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In this work we provide an overview of short lived climate forcers (SLCFs) and carbon dioxide variability in the Karakorum, by presenting results deriving from a field campaign carried out at Askole (3015 m a.s.l., Pakistan Northern Areas), by Baltoro glacier. By using an innovative embedded and transportable system, continuous measurements of aerosol particle number concentration (Np, 1571 ± 2670 cm−3), surface ozone (O3, 31.7 ± 10.4 nmol/mol), carbon dioxide (CO2, 394.3 ± 6.9 μmol/mol) and meteorological parameters have been performed from August 20th to November 10th 2012. The domestic combustion from the Askole village emerged as a possible systematic source of contamination in the valley, with short-lasting pollution events probably related to domestic cooking activities characterized by high values of Np (6066 ± 5903 cm−3). By excluding these local contamination events, mountain thermal wind regime dominated the diurnal variability of Np, O3 and CO2. In comparison to night-time, we observed higher Np (+354 cm−3) and O3 (+7 nmol/mol) but lower CO2 (−8 μmol/mol) in air-masses coming from the lower valley during the central part of the day. Part of the day-to-day atmospheric composition variability can be also ascribed to synoptic circulation variability, as observed by using HYSPLIT 5-day back-trajectories.

The aim of this article was to compare plasma estrone sulfate (E1SO4), clinical biochemistry, and milk yield of dairy cows carrying a female fetus from a bull (BULL) or from its clone (CLONE), evaluating also the relationship between the former variables and the birth weight of the newborn. Sixteen recipient dairy Friesian heifers (10 BULL and 7 CLONE) received a female embryo, obtained by in vitro embryo production and sexing by polymerase chain reaction with the semen of the BULL or the CLONE. Blood samples on all cows were obtained before feed distribution in the morning from jugular vein from 4 weeks before to 4 weeks after calving, to be analyzed for metabolic profile. The samples from late gestation were also analyzed for E1SO4 concentration. To separately assess the effect of calf birth weight (CBW), data were categorized as follows: low (46 kg; BWT-C). The plasma concentrations of β-hydroxybutyric acid (BHB, P=0.019), Na (P=0.002), Cl (P=0.026), strong cation-anion balance (P=0.020), total bilirubin (P=0.054), and α1-globulin (P=0.044) were higher in prepartum BULL recipients than those in CLONE, whereas BHB (P=0.021) and Mg (P=0.090) were higher in postpartum BULL recipients, while no differences were recorded in the remaining postpartum parameters. The CBW class had significant interaction with week of gestation on antepartum plasma estrone sulfate (P=0.021), whereas CBW per se affected antepartum plasma BHB (P=0.021), and nonesterified fatty acids (NEFA; P=0.011) being higher in BWT-C which also had the lower NEFA concentration during postpartum. Milk yield was unaffected by the sire used, both for quantitative and qualitative aspects. Cows carrying heavier fetus (BWT-C) had a different lactation affected by month compared with the other 2 CBW groups. From these results, there were no differences between BULL and CLONE recipients. Estrone sulfate, BHB, and NEFA may be used to predict CBW and provide different nutritional management during gestation.

We analysed the variability of equivalent black carbon (BC) and ozone (O3) at the global WMO/GAW station Nepal Climate Observatory-Pyramid (NCO-P, 5079 m a.s.l.) in the southern Himalayas, for evaluating the possible contribution of open vegetation fires to the variability of these short-lived climate forcers/pollutants (SLCF/SLCP) in the Himalayan region. We found that 162 days (9% of the data-set) were characterised by acute pollution events with enhanced BC and O3 in respect to the climatological values. By using satellite observations (MODIS fire products and the USGS Land Use Cover Characterization) and air mass back-trajectories, we deduced that 56% of these events were likely to be affected by emissions from open fires along the Himalayas foothills, the Indian Subcontinent and the Northern Indo-Gangetic Plain. These results suggest that open fire emissions are likely to play an important role in modulating seasonal and inter-annual BC and O3 variability over south Himalayas.© 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The aim of this study was to establish whether perturbed gene expression during cumulus oocyte development causes repeat breeding in cattle. In this study, a repeat breeder was defined as a normal estrous cycling animal that did not become pregnant after three inseminations despite the absence of clinically detectable reproductive disorders. Transcripts of genes extracted from cumulus oocyte complexes (COC) that were collected from three repeat breeder and three normally fertile Holstein Friesian heifers were compared. Up to 40 COC were collected from each heifer by means of repeated sessions of ovum pick up in the absence of hormonal stimulation; immediately plunged into liquid nitrogen; and stored at −80 °C until analysis. For each heifer, RNA was extracted from the pooled COC and hybridized on GeneChip® Bovine Gene Array (Affymetrix). Analysis of gene expression profiles of repeat breeder and control COC showed that 178 genes were differentially expressed (log2 fold change > 1.5). Of these genes, 43 (24%) were up-regulated and 135 (76%) were down-regulated in repeat breeder relative to control heifers. This altered pattern of expression occurred in genes involved in several cellular biological processes and cellular components such as metabolism, angiogenesis, substrate/ion transport, regulation/signaling, cell adhesion and cytoskeleton. From these, 13 genes potentially involved in cumulus oocyte growth were subjected to validation by qRT-PCR and nine genes (annexin A1, ANXA1; lactoferrin, LTF; interferon stimulated exonuclease 20 kDa, ISG20/HEM45; oxidized low density lipoprotein receptor 1, OLR1; fatty acid desaturase 2, FADS2; glutathione S-transferase A2 and A4, GSTA2 and GSTA4; glutathione peroxidase 1, GPX1; endothelin receptor type A, EDNRA) were confirmed to be differentially expressed. This study identified potential marker genes for fertility in dairy cattle.

Development of assisted reproductive technologies in horses has been relatively slow compared to other domestic species, namely ruminants and pigs. The scarce availability of abattoir ovaries and the lack of interest from horse breeders and breed associations have been the main reasons for this delay. Progressively though, the technology of oocyte maturation in vitro has been established followed by the application of ICSI to achieve fertilization in vitro. Embryo culture was initially performed in vivo, in the mare oviduct or in the surrogate sheep oviduct, to achieve the highest embryo development, in the range of 18-36% of the fertilised oocytes. Subsequently, the parallel improvement of in vitro oocyte maturation conditions and embryo culture media has permitted high rates of embryo development from in vitro matured and in vitro cultured ICSI embryos, ranging from 5 to 10% in the early studies to up to 38% in the latest ones. From 2003, with the birth of the first cloned equids, the technology of somatic cell nuclear transfer has also become established due to improvement of the basic steps of embryo production in vitro, including cryopreservation. Pregnancy and foaling rates are still estimated based on a small number of in vitro produced equine embryos transferred to recipients. The largest set of data on non-surgical embryo transfer of in vitro produced embryos, from ICSI of both abattoir and in vitro-matured Ovum Pick Up (OPU) oocytes, and from somatic cell nuclear transfer, has been obtained in our laboratory. The data demonstrate that equine embryos produced by OPU and then cryopreserved can achieve up to 69% pregnancy rate with a foaling rate of 83%. These percentages are reduced to 11 and 23%, respectively, for cloned embryos. In conclusion, extensive evidence exists that in vitro matured equine oocytes can efficiently develop into viable embryos and offspring.