Udder depth, width, and circumference; cistern height; teat position, angle, length, and width; and milk yield at 120 d were studied in 113 Churra sheep from three flocks. Means were 9.30, 12.18, and 46.55 cm, respectively, for udder depth, width, and circumference; 1.48 cm for cistern height; 3.64 (scored from 1 to 5) for teat position; 50.39 degrees for teat angle; 3.83 and 1.93 cm, respectively, for teat length and width; and 132.39 L for milk yield. Analysis of variance showed significant effects for lactation month, flock, parity number, and milk yield. The traits related to udder size (depth, width, and circumference) were significantly influenced by lactation month, flock, and milk yield and showed low repeatability (.17 to .18). The traits related to cistern morphology (cistern height, teat position, and angle) were significantly influenced by flock and parity number. These traits, together with teat length and width, had high repeatabilities (.45 to .77). Cistern height, teat position and angle, and size of teats are related to aptitude of the udder for mechanical milking. This association, as with cattle, would justify focusing genetic improvement on these traits.

One hundred seven patients afflicted with incident laryngeal cancer and 290 controls with diseases considered not related to tobacco and alcohol exposure were interviewed in the University Hospital of Montevideo, Uruguay. The study followed a case-referent design, and epidemiologic analysis was carried out at the Louisiana State University, New Orleans. Dark tobacco smoking was the strongest risk factor, with an RR 2.5 times higher than that showed by light (flue-cured) tobacco smokers and 35 times that of non-smokers. Alcohol exposure displayed lesser effects but its interaction with tobacco smoking resulted in very high risks (more than 100 times higher). Among particular types of alcoholic beverages, red wine showed RR's similar to those displayed by hard liquor consumption. The habit of drinking a local tea called "mate" was associated with a threefold increase in risk, after controlling for the effects of age and tobacco and alcohol consumption. Infrequent consumption of vegetables and fruits showed RR on the order of 2.7, suggesting a role of diet in the causation of laryngeal cancer.

No abstract

An animal model was used to estimate the repeatabilities and genetic parameters of linear udder traits of Churra ewes (5265 records from 2015 ewes). In addition, the phenotypic correlations were examined between log SCC and udder traits.Heritabilities of udder depth (0.16), udder attachment (0.17), teat placement (0.24), teat size (0.18), and udder shape (0.24) were similar to those for dairy cattle, making it feasible to use data from the proposed linear system in a breeding program to improve the machine milkability of ewes.Genetic correlations among udder traits were generally favorable, implying that selection for improvement of one trait would result in improvement of others. A notable exception was the genetic correlation between teat placement and teat size of 0.62. Vertical placement of teats was associated with larger teats. Also, genetic correlations between udder and yield traits (milk and protein yields) were small, except for udder depth and teat placement. These exceptions predict worsening udder morphology from selection based solely on milk yield.Phenotypic correlations between udder traits and log SCC indicate that present handling routines led to a greater likelihood of infections for deep udders with large teats. (

No abstract