Evaluation of the standards compliance of the queen bees reared in the Mediterranean region in Turkey

The influence of different commercial queen producers on the quality of Apis mellifera queens was assessed. It was aimed to determine the quality characteristics of queens reared by commercial queen producers located in the province of Antalya, which is an important region in queens production due to its climatic characteristics. For this purpose, the quality characteristics of a total of 105 queen bees obtained from 21 enterprises were determined. Differences between the enterprises in terms of the number of spermatozoa (P < 0.01) were determined. In terms of the diameter of spermatheca, spermatheca volume and live weight, statistical differences between the enterprises were also observed (P < 0.05). When the relationships between the measured characteristics were examined, significant values were obtained statistically between live weight and diameter of spermathecae (0.268) and spermatheca volume (0.258). It was also determined that there is a significant correlation between spermatheca diameter and spermatheca volume (0.995). The spermatheca diameter of a good quality queen bee should not be <1.2 mm, spermatheca volume 0.90 mm³ and live weight not <200 mg. Only live weight was found to be within the normal quality standard values when the average results of the quality criteria are taken into consideration. Other characters such as spermathecae diameter, spermathecae volume and number of spermatozoa in spermathecae seem to be below quality standard values.     

Embodied Resource Flows in a Global Economy

This article presents a methodology for identifying critical links in global resource supply chains by tracking resources from their extraction in one region of the world economy through their embodiment in intermediate products in the same and other regions to eventual embodiment in final goods. We build on previous work that applied an absorbing Markov chain (AMC) to results obtained using an input‐output (IO) model of a single region to define a resource‐specific network within that economy. In the absence of model calculations, the AMC can also be applied to standard IO data for a past year. This article first generalizes the analytic framework from a single region to the important case of the global resource‐specific network. This network typically includes cycling of embodied resources between sectors not only within each economy, but also among regions, as subsequent rounds of intermediate products are traded. Next, we refine that analysis to exhibit a crucial subnetwork, the resource end‐use network, which only tracks the portion of the resource that ends up embodied in a specific final product in a given region. Finally, we develop techniques to distinguish key branches of these networks and provide detailed insights about the structure of global resource dependence. A numerical example is applied to results of scenario analysis using an IO model of the world economy. Two alternative scenarios are compared. In each scenario, embodied resources are carried over specific branches of a global network in three regions using three resources to produce four goods.     

Genital primordium of the free-living marine nematode Halichoanolaimus sonorus (Chromadoria,Chromadorida)

Summary

The genital primordium of the first stage juvenile (J1) of the free-living marine nematode Halichoanolaimus sonorus (Chromadorida: Selachinematidae) was studied using transmission electron microscopy. The primordium consists of four undifferentiated cells: two primordial germ cells (PGC) 5–6 μm in diameter and two somatic cells. The PGC have a large nucleus with nucleolus. The centriole was detected in close vicinity of the PGC nucleus. Most of the cell mitochondria are in close contact with the nuclear envelope. The mitochondria are interspersed by 0.2–0.3 μm particles of an electron-dense diffuse substance devoid of surrounding membrane. Both PGC are closely attached to each other and to the neighboring somatic cells of the genital primordium. The elongated somatic cells contain nuclei devoid of nucleoli; the cytoplasm is filled with free ribosomes and contains occasional cisternae of rough endoplasmatic reticulum (RER), Golgi bodies, mitochondria, and transparent vesicles. The genital primordium is separated by a narrow space from of the intestine (dorsally) and the somatic muscles (ventrally). The PGC of H. sonorous are devoid of typical P granules known for previously studied nematodes as distinct markers of germ line cell lineage. Perinuclear particles of dense diffuse substance found in PGC of H. sonorous could be considered as germ determinants analogous to P granules.     

Environmental Cues,Endocrine Factors,and Reproductive Diapause in Male Insects

Environmental cues, mostly photoperiod and temperature, mediated by effects on the neuroendocrine system, control reproductive diapause in female insects. Arrest of oocyte development characterizes female reproductive diapause, which has two major adaptive functions: It improves chances of survival during unfavorable season(s), and/or it confines oviposition to that period of the year that is optimal for survival of the eggs and progeny. Although reproductive diapause is less well studied in male insects, there may be no sex-dependent differences in regard to the first of these functions. The second one, however, is not valid for the male; instead, selection pressure directs the male's reproductive strategy toward maximum chances of fertilization of the female's eggs with minimum waste of energy. Therefore, in species with female reproductive diapause, the males may or may not exhibit diapause, but if they do, their diapause must be adapted to that existing in conspecific females. Male reproductive diapause is defined as a reversible state of inability of the male to inseminate receptive females. In relation to reproductive diapause, there are several patterns of coadaptations between male reproductive strategy and timing of female receptivity, (a) In some insects, the females are receptive in the early part of their diapause; mating occurs during this period and there is no diapause in the male. The male dies shortly after copulation and the female stores the sperms to fertilize the eggs that develop after termination of the female's diapause, (b) In some species, as in the grasshopper Anacridium aegyptium, females are receptive during diapause; though oocyte development is arrested, copulation occurs and the stored sperms fertilize the eggs when the female's diapause ends. Males were claimed to have no diapause, but recent studies have revealed the presence of a reproductive diapause in a proportion of the males. This and other cases show that female receptivity during reproductive diapause may or may not be accompanied by male reproductive diapause. If there is a reproductive diapause in the male, it is controlled by the same endocrine mechanism, the corpora allata (CA), as in the females, (c) In many species females are refractory during their diapause. In these cases, males exhibit reproductive diapause, which may be light, as in the beetle Oulema melanopus, or well established, as in certain grasshoppers, butterflies, and beetles. In the latter cases, male diapause is controlled by similar environmental cues (photoperiod, temperature) and by the same intrinsic mechanism (neuroendocrine system, especially CA) as female diapause. Nevertheless, male diapause is less intense; the environmental cues leading to its termination are less complex and/or less extreme, so male diapause terminates before that of the females. Presumably, male diapause is under two antagonistic selection pressures: A male should not waste energy by courting dia-pausing refractory females, but he should be ready to copulate as soon as the females become receptive, otherwise he may lose in the competition between males for females. Some further strategies, which do not seem to fit the above patterns, are also outlined.     

Alterations of the Characteristics of the Circadian Rest‐Activity Rhythm of Cancer In‐Patients

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the characteristics of the circadian rest‐activity rhythm of cancer patients. Thirty‐one in‐patients, consisting of 19 males and 12 females, were randomly selected from the Regional Cancer Center, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Raipur, India. The rest‐activity rhythm was studied non‐invasively by wrist actigraphy, and compared with 35 age‐matched apparently healthy subjects (22 males and 13 females). All subjects wore an Actiwatch (AW64, Mini Mitter Co. Inc., USA) for at least 4–7 consecutive days. Fifteen‐second epoch length was selected for gathering actigraphy data. In addition, several sleep parameters, such as time in bed, assumed sleep, actual sleep time, actual wake time, sleep efficiency, sleep latency, sleep bouts, wake bouts, and fragmentation index, were also recorded. Data were analyzed using several statistical techniques, such as cosinor rhythmometry, spectral analysis, ANOVA, Duncan's multiple‐range test, and t‐test. Dichotomy index (I<O) and autocorrelation coefficient (r24) were also computed. The results validated a statistically significant circadian rhythm in rest‐activity with a prominent period of 24 h for most cancer patients and control subjects. Results of this study further revealed that cancer patients do experience a drastic alteration in the circadian rest‐activity rhythm parameters. Both the dichotomy index and r24 declined in the group of cancer patients. The occurrence of the peak (acrophase, Ø) of the rest‐activity rhythm was earlier (p<0.001) in cancer patients than age‐ and gender‐matched control subjects. Results of sleep parameters revealed that cancer patients spent longer time in bed, had longer assumed and actual sleep durations, and a greater number of sleep and wake bouts compared to control subjects. Further, nap frequency, total nap duration, average nap, and total nap duration per 1 h awake span were statistically significantly higher in cancer patients than control subjects. In conclusion, the results of the present study document the disruption of the circadian rhythm in rest‐activity of cancer in‐patients, with a dampening of amplitude, lowering of mean level of activity, and phase advancement. These alterations of the circadian rhythm characteristics could be attributed to disease, irrespective of variability due to gender, sites of cancer, and timings of therapies. These results might help in designing patient‐specific chronotherapeutic protocols.     

Modeling the impact of early therapy for latent tuberculosis patients and its optimal control analysis

Effective tuberculosis (TB) control depends on case findings to discover infectious cases, investigation of contacts of those with TB, as well as appropriate treatment. Adherence and successful completion of the treatment are equally important. Unfortunately, due to a number of personal, psychosocial, economic, medical, and health service factors, a significant number of TB patients become irregular and default from treatment. In this paper, a mathematical model is developed to assess the impact of early therapy for latent TB and non-adherence on controlling TB transmission dynamics. Equilibrium states of the model are determined and their local stability is examined. With the aid of the center manifold theory, it is established that the model undergoes a backward bifurcation. Qualitative mathematical analysis of the model suggests that a high level of latent tuberculosis case findings, coupled with a decrease of defaulting rate, may be effective in controlling TB transmission dynamics in the community. Population-level effects of organized campaigns to improve early therapy and to guarantee successful completion of each treatment are evaluated through numerical simulations and presented in support of the analytical results.     

Interactions between climatic and production factors on returns of female pigs to service during summer in Japanese commercial breeding herds

The objectives of this study were to determine the associations between climatic factors and production factors for returns to service of female pigs during summer and to quantify the associations between these factors and occurrences of returns to service. The factors that were assessed were as follows: maximum temperature (HT), relative humidity, age of gilts at first mating, parity, weaning-to-first-mating interval (WMI), and lactation length. The study analyzed records of 18,307 gilts in 99 herds and 78,135 parity records of 56,322 sows in 103 herds; all the females were first-serviced between June and September, 2007 to 2009. Average daily HT and relative humidity for 15 days post-service of a female were obtained from 21 local weather stations and coordinated with the performance data of the respective local herds. The returns to service were categorized into three groups: regular returns (RRs: 18–24 days), irregular returns (IRs: 25–38 days), and late returns to service (LRs: 39 days or later). Two-level mixed-effects models were applied to the data by using a herd at level 2 and an individual record at level 1. In mated gilts, the occurrences (%) of RRs, IRs, and LRs were 4.8%, 1.8%, and 5.3%, respectively. In mated sows, the respective occurrences were 3.3%, 1.8%, and 4.2%. Mean values (ranges) of HT and relative humidity were 28.4 °C (13.6 °C–39.8 °C) and 73.4% (35.0%–98.0%), respectively. In gilts, as HT increased from 25 °C to 30 °C, the occurrence of RR increased from 3.7% to 4.4% (P < 0.05). However, there was no association between the occurrence of RR and either relative humidity (P = 0.17) or age at first mating (P = 0.23). In addition, there were no associations between the occurrences of either gilt IR or LR and HT (P ≥ 0.05), relative humidity (P ≥ 0.46), or age at first mating (P ≥ 0.32). In sows, greater occurrences of RRs, IRs, and LRs were associated with higher HT, lower parity, and a WMI of 7 days or longer (P < 0.05), but they were not associated with relative humidity (P ≥ 0.62) or lactation length (P ≥ 0.13). The occurrence of RRs in sows of all WMI groups increased 1.22 (1.04⁵) times for each 5 °C increase in HT. For sows with WMI 0 to 6 days, each 5 °C rise in HT increased the occurrence of IRs and LRs by 1.36 (1.06⁵) and 1.27 (1.05⁵) times, respectively. However, there was no association between increased HT and occurrences of IRs or LRs for sows with WMI 7 days or longer (P ≥ 0.38). Therefore, in order to prevent returns to service, it is recommended that producers apply cooling management for females during the post-service periods in summer.     

独脚金内酯调控植物侧枝发育的分子机制及其与生长素交互作用的研究进展

对独脚金内酯（strigolactones,SLs）调控植物侧枝发育的分子机制及其与生长素相互作用的相关研究结果进行了总结和归纳,在此基础上提出今后的重点研究方向。相关的研究结果显示：在拟南芥[Arabidops~thaliana（Linn．）Heynh．]、豌豆（Pisum sativum Linn．）和水稻（Oryza sativa Linn．）等植物多枝突变体中SLs作为可转导信号参与侧枝发育的分子调控,从这些植物中已克隆获得参与SLs生物合成及信号应答途径的一些基因。作为一种植物激素,SLs在侧枝发育调控网络中与生长素相互作用;腋芽发育与其中生长素的输出密切相关,SLs通过调控芽中生长素的输出间接抑制腋芽发育和侧枝生长,而生长素则在SLs生物合成中起调节作用。     

Estimation of the maintenance energy requirements,methane emissions and nitrogen utilization efficiency of two suckler cow genotypes

Seventeen non-lactating dairy-bred suckler cows (LF; Limousin×Holstein-Friesian) and 17 non-lactating beef composite breed suckler cows (ST; Stabiliser) were used to study enteric methane emissions and energy and nitrogen (N) utilization from grass silage diets. Cows were housed in cubicle accommodation for 17 days, and then moved to individual tie-stalls for an 8-day digestibility balance including a 2-day adaption followed by immediate transfer to an indirect, open-circuit, respiration calorimeters for 3 days with gaseous exchange recorded over the last two of these days. Grass silage was offered ad libitum once daily at 0900 h throughout the study. There were no significant differences (P>0.05) between the genotypes for energy intakes, energy outputs or energy use efficiency, or for methane emission rates (methane emissions per unit of dry matter intake or energy intake), or for N metabolism characteristics (N intake or N output in faeces or urine). Accordingly, the data for both cow genotypes were pooled and used to develop relationships between inputs and outputs. Regression of energy retention against ME intake (r²=0.52; P<0.001) indicated values for net energy requirements for maintenance of 0.386, 0.392 and 0.375 MJ/kg^0.75 for LF+ST, LF and ST respectively. Methane energy output was 0.066 of gross energy intake when the intercept was omitted from the linear equation (r²=0.59; P<0.001). There were positive linear relationships between N intake and N outputs in manure, and manure N accounted for 0.923 of the N intake. The present results provide approaches to predict maintenance energy requirement, methane emission and manure N output for suckler cows and further information is required to evaluate their application in a wide range of suckler production systems.