Effect of feeding calcium soaps to early postpartum dairy cows on plasma prostaglandin F2 alpha, luteinizing hormone, and follicular growth

Multiparous Holstein cows (n = 18) were fed a total mixed ration containing corn silage, corn grain, whole cottonseed, soybean meal, dried distillers grains, and chopped bermudagrass hay (control) or same diet plus Ca salts of long-chain fatty acids (2.2% of diet DM) for the first 60 d postpartum. Predicted energy balance was calculated from DM intake, milk yield and composition, and BW. On d 25 postpartum, cows were injected with 25 mg of prostaglandin F2 alpha and treated for 15 d with an intravaginal device containing 1.9 g progesterone. Profiles of 15-keto-13,14-dihydro-prostaglandin F2 alpha (d 1 to 21) and plasma triglycerides (d 7 to 60) were similar between groups. Average number of follicles, determined by ultrasonography prior to d 25, tended to differ between groups; controls had more 3- to 5-mm and fewer 6- to 9-mm follicles than the group of fat-fed cows. Basal, smoothed mean concentration, and average luteinizing hormone amplitude, determined by 10-min samples for 8 h on d 10, were not significantly different between groups. Increasing predicted energy balance was associated with increased pulse amplitude and diameter of the largest follicle on d 10. During the progesterone treatment period and the postprogesterone treatment estrous cycle, cows fed fat had greater numbers of 3- to 5-mm and greater than 15-mm follicles. In conclusion, feeding fat did not influence 15-keto-13,14-dihydro-prostaglandin F2 alpha or luteinizing hormone dynamics but did alter the average number of follicles within different size classes and the diameter of largest and second largest follicle after progesterone treatment.     

Formation pratique à la conception d’un circuit intégré spécifique

We present an example of practical works in design methodology for realizing digitalASIC circuit, at the graduate level in the microelectronics engineering program (ISIM) of the University of Montpellier II. This training program is illustrated by the design of a small project from specification to silicon manufacturing files, using a CMOS standard cell approach with theCAD softwares system Hilo (Genrad) and Solo 1400(ES2).     

A 12·8 kb segment,on the right arm of chromosome II from Saccharomyces cerevisiae including part of the DUR1, 2 gene,contains five putative new genes

A 12 820 bp fragment from the right arm of chromosome II of Saccharomyces cerevisiae was sequenced and analysed. This fragment contains six non-overlapping long open reading frames (ORFs) designated from the centromere- to the telomere-proximal ends as: YBR1441, 1443, 1444, 1445, 1446 and 1448. YBR1441 encodes a polypeptide of 845 amino acids which shares a long consensus domain with products of S. cerevisiae MCM2, MCM3, CDC46 and Schizosaccharomyces pombe cdc21⁺ genes. These genes are involved in DNA replication. YBR1445 encodes a polypeptide of 404 amino acids which has strong similarity with the S. cerevisiae KRE2/MNT1, YUR1, KTR1 gene products. The KRE2/MNT1 protein is an α-1,2-mannosyltransferase. The product of YBR1444, which encodes a protein of 375 amino acids, presents a lipase signature sequence and a peroxisomal targeting signal. YBR1448, whose sequence extends further on the telomere-proximal end of the fragment, is identical to the 3′ end of the DUR1,2 gene encoding urea amidolyase. The two ORFs, YBR1443 and YBR1446, exhibit no significant similarity with any known gene.     

Portes NOR “ picosecondes ”tout optiques mises en série et connectées par doubleur de fréquence

The elementary cell to realize an all-optical data processing is a fast optical nor gate, compatible with a massively parallel architecture and large connection capabilities. It must be stressed that bistability is not at all obligatory in this respect. We report recent investigations on picosecond all optical nor gates in II-VI compounds (namely CdSe), that enable to realize a nor gate operating without Fabry-Pérot cavity. Transient induced absorption of photons, the energy of which is close to the bandgap energy, is due to exciton screening and gap shrinkage. We consider frequency doubling to associate and cascade several gates in order to build complex boolean functions. We demonstrate that the all optical modulation remains efficient even under violet pumping (consecutive to frequency doubling). The gate switching energy is 30 λJ/cm²to get a 4/1 contrast between the up and down output states of the nor device.     

The tightness of retail packaging: A selection of test methods to be used for a wide range of packed products

The tightness of retail packagings and of their closures is of primary importance both for domestic and industrial products. For this reason, a research programme designed to establish proper testing methods for a wide range of ‘packaging + product’ combinations, in order to check their tightness or permeability, was set up. All the available testing methods were reviewed, the most reliable ones selected and their sensitivity determined. More than 200 combinations of ‘packaging + product’ belonging to five families of consumer products were examined and their tightness/permeability problems noted. Finally, specific testing methods were assigned to each combination of ‘packaging + product’. All these examples are currently in use in the packaging laboratory as a guideline for the testing of every kind of packaging.