Reception, criticism and appropriation of the metaphysics in Hegel’s Science of Logic

The present analysis defends the thesis that Hegel elaborates an original transformation of the concept of metaphysics, assuming its presuppositions as they were developed in the philosophic tradition, that metaphysics is a doctrine of the first principles, a theory of Being, a theodicy and even, as for Kant, a theory of knowledge

Reception, criticism and appropriation of the metaphysics in Hegel’s Science of Logic

The present analysis defends the thesis that Hegel elaborates an original transformation of the concept of metaphysics, assuming its presuppositions as they were developed in the philosophic tradition, that metaphysics is a doctrine of the first principles, a theory of Being, a theodicy and even, as for Kant, a theory of knowledge

DNA methylation profiles in red blood cells of adult hens correlate with their rearing conditions

Stressful conditions are common in the environment where production animals are reared. Stress in animals is usually determined by the levels of stress-related hormones. A big challenge, however, is in determining the history of exposure of an organism to stress, because the release of stress hormones can show an acute (and recent) but not a sustained exposure to stress. Epigenetic tools provide an alternative option to evaluate past exposure to long-termstress. Chickens provide a unique model to study stress effects in the epigenome of red blood cells (RBCs), a cell type of easy access and nucleated in birds. The present study investigated whether two different rearing conditions in chickens can be identified by looking at DNA methylation patterns in their RBCs later in life. These conditions were rearing in open aviaries versus in cages, which are likely to differ regarding the amount of stress they generate. Our comparison revealed 115 genomic windows with significant changes in RBC DNA methylation between experimental groups, which were located around 53 genes and within 22 intronic regions. Our results set the ground for future detection of long-term stress in live production animals by measuring DNA methylation in a cell type of easy accessibility.Funding Agencies|Coordenacao de Aperfeicamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES; Brazilian government); Fundaco de Amparo a esquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo (FAPESP) [2016/20440-3]; Foundation for Research Levy on Agricultural Products (FFL); Agricultural Agreement Research Fund; Animalia (Norwegian Meat and Poultry Research Centre) through the Norges Forskningsrad [207739]; Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e Tecnologico (CNPq; Brazilian government); Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo (FAPESP; Sao Paulo State, Brazil) [2014/08704-0]; European Research Council [322206]</p

Sperm Methylome Profiling Can Discern Fertility Levels in the Porcine Biomedical Model

A combined Genotyping By Sequencing (GBS) and methylated DNA immunoprecipitation (MeDIP) protocol was used to identify-in parallel-genetic variation (Genomic-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) and epigenetic differences of Differentially Methylated Regions (DMR) in the genome of spermatozoa from the porcine animal model. Breeding boars with good semen quality (n = 11) and specific and well-documented differences in fertility (farrowing rate, FR) and prolificacy (litter size, LS) (n = 7) in artificial insemination programs, using combined FR and LS, were categorized as High Fertile (HF, n = 4) or Low Fertile (LF, n = 3), and boars with Unknown Fertility (UF, n = 4) were tested for eventual epigenetical similarity with those fertility-proven. We identified 165,944 Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) that explained 14-15% of variance among selection lines. Between HF and LF individuals (n = 7, 4 HF and 3 LF), we identified 169 SNPs with p &lt;= 0.00015, which explained 58% of the variance. For the epigenetic analyses, we considered fertility and period of ejaculate collection (late-summer and mid-autumn). Approximately three times more DMRs were observed in HF than in LF boars across these periods. Interestingly, UF boars were clearly clustered with one of the other HF or LF groups. The highest differences in DMRs between HF and LF experimental groups across the pig genome were located in the chr 3, 9, 13, and 16, with most DMRs being hypermethylated in LF boars. In both HF and LF boars, DMRs were mostly hypermethylated in late-summer compared to mid-autumn. Three overlaps were detected between SNPs (p &lt;= 0.0005, n = 1318) and CpG sites within DMRs. In conclusion, fertility levels in breeding males including FR and LS can be discerned using methylome analyses. The findings in this biomedical animal model ought to be applied besides sire selection for andrological diagnosis of idiopathic sub/infertility