Increased QRS duration and dispersion are associated with mechanical dyssynchrony in patients with permanent right ventricular apical pacing.

Background: Permanent right ventricular apical pacing may have negative effects on ventricular function and contribute to development of heart failure. We aimed to assess intra- and interventricular mechanical dyssynchrony in patients with permanent right ventricular apical pacing, and to establish electrocardiographic markers of dyssynchrony.

Methods: 84 patients (46:38 male:female) who required permanent pacing were studied.

Effects of exposure to artificial long days on milk yield, maternal insulin-like growth factor 1 levels and kid growth rate in subtropical goats.

This study was designed to determine whether any relationship exists between exposure to artificial long days, milk yield, maternal plasma insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) levels, and kid growth rate in goats. One group of lactating goats was maintained under naturally decreasing day length (control group; n = 19), while in another one, they were kept under artificial long days (LD group; n = 19). Milk yield was higher in goats from the LD group than that in the control group (P < 0.

Feeding corn during the last 12 days of gestation improved colostrum production and neonatal activity in goats grazing subtropical semi-arid rangeland.

The objectives were to investigate if partial substitution of a grazing diet with a supplemental high-starch feed during the last 12 d of gestation improved colostrum yield and neonatal activity in goat does grazing semi-arid rangeland. For the first objective, 25 pregnant does were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 treatments: 1) grazing only (control; n = 11), and 2) grazing plus 0.6 kg/d of supplemental corn (as fed), a high starch feed, during the last 12 ± 1.

Artificial long-day photoperiod in the subtropics increases milk production in goats giving birth in late autumn.

Two experiments were conducted to determine whether exposure to a photoperiod of artificial long days in autumn increased milk yield in subtropical goats milked once (Exp. I) or twice daily (Exp. II).

Implications for evolution of nuclear structures of animals, plants, fungi and protoctists.

The evolutionary variations of nuclear structure of animals, plants, fungi and protoctists were studied with electron microscopy by using techniques preferentially staining ribonucleoprotein (RNP) particles and chromatin. A remarkable similarity in the general morphological features of the RNP particles and chromatin arrangement is found in animals, plants and fungi. Important variations of these features were found in protoctists.