Showing papers by "University of Stirling published in 2001"
724 citations
TL;DR: RO can be used successfully as a substitute for fish oil in the culture of Atlantic salmon in sea water although at levels of RO >50% of dietary lipid, substantial reductions occur in muscle 20:5(n-3), 22:6( n-3) and the (n- 3)/(n -6) polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) ratio, which will result in reduced availability of the ( n- 3) highly unsaturated fatty acids that are beneficial for human
Abstract: Duplicate groups of Atlantic salmon post-smolts were fed five practical-type diets in which the added lipid was 100% fish oil [FO; 0% rapeseed oil (0% RO)], 90% FO + 10% RO (10% RO), 75% FO + 25% RO (25% RO), 50% FO + 50% RO (50% RO) or 100% RO, for a period of 17 wk. There were no effects of diet on growth rate or feed conversion nor were any histopathological lesions found in liver, heart, muscle or kidney. The greatest accumulation of muscle lipid was in fish fed 0% RO, which corresponded to significantly lower muscle protein in this group. The highest lipid levels in liver were found in fish fed 100% RO. Fatty acid compositions of muscle lipid correlated with RO inclusion in that the proportions of 18:1(n-9), 18:2(n-6) and 18:3(n-3) all increased with increasing dietary RO (r = 0.98-1.00, P 50% of dietary lipid, substantial reductions occur in muscle 20:5(n-3), 22:6(n-3) and the (n-3)/(n-6) polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) ratio, which will result in reduced availability of the (n-3) highly unsaturated fatty acids that are beneficial for human health.
660 citations
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01 Dec 2001TL;DR: In this paper, a questionnaire was designed to obtain information about which delivery channels consumers had used when acquiring four types of financial services and how these consumers would acquire the same services if they had to purchase them again at some time in the future.
Abstract: This paper seeks to develop our understanding of consumer attitudes towards bank delivery channels. Accordingly, a questionnaire was designed to obtain information about which delivery channels consumers had used when acquiring four types of financial service. This information was then contrasted with data on how these consumers would acquire the same services if they had to purchase them again at some time in the future. The questionnaire also obtained information about the factors which consumers believed to be important in encouraging and discouraging the adoption of home‐based banking. In concluding, the paper discusses and assesses some of the strategic implications of the study’s findings for financial service providers.
565 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors presented predictive models for great bustards in central Spain based on readily available advanced very high resolution radiometer (AVHRR) satellite imagery combined with mapped features in the form of geographic information system (GIS) data layers.
Abstract: Summary 1. Many species are adversely affected by human activities at large spatial scales and their conservation requires detailed information on distributions. Intensive ground surveys cannot keep pace with the rate of land-use change over large areas and new methods are needed for regional-scale mapping. 2. We present predictive models for great bustards in central Spain based on readily available advanced very high resolution radiometer (AVHRR) satellite imagery combined with mapped features in the form of geographic information system (GIS) data layers. As AVHRR imagery is coarse-grained, we used a 12-month time series to improve the definition of habitat types. The GIS data comprised measures of proximity to features likely to cause disturbance and a digital terrain model to allow for preference for certain topographies. 3. We used logistic regression to model the above data, including an autologistic term to account for spatial autocorrelation. The results from models were combined using Bayesian integration, and model performance was assessed using receiver operating characteristics plots. 4. Sites occupied by bustards had significantly lower densities of roads, buildings, railways and rivers than randomly selected survey points. Bustards also occurred within a narrower range of elevations and at locations with significantly less variable terrain. 5. Logistic regression analysis showed that roads, buildings, rivers and terrain all contributed significantly to the difference between occupied and random sites. The Bayesian integrated probability model showed an excellent agreement with the original census data and predicted suitable areas not presently occupied. 6. The great bustard’s distribution is highly fragmented and vacant habitat patches may occur for a variety of reasons, including the species’ very strong fidelity to traditional sites through conspecific attraction. This may limit recolonization of previously occupied sites. 7. We conclude that AVHRR satellite imagery and GIS data sets have potential to map distributions at large spatial scales and could be applied to other species. While models based on imagery alone can provide accurate predictions of bustard habitats at some spatial scales, terrain and human influence are also significant predictors and are needed for finer scale modelling.
465 citations
TL;DR: The link between resistance, melanism and phenoloxidase activity is examined in Spodoptera larvae and the results strengthen the link between melanisms and disease resistance and implicate the involvement of phenol oxidase.
Abstract: There is growing evidence that insects in high-density populations invest relatively more in pathogen resistance than those in low-density populations (i.e. density-dependent prophylaxis). Such increases in resistance are often accompanied by cuticular melanism, which is characteristic of the high-density form of many phase polyphenic insects. Both melanism and pathogen resistance involve the prophenoloxidase enzyme system. In this paper the link between resistance, melanism and phenoloxidase activity is examined in Spodoptera larvae. In S. exempta, cuticular melanism was positively correlated with phenoloxidase activity in the cuticle, haemolymph and midgut. Melanic S. exempta larvae were found to melanize a greater proportion of eggs of the ectoparasitoid Euplectrus laphygmae than non-melanic larvae, and melanic S. littoralis were more resistant to the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana (in S. exempta the association between melanism and fungal resistance was non-signficant). These results strengthen the link between melanism and disease resistance and implicate the involvement of phenoloxidase.
409 citations
TL;DR: Here, real and computer graphic male faces are used in order to demonstrate that symmetric faces are more attractive, but not reliably more masculine than less symmetry faces and that asymmetric faces possess characteristics that are attractive independent of symmetry, but that these characteristics remain at present undefined.
Abstract: Facial symmetry has been proposed as a marker of developmental stability that may be important in human mate choice. Several studies have demonstrated positive relationships between facial symmetry and attractiveness. It was recently proposed that symmetry is not a primary cue to facial attractiveness, as symmetrical faces remain attractive even when presented as half faces (with no cues to symmetry). Facial sexual dimorphisms ('masculinity') have been suggested as a possible cue that may covary with symmetry in men following data on trait size/symmetry relationships in other species. Here, we use real and computer graphic male faces in order to demonstrate that (i) symmetric faces are more attractive, but not reliably more masculine than less symmetric faces and (ii) that symmetric faces possess characteristics that are attractive independent of symmetry, but that these characteristics remain at present undefined.
363 citations
TL;DR: A waning success in siring counters a ram's high score in competition for ewes.
Abstract: A waning success in siring counters a ram's high score in competition for ewes.
362 citations
TL;DR: The results show that video evidence can be used effectively as a probe to identity when the faces shown are highly familiar to observers, but caution should be used where images of unfamiliar people are being compared.
Abstract: People can be inaccurate at matching unfamiliar faces shown in high-quality video images, even when viewpoint and facial expressions are closely matched However, identification of highly familiar faces appears good, even when video quality is poor Experiment 1 reported a direct comparison between familiar and unfamiliar faces Participants who were personally familiar with target items appearing on video were highly accurate at a verification task Unfamiliar participants doing the same task performed very inaccurately Familiarity affected discriminability, but not bias Experiments 2 and 3 showed that brief periods of familiarization have little beneficial effect unless "deep" or "social" processing is encouraged The results show that video evidence can be used effectively as a probe to identity when the faces shown are highly familiar to observers, but caution should be used where images of unfamiliar people are being compared
352 citations
TL;DR: The zebrafish Δ5/Δ6 desaturase may represent a component of a prototypic vertebrate polyunsaturated fatty acids biosynthesis pathway.
Abstract: Δ5 and Δ6 fatty acid desaturases are critical enzymes in the pathways for the biosynthesis of the polyunsaturated fatty acids arachidonic, eicosapentaenoic, and docosahexaenoic acids. They are encoded by distinct genes in mammals and Caenorhabditis elegans. This paper describes a cDNA isolated from zebrafish (Danio rerio) with high similarity to mammalian Δ6 desaturase genes. The 1,590-bp sequence specifies a protein that, in common with other fatty acid desaturases, contains an N-terminal cytochrome b5 domain and three histidine boxes, believed to be involved in catalysis. When the zebrafish cDNA was expressed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae it conferred the ability to convert linoleic acid (18:2n-6) and α-linolenic acid (18:3n-3) to their corresponding Δ6 desaturated products, 18:3n-6 and 18:4n-3. However, in addition it conferred on the yeast the ability to convert di-homo-γ-linoleic acid (20:3n-6) and eicosatetraenoic acid (20:4n-3) to arachidonic acid (20:4n-6) and eicosapentaenoic acid (20:5n-3), respectively, indicating that the zebrafish gene encodes an enzyme having both Δ5 and Δ6 desaturase activity. The zebrafish Δ5/Δ6 desaturase may represent a component of a prototypic vertebrate polyunsaturated fatty acids biosynthesis pathway.
340 citations
TL;DR: It is argued that in building robot models biological relevance is more effective than loose biological inspiration; multiple levels can be integrated; that generality cannot be assumed but might emerge from studying specific instances; abstraction is better done by simplification than idealisation; accuracy can be approached through iterations of complete systems; that the model should be able to match and predict target behaviour; and that a physical medium can have significant advantages.
Abstract: How should biological behaviour be modelled? A relatively new approach is to investigate problems in neuroethology by building physical robot models of biological sensorimotor systems. The explication and justification of this approach are here placed within a framework for describing and comparing models in the behavioural and biological sciences. First, simulation models – the representation of a hypothesis about a target system – are distinguished from several other relationships also termed “modelling” in discussions of scientific explanation. Seven dimensions on which simulation models can differ are defined and distinctions between them discussed:1. Relevance: whether the model tests and generates hypotheses applicable to biology.2. Level: the elemental units of the model in the hierarchy from atoms to societies.3. Generality: the range of biological systems the model can represent.4. Abstraction: the complexity, relative to the target, or amount of detail included in the model.5. Structural accuracy: how well the model represents the actual mechanisms underlying the behaviour.6. Performance match: to what extent the model behaviour matches the target behaviour.7. Medium: the physical basis by which the model is implemented.No specific position in the space of models thus defined is the only correct one, but a good modelling methodology should be explicit about its position and the justification for that position. It is argued that in building robot models biological relevance is more effective than loose biological inspiration; multiple levels can be integrated; that generality cannot be assumed but might emerge from studying specific instances; abstraction is better done by simplification than idealisation; accuracy can be approached through iterations of complete systems; that the model should be able to match and predict target behaviour; and that a physical medium can have significant advantages. These arguments reflect the view that biological behaviour needs to be studied and modelled in context, that is, in terms of the real problems faced by real animals in real environments.
339 citations
TL;DR: The role of emotion in the qualitative research process and the effects of emotional experiences on the researcher is discussed in this article, where the authors present a range of emotional encounters that qualitative researchers may face.
Abstract: This paper addresses the role of emotion in the qualitative research process and in particular, the effects of emotional experiences on the researcher. Drawing briefly on the literature, we show the importance of emotion for understanding the research process. Whilst this literature acknowledges the emotional risk for research respondents, there is little evidence providing in-depth understanding of the emotions of the researcher. We consider theoretically and empirically, the significance of emotion throughout the duration of a research project. Using our own personal experiences in the field, we present a range of emotional encounters that qualitative researchers may face. We offer suggestions for research teams who wish to develop strategies for 'managing' emotion and effectively utilizing 'emotionally-sensed knowledge'. We conclude that unless emotion in research is acknowledged, not only will researchers be left vulnerable, but also our understandings of the social world will remain impoverished. The...
TL;DR: The electron density map reveals the three-dimensional molecular packing arrangement of type I collagen and conclusively proves that the molecules are arranged on a quasihexagonal lattice.
TL;DR: The paper discusses the implications of the findings in terms of a comprehensive approach to intervention aimed at minimizing the risk of burnout in psychiatric nurses.
Abstract: Burnout in psychiatric nursing
Introduction. Burnout in nursing is of both individual and organizational concern with ramifications for well-being, job performance, absenteeism and turnover. Burnout is rarely assessed as part of a comprehensive model of occupational stress, a short-coming which this paper attempts to redress.
Method. A randomly selected sample of 510 psychiatric nurses from one Scottish Trust completed a questionnaire based on a psychological model of occupational stress which included the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) as the dependent variable.
Findings. The respondents reported average, low and average levels of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and personal accomplishment, respectively. The study sample had significantly lower scores on emotional exhaustion and depersonalization than normative data but also significantly lower levels of personal accomplishment than a normative group of physicians and nurses. Only 2·0% of the study sample could be categorized as having high burnout overall (i.e. high emotional exhaustion, high depersonalization, low personal accomplishment) and they differed significantly from the rest only in terms of males being over-represented. Hierarchical regression analysis revealed that selected explanatory variables accounted for 41·9% of emotional exhaustion, 16·4% of depersonalization and 25·6% of personal accomplishment in the study sample.
Implications. The paper discusses the implications of the findings in terms of a comprehensive approach to intervention aimed at minimizing the risk of burnout in psychiatric nurses. Such an approach will involve interventions at the organizational and individual level.
TL;DR: It is demonstrated that testosterone simultaneously affects both signal development and basal metabolic rate in the house sparrow (Passer domesticus), supporting a novel conclusion: that testosterone–dependent signals act as honest indicators of male quality possibly because only high–quality individuals can sustain the energetic costs associated with signal development.
Abstract: Sexually selected signals of individual dominance have profound effects on access to resources, mate choice and gene flow. However, why such signals should honestly reflect individual quality is poorly understood. Many such signals are known to develop under the influence of testosterone. We conducted an experiment in male house sparrows in which testosterone was manipulated independently during two periods: before the onset of the breeding season and prior to the autumn moult. We then measured the effects of these manipulations on basal metabolic rate and on the size of the chest bib, a sexually selected signal. The results demonstrate that testosterone simultaneously affects both signal development and basal metabolic rate in the house sparrow (Passer domesticus). This evidence, therefore, supports a novel conclusion: that testosterone-dependent signals act as honest indicators of male quality possibly because only high-quality individuals can sustain the energetic costs associated with signal development.
TL;DR: In this article, a methodology based on line transect surveys of deer dung that can be used to obtain deer abundance estimates by geographical block and habitat type is presented. But the results obtained agreed with knowledge from cull and sightings data, and the precision of the estimates was generally high.
Abstract: Summary 1. Accurate and precise estimates of abundance are required for the development of management regimes for deer populations. In woodland areas, indirect dung count methods, such as the clearance plot and standing crop methods, are currently the preferred procedures to estimate deer abundance. The use of line transect methodology is likely to provide a cost-effective alternative to these methods. 2. We outline a methodology based on line transect surveys of deer dung that can be used to obtain deer abundance estimates by geographical block and habitat type. Variance estimation procedures are also described. 3. As an example, we applied the method to estimate sika deer Cervus nippon abundance in south Scotland. Estimates of deer defecation and length of time to dung decay were used to convert pellet group density to deer density by geographical block and habitat type. The results obtained agreed with knowledge from cull and sightings data, and the precision of the estimates was generally high. 4. Relatively high sika deer densities observed in moorland areas up to 300 m from the forest edge indicated the need to encompass those areas in future surveys to avoid an underestimate of deer abundance in the region of interest. 5. It is unlikely that a single method for estimating deer abundance will prove to be better under all circumstances. Direct comparisons between methods are required to evaluate thoroughly the relative merits of each of them. 6. Line transect surveys of dung are becoming a widely used tool to aid management and conservation of a wide range of species. The survey methodology we outline is readily adaptable to other vertebrates that are amenable to dung survey methodology.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors survey the literature on internationalisation research and identify a number of theoretical and practical inadequacies in terms of current theory's ability in describing behaviour of the smaller firms.
Abstract: Surveys the literature on internationalisation research and identifies a number of theoretical and practical inadequacies in terms of current theory’s ability in describing behaviour of the smaller firm. A range of internationalisation theories are discussed, from their historical provenance in economic trade theory to the more recent developments concerning the impact of technology and networking. It is concluded that the majority of frameworks fail to readily explain smaller firm internationalisation behaviour. A number of implications and recommendations are presented, including the promotion of the belief that the emerging marketing and entrepreneurship paradigm provides additional understanding of smaller firm internationalisation, where creativity and innovative behaviour can act as a competitive advantage over firms with larger resources at their disposal. This then acts as a catalyst for internationalisation development.
TL;DR: The SERVQUAL model has been used in a number of public service environments to assess quality of service provision in terms of what consumers expect and what they actually receive as discussed by the authors, which is a tried and tested instrument which can be used comparatively for benchmarking purposes.
Abstract: This paper begins by explaining the new context in which public services are delivered and why improving service quality is especially relevant. The SERVQUAL model has been used in a number of public service environments to assess quality of service provision in terms of what consumers expect and what they actually receive. A particular advantage of SERVQUAL is that it is a tried and tested instrument which can be used comparatively for benchmarking purposes. The two service case examples featured in this paper illustrate the use of the SERVQUAL instrument to improve both process management and strategic planning in North Lanarkshire Council. Expectations, perceptions and gap scores are compared and their significance interpreted.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine how the development of inclusive education policies has been constrained by the adhesion of traditional regular and special education imperatives and argue that the protection of professional interests reinforces individual pathologies and creates further exclusionary pressures.
Abstract: This article examines how the development of inclusive education policies has been constrained by the adhesion of traditional regular and special education imperatives. The fragmentation of educational policy-making presses us towards exclusion; and the protection of professional interests reinforces individual pathologies and creates further exclusionary pressures. The authors contend that inclusive education is not a linear progression from 'special educational needs' and we must endeavour to understand the very different nature of these knowledge bases. Deconstruction is presented as a way of exposing exclusion as it is inscribed within inclusive education policies. The article ends with a series of openings for dialogue about inclusion which address the relationship between ideas and politics; a new politics of research; envisioning forms of schooling which eschew the modernist blueprint; reflexivity; and the teaching of inclusion.
TL;DR: The results suggest that representations of basic expressions of emotion encode information about dynamic as well as static properties.
Abstract: Two experiments were conducted to investigate the role played by dynamic information in identifying facial expressions of emotion Dynamic expression sequences were created by generating and displaying morph sequences which changed the face from neutral to a peak expression in different numbers of intervening intermediate stages, to create fast (6 frames), medium (26 frames), and slow (101 frames) sequences In experiment 1, participants were asked to describe what the person shown in each sequence was feeling Sadness was more accurately identified when slow sequences were shown Happiness, and to some extent surprise, was better from faster sequences, while anger was most accurately detected from the sequences of medium pace In experiment 2 we used an intensity-rating task and static images as well as dynamic ones to examine whether effects were due to total time of the displays or to the speed of sequence Accuracies of expression judgments were derived from the rated intensities and the results were similar to those of experiment 1 for angry and sad expressions (surprised and happy were close to ceiling) Moreover, the effect of display time was found only for dynamic expressions and not for static ones, suggesting that it was speed, not time, which was responsible for these effects These results suggest that representations of basic expressions of emotion encode information about dynamic as well as static properties
TL;DR: The measurement and reporting of intellectual capital has recently attracted a growing interest from accounting researchers, promoting a lively and far-reaching debate as discussed by the authors, and two related issues have informed this debate.
Abstract: The measurement and reporting of intellectual capital has recently attracted a growing interest from accounting researchers, promoting a lively and far‐reaching debate. Two related issues have informed this debate. It is possible to identify these issues as exemplifying financial reporting and management accounting perspectives on the emergence of intellectual capital. Provides a commentary on the progress of the debate to date, while also attempting to contextualise some of the issues it entails in both earlier and wider debates. In an effort to progress the project of accounting for intellectual capital, suggests the adoption of a critical accounting perspective. This would entail exploring the possibilities of intellectual capital providing its own accounts, rather than remaining imprisoned within accounts devised by others.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that food insecurity is primarily a problem of low household incomes and poverty, and not just inadequate food production, and that projects and programs for food insecure African farmers which aim at increasing production of subsistence crops may be ineffective.
TL;DR: Landscape sensitivity is expressed in different rates of change, between landscape components or elements as discussed by the authors, which leads to divergence between landscape elements, and the inheritance of palaeoforms in present-day landscape mosaics.
Abstract: Landscape sensitivity may be discussed in terms of the response of landscape systems to perturbation on different time and spatial scales. Unstable systems behave chaotically but may show self organised criticality, while stable systems resist change until threshold values of system parameters are exceeded. Spatial sensitivity is expressed in different rates of change, between landscape components or elements. This leads to divergence between landscape elements, and the inheritance of palaeoforms in present-day landscape mosaics. Temporal sensitivity reflects the magnitude and frequency of individual events nested within patterns of longer term environmental changes occurring on different timescales. The resulting landscape complexity reflects the spatio-temporal sensitivity of earth surface systems over ten orders of scale magnitude. The connectivity within landscapes ensures that site instabilities can be propagated within multievent feedback systems. Landscapes record their own histories in sediments and soils, but interpretation of event stratigraphy may not be straightforward, while soil profiles can absorb individual events without erosion. Although we are increasingly able to model the present, environmental management is dominantly about conserving inherited properties of landscapes: forests, soils, floodplains, coastlines. Landscape sensitivity for landscape management must, therefore, address not only active, largely nonlinear, environmental systems, but also the mosaics and palimpsests that are the inheritance from past environments.
TL;DR: It is shown that reduced faecal egg counts (FEC) are associated with an allele at a microsatellite locus located in the first intron of the interferon gamma gene (o(IFN)-γ) in Soay sheep lambs and yearlings, and this suggests that a polymorphic gene conferring increased resistance to gastrointestinal nematode parasites is located at or near the Interferon Gamma gene.
Abstract: Free-living Soay sheep (Ovis aries) on the island of Hirta, St Kilda, Scotland, are naturally parasitized by gastrointestinal nematodes, predominantly Teladorsagia circumcincta. In this paper we show that reduced faecal egg counts (FEC) are associated with an allele at a microsatellite locus located in the first intron of the interferon gamma gene (o(IFN)-γ) in Soay sheep lambs and yearlings, measured at approximately 4 and 16 months of age, respectively. The same allele was also associated with increased T. circumcincta-specific antibody (IgA) in lambs, but not associated significantly in yearlings. Flanking control markers failed to show a significant association with either FEC or IgA. These results suggest that a polymorphic gene conferring increased resistance to gastrointestinal nematode parasites is located at or near the interferon gamma gene, and support previous reports which have mapped a quantitative trait locus (QTL) for resistance to this region in domestic sheep. Our data are consistent with the idea that a functional polymorphism leading to reduced expression or efficacy of (IFN)-γ could enhance the immune response to gastrointestinal nematodes by favouring the activity of the Th2 cell subset and antibody associated immune mechanisms.
TL;DR: In this review, a description about the perspectives and dimensions of the concept will be made and empirical studies in the area will be analysed.
TL;DR: Findings clearly suggest that ovarian aromatase plays a decisive role in sexual differentiation in this species and that this is achieved by down‐regulation of the expression of this gene in males.
Abstract: A brain aromatase gene was identified from the Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus. The cDNA sequence of this gene differed from that of the ovarian aromatase gene previously reported from this species. Tissue specific expression for both brain and ovarian aromatase genes was examined in the tissues of adult tilapia. Brain aromatase mRNA was expressed in the brain, kidney, eye, ovary, and testis, but not in the liver and spleen. Ovarian aromatase mRNA was expressed in the brain, spleen, ovary, and testis but not in the eye, kidney, and liver. Differential aromatase gene expression between the sexes was investigated in all-male (XY) and all-female (XX) groups of tilapia fry from fertilisation throughout the sexual differentiation period. Semi-quantitative RT-PCR analysis revealed that the initiation of expression of both aromatase genes lay between 3 and 4 dpf (days post fertilisation) in both sexes. The level of brain aromatase mRNA gradually increased throughout the period studied with little difference between the sexes. This contrasted with marked sexual dimorphism of ovarian aromatase mRNA expression. In females, the expression level was maintained or increased gradually throughout ontogeny, while the level in males was dramatically down-regulated between 15 and 27 dpf. Subsequently, the level of ovarian aromatase mRNA expression fluctuated slightly in both sexes, with the expression in females always being higher than in males. These findings clearly suggest that ovarian aromatase plays a decisive role in sexual differentiation in this species and that this is achieved by down-regulation of the expression of this gene in males. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 59: 359–370, 2001. © 2001 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
TL;DR: Improving postdischarge nutrition in the first 9 months may "reset" subsequent growth-at least until 18 months for body length.
Abstract: Objectives. Preterm infants are frequently discharged from the hospital growth retarded and show reduced growth throughout childhood. In a large efficacy and safety trial, we tested the hypothesis that nutritional intervention in the first 9 months postterm would reverse postdischarge growth deficits and improve neurodevelopment without adverse safety outcomes. Participants and intervention. Two hundred eighty-four infants (mean gestation: 30.9 weeks) were studied; 229 were randomly assigned a protein, energy, mineral, and micronutrient-enriched postdischarge formula (PDF; N = 113) or standard term formula (TF; N = 116) from discharge (mean 36.5 weeks9 postmenstrual age). A reference group (N = 65) was breastfed until at least 6 weeks9 postterm. Outcome measures. Anthropometry was performed at 6 weeks and 3, 6, 9, and 18 months. Development was measured at 9 months (Knobloch, Passamanick, and Sherrard9s developmental screening inventory) and 18 months (Bayley Scales of Infant Development II; primary outcome) postterm. Results. At 9 months, compared with the TF group, those fed PDF were heavier (difference 370 g; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 84–660) and longer (difference 1.1 cm; 95% CI: 0.3–1.9); the difference in length persisted at 18 months (difference 0.82 cm; 95% CI: −0.04–1.7). There was no effect on head circumference. The effect of diet was greatest in males; at 9 months length deficit with TF was 1.5cm (95% CI: 0.3–2.7), and this remained at 18 months (1.5cm [95% CI: 0.3–2.7]). There was no significant difference in developmental scores at 9 or 18 months, although PDF infants had a 2.8 (−1.3–6.8) point advantage in Bayley motor score scales. At 6 weeks9 postterm, exclusively breastfed infants were already 513 g (95% CI: 310–715) lighter and 1.6cm (95% CI: 0.8–2.3) shorter than the PDF group, and they remained smaller up to 9 months9 postterm. Conclusions. 1) Improving postdischarge nutrition in the first 9 months may “reset” subsequent growth—at least until 18 months for body length. We intend to follow-up the children at older ages. The observed efficacy of PDF was not associated with adverse safety outcomes. 2) We cannot reject the hypothesis that postdischarge nutrition benefits motor development and this requires additional study. 3) Our data raise the possibility that breastfed postdischarge preterm infants may require nutritional supplementation, currently under investigation.
TL;DR: The results are in accordance with an explanation of the face-inversion effect in which the disruption of configural facial information plays the critical role in memory for faces, and in which configural information corresponds to spatial information that is processed in a way which is sensitive to local properties of the facial features involved.
Abstract: When faces are turned upside down, recognition is known to be severely disrupted. This effect is thought to be due to disruption of configural processing. Recently, Leder and Bruce (2000, Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology A 53 513-536) argued that configural information in face processing consists at least partly of locally processed relations between facial elements. In three experiments we investigated whether a local relational feature (the interocular distance) is processed differently in upside-down versus upright faces. In experiment 1 participants decided in which of two sequentially presented photographic faces the interocular distance was larger. The decision was more difficult in upside-down presentation. Three different conditions were used in experiment 2 to investigate whether this deficit depends upon parts of the face beyond the eyes themselves; displays showed the eye region alone, the eyes and nose, or the eyes and nose and mouth. The availability of additional features did not interact with the inversion effect which was observed strongly even when the eyes were shown in isolation. In experiment 3 all eyes were turned upside down in the inverted face condition as in the Thatcher illusion (Thompson, 1980 Perception 9 483-484). In this case no inversion effect was found. These results are in accordance with an explanation of the face-inversion effect in which the disruption of configural facial information plays the critical role in memory for faces, and in which configural information corresponds to spatial information that is processed in a way which is sensitive to local properties of the facial features involved.
TL;DR: It is the authors' opinion that the 48/16 diet appeared to be the best compromise between growth, feed utilisation and cost, and the FA profile of farmed cod liver oil showed promising properties, despite having a slightly higher content of saturated fatty acids and linoleic acid, compared to “natural”Cod liver oil.
TL;DR: The positive genetic correlation between parasite Resistance and body size, a trait also subject to sexual selection in males, suggests that parasite resistance and growth are not traded off in Soay sheep, but rather that genetically resistant individuals also experience superior growth.
Abstract: Parasite resistance and body size are subject to directional natural selection in a population of feral Soay sheep (Ovis aries) on the island of St. Kilda, Scotland. Classical evolutionary theory predicts that directional selection should erode additive genetic variation and favor the maintenance of alleles that have negative pleiotropic effects on other traits associated with fitness. Contrary to these predictions, in this study we show that there is considerable additive genetic variation for both parasite resistance, measured as fecal egg count (FEC), and body size, measured as weight and hindleg length, and that there are positive genetic correlations between parasite resistance and body size in both sexes. Body size traits had higher heritabilities than parasite resistance. This was not due to low levels of additive genetic variation for parasite resistance, but was a consequence of high levels of residual variance in FEC. Measured as coefficients of variation, levels of additive genetic variation for FEC were actually higher than for weight or hindleg length. High levels of additive genetic variation for parasite resistance may be maintained by a number of mechanisms including high mutational input, balancing selection, antagonistic pleiotropy, and host-parasite coevolution. The positive genetic correlation between parasite resistance and body size, a trait also subject to sexual selection in males, suggests that parasite resistance and growth are not traded off in Soay sheep, but rather that genetically resistant individuals also experience superior growth.
TL;DR: There were significant differences in liver PUFA metabolism between Arctic charr and the other salmonids, which could have important consequences, both physiologically and in their ability to be successfully cultured on diets containing vegetable oils.
Abstract: The desaturation and elongation of [1- 14 C]18:3n-3 was investigated in hepatocytes from different populations and three different species of salmonids indigenous to Scotland, brown trout, Atlantic salmon and Arctic charr. Two groups of fish were sampled, before and after they were fed two experimental diets, a control diet containing fish oil and a diet containing vegetable oil (a 1:1 blend of linseed and rapeseed oils) for 12 weeks. At each sampling time, fatty acyl desaturation and elongation activity was determined in isolated hepatocytes, and samples of liver were also collected for lipid compositional analysis. At the initiation of the dietary trial, the liver polar-lipid fatty acid compositions of salmon and brown trout were very similar to each other, and the two charr populations were similar to each other, having lower total n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and 22:6n-3, but higher 20:5n-3 than the other salmonids. Initially, hepatocyte desaturation activity varied, with the highest activity in brown trout, followed by salmon and then charr. Production of 20:5n-3 was particularly high in brown trout. Desaturation of [1- 14 C]18:3n-3 was significantly greater in all fish fed the diet containing vegetable oil compared to fish fed the diet containing fish oil. The increase in activity was less in brown trout compared to the other groups of fish. Feeding the vegetable oil diet increased the levels of 18:2n-6, 20:3n-6, total n-6 PUFA, 18:3n-3, 18:4n-3, 20:3n-3 and 20:4n-3, and decreased 22:6n-3 and the n-3/n-6 ratio in salmon and brown trout. By contrast, in charr fed the vegetable oil diet, there was no increase in 18:3n-3, 18:4n-3, 20:3n-3 or 20:4n-3 in liver polar lipids and the level of 22:6n-3 was not decreased. In addition, there was only a modest increase in the levels of 18:2n-6 and total n-6 PUFA, and so the n-3/n-6 ratio was only slightly decreased. The percentage of 20:4n-6, which was not increased in salmon and brown trout fed vegetable oil, was increased in charr fed the vegetable oil diet. Overall, the results indicated that there were significant differences in liver PUFA metabolism between Arctic charr and the other salmonids, which could have important consequences, both physiologically and in their ability to be successfully cultured on diets containing vegetable oils.