various cross-sectional and longitudinal studies have suggested that synthetic bedding is associated with asthma, allergic rhinitis and eczema while feather bedding seems to be protective. synthetic bedding items have higher house dust mite allergen levels than feather bedding items. this is possibly the mechanism involved although fungal and bacterial proinflammatory compounds and volatile org...

We present a model for geometric modeling and rendering of individual feathers for computer graphics purposes. The model represents the feather structure with a collection of parameterized Bézier curves. This parametrization allows easy generation of the existent types of feather structures with biologically-motivated parameters. Once the feather structure is defined, the feathers can be render...

Feathers are byproduct waste of poultry processing plant and produced in large amount. A small percentage of feather waste is steamed, chemically treated, ground, to form feather meal a dietary protein supplement for animals. Alternatively, keratin can be biodegraded by some Keratinolytic bacteria and in this study Keratinase producing bacteria and their Keratinolytic enzyme production was inve...

In the process of organogenesis, different cell types form organized tissues and tissues are integrated into an organ. Most organs form in the developmental stage, but new organs can also form in physiological states or following injuries during adulthood. Feathers are a good model to study post-natal organogenesis because they regenerate episodically under physiological conditions and in respo...

Preen oil is an oleaginous secretion that birds spread onto their plumage when preening. It is secreted by the uropygial (or preen) gland, a holocrine complex that is unique to birds and located in the integument of the rump (Clark 2004). The functions of the uropygial gland are still disputed: it may be involved in sexual communication, through pheromone production (Hirao et al. 2009), and thr...

INTRODUCTION Observational studies report inverse associations between the use of feather upper bedding (pillow and/or quilt) and asthma symptoms but there is no randomised controlled trial (RCT) evidence assessing the role of feather upper bedding as a secondary prevention measure. OBJECTIVE To determine whether, among children not using feather upper bedding, a new feather pillow and feathe...

1. The capacity of skin constituents to participate in feather and hair morphogenesis has been analysed in chick and mouse embryos. 2. Reconstituted homoand heterospecific skin explants, consisting of epidermis and dermis from both species, were cultured for 8 days on the chorioallantoic membrane of the chick. 3. Recombinants of dorsal 11-5and 125-day mouse epidermis and dorsal 7-day or tarsome...

This paper uses a fashioned ostrich plume to conceptualize and re-present “feather-work” as being co-constituted by human non-human labor. The archives not only the hands that it but also bird-body grew feathers, insisting be conceptualized researched grown-made commodity. From this starting point, I reconstruct its journey along “feather-road”: from reared plucked on South African farm willowe...

Ten passerine species were examined on three islands of the Azores (North Atlantic) during 2013 and 2014 in order to identify their feather mite assemblages. We recorded 19 feather mite species belonging to four families of the superfamily Analgoidea (Analgidae, Proctophyllodidae, Psoroptoididae and Trouessartiidae). A high prevalence of feather mite species was recorded on the majority of the ...

Feather mites (Astigmata: Analgoidea and Pterolichoidea) are among the most abundant and commonly occurring bird ectosymbionts. Basic questions on the ecology and evolution of feather mites remain unanswered because feather mite species identification is often only possible for adult males, and it is laborious even for specialized taxonomists, thus precluding large-scale identifications. Here, ...