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An outdoor grazing study on kale was conducted with pregnant, nonlactating (dry) dairy cows over a 42‐day winter grazing period commencing 9 June 2008. Kale treatments consisted of two kale cultivars varying in leaf:stem proportion ("Regal," a leafy variety and "Caledonian," a stemmy variety) and two sowing dates (8 November and 15 December). Measurements were made for dry‐matter (DM) utilization, apparent DM intake, liveweight gain and changes in body condition score (BCS) for a total of 120 cows allocated to three replicate groups of the four factorial treatments. Cows were offered a daily allowance of 10 kg DM/cow of kale and 2.2 kg DM/cow of straw. Pregrazing DM yield was higher for kale sown in November (16,517 kg DM/ha) than December (13,867 kg DM/ha), but was unaffected by cultivar (average 15,192 kg DM/ha). "Regal" kale had a higher percentage of leaf compared with "Caledonian" (33.6% vs. 25.6%), lower content of NDF (32.4% vs. 34.1%), but similar metabolizable energy content (12.1 MJ/kg DM for both) in the whole plant. Despite the differences in pregrazing DM yield and forage quality among treatments, no differences were found in DM utilization (between 88.5% and 90.2%), apparent DM intake (between 9.4 and 9.6 kg DM/cow.day), liveweight gain (between 0.53 and 0.67 kg/cow.day) and BCS gain (between 0.43 and 0.46 unit/cow over 42 days). Manipulation of kale yield and quality through choice of cultivar and sowing date had no effect on the performance of pregnant, nonlactating dairy cows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Row crop and livestock production contaminate soils and groundwater of the karst aquifers within south-central Kentucky's Pennyroyal Plateau. Transport of atrazine from field application to the epikarstic drainage system beneath a field with active row-crop farming was investigated. The Crumps Cave study site is a shallow autogenic drainage system with a recharge area of ~1 ha that contains two epikarst drains (WF-1 and WF-2) which were monitored for atrazine, deethylatrazine (DEA), and deisopropylatrazine (DIA) concentrations from January 2011 to May 2012. Atrazine concentrations in both drains did not increase above winter background levels for nearly 2 mo after application when levels suddenly spiked and reached peak concentrations for the study during an event in May 2011. Atrazine, DEA, and DIA were detected in 100% of samples, and metabolites accounted for 54 to 94% of the monthly total loads, except in May 2011. Median dealkylated metabolite/atrazine ratios (DMAR) were ~5:1 at both sites, and seasonal DMAR patterns corresponded with changes in soil temperature. These data support the hypothesis that a combination of sorption and degradation in the soil column above the epikarst controlled the transport of atrazine and its metabolites. This resulted in delayed atrazine transport after application and prolonged transport of atrazine and its weakly sorbed metabolites to the epikarst aquifer. Management practices that reduce herbicide inputs, such as diverse crop rotations, cover crops, and use of low-rate and strong-sorbing herbicides, would improve groundwater quality in areas of the Corn Belt with intensive row cropping on karst topography. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims The maternally inherited mt3243A > G mutation is associated with a variable clinical phenotype including diabetes and deafness (MIDD). We aimed to determine the prevalence and clinical characteristics of MIDD in a large South Asian cohort of young adult-onset diabetic patients from Sri Lanka. Methods DNA was available from 994 subjects (age of diagnosis 16–40 years, age at recruitment ≤ 45 years). Mutation screening was performed using a QRT-PCR method on an ABI 7900HT system using sequence-specific probes. Samples with heteroplasmy ≥ 5.0% were considered positive. Results Nine (four males) mutation-positive subjects were identified (prevalence 0.9%). They were diagnosed at a younger age (25.9 ± 4.8 years vs. 31.9 ± 5.6 years, P = 0.002) and were lean (body mass index [BMI] 18.7 ± 2.7 kg/m2 vs. 24.7 ± 4.0 kg/m2, P < 0.001) compared to NMCs. One mutation-positive subject (11.1%) had metabolic syndrome, compared to 633 (64.3%) of NMCs. Insulin therapy within 6 months of diagnosis was used in four (44.0%) carriers compared to 6.9% of NMCs ( P = 0.002). Combined screening criteria of any two of maternal history of diabetes, personal history of hearing impairment and family history of hearing impairment only identified five (55%) of the carriers, with a positive predictive value of 7.4%. Conclusions The prevalence of mt3243A > G mutation among young adult-onset diabetic subjects from Sri Lanka was 0.9%. Our study demonstrates that a maternal family history of diabetes and either a personal and/or family history of deafness only distinguish half of patients with MIDD from Sri Lankan subjects with young-onset diabetes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author comments on a study on kouprey by G. Galbreath and colleagues. It examines if kouprey Bos sauveli is a feral hybrid form with banteng Bos javanicus and zebu Bos indicus ancestry. Moreover, it asserts that kouprey appear to be homogenous. Observations on the appearance, size range and colour of kouprey are presented.

Characterisation of the interactions between susceptibility loci (epistasis) is central to a full understanding of the genetic aetiology and the molecular pathology of complex diseases. We have examined, in British and French pedigrees, evidence for epistasis between the type 2 diabetes susceptibility loci on chromosomes 1q21-25 and 10q23-26 using two complementary linkage-based approaches. Joint two-locus linkage analysis of 1q and 10q in British pedigrees provided significant evidence for interaction (P ≤ 0.003) when comparing a general epistasis model with multiplicative or additive-effects-only models. Conditional linkage analysis (which models epistasis as a deviation from multiplicativity only) confirmed these findings, with significant LOD score increases at the 1q (P = 0.0002) and 10q (P = 0.0023) loci. These analyses provided sizeable reductions in the 1-LOD support intervals for both loci. Analyses of the British and French pedigrees together yielded comparable, but not enhanced, findings, with significant (P ≤ 0.003) evidence for epistasis in joint two-locus linkage analysis, and during conditional linkage analysis significant increases in linkage evidence at the 1q (P = 0.0002) and 10q (P = 0.0036) loci. Our findings of epistasis nevertheless substantiate the evidence for genuine genetic effects at both loci, facilitate endeavours to fine-map these loci in population samples, and support further examination of this interaction at the nucleotide level by providing a robust prior hypothesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective Ileal inflammation in ulcerative colitis can occur as backwash ileitis or prestomal ileitis. After restorative proctocolectomy (RPC), ileal inflammation may be present in the pouch (pouchitis) but inflammation proximal to the pouch in the neo-terminal ileum, so called pre-pouch ileitis (PI), has also been observed. As pouchitis is increasingly common and PI can mimic it, our aim was to characterize this condition. Subjects and methods A review of prospectively collected data on 571 inflammatory bowel disease patients undergoing follow-up after RPC in a single centre over 22 years was performed. The histology of biopsy material was reviewed and staining for colonic mucosal phenotypic changes was undertaken. It was not routine practice to prospectively assess all patients for pre-pouch ileitis when the database was constructed. Results Of 19 patients with inflammation of the pre-pouch neo-terminal ileum (NTI) identified three had Crohn's disease and one a NSAID stricture. The remaining 15 had a characteristic diffuse inflammation extending from the NTI-pouch junction proximally: pre-pouch ileitis. The inflammation extended proximally for up to 50 cm. Fistula formation was seen in only one. Seven (47%) of 15 had pouchitis but only two had suffered backwash ileitis pre-operatively. Seven responded to medical therapy and four to surgery. The histological appearances including staining for colonic phenotypic change were similar in PI and pouchitis. Conclusion Pre-pouch ileitis is uncommon. As the patients' previous diagnosis of UC was confirmed and there was no radiological or histological evidence of Crohn's disease, PI appears to have a distinct pathogenesis from Crohn's disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

(1) Radiation dose rates received by deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus (Wagner)) and Ord's kangaroo rats (Dipodomys ordii (Woodhouse) inhabiting a solid radio- active waste disposal area and a control area in south-eastern Idaho were determined by surgically implanting lithium-floride thermoluminescent dosimeter (TLD) packets. Fifty-three percent of the 542 and 135 TLD packets implanted in deer mice and kangaroo rats, respectively, were recovered. (2) The radiation dose rates received by animals from the radioactive waste disposal area varied from 4 to 418 000 µGy day-1 (0.4-42 000 mrad day-1) and were significantly (P < 0.01) higher than the dose rate of 4 µGy day-1 (0.4 mrad day-1) received by control animals. Doses resulted primarily from radiation from buried activation and fission products and not from radionuclides in/on tissues. (3) Ninety-six percent of the waste disposal area deer mice in the autumn-winter had radiation dose rates higher than the rates of the control animals, whereas in the spring-summer 73% of the deer mice received dose rates greater than the rates of control animals. Differences in seasonal data were probably related to increased subsurface time in autumn-winter. (4) Autumn-winter dose rates received by kangaroo rats were significantly (P < 0.05) higher than spring-summer rates and were attributed to the species entering torpor beneath the soil surface during winter. (5) Conservative comparisons between the radiation. dose rates received by implanted TLD packets in individual small mammals and the potential dose rates received by individual animals on the surface of the area indicated a minimum of 49 and 20% of the deer mice and kangaroo rat populations, respectively, encountered areas of buried activation and fission waste and/or contaminated soil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous work demonstrated that implementing a quality improvement (QI) program improves the uptake of guideline-recommended antenatal magnesium sulphate, a critical intervention known to reduce cerebral palsy risk. Here we estimate potential cost savings attributable to the improved uptake. By expanding coverage from 63 to 83% of eligible women, we estimated that five children potentially would not have received a diagnosis of cerebral palsy, a potential cost saving of $AU4.8 million in lifetime healthcare costs. Our findings strengthen the case for embedding QI approaches in perinatal care to reduce the incidence of cerebral palsy., (© 2021 The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.)

Objectives: The aim of this study is to understand whether the shape of three sub-regions of the mandibular corpus (the alveolar arch, corpus at M 1 and posterior symphysis) are useful for making taxonomic assessments at the genus and species levels in extant hominids., Materials and Methods: We use data taken from 3D surface scans of the mandibular corpus of seven extant hominid taxa: Gorilla gorilla gorilla, Gorilla beringei graueri, Homo sapiens, Pan paniscus, Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii, Pongo abelii, and Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus to generate four shape variables: alveolar arch shape (AAS), corpus shape at M 1 (CSM 1 ), posterior symphysis shape at the midline (PSSM), and posterior symphysis shape (PSS). To ascertain how reliable each mandibular shape variable is for assessing taxonomy, we ran canonical discriminant and discriminant function analysis, reporting cross-validated results., Results: Using a combination of three mandibular corpus shape variables, 99% of specimens were classified correctly for genus-level analyses. A maximum of 100% of Pan specimens, 94% of Gorilla specimens and 96% of Pongo specimens were classified correctly at the species level when up to three mandibular shape variables were included in the analyses. When mandibular corpus variables were considered in isolation, posterior symphysis shape yielded the highest overall correct classification results., Discussion: The high taxonomic classification rates at both the genus and species level, using 3D surface data and advanced quantification techniques, show that the shape of the alveolar arch, corpus at M 1 and symphysis can distinguish extant hominid taxa. These findings have implications for assessing the taxonomy of extinct hominid specimens which preserve these mandibular sub-regions., (© 2020 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

We describe a species of Hoolock gibbon (Primates: Hylobatidae) that is new to science from eastern Myanmar and southwestern China. The genus of hoolock gibbons comprises two previously described living species, the western (Hoolock hoolock) and eastern hoolock (H. leuconedys) gibbons, geographically isolated by the Chindwin River. We assessed the morphological and genetic characteristics of wild animals and museum specimens, and conducted multi-disciplinary analyses using mitochondrial genomic sequences, external morphology, and craniodental characters to evaluate the taxonomic status of the hoolock population in China. The results suggest that hoolocks distributed to the east of the Irrawaddy-Nmai Hka Rivers, which were previously assigned to H. leuconedys, are morphologically and genetically distinct from those to the west of the river, and should be recognized as a new species, the Gaoligong hoolock gibbon or skywalker hoolock gibbon (H. tianxing sp. nov.). We consider that the new species should be categorized as Endangered under IUCN criteria. The discovery of the new species focuses attention on the need for improved conservation of small apes, many of which are in danger of extinction in southern China and Southeast Asia., (© 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Regulatory authorities require that cell lines used in commercial production of recombinant proteins must be derived from a single cell progenitor or clone. The limiting dilution method of cell cloning required multiple rounds of low-density cell plating and microscopic observation of a single cell in order to provide evidence of monoclonality. Other cloning methods rely on calculating statistical probability of monoclonality rather than visual microscopic observation of cells. We have combined the single cell deposition capability of the Becton Dickinson Influx™ cell sorter with the microscopic imaging capability of the SynenTec Cellavista to create a system for producing clonal production cell lines. The efficiency of single cell deposition by the Influx™ was determined to be 98% using fluorescently labeled cells. The centrifugal force required to settle the deposited cells to the bottom of the microplate well was established to be 1,126g providing a 98.1% probability that all cells will be in the focal plane of the Cellavista imaging system. The probability that a single cell was deposited by the cell sorter combined with the probability of every cell settling into the focal plane of the imager yield a combined >99% probability of documented monoclonality., (© 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers.)

The way we view the Species category in Primates, as in other animals, especially other vertebrates, has been going through a revolution over the past 20 years or so. Much is wrong with the idea that we can define species according to whether or not they are "reproductively isolated": this concept, the so-called Biological Species Concept, has never offered any guidelines in the case of allopatric populations; this has now been shown to be simply wrong. Although other ways of looking at species - the Evolutionary, Recognition, Cohesion and Genetic Species Concepts - have all provided particular insights, the only proposal to offer a repeatable, falsifiable definition of species is the Phylogenetic Species Concept. This has been criticised for increasing the number of species to be recognised, although it is not clear why this should be a problem: indeed, it tells us that the world is far richer in biodiversity than we had conceived., (© 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Maxillary dental measurements from six specimens of Mesopithecus pentelicus, 64 cercopithecines, 59 African colobines, and 64 Asian colobines were analyzed by means of a "nested research design" that was specifically designed to explore the affiliation between fossils and extant cercopithecoids at different systematic levels. The results showed that the variation among taxonomic groups was mainly associated with size; however, in addition, interesting shape differences emerged, molars were shown to be important discriminators, Mesopithecus was confirmed as a colobine (as expected) and found to be closer to Asian species than to African ones, and the odd-nosed colobines were found to share more dental similarities with Mesopithecus than other colobines. The last finding is in contrast to previous studies, in which it was proposed that M. pentelicus is morphologically closely related to the African colobus and the gray langur (Semnopithecus)., (Copyright 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.)

Sedaghatian type spondylometaphyseal dysplasia is a rare osteochondrodysplasia first described in 1980. The original report describes an Iranian infant with mild rhizomelic limb shortening, severe metaphyseal cupping and irregularity and platyspondyly who died shortly after birth. The baby was born to a consanguineous couple who had reportedly had two similarly affected infants, one male and one female. No documented radiology is available on the female infant. Since this publication, 10 further case reports of male infants with this condition have appeared in the literature all of whom have died shortly after birth. We report a fully documented female case of Sedaghatian type spondylometaphyseal dysplasia providing further evidence to support an autosomal recessive mechanism of inheritance., (Copyright 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.)