Poison sedge can kill stock

POISON SEDGE was first suspected of being toxic to livestock in Western Australia nearly 80 years ago. Sudden deaths of sheep grazing areas on which poison sedge grew have been reported from many regions from Geraldton to Scott River. This article reports a case of poisoning in the field, and the experimental reproduction of poison sedge toxicity in pen-fed sheep

Postharvest orange losses and small-scale farmers’ perceptions on the loss causes in the fruit value chain: a case study of Rusitu Valley, Zimbabwe

Surveys were conducted in Rusitu Valley , Chimanimani district of Zimbabwe between 2011 and 2012 to determine orange losses and farmers’ perceptions on the sweet orange (Citrus sinensis) supply value chain. The following data were collected using interviewer-administered Likert type questionnaires and informal interviews: orchard management practices, pest infestation, fruit handling activities, and marketing practices through. The study sample of 240 respondents was derived from two randomly selected villages in each of the four administrative wards with significant sweet orange production. The study revealed that on average a small-scale farmer in Rusitu Valley owns about 4047 m2 (one acre) orchard with an average of 55 orange trees and that a farmer harvested 1 200 kg of oranges per tree which converts to a total of 66 000 kg of orange produce per season. The study revealed that on average a farmer lost 480 kg of oranges per tree which converts to 26 400 kg per farmer or 40% loss per farmer during the season. Based on the total number of orange farmers in Rusitu Valley, the total loss translates to 89,529,600 kg. About 54% of respondents perceived that the major postharvest losses were a result of fruit fly attack while 36% linked these losses to red weaver ants (Oecophylla spp.). Trapping using a mixture of methyl eugenol and malathion during the same season positively identified the African invader fly, Bactrocera invadens. Unavailability of appropriate storage and transport facilities were the contributing factors to major postharvest losses. Citrus production extension package with an emphasis on the control of insect pests and sustainable postharvest management should be developed to improve the capacity of the small-scale farmers in Rusitu Valley. Keywords: Small-scale farmers, postharvest losses, pests and diseases, fruit value chai

Oral rivaroxaban versus standard therapy for the treatment of symptomatic venous thromboembolism : a pooled analysis of the EINSTEIN-DVT and PE randomized studies

Background: Standard treatment for venous thromboembolism (VTE) consists of a heparin combined with vitamin K antagonists. Direct oral anticoagulants have been investigated for acute and extended treatment of symptomatic VTE; their use could avoid parenteral treatment and/or laboratory monitoring of anticoagulant effects. Methods: A prespecified pooled analysis of the EINSTEIN-DVT and EINSTEIN-PE studies compared the efficacy and safety of rivaroxaban (15 mg twice-daily for 21 days, followed by 20 mg once-daily) with standard-therapy (enoxaparin 1.0 mg/kg twice-daily and warfarin or acenocoumarol). Patients were treated for 3, 6, or 12 months and followed for suspected recurrent VTE and bleeding. The prespecified noninferiority margin was 1.75. Results: 8282 patients were enrolled. 4151 received rivaroxaban and 4131 received standard-therapy. The primary efficacy outcome occurred in 86 rivaroxaban-treated patients (2.1%) compared with 95 (2.3%) standard-therapy-treated patients (hazard ratio, 0.89; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.66-1.19; pnoninferiority<0.001). Major bleeding was observed in 40 (1.0%) and 72 (1.7%) patients in the rivaroxaban and standard-therapy groups, respectively (hazard ratio, 0.54; 95% CI, 0.37-0.79; p=0.002). In key subgroups, including fragile patients, cancer patients, patients presenting with large clots and those with a history of recurrent VTE, the efficacy and safety of rivaroxaban was similar compared with standard-therapy. Conclusion: The single-drug approach with rivaroxaban resulted in similar efficacy to standard-therapy and was associated with a significantly lower rate of major bleeding. Efficacy and safety results were consistent among key patient subgroups

Turning round the telescope. Centre-right parties and immigration and integration policy in Europe

This is an Author's Original Manuscript of 'Turning round the telescope. Centre-right parties and immigration and integration policy in Europe', whose final and definitive form, the Version of Record, has been published in the Journal of European Public Policy 15(3):315-330, 2008 [copyright Taylor & Francis], available online at: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi.org/10.1080/13501760701847341

Rethinking the social impacts of the arts

The paper presents a critical discussion of the current debate over the social impacts of the arts in the UK. It argues that the accepted understanding of the terms of the debate is rooted in a number of assumptions and beliefs that are rarely questioned. The paper goes on to present the interim findings of a three‐year research project, which aims to rethink the social impact of the arts, with a view to determining how these impacts might be better understood. The desirability of a historical approach is articulated, and a classification of the claims made within the Western intellectual tradition for what the arts “do” to people is presented and discussed

Type-II micro-comb generation in a filter-driven four wave mixing laser [Invited]

We experimentally demonstrate the generation of highly coherent Type-II micro-combs based on a microresonator nested in a fiber cavity loop, known as the filter-driven four wave mixing (FD-FWM) laser scheme. In this system, the frequency spacing of the comb can be adjusted to integer multiples of the free-spectral range (FSR) of the nested micro-resonator by properly tuning the fiber cavity length. Sub-comb lines with single FSR spacing around the primary comb lines can be generated. Such a spectral emission is known as a “Type-II comb.” Our system achieves a fully coherent output. This behavior is verified by numerical simulations. This study represents an important step forward in controlling and manipulating the dynamics of an FD-FWM laser

Genexpert MTB/RIF diagnostic and tuberculosis treatment initiation delays in Namibia

BACKGROUND : Early diagnosis and treatment of drug resistant tuberculosis are crucial in the control of the disease and treatment success. In Namibia, there is a gap in empirical data on the diagnosis and treatment initiation delay time since the roll-out of the GeneXpert MTB/RIF (Xpert) assay in 2017. This study aimed to determine Xpert pre-diagnosis and turnaround time at Namibian Institute of Pathology (NIP) as well as rifampicin resistant tuberculosis (RR-TB) treatment initiation delay on patients admitted at Katutura Intermediate Hospital TB clinic. METHODS : This was retrospective descriptive cross-sectional study which was conducted from 1 July 2018 to 31 March 2019. A total of seventy two participants comprising of twenty five RR-TB and forty seven non RR-TB patients were enrolled using consecutive sampling method. Laboratory information system (LIS) was utilized to determine Xpert median pre-analytical delay and turnaround time. Patients’ records and LIS were used to calculate median treatment initiation delay time post Xpert diagnosis. Data on continuous variables was summarized as median and interquartile range. RESULTS : The median pre-diagnostic, diagnostic and treatment initiation delay time were 7.5 (IQR: 0-14), 1 (IQR: 0-3) and 10 (IQR: 1-32) days respectively for RR-TB. For drug susceptible TB, the median pre-diagnostic, diagnostic and treatment initiation delay time were 5 (IQR: 1-8), 1 (IQR: 0-3) and 3 (IQR: 0-12) days respectively. Overall, median health system delay time was 21 (IQR: 2-32) days for RR-TB patients and 12 (IQR: 1-12) days for non RR-TB patients. CONCLUSION : Treatment initiation to appropriate second line regimes was long for many patients and may be attributable to poor interpretation of discordant results and increased number of RR-TB patients for treatment since Xpert adoption. Unnecessary referrals due to shortages of pulmonologists, cumbersome baseline investigations and outdated guidelines and policies could be the determinants of health system delay time. Interventions targeted at addressing identified factors should be implemented. Further studies should explore the actual treatment gap among RR-TB patients and further risk factors for delayed treatment.https://www.wjahr.comam2020School of Health Systems and Public Health (SHSPH