Effects of dietary coenzyme Q10 supplementation during gestation on the embryonic survival and reproductive performance of high‑parity sows

Background Fertility declines in high-parity sows.This study investigated whether parity-dependent declines in embryonic survival and reproductive performance could be restored by dietary coenzyme Q10(CoQ10)supplementation.Methods Two experiments were performed.In Exp.1,30 young sows that had completed their 2nd parity and 30 high-parity sows that had completed their 10^(th)parity,were fed either a control diet(CON)or a CON diet supple-mented with 1 g/kg CoQ10(+CoQ10)from mating until slaughter at day 28 of gestation.In Exp.2,a total of 314 post-weaning sows with two to nine parities were fed the CON or+CoQ10 diets from mating throughout gestation.Results In Exp.1,both young and high-parity sows had a similar number of corpora lutea,but high-parity sows had lower plasma CoQ10 concentrations,down-regulated genes involved with de novo CoQ10 synthesis in the endome-trium tissues,and greater levels of oxidative stress markers in plasma and endometrium tissues.High-parity sows had fewer total embryos and alive embryos,lower embryonic survival,and greater embryo mortality than young sows.Dietary CoQ10 supplementation increased the number of live embryos and the embryonic survival rate to levels simi-lar to those of young sows,as well as lowering the levels of oxidative stress markers.In Exp.2,sows showed a parity-dependent decline in plasma CoQ10 levels,and sows with more than four parities showed a progressive decline in the number of total births,live births,and piglets born effective.Dietary supplementation with CoQ10 increased the number of total births,live births,and born effective,and decreased the intra-litter covariation coefficients and the percentage of sows requiring farrowing assistance during parturition.Conclusions Dietary CoQ10 supplementation can improve the embryonic survival and reproductive performance of gestating sows with high parity,probably by improving the development of uterine function.

Low-Density Parity-Check Codes: Research Status and Development Direction

In this paper, we conclude five kinds of methods for construction of the regular low-density parity matrix H and three kinds of methods for the construction of irregular low-density parity-check matrix H. Through the analysis of the code rate and parameters of these eight kinds of structures, we find that the construction of low-density parity-check matrix tends to be more flexible and the parameter variability is enhanced. We propose that the current development cost should be lower with the progress of electronic technology and we need research on more practical Low-Density Parity-Check Codes (LDPC). Combined with the application of the quantum distribution key, we urgently need to explore the research direction of relevant theories and technologies of LDPC codes in other fields of quantum information in the future.

Parity space-based fault diagnosis of CCBII braking system

Fault diagnosis is a key issue of the CCBII(computer controlled brake II) braking system, because the CCBII braking system is very complicated and nonlinear, which may exhibit isolated and multi-component coupled faults. A parity space-based method was proposed for fault diagnosis of CCBII braking systems. Firstly, the mathematical models were established according to three function modules of CCBII braking systems where the air fluid theory was utilized. Then, parity vector and threshold function were designed for each output of the system so as to identify more system faults. Fault character matrix was built based on the causal relationship between the output and the fault according to the system function and internal structure. Finally, fault detection and isolation can be realized by the comparison of the observed system output and the fault character matrix. Simulation results show that the proposed method is entirely feasible and effective.

Parity recognition of blade number and manoeuvre intention classification algorithm of rotor target based on micro-Doppler features using CNN

This paper proposes a parity recognition of blade number and manoeuvre intention classification algorithm of rotor target based on the convolutional neural network(CNN) using micro Doppler features. Firstly, the time-frequency spectrograms are acquired from the radar echo by the short-time Fourier transform.Secondly, based on the obtained spectrograms, a seven-layer CNN architecture is built to recognize the blade-number parity and classify the manoeuvre intention of the rotor target. The constructed architecture contains a leaky rectified linear unit and a dropout layer to accelerate the convergence of the architecture and avoid over-fitting. Finally, the spectrograms of the datasets are divided into three different ratios, i.e., 20%, 33% and 50%,and the cross validation is used to verify the effectiveness of the constructed CNN architecture. Simulation results show that, on the one hand, as the ratio of training data increases, the recognition accuracy of parity and manoeuvre intention is improved at the same signal-to-noise ratio(SNR);on the other hand, the proposed algorithm also has a strong robustness: the accuracy can still reach 90.72% with an SNR of – 6 dB.

Unnatural parity resonance states in positron-excited hydrogen scattering

The coupled-channels optical method for positron scattering has been applied to investigate resonance states with unnatural parities in a positron-excited hydrogen system. The positronium formation channels and continuum channel are included via a complex equivalent local potential. Resonance states with angular momenta L =- 1 to L = 2 and parities （-1）L＋1 are calculated. Resonance energies and widths are reported and compared with other theoretical calculations. We found that the opening positronium formation channels play an important role in forming nondipole Feshbach resonances.

Negative Parity States in ^(39)Cl Configured by Crossing Major Shell Orbits

Traditional "magic numbers" were once regarded as immutable throughout the nuclear chart. However, unexpected changes were found for unstable nuclei around N = 20. With both proton and neutron numbers around the magic number of 20, the neutron-rich ^(39)Cl isotope provides a good test case for the study of the quantumstate evolution across the major shell. In the present work, the negative parity states in ^(39)Cl are investigated through the β decay spectroscopy of 39 S. Newly observed γ transitions together with a new state are assigned into the level scheme of ^(39)Cl. The spin parity of 5/2^- for the lowest negative parity state in ^(39)Cl is reconfirmed using the combined γ transition information. These systematic observations of the negative parity states in ^(39)Cl allow a comprehensive comparison with the theoretical descriptions. The lowest 5/2^- state in ^(39)Cl remains exotic in terms of comparisons with existing theoretical calculations and with the neighboring isotopes having similar single-particle configurations. Further experimental and theoretical investigations are suggested.

Effect of Body Mass Index on the Associations between Parity and Metabolic Syndrome and its Components among Northern Chinese Women

Objectives The aims of this study were to assess the associations between parity and metabolic syndrome(Met S)and its components and to evaluate the effects of body mass index(BMI)on these associations.Methods A total of 5,674 women were enrolled from Jidong and Kailuan communities(Tangshan,Hebei)in Northern China.All participants completed standardized questionnaires,physical examination,and biochemical measurements.Logistic regression analysis was used to test the associations.Results Compared with women with parity of one,nulliparous women had decreased odds ratios(ORs);those with parity of two had odds of abdominal obesity[OR=1.45,95%confidence interval(CI)1.17–1.81,P<0.001],high blood pressure(OR=1.26,95%CI:1.03–1.54,P=0.025),elevated fasting glucose levels(OR=1.36,95%CI:1.03–1.79,P=0.029),and Met S(OR=1.39,95%CI:1.13–1.73,P=0.002);and those with parity of three or more had increased odds of elevated triglyceride levels(OR=1.42,95%CI:1.04–1.94,P=0.027)and Met S(OR=1.50,95%CI:1.10–2.05,P=0.011)after complete adjustment for confounders.Furthermore,BMI and age subgroups partially modified the associations between parity and Met S and its components.Conclusions Parity is positively associated with Met S and select components in women.BMI is an important modifier involved in the associations between parity and MetS.

The Impact of Season, Parity, and Volume of Colostrum on Holstein Dairy Cows Colostrum Composition

The objectives of the study were to assess colostrum quality and nutrients in dairy cows in Isfahan, Iran, and to determine the effects of calving season, parity, and volume of first colostrum on colostrum quality. Colostrum samples were collected over the period January-December, from 365 Holstein dairy cows from 12 dairy farms and analyzed for their IgG, IgM, total solids, fat, protein, lactose, Ca, and P concentrations. The IgG and IgM contents were measured to be 35.8 ± 17.6 and 5.8 ± 3.8 mg/mL, respectively. Mean percentages of total solids, fat, protein, and lactose in the samples were 27.2 ± 5.8, 4.6 ± 3.4, 18.5 ± 4.9, and 2.0 ± 0.9, respectively while calcium and P concentrations were 2.69 ± 0.9 and 2.02 ± 0.88 g/kg. Colostral IgG and IgM concentrations were found to be higher during the winter months. Calving season affected lactose, Ca, and P concentrations as evidenced by the higher colostral lactose percentages in cows calved in the fall but higher calcium and P concentrations in those calved in the summer. Parity had no significant effects on IgG and IgM concentrations. However, a decreasing trend was observed in Ca and P concentrations with increasing parity. Volume of first milking colostrum did not have any effect on colostral composition. The findings of this study indicate that colostrum quality may be affected by calving season.

Shifts in the Holstein dairy cow milk fat globule membrane proteome that occur during the first week of lactation are affected by parity

Background:The milk fat globule membrane(MFGM)proteomes of colostrum and transition milk are rich sources of proteins that are likely important for neonatal calf health.In addition,characterization of these proteomes could also yield valuable information regarding mammary gland physiology of the early postpartum lactating cow.The objectives of this research were to characterize the MFGM proteomes of colostrum and transition milk through sample collections at four timepoints postpartum,including the first milking(M1,colostrum),second milking(M2,transition milk),fourth milking(M4,transition milk),and fourteenth milking(M14,mature milk),and compare these proteomes between multiparous(MP;n=10)and primiparous(PP;n=10)Holstein dairy cows.Isolated MFGM proteins were labeled using Tandem Mass tagging and analyzed using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry(LC-MS/MS).Protein identification was completed using MASCOT and Sequest in Proteome Discoverer 2.2.The scaled abundance values were analyzed using PROC MIXED in SAS to determine the effects of milking(MIL),parity(PAR),and MIL×PAR.The adaptive false-discovery rate(FDR)-adjusted P values were determined using PROC MULTTEST.Protein characterization and bioinformatic analysis were completed using a combination of PANTHER,Blast,and Uniprot.Results:A total of 104 common proteins were identified in each of the MFGM samples.Statistical analysis revealed that 70.2%of identified proteins were affected by MIL.Of these,78.1%were lower in M14 compared with M1,including immune-related proteins lactotransferrin,lactadherin and hemopexin.Parity affected 44.2%of proteins.Of the proteins affected by PAR,84.8%were higher in MP cows compared with PP cows,including apolipoprotein E and histones 2A,2B,3,and 4 b.Butyrophilin subfamily 1 member 1A and annexin 5 were higher in samples from PP cows.Milking×parity affected 32.7%of identified proteins,including lactotransferrin,gelsolin,vitamin D binding protein,and S100 proteins.Conclusions:This research supports previous findings that the Holstein MFGM proteome changes rapidly during the first week of lactation.In addition,this research identifies the impact of parity on the colostrum and transition milk MFGM proteomes,which may be important for milk-fed calf health or for the identification of protein biomarkers for mammary functionality.

Association between Parity, Carotid Plaques, and Intima Media Thickness in Northern Chinese Women

Pregnancy is always associated with several important physiological changes in women,including sex hormone levels,glycolipid metabolism,and oxidative stress.These changes may have short-term and long-term effects on their cardiovascular system.Parity is the number of times a woman has given birth.Several studies have investigated the association between parity and risk of cardiovascular diseases in women.Prospective studies have shown a fairly low incidence of cardiovascular endpoints for parous women[1].Therefore,it would be meaningful to assess the relationship between parity and other surrogate markers.

A Fast Filling Algorithm for Image Restoration Based on Contour Parity

Filling techniques are often used in the restoration of images.Yet the existing filling technique approaches either have high computational costs or present problems such as filling holes redundantly.This paper proposes a novel algorithm for filling holes and regions of the images.The proposed algorithm combines the advantages of both the parity-check filling approach and the region-growing inpainting technique.Pairing points of the region’s boundary are used to search and to fill the region.The scanning range of the filling method is within the target regions.The proposed method does not require additional working memory or assistant colors,and it can correctly fill any complex contours.Experimental results show that,compared to other approaches,the proposed algorithm fills regions faster and with lower computational cost.

Data Gathering in Wireless Sensor Networks Via Regular Low Density Parity Check Matrix

A great challenge faced by wireless sensor networks(WSNs) is to reduce energy consumption of sensor nodes. Fortunately, the data gathering via random sensing can save energy of sensor nodes. Nevertheless, its randomness and density usually result in difficult implementations, high computation complexity and large storage spaces in practical settings. So the deterministic sparse sensing matrices are desired in some situations. However,it is difficult to guarantee the performance of deterministic sensing matrix by the acknowledged metrics. In this paper, we construct a class of deterministic sparse sensing matrices with statistical versions of restricted isometry property(St RIP) via regular low density parity check(RLDPC) matrices. The key idea of our construction is to achieve small mutual coherence of the matrices by confining the column weights of RLDPC matrices such that St RIP is satisfied. Besides, we prove that the constructed sensing matrices have the same scale of measurement numbers as the dense measurements. We also propose a data gathering method based on RLDPC matrix. Experimental results verify that the constructed sensing matrices have better reconstruction performance, compared to the Gaussian, Bernoulli, and CSLDPC matrices. And we also verify that the data gathering via RLDPC matrix can reduce energy consumption of WSNs.

Parity and Risk of Ovarian Cysts： Cross-Sectional Evidence from the Dongfeng-Tongji Cohort Study

Little is known about the association between parity and the risk of ovarian cysts. The aim of this study was to examine the association between parity and the risk of ovarian cysts among a population of Chinese women. A total of 20 502 women aged 45–86 years from the Dongfeng-Tongji Cohort study completed baseline questionnaires, medical examination and provided baseline blood samples. Participants were categorized into four groups according to parity（one, two, three, and four or more live births）. Logistic regression models were used to investigate the association between parity and the risk of ovarian cysts. The prevalence of ovarian cysts in the study population was 4.0%（816/20 502）. Increasing parity was associated with decreasing risk of ovarian cysts without adjustment for any covariates and after age-adjusted model（P〈0.001）. After adjusting for potential confounders, women who had had four or more live births had lower risk of ovarian cysts（OR： 0.51; 95% CI： 0.27–0.96） compared with women who had had one live birth. There was a consistent but non-significant decreased risk of ovarian cysts for women who had had two, and three live births（OR： 0.85; 95% CI： 0.68–1.05） and（OR： 0.84; 95% CI： 0.59–1.20） respectively compared with women who had had one live birth. It was concluded that higher parity was associated with decreasing risk of ovarian cysts in this population of Chinese women. These findings could be helpful in decision making in clinical practice for gynecologists when evaluating women suspected to have ovarian cysts.

Fracture Risks Related to Parity and Breastfeeding Effect in Post-Menopausal Women Aged Sixty and Over: Results from the “Quality of Bone in Lorraine” Register

Introduction: The long term effect of accumulation of genital events as repeated pregnancy and longer breastfeeding in bone heath later in women’s life is still disputed. The objective was to assess the impact of parity and cumulated duration of breastfeeding on fracture risk in post-menopausal women aged sixty an over. Patients and Methods: It was a leading study from the register “Quality of Bone in Lorraine (QBL)” achieved in the department of endocrinology and osteoporotic disease of Nancy (France). This register included all patients sent for an assessment of the bone mass density from January 1, 2006 to December 31, 2014 (9 years). It was about post-menopausal women aged sixty an over suffering or not from osteoporosis fracture or bone fragility just after the age of 45. The genital events of patients to their age (from puberty to menopause) as well as the existence of hormone replacement therapy use, parity, and breastfeeding duration were taken into account. The assessment of bone fracture was clinical, radiological or by using the vertebral fracture assessment method. Results: 861 post-menopausal women were included. In comparison to the control group, the fractured population had a mean age of (74.3 ± 9 vs. 72 ± 8 years), a family history of fracture (32.1% vs. 26%), and an average input of calcium (2.4 ± 1 vs. 2.3 ± 0 portions per day). The age at menarche was of 12.8 ± 1 years in each group, a mean genital activity duration of (36.8 ± 3 vs. 37.2 ± 3 years), a parity of (2.1 ± 1 vs. 1.8 ± 1 children), a cumulated breastfeeding duration (4.2 ± 16 vs. 3.1 ± 5 months) and an age of menopause of (48.6 ± 4 vs. 48.6 ± 4 years) were respectively found in fractured and witness population. Overall, an osteoporotic fracture has been rediscovered in 50.9%. In multivariate analysis, only a cumulative duration of breastfeeding of 6 months and over was associated with a higher fracture risk (OR = 1.5 [1.1 - 2.2]). The impact of parity was not significant (OR = 1.1 [0.7 - 1.8]). Association with obesity was quasi significant (OR = 1.3 [0.9 - 1.9]). There was no correlation between the fracture risk and the genital activity duration (OR = 0.7 [0.5 - 1.0]), hormone replacement therapy use (OR = 1.0 [0.8 - 1.4]), daily calcium input (OR = 0.8 [0.6 - 1.3]), and age of menarche (OR = 1.0 [0.9 - 1.1]). Conclusion: This work confirms a negative impact from 6 months of cumulative breastfeeding. The modest effects observed may be related to the selection of Caucasian patients who live in an economically developed country with a limited number of pregnancies and limited duration of breastfeeding.

The Effect of Parity on Conjugated Linoleic Acid(CLA) Content in Milk Fat and CLA-Desaturase Index from Holstein Dairy Cows

The performance of lactating dairy cows and composition of the fatty acids in milk fat were measured to investigate the effect of parity on conjugated linoleic acid(CLA)in milk fat and△~9-desaturase indices from Holstein dairy cows.Milk samples of two hundred and thirty-five lactating Holstein dairy cows in north China were tested.In order to avoid possible confounding effects of diet and season,Holstein cows were fed a single diet and milk was sampled on the same day.The average content of cis-9,trans-11 CLA was 5.14 mg/g fatty acids in milk fat,varying between 1.5 and 10.5 mg/g fatty acids.The average content of cis-9,trans-11 CLA of primiparous cattle was 5.19 mg/g fatty acids in milk fat,while it was 5.11 mg/g fatty acids in multiparous animals,with no significant difference between them(P】0.05).There was a significant(P【0.05)difference between the△~9-desaturase index of cis-9 C14:l and cis-9 C16:l between primiparous and multiparous cattle but not(P】0.05)in the△~9-desaturase index of cis-9 C18:l and cis-9,trans-11 CLA.

Does parity worsen diabetes-related chronic complications in women with type 1 diabetes?

AIM: To determine the relationship between parity, glycemic control, cardiovascular risk factors and diabetesrelated chronic complications in women with type 1 diabetes.METHODS: This was a multicenter cross-sectional study conducted between December 2008 and December 2010 in 28 public clinics in 20 cities from the 4 Brazilian geographic regions. Data were obtained from 1532 female patients, 59.2% Caucasians, and aged 25.2 ± 10.6 years. Diabetes duration was of 11.5 ± 8.2 years. Patient's information was obtained through a questionnaire and a chart review. Parity was stratified in five groups: Group 0(nulliparous), group 1(1 pregnancy), group 2(2 pregnancies), group 3(3 pregnancies), group 4(≥ 4 pregnancies). Test for trend and multivariate random intercept logistic and linear regression models were used to evaluate the effect of parity upon glycemic control, cardiovascular risk factors and diabetes-related complications. RESULTS: Parity was not related with glycemic control and nephropathy. Moreover, the effect of parity upon hypertension, retinopathy and macrovascular disease did not persist after adjustments for demographic and clinical variables in multivariate analysis. For retinopathy, the duration of diabetes and hypertension were the most important independent variables and for macrovascular disease, these variables were age and hypertension. Overweight or obesity was noted in a total of 538 patients(35.1%). A linear association was found between the frequency of overweight or obesity and parity(P = 0.004). Using a random intercept multivariate linear regression model with body mass index(BMI) as dependent variable a borderline effect for parity(P = 0.06) was noted after adjustment for clinical and demographic data. The observed variability of BMI was not attributable to differences between centers.CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that parity has a borderline effect on body mass index but does not have an important effect upon hypertension and micro or macrovascular chronic complications. Future prospective evaluations must be conducted to clarify the relationship between parity, appearance or worsening of diabetesrelated chronic complications.

Direct measurement of the concurrence of hybrid entangled state based on parity check measurements

The hybrid entangled state is widely discussed in quantum information processing. In this paper, we propose the first protocol to directly measure the concurrence of the hybrid entangled state. To complete the measurement, we design parity check measurements(PCMs) for both the single polarization qubit and the coherent state. In this protocol, we perform three rounds of PCMs. The results show that we can convert the concurrence into the success probability of picking up the correct states from the initial entangled states. This protocol only uses polarization beam splitters, beam splitters, and weak cross-Kerr nonlinearities, which is feasible for future experiments. This protocol may be useful in future quantum information processing.

Influence of the Unique-Parity States on Collectivity of Low-Lying States

The importance of the unique-parity single particle level in the description of nuclear collectivity is stressed in the framework of the nucleon-pair shell model truncated to the SD subspace.It is found that with the shell model Hamiltonian which includes the single particle energy term,the unique-parity single particle level has to be included for describing the low-lying collective states reasonably.

Parity and carotid atherosclerosis in elderly Chinese women

Background The relationship between parity and atherosclerosis has been reported in some ethnic populations.However,results regarding Chinese women are still lacking.This study aimed to investigate the association of parity and carotid atherosclerosis,which has a predictive value of subsequent atherosclerotic events in elderly Chinese women.Methods A total of 2,052 participants from the medical examination center of the Third Xiangya Hospital were enrolled in the study.A standardized,structured questionnaire was administered to collect information on subjects’demographic characteristics,socioeconomic status,and cardiovascular risk factors.High-resolution ultrasound was used to examine carotid plaques and carotid intima-media thickness(IMT).Results The mean age of participants was 66.1±5.5 years.Women with more birth appeared to have a higher risk of carotid artery plaques.A multivariate-adjusted model yielded an odds ratio of 1.38(95%CI:12%-70%,P=0.003)per birth.A positive association was observed between parity and common carotid IMT(β±SE:0.029±0.006,P<0.001),and internal carotid IMT(β±SE:0.011±0.005,P=0.03)in a univariate model;however,these associations became non-significant in multivariate-adjusted models.When common carotid IMT was classified into an IMT≥1 mm group and an IMT<1 mm group,higher parity was associated with more obvious thickening both in the unadjusted model(OR=1.61,95%CI:1.29-2.00,P<0.001)and in the fully adjusted model(OR=1.43,95%CI:1.09-1.88,P=0.01).Conclusions There is a positive association between parity and risk of carotid plaques,as well as between parity and risk of obvious thickening for common carotid IMT in elderly Chinese women,indicating multiparous women might experience more atherosclerotic challenges.

Improving entanglement of assistance by local parity–time symmetric operation

We investigate entanglement of assistance without and with decoherence using a local non-Hermitian operation, i.e.,parity–time(PT) symmetric operation. First we give the explicit expressions of entanglement of assistance for a general W-like state of a three-qubit system under a local parity–time symmetric operation. Then for a famous W state without decoherence, we find that entanglement of assistance shared by two parties can be obviously enhanced with the assistance of the third party by a local parity–time symmetric operation. For the decoherence case, we provide two schemes to show the effects of local parity–time symmetric operation on improvement of entanglement of assistance against amplitude damping noise. We find that for the larger amplitude damping case the scheme of PT symmetric operation performed on one of two parties with the influence of noise is superior to that of PT symmetric operation performed on the third party without the influence of noise in suppressing amplitude damping noise. However, for the smaller amplitude damping case the opposite result is given. The obtained results imply that the local PT symmetric operation method may have potential applications in quantum decoherence control.