Growth data from birth to one year of age on 120 Beetal goats, 30 animals on each farm, including Livestock Experiment Station (LES) Rakh Kheirewala, LES Rakh Ghulaman, LES Alladad and LPRI Bahadurnagar, Okara, Pakistan, were recorded and analysed for estimating growth curve parameters: predicted live weight, »a«, turning point of growth, »b« and rate of growth »k« by using Brody and Gompertz mathematical functions employing non-linear regression models. Estimates of the growth curve parameters »a«, »b« and »k« were 29.1, 0.916 and 0.108 for Brody and 23.4, 1.984 and 0.258 for Gompertz functions, respectively. The corresponding values of determination coefficient and mean absolute deviation for these models were 99.8 and 99.8 percent and 0.0061 and 0.0050, respectively. Flock significantly affected parameter »b« of Brody and Gompertz models. Sex did not affect any of the parameters in both models. Type of birth was a significant source of variation for parameter »b« in the Brody model. The determination coefficient showed that both the models efficiently explained the growth of Beetal kids.

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BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Identifying and characterizing potential new therapeutic agents to target cell proliferation may provide improved treatments for neoplastic disorders such as cancer and polycystic diseases. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH We used the simple, tractable biomedical model Dictyostelium to investigate the molecular mechanism of naringenin, a dietary flavonoid with antiproliferative and chemopreventive actions in vitro and in animal models of carcinogenesis. We then translated these results to a mammalian kidney model, Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) tubule cells, grown in culture and as cysts in a collagen matrix. KEY RESULTS Naringenin inhibited Dictyostelium growth, but not development. Screening of a library of random gene knockout mutants identified a mutant lacking TRPP2 (polycystin-2) that was resistant to the effect of naringenin on growth and random cell movement. TRPP2 is a divalent transient receptor potential cation channel, where mutations in the protein give rise to type 2 autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). Naringenin inhibited MDCK cell growth and inhibited cyst growth. Knockdown of TRPP2 levels by siRNA in this model conferred partial resistance to naringenin such that cysts treated with 3 and 10 μM naringenin were larger following TRPP2 knockdown compared with controls. Naringenin did not affect chloride secretion. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS The action of naringenin on cell growth in the phylogenetically diverse systems of Dictyostelium and mammalian kidney cells, suggests a conserved effect mediated by TRPP2 (polycystin-2). Further studies will investigate naringenin as a potential new therapeutic agent in ADPKD.

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Screening of available local/exotic germplasm of a crop for salinity tolerance is of considerable value for the economic utilization of salt-affected soils of arid and semi-arid regions.The response of 133 lentil (Lens culinaris Medic.) accessions, to NaC1 at the germination and seedling stage, was examined. A great amount of variation of NaC1 tolerance in lentil was observed at both the growth stages but, in general, there was no consistent relationship between tolerance assessed at germination or at the seedling stage. In the NaCI treatment five accessions, ILL 5845, ILL 6451, ILL 6788, ILL 6793, and ILL 6796 produced significantly greater fresh and dry plant biomass in both absolute and relative terms than the others, but these accessions performed as well as other intermediate or low biomass producing accessions in total germination percentage and rate of germination. In view of the existence of the great amount of variability of tolerance to NaCI among lentil varieties improvement in NaC1 tolerance in this species is possible.