Malformation of the tail in Labrador Retriever dogs caused by mutation C189G in the T gene

ABSTRACT: The present study reported the mutation C189G in the T gene (Brachyury gene) as the cause of malformation in the tail of the Labrador dog. One litter of Labradors, from a mating between a female with short tail and a male with normal tail admitted at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital of Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul, Campo Grande, Brazil, was evaluated in this study. Blood samples were collected from the female and her puppies. After DNA extraction, sequencing and PCR-RFLP were carried out. The C189G mutation was identified through both techniques only in dogs with short tail.

Impact-Induced Activity of The Asteroid-Comet P/1996N2 Elst-Pizarro: Yes or No?

P/1996 N2 Elst-Pizarro was discovered with a tail of dust in July 1996 and was thus classified as periodic comet. From the orbit point of view it belongs to the outer asteroid belt and is very likely a member of the Themis family, a group of bodies originating from an asteroid collision. The absence of a coma and the presence of the needle-like anti-tail in August 1996 did not exclude the possibility of a sudden emission event which could have been caused by the impact of another minor body on the object. However, with the development of a normal tail between September and November 1996 it became obvious that the dust emission episode continued at least for 2 months after perihelion, a scenario that is typical for gas-driven cometary activity. However, it is still possible that a collision triggered the event. The paper summarizes the observational pro and cons for impact-induced activity in this object, possibly the first ever detected comet-asteroid of the solar system.

A Pocket-Calculator Approximation to the Inverse Normal Tail Probability Function

Data analytic techniques are used in the construction of a simple approximation to the inverse normal tail probability function. The approximation is more accurate and more convenient than Hamaker's [2] over a wide range, when measured in terms of the number of keystrokes and absolute relative error.

Pocket-Calculator Approximation to the Normal Tail

This paper proposes a pocket-calculator approximation to the normal tail that is more convenient and more accurate than Hamaker's [1] and Lew's [2] over a wide range, when measured in terms of the number of keystrokes and absolute relative error, respectively.