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Selected AbstractsFine mapping of a quantitative trait locus on chromosome 9 affecting non-return rate in Swedish dairy cattleJOURNAL OF ANIMAL BREEDING AND GENETICS, Issue 5 2007M. Holmberg Summary We previously mapped a quantitative trait locus (QTL) affecting the trait non-return rate at 56 days in heifers to bovine chromosome 9. The purpose of this study was to confirm and refine the position of the QTL by using a denser marker map and fine mapping methods. Five families that previously showed segregation for the QTL were included in the study. The mapping population consisted of 139 bulls in a granddaughter design. All bulls were genotyped for 25 microsatellite markers surrounding the QTL on chromosome 9. We also analysed the correlated trait number of inseminations per service period in heifers. Both traits describe the heifer's ability to become pregnant after insemination. Linkage analysis, linkage disequilibrium and combined linkage and linkage disequilibrium analysis were used to analyse the data. Analysis of the families jointly by linkage analysis resulted in a significant but broad QTL peak for non-return rate. Results from the combined analysis gave a sharp QTL peak with a well-defined maximum in between markers BMS1724 and BM7209, at the same position as where the highest peak from the linkage disequilibrium analysis was found. One of the sire families segregated clearly at this position and the difference in effects between the two sire haplotypes was 2.9 percentage units in non-return rate. No significant results were found for the number of inseminations in the combined analysis. [source] Prevalence and trends in low femur bone density among older US adults: NHANES 2005,2006 compared with NHANES IIIJOURNAL OF BONE AND MINERAL RESEARCH, Issue 1 2010Anne C Looker Abstract Hip fracture incidence appears to be declining in the United States, but changes in bone mineral density (BMD) of the population have not been evaluated. We used femur BMD data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2005,2006 to estimate the prevalence of low femoral BMD in adults age 50 years and older and compared it with estimates from NHANES III (1988,1994). Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry systems (pencil-beam geometry in NHANES III, fan-beam geometry in NHANES 2005,2006) were used to measure femur BMD, and World Health Organization (WHO) definitions of low BMD were used to categorize skeletal status. In 2005,2006, 49% of older US women had osteopenia and 10% had osteoporosis at the femur neck. In men, 30% had femur neck osteopenia and 2% had femur neck osteoporosis. An estimated 5.3 million older men and women had osteoporosis at the femur neck, and 34.5 million more had osteopenia in 2005,2006. When compared with NHANES III, the age-adjusted prevalence of femur neck osteoporosis in NHANES 2005,2006 was lower in men (by 3 percentage units) and women (by 7 percentage units) overall and among non-Hispanic whites. Changes in body mass index or osteoporosis medication use between surveys did not fully explain the decline in osteoporosis. Owing to the increase in the number of older adults in the US population, however, more older adults had low femur neck BMD (osteoporosis + osteopenia) in 2005,2006 than in 1988,1994. Thus, despite the decline in prevalence, the estimated number of affected older adults in 2005,2006 remained high. Copyright © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research [source] Nutrient utilisation in response to dietary supplementation of chicory inulin in growing pigsJOURNAL OF THE SCIENCE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, Issue 9 2004Todd C Rideout Abstract The digestive and post-absorptive utilisation of dietary crude protein (CP), calcium (Ca) and phosphorus (P) in response to dietary supplementation of chicory inulin extract was investigated with six Yorkshire barrows with an average initial body weight of 30 kg. The barrows were fed a corn (maize) and soybean meal-based diet containing 0 or 50 g kg,1 chicory inulin extract according to a two-period crossover design. The digestive utilisation of CP, Ca and P did not differ (P > 0.05) between the control and the inulin-fed pigs. Furthermore, the post-absorptive urinary loss of CP and Ca was not affected (P > 0.05) by 50 g kg,1 chicory inulin supplementation. However, inulin supplementation improved post-absorptive P utilisation through a reduction (P = 0.01) in urinary P loss by 1.6 percentage units compared with the control group. In conclusion, dietary supplementation of 50 g kg,1 chicory inulin does not affect dietary CP and Ca utilisation but does reduce urinary P loss in growing pigs. Copyright © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Can rational prescribing be improved by an outcome-based educational approach?THE JOURNAL OF CONTINUING EDUCATION IN THE HEALTH PROFESSIONS, Issue 1 2010A randomized trial completed in Iran Abstract Introduction: An outcome-based education approach has been proposed to develop more effective continuing medical education (CME) programs. We have used this approach in developing an outcome-based educational intervention for general physicians working in primary care (GPs) and evaluated its effectiveness compared with a concurrent CME program in the field of rational prescribing. Methods: A cluster randomized controlled design was used. All 159 GPs working in 6 cities, in 2 regions in East Azerbaijan province in Iran, were invited to participate. The cities were matched and randomly divided into an intervention arm, for an outcome-based education on rational prescribing, and a control arm for a traditional CME program on the same topic. GPs' prescribing behavior was assessed 9 months before, and 3 months after the CME programs. Results: In total, 112 GPs participated. The GPs in the intervention arm significantly reduced the total number of prescribed drugs and the number of injections per prescription. The GPs in the intervention arm also increased their compliance with specific requirements for a correct prescription, such as explanation of specific time and manner of intake and precautions necessary when using drugs, with significant intervention effects of 13, 36, and 42 percentage units, respectively. Compared with the control arm, there was no significant improvement when prescribing antibiotics and anti-inflammatory agents. Discussion: Rational prescribing improved in some of the important outcome-based indicators, but several indicators were still suboptimal. The introduction of an outcome-based approach in CME seems promising when creating programs to improve GPs' prescribing behavior. [source] The Beveridge curve and unemployment fluctuations in CanadaCANADIAN JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS, Issue 1 2001Richard Archambault We estimate the impact of cyclical, sectoral, and participation shocks and that of the trend on both the Canadian unemployment rate and the job vacancy rate over the 1969 to 1998 period. We conclude that a rise in the Canadian unemployment rate of almost 5 percentage units occurred between 1972 and 1982 because of participation rate shocks and a trend movement. Because the trend also explains the leftward shift of the Beveridge curve observed in the 1990s, this shift cannot be interpreted as a decline in the natural unemployment rate. La courbe de Beveridge et les fluctuations du chômage au Canada. Les auteurs évaluent la contribution des chocs sectoriels, des changements dans le taux d'activité, des fluctuations cycliques et de la tendance sur les mouvements du taux de chômage et du taux de postes vacants pendant la période 1969,98. Ils concluent que le taux de chômage non conjoncturel s'est accru de près de 5 points de pourcentage entre 1972 et 1982 en raison de chocs dans le taux d'activité et d'un mouvement tendanciel. Le déplacement vers la gauche de la courbe de Beveridge observé dans les années 1990 est pour sa part le résultat d'une baisse tendancielle des postes vacants et n'indique nullement que le taux de chômage naturel ait diminué pendant cette période. [source] | ||||||||||