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Characterization of Seasonal Variations in Responsiveness of Pituitary Gland to Different Doses of Gonadotropin Releasing Hormone in Buffalo Cows
Full text linkIn tropical countries such as India, it has been observed that a number of buffalo cows experience seasonal anestrous during summer months. This might be due to seasonal changes in responsiveness of pituitary gland to gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) and/or decreased hypothalamic GnRH release. Attempts were made to characterize the responsiveness of pituitary gland to a range of doses (0.1, 1, 3, 10 and 33 µg) of GnRH in terms of LH and progesterone (P4) secretions during summer (April-May) and rainy (September-November) months. As a part of these studies, a radioimmunoassay method for estimation of circulating LH in buffalo cows was standardized. During summer months, it was observed that in the presence of low circulating P4 levels the minimum dose of GnRH required for eliciting a significant increase in circulating LH levels was 10 μg/animal that corresponded to a dose of ~28 ng/kg BW. However, during rainy months, administration of the same dose of GnRH failed to elicit a response suggesting that the pituitary gland is not responsive to low doses of exogenous GnRH. On the other hand, buffalo cows receiving a dose of 100 µg of GnRH during rainy months elicited a surge-like increase in circulating LH that peaked at 2 h and the increase in LH concentrations lasted for nearly 6 h post GnRH treatment. The results appear to suggest that during summer months the pituitary gland function is not affected, but there may be lowered hypothalamic GnRH input to the pituitary gland
Ultrasonographic Biometry of the Ovaries of Pregnant Kundhi Buffaloes
Full text linkSixteen gravid uteri of 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th month of pregnant Kundhi buffaloes were collected from Hyderabadslaughterhouse for this study. The ovaries were separated from gravid uteri of Kundhi buffaloes and ultrasonographicbiometry was performed by ultrasound machine (HS-2000, Honda electronics Co. Ltd., Japan). The ovaries wereexamined for presence of follicles and/or corpus luteum. The length, width and height of ovaries and corpus luteum (CL)were recorded and measured. The average weight of ovaries with corpus luteum during 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th month's ofpregnancy was 4.6 + 0.345, 5.90 + 1.134, 6.10 + 1.179, and 6.50 + 1.139 gms, respectively. The average weight of CLduring 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th month of pregnancy was 2.0 +0.162, 2.4 + 0.35, 2.6 + 0.27, and 3.0 + 0.49 gm, respectively.The average weight of ovaries of non-gravid uterus of same buffaloes was 2.7 + 0.35, 3.6 + 1.10, 3.9 + 1.15, and 4.2 +1.09 gm during 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th month of pregnancy respectively. The average size of the left and right ovary was 29.0+ 1.2 mm and 20.01 + 2.15 mm respectively and the average size of CL was 17.13 + 3.15 mm. There was significantincrease in the weight, length, width and height of ovaries and corpus leutum as pregnancy advances than non-pregnantbuffaloes. A greater number of ovarian structure (follicles) was found at the time of oestrus than anoestrus period
Study of a Solar PV-Wind-Battery Hybrid Power System for a Remotely Located Region in the Southern Algerian Sahara: Case of Refrigeration
Full text linkThe present work shows an experimental investigation that uses a combination of solar and wind energy as hybrid system (HPS) for electrical generation under the Algerian Sahara area. The generated electricity has been utilized mainly for cooling and freezing. The system has also integrated a gasoline generator to be more reliable. This system is not linked with conventional energy and is not fixed in one region as it is the case of the military base in the Algerian borders. The cooling load consisted of three containers of 10 m3 each with total electricity consumption of 45 kWh/day, two positive rooms (with an internal temperature of +2°C and an external temperature of 35°C) and one negative room (with an internal temperature of -20°C and an external temperature of 35°C). Measurements included the solar radiation intensity, the ambient temperature and the wind speed was collected from Adrar weather station (a windy place in Algeria) for the year of 2010. To simulate the hybrid power system (HPS) HOMER was used. Emissions and renewable energy generation fraction (RF) of total energy consumption are calculated as the main environmental indicator. The net present cost (NPC) and cost of energy (COE) are calculated for economic evaluation. It is found that, for Adrar climates, the optimum results of HPS show a 50% reduction of emissions with 47% of renewable energy fraction
Moyamoya Disease, a Rare Cause of Recurrent Strokes in an African Sickle Cell Child: Does hydroxyurea have a Role in this Context?
Full text linkBackground: Neurological complications are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in sickle cell patients with reported incidence of stroke in Africa as high as 1·3/100 patient per year [1,2]. There is an association between sickle cell disease (as well as other hemoglobinopathies) and Moyamoya disease [3]. Data on the occurrence of this condition in African sickle patient are scare. Likewise the role of hydroxyurea among patients with both sickle cell anemia and Moyamoya disease in preventing stroke has not yet been studied in Africa.
Case presentation: In the present report, we describe an African child who had a recurrent stroke. She was later diagnosed as having Moyamoya disease while already receiving hydroxyurea.
Conclusion: Moyamoya disease is a rare condition associated with recurrent stroke in African sickle children. The role of hydroxyurea in this context is still unclear
Diabetes Education in Family: Risk Factors and Barriers to Diabetes Care in Mexican Children and Adolescents
Full text linkObjective: To determine barriers related to metabolic control and diabetes care in Mexican children and their families.
Design: This was a cross-sectional study designed in two stages. First stage was an assessment of risk factors for inadequate metabolic control (HbA1c higher than ADA guidelines by age group) of diabetic children using a logistic regression model. The data sources were 91 clinical files provided by public health institutions at northwest Mexico. Second stage included the design, implementation and evaluation of an educational program (EP) based on the Medical Nutrition Therapy (MNT) and the Social Cognitive Theory (SCT), accounting for critical risk factors identified previously. Twenty five children (2 to 14 years old) with type 1 diabetes and their parents agreed to participate in the EP, which promoted healthy behavioral changes regarding diet, physical activity and medical treatment over a 4-month period.
Results: Metabolic control was related to the joint effects of families low socioeconomic level and mother’s low education attainment (OR= 8.5, CI95%: 1.73, 42.16), as well as following a conventional treatment (OR= 5.0, CI95%: 1.09, 22.82). After program implementation participants’ mean glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) decreased (9.1%±1.8% to 8.3%±2%; P=0.06). Qualitative content analysis of post-intervention interviews showed that low income, clinical inertia, and lack of social support were barriers to metabolic control of diabetes.
Conclusion and Implications: Socioeconomic, educational, and healthcare factors are related to metabolic control in Mexican children with diabetes, although educational programs based on SCT can help increase self-efficacy in patients through modeling and reinforcing activities
A Hybrid Knowledge Discovery System Based on Items and Tags
Full text linkExponentially increasing knowledge in a management system is the main cause of the overload problem. Development of a recommender service embedded in the management system is challenging. This paper proposes a hybrid approach by combining an item-based recommendation technique (collaborative filtering technique) with a tag-based recommendation technique (content based filtering technique). In order to evaluate the performance of the proposed hybrid approach, a group of knowledge management system users are invited as participants in the research. Participants are asked to use the prototype of a management system embedded within the knowledge recommender service for four months, which guarantees that each interaction by participants with knowledge items are recorded. A confusion matrix is used to compute accuracy of the proposed hybrid approach. The results of the experiments reveal that the hybrid approach outperforms both item-based and tag-based approaches. The hybrid approach seems to be a promising technique for a recommender service in the knowledge management system