Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is an omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (n-3 PUFA) required for fetal neurodevelopment. Increased DHA levels are associated with 17β-estradiol levels, as DHA is higher in women relative to men and in pregnant relative to non-pregnant women, suggesting a maternal adaptation to supply DHA to the fetus. DHA can be synthesized in the body from shorter n-3 PUFA through sequential elongation-desaturation, with Δ6-desaturase being the rate-limiting enzyme. The goal of the present thesis was to characterize the mechanism underlying higher DHA in situations of altered 17β-estradiol status by examining the expression of DHA synthesis enzymes in rodent models. Fatty acid composition of several lipid classes was measured by gas chromatography and enzyme expression was measured by RT-qPCR and immunoblotting. Hepatic Δ6-desaturase and phospholipid DHA was higher in female relative to male, and in pregnant relative to non-pregnant rats. Similarly, 17β-estradiol supplementation of ovariectomized rats resulted in increased hepatic Δ6-desaturase expression and DHA content, while ovariectomy itself had no effects on DHA levels despite controlling for hyperphagia. Mice deficient in the DNA binding activity of estrogen receptor α (ERα) had no differences in hepatic Δ6-desaturase or DHA levels. These results suggest that 17β-estradiol mediates the higher DHA levels in females and during pregnancy through increasing hepatic Δ6-desaturase expression, although the effects of removing 17β-estradiol signalling through ovariectomy or ERα disruption are less clear. This work helps to explain findings of altered DHA status in response to changes in 17β-estradiol concentrations, possibly resulting in more appropriately tailored dietary DHA recommendations. Also, increased understanding of the regulation of DHA synthesis may improve DHA yields in agri/aquaculture and enable increased content of DHA in the food supply.

Chemical, physical and sensory properties of omega-3 fatty acid enriched chicken frankfurters developed with flax oil and microencapsulated fish oil at 1.2%, 2.4% and 3.6% were evaluated. Four replicate batches of frankfurters were produced for texture profile analysis and TBARS for assessment of lipid oxidation over four weeks of refrigerated storage. Gas chromatograph analysis indicated that omega-3 fatty acid levels increased (p<0.05) with flax and fish oils treatments resulting in a shift in omega-6/omega-3 with no increase in lipid oxidation over the storage period. The two highest levels of fish oil resulted in increased redness, hardness, gumminess and chewiness (p<0.05) with the highest fish oil having the lowest rating for acceptability. 1.2 and 2.4% flax oil and 1.2% fish oil samples were softer and juicier than commercial frankfurters. Addition of oils high in omega-3 fatty acids to chicken-based frankfurters can result in product resistant to oxidation and acceptable to consumers.

The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effect of rumen-protected fish oil (RPFO) and rumen-protected marine algae (RPMA) supplements on ovarian function of lactating dairy cows on pasture or in confinement during the estrus and ovulation synchronization period. Thirty-six Holstein cows were assigned to one of the two feeding systems and fed with lipid supplements from 30d before to 100d after calving. The resumption of cyclicity and onset of estrus were not influenced by LS. Mean daily number of the large follicles was similar across the treatments. During the Ovsynch period, RPFO treated cows had larger follicles (?10mm; P<0.05). Ovulation was delayed in RPFO and RPMA group but the number of ovulation was not altered. The number and diameter of CL were greater in the RPMA group. Progesterone concentrations were greater in the RPMA group on pasture (P<0.05). These findings indicate that RPMA supplementation improves the ovarian function.

Experiments were conducted to assess the effect of feeding diets containing ground flaxseed (FS); as a source of α-linolenic acid (18:3n-3), on whole body retention efficiency (RE) and disappearance (indirect measure of oxidation) of 18:3n-3, and apparent conversion (AC) of 18:3n-3 to n-3 highly unsaturated fatty acids (HUFA) in growing female pigs, using the mass balance approach (serial slaughter). Oxidation of 18:3n-3 was determined directly based on feeding U-13C-18:3n-3 and appearance of 13C in expired breath. Growth performance, composition of growth, body composition, and carcass and loin meat characteristics were not affected by feeding FS containing diets (P > 0.10). In selective pork cuts and the whole body, feeding FS increased (P < 0.10) the contents of 18:3n-3, eicosatrienoic acid (20:3n-3), eicosapentaenoic acid (20:5n-3), and docosapentaenoic acid (22:5n-3) but not docosahexaenoic acid (22:6n-3; P > 0.10). Expressed as a proportion of intake, RE of 18:3n-3 declined with duration of feeding FS (d 0 to 15 vs. d 15 to 30; P = 0.098; 68.4 vs. 52.8%). Similarly, the AC of 18:3n-3 to 20:3n-3 (8.87 vs. 5.53%) and 22:6n-3 (1.27 vs. 0.54%) was reduced over time (P < 0.05), whereas disappearance of 18:3n-3 increased over time (P = 0.074; 2.12 vs. 23.7%). At similar cumulative intake of 18:3n-3, stage of growth (25 to 50 vs. 85 to 110 kg BW) did not impact (P > 0.10) RE of 18:3n-3 and the sum of all n-3 polyunsaturated (PUFA; 95 vs. 110%), AC of 18:3n-3 to n-3 HUFA (19 vs. 22%), and oxidation of 18:3n-3 (7.0 vs. 5.6%); these parameters were influenced by dietary 18:3n-3 level. Pigs fed low dietary 18:3n-3 (0.8 g/kg) yielded both higher RE and AC of 18:3n-3 to n-3 HUFA than pigs on high dietary 18:3n-3 intake (15 g/kg). Oxidation of 18:3n-3 tended to increase with dietary 18:3n-3 level (P = 0.077; 7.97 vs. 4.67% for pigs on high and low dietary 18:3n-3, respectively) and was not affected by previous 18:3n-3 intake (P > 0.10). Feeding modest amounts of FS leads to a substantial and predictable enrichment of n-3 PUFA in pork without compromising carcass and meat quality. The content of n-3 PUFA appears to be independent of timing of feeding n-3 PUFA, providing flexibility as to when n-3 PUFA can be fed for generating n-3 PUFA enriched, value added pork. / Ontario Pork, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Agricultural and Agri-Food Canada, and Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.

Uranium-10wt% zirconium (U-10Zr) alloy nuclear fuels have been used for decades and new variations are under consideration ranging from U-5Zr to U-50Zr. As a precursor to understanding the fission gas behavior in U-Zr alloys using ion implantation, a basic study on the U-Zr metallurgy was completed using EPMA, DSC, XRD, Optical microscopy, and TEM with a focus on solid state phase transformations in alloys containing 2, 5, 10, 20, 30, and 50wt% zirconium. Alloys were cast by crucible melting using high temperature furnace under argon atmosphere in yttrium oxide crucibles and various thermal profiles were used to study phase transformations in these alloys. Using TEM, XRD, and DSC data, it was ascertained that athermal-ω, along with martensitic α1, formed in all alloys quenched from γ phase. XRD could detect the presence of athermal-ω only in U-20, 30 and 50wt%Zr alloys. BSE images for as-cast alloys of 2, 5, 10, 20, and 30wt%Zr had lamellar microstructure with lamellae rich in zirconium. All alloy samples clearly showed a heating transformation pertaining to δ → γ in DSC data while XRD could only confirm the presence of δ phase in U-20, 30, and 50wt%Zr alloys. An explanation is offered for the absence of δ phase peaks in uranium-rich alloys based on its formation mechanism. Alloy samples of U-2, 5, and 10wt%Zr were step-cooled from γ phase by annealing in the (α + δ) phase field before cooling to room temperature revealed broad peaks for δ phase indicating incomplete collapse of {111}γ planes. Both as cast and γ- quenched alloys were annealed at 600degreeC, in the (α + δ) phase field for 1, 3, 7, and 30 days. Microstructures of the samples in both cases contained uranium-rich matrix and zirconium-rich precipitates and WDS analyses were consistent with their being α-U and δ phase respectively. However, XRD data for annealed alloys never showed peaks for δ phase even though it’s area fraction was within the detection limits. Moreover, the peaks which were present in U-20wt%Zr vanished after annealing for 7 days. Based on the data obtained, it is suggested that it is more appropriate to consider the presence of metastable diffusional-ω instead of a stable δ in the as-cast alloys and that it is not stable at 600degreeC.

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This thesis is a groundwork for a search for the C-violating φ → ωγ decay and the rare ω → l+l−π0 decay with the KLOE detector. A feasibility study of the detection acceptance for the ω → π+π−π0 and ω → l+l−π0 decays produced in the e+e− → ωγISR and e+e− → ωπ0 production channels. A study of the main background to the forbidden φ decay, the e+e− → ωγISR process, is performed using a data sample with an integrated luminosity of L = 1.6 fb−1 collected by the KLOE detector at center of mass energy √s = 1019 MeV. / Walter Andersson

In order to understand the origin of globular clusters, large samples of their stars need to be observed and analyzed for their chemical composition. This is especially true for the complex, multimetallic cluster ω Centauri, with its large range of iron, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, sodium and barium abundances. In order to accomplish this, an automated spectral matching pipeline was developed to determine these abundances. This thesis made use of photometry and low resolution spectroscopy to analyze the chemical composition of evolved stars in three clusters: ω Cen, 47 Tuc and NGC 6752. The latter two clusters are monometallic and selected due to their similar metallicities to the metal-rich and metal-poor stars in ω Cen. This allowed them to be used as test-cases for the spectral matching pipeline. For ω Cen, two analyses were performed. In the first, 221 giant branch stars were selected that had known [O/Fe]. These stars showed the expected anticorrelation in [C/Fe]to [N/Fe]. In the second, spectral indices were used to estimate the oxygen abundance of the stars, leading to a determination of whether a particular star was oxygen-rich or oxygen-poor. From this a catalogue of abundances of iron, carbon and barium of 848 giant branch stars were determined, of which 557 also had well-defined nitrogen abundances. k-means clustering analysis was used to group the stars in ω Cen into four homogeneous groups based upon these abundances. These groups suggest that there were at least four main periods of star formation in the cluster. The exact order of these star formation events is not yet understood, with some models predicting the groups formed from iron-poorest to iron-richest, while others suggest the potential for iron-poorer groups to form after iron-rich groups. These results compare well with those found from higher resolution studies and show the value of more extensive lower resolution spectral surveys. They also highlight the need for large samples of stars when working with a complex object like ω Cen.