http://krex.k-state.edu:80/dspace The K-REx digital repository system captures, stores, indexes, preserves, and distributes digital research material. 2013-05-24T21:34:09Z http://hdl.handle.net/2097/15849 Interaction between innate immunity and porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus Sang, Yongming; Rowland, Raymond R. R.; Blecha, Frank Innate immunity provides frontline antiviral protection and bridges adaptive immunity against virus infections. However, viruses can evade innate immune surveillance potentially causing chronic infections that may lead to pandemic diseases. Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) is an example of an animal virus that has developed diverse mechanisms to evade porcine antiviral immune responses. Two decades after its discovery, PRRSV is still one of the most globally devastating viruses threatening the swine industry. In this review, we discuss the molecular and cellular composition of the mammalian innate antiviral immune system with emphasis on the porcine system. In particular, we focus on the interaction between PRRSV and porcine innate immunity at cellular and molecular levels. Strategies for targeting innate immune components and other host metabolic factors to induce ideal anti-PRRSV protection are also discussed. 2013-05-22T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/2097/15848 Analyses of pig genomes provide insight into porcine demography and evolution Groenen, Martien A. M.; Archibald, Alan L.; Uenishi, Hirohide; Tuggle, Christopher K.; Takeuchi, Yasuhiro; Rothschild, Max F.; Rogel-Gaillard, Claire; Blecha, Frank; Sang, Yongming For 10,000 years pigs and humans have shared a close and complex relationship. From domestication to modern breeding practices, humans have shaped the genomes of domestic pigs. Here we present the assembly and analysis of the genome sequence of a female domestic Duroc pig (Sus scrofa) and a comparison with the genomes of wild and domestic pigs from Europe and Asia. Wild pigs emerged in South East Asia and subsequently spread across Eurasia. Our results reveal a deep phylogenetic split between European and Asian wild boars ~1 million years ago, and a selective sweep analysis indicates selection on genes involved in RNA processing and regulation. Genes associated with immune response and olfaction exhibit fast evolution. Pigs have the largest repertoire of functional olfactory receptor genes, reflecting the importance of smell in this scavenging animal. The pig genome sequence provides an important resource for further improvements of this important livestock species, and our identification of many putative disease-causing variants extends the potential of the pig as a biomedical model. 2013-05-22T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/2097/15847 Hubble parameter measurement constraints on dark energy Farooq, Omer; Mania, Data; Ratra, Bharat V. We use 21 Hubble parameter versus redshift data points, from Simon et al. (2005), Gazta~naga et al. (2009), Stern et al. (2010), and Moresco et al. (2012a), to place constraints on model parameters of constant and time-evolving dark energy cosmologies. The inclusion of the 8 new Moresco et al. (2012a) measurements results in H(z) constraints more restrictive than those derived by Chen & Ratra (2011b). These constraints are now almost as restrictive as those that follow from current Type Ia supernova (SNIa) apparent magnitude versus redshift data (Suzuki et al. 2012), which now more carefully account for systematic uncertainties. This is a remarkable result. We emphasize however that SNIa data have been studied for a longer time than the H(z) data, possibly resulting in a better estimate of potential systematic errors in the SNIa case. A joint analysis of the H(z), baryon acoustic oscillation peak length scale, and SNIa data favors a spatially-flat cosmological model currently dominated by a time-independent cosmological constant but does not exclude slowly-evolving dark energy. 2013-05-22T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/2097/15846 Ultrasonic vibration-assisted pelleting for cellulosic biofuel manufacturing: investigation on power consumption Zhang, Qi; Zhang, Pengfei; Pei, Zhijian; Wang, Donghai Cellulosic ethanol produced from cellulosic biomass is an alternative to petroleum-based transportation fuels. Raw cellulosic biomass has low density, causing high costs in their storage, transportation, and handling. Ultrasonic vibration-assisted (UV-A) pelleting can increase the density of cellulosic biomass. Effects of UV-A pelleting variables on pellet quality (density, durability, stability, and strength) and sugar yield have been reported. However, power consumption in UV-A pelleting has not been fully investigated. This paper presents an experimental investigation on power consumption in UV-A pelleting of wheat straw. Effects of input variables (biomass moisture content, biomass particle size, pelleting pressure, and ultrasonic power) on power consumption are investigated. Results show that power consumption in UV-A pelleting increases as moisture content and particle size decrease, and as pelleting pressure and ultrasonic power increase. 2013-05-22T00:00:00Z