The effect of fluoride on the serum level of calcium in the rat (Rattus norvegicus)

The effect of fluoride on the calcium level in serum was analyzed in the laboratory rat Rattus norvegicus. The control group consisted of 10, and the experimental group of 15 animals. In the experimental group, fluoride at a concentration of 3 mg/100 g body weight of rats was intramuscularly injected into the musculus gluteus maximus. The concentration of calcium was measured by the CPC method. The average serum calcium concentration was 2.46 mmol/l, with female rats having higher values of serum calcium than male rats. Fluoride caused the reduction of calcium concentration in serum (p<0.05); the reduction was significantly expressed in female rats (p<0.000)

Immune responses following experimental infection with Ascaridia galli

Broilers commonly suffer from necrotic enteritis (NE). Other gastrointestinal infectious diseases affect poultry, including nematode infections which are considered a re-emerging disease in barn and free-range systems. The aim of this study was to characterise the immune response of broilers after artificial infection with NE and contrast these with responses to the nematode 'Ascaridia galli' and determine whether immune parameters measured during the course of infection can be used to distinguish infected from uninfected birds. A total of 96 one-day-old male Ross 308 broiler chickens were used in this study. At 10 days of age, broilers were randomly assigned to one of the following treatment groups: control birds (n = 32), 'A. galli' infected birds (n = 32), or necrotic enteritis infected birds (NE; n = 32) and inoculated with the appropriate infective agents. The immune response of birds was monitored through evaluation of haematology parameters, acute phase protein production, and intraepithelial intestinal lymphocyte population changes at 11, 16, 20 and 32 days of age. T-helper cells (CD4+CD8-) increased significantly over time, and were significantly higher in 'A. galli' and NE compared to day 10 controls. In conclusion, α-1 glycoprotein levels can distinguish birds with NE from other birds, inlcuding those infected with 'A. galli', also T-helper cell numbers can distinguish both NE and 'A. galli' from uninfected birds and thirdly, 10 days post infection is the best time point to evaluate the bird's immune response for 'A. galli' infections

Strategies for mainstreaming nature-based solutions in urban governance capacities in ten European cities

This paper explores the institutional mainstreaming of nature-based solutions (NBS) to advance a process-based understanding about how to strategically develop the governance capacities needed for systemic, localised and inclusive NBS. To this end, it reports how policy officers in ten European cities have started to mainstream NBS by interacting with and changing incumbent governance arrangements when experimenting with novel governance processes and mechanisms to plan, deliver and steward NBS. The analysis identifies three mainstreaming strategies to develop capacities for (a) a systems’ approach to link NBS to policies, regulations, and departments across goals and sectors, (b) inclusive collaborations for localised and inclusive interventions, and (c) reflexivity and learning about how NBS interact with the (institutional, ecological, social, etc.) contexts and create impacts. The strategies illustrate institutional entrepreneurship in interacting with incumbent governance contexts, and how starting from NBS as a type of systemic innovation can promote broader shifts in urban governance arrangements