Design of Neural Network Predictor for the Physical Properties of Almond Nuts

In this study, an adaptive neuro fuzzy interface system (ANFIS) based predictor was designed to predict the physical properties of four almond types. Measurements of the dimensions, length, width and thickness were carried out for one hundred randomly selected samples of each type. With using these three major perpendicular dimensions, some physical parameters such as projected area, arithmetic mean diameter, geometric mean diameter, sphericity, surface area, volume, shape index and aspect ratio were estimated. In in a various Artificial Neural Network (ANN) structures, ANFIS structure which has given the best results was selected. The parameters analytically estimated and those predicted were given in the form of figures. The root mean-squared error (RMSE) was found to be 0.0001 which is quite low. ANFIS approach has given a superior outcome in the prediction of the Physical Properties of Almond Nuts.     

Comparative slaughter performance and carcass quality of three Ethiopian fat-tailed hair sheep breeds supplemented with two levels of concentrate

Tropical Animal Health and Production - A study was conducted to compare carcass and noncarcass yield, carcass composition, conformation, and fat depot partitioning of three Ethiopian fat-tailed...     

Effects of vitamin and mineral premix withdrawal from diets on carcass and meat quality of feedlot steers

Tropical Animal Health and Production - The primary objective of the present study was to assess the effects of vitamin and mineral premix (VMP) withdrawal from the diets 30 and 60 days...     

Characterization of major,unused, and unvalued Indonesian wood species I. Dependencies of mechanical properties in transverse direction on the changes of moisture content and/or temperature

Mechanical property changes due to the moisture content (MC) and/or temperature changes were examined for 15 Indonesian wood species. A static bending test was carried out at 20°C, 65% relative humidity (air-dry), and water-saturated at 20°C (wet-20) and 80°C (wet-80). For individual test conditions, modulus of elasticity (MOE) and modulus of rupture (MOR) increased linearly with specific gravity regardless of wood species; however, maximum deflection did not correlate with specific gravity for any MC or temperature conditions. The relative values of MOE and MOR measured in wet-20 to air-dry conditions were variously affected from slightly to strongly depending on the wood species. However, the relative values always decreased markedly when saturated in water at 80°C, regardless of wood species. The relative MOE, MOR, and maximum deflection values due to the change in MC or MC and temperature combined were independent of specific gravity but may be dependent on wood type: softwood or hardwood.     

Analgesic activity of the roots and leaves extracts of Calliandra portoricensis

The analgesic activity of the methanolic extracts of the roots and leaves of Calliandra portoricensis was investigated in mice and rats using acetic acid-induced writhing and formalin tests. The extracts given orally at the doses of 200, 400, 600 mg/kg showed a dose-dependent activity in the tests used.     

Conservation of Zingiber germplasm through in vitro rhizome formation

The effects of various concentrations of maleic hydrazide (MH; 2, 4, 6, 8 mg/l) and three light treatments (16-h, 24-h, 0-h) on in vitro rhizome formation and conservation of ginger (Zingiber officinale Rosc. cv. Rio de Janeiro) were studied. In vitro rhizome formation occurred in all the above treatments. Addition of MH (2–8 mg/l) to the control medium (CM) comprising Murashige and Skoog's (1962) salts, 9% sucrose, 0.8% agar-agar, 0.1 mg/l α-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA), 1 mg/l N⁶-benzyladenine (BA), did not show any significant positive effects on rhizome formation as well as survival of cultures. A significant effect of light treatments was observed on survival of cultures but not on rhizome formation. More than 50% cultures survived up to 14 months on CM under 16-h and 24-h light conditions as compared to 20% cultures on same medium incubated under dark. A total of 33 genotypes of cultivated and wild species of Zingiber were subsequently tested for conservation through in vitro rhizome formation on CM under 16-h light condition. All genotypes produced rhizomes of varying size with numbers ranging from 3 to 15 per culture and were conserved for at least 12 months; some genotypes could be conserved even up to 16–20 months. Viability of rhizomes was determined by in vitro regeneration of shoots upon subculture and their subsequent establishment in soil. Following the protocol described in the present paper, some 160 genotypes of cultivated and wild species of Zingiber, collected from different geographical regions of India, are being conserved at In Vitro Genebank of National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi.     

Methyl parathion induced nephrotoxicity in male rats and protective role of vitamins C and E

Methyl parathion is an organophosphate insecticide that has been used in agriculture and domestic for several years. Vitamin C (200 mg/kg bw per day) + vitamin E (200 mg/kg bw per day), methyl parathion (0.28 mg/kg bw per day) and vitamin C (200 mg/kg bw per day) + vitamin E (200 mg/kg bw per day) + methyl parathion (0.28 mg/kg bw per day) combination were given to rats orally via gavage for 7 weeks. Body and kidney weights, malondialdehyde (MDA) levels and histopathological changes were investigated at the end of 4th and 7th weeks comparatively with control group. When methyl parathion-treated group and vitamins C and E + methyl parathion-treated group were compared to control group body and kidney weights decreased significantly at the end of 4th and 7th weeks. MDA levels increased in kidney tissues of the methyl parathion- and vitamins C and E + methyl parathion-treated groups compared to control group. MDA levels decreased significantly in vitamins C and E + methyl parathion treated group compared with methyl parathion treated group at the end of 4th and 7th weeks. In our light microscopic investigations, after 4 weeks of methyl parathion exposure, glomerular atrophy and vascular dilatation, and after 7 weeks, necrosis and edema were observed in the kidney tissues. After 4 weeks of vitamins C and E + methyl parathion exposure, mononuclear cell infiltrations, and after 7 weeks, calcification were detected in the kidney tissues.     

Morphological study of the lingual papillae in the fruit bat (Rousettus amplexicaudatus) by scanning electron microscopy and light microscopy

This study was carried on the tongues of ten normal, healthy and adult fruit bats (Rousettus amplexicaudatus, also known as the nyap biasa bat) in Yogyakarta, Java Island, Indonesia. The tongue was protrusible, elongated and flat with a rounded apex, and its width and thickness increased gradually towards to lingual root. There were two main types of lingual papillae, mechanical (filiform) and gustatory (fungiform and circumvallate). The tongue was divided into three parts (apex, corpus and radix), and then, each part was subdivided into three regions (two lateral regions and a median region). There were six subtypes of the filiform papillae—three types on the anterior part (small, scale-like and giant), one type on the middle part (leaf-like papillae) and two types on the posterior part (rosette-shaped filiform and conical filiform papillae)—in addition to transitional papillae presented on the corpus and radix. Two types of gustatory papillae were represented by a small number of fungiform papillae that are scattered among the filiform papillae on the lingual apex and corpus, while three circumvallate papillae on the posterior part are arranged in a “V” shape pointing directly at the larynx.