Scrotal circumference,bodyweight and semen characteristics in growing dairy-breed natural-service bulls in Tasmania,Australia     

RK Waite  CJ Dwyer  DS Beggs  PD Mansell  MA Stevenson  MF Pyman 《New Zealand veterinary journal》2019,67(3):109-116

Aims: To provide herd managers with a set of decision rules allowing them to predict the likelihood that a juvenile bull is ready for Bull Breeding Soundness Evaluation (BBSE), or breeding, if bodyweight and scrotal circumference are known.

Methods: This was a longitudinal study following two groups of young pasture-fed Holstein and Jersey bulls from northwest Tasmania, Australia. Individual scrotal circumference, bodyweight and semen characteristics were recorded at 6–8 weekly intervals, from 6–18 months of age. Classification and regression tree analyses were used to predict the probability that a bull had ≥70% normal sperm morphology based on scrotal circumference and bodyweight measurements.

Results: Overall 1,661 scrotal circumference and bodyweight measurements were obtained, and 518 semen samples from 356 bulls were assessed for sperm morphology, from 16 examination sessions that took place between 29 May 2015 and 17 August 2016. Classification and regression tree analyses generated a decision tree for Holstein bulls with four node endpoints, and for Jersey bulls with three node endpoints. Diagnostic test performance showed that for Holstein bulls, using the node endpoints of scrotal circumference ≥27?cm and bodyweight ≥349?kg, 98% had ≥70% normal sperm (positive likelihood ratio 10.4; 95% CI?=?2.7–41), and using the node endpoints of scrotal circumference ≥27?cm and bodyweight between 282–349?kg, 89% had ≥70% normal sperm (positive likelihood ratio 1.6; 95% CI?=?0.9–2.6). For Jersey bulls, using the node endpoints of bodyweight ≥259?kg and scrotal circumference ≥29?cm, 88% had ≥70% normal sperm (positive likelihood ratio 3.4; 95% CI?=?1.6–7.0).

Conclusions: This study provides a set of relatively simple decision rules based on bodyweight and scrotal circumference measurements that allows herd managers to assess the likelihood that juvenile bulls are ready for BBSE or breeding.

Abbreviations: BBSE: Bull breeding soundness evaluation; BRT: Boosted regression tree  相似文献   

Habitat amount and quality,not patch size,determine persistence of a woodland-dependent mammal in an agricultural landscape     

Riana Gardiner  Glen Bain  Rowena Hamer  Menna E. Jones  Christopher N. Johnson 《Landscape Ecology》2018,33(11):1837-1849

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Organic matrix composition and ultrastructure of eggshell: a comparative study.   总被引：4，自引：0，他引：4  

M Panheleux  M Bain  M S Fernandez  I Morales  J Gautron  J L Arias  S E Solomon  M Hincke  Y Nys 《British poultry science》1999,40(2):240-252

1. The avian eggshell is a biomineralised composite ceramic consisting of calcium carbonate embedded in an organic matrix. Matrix components are supposed to be involved in the control of mineralisation, crystallographic texture and biomechanical properties of eggshell. 2. The structure and eggshell matrix composition of various domesticated bird species were compared to gain insight into the universality of the eggshell mineralisation process. 3. The SDS-PAGE profiles of soluble eggshell matrix were specific within groups of birds (a: laying hen, breeder hen, quail, pheasant and possibly turkey; b: guinea fowl; c: duck and goose) but some of the protein bands were common to all groups. 4. Analogies between species were confirmed by Western blotting using hen protein antibodies. Ovocleidin-17 (OC-17) and ovalbumin were revealed in all species (except quail for OC-17). Lysozyme was present only in hen eggshell. Another egg white protein: ovotransferrin showed a positive signal in hens, turkey and quail. Osteopontin was observed in laying and breeder hens and quail. 5. Different proteoglycans were localised to discrete regions within the eggshell. Dermatan sulphate was observed within the matrix of the calcified shell of all species except quail which contained chondroitin-6-sulfate. Keratan sulphate was observed in mammillary bodies of breeder and laying hen, quail, pheasant and turkey while chondroitin sulphate was also present in guinea fowl and duck. 6. The general structural organisation of the different avian eggshells was similar but specific differences were observed in the ultrastructure of the mammillary layer. Species of the same taxonomic family could be grouped according to their structural analogies: breeder hen, turkey and pheasant resembled that of the domestic fowl. Guinea fowl was unique. Goose and duck were quite similar with large and confluent mammillary bodies. 7. Some matrix components are therefore common to eggshells of various species but more information is needed to relate differences in matrix composition between taxonomic groups with differences in ultrastructure.  相似文献   

Isotope-edited nuclear magnetic resonance: novel methodologies for investigating metabolism     

Janice K Gard  William C Hutton  Jeanette A Baker  RK Singh  Paul CC Feng 《Pest management science》1999,55(2):215-217

While the use of NMR and stable isotopes in metabolism studies is hardly new, it is only recently that isotope-edited NMR spectroscopy has been applied in kinetic studies of glyphosate metabolism of soil microbes. NMR can detect multiple species simultaneously and non-destructively, yielding valuable information on structural identification of metabolites. T riple R esonance I sotope ED ited spectroscopy (TRIED), [²H]NMR, and [²H–¹³C] INEPT (I nsensitive N ucleus E nhancement through P olarization T ransfer) are three isotope-edited techniques which have been used in combination to examine the microbial degradation of glyphosate (N-phosphonomethylglycine). Using ¹³C- and ¹⁵N-labeled glyphosate, TRIED can detect multiple metabolites in crude matrices at submicrogram levels, an improvement over earlier techniques where milligrams were needed. It can detect 500 nanograms of ¹³C–¹⁵N-labeled compound in a crude sample (1 : 1400 mass ratio), only a few hours work being required. [²H]NMR and [²H–¹³C]INEPT were also used as complementary techniques to further examine metabolites whose ¹³C–¹⁵N bond has been cleaved. The three-isotope-edited methods produced results consistent with both radioactivity and HPLC analyses. Accordingly, we are able to detect minute levels of metabolites in the presence of complex mixtures, minimizing the costs and time of sample purification. ©1999 Society of Chemical Industry  相似文献   

Development and validation of a range of endogenous controls to support the implementation of practical Taqman real-time PCR-based surveillance for fish diseases within aquaculture   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1  

Bland F  McIntosh R  Bain N  Snow M 《Journal of fish diseases》2012,35(6):447-454

The use of Taqman real-time PCR-based technology has recently become more frequent in the detection of pathogens in the aquaculture industry. This interest has necessitated the development of robust and reliable pathogen-detection assays. The development of a range of endogenous control assays to be run alongside these diagnostic assays works to further increase confidence in the latter. This study describes the design of a range of endogenous control assays based on the elongation factor 1-α (EF1-α) gene specific to a range of fish species including Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar; rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss; brown trout, Salmo trutta; cod, Gadus morhua; haddock, Melanogrammus aeglefinus; saithe, Pollachius virens; whiting, Merlangius merlangus; Norway pout, Trisopterus esmarkii; carp (family Cyprinidae), roach, Rutilus rutilus; European eel, Anguilla anguilla; and herring, Clupea harengus, as well as a number of fish cell lines. Evidence is provided of the validation of these assays for specific species, a range of tissue types and cell lines as well as an example of the potential uses of these assays.  相似文献   

Managing floodplains at appropriate scales     

Daniel J. Bain 《Landscape Ecology》2010,25(9):1457-1458

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Physiological and Anatomical Studies of surface Pitting of Sweet Cherry Fruit in Relation to Bruising,Chemical Treatments and Storage Conditions     

N. L. Wade  Joan M. Bain 《The Journal of Horticultural Science and Biotechnology》2013,88(4):375-384

Mechanical injury of sweet cherry fruit causes the disorder ‘surface pitting’, in which skin depressions overlie necrotic lesions in the fleshy mesocarp. Storage at temperatures near 0°C or the transfer of fruit from cool storage to room temperature worsened the disorder. Pretreating the fruit before cool storage with antitranspirant or surface-active agents exacerbated the disorder, but these effects were mitigated by the addition of CaCl₂. Low O₂, high CO₂ and high humidity atmospheres did not affect the disorder, and low pressure storage was beneficial.  相似文献   

The resistance of potato plants toErwinia carotovora subsp.atroseptica in relation to their calcium and magnesium content     

R. A. Bain  P. Millard  M. C. M. Perombelon 《Potato Research》1996,39(1):185-193

Summary The effect of adding gypsum (CaSO₄) to growing media on the resistance toErwinia carotovora subsp.atroseptica (van Hall) Dye of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) stems and mother and daughter tubers was examined in field and glasshouse experiments. The decayin situ of inoculated mother tubers from field plots treated before planting with gypsum was significantly delayed compared with tubers sampled from non-amended plots. Blackleg development was also significantly delayed in the gypsum-amended plots; however, for both mother tubers and stems the increased resistance associated with the application of gypsum later disappeared. Stem resistance tended to be related to tissue calcium and magnesium concentrations which were higher in plots treated with gypsum than in untreated plots. Daughter tubers produced in plots amended with gypsum generally contained a higher concentration of calcium in their cortex and were more resistant to decay byE. carotovora subsp.atroseptica but the effect was not consistent.  相似文献   

Detection of viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus by quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction from two fish species at two sites in Lake Superior     

Cornwell ER  Eckerlin GE  Getchell RG  Groocock GH  Thompson TM  Batts WN  Casey RN  Kurath G  Winton JR  Bowser PR  Bain MB  Casey JW 《Journal of aquatic animal health》2011,23(4):207-217

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Effects of Presprouting, Planting Date, Plant Population and Configuration on Late Blight and Yield of Organic Potato Crops Grown with Different Cultivars     

A. J. T. M. Hospers-Brands  R. Ghorbani  E. Bremer  R. Bain  A. Litterick  F. Halder  C. Leifert  S. J. Wilcockson 《Potato Research》2008,51(2):131-150

In organic systems of agriculture, integrated control strategies are necessary for the management of late blight. Agronomic treatments such as presprouting of seed tubers, planting early and in different populations and spacings should be considered for inclusion. They may delay and/or decrease infection and help to ensure that acceptable marketable yields are achieved before the disease prevails. Individually, their efficacy may be limited, but in combination with other components the integrated strategy may be more successful. Experiments in the UK and the Netherlands tested some potential components of such a strategy: presprouting (chitting) and early planting of seed tubers, which should encourage early bulking and evasion of the disease; choice of plant population and configuration to make the crops’ microclimate less favourable for infection. Both early planting and presprouting (chitting) gave higher yields earlier in the season, before late blight put an end to crop growth, and were most effective in years with a short growing season (e.g., when the disease started early). Plant population and spacings within commercially acceptable limits had marked effects on canopy architecture but no effects on late blight infection. However, the effects on tuber size grading were large. At lower densities, tubers were larger on average. This was an advantage when blight infection was early, but could result in the production of too many oversized tubers if it was delayed or absent, unless the crop was defoliated.  相似文献