Genetic variances, heritabilities and maternal effects on body weight, breast meat yield, meat quality traits and the shape of the growth curve in turkey birds

Background

Turkey is an important agricultural species and is largely used as a meat bird. In 2004, turkey represented 6.5% of the world poultry meat production. The world-wide turkey population has rapidly grown due to increased commercial farming. Due to the high demand for turkey meat from both consumers and industry global turkey stocks increased from 100 million in 1970 to over 276 million in 2004. This rapidly increasing importance of turkeys was a reason to design this study for the estimation of genetic parameters that control body weight, body composition, meat quality traits and parameters that shape the growth curve in turkey birds.

Results

The average heritability estimate for body weight traits was 0.38, except for early weights that were strongly affected by maternal effects. This study showed that body weight traits, upper asymptote (a growth curve trait), percent breast meat and redness of meat had high heritability whereas heritabilities of breast length, breast width, percent drip loss, ultimate pH, lightness and yellowness of meat were medium to low. We found high positive genetic and phenotypic correlations between body weight, upper asymptote, most breast meat yield traits and percent drip loss but percent drip loss was found strongly negatively correlated with ultimate pH. Percent breast meat, however, showed genetic correlations close to zero with body weight traits and upper asymptote.

Conclusion

The results of this analysis and the growth curve from the studied population of turkey birds suggest that the turkey birds could be selected for breeding between 60 and 80 days of age in order to improve overall production and the production of desirable cuts of meat. The continuous selection of birds within this age range could promote high growth rates but specific attention to meat quality would be needed to avoid a negative impact on the quality of meat.     

Surface display of Salmonella epitopes in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Escherichia coli</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Staphylococcus carnosus</Emphasis>

Background  

Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis (SE) is considered to be one of the most potent pathogenic Salmonella serotypes causing food-borne disease in humans. Since a live bacterial vaccine based on surface display of antigens has many advantages over traditional vaccines, we have studied the surface display of the SE antigenic proteins, H:gm and SefA in Escherichia coli by the β-autotransporter system, AIDA. This procedure was compared to protein translocation in Staphylococcus carnosus, using a staphylococci hybrid vector earlier developed for surface display of other vaccine epitopes.     

Ancient origin of endemic Iberian earth-boring dung beetles (Geotrupidae)

The earth-boring dung beetles belong to the family Geotrupidae that includes more than 350 species classified into three subfamilies Geotrupinae, Lethrinae, and Taurocerastinae, mainly distributed across temperate regions. Phylogenetic relationships within the family are based exclusively on morphology and remain controversial. In the Iberian Peninsula there are 33 species, 20 of them endemic, which suggests that these lineages might have experienced a radiation event. The evolution of morphological adaptations to the Iberian semi-arid environments such as the loss of wings (apterism) or the ability to exploit alternative food resources is thought to have promoted diversification. Here, we present a phylogenetic analysis of 31 species of Geotrupidae, 17 endemic to the Iberian Peninsula, and the remaining from southeastern Europe, Morocco, and Austral South America based on partial mitochondrial and nuclear gene sequence data. The reconstructed maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference phylogenies recovered Geotrupinae and Lethrinae as sister groups to the exclusion of Taurocerastinae. Monophyly of the analyzed geotrupid genera was supported but phylogenetic relationships among genera were poorly resolved. Ancestral character-state reconstruction of wing loss evolution, dating, and diversification tests altogether showed neither evidence of a burst of cladogenesis of the Iberian Peninsula group nor an association between apterism and higher diversification rates. Loss of flight did not accelerate speciation rates but it was likely responsible for the high levels of endemism of Iberian geotrupids by preventing their expansion to central Europe. These Iberian flightless beetle lineages are probably paleoendemics that have survived since the Tertiary in this refuge area during Plio-Pleistocene climatic fluctuations by evolving adaptations to arid and semi-arid environments.     

Apolipoprotein A‐I possesses an anti‐obesity effect associated with increase of energy expenditure and up‐regulation of UCP1 in brown fat

Apolipoprotein A‐I (ApoA‐I) is the most abundant protein constituent of high‐density lipoprotein (HDL). Reduced plasma HDL and ApoA‐I levels have been found to be associated with obesity and metabolic syndrome in human beings. However, whether or not ApoA‐I has a direct effect on obesity is largely unknown. Here we analysed the anti‐obesity effect of ApoA‐I using two mouse models, a transgenic mouse with overexpression of ApoA‐I and the mice administered with an ApoA‐I mimetic peptide D‐4F. The mice were induced to develop obesity by feeding with high fat diet. Both ApoA‐I overexpression and D‐4F treatment could significantly reduce white fat mass and slightly improve insulin sensitivity in the mice. Metabolic analyses revealed that ApoA‐I overexpression and D‐4F treatment enhanced energy expenditure in the mice. The mRNA level of uncoupling protein (UCP)1 in brown fat tissue was elevated by ApoA‐I transgenic mice. ApoA‐I and D‐4F treatment was able to increase UCP1 mRNA and protein levels as well as to stimulate AMP‐activated protein kinase (AMPK) phosphorylation in brown adipocytes in culture. Taken together, our results reveal that ApoA‐I has an anti‐obesity effect in the mouse and such effect is associated with increases in energy expenditure and UCP1 expression in the brown fat tissue.     

Ethnobiology of snappers (Lutjanidae): target species and suggestions for management

In this study, we sought to investigate the biology (diet and reproduction) and ethnobiology (fishers knowledge and fishing spots used to catch snappers) of five species of snappers (Lutjanidae), including Lutjanus analis, Lutjanus synagris, Lutjanus vivanus, Ocyurus chrysurus, and Romboplites saliens at five sites along the northeast (Riacho Doce, Maceió in Alagoas State, and Porto do Sauípe, Entre Rios at Bahia State) and the southeast (SE) Brazilian coast (Paraty and Rio de Janeiro cities at Rio de Janeiro State, and Bertioga, at São Paulo State.). We collected 288 snappers and interviewed 86 fishermen. The stomach contents of each fish were examined and macroscopic gonad analysis was performed. Snappers are very important for the fisheries of NE Brazil, and our results indicated that some populations, such as mutton snapper (L. analis) and lane snapper (L. synagris), are being caught when they are too young, at early juvenile stages. Local knowledge has been shown to be a powerful tool for determining appropriate policies regarding management of target species, and artisanal fishermen can be included in management processes. Other suggestions for managing the fisheries are discussed, including proposals that could provide motivation for artisanal fishermen to participate in programs to conserve resources, such as co-management approaches that utilize local knowledge, the establishment of fishing seasons, and compensation of fishermen, through 'payment for environmental services'. These suggestions may enhance the participation of local artisanal fishermen in moving to a more realistic and less top-down management approach of the fish population.     

Selecting EEG components using time series analysis in brain death diagnosis

In diagnosis of brain death for human organ transplant, EEG (electroencephalogram) must be flat to conclude the patient’s brain death but it has been reported that the flat EEG test is sometimes difficult due to artifacts such as the contamination from the power supply and ECG (electrocardiogram, the signal from the heartbeat). ICA (independent component analysis) is an effective signal processing method that can separate such artifacts from the EEG signals. Applying ICA to EEG channels, we obtain several separated components among which some correspond to the brain activities while others contain artifacts. This paper aims at automatic selection of the separated components based on time series analysis. In the flat EEG test in brain death diagnosis, such automatic component selection is helpful.     

Topological structure of the space of phenotypes: the case of RNA neutral networks

The evolution and adaptation of molecular populations is constrained by the diversity accessible through mutational processes. RNA is a paradigmatic example of biopolymer where genotype (sequence) and phenotype (approximated by the secondary structure fold) are identified in a single molecule. The extreme redundancy of the genotype-phenotype map leads to large ensembles of RNA sequences that fold into the same secondary structure and can be connected through single-point mutations. These ensembles define neutral networks of phenotypes in sequence space. Here we analyze the topological properties of neutral networks formed by 12-nucleotides RNA sequences, obtained through the exhaustive folding of sequence space. A total of 4(12) sequences fragments into 645 subnetworks that correspond to 57 different secondary structures. The topological analysis reveals that each subnetwork is far from being random: it has a degree distribution with a well-defined average and a small dispersion, a high clustering coefficient, and an average shortest path between nodes close to its minimum possible value, i.e. the Hamming distance between sequences. RNA neutral networks are assortative due to the correlation in the composition of neighboring sequences, a feature that together with the symmetries inherent to the folding process explains the existence of communities. Several topological relationships can be analytically derived attending to structural restrictions and generic properties of the folding process. The average degree of these phenotypic networks grows logarithmically with their size, such that abundant phenotypes have the additional advantage of being more robust to mutations. This property prevents fragmentation of neutral networks and thus enhances the navigability of sequence space. In summary, RNA neutral networks show unique topological properties, unknown to other networks previously described.     

Troublesome heterotopic ossification after central nervous system damage: a survey of 570 surgeries

Background

Heterotopic ossification (HO) is a frequent complication after central nervous system (CNS) damage but has seldom been studied. We aimed to investigate features of HO for the first time in a large sample and the rate of early recurrence of HO in terms of the time of surgery.

Methodology/Principal Findings

We retrospectively analyzed data from an anonymous prospective survey of patients undergoing surgery between May 1993 and November 2009 in our institution for troublesome HO related to acquired neurological disease. Demographic and HO characteristics and neurological etiologies were recorded. For 357 consecutive patients, we collected data on 539 first surgeries for HO (129 surgeries for multiple sites). During the follow-up, recurrences requiring another surgery appeared in 31 cases (5.8% [31/539]; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 3.8%–7.8%; 27 patients). Most HO requiring surgery occurred after traumatic brain injury (199 patients [55.7%]), then spinal cord injury (86 [24.0%]), stroke (42 [11.8%]) and cerebral anoxia (30 [8.6%]). The hip was the primary site of HO (328 [60.9%]), then the elbow (115 [21.3%]), knee (77 [14.3%]) and shoulder (19 [3.5%]). For all patients, 181 of the surgeries were performed within the first year after the CNS damage, without recurrence of HO. Recurrence was not associated with etiology (p = 0.46), sex (p = 1.00), age at CNS damage (p = 0.2), multisite localization (p = 0.34), or delay to surgery (p = 0.7).

Conclusions/Significance

In patients with CNS damage, troublesome HO and recurrence occurs most frequently after traumatic brain injury and appears frequently in the hip and elbow. Early surgery for HO is not a factor of recurrence.     

Histological structure of the digestive tract,liver, and pancreas of Ambassis nalua (Hamilton, 1822) with ultrastructural details of the gastric gland

The scalloped perchlet Ambassis nalua is one of the dominant fishes in the Estuarine Pranburi River, Thailand. It is suggested that this fish is in the secondary trophic level with a carnivorous nature. Studies on digestive system will help us further identify the niche of this species in the food web/food chain. The present study therefore aimed to report the detailed structure and ultrastructure of A. nalua digestive system. Fish samples (n = 30) with a total length of 5.7 ± 0.5 cm were obtained using beach seines from the Estuarine Pranburi River. Their digestive tract length and intestine coeficient were 3.6 ± 0.07 cm and 0.91, respectively. Light microscopic observation showed that the digestive wall comprised four layers, namely mucosa, submucosa, muscularis, and serosa. The prominent mucous-secreting cells were found in the mucosal oesophagus. The stomach had many gastric folds, with height and width being 649.76 ± 85.15 and 370.30 ± 68.56 μm, respectively. Gastric glands were found in the anterior stomach but not in the posterior stomach. Each gastric gland was made up of a single type of columnar cells. The gastric cells were ultrastructurally characterized by numerous mitochondria and well-developed secretory granules of varying sizes. A few small vacuoles were also identified in the apical area of the gastric cells. The intestine had two regions (anterior and posterior intestines), and pyloric caecum was absent. The density of the goblet cell was significantly higher in the posterior intestine. These results provide basic knowledge of the digestive system of A. nalua, and the low intestine coefficient and the absence of pyloric caecum suggest the carnivorous feeding habit of this species.