Metabolic changes in ruminant calves fed cation-anion diets with different proportions of roughage and concentrate

Two experiments were carried out with twenty-four male weaned Holstein calves to verify the influence of different dietary cation-anion concentrate and roughage proportions on calves metabolism. In the first experiment, calves were fed rations with -100, +200 and +400 mEq cation-anion balance/kg of dry matter, containing 60% of roughage and 40% of concentrate. In the second experiment, calves (117.6±20.8 kg average weight) received rations with similar dietary cation-anion balance but in diets of 40% roughage and 60% concentrate. As the dietary cation-anion balance became more positive, there was a quadratic response of blood pH in both diets with 60 and 40% roughage. A linear increase following increased dietary cation-anion balance was observed on bicarbonate concentration, carbon dioxide tension, carbon dioxide partial pressure and urine pH on both experiments, while anion gap decreased linearly. Blood urea nitrogen and base excess increased quadratically according to increased dietary cation-anion balance on 60% roughage, whereas those same parameters showed a linear increase on 40% roughage. Growing ruminant metabolism both in cationic and anionic diets was modified when the roughage:concentrate ratio was altered.

Aerobic exercise training induces metabolic benefits in rats with metabolic syndrome independent of dietary changes

OBJECTIVES: We evaluated the effects of aerobic exercise training without dietary changes on cardiovascular and metabolic variables and on the expression of glucose transporter Type 4 in rats with metabolic syndrome. METHODS: Twenty male spontaneously hypertensive rats received monosodium glutamate during the neonatal period. The animals were allocated to the following groups: MS (sedentary metabolic syndrome), MS-T (trained on a treadmill for 1 hour/day, 5 days/week for 10 weeks), H (sedentary spontaneously hypertensive rats) and H-T (trained spontaneously hypertensive rats). The Lee index, blood pressure (tail-cuff system), insulin sensitivity (insulin tolerance test) and functional capacity were evaluated before and after 10 weeks of training. Glucose transporter Type 4 expression was analyzed using Western blotting. The data were compared using analysis of variance (ANOVA) (p<0.05). RESULTS: At baseline, the MS rats exhibited lower insulin sensitivity and increased Lee index compared with the H rats. Training decreased the body weight and Lee index of the MS rats (MS-T vs. MS), but not of the H rats (H-T vs. H). There were no differences in food intake between the groups. At the end of the experiments, the systolic blood pressure was lower in the two trained groups than in their sedentary controls. Whole-body insulin sensitivity increased in the trained groups. Glucose transporter Type 4 content increased in the heart, white adipose tissue and gastrocnemius muscle of the trained groups relative to their respective untrained groups. CONCLUSION: In conclusion, the present study shows that an isolated aerobic exercise training intervention is an efficient means of improving several components of metabolic syndrome, that is, training reduces obesity and hypertension and increases insulin sensitivity

Regional and temporal variability of sinking organic matter in the subtropical northeast Atlantic Ocean: a biomarker diagnosis

Sinking particles through the pelagic ocean have been traditionally considered the most important vehicle by which the biological pump sequesters carbon in the ocean interior. Nevertheless, regional scale variability in particle flux is a major outstanding issue in oceanography. 5 Here, we have studied the regional and temporal variability of total particulate organic matter fluxes, as well as chloropigment and total hydrolyzed amino acid (THAA) compositions and fluxes in the Canary Current region, between 20–30 N, during two contrasting periods: August 2006, characterized by warm and stratified waters, but also intense winds which enhanced eddy development south of the Canary Islands, 10 and February 2007, characterized by colder waters, less stratification and higher productivity. We found that the eddy-field generated south of the Canary Islands enhanced by >2 times particulate organic carbon (POC) export with respect to stations (FF; farfield) outside the eddy-field influence. We also observed flux increases of one order of magnitude in chloropigment and 70% in THAA in the eddy-field relative to FF stations. 15 Principal Components Analysis (PCA) was performed to assess changes in particulate organic matter composition between stations. At eddy-field stations, higher chlorophyll enrichment reflected “fresher” material, while at FF stations a higher proportion of pheophytin indicated greater degradation due to microbes and microzooplankton. PCA also suggests that phytoplankton community structure, particularly the dominance of 20 diatoms versus carbonate-rich plankton, is the major factor influencing the POC export within the eddy field. In February, POC export fluxes were the highest ever reported for this area, reaching values of 15 mmolCm−2 d−1 at 200m depth. Compositional changes in pigments and THAA indicate that the source of sinking particles varies zonally and meridionally and suggest that sinking particles were more degraded at 25 near-coastal stations relative to open ocean stations.

Regional and temporal variability of sinking organic matter in the subtropical northeast Atlantic Ocean: A biomarker diagnosis

[EN] Sinking particles through the pelagic ocean have been traditionally considered the most important vehicle by which the biological pump sequesters carbon in the ocean interior. Nevertheless, regional scale variability in particle flux is a major outstanding issue in oceanography. Here, we have studied the regional and temporal variability of total particulate organic matter fluxes, as well as chloropigment and total hydrolyzed amino acid (THAA) compositions and fluxes in the Canary Current region, between 20?30_ N, during two contrasting periods: August 2006, characterized by warm and stratified waters, but also intense winds which enhanced eddy development south of the Canary Islands, and February 2007, characterized by colder waters, less stratification and higher productivity. We found that the eddyfield generated south of the Canary Islands enhanced by >2 times particulate organic carbon (POC) export with respect to stations (FF; far-field) outside the eddy-field influence. We also observed flux increases of one order of magnitude in chloropigment and 2 times in THAA in the eddy-field relative to FF stations. Principal Components Analysis (PCA) was performed to assess changes in particulate organic matter composition between stations. At eddy-field stations, higher chlorophyll enrichment reflected ?fresher? material, while at FF stations a higher proportion of pheophytin indicated greater degradation due to microbes and microzooplankton. PCA also suggests that phytoplankton community structure, particularly the dominance of diatoms versus carbonate-rich plankton, is the major factor influencing the POC export within the eddy field. In February, POC export POC export within the eddy field. In February, POC export fluxes were the highest ever reported for this area, reaching values of _15 mmolCm?2 d?1 at 200m depth. Compositional changes in pigments and THAA indicate that the source of sinking particles varies zonally and meridionally and suggest that sinking particles were more degraded at near-coastal stations relative to open ocean stations.

Meridional and zonal changes in water properties along the continental slope off central and northern Chile

[EN] The Humboldt-09 cruise covered a narrow meridional band along the Chilean continental slope (44?23º S). Here we use physical and biochemical data from a long meridional section (4000 km) and three short zonal sections (100 km) to describe the distribution of the different water masses found in this region. Six water masses were identified: Subantarctic Water (SAAW), Summer Subantarctic Water (SSAW), Subtropical Water (STW), Equatorial Subsurface Water (ESSW), Antarctic Intermediate Water (AAIW), and Pacific Deep Water (PDW). For the first time, a novel set of source water mass properties (or water types) is introduced for SSAW, and nutrient and dissolved oxygen water types are proposed for all the water masses. Optimum multiparameter (OMP) analysis was used through an iterative process to obtain a sound definition of the water types that minimizes the residuals of the method. Both the classic OMP and the quasi-extended OMP models reproduced the data rather well. Finally, the spatial distribution of the different water masses was calculated with the quasi-extended OMP, which is not influenced by the respiration of organic matter. The distribution of the different water masses is presented over the meridional and zonal transects and in property-property diagrams. A smooth meridional transition from subantarctic to tropical and equatorial water masses is observed in this area. This transition takes place in surface, central, and intermediate waters over distances of the order of 1000 km. The meridional transition contrasts with the abrupt zonal changes found in the cross-slope direction, which are of comparable magnitude but over distances of the order of 100 km. Both AAIW and SAAW (fresh and well oxygenated) partially mix with the hypoxic ESSW and, therefore, play an important role in the ventilation of the southern part of the oxygen minimum zone.

Bioremediation of PAHs - Limitations and soultions

Introduction 1.1 Occurrence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in the environment Worldwide industrial and agricultural developments have released a large number of natural and synthetic hazardous compounds into the environment due to careless waste disposal, illegal waste dumping and accidental spills. As a result, there are numerous sites in the world that require cleanup of soils and groundwater. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are one of the major groups of these contaminants (Da Silva et al., 2003). PAHs constitute a diverse class of organic compounds consisting of two or more aromatic rings with various structural configurations (Prabhu and Phale, 2003). Being a derivative of benzene, PAHs are thermodynamically stable. In addition, these chemicals tend to adhere to particle surfaces, such as soils, because of their low water solubility and strong hydrophobicity, and this results in greater persistence under natural conditions. This persistence coupled with their potential carcinogenicity makes PAHs problematic environmental contaminants (Cerniglia, 1992; Sutherland, 1992). PAHs are widely found in high concentrations at many industrial sites, particularly those associated with petroleum, gas production and wood preserving industries (Wilson and Jones, 1993). 1.2 Remediation technologies Conventional techniques used for the remediation of soil polluted with organic contaminants include excavation of the contaminated soil and disposal to a landfill or capping - containment - of the contaminated areas of a site. These methods have some drawbacks. The first method simply moves the contamination elsewhere and may create significant risks in the excavation, handling and transport of hazardous material. Additionally, it is very difficult and increasingly expensive to find new landfill sites for the final disposal of the material. The cap and containment method is only an interim solution since the contamination remains on site, requiring monitoring and maintenance of the isolation barriers long into the future, with all the associated costs and potential liability. A better approach than these traditional methods is to completely destroy the pollutants, if possible, or transform them into harmless substances. Some technologies that have been used are high-temperature incineration and various types of chemical decomposition (for example, base-catalyzed dechlorination, UV oxidation). However, these methods have significant disadvantages, principally their technological complexity, high cost , and the lack of public acceptance. Bioremediation, on the contrast, is a promising option for the complete removal and destruction of contaminants. 1.3 Bioremediation of PAH contaminated soil & groundwater Bioremediation is the use of living organisms, primarily microorganisms, to degrade or detoxify hazardous wastes into harmless substances such as carbon dioxide, water and cell biomass Most PAHs are biodegradable unter natural conditions (Da Silva et al., 2003; Meysami and Baheri, 2003) and bioremediation for cleanup of PAH wastes has been extensively studied at both laboratory and commercial levels- It has been implemented at a number of contaminated sites, including the cleanup of the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound, Alaska in 1989, the Mega Borg spill off the Texas coast in 1990 and the Burgan Oil Field, Kuwait in 1994 (Purwaningsih, 2002). Different strategies for PAH bioremediation, such as in situ , ex situ or on site bioremediation were developed in recent years. In situ bioremediation is a technique that is applied to soil and groundwater at the site without removing the contaminated soil or groundwater, based on the provision of optimum conditions for microbiological contaminant breakdown.. Ex situ bioremediation of PAHs, on the other hand, is a technique applied to soil and groundwater which has been removed from the site via excavation (soil) or pumping (water). Hazardous contaminants are converted in controlled bioreactors into harmless compounds in an efficient manner. 1.4 Bioavailability of PAH in the subsurface Frequently, PAH contamination in the environment is occurs as contaminants that are sorbed onto soilparticles rather than in phase (NAPL, non aqueous phase liquids). It is known that the biodegradation rate of most PAHs sorbed onto soil is far lower than rates measured in solution cultures of microorganisms with pure solid pollutants (Alexander and Scow, 1989; Hamaker, 1972). It is generally believed that only that fraction of PAHs dissolved in the solution can be metabolized by microorganisms in soil. The amount of contaminant that can be readily taken up and degraded by microorganisms is defined as bioavailability (Bosma et al., 1997; Maier, 2000). Two phenomena have been suggested to cause the low bioavailability of PAHs in soil (Danielsson, 2000). The first one is strong adsorption of the contaminants to the soil constituents which then leads to very slow release rates of contaminants to the aqueous phase. Sorption is often well correlated with soil organic matter content (Means, 1980) and significantly reduces biodegradation (Manilal and Alexander, 1991). The second phenomenon is slow mass transfer of pollutants, such as pore diffusion in the soil aggregates or diffusion in the organic matter in the soil. The complex set of these physical, chemical and biological processes is schematically illustrated in Figure 1. As shown in Figure 1, biodegradation processes are taking place in the soil solution while diffusion processes occur in the narrow pores in and between soil aggregates (Danielsson, 2000). Seemingly contradictory studies can be found in the literature that indicate the rate and final extent of metabolism may be either lower or higher for sorbed PAHs by soil than those for pure PAHs (Van Loosdrecht et al., 1990). These contrasting results demonstrate that the bioavailability of organic contaminants sorbed onto soil is far from being well understood. Besides bioavailability, there are several other factors influencing the rate and extent of biodegradation of PAHs in soil including microbial population characteristics, physical and chemical properties of PAHs and environmental factors (temperature, moisture, pH, degree of contamination). Figure 1: Schematic diagram showing possible rate-limiting processes during bioremediation of hydrophobic organic contaminants in a contaminated soil-water system (not to scale) (Danielsson, 2000). 1.5 Increasing the bioavailability of PAH in soil Attempts to improve the biodegradation of PAHs in soil by increasing their bioavailability include the use of surfactants , solvents or solubility enhancers.. However, introduction of synthetic surfactant may result in the addition of one more pollutant. (Wang and Brusseau, 1993).A study conducted by Mulder et al. showed that the introduction of hydropropyl-ß-cyclodextrin (HPCD), a well-known PAH solubility enhancer, significantly increased the solubilization of PAHs although it did not improve the biodegradation rate of PAHs (Mulder et al., 1998), indicating that further research is required in order to develop a feasible and efficient remediation method. Enhancing the extent of PAHs mass transfer from the soil phase to the liquid might prove an efficient and environmentally low-risk alternative way of addressing the problem of slow PAH biodegradation in soil.

EPR spectroscopy as a tool for the elucidation of non-covalent structuring principles in complex soft matter

This thesis aims at connecting structural and functional changes of complex soft matter systems due to external stimuli with non-covalent molecular interaction profiles. It addresses the problem of elucidating non-covalent forces as structuring principle of mainly polymer-based systems in solution. The structuring principles of a wide variety of complex soft matter types are analyzed. In many cases this is done by exploring conformational changes upon the exertion of external stimuli. The central question throughout this thesis is how a certain non-covalent interaction profile leads to solution condition-dependent structuring of a polymeric system.rnTo answer this question, electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy is chosen as the main experimental method for the investigation of the structure principles of polymers. With EPR one detects only the local surroundings or environments of molecules that carry an unpaired electron. Non-covalent forces are normally effective on length scales of a few nanometers and below. Thus, EPR is excellently suited for their investigations. It allows for detection of interactions on length scales ranging from approx. 0.1 nm up to 10 nm. However, restriction to only one experimental technique likely leads to only incomplete pictures of complex systems. Therefore, the presented studies are frequently augmented with further experimental and computational methods in order to yield more comprehensive descriptions of the systems chosen for investigation.rnElectrostatic correlation effects in non-covalent interaction profiles as structuring principles in colloid-like ionic clusters and DNA condensation are investigated first. Building on this it is shown how electrostatic structuring principles can be combined with hydrophobic ones, at the example of host-guest interactions in so-called dendronized polymers (denpols).rnSubsequently, the focus is shifted from electrostatics in dendronized polymers to thermoresponsive alkylene oxide-based materials, whose structuring principles are based on hydrogen bonds and counteracting hydrophobic interactions. The collapse mechanism in dependence of hydrophilic-hydrophobic balance and topology of these polymers is elucidated. Complementarily the temperature-dependent phase behavior of elastin-like polypeptides (ELPs) is investigated. ELPs are the first (and so far only) class of compounds that is shown to feature a first-order inverse phase transition on nanoscopic length scales.rnFinally, this thesis addresses complex biological systems, namely intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs). It is shown that the conformational space of the IDPs Osteopontin (OPN), a cytokine involved in metastasis of several kinds of cancer, and BASP1 (brain acid soluble protein one), a protein associated with neurite outgrowth, is governed by a subtle interplay between electrostatic forces, hydrophobic interaction, system entropy and hydrogen bonds. Such, IDPs can even sample cooperatively folded structures, which have so far only been associated with globular proteins.

Pontypool, traduci e muori. Traduzione di pontypool changes everything di tony burgess.

This work is focused on the translation of the first half of the novel Pontypool Changes Everything, written by Canadian author and screenplay writer Tony Burgess in 1998 and – quite surprisingly – still unpublished in Italy. Although the book disguises itself as a product for general consumption – more precisely as a tale of zombies – it is clear from the very beginning that the author is not interested in conforming to the conventions of the genre to which his work belongs. On the contrary, he seems to exploit the recent success of zombiea-pocalypse inspired stories to build up a more complex type of narrative. Nonetheless, he writes a story that introduces certain innovative elements in the rather repetitive and seemingly outworn genre, like the idea of a language-borne virus. Burgess, who has a graduate degree in semiotics, was by his own admission “insufferably preoccupied with literary malformations” when he wrote the book. As a matter of fact his narrative tackles issues – albeit superficially and always entertainingly – that seem to stem from the theories which originated in the field of linguistics around the second half of the twentieth century. It goes without saying that translating – as much as reading – such a book is both a difficult and compelling operation. As a translator you are required to constantly shift from one strategy to another, paying great attention to the semantic nuances of the written words whilst keeping in mind what the actual intention of the text is. Together with the book translation, this dissertation offers a brief introduction to the fundamental principles of translation and a detailed analysis of some of the translation problems posed by the novel.

Altered Behavior in Bats Affected by White-Nose Syndrome

WNS-affected bats did so over similar time frames as WNSunaffected bats. The behaviors of bats with WNS did not change as drastically as expected. Thereseems to be little to no effect on their ability to fly/forage until much later stages of the disease when they are likely near death. WNS-affected bats are grooming more which could be altering the way they use energy reserves during hibernation possibly leading tostarvation and eventually death. The decreased likelihood of arousals in response to external cues may be the result of spending more energy during previous and increasingly frequent arousals. While it is clear that WNS does result in changes in behavior whether these changes are directly in response to fungal skin infection or to some other component of the syndrome such as decreased energy availability or loss of homeostasis is unknown. bat behavior, white-nose syndrome, behavior, video surveillance, arousal patterns White-Nose Syndrome (WNS) is a disease of hibernating bats caused by the fungal pathogen Geomyces destructans. The fungus, which was first noted in 2006, invades bats wings and other exposed membranes, eventually resulting in death. Researchers have yet to understand many aspects of this disease, including basic etiology and epidemiology. There is also a lack of information on how fungal infection may change the behavior of healthy bats during hibernation or how changes in behavior may influence disease progression. Based upon the physiological changes that are known to occur in affected bats, and upon anecdotal observations of aberrant behavior in these bats, I hypothesized that WNS would significantly change the behavior of the little brown myotis (Myotis lucifugus). My research examined the behavior of hibernating bats during arousals from torpor. I compared WNS-affected and unaffected bats, in the field and incaptivity, using motion-sensitive infrared cameras. Flight maneuverability and echolocation were also tested between WNS-affected and unaffected bats during arousalsfrom hibernation to detect changes in the bats' ability to perform basic locomotion or potentially catch insect prey. Lastly, hibernating bats were artificially disturbed and theirarousal patterns were monitored to examine changes in the response to external stimuli between WNS-affected and unaffected bats.Bats with WNS groomed for longer periods of time after arousing from torpor, both in the field and in captivity. They also engaged in longer periods of any sort of activity during these arousals. There were no changes in acoustical signaling during flight tests and changes in flight maneuverability were only found in bats were seen staging" near the entrance of the mine which is itself a unique behavior exhibited by affected bats. At this point these bats were likely near death and could barely fly at all. In response toexternal stimuli bats with WNS were less likely to arouse than unaffected bats. However when they did arouse WNS-affected bats did so over similar time frames as WNSunaffected bats. The behaviors of bats with WNS did not change as drastically as expected. Thereseems to be little to no effect on their ability to fly/forage until much later stages of the disease when they are likely near death. WNS-affected bats are grooming more which could be altering the way they use energy reserves during hibernation possibly leading tostarvation and eventually death. The decreased likelihood of arousals in response to external cues may be the result of spending more energy during previous and increasingly frequent arousals. While it is clear that WNS does result in changes in behavior whetherthese changes are directly in response to fungal skin infection or to some other component of the syndrome such as decreased energy availability or loss of homeostasis is unknown."

Occasional white boarding : examining the effects of physics students' understanding of motion graphs

The Modeling method of teaching has demonstrated well--‐documented success in the improvement of student learning. The teacher/researcher in this study was introduced to Modeling through the use of a technique called White Boarding. Without formal training, the researcher began using the White Boarding technique for a limited number of laboratory experiences with his high school physics classes. The question that arose and was investigated in this study is “What specific aspects of the White Boarding process support student understanding?” For the purposes of this study, the White Boarding process was broken down into three aspects – the Analysis of data through the use of Logger Pro software, the Preparation of White Boards, and the Presentations each group gave about their specific lab data. The lab used in this study, an Acceleration of Gravity Lab, was chosen because of the documented difficulties students experience in the graphing of motion. In the lab, students filmed a given motion, utilized Logger Pro software to analyze the motion, prepared a White Board that described the motion with position--‐time and velocity--‐time graphs, and then presented their findings to the rest of the class. The Presentation included a class discussion with minimal contribution from the teacher. The three different aspects of the White Boarding experience – Analysis, Preparation, and Presentation – were compared through the use of student learning logs, video analysis of the Presentations, and follow--‐up interviews with participants. The information and observations gathered were used to determine the level of understanding of each participant during each phase of the lab. The researcher then looked for improvement in the level of student understanding, the number of “aha” moments students had, and the students’ perceptions about which phase was most important to their learning. The results suggest that while all three phases of the White Boarding experience play a part in the learning process for students, the Presentations provided the most significant changes. The implications for instruction are discussed.

Structural and metabolic changes in language areas linked to formal thought disorder

BACKGROUND: The role of the language network in the pathophysiology of formal thought disorder has yet to be elucidated. AIMS: To investigate whether specific grey-matter deficits in schizophrenic formal thought disorder correlate with resting perfusion in the left-sided language network. METHOD: We investigated 13 right-handed patients with schizophrenia and formal thought disorder of varying severity and 13 matched healthy controls, using voxel-based morphometry and magnetic resonance imaging perfusion measurement (arterial spin labelling). RESULTS: We found positive correlations between perfusion and the severity of formal thought disorder in the left frontal and left temporoparietal language areas. We also observed bilateral deficits in grey-matter volume, positively correlated with the severity of thought disorder in temporoparietal areas and other brain regions. The results of the voxel-based morphometry and the arterial spin labelling measurements overlapped in the left posterior superior temporal gyrus and left angular gyrus. CONCLUSIONS: Specific grey-matter deficits may be a risk factor for state-related dysfunctions of the left-sided language system, leading to local hyperperfusion and formal thought disorder.

Preventive effect of ozone on the development of white spot lesions during multibracket appliance therapy

OBJECTIVE: To test the null hypotheses: (1) there is no difference in the caries protective effect of ozone and Cervitec/Fluor Protector during multibracket (MB) appliance therapy, and (2) DIAGNOdent and quantitative light-induced fluorescence (QLF) are not superior to a visual evaluation of initial caries lesions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty right-handed patients with a very poor oral hygiene who required full MB appliance therapy were analyzed during 26 months. In a split-mouth-design, the four quadrants of each patient were either treated with ozone, a combination of Cervitec and Fluor Protector, or served as untreated controls. The visible plaque index (VPI) and white spot formation were analyzed clinically. DIAGNOdent and QLF were used for a quantitative assessment of white spot formation. RESULTS: The average VPI in all four dental arch quadrants amounted to 55.6% and was independent of the preventive measure undertaken. In the quadrants treated with Cervitec/Fluor Protector, only 0.7% of the areas developed new, clinically visible white spots. This was significantly (P < .05) less than in the quadrants treated with ozone (3.2%). The lesions detected with QLF only partially corresponded to the clinically detected white spots, while DIAGNOdent proved to be unable to detect any changes at all. CONCLUSIONS: The caries protective effect of Cervitec/Fluor Protector during MB therapy was superior to ozone, and a visual evaluation of initial caries lesions was superior to both DIAGNOdent and QLF.

Changes in Chemical Composition and Digestion Kinetics of Stockpiled Kura Clover in Late Fall

Stockpiled kura clover samples harvested on three different winter dates were used to determine changes in chemical composition and N digestion kinetics. Kura clover was harvested from four different plots at 14 d intervals and analyzed for neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), crude protein (CP), acid detergent insoluble nitrogen (ADIN), and in vitro digestible dry matter (IVDMD), and in situ digestion kinetics of N. Crude protein concentrations decreased, but ADIN concentrations increased with later date of harvest. Digestible N pool-size and the rate of digestion was the lowest in third-harvest kura clover. Although the proportion of protein that is soluble or nondigestible increased, proportion of protein that is potentially digestible decreased with maturity.

Ventral striatum gray matter density reduction in patients with schizophrenia and psychotic emotional dysregulation

INTRODUCTION: Substantial heterogeneity remains across studies investigating changes in gray matter in schizophrenia. Differences in methodology, heterogeneous symptom patterns and symptom trajectories may contribute to inconsistent findings. To address this problem, we recently proposed to group patients by symptom dimensions, which map on the language, the limbic and the motor systems. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether patients with prevalent symptoms of emotional dysregulation would show structural neuronal abnormalities in the limbic system. METHOD: 43 right-handed medicated patients with schizophrenia were assessed with the Bern Psychopathology Scale (BPS). The patients and a control group of 34 healthy individuals underwent structural imaging at a 3T MRI scanner. Whole brain voxel-based morphometry (VBM) was compared between patient subgroups with different severity of emotional dysregulation. Group comparisons (comparison between patients with severe emotional dysregulation, patients with mild emotional dysregulation, patients with no emotional dysregulation and healthy controls) were performed using a one way ANOVA and ANCOVA respectively. RESULTS: Patients with severe emotional dysregulation had significantly decreased gray matter density in a large cluster including the right ventral striatum and the head of the caudate compared to patients without emotional dysregulation. Comparing patients with severe emotional dysregulation and healthy controls, several clusters of significant decreased GM density were detected in patients, including the right ventral striatum, head of the caudate, left hippocampus, bilateral thalamus, dorsolateral prefrontal and orbitofrontal cortex. The significant effect in the ventral striatum was lost when patients with and without emotional dysregulation were pooled and compared with controls. DISCUSSION: Decreased gray matter density in a large cluster including the right ventral striatum was associated with severe symptoms of emotional dysregulation in patients with schizophrenia. The ventral striatum is an important part of the limbic system, and was indicated to be involved in the generation of incentive salience and psychotic symptoms. Only patients with severe emotional dysregulation had decreased gray matter in several brain structures associated with emotion and reward processing compared to healthy controls. The results support the hypothesis that grouping patients according to specific clinical symptoms matched to the limbic system allows identifying patient subgroups with structural abnormalities in the limbic network.