De Marke naar minimale broeikasgasemissie

De Marke gaat in twee stappen naar minimale emissie van lachgas en methaan. De eerste stap is efficiënt nutriëntengebruik. Deze stap is door De Marke in de afgelopen jaren maximaal uitgevoerd en wordt ook door praktijkbedrijven al in verschillende mate toegepast. De tweede stap is het verhogen van voerefficiëntie in de veestapel. Deze stap krijgt op De Marke in 2012 volop de aandacht en moet leiden tot de gewenste minimale emissie van lachgas en methaan. Hierna kan nog een stap gezet worden

Nitraat voeren effectief tegen methaanemissie

Nitraat is niet alleen een waardevolle kunstmest, maar kan ook als voeradditief gebruikt worden om de methaanemissie uit de pens van herkauwers te verminderen. Voor een klimaatneutrale melkveehouderij kan het een belangrijk middel zijn om de doelstelling te verwezenlijken. Daarom heeft Knowledge Transfer Centre De Marke in een pilotexperiment onderzocht of het voeren van nitraat past in het management van het melkveebedrijf en of er risico’s voor de diergezondheid zijn. Ook is onderzocht wat het effect van deze extra stikstofbron is op de N-kringloop van het bedrijf. Als de vermindering van de methaanemissie gepaard gaat met meer verliezen uit de N-kringloop (nitraatuitspoeling, ammoniakemissie en lachgasemissie) dan is het middel misschien erger dan de kwaal

Enhanced photodynamic therapy and fluorescence imaging using gold nanorods for porphyrin delivery in a novel in vitro squamous cell carcinoma 3D model

Nanocomposites of gold nanorods (Au NRs) with the cationic porphyrin TMPyP (5,10,15,20-tetrakis(1- methyl 4-pyridinio)porphyrin tetra(p-toluenesulfonate)) were investigated as a nanocarrier system for photodynamic therapy (PDT) and fluorescence imaging. To confer biocompatibility and facilitate the cellular uptake, the NRs were encapsulated with polyacrylic acid (PAA) and efficiently loaded with the cationic porphyrin by electrostatic interaction. The nanocomposites were tested with and without light exposure following incubation in 2D monolayer cultures and a 3D compressed collagen construct of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). The results showed that Au NRs enhance the absorption and emission intensity of TMPyP and improve its photodynamic efficiency and fluorescence imaging capability in both 2D cultures and 3D cancer constructs. Au NRs are promising theranostic agents for delivery of photosensitisers for HNSCC treatment and imaging

NSLS-II RF BEAM POSITION MONITOR

An internal R&D program has been undertaken at BNL to develop a sub-micron RF Beam Position Monitor (BPM) for the NSLS-II 3rd generation light source that is currently under construction. The BPM R&D program started in August 2009. Successful beam tests were conducted 15 months from the start of the program. The NSLS-II RF BPM has been designed to meet all requirements for the NSLS-II Injection system and Storage Ring. Housing of the RF BPM's in +-0.1 C thermally controlled racks provide sub-micron stabilization without active correction. An active pilot-tone has been incorporated to aid long-term (8hr min) stabilization to 200nm RMS. The development of a sub-micron BPM for the NSLS-II has successfully demonstrated performance and stability. Pilot Tone calibration combiner and RF synthesizer has been implemented and algorithm development is underway. The program is currently on schedule to start production development of 60 Injection BPM's starting in the Fall of 2011. The production of {approx}250 Storage Ring BPM's will overlap the Injection schedule

A geometric theory for 2-D systems including notions of stabilisability

In this paper we consider the problem of internally and externally stabilising controlled invariant and output-nulling subspaces for two-dimensional (2-D) Fornasini–Marchesini models, via static feedback. A numerically tractable procedure for computing a stabilising feedback matrix is developed via linear matrix inequality techniques. This is subsequently applied to solve, for the first time, various 2-D disturbance decoupling problems subject to a closed-loop stability constraint

Fine mapping of a linkage peak with integration of lipid traits identifies novel coronary artery disease genes on chromosome 5

Coronary artery disease (CAD), and one of its intermediate risk factors, dyslipidemia, possess a demonstrable genetic component, although the genetic architecture is incompletely defined. We previously reported a linkage peak on chromosome 5q31-33 for early-onset CAD where the strength of evidence for linkage was increased in families with higher mean low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C). Therefore, we sought to fine-map the peak using association mapping of LDL-C as an intermediate disease-related trait to further define the etiology of this linkage peak. The study populations consisted of 1908 individuals from the CATHGEN biorepository of patients undergoing cardiac catheterization; 254 families (N = 827 individuals) from the GENECARD familial study of early-onset CAD; and 162 aorta samples harvested from deceased donors. Linkage disequilibrium-tagged SNPs were selected with an average of one SNP per 20 kb for 126.6-160.2 MB (region of highest linkage) and less dense spacing (one SNP per 50 kb) for the flanking regions (117.7-126.6 and 160.2-167.5 MB) and genotyped on all samples using a custom Illumina array. Association analysis of each SNP with LDL-C was performed using multivariable linear regression (CATHGEN) and the quantitative trait transmission disequilibrium test (QTDT; GENECARD). SNPs associated with the intermediate quantitative trait, LDL-C, were then assessed for association with CAD (i.e., a qualitative phenotype) using linkage and association in the presence of linkage (APL; GENECARD) and logistic regression (CATHGEN and aortas)

The first case of Brucella canis in Sweden: background, case report and recommendations from a northern European perspective

Infection with Brucella canis has been diagnosed in Sweden for the first time. It was diagnosed in a three-year-old breeding bitch with reproductive disturbances. Fifteen in-contact dogs were tested repeatedly and all of them were negative for B. canis. The source of infection could not be defined. The present article describes the case and the measures undertaken and gives a short review over B. canis. Recommendations on how to avoid the infection in non-endemic countries are given