Polymorphisms of the <i>ASIP</i> gene and the haplotype are associated with fat deposition traits and fatty acid composition in Chinese Simmental steers

Unlike specific expression in the skin of wild mice, the agouti signaling protein (ASIP) is expressed widely in the tissue of cattle, including adipose and muscle tissue. Hence, it has been suggested that ASIP plays a role in bovine fat metabolism. An inserted L1-BT element was recently identified upstream of the ASIP locus which led to an ectopic expression of ASIP mRNA in cattle. In this study, we detected the indel of the L1-BT element at g. −14 643&thinsp;nt and three SNPs in introns of the ASIP gene (g. −568A&thinsp;&gt;&thinsp;G, g. −554A&thinsp;&gt;&thinsp;T, and g. 4805A&thinsp;&gt;&thinsp;T) in a Chinese Simmental steer population. The association analysis between variants of ASIP and economic traits showed that the homozygous genotype of L1-BT element insertion, AA genotype of g. −568A&thinsp;&gt;&thinsp;G, and AT genotype of g. 4805A&thinsp;&gt;&thinsp;T were significantly correlated with carcass and fat-related traits, such as live weight and back fat thickness. Moreover, three haplotypes (H1: AT; H2: AA; H3: GT) were identified by linkage disequilibrium analysis and formed six combined genotypes. Results indicated that Chinese Simmental steers with an H1H2 combined genotype had a higher measured value of fat-deposition-related traits (p&lt;0.05), including thickness of back fat and percentage of carcass fat coverage, but a lower content of linoleic acid and α-linolenic acid (p&lt;0.05). Individuals of an H3H3 combination had a lower marbling score, perirenal fat weight, and carcass weight (p&lt;0.05). This suggests that these three SNPs and two combined haplotypes might be molecular markers for beef cattle breeding selection.</p

Quasiperiodic spin-orbit motion and spin tunes in storage rings

We present an in-depth analysis of the concept of spin precession frequency for integrable orbital motion in storage rings. Spin motion on the periodic closed orbit of a storage ring can be analyzed in terms of the Floquet theorem for equations of motion with periodic parameters and a spin precession frequency emerges in a Floquet exponent as an additional frequency of the system. To define a spin precession frequency on nonperiodic synchro-betatron orbits we exploit the important concept of quasiperiodicity. This allows a generalization of the Floquet theorem so that a spin precession frequency can be defined in this case too. This frequency appears in a Floquet-like exponent as an additional frequency in the system in analogy with the case of motion on the closed orbit. These circumstances lead naturally to the definition of the uniform precession rate and a definition of spin tune. A spin tune is a uniform precession rate obtained when certain conditions are fulfilled. Having defined spin tune we define spin-orbit resonance on synchro--betatron orbits and examine its consequences. We give conditions for the existence of uniform precession rates and spin tunes (e.g. where small divisors are controlled by applying a Diophantine condition) and illustrate the various aspects of our description with several examples. The formalism also suggests the use of spectral analysis to ``measure'' spin tune during computer simulations of spin motion on synchro-betatron orbits.Comment: 62 pages, 1 figure. A slight extension of the published versio

Towards a Model of Corporate and Social Stakeholder Engagement: Analyzing the Relations Between a French Mutual Bank and Its Members

International audienceThe aim of this article is to develop a new classification of stakeholders based on the concept of corporate and social engagement. Engagement is analyzed as an organizational learning process between the managers of an organization and its stakeholders. It is a necessary condition to improve the organization's impact on its economic, social, and natural environment. Applied to the membership of a French mutual bank in order to identify the members' varying levels of engagement, this new mapping technique may help managers to adapt their practices to the degree of engagement of each identified group of members, and to modify their financial products and communications to foster engagement among as many of these groups as possible

Geodiversity assessment of Paraná state (Brazil): an innovative approach

Geodiversity is considered as the natural range of geological, geomorphological, and soil features, including their assemblages, relationships, properties, interpretations, and systems. A method developed for the quantitative assessment of geodiversity was applied to Parana ́ , a Brazilian state with an area of about 200,000 km2. The method is based on the overlay of a grid over different maps at scales ranging from 1/500,000 to 1/650,000, with the final Geodiversity Index the sum of five partial indexes calculated on a 25 9 25 km grid. The partial indexes represent the main components of geodi- versity, including geology (stratigraphy and lithology), geomorphology, paleontology, and soils. The fifth partial index covers mineral occurrences of geodiversity, such precious stones and metals, energy and industrial minerals, mineral waters, and springs. The Geodiversity Index takes the form of an isoline map that can be used as a tool in land-use planning, particularly in identifying priority areas for conservation, management, and use of natural resources at the state level.The Portuguese authors express their gratitude for the financial support given by the Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia to the Centro de Geologia da Universidade do Porto, which partially supports this research. The Brazilian author expresses his gratitude for the financial support given by the CNPq (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientifico e Tecnologico) (Process Number 200074/2011-3)

Business Ethics: The Promise of Neuroscience

Recent advances in cognitive neuroscience research portend well for furthering understanding of many of the fundamental questions in the field of business ethics, both normative and empirical. This article provides an overview of neuroscience methodology and brain structures, and explores the areas in which neuroscience research has contributed findings of value to business ethics, as well as suggesting areas for future research. Neuroscience research is especially capable of providing insight into individual reactions to ethical issues, while also raising challenging normative questions about the nature of moral responsibility, autonomy, intent, and free will. This article also provides a brief summary of the papers included in this special issue, attesting to the richness of scholarly inquiry linking neuroscience and business ethics. We conclude that neuroscience offers considerable promise to the field of business ethics, but we caution against overpromise

Assessing the Effects of Responsible Leadership and Ethical Conflict on Behavioral Intention

[[abstract]]This study develops a research model that elaborates how responsible leadership and ethical conflict influence employees from the perspectives of role theory and attachment theory. Its empirical results reveal that turnover intention indirectly relates to ethical conflict and responsible leadership via the mediating mechanisms of organizational identification and organizational uncertainty. At the same time, helping intention indirectly relates to ethical conflict and responsible leadership only through organizational identification. Finally, the managerial implications for international business and research limitations based on the empirical results are discussed.[[notice]]補正完