Across-country genetic evaluation of meat sheep from Ireland and the United Kingdom

Genetic evaluations in sheep have proven to be an effective way of increasing farm profitability. Much research has previously been conducted on producing within‐country genetic evaluations; however, to date, no across‐country sheep genetic evaluations have been produced between Ireland and the UK. The objective of the present study was to examine the feasibility of an across‐country genetic evaluation of live body weight and carcass composition traits for Texel sheep raised in Ireland and the UK. The benefit of genetic selection based on across‐country genetic evaluations, in comparison with within‐country genetic evaluations, was also quantified. Animal traits included early‐life and postweaning live body weights, and muscle and fat depth ultrasound measurements. Irish and UK data were combined, common animals with progeny with records in both countries were identified and a series of bivariate analyses were performed separately for each trait to produce across‐country genetic evaluations. Fixed effects included contemporary group, age at first lambing of the dam, parity of the dam (Ireland), dam age at lamb's birth (UK), a gender by age of the lamb interaction, a birth type by rearing type of the lamb interaction and country of birth of the lamb. Random effects included the animal additive genetic, dam maternal, litter common environment and residual effect. The model for postweaning weight, muscle depth and fat depth included only the animal additive genetic and litter common environmental random effects. Genetic correlations between the two countries ranged from 0.82 to 0.88 for the various traits. Across‐country breeding values were estimated for all animals and response to selection was predicted using the top 10 and top 20 sires in both within‐ and across‐country analyses for the two countries. Overall, results showed that rates of genetic gain could potentially increase from between 2.59% and 19.63% from selection based on across‐country genetic evaluations compared to within‐country evaluations alone. Across‐country evaluations are feasible and would be of significant benefit to both the Irish and UK sheep industries. In order to realize these potential gains though, there would need to be a switch in emphasis by sheep breeders towards using objective traits as their primary selection criteria

The AIM2 inflammasome is critical for innate immunity to Francisella tularensis.

Francisella tularensis, the causative agent of tularemia, infects host macrophages, which triggers production of the proinflammatory cytokines interleukin 1beta (IL-1beta) and IL-18. We elucidate here how host macrophages recognize F. tularensis and elicit this proinflammatory response. Using mice deficient in the DNA-sensing inflammasome component AIM2, we demonstrate here that AIM2 is required for sensing F. tularensis. AIM2-deficient mice were extremely susceptible to F. tularensis infection, with greater mortality and bacterial burden than that of wild-type mice. Caspase-1 activation, IL-1beta secretion and cell death were absent in Aim2(-/-) macrophages in response to F. tularensis infection or the presence of cytoplasmic DNA. Our study identifies AIM2 as a crucial sensor of F. tularensis infection and provides genetic proof of its critical role in host innate immunity to intracellular pathogens

Controlling the Response: Predictive Modeling of a Highly Central, Pathogen-Targeted Core Response Module in Macrophage Activation

We have investigated macrophage activation using computational analyses of a compendium of transcriptomic data covering responses to agonists of the TLR pathway, Salmonella infection, and manufactured amorphous silica nanoparticle exposure. We inferred regulatory relationship networks using this compendium and discovered that genes with high betweenness centrality, so-called bottlenecks, code for proteins targeted by pathogens. Furthermore, combining a novel set of bioinformatics tools, topological analysis with analysis of differentially expressed genes under the different stimuli, we identified a conserved core response module that is differentially expressed in response to all studied conditions. This module occupies a highly central position in the inferred network and is also enriched in genes preferentially targeted by pathogens. The module includes cytokines, interferon induced genes such as Ifit1 and 2, effectors of inflammation, Cox1 and Oas1 and Oasl2, and transcription factors including AP1, Egr1 and 2 and Mafb. Predictive modeling using a reverse-engineering approach reveals dynamic differences between the responses to each stimulus and predicts the regulatory influences directing this module. We speculate that this module may be an early checkpoint for progression to apoptosis and/or inflammation during macrophage activation

Thinking together: What makes Communities of Practice work?

In this article, we develop the founding elements of the concept of Communities of Practice by elaborating on the learning processes happening at the heart of such communities. In particular, we provide a consistent perspective on the notions of knowledge, knowing and knowledge sharing that is compatible with the essence of this concept – that learning entails an investment of identity and a social formation of a person. We do so by drawing richly from the work of Michael Polanyi and his conception of personal knowledge, and thereby we clarify the scope of Communities of Practice and offer a number of new insights into how to make such social structures perform well in professional settings. The conceptual discussion is substantiated by findings of a qualitative empirical study in the UK National Health Service. As a result, the process of ‘thinking together’ is conceptualized as a key part of meaningful Communities of Practice where people mutually guide each other through their understandings of the same problems in their area of mutual interest, and this way indirectly share tacit knowledge. The collaborative learning process of ‘thinking together’, we argue, is what essentially brings Communities of Practice to life and not the other way round

Injuries, Ill-Health and Fatalities in White Water Rafting and White Water Paddling

White water (WW) activities such as paddling (canoeing and kayaking) and rafting are popular sports for recreational and professional participants. An increase in participation has been seen worldwide. However, these activities come with a risk of injury and even death if not conducted safely. A review was conducted to identify the types of injuries and ill-health that occur as a result of these activities. Injury and fatality rates were assessed to establish the risk attributed to these activities. Web of Science, PubMed, Ergonomics Abstracts and PsycINFO databases were searched and a total of 16 published articles were identified and reviewed. The shoulders and back were the most vulnerable sites for injury in WW paddling. Injuries to the face and lower limbs were most common in WW rafters. However, injury rates are low and estimates are discussed. Due to different methods used across the studies, the reported injury rates are not comparable. This review identified three illnesses incurred through WW activities. There may be more but these are not currently reported in the literature. A relative paucity of studies regarding injuries and fatalities in WW activities was identified. Directions for future research are suggested and discussed

Summary statistics in auditory perception

Sensory signals are transduced at high resolution, but their structure must be stored in a more compact format. Here we provide evidence that the auditory system summarizes the temporal details of sounds using time-averaged statistics. We measured discrimination of 'sound textures' that were characterized by particular statistical properties, as normally result from the superposition of many acoustic features in auditory scenes. When listeners discriminated examples of different textures, performance improved with excerpt duration. In contrast, when listeners discriminated different examples of the same texture, performance declined with duration, a paradoxical result given that the information available for discrimination grows with duration. These results indicate that once these sounds are of moderate length, the brain's representation is limited to time-averaged statistics, which, for different examples of the same texture, converge to the same values with increasing duration. Such statistical representations produce good categorical discrimination, but limit the ability to discern temporal detail.Howard Hughes Medical Institut

Asymmetric Origin for Gravitino Relic Density in the Hybrid Gravity-Gauge Mediated Supersymmetry Breaking

We propose the hybrid gravity-gauge mediated supersymmetry breaking where the gravitino mass is about several GeV. The strong constraints on supersymmetry viable parameter space from the CMS and ATLAS experiments at the LHC can be relaxed due to the heavy colored supersymmetric particles, and it is consistent with null results in the dark matter (DM) direct search experiments such as XENON100. In particular, the possible maximal flavor and CP violations from the relatively small gravity mediation may naturally account for the recent LHCb anomaly. In addition, because the gravitino mass is around the asymmetric DM mass, we propose the asymmetric origin of the gravitino relic density and solve the cosmological coincident problem on the DM and baryon densities \Omega_{\rm DM}:\Omega_{B}\approx 5:1. The gravitino relic density arises from asymmetric metastable particle (AMP) late decay. However, we show that there is no AMP candidate in the minimal supersymmetric Standard Model (SM) due to the robust gaugino/Higgsino mediated wash-out effects. Interestingly, AMP can be realized in the well motivated supersymmetric SMs with vector-like particles or continuous U(1)_R symmetry. Especially, the lightest CP-even Higgs boson mass can be lifted in the supersymmetric SMs with vector-like particles.Comment: RevTex4, 21 pages, 1 figure, minor corrections, JHEP versio

Illness perceptions and explanatory models of viral hepatitis B & C among immigrants and refugees: a narrative systematic review.

© 2015 Owiti et al.; licensee BioMed Central. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.BACKGROUND: Hepatitis B and C (HBV, HCV) infections are associated with high morbidity and mortality. Many countries with traditionally low prevalence (such as UK) are now planning interventions (screening, vaccination, and treatment) of high-risk immigrants from countries with high prevalence. This review aimed to synthesise the evidence on immigrants' knowledge of HBV and HCV that might influence the uptake of clinical interventions. The review was also used to inform the design and successful delivery of a randomised controlled trial of targeted screening and treatment. METHODS: Five databases (PubMed, CINHAL, SOCIOFILE, PsycINFO & Web of Science) were systematically searched, supplemented by reference tracking, searches of selected journals, and of relevant websites. We aimed to identify qualitative and quantitative studies that investigated knowledge of HBV and HCV among immigrants from high endemic areas to low endemic areas. Evidence, extracted according to a conceptual framework of Kleinman's explanatory model, was subjected to narrative synthesis. We adapted the PEN-3 model to categorise and analyse themes, and recommend strategies for interventions to influence help-seeking behaviour. RESULTS: We identified 51 publications including quantitative (n = 39), qualitative (n = 11), and mixed methods (n = 1) designs. Most of the quantitative studies included small samples and had heterogeneous methods and outcomes. The studies mainly concentrated on hepatitis B and ethnic groups of South East Asian immigrants residing in USA, Canada, and Australia. Many immigrants lacked adequate knowledge of aetiology, symptoms, transmission risk factors, prevention strategies, and treatment, of hepatitis HBV and HCV. Ethnicity, gender, better education, higher income, and English proficiency influenced variations in levels and forms of knowledge. CONCLUSION: Immigrants are vulnerable to HBV and HCV, and risk life-threatening complications from these infections because of poor knowledge and help-seeking behaviour. Primary studies in this area are extremely diverse and of variable quality precluding meta-analysis. Further research is needed outside North America and Australia

A multi-phenotypic imaging screen to identify bacterial effectors by exogenous expression in a HeLa cell line

We present a high-content screen (HCS) for the simultaneous analysis of multiple phenotypes in HeLa cells expressing an autophagy reporter (mcherry-LC3) and one of 209 GFP-fused proteins from the Crohn’s Disease (CD)-associated bacterium, Adherent Invasive E. coli (AIEC) strain LF82. Using automated confocal microscopy and image analysis (CellProfiler), we localised GFP fusions within cells, and monitored their effects upon autophagy (an important innate cellular defence mechanism), cellular and nuclear morphology, and the actin cytoskeleton. This data will provide an atlas for the localisation of 209 AIEC proteins within human cells, as well as a dataset to analyse their effects upon many aspects of host cell morphology. We also describe an open-source, automated, image-analysis workflow to identify bacterial effectors and their roles via the perturbations induced in reporter cell lines when candidate effectors are exogenously expressed