Effects of Increased Growth Rates Prior to the First Breeding as Ewe Lambs and Pregnancy Rank on Mammary Glands of Two-Year-Old Ewes

This study investigated potential carry-over effects of increased growth rates prior to breeding at seven months of age on mammary glands of two-year-old ewes bearing one or two lambs, and examined the association between ewe mammary structures and the growth of their progeny. Ewe live weight and mammary ultrasound measures were recorded at 119 days of pregnancy, 29 days of lactation (L29), and weaning of the progeny (L79) in 64 two-year-old ewes selected from two treatments. The heavy group (n = 32) was preferentially fed prior to their first breeding at seven months of age, achieving an average live weight of 47.9 ± 0.38 kg. The control group (n = 32) weighed an average of 44.9 ± 0.49 kg at breeding. Lambs (n = 74) were weighed at birth, L29 and L79. Udder ultrasound measures did not differ (p > 0.10) between treatments, indicating no carry-over effects of treatments on mammary glands of two-year-old ewes. The association between ultrasound measures and lamb growth seemed to differ depending on lamb birth rank. More research is needed to further investigate these associations and determine whether ultrasonography could be used to identify ewes whose progeny would have greater growth rates based on birth rank.

Mammary Gland Structures Are Not Affected by an Increased Growth Rate of Yearling Ewes Post-Weaning but Are Associated with Growth Rates of Singletons

The experiment aimed to examine the impacts of an increased growth rate of ewes between three and seven months of age on udder development using ultrasound and to establish whether ultrasonography could be used to identify ewe mammary structures that may be indirect indicators of singleton growth to weaning. Udder dimensions, depths of gland cistern (GC), parenchyma (PAR) and fat pad (FP) were measured in late pregnancy (P107), early lactation (L29), and at weaning (L100) in 59 single-bearing yearling ewes selected from two treatments. The ‘heavy’ group (n = 31) was preferentially fed prior to breeding achieving an average breeding live-weight of 47.9 ± 0.38 kg at seven months of age. The ‘control’ group (n = 28) had an average breeding live-weight of 44.9 ± 0.49 kg. Udder dimensions, GC, PAR and FP did not differ between treatments. Lamb growth to L100 was positively associated (p < 0.05) with PAR at P107 and GC at L29. There was no evidence of negative effects of the live-weight gain treatments on udder development of yearling ewes as measured by ultrasonography. The results suggest that this ultrasound method has the potential to identify pregnant yearling ewes which would wean heavier singletons.

Isolable cyclic radical cations of heavy main-group elements

The first stable radical cations bearing both heavy group 14 and 15 elements have been isolated and fully characterized.

The loading characteristics of landing in cats with different body weights

Nowadays, quadrupedal locomotion information is well established for dogs, horses, and pigs, and kinetic systems have been widely used for sensitive and reliable gait analysis. However, few studies have investigated cat locomotion and the data available are confusing and restricted, especially in relation to jumping. In addition, it has been suggested that several factors, including the influence of the body weight (BW), may be associated with the collection of the kinetic data measurements in dogs. This raises the question of whether the BW would influence the kinetic data measurements in cats. Therefore, this study was aimed at comparing the kinetic parameters of the landing during the jumping in cats with different BWs and to determine the associations between the BW and the kinetic parameters. Twelve client-owned cats were sub-divided into two groups based on the BW and were categorised as a thin group and a heavy group. Each cat was encouraged to jump from a table (1.0 m) onto a force plate several times. The trials were considered to be valid if the cat jumped normally onto the plate and then continued to walk forward. The kinetic parameters including the peak vertical force (PVF) and the vertical impulse (VI) were obtained for each limb. In addition, correlations between the PVF, VI, and BW and the symmetry index (SI) of the forelimbs and hindlimbs were also determined. Most of the kinetic parameters of the thin cats were significantly smaller than the heavy cats during the landing and these values increased as the BW increased, while the normalised PVF and VI of the forelimbs were significantly smaller in the heavy cats than in the thin cats. In addition, for both groups, the non-normalised or normalised PVF and VI were significantly larger in the forelimbs than the hindlimbs, and the SI of the PVF was significantly smaller at the forelimbs than in the hindlimbs. In conclusion, the results of this study showed substantial similarities and differences during the landing between thin and heavy cats. These findings should provide more reference data for the biomechanical motion analysis related to jumping in clinically intact cats.

Effect of object weight and experience on the organization of object management tasks in infants of 10 months of age

Introduction: Little is known about the real impact the practice of manipulating objects on the development of infants perception-action and it is assumed that this newly acquired knowledge is useful for planning future actions. Objective: To analyse the effects of controlled practice on the tasks of reaching and transporting objects in 10-month-old infants when the weight of the object was changed. Methods: Sixteen infants were divided into two groups: heavy/ light group (HLG) and light/heavy group (LHG). The task consisted in reaching, grasping, and lifting a lighter or heavier bar 9 times. On the tenth trial, the object weight was switched to the heavier or lighter weight object (whichever was opposite to the object weight experienced in the first 9 trials) to assess whether infants had learned and adapted their object-directed movement strength to the initial weight condition practiced during the first 9 trials. Results: No significant differences were found when comparing the reaching and lifting phases within groups (LHG, P = 0.06 and HLG, p = 0.41). However, group comparisons revealed that HLG infants presented increased velocity peak (p = 0.01) during the trials. Conclusion: The reaching and object lifting trials of the infants throughout the attempts were very variable, indicating that, possibly, at 10 months of age, infants present transitions from one organizational state to another. However, it is necessary to carry out more detailed investigations on reaching and lifting actions of objects to understand the processes involved in these transition periods.