Forms of employment and species caseload of veterinary practitioners in New Zealand

A survey by means of a postal questionnaire was undertaken to investigate the patterns of work and the need for information of veterinary practitioners in New Zealand. Of the 670 eligible veterinarians, 399 practitioners (60 per cent) participated in the survey. Of these, 38 per cent were in large animal practice (less than 20 per cent of work devoted to cats and dogs) and 31 per cent were in small animal practice (more than 80 per cent of work with cats and dogs). The remaining 31 per cent were in mixed practice, with a workload intermediate between the other two groups. Across the entire sample of practitioners, cats and dogs took up the largest number of veterinary hours per person (1092 hours per year). Dairy cattle were second (438 hours), and horses third (302 hours). Deer and goats ranked next, and each used more veterinary hours per person than did either sheep or beef cattle. Other species comprised very minor parts of the overall workload. Women spent a much higher proportion of their working hours with small animals and a much lower proportion with horses than did men. For other species workload patterns were similar between men and women. In relation to employment of the practitioner group, women were under represented, compared with men, among those with responsibilities for the management of practices, even when account was taken of the fact that the women in the sample were younger. Fewer than one per cent of men in the sample were not employed full-time, whereas 15 per cent of the women were in part-time employment. The survey indicates that there has been a substantial change in the demographic structure of the veterinary profession and the forms of veterinary work carried out. It also shows that the differences in work and career patterns between men and women need more intensive study to improve the accuracy of predictions of future requirements for veterinary manpower.     

Geographical cline of DNA variation within the F intersterility group of Heterobasidion annosum in Italy

Eighty-six Heterobasidion annosum isolates, mainly belonging to the F intersterility group and obtained from 32 different geographical localities in Italy, were subjected to genetic analysis by the Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. The similarity between F and S groups was higher than that between F and P. In UPGMA Cluster Analysis, the F isolates originating from the same locality usually grouped in the same cluster. The isolates also showed a tendency to group at the level of larger geographical areas. Within the F group, isolates from the south of the Italian peninsula showed the highest genetic variation and northern isolates from the Alpine regions showed the lowest. This indicates a gradual cline along the peninsula. The genetic variability in the Italian F group is discussed in relation to the past and present distribution of the host species in Italy and Europe.     

Manipulating Chlorine Atom Bonding on the Si(100)-(2 x 1) Surface with the STM

Chlorine atoms strongly chemisorbed at dangling bond sites on the Si(100)-(2 x 1) surface are observed by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) to hop between adjacent sites. The origin of this behavior is suggested to be an interaction between the field of the probe tip and the dipole moment of the silicon-chlorine bond. Chlorine atom migration is shown to be facilitated by the presence of a metastable chlorine bridge-bonded minimum. The STM probe was used to excite single chlorine atoms into this bridging configuration, resulting in a local population inversion. Selective application of voltage pulses between the probe tip and the surface rearranged the local bonding and induced transformations between different types of chlorine sites. In this manner, adsorbed species can be dissected and their composition and structure directly probed.     

甜菜SSR反应体系优化及重要农艺性状分子标记

[目的]为选育优质甜菜新品种,利用SSR法筛选与高糖、高产、耐盐相关的分子标注.[方法]研究对甜菜SSR-PCR反应体系进行优化,并利用SSR分子标记方法和分离群体分组分析法(Bulked SegregateAnalysis,BSA)对具有高糖/低糖、低产/高产、耐盐/不耐盐三种重要农艺性状的甜菜亲本和F2代植株进行分析.[结果]研究建立了适宜甜菜的SSR-PCR反应体系为:20μL反应体系中含l×Buffer、2.0 mmol/LMg2+、1.5 uTaq DNA聚合酶、0.20 mmol/L dNTP、1.5 μmol/L引物、60 ng DNA模板.依据优化体系,对不同农艺性状的甜菜亲本与F2代进行SSR-PCR扩增分析,高糖性状获得了200和100 bp两条与高糖性状连锁的标记,250和230 bp两条与高产性状连锁的标记,550、250和100 bp三条与耐盐性状紧密连锁的分子标记.[结论]研究获得的7条特异条带是与甜菜重要农艺性状连锁的分子标记,将为甜菜的育种工作提供重要的理论基础.     

青海不同产区大黄的X-射线衍射图谱研究（摘要）

[目的]为区分不同产地大黄药材的质量及鉴别提供依据。[方法]将供试材料青海玉树掌叶大黄（样品1）、青海海南唐古特大黄（样品2）与青海果洛唐古特大黄（样品3）分别粉碎成粉末,过100目筛,即可供X射线衍射试验用。设定管压30 kV,管流20 mA,2θ扫描范围3°～90°,扫描速度0.06°/s,每种样时间0.5 s,获得3种不同产区大黄的X-射线衍射图谱。试验数据以晶面间距d与特征峰相对强度L/Io表示,记为d/（I/Io）。将试验数据导入中药指纹图谱相似度计算软件,经选峰,设定匹配模板,将谱峰自动匹配,然后设定标准模板,进行谱峰差异性评价和整体相似性评价。[结果]样品1中所含的化学成分与样品2相同,但峰的强度（I/Io）不同,表明相同成分在两种样品中的含量不相等。同样把样品3的图谱与其他两个样品进行比较,也会得到相同的衍射峰值。表明不同产区的大黄中各化学成分的含量有差异,但其衍射图谱及衍射峰值具有一定的指纹特征。[结论]X-射线衍射法是鉴别不同产区的大黄及其他中药材的一种快捷有效的方法。     

绵羊LDHβ基因的生物信息学分析及其在不同剩余采食量绵羊肝脏和肌肉组织中的表达

【目的】为鉴定绵羊乳酸脱氢酶β(lactate dehydrogenase B,LDHβ)基因的分子特征,研究其在不同剩余采食量绵羊肝脏和肌肉组织中的表达差异.【方法】测定了137只‘湖羊’公羔的剩余采食量(residual feed intake,RFI),按RFI进行排序,分别筛选出RFI最高(high-residual feed intake,H-RFI)和RFI最低(low-residual feed intake,L-RFI)的羊各15只,屠宰后,采集肝脏和肌肉组织,利用Q-PCR技术检测绵羊LDHβ基因分别在H-RFI和L-RFI羊肝脏和肌肉中表达量,并利用生物信息学软件构建了该基因的系统进化树和预测其结构与功能.【结果】绵羊LDHβ基因开放阅读框(open reading frame,ORF)为1 005bp,编码334个氨基酸,其蛋白质分子质量为36 479.43U,理论等电点为6.40.绵羊LDHβ基因与山羊的亲缘关系较近,其次为牛,序列同源性高.功能结构域预测结果显示,该基因编码产物在内质网中参与辅酶因子生物合成的可能性最高.Q-PCR结果显示,绵羊LDHβ-mRNA基因在L-RFI羊肝脏和肌肉中表达量均显著低于H-RFI羊(P0.01).【结论】绵羊LDHβ基因作为能量代谢的关键酶参与绵羊饲料效率的调控.     

POSSIBLE PATHWAYS OF CONTAMINATION OF MEAT AND BONE MEAL WITH SALMONELLA

Samples taken at various points along the processing line in 2 rendering plants showed that post-processing contamination occurs almost immediately after termination of the heat process in the percolator and surge bin. Further contamination occurs at each processing stage. In plant A 12.5% of the samples collected from material leaving the surge bin, 36% of the samples of product after it has passed the milling stage and 61% of samples collected from the stored product were found to be contaminated with salmonellas. In plant B the results were 15%, 40% and 69% respectively. Heavy contamination of product left overnight in percolators and surge bins, which are not cleaned routinely, was considered an important source of early post-processing contamination. The ecology was found to be similar at both plants despite the fact that in one plant the uncooked and cooked areas were separated completely, whilst this was not the case in the other plant. None of the air samples collected yielded salmonellas, while nearly all the insect samples collected in the rendering plants yielded salmonellas.     

Congenital arthrogryposis: an inherited limb deformity in pedigree Suffolk lambs

Thirty of 52 pedigree Suffolk lambs (58 per cent) were born with arthrogryposis characterised by bilateral flexion rigidity of the metacarpophalangeal and carpal joints. The recent introduction of a breeding ram was identified as the only significant risk factor in the flock, and embryo transfer was used to test the hypothesis that the arthrogryposis was an inherited disorder associated with the introduction of this ram. Two adult ewes that had previously produced lambs with arthrogryposis by the ram and four of its affected daughters were available as donors, and 20 crossbred ewes were used as recipients. Ten Suffolk-crossed ewes that had no known familial relationship with the ram were also mated by the ram as controls and they produced 10 normal lambs. Following embryo transfer, 19 lambs were born, of which seven were stillborn; arthrogryposis was evident in 10 of the 12 live lambs. Analysis of the data suggested that in the population under study, arthrogryposis was inherited as an autosomal recessive condition.