Female feathering in sebright cocks is due to conversion of testosterone to estradiol in skin

Sebright cocks develop a female feathering pattern but revert to normal male feathering after castration. Administration of testosterone to castrated cocks causes male comb development and reappearance of female feathering. Dihydrotes-tosterone treatment supports development of a male comb but does not induce female feathering. Since testosterone but not dihydrotestosterone is converted to estradiol in the skin of the Sebright, the female feathering appears to be the result of increased conversion of testosterone to estradiol.     

Evaluation of commercially available assays for the measurement of equine insulin

Determining circulating equine insulin concentrations is becoming increasingly important in equine clinical practice and research. Most available assays are optimized for human medicine, but there is strong equine cross-reactivity because of the highly conserved nature of insulin. To identify an accurate and reliable assay for equine insulin, 6 commercial immunoassays were evaluated for precision, accuracy, and specificity. Only 1 assay initially reached the requisite standard: Mercodia Equine Insulin Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Plasma matrix interferences were identified when the provided assay buffer was used with the Siemens Count-a-Coat Insulin radioimmunoassay (RIA) but not when charcoal-stripped equine plasma was used as the diluent. This modified RIA and the Mercodia Equine Insulin ELISA were evaluated further by directly examining accuracy by comparing their results for 18 equine plasma samples with values obtained using liquid chromatography and high-resolution/high-accuracy mass spectrometry (LC-MS). Compared with LC-MS measurements, the modified Siemens Insulin RIA rendered a moderate Lin's concordance coefficient (ρ_c) of 0.41, whereas the Mercodia Equine Insulin ELISA rendered a very poor ρ_c of 0.06. This suggests that the Siemens Insulin RIA is appropriate to use for routine evaluations when LC-MS is not available.     

Utilizing a combination of molecular and spatial tools to assess the effect of a public health intervention

Until recently New Zealand had one of the highest rates of human campylobacteriosis reported by industrialized countries. Since the introduction of a range of control measures in the poultry production chain a reduction in human cases of around 50% has been observed nationwide. To inform risk managers a combination of spatial, temporal and molecular tools - including minimum spanning trees, risk surfaces, rarefaction analysis and dynamic source attribution modelling - was used in this study to formally evaluate the reduction in disease risk that occurred after the implementation of control measures in the poultry industry. Utilizing data from a sentinel surveillance site in the Manawatu region of New Zealand, our analyses demonstrated a reduction in disease risk attributable to a reduction in the number of poultry-associated campylobacteriosis cases. Before the implementation of interventions poultry-associated cases were more prevalent in urban than rural areas, whereas for ruminant-associated cases the reverse was evident. In addition to the overall reduction in prevalence, this study also showed a stronger intervention effect in urban areas where poultry sources were more dominant. Overall a combination of molecular and spatial tools has provided evidence that the interventions aimed at reducing Campylobacter contamination of poultry were successful in reducing poultry-associated disease and this will inform the development of future control strategies.     

Modeling the heart--from genes to cells to the whole organ

Successful physiological analysis requires an understanding of the functional interactions between the key components of cells, organs, and systems, as well as how these interactions change in disease states. This information resides neither in the genome nor even in the individual proteins that genes code for. It lies at the level of protein interactions within the context of subcellular, cellular, tissue, organ, and system structures. There is therefore no alternative to copying nature and computing these interactions to determine the logic of healthy and diseased states. The rapid growth in biological databases; models of cells, tissues, and organs; and the development of powerful computing hardware and algorithms have made it possible to explore functionality in a quantitative manner all the way from the level of genes to the physiological function of whole organs and regulatory systems. This review illustrates this development in the case of the heart. Systems physiology of the 21st century is set to become highly quantitative and, therefore, one of the most computer-intensive disciplines.     

三种工农业废料的理化性状及作为蘑菇覆土材料的研究

分析测定了纸厂废渣、蘑菇废料和香菇废料等3种工农业废料的理化性状,并以这3种废料作覆土材料,研究其对蘑菇生长与产量的影响.结果表明,纸厂废渣、蘑菇废料和香菇废料的持水率分别为49.3%,43.8%和70.7%,均高于砻糠田土(33%),但低于泥碳(84.5%).3种废料的电导率及pH值均高于砻糠田土和泥碳.香菇废料和蘑菇废料具有与泥碳相似的水分释放曲线,在1.7×104 Pa的牵力下,香菇废料和泥碳的水分释出量相近,分别达87.25 ml和92.35 ml,而蘑菇废料的水分释出量相对较低,为58.25 ml.纸厂废渣的水分释放曲线与砻糠田土相似.以这3种工农业废料作蘑菇覆土材料,蘑菇产量均明显高于以砻糠田土作覆士材料,增幅分别为11.7%,32.0%和21.1%.     

Pathways to impact for aquatic conservation science via multi‐modal communication and stakeholder engagement

1. Translating scientific evidence into practical actions is a primary goal of scientists working to inform evidence‐based policy and decision‐making, but how can authors best facilitate new conservation interventions following publication of their research?
2. This case study used two articles in Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems (AQC) to examine the mechanisms and barriers to translating published aquatic science into social, ecological and policy interventions for the conservation of threatened Murray crayfish (Euastacus armatus).
3. These articles revealed how steep declines in Murray crayfish abundance arose from the loss of in‐stream and riparian habitats preferred by crayfish, and demonstrated the social reasons for conserving Murray crayfish to protect the wellbeing of a diversity of people (e.g. Traditional Owners, landholders, ecotourism operators).
4. Following publication of these articles in AQC the authors used multi‐modal communication (e.g. written briefs, personal discussions, seminars, magazine articles, media broadcasts) to translate their findings to stakeholders and the general public.
5. Analysis of relevant documents (e.g. management plans, public information leaflets) and stakeholder interviews uncovered a range of interventions arising from the two AQC articles. Social interventions (e.g. new public signage, ecotourism briefings) were the quickest to occur after publication (1–2 years). Although some changes in management were apparent (e.g. revised Murray crayfish action plans, monitoring programmes), systemic barriers (e.g. policy/funding timeframes) have prevented some ecological and policy interventions from being realized.
6. Diverse communication strategies can help rapidly translate published science into new conservation actions by giving stakeholders the right evidence in the right way to inform their particular practice. Open‐access summaries that explain findings within readily shareable media (e.g. graphical/video abstracts) can be particularly effective in raising early awareness. Some types of intervention, however, may require a long‐term perspective and assistance from boundary‐spanning knowledge brokers with an aptitude for evidence‐based policy development.

     

Diet overlap between native bigmouth sleepers (Gobiomorus dormitor) and introduced predatory fishes in a Puerto Rico reservoir

Abstract –  Native fish species coexist with introduced species in Puerto Rico's freshwater systems, yet competition between these species has not been evaluated. We examined the extent of diet overlap between native bigmouth sleepers Gobiomorus dormitor and introduced largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides and peacock bass Cichla ocellaris in a Puerto Rico reservoir. Bigmouth sleepers and largemouth bass exhibited an ontogenetic shift in feeding habits, whereas peacock bass were exclusively piscivorous at all sizes collected in this study. Biologically significant diet overlap was observed between large bigmouth sleepers and largemouth bass, but not between large bigmouth sleepers and peacock bass, or between large largemouth bass and adult peacock bass. No significant diet overlap in any species combination was observed in small or medium size classes. Better understanding of the ecology of these coexisting predators should lead to improved conservation of bigmouth sleepers, and improved fisheries management for all three predatory species.