Auswirkungen unterschiedlicher Duroc-Anteile von Endmastherkünften auf Aspekte der Mastleistung und Schlachtkörperqualität unter ökologischen Produktionsbedingungen

In der ökologischen Schweinefleischerzeugung wird immer wieder die Berücksichtigung der Rasse Duroc zur Verbesserung der Fleischqualität im Mastschwein gefordert Vor diesem Hintergrund werden unter ökologischen Produktionsbedingungen die Effekte unterschiedlich hoher Duroc-Genanteile im Mastschwein auf Mastleistung, Schlachtkörper- und Fleischqualität geprüft. Insgesamt wurden auf der Leistungsprüfungsanstalt in Rohrsen 190 Tiere in 2 Durchgängen aufgestallt. Es wurden dabei Mastschweine mit 0%, 25%, 50% und 75% Duroc-Genanteil untersucht. Die Haltung erfolgte ökokonform in einem Außenklimastall mit eingestreuten Buchten in 14 Gruppen zu je 6 Tieren und je einer Gruppe mit 5 bzw. 4 Tieren. Es wurde eine Futterration aus 100 % ökologischer sowie weitgehend betriebseigener Herkunft eingesetzt. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass bei einem auf Schlachtkörperqualität, d.h. im Wesentlichen auf Muskelfleischfülle orientierten Vermarktungsziel nicht mehr als 50 % Duroc-Genanteil im Mastendprodukt enthalten sein sollte. Der Muskelfleischanteil wird mit steigendem Duroc-Genanteil signifikant geringer. Die Gruppe mit 75% Duroc-Genanteil zeigt auch eine deutlich schlechtere Futterverwertung. Mit steigendem Duroc-Genanteil wird der intramuskuläre Fettgehalt signifikant gesteigert. Schon bei einem 25 %-igen Duroc-Genanteil wird die Fleischqualität deutlich positiv beeinflusst, ohne dass die Schlachtkörperqualität leiden muss. Damit besitzt diese Variante ein deutliches Optimierungspotenzial sowohl für den ökonomischen Erfolg des Mästers als auch für die Profilierung von ökologisch erzeugtem Schweinefleisch gegenüber dem Verbraucher. Nur wenn ein Bezahlungs- bzw. Vermarktungssystem klar erhöhte intramuskuläre Fettgehalte und bessere sensorische Eigenschaften honorieren würde, ohne dabei die damit einhergehenden verminderten Schlachtkörperqualitäten mit merklichen Mali zu bestrafen, ließe sich ein 75 %-iger Duroc-Genanteil im Mastschwein und der damit verbundene geringere Fleisch- und höhere Fettanteil im Schlachtkörper rechtfertigen

Prüfung von Gewebewachstum, Mast- und Schlachtleistung sowie Produktqualität unterschiedlicher genetischer Herkünfte und deren züchterische Eignung für die ökologische Schweinefleischerzeugung

Mit Hilfe eines zweigeteilten Versuchsaufbaus wurde die Eignung unterschiedlicher Genotypen für die ökologische Schweinefleischerzeugung untersucht. Im Modul 1 wurden zur Bestimmung des Gewebewachstums (mit Hilfe der Magnet Resonanz Tomographie) und der Fleischqualität insgesamt 90 Tiere der Genetiken Bundeshybridzuchtprogramm (BHZP), Schwäbisch-Hällisches Schwein (SH), Piétrain x SH (PixSH) and Duroc x Deutsche Landrasse (DuxDL) ökologisch gemästet. Die SH-Schweine zeigten von Mastbeginn an das stärkste Fettgewebewachstum und das geringste Muskelwachstum. Die DuxDL-Tiere besaßen die höchsten mittleren Tageszunahmen. PixSH- und BHZP-Tiere besaßen die höchsten Muskelfleischanteile. Die PixSH-Tiere hatten zwar den niedrigsten pH45-Wert und die höchsten Tropfsaftverluste im großen Rückenmuskel 24 Stunden nach der Schlachtung, trotzdem waren keine Qualitätsabweichungen zu beanstanden. Im Modul 2 wurden insgesamt 682 Tiere der Genetiken BHZP, SH, Angler Sattelschwein (AS), PixSH, PixAS, Pi x Deutsches Edelschwein (PixDE) und DuxDL ökologisch und konventionell gehalten und gefüttert. Tageszunahme, Futterverwertung, Muskelfleischanteil, Fettmaße und Fleischqualität aller Schweine wurden durch ein lineares Model mit den fixen Effekten Umwelt (ökologisch, konventionell), Genetik, Geschlecht sowie Interaktion von Genetik and Umwelt geprüft. Obwohl signifikante Interaktionen zwischen Genotyp und Umwelt für die meisten Merkmale (außer Fleischqualität) gefunden wurden, konnten aber keine Unterschiede in der Rangierung zwischen den Genetiken innerhalb der beiden Umwelten beobachtet werden. So schnitten die unter konventionellen Haltungs- und Fütterungsbedingungen leistungsstärksten modernen Genetiken auch unter Ökobedingungen am besten ab. Es wird geschlussfolgert, dass bei vergleichbaren Vermarktungszielen die ökologische Schweinefleischerzeugung keine speziellen Zuchtprogramme benötigt

Auswirkungen unterschiedlicher Duroc-Genanteile auf das ökologisch erzeugte Mastschwein

It is the aim of the present study with 93 organic fattening pigs of varying Duroc gene portion (0 %, 25 %, 50 %, and 75 %) to deduce the optimal Duroc gene percentage. Increasing Duroc gene portions resulted in an impaired feed conversion ratio, decreasing lean meat content, and increasing intramuscular fat content. It is concluded that in a carcass quality based marketing system Duroc gene percentage should not exceed 50 %, whereas already 25 % Duroc gene portion significantly promotes meat quality. Only for marketing systems very strictly based on meat quality Duroc gene portion should have 75 % due to a significant promotion of intramuscular fat content

Calculation of a cow culling merit index including specific heterosis in a multibreed dairy population

Abstract. The objective of this study was to compare two models for the estimation of producing values (EPV) for lactation yields of milk, fat and protein, and calving interval (CI), which were combined in an index called the Cow Culling Merit Index (CMI), in Irish dairy cattle. Data comprised 188 927 records for production and 157 117 records for CI, collected on North American Holstein Friesian (HO), Friesian (FR), Jersey (JE), and Montbéliarde (MO) pure breeds, and some of their crosses. Cows calved from 2002 to 2006 and were from parities 1 to 5. Coefficients of specific heterosis for HO×FR, HO×JE, and HO×MO were calculated for each cow from parental breed information. The coefficient of general heterosis (GH) for each cow was obtained as the sum of the specific coefficients previously estimated. Model 1 included fixed effects of contemporary group, age at calving within parity, linear regression on gene proportions for FR, JE, and MO, and linear regression on the coefficient of expected GH. Additive genetic, permanent environmental, and error were random effects. Model 2 was based on Model 1 but GH was replaced by linear regressions on coefficients of expected specific heterosis for HO×FR, HO×JE, and HO×MO. Estimated producing values were calculated as the sum of estimated breeding value, permanent environmental and heterosis effects. The inclusion of coefficients of specific heterosis in the model did not produce re-ranking of animals but important differences in EPVs were observed in crossbred cows. These changes are important if EPVs are used to develop a culling merit index

Nebuliser therapy in the intensive care unit

The relationship between identity, lived experience, sexual practices and the language through which these are conveyed has been widely debated in sexuality literature. For example, ‘coming out’ has famously been conceptualised as a ‘speech act’ (Sedgwick 1990) and as a collective narrative (Plummer 1995), while a growing concern for individuals’ diverse identifications in relations to their sexual and gender practices has produced interesting research focusing on linguistic practices among LGBT-identified individuals (Leap 1995; Kulick 2000; Cameron and Kulick 2006; Farqhar 2000). While an explicit focus on language remains marginal to literature on sexualities (Kulick 2000), issue of language use and translation are seldom explicitly addressed in the growing literature on intersectionality. Yet intersectional perspectives ‘reject the separability of analytical and identity categories’ (McCall 2005:1771), and therefore have an implicit stake in the ‘vernacular’ language of the researched, in the ‘scientific’ language of the researcher and in the relationship of continuity between the two. Drawing on literature within gay and lesbian/queer studies and cross-cultural studies, this chapter revisits debates on sexuality, language and intersectionality. I argue for the importance of giving careful consideration to the language we choose to use as researchers to collectively define the people whose experiences we try to capture. I also propose that language itself can be investigated as a productive way to foreground how individual and collective identifications are discursively constructed, and to unpack the diversity of lived experience. I address intersectional complexity as a methodological issue, where methodology is understood not only as the methods and practicalities of doing research, but more broadly as ‘a coherent set of ideas about the philosophy, methods and data that underlie the research process and the production of knowledge’ (McCall 2005:1774). My points are illustrated with examples drawn from my ethnographic study on ‘lesbian’ identity in urban Russia, interspersed with insights from existing literature. In particular, I aim to show that an explicit focus on language can be a productive way to explore the intersections between the global, the national and the local in cross-cultural research on sexuality, while also addressing issues of positionality and accountability to the communities researched

Tinnitus: Distinguishing between Subjectively Perceived Loudness and Tinnitus-Related Distress

OBJECTIVES: Overall success of current tinnitus therapies is low, which may be due to the heterogeneity of tinnitus patients. Therefore, subclassification of tinnitus patients is expected to improve therapeutic allocation, which, in turn, is hoped to improve therapeutic success for the individual patient. The present study aims to define factors that differentially influence subjectively perceived tinnitus loudness and tinnitus-related distress. METHODS: In a questionnaire-based cross-sectional survey, the data of 4705 individuals with tinnitus were analyzed. The self-report questionnaire contained items about subjective tinnitus loudness, type of onset, awareness and localization of the tinnitus, hearing impairment, chronic comorbidities, sleep quality, and psychometrically validated questionnaires addressing tinnitus-related distress, depressivity, anxiety, and somatic symptom severity. In a binary step-wise logistic regression model, we tested the predictive power of these variables on subjective tinnitus loudness and tinnitus-related distress. RESULTS: The present data contribute to the distinction between subjective tinnitus loudness and tinnitus-related distress. Whereas subjective loudness was associated with permanent awareness and binaural localization of the tinnitus, tinnitus-related distress was associated with depressivity, anxiety, and somatic symptom severity. CONCLUSIONS: Subjective tinnitus loudness and the potential presence of severe depressivity, anxiety, and somatic symptom severity should be assessed separately from tinnitus-related distress. If loud tinnitus is the major complaint together with mild or moderate tinnitus-related distress, therapies should focus on auditory perception. If levels of depressivity, anxiety or somatic symptom severity are severe, therapies and further diagnosis should focus on these symptoms at first

Transcranial Electrical Currents to Probe EEG Brain Rhythms and Memory Consolidation during Sleep in Humans

Previously the application of a weak electric anodal current oscillating with a frequency of the sleep slow oscillation (∼0.75 Hz) during non-rapid eye movement sleep (NonREM) sleep boosted endogenous slow oscillation activity and enhanced sleep-associated memory consolidation. The slow oscillations occurring during NonREM sleep and theta oscillations present during REM sleep have been considered of critical relevance for memory formation. Here transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) oscillating at 5 Hz, i.e., within the theta frequency range (theta-tDCS) is applied during NonREM and REM sleep. Theta-tDCS during NonREM sleep produced a global decrease in slow oscillatory activity conjoint with a local reduction of frontal slow EEG spindle power (8–12 Hz) and a decrement in consolidation of declarative memory, underlining the relevance of these cortical oscillations for sleep-dependent memory consolidation. In contrast, during REM sleep theta-tDCS appears to increase global gamma (25–45 Hz) activity, indicating a clear brain state-dependency of theta-tDCS. More generally, results demonstrate the suitability of oscillating-tDCS as a tool to analyze functions of endogenous EEG rhythms and underlying endogenous electric fields as well as the interactions between EEG rhythms of different frequencies

Enhanced Virulence of Chlamydia muridarum Respiratory Infections in the Absence of TLR2 Activation

Chlamydia trachomatis is a common sexually transmitted pathogen and is associated with infant pneumonia. Data from the female mouse model of genital tract chlamydia infection suggests a requirement for TLR2-dependent signaling in the induction of inflammation and oviduct pathology. We hypothesized that the role of TLR2 in moderating mucosal inflammation is site specific. In order to investigate this, we infected mice via the intranasal route with C. muridarum and observed that in the absence of TLR2 activation, mice had more severe disease, higher lung cytokine levels, and an exaggerated influx of neutrophils and T-cells into the lungs. This could not be explained by impaired bacterial clearance as TLR2-deficient mice cleared the infection similar to controls. These data suggest that TLR2 has an anti-inflammatory function in the lung during Chlamydia infection, and that the role of TLR2 in mucosal inflammation varies at different mucosal surfaces

ILK Induces Cardiomyogenesis in the Human Heart

Integrin-linked kinase (ILK) is a widely conserved serine/threonine kinase that regulates diverse signal transduction pathways implicated in cardiac hypertrophy and contractility. In this study we explored whether experimental overexpression of ILK would up-regulate morphogenesis in the human fetal heart.Primary cultures of human fetal myocardial cells (19-22 weeks gestation) yielded scattered aggregates of cardioblasts positive for the early cardiac lineage marker nk × 2.5 and containing nascent sarcomeres. Cardiac cells in colonies uniformly expressed the gap junction protein connexin 43 (C × 43) and displayed a spectrum of differentiation with only a subset of cells exhibiting the late cardiomyogenic marker troponin T (cTnT) and evidence of electrical excitability. Adenovirus-mediated overexpression of ILK potently increased the number of new aggregates of primitive cardioblasts (p<0.001). The number of cardioblast colonies was significantly decreased (p<0.05) when ILK expression was knocked down with ILK targeted siRNA. Interestingly, overexpression of the activation resistant ILK mutant (ILK(R211A)) resulted in much greater increase in the number of new cell aggregates as compared to overexpression of wild-type ILK (ILK(WT)). The cardiomyogenic effects of ILK(R211A) and ILK(WT) were accompanied by concurrent activation of β-catenin (p<0.001) and increase expression of progenitor cell marker islet-1, which was also observed in lysates of transgenic mice with cardiac-specific over-expression of ILK(R211A) and ILK(WT). Finally, endogenous ILK expression was shown to increase in concert with those of cardiomyogenic markers during directed cardiomyogenic differentiation in human embryonic stem cells (hESCs).In the human fetal heart ILK activation is instructive to the specification of mesodermal precursor cells towards a cardiomyogenic lineage. Induction of cardiomyogenesis by ILK overexpression bypasses the requirement of proximal PI3K activation for transduction of growth factor- and β1-integrin-mediated differentiation signals. Altogether, our data indicate that ILK represents a novel regulatory checkpoint during human cardiomyogenesis