1,721,052 research outputs found
Hair Testosterone and Cortisol Concentrations in Pre- and Post-Rut Roe Deer Bucks: Correlations with Blood Levels and Testicular Morphometric Parameters
Full text linkThe roe deer is a seasonally breeding species with a reproductive cycle regulated by endogenous rhythms and photoperiod-sensitivity. Sexually mature bucks show hormonal and testicular activation during the reproductive season, with a peak in the rut period, and following gradual involution. Hair is a good matrix for non-invasive endocrinological analyses that provide long-term information without being influenced by the hormones’ pulsating release patterns in blood. The aim of the work was to quantify hair concentrations of testosterone and cortisol in wild roe deer bucks hunted during the pre- and post-rut period, using a radioimmunoassay methodology, and to look for differences between the two periods. The secondary objective was the evaluation of possible correlations of such hair concentrations with blood and morphometric parameters of the testes. Both hormones showed statistical differences, with opposing trends, when comparing the two periods: testosterone increased while cortisol decreased. The correlation analysis was in agreement with existing literature regarding metabolism/actions of these hormones and testicular morphometric parameters. This study represents the first report of the use of radioimmunoassay techniques to quantify testosterone and cortisol in roe deer hair, and may provide interesting insights into their reproductive physiology
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Environmental nebulization of lavender essential oil (L. angustifolia): welfare assessment in growing pigs
No full textIntensive farming conditions expose pigs to different type of physical and psychological stressors, such as limited possibility of expressing their natural behaviour and lack of stimuli, that determine a reduction in welfare and appearance of stress-related signs (tail biting, stereotypies, etc.). Lavender essential oil (Lavandula angustifolia; LaEO) is natural compound highly employed for medical and pharmaceutical purposes as it shows antibacterial and pesticide activity and, above all, for its carminative and sedative capabilities. Its positive effects, including relaxation and anxiety reduction, are reported in several species such as rat, horse, dog, human and pig [1-3]. Aim of the study was to analyse stress-related physiological and behavioural parameters in growing pigs exposed to environmental LaEO nebulization. The trial was performed in a porcine experimental facility. Ninety (n=90) crossbred barrows with undocked tails were allotted to three experimental groups, housed in different rooms. In the LaEO group room, a 1% solution of lavender essential oil was vaporized for 10min twice a day. Sham group (SHAM) was exposed to nebulization of the solution vehicle without LaEO, while Control (C) group did not receive any treatment. The trial lasted 63 days. Hair was shaved the day before the beginning of trial, and then sampled at the end to evaluate Cortisol (CORT) and Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) by Radioimmunoassay. Individual behaviour, body weight and skin and tail lesions were recorded at three timepoints: beginning, middle and end of the trial. ANOVA and Chi-squared tests were used to analyse data. Hair CORT and DHEA did not show any statistically relevant differences, but CORT/DHEA ratio was lower in LaEO group (p=0.0212). No differences emerged between groups in growth parameters. Total number of body lesions was significantly reduced in LaEO group compared SHAM and CTR (p<0.0001) as well as the severity of tail lesions (p=0.0254). The overall level of activity was not different between C and LaEO. Although the positive effects of LaEO nebulisation were not strong enough to modify the overall behaviour and physiological balance, a decrease in animals’ aggressiveness and tail/skin damage was recorded overtime, also supported by the decrease in CORT/DHEA ratio. It can hypothesized that performing such trial in an experimental facility, rather than under farming conditions, may have impaired the results by not inducing high stress levels
EFFECTS OF INSIDE-OUT SUBMITOCHONDRIAL PARTICLES (IO-SMPS) ON MITOCHONDRIA ISOLATED FROM A PORCINE EX VIVO MODEL OF DONATION AFTER CARDIOCIRCULATORY DEATH (DCD) HEART
No full textWhen it comes to heart transplantation, donation after brain death (DBD) has become the standard of
care as this method is supported by many advantages, mainly due to the possibility to easily assess
donor heart function before retrieval and sensibly shorten the detrimental period of warm ischemia.
Lately, however, the ever-increasing number of patients in waitlist for heart transplantation has
pushed the interest of researchers to find new methods to increase the donor pool [1], including heart
donation after cardiocirculatory death (DCD). The latter, nonetheless, shows several disadvantages
including a longer period of warm ischemia, long-term outcomes uncertainty, and lack of
standardized reliable biomarkers and physiological parameters predictive of function and
transplantability of DCD hearts [2]. One of the earliest cardiomyocytes degenerations starting after
cardiac death is borne by mitochondria that are involved in some distinct types of cell death.
Therefore, studying such events may help better understanding the physiological processes
underlying DCD heart transplantability, eventually leading to definition of useful biomarkers. To
achieve this, the focus of this work was the F1Fo-ATPase complex, considered as the leading candidate
responsible for the opening of a channel though the inner membrane called mitochondrial
permeability transition pore (mPTP) when the natural cofactor (Mg2+) is replaced with the physio-
pathological cofactor (Ca2+) [3]. Specifically, trying to preserve mitochondrial bioener getics and
integrity, we assessed the efficacy of IO-SMPs (inside-out submitochondrial particles) obtained by
swine hearts isolated by stepwise centrifugation from mitochondria [4], on an ex-vivo porcine model
of DCD heart (20 min of no touch after cardiac arrest followed by 2h of warm ischemia). We
evaluated the effect of IO-SMPs on Oxidative Phosphorylation and their influence on mitochondria
calcium retention capacity (CRC), an indirect index of mPTP opening, as already highlighted in other
studies. Studies are currently ongoing, but the preliminary results show that IO-SMPs are capable of
delaying the mPTP opening when swine heart mitochondria are exposed to Ca2+. Overall, this study
represents a first step towards an in-depth characterization of the physiological process activated by
a prolonged warm ischemia within mitochondria, and investigates the potential beneficial effects of
IO-SMPs, that may be applicable to all DCD solid organ
PRE AND POST RUT TESTOSTERONE AND CORTISOL HAIR CONCENTRATIONS IN ROE DEER BUCKS: CORRELATIONS WITH BLOOD LEVELS AND TESTICULAR MORPHOMETRIC PARAMETERS.
No full textThe roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) is a seasonal breeder, whose reproduction shows a distinct seasonal pattern with the breeding season (rut) lasting from mid-July to mid-August. Mature bucks show synchronized testicular cycles and transitions between totally arrested and activated spermatogenesis thanks to the peak of testosterone(TEST) between June and July [2]. Recently, hair has proven to be a good non-invasive matrix for endocrinological analyses, providing long-term information [1]. The aims of the present work were, firstly, to quantify hair concentrations of TEST and cortisol (CORT) in wild roe deer bucks hunted during pre and post rut period, using a radioimmunoassay (RIA) methodology, and to look for relevant differences between the two periods, and then to evaluate any possible correlation of such hair concentrations withblood ones and morphometric parameters of the testes. Twenty-eight mature roe deer bucks, were sampled during the hunting season between June 1st and July 15th 2017 (pre rut, n=14) and August 15th and September 30th 2017 (post rut, n=14) in the South-Western Bologna Apennines (Italy). All the animals analysed were killed and immediately transferred to the pertinent biometrical centre, where the personnel collected blood upon jugulation, hair from the dorsal caudal region of the animals and scrotums, including testis and epididymis. For the testicular analysis each testis was isolated, weighed and sectioned longitudinally. Major and minor axis were calculated and for each roe deer the measures were averaged between the two testis, in order to get a final mean volume. CORT and TEST were previously extracted from hair [1] and blood, and their concentrations were determined using a RIA technique. The results show that the testicular volume and weight significantly decreased in the post rut group (p=0.0089 and p=0.0056 respectively); the same happened for blood TEST concentrations (p=0.0008). The blood CORT levels did not show any statistical difference between the two groups (p=0.8336). The hair results showed an increase in TEST levels in the post-rut (p=0.00003), almost double the pre-rut ones. TEST reaches its blood peak in the pre-rut period, therefore it is likely that high hair post rut values are the direct reflection of high blood pre rut values. Differently, CORT levels decrease in the post-rut (p=0.0014), and this may be due to different environmental factors, leading to higher concentrations of hair CORT in the pre-rut. The correlations found by the statistical analyses were in agreement with the existing literature about the fluctuating concentrations of the two hormones in the blood throughout the year and the cyclic growth and reduction of the testis [2]. Moreover, this study represents a first validation for the use of a RIA technique to quantify both TEST and CORT in roe deer hair, confirming the use of this matrix as a good long-term information provider, and giving interesting insights on the physiology of reproduction of this species
Preliminary Evaluations of the effects of Cuminum cyminum and Coriandrum sativum essential Oils on Swine Spermatozoa
Full text linkIn the last years, Essential Oils are commanding the attention of the scientific world in a variety of fields because of their peculiar characteristics. Among the reasons behind this growing interest, there is their capability of interfering with bacteria, viruses and fungi. Moreover, they can also act as effective antioxidant and spermicidal agents. The aim of this preliminary study was to analyze the effects of the Essential Oils extracted by Cuminumcyminum and Coriandrumsativum on the membranes of spermatozoa using porcine ejaculates as model, with the future prospective of possible applications in reproductive medicine. Four different concentrations of the oils mix (1:1) were tested on samples of swine spermatozoa alongside with two controls (one with and one without Penicillin). The prepared samples were incubated at 16°C (± 1°C) in a refrigerated bath, and evaluated for Viability and Acrosome Status at three different time points (24, 72 and 120 h). When compared to the control samples, the two lower tested concentrations (0.1 and 0.2 mg/ml) do not seem to alter viability nor acrosome reaction percentage. On the other hand, the two remaining concentrations impair both parameters in a concentration-dependent manner. Overall, these preliminary results prove how this Essential Oils mix can interact with the spermatozoa membranes, both cytoplasmic and acrosomal
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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