Relative contributions of offspring quality and environmental quality to adult field performance

Determinants of adult performance, such as growth and survival, are influenced by extrinsic, environmental and intrinsic, phenotypic factors. The relative importance of extrinsic and intrinsic factors, while ecologically relevant, is rarely estimated simultaneously. We estimate the relative contributions of offspring size (intrinsic) and various environmental factors (extrinsic) on adult performance in the marine colonial bryozoan Watersipora subtorquata. We used a variance partitioning approach for both new and previously published data, enabling us to examine the performance of over 1000 individuals in the field. We found offspring size to explain relatively little variation in adult performance. Of the environmental factors taken to account, temporal variation and an environmental gradient had the strongest influences.     

Contribution of the oocyte to embryo quality

The ability of a bovine embryo to develop to the blastocyst stage, to implant and to generate a healthy offspring is not a simple process. To clarify the importance of the contribution of the oocyte to the embryo quality, it is important to define more precisely the different types of competence expressed by oocytes. The ability to resume meiosis, to cleave upon fertilization to develop into a blastocyst, to induce pregnancy and to generate an healthy offspring are all separate events and succeeding in the first events does not ensure the success of subsequent ones. Furthermore, these events are associated with the three types of maturation processes observed in the oocyte: meiotic, cytoplasmic and molecular. These abilities vary also upon the type of follicle the oocytes is removed from. Larger or slow-growing follicles have been shown to foster better eggs than small or actively growing follicles. Hormonal stimulation can also affect oocyte competence with the nature of the effect (positive or negative) depending on timing and dose. This complex situation requires better definition of the contribution of each factor affecting the oocyte competence and the resulting embryo quality.     

Pectin engineering to modify product quality in potato

Although processed potato tuber texture is an important trait that influences consumer preference, a detailed understanding of tuber textural properties at the molecular level is lacking. Previous work has identified tuber pectin methyl esterase (PME) activity as a potential factor impacting on textural properties, and the expression of a gene encoding an isoform of PME (PEST1) was associated with cooked tuber textural properties. In this study, a transgenic approach was undertaken to investigate further the impact of the PEST1 gene. Antisense and over-expressing potato lines were generated. In over-expressing lines, tuber PME activity was enhanced by up to 2.3-fold; whereas in antisense lines, PME activity was decreased by up to 62%. PME isoform analysis indicated that the PEST1 gene encoded one isoform of PME. Analysis of cell walls from tubers from the over-expressing lines indicated that the changes in PME activity resulted in a decrease in pectin methylation. Analysis of processed tuber texture demonstrated that the reduced level of pectin methylation in the over-expressing transgenic lines was associated with a firmer processed texture. Thus, there is a clear link between PME activity, pectin methylation and processed tuber textural properties.     

Applying undertaker cost functions to model quality assessment

Undertaker is a program designed to help predict protein structure using alignments to proteins of known structure and fragment assembly. The program generates conformations and uses cost functions to select the best structures from among the generated conformations. This paper describes the use of Undertaker's cost functions for model quality assessment. We achieve an accuracy that is similar to other methods, without using consensus‐based techniques. Adding consensus‐based features further improves our approach substantially. We report several correlation measures, including a new weighted version of Kendall's τ (τ₃) and show model quality assessment results superior to previously published results on all correlation measures when using only models with no missing atoms. Proteins 2009. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Complex quality traits: now time to model

A recently published dynamic peach model by Fran?oise Lescourret and Michel Génard simulates changes in quality during final stages of fruit growth. It predicts quality, emerging from complex processes and influenced by environment and management, remarkably well and describes complex emerging behaviour. The model could prove an excellent tool to integrate novel insight from metabolic profiling and pathways of taste-related compounds, ultimately enabling the analysis of gene networks responsible for fruit maturation processes.     

Technological developments and approaches to improving service quality

In summary, major paradigm shifts in the health care industry are altering the way technology is maintained and supported. Service organizations are now responsible for maintaining a broader base of technology within the health care delivery network and must to this on an extremely rapid, efficient, and productive basis. A number of new technologies are coming on-line, which can allow a health care technology service organization to experience significant improvements in profitability, efficiency, and productivity. To realize maximum benefit from these technologies, service organizations may find themselves re-engineering their service processes. The author believes that this is a requirement for many service organizations, regardless of whether new technology is implemented. The traditional approaches to service delivery are ineffective in managing the new structural realities and service requirements of today's health care environment. New strategies and tactics are required for ensuring that these requirements are met. These approaches will no doubt improve the overall quality, productivity, and efficiency of service and are based on best practices utilized by leading OEMs and ISOs in the medical electronics and other high technology service industry such as information technology and telecommunications, where the service organization is responsible for supporting a broad array of the technology over a large geography with a densely populated installed base, not unlike the typical health care delivery service environment. Once operational improvements are made, a service organization can take advantage of the productivity and efficiency gains brought on by new technology. Organizations interested in doing so are urged to thoroughly research the current state-of-the-art and best practices, because there are numerous systems currently available off-the-shelf. The author believes that new technology will be a basic requirement for competing in the health care technology service marketplace, because it can significantly affect the profitability of service organizations. This technology will help level the playing field between ISOs, OEMs, and biomedical personnel. As our research suggests, efficiently operating biomedical personnel can achieve a significantly higher utilization and profitability than efficiently operating OEMs, due to the advantages of lower overhead and operating cost structure. In general, the process to improve service productivity and efficiency involves a review of current service operations and understanding of the customer environment perceptions as well as understanding of key service factors parameters. From there, service organizations should identify the current state-of-the-art service and infrastructure systems and technology. Based on this assessment, a service organization can evaluate best practices and identify new strategies and tactics for improving service delivery. Through better service management control and education of users on the improvement in service, which the new processes and technologies provide, the service organization can realize real, quantifiable improvements in service quality, productivity, and profitability.     

Molecular genetic approaches to developing quality protein maize

Since its development more than two decades ago, Quality Protein Maize (QPM) has been adopted for cultivation in many regions of the developing world. Given the potential benefits of widespread use of QPM, research to better understand the genetic and biochemical mechanisms responsible for its altered kernel texture and protein quality is important. Recent investigations into the improved protein quality of the opaque2 mutant and the genetic mechanisms that can suppress its starchy kernel phenotype provide new insights to support the continued improvement of QPM. Chief among these developments are the use of transgenic approaches to improve nutritional quality and the discovery that an important component of modified endosperm texture in QPM is related to altered starch granule structure.     

Environmental factors contributed to circannual rhythm of semen quality

We investigated whether human semen parameters present circannual rhythm or not, and whether environmental factors exert on semen quality. This retrospective study used data of patients mainly from Reproductive Medicine Center and Urology and Andrology Clinic of a general hospital in China. Sperm concentration and motility were measured by computer aided sperm analysis (CASA). Sperm morphology was scored based on the strict criteria (WHO, 2010). The Kruskal–Wallis rank test was used to investigate the relationship between semen parameters and season/month. Partial correlation coefficients were used to analyze the relationship between semen parameters and environmental factors. In this study, we found that sperm concentration and total amount per ejaculate were significantly lower in summer and higher in winter. But, sperm progressive motility and motility were significantly higher in spring and summer (from March to June), lower in autumn and winter (September and October). Unexpectedly, normal sperm morphology and mixed agglutination reaction (MAR) positive rate didn’t vary along with season or month. Furthermore, temperature was negatively related to sperm concentration and total amount per ejaculate. Precipitation was positively associated with progressive motility and normal sperm morphology, but negatively related to sperm head defect percentage. The length of sunlight was positively related to progressive motility. The Air Quality Index (AQI) was positively associated with semen volume and sperm total amount per ejaculate. These suggest seasonal and monthly variation underlying some semen parameters.     

Proposals to enhance the quality of observational cohort studies

For herbal medicinal products the methodology of observational cohort studies (observational studies, drug monitoring studies, Anwendungsbeobachtung) represents a useful addition to clinical trials. The key objectives are the documentation of efficacy in particular under conditions of everyday medical practice in authentic patients and the documentation of the safety profile. Supplementary to earlier activities, members of the "Clinical Trials of Herbal Medicinal Products" Working Party of the German Society for Phytotherapy have therefore again addressed the issue of observational cohort studies for to enhance the informative value and importance of this clinical research methodology. Recommendations were developed on quality aspects, methodological approaches of observation parameters, and for the reporting of the study's results. Properly planned and conducted observational cohort studies may contribute to the documentation and proof of well-established medicinal use according the EU Directive 2001/83/EC.     

Mycorrhizosphere interactions to improve plant fitness and soil quality

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi are key components of soil microbiota and obviously interact with other microorganisms in the rhizosphere, i.e. the zone of influence of plant roots on microbial populations and other soil constituents. Mycorrhiza formation changes several aspects of plant physiology and some nutritional and physical properties of the rhizospheric soil. These effects modify the colonization patterns of the root or mycorrhizas (mycorrhizosphere) by soil microorganisms. The rhizosphere of mycorrhizal plants, in practice a mycorrhizosphere, harbors a great array of microbial activities responsible for several key ecosystem processes. This paper summarizes the main conceptual principles and accepted statements on the microbial interactions between mycorrhizal fungi and other members of rhizosphere microbiota and discusses current developments and future trends concerning the following topics: (i) effect of soil microorganisms on mycorrhiza formation; (ii) mycorrhizosphere establishment; (iii) interactions involved in nutrient cycling and plant growth; (iv) interactions involved in the biological control of plant pathogens; and (v) interactions to improve soil quality. The main conclusion is that microbial interactions in the rhizosphere of mycorrhizal plants improve plant fitness and soil quality, critical issues for a sustainable agricultural development and ecosystem functioning. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The habitat quality index applied to New Mexico streams

The accuracy of two trout biomass (standing stock) prediction models, developed for Wyoming streams by Binns & Eiserman (1979), was evaluated for New Mexico streams inhabited by brown trout, Salmo trutta L. and rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss Walbaum. Thirty-two representative sites in 15 different streams were sampled under summer low-flow conditions in 1988 and 1989. The 11 phyiscal, chemical, and biological variables used in original models were used as independent variables for simple and multiple regression analysis designed to predict total trout biomass. Model I of Binns and Eiserman proved to be of limited utility; it explained 53% of the variation in total trout biomass at each of the New Mexico sites (kg ha⁻¹ = 8.916 + 0.830/Model U). Only 9.5% of the biomass variations was explained by Model II. Statistical analysis showed that trout biomass was significantly correlated with nitrate-nitrogen concentration and macroinvertebrate diversity in Model I. Because both variates are time consuming to estimate, Model I may not be any more cost-effective than sampling trout directly. The low predictive power of Model II probably indicates that it is limited to the geographical area of field measurement origin.