Rapid prototypings using direct selective laser sintering (SLS) ofmetal/ceramic powders have a great potential for design and fabrication of near net shape of metal/ceramic parts. At presents CO2, Nd:YAG and Excimer are the only possible solutions for the heavy duty manufacturing applications. At the University of Connecticut, researchers advanced the concept of rapid prototyping and other desk...

Purpose – The paper’s aim is to show the development of materials and methods which allow freeform fabrication of macroscopic Zn-air electrochemical batteries. Freedom of geometric design may allow for new possibilities in performance optimization. Design/methodology/approach – The authors have formulated battery materials which are compatible with solid freeform fabrication (SFF) while retaini...

Background: The present study aimed to investigate the presence of leptin mRNA transcript in epididymal spermatozoa of Holstein cattle by RT-PCR analysis. Materials and Methods: To collect sperm from epididymis, the whole testes of three adult Holstein bulls were quickly removed after slaughtering. Samples were transferred to the laboratory on ice and subsequently the epididymal contents were c...

Selecting parents and evaluating progenies is a very important step in breeding programs and involves approaches such as understanding the initial stages of growth and characterizing the variability among genotypes for different parameters, such as physiological, growth, biomass partitioning and nutrient translocation to the aerial part. In these cases, facilitating tools can be used to underst...

Although pollen tube growth has been an important criterion for self-compatibility evaluation in almond, there is not a clear-cut separation between positive and negative growth of pollen tubes in the different genotypes. The examination of pollen tube growth after selfing almond seedlings has allowed establishing different levels of compatibility, but not a clear-cut separation between self-co...