Cokriging particle size fractions of the soil

It is often necessary to predict the distribution of mineral particles in soil between size fractions, given observations at sample sites. Because the contents in each fraction necessarily sum to 100%, these values constitute a composition, which we may assume is drawn from a random compositional variate. Elements of a D‐component composition are subject to non‐stochastic constraints; they are constrained to lie on a D– 1 dimensional simplex. This means we cannot treat them as realizations of unbounded random variables such as the multivariate Gaussian. For this reason, there are theoretical reasons not to use ordinary cokriging (or ordinary kriging) to map particle size distributions. Despite this, the compositional constraints on data on particle size fractions are not always accounted for by soil scientists. The additive log‐ratio (alr) transform can be used to transform data from a compositional variate into a form that can be treated as a realization of an unbounded random variable. Until now, while soil scientists have made use of the alr transform for the spatial prediction of particle size, there has been concern that the simple back‐transform of the optimal estimate of the alr‐transformed variables does not yield the optimal estimate of the composition. A numerical approximation to the conditional expectation of the composition has been proposed, but we are not aware of examples of its application and it has not been used in soil science. In this paper, we report two case studies in which we predicted clay, silt and sand contents of the soil at test sites by ordinary cokriging of the alr‐transformed data followed by both the direct (biased) back‐transform of the estimates and the unbiased back‐transform. We also computed estimates by ordinary cokriging of the untransformed data (which ignores the compositional constraints on the variables) for comparison. In one of our case studies, the benefit of using the alr transform was apparent, although there was no consistent advantage in using the unbiased back‐transform. In the other case study, there was no consistent advantage in using the alr transform, although the bias of the simple back‐transform was apparent. The differences between these case studies could be explained with respect to the distribution on the simplex of the particle size fractions at the two sites.     

The relationship of insulin-like growth factor-I with postweaning performance in Angus beef cattle

This study was designed to evaluate the ontogeny of serum IGF-I (SI) concentrations and its relationship to animal performance in a 140-d postweaning feeding trial. Ninety-eight progeny representing six sires (three high and three low feed conversion) and two sexes (43 bulls and 55 heifers) with ad libitum access to feed were allocated by sire and sex to monitor individual weights and pen feed consumption. Blood serum samples were obtained at the beginning of test (average age of 230 d) and every 28 d thereafter until each animal reached a fat thickness (estimated by sonoray) of 8.9 mm. Individual serum samples were acid-ethanol extracted and measured for IGF-I peptide by heterologous RIA. Serum IGF-I concentrations differed (P less than .10) between high (H) and low (L) feed conversion progeny groups at the end of the first 28-d period (125.12 vs 89.52 ng/ml) and tended to differ at the conclusion of the second 28-d period (P less than .15). Weight gains of H and L groups tended to differ in the second and third 28-d periods (P = .11 and .10, respectively). Serum IGF-I concentrations differed (P less than .05) between bulls and heifers for the first through fourth 28-d periods (P less than .01, P less than .05, P less than .10 and P less than .01, respectively). Phenotypic correlations indicated that pens with higher mean SI concentrations at the beginning of the test consumed less feed and had lower cumulative feed:gain ratios.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

A new anthelmintic assay using rats infected with Trichostrongylus colubriformis.

A new anthelmintic assay is described which uses immunosuppressed (60 ppm hydrocortisone acetate in diet) rats infected with the nematode Trichostrongylus colubriformis. Immunosuppressed rats were infected with 1500 T. colubriformis larvae, treated either orally or subcutaneously on Day 14 post-infection and necropsied 4 days after treatment. The worm counts in immunosuppressed control animals averaged 775 worms per rat. A range of benzimidazoles, levamisole hydrochloride, morantel tartrate, 22,23-dihydroavermectin B1a and alpha-milbemycin have been evaluated in the assay. The ED95 values obtained indicate that rats infected with T. colubriformis provide a highly predictive model for assaying the activity of experimental drugs in vivo prior to studies in ruminants.     

Anthelmintic efficacies of fenbendazole, ivermectin, and levamisole against Nematodirus battus infections in lambs

Anthelmintic efficacies of fenbendazole, ivermectin, and levamisole were evaluated against naturally acquired infections of Nematodirus battus in lambs. Four groups of 10 lambs each were used. Oral administration of 8 mg of levamisole/kg of body weight or 5 mg of fenbendazole/kg significantly (P less than 0.01) reduced the degree of infection by N battus (adults) by greater than 99%. An oral formulation of 200 micrograms of ivermectin/kg was 98% effective (P less than 0.01). Numbers of other Nematodirus spp (including N filicollis and N spathiger) were significantly reduced.     

The neo-Darwinian theory and pesticide resistance

The development of resistance to pesticides in populations of organisms as diverse as those of bacteria, insects and mammals, provides outstanding examples of adaptation by natural selection. The integration of Mendelian genetics and the Darwinian hypothesis, known as the neo-Darwinian theory of evolution, can account for such genetic responses to changes in environment. There is one problem: that of its weak falsifiability. Selected subsets of theory can explain almost anything. An attempt is made to identify phenomena that are involved in adaptive responses of higher organisms to changes in environment. These are discussed with particular reference to the development of resistance in mammalian populations. Recent developments in genetics pertinent to this problem are outlined.     

Innate immune traits differ between Meishan and Large White pigs

A panel of innate immune traits were compared between Meishan and Large White pigs. These pigs were of similar age and kept under the same environmental conditions to reduce non-genetically derived variation in immune traits. The animals were all apparently healthy and were not experimentally challenged with any pathogen during the study. The measures only required a small blood sample. Total white cell counts were similar between the pig breeds. However, the numbers of lymphocytes, neutrophils and monocytes differed significantly, with Meishans having higher neutrophil and monocyte counts and lower lymphocyte counts. Flow cytometric methods were used to determine quantitatively the characteristics and function of neutrophils and monocytes. Meishan neutrophils were smaller and less complex than Large White neutrophils, and phagocytosis of Escherichia coli and the ensuing oxidative burst was lower in Meishan neutrophils compared to Large White neutrophils. Monocyte phagocytosis of E. coli was significantly less than that of neutrophils in both breeds but the function of Meishan monocytes as measured by phagocytosis and tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha) release did not differ from that of Large White monocytes. Levels of acute phase proteins also differed between the breeds with a significantly higher proportion of Meishans having elevated serum amyloid A levels. However, Meishans had lower alpha(1)-acid glycoprotein levels than Large Whites and haptoglobin levels were similar. Such differences in innate immune traits may have implications in the resistance to infection by a broad range of pathogens and subsequent disease effects in these breeds. Further studies are warranted to investigate the genes underlying these traits.