Genetic parameters for carcass traits and body weight using a Bayesian approach in the Canchim cattle.

Correlation between genetic parameters and factors such as backfat thickness (BFT), rib eye area (REA), and body weight (BW) were estimated for Canchim beef cattle raised in natural pastures of Brazil. Data from 1648 animals were analyzed using multi-trait (BFT, REA, and BW) animal models by the Bayesian approach. This model included the effects of contemporary group, age, and individual heterozygosity as covariates. In addition, direct additive genetic and random residual effects were also analyzed. Heritability estimated for BFT (0.16), REA (0.50), and BW (0.44) indicated their potential for genetic improvements and response to selection processes. Furthermore, genetic correlations between BW and the remaining traits were high (P > 0.50), suggesting that selection for BW could improve REA and BFT. On the other hand, genetic correlation between BFT and REA was low (P = 0.39 ± 0.17), and included considerable variations, suggesting that these traits can be jointly included as selection criteria without influencing each other. We found that REA and BFT responded to the selection processes, as measured by ultrasound. Therefore, selection for yearling weight results in changes in REA and BFT.

Carcass traits of crossbred steers surgically castrated or immunocastrated

2016

Effect of sire breed on carcass and beef quality of crossbred cattle1

2016

Genetic Characteristic of Indonesian Local Ducks Based on Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) Analysis in D-loop Region Mitochondria DNA

Abstract. The aim of the study was to know the genetic characteristic and polymorphysm of Indonesian local ducks including Magelang, Tegal, Mojosari, Bali and Alabio duck based on Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) analysis in D-loop region mtDNA. The long term aim was to set the spesific genetic marker based on SNP D-loop region mtDNA which could differentiate local ducks in Indonesia. In the future, it could be used as selection tool for local duck conservation, and refinement strategy as well as the improvement of genetic quality by utilizing the available native duck germplasm. There were 20 ducks for each duck population and were taken 3 ml of its blood as sample. DNA Isolation Kit high pure PCR template preparation (Geneaid) was uded for Genome DNA isolation.  Amplification with PCR technique used primer DL-AnasPF (L56) as forward and DL-AnasPR (H773) as reverse. Next, PCR product or amplicon were sequenced. Sequence result were analyzed with SNP technique and observed the similarity and difference of its nucleotide sequence between individual and population. The result of the study showed that genome DNA from local duck in Indonesia was successfully isolated. DNA fragment of 718 bp was amplified with primer pair of DL-AnasPF and DL-AnasPR. Nucleotide sequence was 469 nt and analyzed with SNP technique. It was compared with standard nucleotide sequence of Anas platyrhynchos (HM010684.1) in Gen Bank. The result of nucleotide sequence similarity percentage was 99.68±0.56%. Single Nucleotide Polymorphism D-loop region mtDNA Indonesian local duck was 0.32±0.56%.  Some SNP was found in Magelang duck C (Klawu blorok), F (Cemani black),  G (Gambiran), H (Jarakan kalung), I (Jowo plain) and K (Plain white) also Tegal duck 8, 1, 2, 5, 2, 8 and 2 SNP respectively. It could be concluded that polymorphic genetic characteristic similarity were existed in Indonesia local duck populations which was shown by its big standard deviation SNP in D-loop region mtDNA. Magelang duck with different feather color relatively more polymorphic to another local duck in Indonesia. Single Nucleotide Polymorphism which was achieved could be used as genetic marker that differentiate genetic characteristic of Indonesian local ducks.Key words:  genetic characteristic, local duck, Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP), D-loop mtDNAAbstrak.  Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui karakteristik genetik dan polimorfisme itik lokal Indonesia yaitu itik Magelang, Tegal, Mojosari, Bali dan Alabio berdasarkan analisis Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) daerah D-loop mtDNA. Tujuan jangka panjangnya adalah menetapkan marker atau penanda genetik berdasarkan SNP daerah D-loop mtDNA spesifik yang dapat membedakan itik-itik lokal yang ada di Indonesia. Selanjutnya digunakan sebagai  alat bantu seleksi untuk konservasi, pembibitan  dan pengembangbiakan itik lokal.  Populasi masing-masing jenis itik lokal yang digunakan sebanyak 20 ekor untuk diambil 3 ml sampel darahnya. Isolasi DNA genom menggunakan DNA Isolation Kithigh pure PCR template preparation (Geneaid). Amplifikasi dengan teknik PCR menggunakan pasangan primer DL-AnasPF (L56) sebagai forward dan DL-AnasPR (H773) sebagai reverse. Produk PCR atau amplikon yang diperoleh disekuensing. Hasil sekuensing dianalisis dengan teknik SNP dan diamati kesamaan dan perbedaan urutan nukleotida antar individu itik dan antar populasi.  Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa DNA genom dari itik lokal di Indonesia berhasil diisolasi. Amplifikasi dengan teknik PCR berhasil memperoleh fragmen berukuran 718 bp. Urutan nukleotida hasil sekuensing sebesar 469 nt dianalisis dengan teknik SNP dan dibandingkan dengan urutan nukleotida standar dari itik Anas platyrhynchos (HM010684.1) yang ada di Gen Bank, diperoleh persentase kesamaan urutan nukleotid sebesar 99,68±0,56%. Single Nucleotide Polymorphism daerah D-loop mtDNA pada itik lokal di Indonesia sebesar 0,32±0,56%. Sejumlah SNP ditemukan pada itik Magelang C (Klawu blorok), F (Hitam cemani),  G (Gambiran), H (Jarakan kalung), I (Jowo polos) dan K (Putih polos) serta itik Tegal  masing-masing 8, 1, 2, 5, 2, 8 serta 2 SNP. Kesimpulan dari penelitian ini adalah terdapat karakteristik genetik yang polimorfik pada populasi itik lokal di Indonesia, ditunjukkan dengan adanya simpang baku SNP pada daerah D-loop mtDNA yang relatif besar. Itik Magelang dengan warna bulu yang berbeda relatif lebih polimorfik dibandingkan dengan itik lokal lainnya di Indonesia.  Single Nucleotide Polymorphism yang diperoleh dapat digunakan sebagai penanda genetik yang dapat membedakan karakteristik genetik yang dimiliki oleh itik lokal di Indonesia.Kata kunci:  karakteristik genetik, itik lokal, Single NucleotidePolymorphism (SNP),  D-loop mtDNA

Carcass Evaluation of Crossbred Betweeen Cockerel Kampung Chicken and Layer Hen

The research was conducted to the characteristics of carcass evaluate crossbred between cockerel of kampung chicken and Lohman layer hen. Sixteen crossbred chickens and 16 kampung chickens were reared under a similar management from 2 - 12 weeks old. The chickens were given a commercial feed which contains 21% crude protein at 2 - 4 week old, and 14% crude protein and metabolizable energy 2800 kcal/kg at 4 - 12 weeks old. The data of carcass weight, rear back weight, fore back weight, breast weight, and thigh weight were collected. Meat and bone on breast and thigh were separated. The results showed that with under similar management and feeding, the carcass values of crossbred chicken were not significantly different with kampung chicken. The crossbred chickens have meat production rate of 2.83 times as compared to kampung chicken. Higher crude protein than 14% with a balance metabolizable energy will increase the quantity and quality of crossbred chicken carcass. (Animal Production 4(2): 71-76 (2002) Key Words : Carcass, Crossbred Kampung Chicken

Determination of preventive maintenance lead time using hybrid analysis

The time for conducting Preventive Maintenance (PM) on an asset is often determined using a predefined alarm limit based on trends of a hazard function. In this paper, the authors propose using both hazard and reliability functions to improve the accuracy of the prediction particularly when the failure characteristic of the asset whole life is modelled using different failure distributions for the different stages of the life of the asset. The proposed method is validated using simulations and case studies.

An infrared spectroscopic study of the some Autunite minerals

A series of selected autunites with phosphate as the anion have been studied using infrared spectroscopy. Each autunite mineral has its own characteristic spectrum. The spectra for different autunites with the same composition are different. It is proposed that this difference is due to the structure of water and hydrated cations in the interlayer region between the uranyl phosphate sheets. This structure is different for different autunites. The position of the water hydroxyl stretching bands is related to the strength of the hydrogen bonds as determined by hydrogen bond distance. The highly ordered structure of water is also observed in the water HOH bending modes where a high wavenumber bands are observed. The phosphate and uranyl stretching vibrations overlap and are obtained by curve resolution.

Raman spectroscopy of some complex arsenate minerals—implications for soil remediation

The application of spectroscopy to the study of contaminants in soils is important. Among the many contaminants is arsenic, which is highly labile and may leach to non-contaminated areas. Minerals of arsenate may form depending upon the availability of specific cations for example calcium and iron. Such minerals include carminite, pharmacosiderite and talmessite. Each of these arsenate minerals can be identified by its characteristic Raman spectrum enabling identification.

Time-Dependent Density Functional Molecular Orbital and Excited State Calculations on Bis(porphyrinyl)butadiynes in the Monocationic, Neutral, Monoanionic, and Dianionic Oxidation States

We report a theoretical study of the multiple oxidation states (1+, 0, 1−, and 2−) of a meso,meso-linked diporphyrin, namely bis[10,15,20-triphenylporphyrinatozinc(II)-5-yl]butadiyne (4), using Time-Dependent Density Functional Theory (TDDFT). The origin of electronic transitions of singlet excited states is discussed in comparison to experimental spectra for the corresponding oxidation states of the close analogue bis{10,15,20-tris[3‘,5‘-di-tert-butylphenyl]porphyrinatozinc(II)-5-yl}butadiyne (3). The latter were measured in previous work under in situ spectroelectrochemical conditions. Excitation energies and orbital compositions of the excited states were obtained for these large delocalized aromatic radicals, which are unique examples of organic mixed-valence systems. The radical cations and anions of butadiyne-bridged diporphyrins such as 3 display characteristic electronic absorption bands in the near-IR region, which have been successfully predicted with use of these computational methods. The radicals are clearly of the “fully delocalized” or Class III type. The key spectral features of the neutral and dianionic states were also reproduced, although due to the large size of these molecules, quantitative agreement of energies with observations is not as good in the blue end of the visible region. The TDDFT calculations are largely in accord with a previous empirical model for the spectra, which was based simplistically on one-electron transitions among the eight key frontier orbitals of the C4 (1,4-butadiyne) linked diporphyrins.

Review article : ecological approach in studying the relation of perception-action : review of the theoretical and empirical data

In daily activities people are using a number of available means for the achievement of balance, such as the use of hands and the co-ordination of balance. One of the approaches that explains this relationship between perception and action is the ecological theory that is based on the work of a) Bernstein (1967), who imposed the problem of ‘the degrees of freedom’, b) Gibson (1979), who referred to the theory of perception and the way which the information is received from the environment in order for a certain movement to be achieved, c) Newell (1986), who proposed that movement can derive from the interaction of the constraints that imposed from the environment and the organism and d) Kugler, Kelso and Turvey (1982), who showed the way which “the degrees of freedom” are connected and interact. According to the above mentioned theories, the development of movement co-ordination can result from the different constraints that imposed into the organism-environment system. The close relation between the environmental and organismic constraints, as well as their interaction is responsible for the movement system that will be activated. These constraints apart from shaping the co-ordination of specific movements can be a rate limiting factor, to a certain degree, in the acquisition and mastering of a new skill. This frame of work can be an essential tool for the study of catching an object (e.g., a ball). The importance of this study becomes obvious due to the fact that movements that involved in catching an object are representative of every day actions and characteristic of the interaction between perception and action.

Drivers of technology substitution : successive generations of high tech products

Principal Topic High technology consumer products such as notebooks, digital cameras and DVD players are not introduced into a vacuum. Consumer experience with related earlier generation technologies, such as PCs, film cameras and VCRs, and the installed base of these products strongly impacts the market diffusion of the new generation products. Yet technology substitution has received only sparse attention in the diffusion of innovation literature. Research for consumer durables has been dominated by studies of (first purchase) adoption (c.f. Bass 1969) which do not explicitly consider the presence of an existing product/technology. More recently, considerable attention has also been given to replacement purchases (c.f. Kamakura and Balasubramanian 1987). Only a handful of papers explicitly deal with the diffusion of technology/product substitutes (e.g. Norton and Bass, 1987: Bass and Bass, 2004). They propose diffusion-type aggregate-level sales models that are used to forecast the overall sales for successive generations. Lacking household data, these aggregate models are unable to give insights into the decisions by individual households - whether to adopt generation II, and if so, when and why. This paper makes two contributions. It is the first large-scale empirical study that collects household data for successive generations of technologies in an effort to understand the drivers of adoption. Second, in comparision to traditional analysis that evaluates technology substitution as an ''adoption of innovation'' type process, we propose that from a consumer's perspective, technology substitution combines elements of both adoption (adopting the new generation technology) and replacement (replacing the generation I product with generation II). Based on this proposition, we develop and test a number of hypotheses. Methodology/Key Propositions In some cases, successive generations are clear ''substitutes'' for the earlier generation, in that they have almost identical functionality. For example, successive generations of PCs Pentium I to II to III or flat screen TV substituting for colour TV. More commonly, however, the new technology (generation II) is a ''partial substitute'' for existing technology (generation I). For example, digital cameras substitute for film-based cameras in the sense that they perform the same core function of taking photographs. They have some additional attributes of easier copying and sharing of images. However, the attribute of image quality is inferior. In cases of partial substitution, some consumers will purchase generation II products as substitutes for their generation I product, while other consumers will purchase generation II products as additional products to be used as well as their generation I product. We propose that substitute generation II purchases combine elements of both adoption and replacement, but additional generation II purchases are solely adoption-driven process. Extensive research on innovation adoption has consistently shown consumer innovativeness is the most important consumer characteristic that drives adoption timing (Goldsmith et al. 1995; Gielens and Steenkamp 2007). Hence, we expect consumer innovativeness also to influence both additional and substitute generation II purchases. Hypothesis 1a) More innovative households will make additional generation II purchases earlier. 1 b) More innovative households will make substitute generation II purchases earlier. 1 c) Consumer innovativeness will have a stronger impact on additional generation II purchases than on substitute generation II purchases. As outlined above, substitute generation II purchases act, in part like a replacement purchase for the generation I product. Prior research (Bayus 1991; Grewal et al 2004) identified product age as the most dominant factor influencing replacements. Hence, we hypothesise that: Hypothesis 2: Households with older generation I products will make substitute generation II purchases earlier. Our survey of 8,077 households investigates their adoption of two new generation products: notebooks as a technology change to PCs, and DVD players as a technology shift from VCRs. We employ Cox hazard modelling to study factors influencing the timing of a household's adoption of generation II products. We determine whether this is an additional or substitute purchase by asking whether the generation I product is still used. A separate hazard model is conducted for additional and substitute purchases. Consumer Innovativeness is measured as domain innovativeness adapted from the scales of Goldsmith and Hofacker (1991) and Flynn et al. (1996). The age of the generation I product is calculated based on the most recent household purchase of that product. Control variables include age, size and income of household, and age and education of primary decision-maker. Results and Implications Our preliminary results confirm both our hypotheses. Consumer innovativeness has a strong influence on both additional purchases (exp = 1.11) and substitute purchases (exp = 1.09). Exp is interpreted as the increased probability of purchase for an increase of 1.0 on a 7-point innovativeness scale. Also consistent with our hypotheses, the age of the generation I product has a dramatic influence for substitute purchases of VCR/DVD (exp = 2.92) and a strong influence for PCs/notebooks (exp = 1.30). Exp is interpreted as the increased probability of purchase for an increase of 10 years in the age of the generation I product. Yet, also as hypothesised, there was no influence on additional purchases. The results lead to two key implications. First, there is a clear distinction between additional and substitute purchases of generation II products, each with different drivers. Treating these as a single process will mask the true drivers of adoption. For substitute purchases, product age is a key driver. Hence, implications for marketers of high technology products can utilise data on generation I product age (e.g. from warranty or loyalty programs) to target customers who are more likely to make a purchase.

Development of a biaxial compression device for biological samples : preliminary experimental results for a closed cell foam

Biological tissues are subjected to complex loading states in vivo and in order to define constitutive equations that effectively simulate their mechanical behaviour under these loads, it is necessary to obtain data on the tissue's response to multiaxial loading. Single axis and shear testing of biological tissues is often carried out, but biaxial testing is less common. We sought to design and commission a biaxial compression testing device, capable of obtaining repeatable data for biological samples. The apparatus comprised a sealed stainless steel pressure vessel specifically designed such that a state of hydrostatic compression could be created on the test specimen while simultaneously unloading the sample along one axis with an equilibrating tensile pressure. Thus a state of equibiaxial compression was created perpendicular to the long axis of a rectangular sample. For the purpose of calibration and commissioning of the vessel, rectangular samples of closed cell ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) foam were tested. Each sample was subjected to repeated loading, and nine separate biaxial experiments were carried out to a maximum pressure of 204 kPa (30 psi), with a relaxation time of two hours between them. Calibration testing demonstrated the force applied to the samples had a maximum error of 0.026 N (0.423% of maximum applied force). Under repeated loading, the foam sample demonstrated lower stiffness during the first load cycle. Following this cycle, an increased stiffness, repeatable response was observed with successive loading. While the experimental protocol was developed for EVA foam, preliminary results on this material suggest that this device may be capable of providing test data for biological tissue samples. The load response of the foam was characteristic of closed cell foams, with consolidation during the early loading cycles, then a repeatable load-displacement response upon repeated loading. The repeatability of the test results demonstrated the ability of the test device to provide reproducible test data and the low experimental error in the force demonstrated the reliability of the test data.

Faster pairings on special Weierstrass curves

This paper presents efficient formulas for computing cryptographic pairings on the curve y 2 = c x 3 + 1 over fields of large characteristic. We provide examples of pairing-friendly elliptic curves of this form which are of interest for efficient pairing implementations.

A longitudinal study of motivation and competence in children with Down syndrome : early childhood to early adolescence

Background Motivation has been identified as an area of difficulty for children with Down syndrome. Although individual differences in mastery motivation are presumed to have implications for subsequent competence, few longitudinal studies have addressed the stability of motivation and the predictive validity of early measures for later academic achievement, especially in atypical populations. Method The participants were 25 children with Down syndrome. Mastery motivation, operationalised as persistence, was measured in early childhood and adolescence using tasks and parent report. At the older age, preference for challenge, another aspect of mastery motivation, was also measured and the children completed assessments of academic competence. Results There were significant concurrent correlations among measures of persistence at both ages, and early task persistence was associated with later persistence. Persistence in early childhood was related to academic competence in adolescence, even when the effects of cognitive ability at the younger age were controlled. Conclusions For children with Down syndrome, persistence appears to be an individual characteristic that is relatively stable from early childhood to early adolescence. The finding that early mastery motivation is significant for later achievement has important implications for the focus of early interventions.