Desarrollo de un programa multimedia de aprendizaje en Reproducción Animal

The complexity of the veterinary curriculum is a challenge to prepare educational material in an interdisciplinary manner. Multimedia programs develop on the new computer-assisted learning systems are an appropiate medium for making such educational material available, in a efficient way, easy to update, and the expenses are moderate. Students can handle this program without difficulty, and visual components (graphics, images, movies) can promote the subject-student interaction. A multimedia program dealing with the Animal Reproduction has been developed by Reproduction and Obstetric Unit at the Faculty of Veterinary of Cordoba to support the student's educational formation. Male and female reproductive selection and examination in different animal species is approach in this multimedia application.La complejidad del currículum de veterinaria es un desafío para la preparación de material educacional de manera interdisplinar. Los actuales sistemas de enseñanza asistida por ordenador permiten que tutoriales o programas multimedia de aprendizaje en soportes informáticos se hayan convertido en un medio adecuado para conseguir que este material educativo se encuentre disponible de una manera eficaz, fácil de actualizar y con unos costes moderados. Los estudiantes pueden manejar dichos programas sin mucha complicación, siendo atractivos -entre otras razones- por la facilidad para incorporar en ellos componentes visuales (gráficos, imágenes, vídeos), lo que promueve la interacción entre asignaturas y alumno. En este sentido, la Unidad de Reproducción y Obstreticia de la Facultad de Veterinaria de Córdoba ha desarrollado un programa multimedia de aprendizaje en Reproducción Animal, que ofrece al estudiante un apoyo para su formación. Aborda temas relacionados con la selección y valoración de hembras y machos como reproductores, en las distintas especies animales

Coping with strong translational noncrystallographic symmetry and extreme anisotropy in molecular replacement with Phaser: human Rab27a

Data pathologies caused by effects such as diffraction anisotropy and translational noncrystallographic symmetry (tNCS) can dramatically complicate the solution of the crystal structures of macromolecules. Such problems were encountered in determining the structure of a mutant form of Rab27a, a member of the Rab GTPases. Mutant Rab27a constructs that crystallize in the free form were designed for use in the discovery of drugs to reduce primary tumour invasiveness and metastasis. One construct, hRab27aMut, crystallized within 24 h and diffracted to 2.82 Å resolution, with a unit cell possessing room for a large number of protein copies. Initial efforts to solve the structure using molecular replacement by Phaser were not successful. Analysis of the data set revealed that the crystals suffered from both extreme anisotropy and strong tNCS. As a result, large numbers of reflections had estimated standard deviations that were much larger than their measured intensities and their expected intensities, revealing problems with the use of such data at the time in Phaser. By eliminating extremely weak reflections with the largest combined effects of anisotropy and tNCS, these problems could be avoided, allowing a molecular-replacement solution to be found. The lessons that were learned in solving this structure have guided improvements in the numerical analysis used in Phaser, particularly in identifying diffraction measurements that convey very little information content. The calculation of information content could also be applied as an alternative to ellipsoidal truncation. The post-mortem analysis also revealed an oversight in accounting for measurement errors in the fast rotation function. While the crystal of mutant Rab27a is not amenable to drug screening, the structure can guide new modifications to obtain more suitable crystal forms

Chemical plasmatic levels in repeat breeder cows after a.i.

Numerous studies report important metabolic imbalances during the transitional period of the cow affecting its reproduction. However, only a few of them concern the early period of gestation, where variations in the plasmatic components related to repeat breeding may take place. In that period there are great hormonal changes, as those happening during the formation of the CL and the subsequent progesterone secretion. With the aim of going into this subject in depth, we carried out a study to determine concentrations of calcium, inorganic phosphorus, glucose, magnesium, copper and zinc in the blood plasma of 42 Holstein Freisian cows, during 32 days after the AI. A photometer BioSystem BTS 310 was used to determine those metabolic parameters. Variance analyses were performed on animals grouped according to their reproductive state (A=pregnant; B=non pregnant) and number of AIs (A1=pregnant in 1-2 AIs; A2=pregnant in ≥3 AIs; B1=repeat breeder, non pregnant in 1-2 AIs; B2=repeat breeder, non pregnant in ≥3 AIs). The concentrations studied did not vary depending on the reproductive state after the AI. This indicates that in the early pregnancy period a suitable homeostasis is kept, regardless of the hormonal variations occurring and the process of maternal recognition of gestation. However, when comparing results obtained from repeating cows and pregnant cows according the number of AIs received significant variations are shown in calcium, phosphorus, glucose, magnesium, and zinc levels, what makes think about their possible role as etiological agents of the repeating cows syndrome.Numerosos trabajos demuestran que durante el periodo de transición de la vaca aparecen desequilibrios metabólicos importantes que repercuten sobre la reproducción. Sin embargo, pocos hacen referencia al periodo temprano de gestación, donde es posible que, entre otras, las alteraciones o modificaciones en algunos constituyentes plasmáticos estén relacionadas con la repetición de celos. En dicho periodo existen grandes cambios hormonales, como los que suceden durante la formación del CL y subsecuente secreción de progesterona. Con el objetivo de ahondar en estos aspectos se llevó a cabo una experiencia en la que se determinaron las concentraciones de calcio, fósforo inorgánico, glucosa, magnesio, cobre y zinc presentes en el plasma sanguíneo de 42 vacas Holstein Freisian durante 32 días posteriores a la IA. Para determinar dichos parámetros metabólicos se empleó un fotómetro BioSystem BTS 310. Se realizaron análisis de varianza entre los animales agrupados según su estado reproductivo y según el número de IAs recibidas. Las concentraciones químicas determinadas en este estudio no sufrieron variaciones dependientes del estado reproductivo tras la IA, lo que indica que durante este periodo temprano se mantiene una homeostasis adecuada independientemente de los procesos de reconocimiento materno de la gestación que están en marcha o de variaciones hormonales que tienen lugar. Sin embargo, al comparar los resultados obtenidos entre las vacas repetidoras y las gestantes según el número de IAs recibidas se observan variaciones significativas en cuanto a los niveles de calcio, fósforo, glucosa, magnesio y zinc, lo que hace pensar en su posible participación en el denominado síndrome de la vaca repetidora

Boosting precision crop protection towards agriculture 5.0 via machine learning and emerging technologies: A contextual review

Crop protection is a key activity for the sustainability and feasibility of agriculture in a current context of climate change, which is causing the destabilization of agricultural practices and an increase in the incidence of current or invasive pests, and a growing world population that requires guaranteeing the food supply chain and ensuring food security. In view of these events, this article provides a contextual review in six sections on the role of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and other emerging technologies to solve current and future challenges of crop protection. Over time, crop protection has progressed from a primitive agriculture 1.0 (Ag1.0) through various technological developments to reach a level of maturity closelyin line with Ag5.0 (section 1), which is characterized by successfully leveraging ML capacity and modern agricultural devices and machines that perceive, analyze and actuate following the main stages of precision crop protection (section 2). Section 3 presents a taxonomy of ML algorithms that support the development and implementation of precision crop protection, while section 4 analyses the scientific impact of ML on the basis of an extensive bibliometric study of >120 algorithms, outlining the most widely used ML and deep learning (DL) techniques currently applied in relevant case studies on the detection and control of crop diseases, weeds and plagues. Section 5 describes 39 emerging technologies in the fields of smart sensors and other advanced hardware devices, telecommunications, proximal and remote sensing, and AI-based robotics that will foreseeably lead the next generation of perception-based, decision-making and actuation systems for digitized, smart and real-time crop protection in a realistic Ag5.0. Finally, section 6 highlights the main conclusions and final remarks

Ovarian follicular dynamics in repeat breeder cow: ultrasonography and progesterone level

The aim of this study was to examine follicular development patterns in eighteen repeat breeder cows through spontaneous oestrus cycles. Ovarian ultrasonographic examinations over 32 days after artificial insemination revealed that two follicular waves were the predominant patterns in animals with this syndrome (72.2 percent). Cycles with one or four waves rarely appeared. The ovulatory follicular diameter (day 0) was larger (p<0.01) in cycles with a small number of waves; no differences were detected between ovulatory and anovulatory dominant follicles. Progesterone plasmatic concentrations were determined by RIA and differences were not significant when cycles with two or three waves were compared. The number of follicular waves was higher (2 or 3 waves) with longer interovulatory intervals (22.3 ± 1.89 vs 23.0 ± 2.0; n.s.) and older cows (7.0 ± 2.64 vs 4.38 ± 1.66 years; p<0.05). Mean ovulatory follicular diameter was 1.78 ± 0.36 cm. It can be concluded that cows with the repeat breeder cow syndrome more frequently present two follicular wavesEl objetivo de este trabajo era caracterizar los patrones de desarrollo folicular en 18 vacas repetidoras de celos a lo largo de ciclos sexuales espontáneos. Se llevaron a cabo exámenes ecográficos de los ovarios durante 32 días posteriores a la inseminación, observándose que el patrón de dos ondas era el más frecuente en vacas repetidoras alcanzando un 72,2 p.100, mientras que los de 3 ondas estuvieron presentes en el 16,6 p.100 de los ciclos estudiados. Se registraron ciclos con 1 y 4 ondas, aunque esta condición es muy poco frecuente. El diámetro del folículo ovulatorio fue mayor en ciclos con menos número de ondas (p<0,01); no se detectaron diferencias entre folículos dominantes ovulatorios o anovulatorios. Las concentraciones de progesterona no mostraron diferencias entre los distintos patrones de crecimiento folicular. Se apreció que los ciclos con más ondas foliculares estaban acompañados de intervalos interovulatorios más largos y aparecía en vacas más viejas. El diámetro folicular ovulatorio medio alcanzó 1,78 ± 0,36 cm. Los resultados permiten afirmar que la dinámica folicular más frecuente en vacas repetidoras es la de dos ondas

Escrotal circumference and skin flush sexual in florida male goat

Escrotal circumference (CE) by orquimetry and skin flush sexual (SFS) by observation in the inguino-escrotal skin in four Florida male goats were studied for 14 months. Seasonal variation was observed in CE, that was minor in autumn (30.84±0.24 cm) and maximun in spring (32.79 ±0.22 cm). Also, seasonal pattern was observed in SFS, with pale skin during winter (p<0.001). Light hours and temperature shown significant correlation with CE and SFS.En un grupo de cuatro machos cabríos de raza Florida se estudiaron las variaciones de la circunferencia escrotal (CE) y el grado de hiperemia inguino-escrotal o skin flush sexual (SFS) durante un periodo de 14 meses. Los resultados revelan una ligera variación estacional de la CE que es menor en otoño (30,84 ±0,24 cm.) y máxima en primavera (32,79±0,22 cm). El SFS presentó una distribución estacional, de manera que la coloración inguino-escrotal de la piel era más pálida durante el invierno (p<0,001). Tanto las horas de luz como la temperatura mostraron correlación significativa respecto a la CE y SFS

Comparative Evaluation of Early Pregnancy Diagnosis in Cattle by Progesterone Concentration and Luteal Ultrasonography

Se realizó un estudio comparativo entre 2 métodos para diagnóstico precoz de gestación en vacuno: progesterona plasmática (DP) y medida del área luteal (DAL). Cuarenta y dos vacas Holstein-Freisian fueron inseminadas (IA) después de mostrar signos de celo, y durante los 28 días posteriores se realizaron ecografías ováricas y toma de muestras de sangre, a intervalos de 4 días. El día 22 se tomó una muestra adicional de sangre. Se determinaron los niveles de progesterona plasmática (mediante RIA) y el área de tejido luteal (por ecografía), para posteriormente calcular el valor predictivo positivo y negativo, seguridad, especificidad y sensibilidad de las técnicas diagnósticas. Asimismo, se determinó el coeficiente de concordancia entre DP y DAL. Los resultados demostraron correlación significativa entre progesterona y área luteal (r=0,74; P<0,001). Se observó buena concordancia entre estado reproductivo real de los animales y DP durante los días 20, 22, 24 y 28 post-IA, al igual que los días 20, 24 y 28 cuando se empleó DAL. El valor predictivo de gestación positiva, seguridad y especificidad fueron superiores en el DAL frente al DP a partir del día 20, lo que demuestra la utilidad de la ecografía luteal en el diagnóstico temprano de gestación en vacuno.The aim of this study was to compare two different early pregnancy diagnosis in cows: plasmatic progesterone concentration (DP) by RIA, and luteal tissue area (DAL) by ultrasound. From the day of insemination (day 0) until day 28, ovarian ultrasound exploration and blood collection was performed in forty two Holtein Freisian cows on every fourth day. Day 22 an additional blood sample was collected. Positive and negative predictive value, accuracy, specificity and sensitivity were calculated for both diagnosis method, and uterine ultrasonography was used as the reproductive status reference. The data indicate significant correlation between progesterone and luteal tissue area (r=0.74; P<0.001). The degree of agreement between DP and DAL was calculated. Good concordance between reproductive status and DP was observed on day 20, 22, 24 and 28, similar to DAL. Positive predictive value, accuracy and specificity were higher in DAL than in DP since day 20, therefore luteal ultrasonography is an useful tool for early pregnancy diagnosis

DNA methylation editing by CRISPR-guided excision of 5-methylcytosine

Tools for active targeted DNA demethylation are required to increase our knowledge about regulation and specific functions of this important epigenetic modification. DNA demethylation in mammals involve TET-mediated oxidation of 5- methylcytosine (5-meC), which may promote its replication-dependent dilution and/or active removal through base excision repair (BER). However, it is still unclear whether oxidized derivatives of 5-meC are simply DNA demethylation intermediates or rather epigenetic marks on their own. Unlike animals, plants have evolved enzymes that directly excise 5-meC without previous modification. In this work we have fused the catalytic domain of Arabidopsis ROS1 5-meC DNA glycosylase to a CRISPRassociated null-nuclease (dCas9) and analyzed its capacity for targeted reactivation of methylation-silenced genes, in comparison to other dCas9-effectors. We found that dCas9-ROS1, but not dCas9-TET1, is able to reactivate methylation-silenced genes and induce partial demethylation in a replication-independent manner. We also found that reactivation induced by dCas9-ROS1, as well as that achieved by two different CRISPR-based chromatin effectors (dCas9-VP160 and dCas9-p300), generally decreases with methylation density. Our results suggest that plant 5-meC DNA glycosylases are a valuable addition to the CRISPR-based toolbox for epigenetic editing

Utilidad del perfil de progesterona plasmática y ecografía en el diagnóstico de quistes ováricos en vacas repetidoras de celos

Ultrasound exploration of the reproductive tract and plasmatic progesterone levels was studied in thirty-seven repeat breeder cows from day 0 (day of insemination) to day 32, on every fourth day. Ovarian cyst structures were reported in 16.2% of these animals. The 70% of them were like-follicles with anecogenic aspect, hyperecogenical thin walls, and use to appear alone (simple follicular cyst) or grouped (multiple follicular cyst). The rest 30% were luteal cysts, with a rounded morphology, and anecogenic appearance, showing sometimes an hypoecogenic structure with roughly increased walls. Furthermore, the reported clinical course was nymphomania in 66.6% of animals, while a 33.3% presented lack of oestrus or loss of the typical oestrus behaviour. The progesterone concentration was observed throughout the period of study. Cows with basal levels of progesterone (lower than 0.8 ng/ml) were found, while others presented suprabasal levels (between 0.8 and 1.8 ng/ml). In other females a rotation of high and low values was observed, depending on the kind of the cyst as well as on the moment of formationTreintra y siete vacas con historia de repetición de celos fueron sometidas a exploraciones ecográficas de su aparato genital y a determinación de progesterona plasmática desde el día 0 del ciclo (día en que se realizó la espermatización) hasta el día 32, a intervalos de cuatro días. Se observó que un 16.2% de estos animales presentaba estructuras quísticas ováricas, diferenciándose un 70% de naturaleza folicular, con aspecto ecográfico anecogénico, paredes delgadas hiperecogénicas y que aparecían solos (quiste folicular simple) o agrupados (quistes foliculares múltiples); y un 30% de naturaleza luteínica, con morfología redondeada, cuya apariencia ecográfica era anecogénica y a veces mostraba un entramado hipoecogénico, con paredes a menudo engrosadas. Así mismo, el curso clínico consistía en presentación de celos cortos y frecuentes en un 66.6% de los animales, mientras que el 33.3 % mostró anestro o pérdida del comportamiento estral. Se determinó la concentración de progesterona a lo largo del periodo de estudio, diferenciándose vacas con niveles basales de progesterona (menor de 0.8 ng/ml), otras con niveles suprabasales (entre 0.8 y 1.8 ng/ml), y animales que alternaron valores altos y bajos dependiendo de la naturaleza del quiste y del momento en que se había formad