Reproductive Performance of Dairy Cows Affected by Endometritis, Pododermatitis and Mastitis

The effects of endometritis, pododermatitis and clinical mastitis on the conception rate and calving-conception interval of multiparous and primiparous cows after fixed-time artificial insemination (FTAI) were evaluated. Clinical endometritis was diagnosed by ultrasonography 20-40 days postpartum upon observation of fluid in the uterine lumen. Cows with clinical endometritis were treated intramuscularly with 2 mg/kg ceftiofur hydrochloride over three consecutive days. Forty-five days after delivery, multiparous and primiparous cows with normal uteri according to ultrasonography were selected for the study, filed and inseminated by FTAI. To identify animals with hoof problems and clinical mastitis and to define their respective groups, the cows were observed daily during morning and nightly milking for up to 60 days after FTAI, and animals with hoof lesions were treated. Animals with clinical mastitis were treated with intramammary infusion containing 88 mg cefquinome sulphate every 12 h after milking for four days. The conception rate of multiparous cows with clinical endometritis at 30 and 60 days after FTAI was negatively affected compared with that of healthy cows with pododermatitis. However, clinical endometritis did not influence the primiparous category, whereas pododermatitis and clinical mastitis did not influence the conception rate of any category at 30 and 60 days after FTAI. Differences were not observed between primiparous or multiparous cows in the calving-conception interval. Keywords: Lactation, Pregnancy, Health, Fertilit

BDEEP vB2: Sri Lanka

The British Documents on the End of Empire Project (BDEEP) is an initiative of the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, School of Advanced Study, University of London. Established in 1987 under the auspices of the British Academy, the Project has since published 18 volumes containing an annotated selection of official documents from the UK National Archives, charting British withdrawal from its colonial territories. Electronic versions of these volumes have been made available with the support of The Stationary Office under an Open Government Licence. Series B Volume 2 on 'Sri Lanka' was published in 1997 and edited by KM de Silva

Bone Metabolism in Very Preterm Infants Receiving Total Parenteral Nutrition: do Intravenous Fat Emulsions Have an Impact?

ery preterm infants (<32 weeks' gestation) are at high risk for impaired skeletal development because of factors that limit the provision of extrauterine nutrients. Cumulative net deficiencies of calcium, phosphorus, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and arachidonic acid (ARA) are evident in these infants after prolonged administration of total parenteral nutrition (TPN). This is significant because minerals as well as metabolites of DHA and ARA are important modulators of bone cell differentiation, lengthening of bone, and bone matrix deposition. Furthermore, diets containing only precursors of DHA and ARA result in suboptimal skeletal growth. With the emergence of new intravenous lipid emulsions, it is important to understand the impact of fatty acids on bone metabolism in the third trimester in order to optimize the provision of TPN in very preterm infants. The purpose of this review is to evaluate current evidence regarding intravenous lipid emulsions and bone metabolism in very preterm infants receiving prolonged TPN and to identify areas of research needed.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The blending effect of natural polysaccharides with nano-zirconia towards the removal of fluoride and arsenate from water

Nano-zirconia (ZO) was synthesized using a microwave-assisted one-pot precipitation route. Two biopolymers, chitosan (CTS) and carboxymethyl cellulose were blended with ZO at different w/w ratios. The formulation with 30% w/w chitosan (ZO-CTS) was found to give enhanced uptake of F− and As(V). ZO and the most effective ZO-CTS system were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. These confirmed the formation of a composite system containing nanoparticles of 50 nm in size, in which ZO was present in the amorphous form. It was observed that the combination of ZO with CTS improved the F− and As(V) adsorption capacity most notably at pH 5.5. Fluoride adsorption by ZO-CTS followed the Freundlich isotherm model, with an adsorption capacity of 120 mg g−1. Adsorption of As(V) by ZO-CTS could be fitted with both the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm models and was found to have a capacity of 14.8 mg g−1. Gravity filtration studies conducted for groundwater levels indicated the effectiveness of ZO-CTS in adsorbing As(V) and F− at a pH of 5.5. The ability of the ZO-CTS in removing Cd(II) and Pb(II) was also investigated, and no such enhancement was observed, and found the neat ZO was the most potent sorbent here

Mycobacterial infection-induced miR-206 inhibits protective neutrophil recruitment via the CXCL12/CXCR4 signalling axis

Pathogenic mycobacteria actively dysregulate protective host immune signalling pathways during infection to drive the formation of permissive granuloma microenvironments. Dynamic regulation of host microRNA (miRNA) expression is a conserved feature of mycobacterial infections across host-pathogen pairings. Here we examine the role of miR-206 in the zebrafish model of Mycobacterium marinum infection, which allows investigation of the early stages of granuloma formation. We find miR-206 is upregulated following infection by pathogenic M. marinum and that antagomir-mediated knockdown of miR-206 is protective against infection. We observed striking upregulation of cxcl12a and cxcr4b in infected miR-206 knockdown zebrafish embryos and live imaging revealed enhanced recruitment of neutrophils to sites of infection. We used CRISPR/Cas9-mediated knockdown of cxcl12a and cxcr4b expression and AMD3100 inhibition of Cxcr4 to show that the enhanced neutrophil response and reduced bacterial burden caused by miR-206 knockdown was dependent on the Cxcl12/Cxcr4 signalling axis. Together, our data illustrate a pathway through which pathogenic mycobacteria induce host miR-206 expression to suppress Cxcl12/Cxcr4 signalling and prevent protective neutrophil recruitment to granulomas

The Effect of Long-Chain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Intake During Pregnancy on Adiposity of Healthy Full-Term Offspring at Birth

OBJECTIVE: The adjusted effect of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid (LCPUFA) intake during pregnancy on adiposity at birth of healthy full-term appropriate-for-gestational age neonates was evaluated. STUDY DESIGN: In a cross-sectional convenience sample of 100 mother and infant dyads, LCPUFA intake during pregnancy was assessed by food frequency questionnaire with nutrient intake calculated using Food Processor Plus. Linear regression models for neonatal body composition measurements, assessed by air displacement plethysmography and anthropometry, were adjusted for maternal LCPUFA intakes, energy and macronutrient intakes, prepregnancy body mass index and gestational weight gain. RESULT: Positive associations between maternal docosahexaenoic acid intake and ponderal index in male offspring (β=0.165; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.031-0.299; P=0.017), and between n-6:n-3 LCPUFA ratio intake and fat mass (β=0.021; 95% CI: 0.002-0.041; P=0.034) and percentage of fat mass (β=0.636; 95% CI: 0.125-1.147; P=0.016) in female offspring were found. CONCLUSION: Using a reliable validated method to assess body composition, adjusted positive associations between maternal docosahexaenoic acid intake and birth size in male offspring and between n-6:n-3 LCPUFA ratio intake and adiposity in female offspring were found, suggesting that maternal LCPUFA intake strongly influences fetal body composition

Gamification and Adherence to Web-Based Mental Health Interventions: A Systematic Review

Background: Adherence to effective Web-based interventions for common mental disorders (CMDs) and well-being remains a critical issue, with clear potential to increase effectiveness. Continued identification and examination of “active” technological components within Web-based interventions has been called for. Gamification is the use of game design elements and features in nongame contexts. Health and lifestyle interventions have implemented a variety of game features in their design in an effort to encourage engagement and increase program adherence. The potential influence of gamification on program adherence has not been examined in the context of Web-based interventions designed to manage CMDs and well-being. Objective: This study seeks to review the literature to examine whether gaming features predict or influence reported rates of program adherence in Web-based interventions designed to manage CMDs and well-being. Methods: A systematic review was conducted of peer-reviewed randomized controlled trials (RCTs) designed to manage CMDs or well-being and incorporated gamification features. Seven electronic databases were searched. Results: A total of 61 RCTs met the inclusion criteria and 47 different intervention programs were identified. The majority were designed to manage depression using cognitive behavioral therapy. Eight of 10 popular gamification features reviewed were in use. The majority of studies utilized only one gamification feature (n=58) with a maximum of three features. The most commonly used feature was story/theme. Levels and game leaders were not used in this context. No studies explicitly examined the role of gamification features on program adherence. Usage data were not commonly reported. Interventions intended to be 10 weeks in duration had higher mean adherence than those intended to be 6 or 8 weeks in duration. Conclusions: Gamification features have been incorporated into the design of interventions designed to treat CMD and well-being. Further research is needed to improve understanding of gamification features on adherence and engagement in order to inform the design of future Web-based health interventions in which adherence to treatment is of concern. Conclusions were limited by varied reporting of adherence and usage dat

A Sparse Stress Model

Force-directed layout methods constitute the most common approach to draw general graphs. Among them, stress minimization produces layouts of comparatively high quality but also imposes comparatively high computational demands. We propose a speed-up method based on the aggregation of terms in the objective function. It is akin to aggregate repulsion from far-away nodes during spring embedding but transfers the idea from the layout space into a preprocessing phase. An initial experimental study informs a method to select representatives, and subsequent more extensive experiments indicate that our method yields better approximations of minimum-stress layouts in less time than related methods.Comment: Appears in the Proceedings of the 24th International Symposium on Graph Drawing and Network Visualization (GD 2016