Thoroughbred horses are seasonal mating animals, raised in northern regions or countries. Foals born yearly in spring generally show a typical seasonal compensatory growth pattern, in which their growth rate declines in the first winter and increases in the next spring. In this study, a new empirical adjustment approach is proposed to adjust for this compensatory growth when growth curve equations are estimated, by using 1,633 male body weights of Thoroughbreds as an illustrating example. Based on general Richards growth curve equation, a new growth curve equation was developed and fit to the weight-age data. The new growth curve equation had a sigmoid sub-function that can adjust the compensatory growth, combined with the Richards biological parameter responsible for the maturity of animals. The unknown parameters included in the equations were estimated by SAS NLMIXED procedure. The goodness of fit was examined by using Akaike’s Information Criterion (AIC). The AIC values decreased from 13,053 (general Richards equation) to 12,794 (the newly developed equation), indicating the better fit of the new equation to the weight-age data. The shape of the growth curve was improved during the period of compensatory growth. The proposed method is one of the useful approaches for adjusting seasonal compensatory growth in growth curve estimations for Thoroughbreds, and for their management during the compensatory period. Based on this approach, the optimal growth curve equations can be estimated also for female body weight of Thoroughbreds or other growth traits affected by seasonal compensatory growth.

Thoroughbred horses are seasonal mating animals, and their foals are born yearly in spring seasons. In northern regions or countries, the foals generally show a typical seasonal compensatory growth pattern, where their growth rate declines in winter and increases in the next spring. In this study, a new empirical approach is proposed to adjust for this compensatory growth when growth curve equations are estimated, by using BW of Japanese Thoroughbred colts and fillies raised in Hidaka, Hokkaido. Based on the traditional Richards growth curve equation, new growth curve equations were developed and fit to the weight-age data. The foals generally experience 2 major winter seasons before their debut in horseracing. The new equations had sigmoid subfunctions that can empirically adjust the first and second year compensatory growths, combined with the Richards biological parameter responsible for the maturity of animals. The unknown parameters included in the equations were estimated by SAS NLMIXED procedure. The goodness-of-fit was examined by using several indices of goodness-of-fit (i.e., Akaike's information criterion, Bayesian information criterion, -2 log likelihood, and residual sum of squares) for the multiple applications of the subfunctions. The indices indicated the best fit of the new equations including both subfunctions for the first and second compensatory growths to the weight-age data. The shapes of the growth curves were improved during the periods of compensatory growth. The proposed method is one of the useful approaches for adjusting multiple seasonal compensatory growths in growth curve estimations of Thoroughbreds and for the management of young horses during the compensatory periods.

Ancient Egyptians used pigeons not only as food in the form of squab but also as a messenger by virtue of their strong homing ability. Pigeons are bred for many purposes like meat in the form of squabs, exhibition as fancy and ornamental, flying and sports like racing competition, and finally for laboratory experiments of cognitive sciences. In this study, a total of pigeon samples of six Egyptian breeds ( ) and Japanese racing pigeons ( ) were surveyed. One sample from each breed was sequenced for mitochondrial gene and all samples were genotyped across microsatellites loci. From sequence, all the seven studied populations were found to belong to same the species (). By the analysis of microsatellite loci a total of alleles were observed with an average of . alleles per locus. The expected heterozygosities of the six Egyptian breeds and Japanese racing pigeons were .and . , respectively. showed a relatively high mean of .which indicated that there is a great di erentiation among the seven pigeon populations. Zagel breed and Japanese racing pigeons showed the lowest values for both pairwise ( . ) and Nei's genetic distance ( . ). The information from this study would be useful for genetic characterization and provide a foundation for developing sustainable genetic improvement and conservation programs of this agriculturally and commercially important species.: Egyptian breed, genetic diversity, microsatellite, mitochondrial pigeon form of squab and used pigeon's nitrogen-rich guano or feaces as fertilizers (Jerolmack, ). They discovered The importance of maintaining genetic diversity in dothe strong homing ability of pigeons and used them as a mestic livestock is advocated worldwide by the Food and messenger. An Egyptian bas-relief from around B.C. Agriculture Organization (FAO). Therefore, conserva-"depicts a flock of doves being released from their cages to tion of native breeds as a genetic resource is important to fly and then return" (Glover and Beaumont, ). fill unanticipated breeding demands in the future (Tadano The six Egyptian indigenous pigeon breeds used in this b). Among these species, pigeons are believed study don't belong to feral pigeons. Five of these breeds: to be domesticated as early as B.C. (Glover and Ablaq (Levi, ), Krezly, Zagel, Safi and Asfer Weraq Beaumont, ) and today there are over breeds of characterize by strong homing and flying abilities and domestic pigeons, all originating from one wild source, the mainly used for certain kind of a very popular flying game rock dove (Bodio, ). Pigeons are bred for many in Egypt, whereas the last one (Romani breed) characterpurposes like meat in the form of squabs, exhibition as ize by heavy body weight and used mainly for meat fancy and ornamental, flying and sports like racing compeproduction in form of squabs.

Percentile growth curves are often used as a clinical indicator to evaluate variations of children’s growth status. In this study, we propose empirical percentile growth curves using Z-scores adapted for Japanese Thoroughbred horses, with considerations of the seasonal compensatory growth that is a typical characteristic of seasonal breeding animals. We previously developed new growth curve equations for Japanese Thoroughbreds adjusting for compensatory growth. Individual horses and residual effects were included as random effects in the growth curve equation model and their variance components were estimated. Based on the Z-scores of the estimated variance components, empirical percentile growth curves were constructed. A total of 5,594 and 5,680 body weight and age measurements of male and female Thoroughbreds, respectively, and 3,770 withers height and age measurements were used in the analyses. The developed empirical percentile growth curves using Z-scores are computationally feasible and useful for monitoring individual growth parameters of body weight and withers height of young Thoroughbred horses, especially during compensatory growth periods.

A durable response after the discontinuation of immune checkpoint-inhibitor therapy has previously been reported in several cancers. We herein describe a patient with gastric cancer who maintained a durable response after the discontinuation of nivolumab. A 65-year-old man was treated with nivolumab as a sixth-line therapy for recurrent gastric cancer. After four cycles of nivolumab therapy, he showed a partial response. But the treatment was discontinued when two immune-related adverse events occurred after six cycles. Disease regression was sustained for approximately 2 years, without the re-administration of nivolumab. The characteristics leading to such responses are unclear, and further studies are warranted in this regard.