Development of Replacement Heifers using Combinations of Three Forage Types and Feed Supplements (with or without Broiler Litter)

The proper management of replacement heifers is an essential component of successful cow/calf operations. The level of management and nutrition applied to replacement heifers as calves and yearlings can impact their subsequent reproductive performance and productivity

The interview as narrative ethnography : seeking and shaping connections in qualitative research.

Acts of counter-subjectification in qualitative research are always present but are often submerged in accounts that seek to locate the power of subjectification entirely with the researcher. This is particularly so when talking to people about sensitive issues. Based on an interview-based study of infertility and reproductive disruption among British Pakistanis in Northeast England, we explore how we, as researchers, sought and were drawn into various kinds of connections with the study participants; connections that were actively and performatively constructed through time. The three of us that conducted interviews are all female academics with Ph.Ds in anthropology, but thereafter our backgrounds, life stories and experiences diverge in ways that intersected with those of our informants in complex and shifting ways. We describe how these processes shaped the production of narrative accounts and consider some of the associated analytical and ethical implications

Ambient halocarbon mixing ratios in 45 Chinese cities

During this study 158 whole air samples were collected in 45 Chinese cities in January and February 2001. The spatial distribution of different classes of halocarbons in the Chinese urban atmosphere, including chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), Halon-1211, and other chlorinated compounds is presented and discussed. Most of these compounds were enhanced compared to background levels. However, the mean enhancement of CFCs was relatively small, with CFC-12 and CFC-11 increases of 6% (range 1-31%) and 10% (range 2-89%), respectively, with respect to the global background. On the contrary, strongly enhanced levels of CFC replacement compounds and halogenated compounds used as solvents were measured. The average Halon-1211 concentration exceeded the background of 4.3 pptv by 75% and was higher than 10 pptv in several cities. Methyl chloride mixing ratios were also strongly elevated (78% higher than background levels), which is likely related to the widespread use of coal and biofuel in China. © 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Detection of impaired cerebral autoregulation improves by increasing arterial blood pressure variability

Although the assessment of dynamic cerebral autoregulation (CA) based on measurements of spontaneous fluctuations in arterial blood pressure (ABP) and cerebral blood flow (CBF) is a convenient and much used method, there remains uncertainty about its reliability. We tested the effects of increasing ABP variability, provoked by a modification of the thigh cuff method, on the ability of the autoregulation index to discriminate between normal and impaired CA, using hypercapnia as a surrogate for dynamic CA impairment. In 30 healthy volunteers, ABP (Finapres) and CBF velocity (CBFV, transcranial Doppler) were recorded at rest and during 5% CO(2) breathing, with and without pseudo-random sequence inflation and deflation of bilateral thigh cuffs. The application of thigh cuffs increased ABP and CBFV variabilities and was not associated with a distortion of the CBFV step response estimates for both normocapnic and hypercapnic conditions (P=0.59 and P=0.96, respectively). Sensitivity and specificity of CA impairment detection were improved with the thigh cuff method, with the area under the receiver-operator curve increasing from 0.746 to 0.859 (P=0.031). We conclude that the new method is a safe, efficient, and appealing alternative to currently existing assessment methods for the investigation of the status of CA

The nuclear spectrum of the radio galaxy NGC 5128 (Centaurus A)

We present near-infrared spectra of the nuclear disk in the nearby radio galaxy NGC 5128 (Centaurus A). On the basis of the observed strengths of the [S III] 0.9532um and [Fe II] 1.2567um lines, we classify NGC 5128 as a LINER. Modeling of the strengths of these and additional lines suggests that the nuclear region is powered by shocks rather than photoionization.Comment: 12 pages including 2 figures, accepted by ApJ Letter

Inactivation of a CRF-dependent amygdalofugal pathway reverses addiction-like behaviors in alcohol-dependent rats.

The activation of a neuronal ensemble in the central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA) during alcohol withdrawal has been hypothesized to induce high levels of alcohol drinking in dependent rats. In the present study we describe that the CeA neuronal ensemble that is activated by withdrawal from chronic alcohol exposure contains ~80% corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) neurons and that the optogenetic inactivation of these CeA CRF+ neurons prevents recruitment of the neuronal ensemble, decreases the escalation of alcohol drinking, and decreases the intensity of somatic signs of withdrawal. Optogenetic dissection of the downstream neuronal pathways demonstrates that the reversal of addiction-like behaviors is observed after the inhibition of CeA CRF projections to the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) and that inhibition of the CRFCeA-BNST pathway is mediated by inhibition of the CRF-CRF1 system and inhibition of BNST cell firing. These results suggest that the CRFCeA-BNST pathway could be targeted for the treatment of excessive drinking in alcohol use disorder

Simultaneous Border-Collision and Period-Doubling Bifurcations

We unfold the codimension-two simultaneous occurrence of a border-collision bifurcation and a period-doubling bifurcation for a general piecewise-smooth, continuous map. We find that, with sufficient non-degeneracy conditions, a locus of period-doubling bifurcations emanates non-tangentially from a locus of border-collision bifurcations. The corresponding period-doubled solution undergoes a border-collision bifurcation along a curve emanating from the codimension-two point and tangent to the period-doubling locus here. In the case that the map is one-dimensional local dynamics are completely classified; in particular, we give conditions that ensure chaos.Comment: 22 pages; 5 figure

Alzheimer\u27s Disease Genetics and \u3cem\u3eABCA7\u3c/em\u3e Splicing

Both common and rare polymorphisms within ABCA7 have been associated with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). In particular, the rare AD associated polymorphism rs200538373 was associated with altered ABCA7 exon 41 splicing and an AD risk odds ratio of ∼1.9. To probe the role of this polymorphism in ABCA7 splicing, we used minigene studies and qPCR of human brain RNA. We report aberrant ABCA7 exon 41 splicing in the brain of a carrier of the rs200538373 minor C allele. Moreover, minigene studies show that rs200538373 acts as a robust functional variant in vitro. Lastly, although the ABCA7 isoform with an extended exon 41 is predicted to undergo nonsense mediated RNA decay, this was not supported by qPCR analyses, which showed relatively normal ABCA7 mRNA levels in the carrier of the rs200538373 minor C allele. In summary, rs200538373 is a functional polymorphism that alters ABCA7 exon 41 splicing without grossly altering the level of ABCA7 mRNA

Hoffmannseggia minor (Phil.) Ulibarri

Entre Azul Pampa y Abra PampapublishedVersio

Rotational Doppler velocimetry to probe the angular velocity of spinning microparticles

Laser Doppler velocimetry is a technique used to measure linear velocity, ranging from that of exhaust gases to blood flow. A rotational analog of laser Doppler velocimetry was recently demonstrated, using a rotationally symmetric interference pattern to probe the angular velocity of a spinning object. In this work, we demonstrate the use of a diffraction-limited structured illumination pattern to measure the angular velocity of a micron-sized particle trapped and spinning at tens of Hz in an optical trap. The technique requires no detailed knowledge of the shape of the particle, or the distribution of scatterers within it, and is independent of the particle's chirality, transparency, and birefringence. The particle is also subjected to Brownian motion, which complicates the signal by affecting the rotation rate and the rotation axis. By careful consideration of these influences, we show how the measurement is robust to both, representing a technique with which to probe the rotational motion of microscale particles