Effects of body condition score (BCS) on steroid‐ and eicosanoid‐metabolizing enzyme activity in various mare tissues during winter anoestrus

The objective of this study was to determine the activity of steroid‐ and eicosanoid‐metabolizing enzymes in horses with varying BCSs. The BCSs of twenty non‐pregnant, anoestrous mares were determined prior to euthanasia, and tissue samples were collected from the liver, kidney, adrenal gland, ovary and endometrium. Cytochrome P450 1A (CYP1A), 2C (CYP2C), 3A (CYP3A) and uridine 5′‐diphospho‐glucuronosyltransferase (UGT) activities were determined using luminogenic substrates. The MIXED procedure of SAS was used to test the effect of BCS on enzyme activity and differences between tissues. Activity of CYP1A in adrenals was increased (p ≤ .05) in BCS 5 versus BCSs 4 and 6. Activity of CYP1A in the liver was increased (p = .05) in BCS 4 versus BCSs 5 and 6. Activity of CYP1A was 100‐fold greater (p < .0001) in the liver than in the adrenal, ovary and kidney. Activity of CYP2C was 100‐fold greater (p < .0001) in the liver than in the adrenal, ovary and endometrium. Activity of CYP3A was only detectable in the liver. Activity of UGT in the kidney was decreased (p = .02) in BCS 4 versus BCSs 5 and 6. Activity of UGT was threefold greater (p < .0001) in the liver than in the kidney, whereas activity of UGT was ninefold greater (p < .0001) in the kidney than in the ovary and endometrium. In general, BCS did not alter the activity of steroid‐ and eicosanoid‐metabolizing enzymes in horses. However, tissue differences in these enzymes indicated abundant hepatic metabolism in horses, which is similar to other livestock species.     

A survey for Bursaphelenchus spp. in pine forests in Norway

Wood samples from pine trees were taken from 429 sites throughout Norway. The samples were selected as being either from (1) healthy trees, (2) trees suffering from stress, either physical or pathological or (3) dead trees. Nematodes were recovered from 39% of samples, most from dead wood and least from healthy trees. Species of Bursaphelenchus were recovered from 12% of dead trees and 5% of stressed trees, but were never found in healthy wood. B. mucronatus was found at just one site and in this sample it was associated with Monochamus sutor , only one of two sites at which the beetle was detected. Based on the information gained from the survey and from other sources, an assessment is made of the risk of introduction of B. xylophilus from outside Europe on imported wood and its survival, spread and disease potential in European forests.     

农业用地供给侧改革的可行举措探讨

通过梳理我国农业用地在利用中所存在的制度层面、利用层面、管理层面和其他层面的问题,结合我国推进农业用地实行供给侧改革的目的,从4个方面制度供给、利用供给、管理供给和其他供给提出我国在实行农业用地供给侧改革的可行举措,为我国推进农业用地的供给侧改革提供理论依据。     

发酵床技术在奶牛养殖中的推广和应用

为了有效缓解奶牛场存在的粪便处理难、环境污染严重的现状,本文调查研究采用生态养殖模式对养殖过程中产生的粪便进行无害化处理的发酵床技术在西安市奶牛养殖中的推广和应用情况,以便为实现绿色奶牛养殖提供参考思路。     

Pre-parturition staphylococcal mastitis in primiparous replacement goats: persistence over lactation and sources of infection

This investigation reported for the first time the occurrence of intramammary infections caused by Staphylococcus in primiparous replacement goats before parturition and the persistence of clinical Staphylococcus aureus infection during the lactation period. Subclinical infections, mainly caused by coagulase negative staphylococci (CoNS), did not persist during lactation. Genotyping analysis indicated that environment seems to play a moderate role as source of intramammary infections to goats before parturition, but causative agents of mastitis in lactating animals are not genotypically related to environmental staphylococci. The occurrence and persistence of intramammary infections in replacement goats demonstrate the need to consider those animals as potential sources of infections in dairy goat herds.     

Fine-Scale Doppler Radar Observations of Tornadoes

Observations obtained with a mobile pencil-beam Doppler radar revealed many previously unresolved structures within tornadic storms and tornadoes and helped verify various aspects of conceptual models. Radar data from the parent circulations indicate the existence of spiral reflectivity bands, intense radial wind shear zones, and multiple larger-scale velocity maxima. Tornado structures observed include debris shields, clear axial (eye) regions, multiple reflectivity bands surrounding the center of the eye, and occasional reflectivity protrusions into the eye. Velocity and reflectivity data from tornado-scale circulations show evidence of axial downdrafts.     

Effects of Monomer Structure on Their Organization and Polymerization in a Smectic Liquid Crystal

Photopolymerizable diacrylate monomers dissolved in fluid-layer smectic A and smectic C liquid crystal (LC) hosts exhibited significant spatial segregation and orientation that depend strongly on monomer structure. Small, flexible monomers such as 1,6-hexanediol diacrylate (HDDA) oriented parallel to the smectic layers and intercalated, whereas rod-shaped mesogen-like monomers such as 1,4-di-(4-(6-acryloyloxyhexyloxy)benzoyloxy)-2-methylbenzene (C6M) oriented normal to the smectic layers and collected within them. Such spatial segregation caused by the smectic layering dramatically enhanced photopolymerization rates; for HDDA, termination rates were reduced, whereas for C6M, both the termination and propagation rates were increased. These polymerization precursor structures suggest novel materials-design paradigms for gel LCs and nanophase-separated polymer systems.