Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs

Increasing concerns about antimicrobial resistance have led to the development and implementation of alternatives to antimicrobial use in animal production. The objective of this clinical trial was to determine the effect of colostrum supplementation of the milk replacer ration on morbidity, mortality, feed intake, and weight gain of preweaned calves. Ninety 1-d-old calves on each of 3 commercial calf ranches were randomly allocated to 1 of 3 groups. Treatment-group calves received 10 g of supplemental immunoglobulin G (IgG) in the form of 70 g of colostrum powder in the milk replacer twice daily for 14 d. The placebo-group calves received a nutritionally equivalent supplement lacking IgG in the milk replacer twice daily for 14 d. Control calves received milk replacer without supplements twice daily. Calves were housed in individual hutches and were weighed on d 1, 28, and 60. Serum was collected on d 2 for serum IgG determination. Daily health evaluations for the first 28 d of life were performed by study personnel blinded to treatment group assignment. Observed illness was treated based on health assessment, rectal temperature, and specific calf ranch protocols. Feed consumption (milk and grain) was recorded. Calves receiving supplemental colostrum had less diarrhea and received fewer antimicrobial treatments than control and placebo calves. The results indicated that calf diarrhea was associated with low serum IgG levels and low-weight calves. Grain consumption and weight gain over the first 28 d of life were significantly greater in colostrum-supplemented calves compared with control calves. No differences in mortality or respiratory disease incidence among groups were detected. Supplemental colostrum during the first 2 wk of life can reduce diarrheal disease in preweaned calves on calf ranches and thereby reduce the amount of antimicrobial treatments needed.

Synthesis and structural characterization of a turbostratically disordered polymorph of (PbSe)1.18(TiSe2)2 is reported. The structure of this compound consists of an intergrowth between one distorted rock salt structured PbSe bilayer and two transition metal dichalcogenide structured Se–Ti–Se trilayers. In addition to the lattice mismatch, there is extensive rotational disorder between these constituents. The electrical resistivity of (PbSe)1.18(TiSe2)2 is a factor of 9 lower at room temperature, and the Seebeck coefficient is almost double that reported for the crystalline misfit layered compound analogue.

Keywords: Layered compounds / Thin films / Electronic structure / Thermoelectric materials / Charge transfer (SnSe) 1.2 TiSe 2 was found to self-assemble from a precursor containing modulated layers of Sn-Se and Ti-Se over a surprisingly large range of layer thicknesses and compositions. The constituent lattices form an alternating layer superstructure with rotational disorder present between the layers. This compound was found to have the highest Seebeck coefficient measured for analogous TiX 2 containing misfit layered compounds to date, suggesting potential for [a]83 low-temperature thermoelectric applications. Electrical characterization suggests that electrons transferred from SnSe to TiSe 2 are responsible for the higher carrier concentration observed relative to bulk TiSe 2 . The transfer of charge from one constituent to the other may provide a mechanism for doping layered dichalcogenides for various applications without negatively affecting carrier mobility.

The synthesis and characterization of turbostratically disordered (BiSe) 1.15 TiSe 2 is reported. Specular and in-plane x-ray diffraction studies indicate an alternating structure containing two planes of a distorted rock salt structured BiSe and a Se-Ti-Se trilayer of TiSe 2 with independent lattices. The title compound was found to be turbostratically (rotationally) disordered about the c-axis, and the BiSe layer displays an orthorhombic in-plane structure with a = 4.562(2) Å and b = 4.242(1) Å. Temperature dependent electrical resistivity reveals that the disordered compound is metallic, but with less temperature dependence than may be expected for a 3D crystal, which is attributed to the lack of coherent vibrations due to the turbostratic disorder. The room temperature resistivity was found to be ρ = 5.0 × 10 −6 m with a carrier concentration of n = 5 × 10 21 cm −3 . Comparing the carrier concentration to (PbSe) 1.16 TiSe 2 suggests that the bismuth is trivalent and donates an electron to the conduction band of the TiSe 2 constituent.