Impact of type of winemaking vessel on the chemical composition of Sauvignon blanc wines

Recently, the use of alternative vessels to oak barrels during winemaking has become increasingly popular (Rubio-Bretón et al., Nevares et al., Gil i Cortiella et al.), but little is known about their impact on the chemical composition of the final wines. To address this issue, a Sauvignon blanc wine was produced using cylindrical stainless-steel tanks, egg shape concrete vessels, egg shape polyethylene vessels and clay jars. The wines were fermented and aged on their lees for six months and chemically characterised as described hereafter.

Juvenile hormone signaling promotes ovulation and maintains egg shape by inducing expression of extracellular matrix genes

It is well documented that the juvenile hormone (JH) can function as a gonadotropic hormone that stimulates vitellogenesis by activating the production and uptake of vitellogenin in insects. Here, we describe a phenotype associated with mutations in the Drosophila JH receptor genes, Met and Gce: the accumulation of mature eggs with reduced egg length in the ovary. JH signaling is mainly activated in ovarian muscle cells and induces laminin gene expression in these cells. Meanwhile, JH signaling induces collagen IV gene expression in the adult fat body, from which collagen IV is secreted and deposited onto the ovarian muscles. Laminin locally and collagen IV remotely contribute to the assembly of ovarian muscle extracellular matrix (ECM); moreover, the ECM components are indispensable for ovarian muscle contraction. Furthermore, ovarian muscle contraction externally generates a mechanical force to promote ovulation and maintain egg shape. This work reveals an important mechanism for JH-regulated insect reproduction.

High Prevalence of Early Parkinson's Disease in Patients With Subtle Parkinsonian Signs

Background: Little is known about how frequently patients with a Unified Parkinson Disease Rating Scale part III (UPDRS-III) score of 3 or 4, including postural and action tremor, could be classified into early Parkinson's disease (PD).Objective: To examine the prevalence of early PD in patients with subtle parkinsonian signs (rest tremor, postural tremor, and rigidity) without bradykinesia, having a UPDRS-III score of 3 or 4.Methods: Parkinsonism was assessed using UPDRS-III based on both the United Kingdom PD Society Brain Bank criteria and the Movement Disorder Society PD criteria. Ninety patients with a UPDRS-III score of 3 or 4, including postural tremor, were evaluated by 123I-FP-CIT SPECT (DaTscan), brain MRI, the Mini-Mental State Examination, and smell test. Some patients were additionally examined by 123I-metaiodobenzylguanidine myocardial scintigraphy or 123I-N-isopropyl-p-iodoamphetamine SPECT.Results: Seventy-five [mean age (standard deviation): 76.9 (8.1)] out of 90 patients (83.3%) showed abnormal findings on DaTscan imaging: 57 out of 75 (76.0%) showed a reduced specific binding ratio (SBR) accompanied by an egg shape pattern (n = 37, 49.3%) or a mixed type pattern (n = 14, 18.7%), both reduced SBR and increased asymmetry index (AI) with a normal shape (n = 4, 5.3%), and reduced SBR only (n = 2, 2.7%); 18 (24.0%) showed an egg shape pattern or a mixed type pattern without reduced SBR. In other words, 69 out of 75 patients (92.0%) showed either an egg shape or a mixed type pattern with or without reduced SBR. All patients were free of dementia, and their olfactory function was significantly impaired compared with controls (n = 141) on the odor-stick identification test for Japanese (p < 0.0001).Conclusions: The prevalence of patients with subtle parkinsonian signs having a UPDRS-III score of 3 or 4, including postural tremor, is unexpectedly high in daily clinical practice, and most of these patients could be categorized into mild early-stage PD.

ANALYSIS OF MORPHOMETRIC PARAMETERS DUCK EGGS OF LOCAL BREED SHAOXING

The efficiency of industrial poultry farming within the optimization of poultry technology, depends on the level of genetic potential of the flock. Selection features of Shaoxing ducks make this kind optimal for its breeding in the People's Republic of China. The study aims to evaluate the morphometric characteristics of Shaoxing duck eggs, which are bred on the breeding farm of Zhejiang Generation Biological Science and Technology Co., Ltd in Zhuji, Zhejiang Province, China. The weight, length, width of the eggs and the index of the egg shape have been determined. An individual method of counting the number of eggs laid by ducks of the Shaoxing breed for 4 adjacent months has been implemented. The average weight of the egg is 67.45 ± 0.22 g with limit values lim max = 89 g lim min = 45 g. The average value of egg length is 6.02 ± 0.01 cm, width – 4.45 ± 0.01 cm. The duck egg shape index is 74.01 ± 0.12. Thereby systematic individual studies of morphometric parameters of eggs will increase the effect of selection by expanding the indicators of lifelong assessment of the uterine population of ducks. Selection of queens for the breeding core of the breed according to the indicators of manufacturability of morphometric parameters of eggs will increase the incubation yield of ducklings and, accordingly, will be one of the effective mechanisms to ensure economic profitability of breeding Shaoxing ducks.

Effect of asam kandis (Garcinia cowa Roxb) extract in drinking water on egg quality of Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica)

Asam kandis (Garcinia cowa Roxb) fruit has been reported to contain phytochemicals such as xanthon, hydroxy cytric acid and flavonoids that have various activities such as antimicrobial and antioxidant. This study was aimed to investigate the effect of asam kandis extract addition in drinking water on the quality of quail eggs. Ninety nine laying quails of 59 days of age were divided into 3 treatments and 3 replications with 11 laying quails in each replication. Completely Randomized Design was used and the treatments were: T1= control (drinking water without asam kandis extract), T2= drinking water with asam kandis extract at pH 4, T3= drinking water with asam kandis extract at pH 3. The parameters observed were egg weight, egg shape index, yolk color, yolk percentage, albumen percentage, eggshell percentage, shell thickness, and haugh unit score. The data obtained were analyzed by Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and significant differences among treatments means were tested by Duncans multiple test. The the addition of asam kandis extract did not affect (P0.05) on egg weight, egg shape index, yolk color, yolk percentage, albumen percentage, eggshell percentage, and haugh unit score. The addition of asam kandis extract in drinking water at pH 3 significantly (P0.05) increased eggshell thickness compare to that of other treatments. The conclusion was the addition of asam kandis extract in drinking water at pH 3 increased eggshell thickness without decreasing egg quality.

Effect Of Length Of Lay Of Nigeria Indigenous Chickens On Their Egg Composition And Shell Quality

Three hundred and thirty eggs collected from the second to the seventh month of production, from a flock of the Nigeria indigenous (NI) chickens, were analysed to determine the effect of the length of lay on egg composition and shell quality. The weights of the whole egg and its components as well as shell thickness were measured monthly while the proportion of the various components; egg shape index, shell density and shell weight per surface area were calculated. The results showed that egg weight, albumen weight and % albumen increased (P<0.05) with length of lay by 2.6g, 3.5g, 3.5g and 5.6% respectively between 2nd and 7th months. The change in the weight of the yolk, shell and egg shape index was not significant (P>0.05) between the 2nd and 7th months while % yolk, % shell, shell thickness and the shell weight per surface area decreased (P<0.05) by 4.2%, 0.64%, 0.04mm and 0.003g respectively within the same period. Strong phenotypic correlations were observed between the weights of the whole egg and the albumen (r=0.81), shell (r=0.63) and yolk (r=0.46) and also between shell thickness and its weight per surface area (r=0.81). These results indicate that egg size increased as the NI hen advanced in lay. Eggs laid in the 6th and 7th months contained more albumen than those laid earlier and the shell thickness decreased as the hens advanced in lay thus making them more liable to breakage.