Extended abstract of a paper presented at Microscopy and Microanalysis 2013 in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA, August 4 – August 8, 2013.

Broiler breeder hens grow more efficiently and are leaner than ever before due to positive results from broiler genetic selection strategies. Quantitative feed restriction is used to limit excessive weight gain and maximize egg production and fertility. Over the past 30 years, broiler breeder body weight (BW) targets have undergone change, although the degree of change is small compared to the large increases in growth potential. As a result, the degree of feed restriction needed to maintain broiler breeder BW targets has increased, which is a welfare concern. The objective of this study was to examine current and historical broiler breeder BW targets for three major broiler companies to assess the extent of changes in BW targets over time and to explore potential reasoning behind shifts in these growth targets. By comparing breeder parent target BW profiles with corresponding potential broiler growth, changes in the apparent severity of feed restriction of the broiler breeder of this strain were calculated. Factors affecting the interpretation of degree of restriction values were discussed in combination with current initiatives underway to alleviate the severity of feed restriction. This information is intended to demonstrate how management of broiler breeder stocks has changed in time and to provide context for a realistic measure of the degree of feed restriction in broiler breeders.

Implementation of the sterile insect technique for tsetse (Glossina spp.) requires that only sterile male insects be released; thus, at some stage of the fly production process the females have to be removed. A further constraint in the use of the sterile insect technique for tsetse is that the females are needed for colony production and hence, a non-destructive method of sex separation is required. In most tsetse sterile insect technique programmes thus far, females have been eliminated from the released material by hand-separation of chilled adults. Using near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy, significant differences have been found between the spectra for the pupae of male and female G. pallidipes Austen. Significantly, the differences appear to be maximized 4–5 days before emergence of the adults. Tsetse fly pupae up to five days before emergence can be sexed with accuracies that generally range from 80 to 100%. This system, when refined, will enable effective separation of male and female pupae to be carried out, with emerged females being returned to the colony and males being irradiated and released. If separation can be achieved five days before emergence, this will also enable irradiated male pupae to be shipped to other destinations as required. Other Diptera were evaluated using this system but had lower classification accuracies of 50–74%. This may be due to the difference in reproductive physiology between these different fly groups.

Genetic selection for growth parameters in broiler stocks has created parent stocks that are unable to self-regulate feed intake to a level that permits reproductive function. Modern broiler breeders are feed restricted to limit the incidence of reproductive disorders and excessive body weight gain. A high degree of feed restriction is common during the pullet phase, which has been identified as a welfare issue. This paper examines the productive and welfare implications of feed restriction in modern breeders and the implications of returning to ad libitum (AL) feeding conditions. Feed restricted hens are compared to ALfed hens to demonstrate the full range in potential results from eliminating or reducing the degree of feed restriction in broiler breeder management. Both full feeding and restricted feeding programmes impact bird welfare. The contrast of these methods is intended to provide background information for the development of a definition of what a normal or appropriate growth profile is for broiler breeders. The implications of overfeeding on the well-being of the birds make current feed restriction programmes the more welfare-friendly alternative, despite apparent drawbacks.

Since the discovery of fading X-rays from Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) with BeppoSAX (Piro et al. 1997, Costa et al. 1997), world-wide follow-up observations in optical band have achieved the fruitful results. The case of GRB 970228, there was an optical transient, coincides with the BeppoSAX position and faded (Paradijs et al. 1997, Sahu et al. 1997). These optical observations also confirmed the extended component, which was associated with the optical transient. The new transient are fading with a power-law function in time and the later observation of HST confirmed the extended emission is stable (Fruchter et al. 1997). This extended object seems to be a distant galaxy and strongly suggests to be the host.

The mammalian placenta is an active endocrine organ capable of synthesising and secreting a wide range of hormones and proteins. Pregnancy-associated glycoprotein (PAG) is one of these. It is produced by the binucleate cells of the placenta and becomes detectable in the maternal circulation soon after implantation (Zoli et al., 1992a). PAG occurs in cattle (bPAG), goats and sheep (oPAG), and has been used for early pregnancy diagnosis and the detection of embryonic death (Ranilla et al., 1994).

In the postpartum cow bPAG has a slow disappearance rate and is detectable in maternal serum until 100 days after calving (Zoli et al., 1992b). The present work was carried out to determine the rate of decline of oPAG in postpartum ewes and to test if the disappearance rate differed with litter size, age and diet.