This research communication reports a study to model the growth curves for withers height (WH) and body weight (BW) to withers height ratio (BW:WH) using monthly records (from 1 to 24 months of age) for three breeds of dairy heifer (Holstein, Jersey and Brown Swiss). The data sets used were those reported by the Dairy Heifer Evaluation Project of Penn State Extension (USA) between 1991 and 1992. Four growth functions (monomolecular and Michaelis-Menten, both with diminishing returns behaviour, and Schumacher and López, both with asymptotic sigmoidal behaviour) were fitted using the non-linear regression procedure of the SigmaPlot software and the parameters estimated. The models were judged for goodness of fit using adjusted coefficient of determination ($R_{{\rm adj}}^2 $), root mean square error (RMSE), Akaike's information criterion (AIC) and Bayesian information criterion (BIC). Assessing the goodness of fit by $R_{{\rm adj}}^2 $ (>0.99 in all cases) reveals the generally appropriate fit of the models to the data. The non-sigmoidal functions (i.e. Michaelis–Menten and monomolecular) provided the best fits giving the lowest values of RMSE, AIC and BIC. Based on the chosen statistical criteria, the Schumacher and López equations provided acceptable fits to the WH and BW:WH growth curves, but showed points of inflexion at times before birth, indicating that these growth curves are not sigmoidal. In conclusion, evaluation of the different non-linear growth functions used in this study indicated their potential for modelling growth patterns in dairy heifers.

There is increasing agreement among the nutrition community about the use of length/height-for-age as the indicator to monitor the long-term impact of chronic nutritional deficiencies. Stunting, an indicator of linear growth failure, has both long- and short-term consequences affecting growth and development and adult work potential. The number of stunted children in sub-Saharan Africa is expected to increase by 2025 if the current trends remain. Stunting among African children peaks during the complementary feeding period, which coincides with the period when children are no longer on exclusive breastfeeding and infections are frequent. Addressing stunting has become the focus of global efforts. The World Health Assembly in 2012 set a 40 % reduction in the number of stunted children by 2025. To effectively address the issues of stunting in sub-Saharan Africa is it appropriate to examine the issue of what it takes. The WHO Multicentre Growth Reference Study (MGRS) conducted in several regions of the world, including Africa has lessons on what it would take to prevent in African children. The children in the MGRS had good socioeconomic background characteristics reflected by years of maternal education and availability of basic amenities, such as potable water and sanitary conditions. The prescription of exclusive breastfeeding, high-quality diversified diets and attention to care were critical factors contributing to healthy growth for the African children. Preventing stunting in sub-Saharan Africa is possible. It requires governments to put in place policies that would create the conducive environment needed. The complex and multiple causes of stunting offer the opportunity to address stunting in a multisectoral and within a food systems approach. The global resolve to make food systems deliver on healthy diet requires all stakeholders to work together to achieve the global goal of reducing stunting. This review highlights the key elements contributing to adequate growth in the Africa cohort of the WHO-MGRS and how these provide lessons for addressing stunting in children in sub-Saharan Africa.

A comprehensive understanding of the growth pattern of intermetallic compounds (IMCs) during solidification is critical to both the crystal-growth theory and its property optimization. In this article, growth pattern and three-dimensional (3D) morphology of primary Al6Mn IMC were investigated in directionally solidified Al–3 at.% Mn alloy at a wide range of growth rates. A transition from faceted (<60 μm/s) to nonfaceted growth (>100 μm/s) was observed with increasing growth rates. Correspondingly, 3D morphologies of primary Al6Mn change from a solid polyhedron to a hollow structure, and then to a dendrite. This kind of change is associated with the competitive growths of different crystal planes determined by the crystallographic anisotropy and growth kinetics of Al6Mn. A growth model based on atomic cluster attachment is proposed to reveal the growth transition, and a growth-rate ratio between different crystal planes is used to appropriately reveal the formation mechanism of different morphologies at low rates.

Hypermastus tokunagai is a eulimid gastropod infecting the sand dollar Scaphechinus mirabilis. The eulimid is easily detached from the host and thus regarded as a temporary parasite. In this study, the growth and reproductive cycle of H. tokunagai were investigated using specimens collected from S. mirabilis in the western Seto Inland Sea, Japan. Newly recruited individuals of H. tokunagai appeared in early autumn and grew rapidly, while growth was retarded from mid-autumn to winter months. A second rapid growth occurred the following summer. Based on the growth pattern, the life span of H. tokunagai was estimated to be more than 20 months. This longer life span compared to other eulimids could be due to the accessibility and population stability of its host S. mirabilis. Maturation of H. tokunagai occurred within a short period in the summer, and was synchronized with the second growth phase. Hypermastus tokunagai showed size dimorphism between sexes and an investigation on change in shell shape with growth revealed that this characteristic can be attributed to the female's acquisition of a larger shell within a short time during its maturation period.