Economic Impact of the Mid-Term Review on Agricultural Production, Farm Income and Farm Survival: A Quantitative Analysis for Local Sub-Regions of Schleswig-Holstein in Germany

This study analyzes the impact of the Mid-Term Review (MTR) on the agricultural sector in Schleswig-Holstein, a federal state in Germany. First, a very detailed farm group linear programming model is built to quantify the effects on agricultural production and farm incomes. The production adjustment to the MTR and its impact on farm profit vary significantly between individual farms. These results depend mainly on the farm type and the resource endowments of the farms. Second, the impact on structural change is examined with a farm survival model. Although the MTR clearly reduces the incomes of several farm types, it accelerates the structural change only gradually.policy reform, modeling production adjustment, farm income, structural change, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Q12, Q18,

Label-free electrical quantification of the dielectrophoretic response of DNA

A purely electrical sensing scheme is presented that determines the concentration of macromolecules in solution by measuring the capacitance between planar microelectrodes. Concentrations of DNA in the ng/mL range have been used in samples of 1 microL volume. The method has been applied to the characterisation of the dielectrophoretic response of DNA without the need for any chemical modifications. The influence of electrical parameters like duty cycle, voltage and frequency has been investigated. The results are in good agreement with data from dielectrophoretic studies on fluorescently labelled DNA. Extension of the method down to the single molecule level appears feasible.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figure

Humans can identify reward-related call types of chickens

Humans can decode emotional information from vocalizations of animals. However, little is known if these interpretations relate to the ability of humans to identify if calls were made in a rewarded or non-rewarded context. We tested whether humans could identify calls made by chickens (Gallus gallus) in these contexts, and whether demographic factors or experience with chickens affected their correct identification context and the ratings of perceived positive and negative emotions (valence) and excitement (arousal) of chickens. Participants (n = 194) listened to eight calls when chickens were anticipating a reward, and eight calls in non-rewarded contexts, and indicated whether the vocalizing chicken was experiencing pleasure/displeasure, and high/low excitement, using visual analogue scales. Sixty-nine per cent of participants correctly assigned reward and non-reward calls to their respective categories. Participants performed better at categorizing reward-related calls, with 71% of reward calls classified correctly, compared with 67% of non-reward calls. Older people were less accurate in context identification. Older people's ratings of the excitement or arousal levels of reward-related calls were higher than younger people's ratings, while older people rated non-reward calls as representing higher positive emotions or pleasure (higher valence) compared to ratings made by younger people. Our study strengthens evidence that humans perceive emotions across different taxa, and that specific acoustic cues may embody a homologous signalling system among vertebrates. Importantly, humans could identify reward-related calls, and this ability could enhance the management of farmed chickens to improve their welfare

Design of Active Defects in Semiconductors: 3D Electron Diffraction Revealed Novel Organometallic Lead Bromide Phases Containing Ferrocene as Redox Switches

Once the optical, electronic, or photocatalytic properties of a semiconductor are set by adjusting composition, crystal phase, and morphology, one cannot change them anymore, respectively, on demand. Materials enabling postsynthetic and reversible switching of features such as absorption coefficient, bandgap, or charge carrier dynamics are highly desired. Hybrid perovskites facilitate exceptional possibilities for progress in the field of smart semiconductors because active organic molecules become an integral constituent of the crystalline structure. This paper reports the integration of ferrocene ligands into semiconducting 2D phases based on lead bromide. The complex crystal structures of the resulting, novel ferrovskite (≃ ferrocene perovskite) phases are determined by 3D electron diffraction. The ferrocene ligands exhibit strong structure-directing effects on the 2D hybrid phases, which is why the formation of exotic types of face- and edge-sharing lead bromide octahedra is observed. The bandgap of the materials ranges from 3.06 up to 3.51 eV, depending on the connectivity of the octahedra. By deploying the redox features of ferrocene, one can create defect states or even a defect band leading to control over the direction of exciton migration and energy transport in the semiconductor, enabling fluorescence via indirect to direct gap transition. © 2022 The Authors. Advanced Functional Materials published by Wiley-VCH GmbH

Prevalence of canine heartworm infection in Queensland, Australia: comparison of diagnostic methods and investigation of factors associated with reduction in antigen detection

Background: The prevalence of Dirofilaria immitis infection in dogs is increasing globally and spreading into new areas. Prevalence of dirofilariosis in the state of Queensland, Australia, was as high as 90% before the introduction of macrocyclic lactones. Limited research on prevalence of D. immitis infection in dogs in Queensland has been reported in the last 30 years. Antigen testing is the most common method for detection of dirofilariosis but its accuracy is reduced by antigen getting trapped (blocked antigen) in immune complexes (ICs). The objectives of this research were to determine the prevalence of D. immitis infection in dogs from two geographical areas (Brisbane and Townsville) in Queensland, to determine the extent to which blocked antigen affects the validity of antigen testing, and to explore whether this was associated with microfilaraemia, location, age or sex. Methods: Blood samples from Brisbane (sub-tropical climate) and Townsville (tropical climate) shelter dogs were evaluated for the presence of D. immitis antigen before (conventional antigen testing, CAT) and after dissociation of ICs by heat treatment (antigen testing after heat treatment, ATHT), using a commercially available test. Microfilariae were detected using modified Knott’s test (MKT). Test proportions were compared with McNemar’s test and the association between antigen test-discordant results (positive for antigen after dissociation of ICs) and microfilaraemia, location, sex and age was modelled using logistic regression. Results: Dirofilaria immitis prevalence in dogs from Townsville (22% by CAT, 32.1% by ATHT and 16.7% by MKT) was significantly higher than in dogs from Brisbane (1.1% by CAT and MKT and 1.7% by ATHT) (P<0.001). Dissociation of ICs allowed detection of significantly more D. immitis infected dogs than either conventional antigen testing or microfilariae detection, or the combined antigen and microfilariae detection (P<0.001). The odds of dogs being positive for antigen after dissociation of ICs were significantly higher for microfilaraemic, 3–4-year-old female dogs from Townsville. Conclusions: The high prevalence of infection with D. immitis in dogs from Townsville poses a health risk for local susceptible host species, including humans. Dissociation of ICs increases antigen detection and should be considered in dogs suspected of D. immitis infection but negative on routine testing

Bibliography to Current Knowledge of Studies of Pathogens in Colombian Mammals

Mammals provide an important ecological habitat or niche space to microbial diversity, protistans (or protozoans) and metazoan parasites that can have profound effects on both human and animal health. Thus, understanding the status of mammalian species as hosts for pathogens holds relevance, especially during this time of anthropogenic environmental change. Despite the great diversity in the mammal fauna of Colombia, data in the literature on the occurrence of parasites and pathogens in these mammals are scarce and widely scattered. In order to understand the state of the knowledge of pathogens carried by wild mammals in Colombia, a systematic review of the literature was conducted. Information from scientific studies compiled included taxonomic orders, pathogens, natural regions, publication data (format, language, and region), funding sources, and affiliation of principal investigators. A total of 187 research studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria for this review. A total of 69,059 wild mammals belonging to 260 species and 12 taxonomic orders were studied in Colombia between 1876 and 2014. The most commonly researched orders were Rodentia (72 studies, n = 11,396 individuals sampled), Chiroptera (67 studies, n = 52,166), Didelphimorphia (55 studies, n = 2,447), and Primates (44 studies, n = 1,831), whereas the least studied included Lagomorpha (9 studies, n = 71), Paucituberculata (4 studies, n = 32), and Soricomorpha (3 studies, n = 3). No studies of pathogens of the Cetacea or Sirenia in the area of Colombia were found. The Andes natural region has been more extensively studied (53.7% of all studies conducted) compared to the rest of the country, and parasites have been the most extensively studied pathogen group, particularly the phyla Arthropoda and Platyhelminthes. Research funding was primarily provided by institutions in the United States. Similar numbers of studies were conducted by both private and public, national and foreign universities. This is the first systematic review of the literature focused on gathering all available data on pathogens in situ in Colombian mammals

Hemorrhagic Bullous Henoch-Schönlein Purpura: Case Report and Review of the Literature

Henoch-Schönlein Purpura (HSP) or IgA vasculitis is the most common systemic vasculitis of childhood and may affect skin, joints, gastrointestinal tract, and kidneys. Skin manifestations of HSP are characteristic and include a non-thrombocytopenic palpable purpura of the lower extremities and buttocks. Rarely, HSP may initially present as or evolve into hemorrhagic vesicles and bullae. We present an otherwise healthy 5-year-old boy with an acute papulovesicular rash of both legs and intermittent abdominal pain. After a few days the skin lesions rapidly evolved into palpable purpura and hemorrhagic bullous lesions of variable size and severe hemorrhagic HSP was suspected. A histological examination of a skin biopsy showed signs of a small vessel leukocytoclastic vasculitis limited to the upper dermis and direct immunofluorescence analysis revealed IgA deposits in vessel walls, compatible with HSP. To further characterize the clinical picture and treatment options of bullous HSP we performed an extensive literature research and identified 41 additional pediatric patients with bullous HSP. Two thirds of the reported patients were treated with systemic corticosteroids, however, up to 25% of the reported patients developed skin sequelae such as hyperpigmentation and/or scarring. The early use of systemic corticosteroids has been discussed controversially and suggested in some case series to be beneficial by reducing the extent of lesions and minimizing sequelae of disease. Our patient was treated with systemic corticosteroids tapered over 5 weeks. Fading of inflammation resulted in healing of most erosions, however, a deep necrosis developing from a large blister at the dorsum of the right foot persisted so that autologous skin transplantation was performed. Re-examination 11 months after disease onset showed complete clinical remission with re-epithelialization but also scarring of some affected areas

Accredited qualifications for capacity development in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation

Increasingly practitioners and policy makers working across the globe are recognising the importance of bringing together disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. From studies across 15 Pacific island nations, a key barrier to improving national resilience to disaster risks and climate change impacts has been identified as a lack of capacity and expertise resulting from the absence of sustainable accredited and quality assured formal training programmes in the disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation sectors. In the 2016 UNISDR Science and Technology Conference on the Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030, it was raised that most of the training material available are not reviewed either through a peer-to-peer mechanism or by the scientific community and are, thus, not following quality assurance standards. In response to these identified barriers, this paper focuses on a call for accredited formal qualifications for capacity development identified in the 2015 United Nations landmark agreements in DRR and CCA and uses the Pacific Islands Region of where this is now being implemented with the launch of the Pacific Regional Federation of Resilience Professionals, for DRR and CCA. A key issue is providing an accreditation and quality assurance mechanism that is shared across boundaries. This paper argues that by using the United Nations landmark agreements of 2015, support for a regionally accredited capacity development that ensures all countries can produce, access and effectively use scientific information for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. The newly launched Pacific Regional Federation of Resilience Professionals who work in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation may offer a model that can be used more widely

EPINEST, an agent-based model to simulate epidemic dynamics in large-scale poultry production and distribution networks

The rapid intensification of poultry production raises important concerns about the associated risks of zoonotic infections. Here, we introduce EPINEST (EPIdemic NEtwork Simulation in poultry Transportation systems): an agent-based modelling framework designed to simulate pathogen transmission within realistic poultry production and distribution networks. We provide example applications to broiler production in Bangladesh, but the modular structure of the model allows for easy parameterization to suit specific countries and system configurations. Moreover, the framework enables the replication of a wide range of eco-epidemiological scenarios by incorporating diverse pathogen life-history traits, modes of transmission and interactions between multiple strains and/or pathogens. EPINEST was developed in the context of an interdisciplinary multi-centre study conducted in Bangladesh, India, Vietnam and Sri Lanka, and will facilitate the investigation of the spreading patterns of various health hazards such as avian influenza, Campylobacter, Salmonella and antimicrobial resistance in these countries. Furthermore, this modelling framework holds potential for broader application in veterinary epidemiology and One Health research, extending its relevance beyond poultry to encompass other livestock species and disease systems