Blueberry Advisory Committee Research Report

The 1985 edition of the Blueberry Progress Reports was prepared for the Maine Blueberry Commission and the University of Maine Blueberry Advisory Committee by researchers with the Maine Agricultural Experiment Station and Maine Cooperative Extension Service at the University of Maine, Orono. Projects in this report include: 1. Control of secondary blueberry pest insects 2. Effect of pruning practices on blueberry insect abundance 3. Effect of hexazinone on species distribution in lowbush blueberry fields 4. Dichlobenil for control of bunchberry 5. Evaluation of postemergence herbicides for grass control 6. Hand-wiper applications of herbicides on woody weeds 7. Evaluation of steam as a pruning practice for lowbush blueberry fields 8. Evaluation of glyphosate and 2,4-D applied with a commercial weed roller to control woody weeds 9. Hand-wiping and cutting treatments for dogbane 9. Evaluation of airblast-sprayer application of asulam for bracken fern control 10. Spot treatment of woody weeds with 2,4-D in oil 11. Chemical control of Botrytis blossom blight 12. Evaluation of preliminary steam treatments (1984) at Blueberry Hill Farm 13. Long term effects of N and NPK fertilizer on plant growth and yield 14. Nutritional survey of selected lowbush blueberry fields 15. Interaction of fertility and pruning practices on soil characteristics and lowbush blueberry growth and yield 16. Frequency of fertility application for establishment of lowbush blueberry seedlings 17. Slow release vs. liquid fertilizer for establishment of lowbush blueberry seedlings 18. The effect of several mulches on frost heaving, soil moisture, soil temperature and rhizome development 19. Blueberry product development: raisin-type blueberries 20. Blueberry product development: blueberry puree 21. Addendum: 1985 Report from Moody Trevet

Blueberry Advisory Committee Research Report

The 1987 edition of the Blueberry Advisory Committee Research Reports was prepared for the Maine Wild Blueberry Commission and the University of Maine Wild Blueberry Advisory Committee by researchers with the Maine Agricultural Experiment Station and Maine Cooperative Extension Service at the University of Maine, Orono. Projects in this report include: 1. Effect of Pruning Practices on Blueberry Insect Abundance 2. Economic Thresholds and Control of Secondary Blueberry Pests 3. Control of Blueberry Maggot 4. Evaluation of Fungicides for Control of Botrytis Blight on Lowbush Blueberry, 1987 5. Evaluation of Fungicides for Control of Mummy Berry on Lowbush Blueberry, 1987 6. Miscellaneous Activity: a) Fungicide Residue Analysis b) Blueberry fact sheet c) Berry contamination 7. Effects of Pruning Methods on Mummy Berry Disease Incidence, 1987 8. Effects of Pruning Methods on Powdery Mildew and Red Leaf Disease Incidence, 1987 9. Nutrition Survey 1987 10. Nutritional Responses of Seedlings 11. The Effect of Several Mulches on Frost Heaving, Soil Moisture, Soil Temperature and Rhizome Development 12. Time-temperature Effects on Sugar Migration and Physical Characterization in Lowbush Blueberries 13. Fabricated Blueberry Raisins Prepared from Puree using Alginate as the Gelling Agent 14. Blueberry Gelatin 15. Effect of Hexazinone (VELPAR) on Species Distribution in Lowbush Blueberry Fields 16. Evaluation of Postemergence Herbicides for Grass Control 17. Evaluation of Sulfonyl urea and Imidazoline compounds for Bunchberry Control 18. Use of Mechanical wiper with glyphosate (ROUNDUP) or dicamba for control of dogbane 19. Integrated Weed Management 20. Evaluation of Five Preemergence Herbicides for Control of Oat grass and Bunchgrass 21. Wiper Application of Dicamba for Woody Weed control 22. Hexazinone (VELPAR) and terbacil (SINBAR) combinations for weed control 23. Evaluation of Clopyralid and Lactofen for Bunchberry Control 24. Evaluation of Postemergence Applications of chlorimuron for Bunchberry Control 25. Hexazinone seedling study 26. Seedling Pruning Study 27. Effect of bracken fern on blueberry yield 28. Evaluation of two mechanical harvesters vs hand raking of lowbush blueberrie

Blueberry Advisory Committee Research Report

The 1984 edition of the Blueberry Progress Reports was prepared for the Maine Blueberry Commission and the University of Maine Blueberry Advisory Committee by researchers with the Maine Agricultural Experiment Station and Maine Cooperative Extension Service at the University of Maine, Orono. Projects in this report include: 1. Control, biology, and ecology of insects affecting lowbush blueberries . 2. Chemical control of mummyberry disease (Monilinia vaccinii-corymbosi) 3. New Fungicides for control of Botrytis blossom blight 4. Nutritional survey of selected lowbush blueberry fields 5. Interaction of fertility and pruning practices on soil characteristics and lowbush blueberry growth and yield 6. Long term effects of N and NPK fertilizer on plant growth and yield 7. The effect of N fertilization on clonal spread 8. Nutritional responses of the lowbush blueberry in new plantings as related to early establishment 9. The effect of several mulches on frost heaving, soil moisture, soil temperature and rhizome development 10. Effectiveness of mulches and planted lowbush blueberry seedlings for stabilizing soils and increasing plant cover 11. Effect of surface mulches on stabilizing lowbush blueberry soil in barren areas 12. Frequency of fertility application for establishment of lowbush blueberry seedlings 13. Slow release vs liquid fertilizer for establishment of lowbush blueberry seedlings 14. Comparison of rooted cuttings and tissue culture propagated lowbush blueberry plants 15. The effect of growth regulator formulations on growth and rhizome production of the lowbush blueberry 16. Unburned, mowed fields 17. Blueberry concentrate 18. Blueberry product development 19. Dehydrated blueberries 20. Low-calorie blueberry jellies 21. Hexazinone and terbacil mixture for weed control 22. Hexazinone and atrazine mixture for weed control 23. Effect of hexazinone and nitrogen or nitrogen-phosphorus fertilizer on lowbush blueberry plants 24. Hand-wiper applications of herbicides on birch, maple and willow 25. Glyphosate applied after leaf drop for bunchberry control 26. Napropamide for seedling weed control 27. PP333 plant growth regulator 28. Dichlobenil for bunchberry control 29. Effect of hexazinone on weed and blueberry populations 30. Fluazifop-butyl for grass control 31. Hand-wiping and cutting treatments for dogbane 32. Evaluation of airblast sprayer application of asulam for bracken fern control 33. Evaluation of spot treatment of woody weeds with 2,4-D in oil 34. Steam heat as a control of mummyberry diseas

Blueberry Advisory Committee Extension Report

The 1986 edition of the Blueberry Advisory Committee Extension Reports was prepared for the Maine Blueberry Commission and the University of Maine Blueberry Advisory Committee by researchers with the Maine Agricultural Experiment Station and Maine Cooperative Extension Service at the University of Maine, Orono. Projects in this report include: 1. Fertility Levels 2. Insect and Disease Fact Sheets 3. Development of Insect ID Information for Growers 4. Effect of Pruning Practices an Blueberry Insect Abundance 5. Control of Blueberry Maggot (Alternatives to Guthion) 6. Economic Thresholds and Control of Secondary Blueberry Pests 7. Chemical Control of Mummyberry Disease 8. Chemical Control of Botrytis Bloom Blight 9. Effects of Late Summer Fungicide Applications 10. Mowing vs. Burning - Comparisons of Disease Incidence 11. Long-term Effects of N and NPK Fertilizer on Plant Growth and Yield 12. Effect of Several Mulches on Frost Heaving, Soil Moisture, Soil Temperature and Rhizome Development 13. Interaction of Fertility and Pruning Practices on Soil 14. Effect of Block Freezing on Physical Characterization and Sugar Migration on Lowbush Blueberries 15. Demonstration of the Rota-Cone Vacuum Drying Process on Lowbush Blueberries 16. Production of a Blueberry Gelatin 17. Isolation and Characterization of Blueberry Pectin 18. The Effect of pH, Chemicals and Holding time-temperature on the color of Blueberry Puree 19. Effect of Hexazinone on Species Distribution in Lowbush Blueberry Fields 20. Evaluation of Postemergent Herbicides for Grass Control 21. Evaluation of Sulfonyl urea and lmidazoline compounds for Bunchberry Control 22. Use of Mechanical wiper with glyphosate or dicamba for control of dogbane 23. Hand-wiper Applications of Herbicides on Woody Weeds 24. Dogbane Control with 2% Glyphosate 25. Low Volume Solution of Asulam for Bracken Fern Control 26. Integrated Weed Management 27. 1986 Annual Report to the Maine Lowbush Blueberry Commissio

Preclinical Evaluation of Caprylic Acid-Fractionated IgG Antivenom for the Treatment of Taipan (Oxyuranus scutellatus) Envenoming in Papua New Guinea

articulo (arbitrado) -- Universidad de Costa Rica, Instituto de Investigaciones Clodomiro Picado, 2011Background: Snake bite is a common medical emergency in Papua New Guinea (PNG). The taipan, Oxyuranus scutellatus, inflicts a large number of bites that, in the absence of antivenom therapy, result in high mortality. Parenteral administration of antivenoms manufactured in Australia is the current treatment of choice for these envenomings. However, the price of these products is high and has increased over the last 25 years; consequently the country can no longer afford all the antivenom it needs. This situation prompted an international collaborative project aimed at generating a new, low-cost antivenom against O. scutellatus for PNG. Methodology/Principal Findings: A new monospecific equine whole IgG antivenom, obtained by caprylic acid fractionation of plasma, was prepared by immunising horses with the venom of O. scutellatus from PNG. This antivenom was compared with the currently used F(ab’)2 monospecific taipan antivenom manufactured by CSL Limited, Australia. The comparison included physicochemical properties and the preclinical assessment of the neutralisation of lethal neurotoxicity and the myotoxic, coagulant and phospholipase A2 activities of the venom of O. scutellatus from PNG. The F(ab’)2 antivenom had a higher protein concentration than whole IgG antivenom. Both antivenoms effectively neutralised, and had similar potency, against the lethal neurotoxic effect (both by intraperitoneal and intravenous routes of injection), myotoxicity, and phospholipase A2 activity of O. scutellatus venom. However, the whole IgG antivenom showed a higher potency than the F(ab’)2 antivenom in the neutralisation of the coagulant activity of O. scutellatus venom from PNG. Conclusions/Significance: The new whole IgG taipan antivenom described in this study compares favourably with the currently used F(ab’)2 antivenom, both in terms of physicochemical characteristics and neutralising potency. Therefore, it should be considered as a promising low-cost candidate for the treatment of envenomings by O. scutellatus in PNG, and is ready to be tested in clinical trials.This study was supported by Vicerrectoría de Investigación, Universidad de Costa Rica (project 741-A9-003); the PNG Office of Higher Education, CTP Limited (Milne Bay Estates), and the Australian Venom Research Unit (University of Melbourne), which is funded by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing, the Australia Pacific Science Foundation and Snowy Nominees. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.UCR::Vicerrectoría de Investigación::Unidades de Investigación::Ciencias de la Salud::Instituto Clodomiro Picado (ICP

What Point-of-Use Water Treatment Products Do Consumers Use? Evidence from a Randomized Controlled Trial among the Urban Poor in Bangladesh

BACKGROUND: There is evidence that household point-of-use (POU) water treatment products can reduce the enormous burden of water-borne illness. Nevertheless, adoption among the global poor is very low, and little evidence exists on why. METHODS: We gave 600 households in poor communities in Dhaka, Bangladesh randomly-ordered two-month free trials of four water treatment products: dilute liquid chlorine (sodium hypochlorite solution, marketed locally as Water Guard), sodium dichloroisocyanurate tablets (branded as Aquatabs), a combined flocculant-disinfectant powdered mixture (the PUR Purifier of Water), and a silver-coated ceramic siphon filter. Consumers also received education on the dangers of untreated drinking water. We measured which products consumers used with self-reports, observation (for the filter), and chlorine tests (for the other products). We also measured drinking water's contamination with E. coli (compared to 200 control households). FINDINGS: Households reported highest usage of the filter, although no product had even 30% usage. E. coli concentrations in stored drinking water were generally lowest when households had Water Guard. Households that self-reported product usage had large reductions in E. coli concentrations with any product as compared to controls. CONCLUSION: Traditional arguments for the low adoption of POU products focus on affordability, consumers' lack of information about germs and the dangers of unsafe water, and specific products not meshing with a household's preferences. In this study we provided free trials, repeated informational messages explaining the dangers of untreated water, and a variety of product designs. The low usage of all products despite such efforts makes clear that important barriers exist beyond cost, information, and variation among these four product designs. Without a better understanding of the choices and aspirations of the target end-users, household-based water treatment is unlikely to reduce morbidity and mortality substantially in urban Bangladesh and similar populations

Exploring UK medical school differences: the MedDifs study of selection, teaching, student and F1 perceptions, postgraduate outcomes and fitness to practise

BACKGROUND: Medical schools differ, particularly in their teaching, but it is unclear whether such differences matter, although influential claims are often made. The Medical School Differences (MedDifs) study brings together a wide range of measures of UK medical schools, including postgraduate performance, fitness to practise issues, specialty choice, preparedness, satisfaction, teaching styles, entry criteria and institutional factors. METHOD: Aggregated data were collected for 50 measures across 29 UK medical schools. Data include institutional history (e.g. rate of production of hospital and GP specialists in the past), curricular influences (e.g. PBL schools, spend per student, staff-student ratio), selection measures (e.g. entry grades), teaching and assessment (e.g. traditional vs PBL, specialty teaching, self-regulated learning), student satisfaction, Foundation selection scores, Foundation satisfaction, postgraduate examination performance and fitness to practise (postgraduate progression, GMC sanctions). Six specialties (General Practice, Psychiatry, Anaesthetics, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Internal Medicine, Surgery) were examined in more detail. RESULTS: Medical school differences are stable across time (median alpha = 0.835). The 50 measures were highly correlated, 395 (32.2%) of 1225 correlations being significant with p < 0.05, and 201 (16.4%) reached a Tukey-adjusted criterion of p < 0.0025. Problem-based learning (PBL) schools differ on many measures, including lower performance on postgraduate assessments. While these are in part explained by lower entry grades, a surprising finding is that schools such as PBL schools which reported greater student satisfaction with feedback also showed lower performance at postgraduate examinations. More medical school teaching of psychiatry, surgery and anaesthetics did not result in more specialist trainees. Schools that taught more general practice did have more graduates entering GP training, but those graduates performed less well in MRCGP examinations, the negative correlation resulting from numbers of GP trainees and exam outcomes being affected both by non-traditional teaching and by greater historical production of GPs. Postgraduate exam outcomes were also higher in schools with more self-regulated learning, but lower in larger medical schools. A path model for 29 measures found a complex causal nexus, most measures causing or being caused by other measures. Postgraduate exam performance was influenced by earlier attainment, at entry to Foundation and entry to medical school (the so-called academic backbone), and by self-regulated learning. Foundation measures of satisfaction, including preparedness, had no subsequent influence on outcomes. Fitness to practise issues were more frequent in schools producing more male graduates and more GPs. CONCLUSIONS: Medical schools differ in large numbers of ways that are causally interconnected. Differences between schools in postgraduate examination performance, training problems and GMC sanctions have important implications for the quality of patient care and patient safety

The Analysis of Teaching of Medical Schools (AToMS) survey: an analysis of 47,258 timetabled teaching events in 25 UK medical schools relating to timing, duration, teaching formats, teaching content, and problem-based learning

BACKGROUND: What subjects UK medical schools teach, what ways they teach subjects, and how much they teach those subjects is unclear. Whether teaching differences matter is a separate, important question. This study provides a detailed picture of timetabled undergraduate teaching activity at 25 UK medical schools, particularly in relation to problem-based learning (PBL). METHOD: The Analysis of Teaching of Medical Schools (AToMS) survey used detailed timetables provided by 25 schools with standard 5-year courses. Timetabled teaching events were coded in terms of course year, duration, teaching format, and teaching content. Ten schools used PBL. Teaching times from timetables were validated against two other studies that had assessed GP teaching and lecture, seminar, and tutorial times. RESULTS: A total of 47,258 timetabled teaching events in the academic year 2014/2015 were analysed, including SSCs (student-selected components) and elective studies. A typical UK medical student receives 3960 timetabled hours of teaching during their 5-year course. There was a clear difference between the initial 2 years which mostly contained basic medical science content and the later 3 years which mostly consisted of clinical teaching, although some clinical teaching occurs in the first 2 years. Medical schools differed in duration, format, and content of teaching. Two main factors underlay most of the variation between schools, Traditional vs PBL teaching and Structured vs Unstructured teaching. A curriculum map comparing medical schools was constructed using those factors. PBL schools differed on a number of measures, having more PBL teaching time, fewer lectures, more GP teaching, less surgery, less formal teaching of basic science, and more sessions with unspecified content. DISCUSSION: UK medical schools differ in both format and content of teaching. PBL and non-PBL schools clearly differ, albeit with substantial variation within groups, and overlap in the middle. The important question of whether differences in teaching matter in terms of outcomes is analysed in a companion study (MedDifs) which examines how teaching differences relate to university infrastructure, entry requirements, student perceptions, and outcomes in Foundation Programme and postgraduate training

Prognostic model to predict postoperative acute kidney injury in patients undergoing major gastrointestinal surgery based on a national prospective observational cohort study.

Background: Acute illness, existing co-morbidities and surgical stress response can all contribute to postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients undergoing major gastrointestinal surgery. The aim of this study was prospectively to develop a pragmatic prognostic model to stratify patients according to risk of developing AKI after major gastrointestinal surgery. Methods: This prospective multicentre cohort study included consecutive adults undergoing elective or emergency gastrointestinal resection, liver resection or stoma reversal in 2-week blocks over a continuous 3-month period. The primary outcome was the rate of AKI within 7 days of surgery. Bootstrap stability was used to select clinically plausible risk factors into the model. Internal model validation was carried out by bootstrap validation. Results: A total of 4544 patients were included across 173 centres in the UK and Ireland. The overall rate of AKI was 14·2 per cent (646 of 4544) and the 30-day mortality rate was 1·8 per cent (84 of 4544). Stage 1 AKI was significantly associated with 30-day mortality (unadjusted odds ratio 7·61, 95 per cent c.i. 4·49 to 12·90; P < 0·001), with increasing odds of death with each AKI stage. Six variables were selected for inclusion in the prognostic model: age, sex, ASA grade, preoperative estimated glomerular filtration rate, planned open surgery and preoperative use of either an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or an angiotensin receptor blocker. Internal validation demonstrated good model discrimination (c-statistic 0·65). Discussion: Following major gastrointestinal surgery, AKI occurred in one in seven patients. This preoperative prognostic model identified patients at high risk of postoperative AKI. Validation in an independent data set is required to ensure generalizability

Vitalism in contemporary chiropractic: a help or a hinderance?

Background: Chiropractic emerged in 1895 and was promoted as a viable health care substitute in direct competition with the medical profession. This was an era when there was a belief that one cause and one cure for all disease would be discovered. The chiropractic version was a theory that most diseases were caused by subluxated (slightly displaced) vertebrae interfering with “nerve vibrations” (a supernatural, vital force) and could be cured by adjusting (repositioning) vertebrae, thereby removing the interference with the body’s inherent capacity to heal. DD Palmer, the originator of chiropractic, established chiropractic based on vitalistic principles. Anecdotally, the authors have observed that many chiropractors who overtly claim to be “vitalists” cannot define the term. Therefore, we sought the origins of vitalism and to examine its effects on chiropractic today. Discussion: Vitalism arose out of human curiosity around the biggest questions: Where do we come from? What is life? For some, life was derived from an unknown and unknowable vital force. For others, a vital force was a placeholder, a piece of knowledge not yet grasped but attainable. Developments in science have demonstrated there is no longer a need to invoke vitalistic entities as either explanations or hypotheses for biological phenomena. Nevertheless, vitalism remains within chiropractic. In this examination of vitalism within chiropractic we explore the history of vitalism, vitalism within chiropractic and whether a vitalistic ideology is compatible with the legal and ethical requirements for registered health care professionals such as chiropractors. Conclusion: Vitalism has had many meanings throughout the centuries of recorded history. Though only vaguely defined by chiropractors, vitalism, as a representation of supernatural force and therefore an untestable hypothesis, sits at the heart of the divisions within chiropractic and acts as an impediment to chiropractic legitimacy, cultural authority and integration into mainstream health care