, where $\ell$ denotes muon or electron, while the $b$ and $c$ quarks are reconstructed as jets. All measured cross-sections are in agreement with next-to-leading-order Standard Model predictions