166 research outputs found
Effects of maternal subnutrition during early pregnancy on cow hematological profiles and offspring physiology and vitality in two beef breeds
This experiment evaluated the effects of subnutrition during early gestation on hematology in cows (Bos Taurus) and on hematological, metabolic, endocrine, and vitality parameters in their calves. Parda de MontaĂąa and Pirenaica dams were inseminated and assigned to either a control (CONTROL, 100% requirements) or a nutrientârestricted group (SUBNUT, 65%) during the first third of gestation. Dam blood samples were collected on days 20 and 253 of gestation, and calf samples were obtained during the first days of life. Pirenaica dams presented higher red series parameters than Parda de MontaĂąa dams, both in the first and the last months of gestation. During early pregnancy, granulocyte numbers and mean corpuscular hemoglobin were lower in PirenaicaâSUBNUT than in PirenaicaâCONTROL cows. Calves from the SUBNUT cows did not show a physiological reduction in red series values in early life, suggesting later maturation of the hematopoietic system. Poor maternal nutrition affected calf endocrine parameters. Newborns from dystocic parturitions showed lower NEFA concentrations and weaker vitality responses. In conclusion, maternal nutrition had shortâterm effects on cow hematology, Pirenaica cows showing a higher susceptibility to undernutrition; and a longâterm effect on their offspring endocrinology, SUBNUT newborns showing lower levels of IGFâ1 and higher levels of cortisol.This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Business and the European Union Regional Development Funds (INIA RTA 2013â00059âC02 and INIA RZP 2015â001) and the Government of Aragon under the Grant Research Group Funds (A14_17R). A. Noya received a PhD grant from INIAâGovernment of Aragon
Detection of regulator genes and eQTLs in gene networks
Genetic differences between individuals associated to quantitative phenotypic
traits, including disease states, are usually found in non-coding genomic
regions. These genetic variants are often also associated to differences in
expression levels of nearby genes (they are "expression quantitative trait
loci" or eQTLs for short) and presumably play a gene regulatory role, affecting
the status of molecular networks of interacting genes, proteins and
metabolites. Computational systems biology approaches to reconstruct causal
gene networks from large-scale omics data have therefore become essential to
understand the structure of networks controlled by eQTLs together with other
regulatory genes, and to generate detailed hypotheses about the molecular
mechanisms that lead from genotype to phenotype. Here we review the main
analytical methods and softwares to identify eQTLs and their associated genes,
to reconstruct co-expression networks and modules, to reconstruct causal
Bayesian gene and module networks, and to validate predicted networks in
silico.Comment: minor revision with typos corrected; review article; 24 pages, 2
figure
Improving financial capability: the mediating role of financial behaviour
This paper investigates the collective impact of financial literacy and inclusion on individualsâ financial capability focusing on the mediating role of financial behaviour. The research is conducted on an individual-level survey. The relationships were examined by using PLS-SEM. Financial capability can be improved by increasing individualsâ financial knowledge, financial behaviour and promoting their inclusion in financial services. Furthermore, the indirect effect of financial knowledge and attitude on financial capability is found to be significant, highlighting the importance of financial behaviour. The results assist policymakers and industry leaders in understanding the most influential factors on financial capability in the context of a post-communist transition country. This enables them to design policies and services aimed at equipping citizens with knowledge and skills to make best use of their financial resources. Š 2020 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.Internal Grant Agency of FaME TBU [IGA/FaME/2019/002
Power maximization of variable-speed variable-pitch wind turbines using passive adaptive neural fault tolerant control
Power maximization has always been a practical consideration in wind turbines. The question of how to address optimal power capture, especially when the system dynamics are nonlinear and the actuators are subject to unknown faults, is significant. This paper studies the control methodology for variable-speed variable-pitch wind turbines including the effects of uncertain nonlinear dynamics, system fault uncertainties, and unknown external disturbances. The nonlinear model of the wind turbine is presented, and the problem of maximizing extracted energy is formulated by designing the optimal desired states. With the known system, a model-based nonlinear controller is designed; then, to handle uncertainties, the unknown nonlinearities of the wind turbine are estimated by utilizing radial basis function neural networks. The adaptive neural fault tolerant control is designed passively to be robust on model uncertainties, disturbances including wind speed and model noises, and completely unknown actuator faults including generator torque and pitch actuator torque. The Lyapunov direct method is employed to prove that the closed-loop system is uniformly bounded. Simulation studies are performed to verify the effectiveness of the proposed method
Adverse effects of extra-articular corticosteroid injections: a systematic review
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To estimate the occurrence and type of adverse effects after application of an extra-articular (soft tissue) corticosteroid injection.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A systematic review of the literature was made based on a PubMed and Embase search covering the period 1956 to January 2010. Case reports were included, as were prospective and retrospective studies that reported adverse events of corticosteroid injection. All clinical trials which used extra-articular corticosteroid injections were examined. We divided the reported adverse events into major (defined as those needing intervention or not disappearing) and minor ones (transient, not requiring intervention).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The search yielded 87 relevant studies:44 case reports, 37 prospective studies and 6 retrospective studies. The major adverse events included osteomyelitis and protothecosis; one fatal necrotizing fasciitis; cellulitis and ecchymosis; tendon ruptures; atrophy of the plantar fat was described after injecting a neuroma; and local skin effects appeared as atrophy, hypopigmentation or as skin defect. The minor adverse events effects ranged from skin rash to flushing and disturbed menstrual pattern. Increased pain or steroid flare after injection was reported in 19 studies. After extra-articular injection, the incidence of major adverse events ranged from 0-5.8% and that of minor adverse events from 0-81%. It was not feasible to pool the risk for adverse effects due to heterogeneity of study populations and difference in interventions and variance in reporting.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>In this literature review it was difficult to accurately quantify the incidence of adverse effects after extra-articular corticosteroid injection. The reported adverse events were relatively mild, although one fatal reaction was reported.</p
Genome-wide analysis identifies novel susceptibility loci for myocardial infarction
AIMS: While most patients with myocardial infarction (MI) have underlying coronary atherosclerosis, not all patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) develop MI. We sought to address the hypothesis that some of the genetic factors which establish atherosclerosis may be distinct from those that predispose to vulnerable plaques and thrombus formation. METHODS AND RESULTS: We carried out a genome-wide association study for MI in the UK Biobank (nâź472 000), followed by a meta-analysis with summary statistics from the CARDIoGRAMplusC4D Consortium (nâź167 000). Multiple independent replication analyses and functional approaches were used to prioritize loci and evaluate positional candidate genes. Eight novel regions were identified for MI at the genome wide significance level, of which effect sizes at six loci were more robust for MI than for CAD without the presence of MI. Confirmatory evidence for association of a locus on chromosome 1p21.3 harbouring choline-like transporter 3 (SLC44A3) with MI in the context of CAD, but not with coronary atherosclerosis itself, was obtained in Biobank Japan (nâź165 000) and 16 independent angiography-based cohorts (nâź27 000). Follow-up analyses did not reveal association of the SLC44A3 locus with CAD risk factors, biomarkers of coagulation, other thrombotic diseases, or plasma levels of a broad array of metabolites, including choline, trimethylamine N-oxide, and betaine. However, aortic expression of SLC44A3 was increased in carriers of the MI risk allele at chromosome 1p21.3, increased in ischaemic (vs. non-diseased) coronary arteries, up-regulated in human aortic endothelial cells treated with interleukin-1β (vs. vehicle), and associated with smooth muscle cell migration in vitro. CONCLUSIONS: A large-scale analysis comprising âź831 000 subjects revealed novel genetic determinants of MI and implicated SLC44A3 in the pathophysiology of vulnerable plaques
RSPO3 impacts body fat distribution and regulates adipose cell biology in vitro
Fat distribution is an independent cardiometabolic risk factor. However, its molecular and cellular underpinnings remain obscure. Here we demonstrate that two independent GWAS signals at RSPO3, which are associated with increased body mass index-adjusted waist-to-hip ratio, act to specifically increase RSPO3 expression in subcutaneous adipocytes. These variants are also associated with reduced lower-body fat, enlarged gluteal adipocytes and insulin resistance. Based on human cellular studies RSPO3 may limit gluteofemoral adipose tissue (AT) expansion by suppressing adipogenesis and increasing gluteal adipocyte susceptibility to apoptosis. RSPO3 may also promote upper-body fat distribution by stimulating abdominal adipose progenitor (AP) proliferation. The distinct biological responses elicited by RSPO3 in abdominal versus gluteal APs in vitro are associated with differential changes in WNT signalling. Zebrafish carrying a nonsense rspo3 mutation display altered fat distribution. Our study identifies RSPO3 as an important determinant of peripheral AT storage capacity
Efficient and accurate causal inference with hidden confounders from genome-transcriptome variation data
Mapping gene expression as a quantitative trait using whole genome-sequencing
and transcriptome analysis allows to discover the functional consequences of
genetic variation. We developed a novel method and ultra-fast software Findr
for higly accurate causal inference between gene expression traits using
cis-regulatory DNA variations as causal anchors, which improves current methods
by taking into account hidden confounders and weak regulations. Findr
outperformed existing methods on the DREAM5 Systems Genetics challenge and on
the prediction of microRNA and transcription factor targets in human
lymphoblastoid cells, while being nearly a million times faster. Findr is
publicly available at https://github.com/lingfeiwang/findrComment: New result and method sections added. 38 pages, 4 figures, 1 table.
Supplementary: 20 pages, 10 figures, 2 table
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