Farmer groups for animal health and welfare planning in European organic dairy herds

A set of common principles for active animal health and welfare planning in organic dairy farming has been developed in the ANIPLAN project group of seven European countries. Health and welfare planning is a farmer‐owned process of continuous development and improvement and may be practised in many different ways. It should incorporate health promotion and disease handling, based on a strategy where assessment of current status and risks forms the basis for evaluation, action and review. Besides this, it should be 1) farm-specific, 2) involve external person(s) and 3) external knowledge, 4) be based on organic principles, 5) be written, and 6) acknowledge good aspects in addition to targeting the problem areas in order to stimulate the learning process. Establishing farmer groups seems to be a beneficial way of stimulating a dynamic development on the farms towards continuous improvement, as in this case with focus on animal health and welfare planning. Various factors influence the process in different contexts, e.g. geographical, cultural, traditional factors, and a proper analysis of the situation as well as the purpose of the group is necessary, and can relevantly be negotiated and co‐developed with farmers as well as facilitators before being implemented. Farmer groups based on farmer‐to‐farmer advice and co‐development need a facilitator who takes on the role of facilitating the process and ‘decodes’ him‐ or herself from being ‘expert’

Homogeneous bubble nucleation limit of mercury under the normal working conditions of the planned European Spallation Source

In spallation neutron sources, liquid mercury is the subject of big thermal and pressure shocks, upon adsorbing the proton beam. These changes can cause unstable bubbles in the liquid, which can damage the structural material. While there are methods to deal with the pressure shock, the local temperature shock cannot be avoided. In our paper we calculated the work of the critical cluster formation (i.e. for mercury micro-bubbles) together with the rate of their formation (nucleation rate). It is shown that the homogeneous nucleation rates are very low even after adsorbing several proton pulses, therefore the probability of temperature induced homogeneous bubble nucleation is negligible.Comment: 22 Pages, 11 figures, one of them is colour, we plan to publish it in Eur. Phys. J.

Impact of sub-optimal HIV viral control on activated T-cells : an earnest sub study

Objective: HIV viral load (VL) monitoring is generally conducted 6–12 monthly in low- and middle-income countries, risking relatively prolonged periods of poor viral control. We explored the effects of different levels of loss of viral control on immune reconstitution and activation. Design: Two hundred and eight participants starting protease inhibitor (PI)-based second-line therapy in the EARNEST trial (ISRCTN37737787) in Uganda and Zimbabwe were enrolled and CD38þ/HLA-DRþ immunophenotyping performed (CD8-FITC/ CD38-PE/CD3-PerCP/HLA-DR-APC; centrally gated) in real-time at 0, 12, 48, 96 and 144 weeks from randomization. Methods: VL was assayed retrospectively on samples collected every 12–16 weeks and classified as continuous suppression (<40 copies/ml throughout); suppression with transient blips; low-level rebound (two or more consecutive VL >40, <5000 copies/ ml); high-level rebound/nonresponse (two or more consecutive VL >5000 copies/ml). Results: Immunophenotype reconstitution varied between that defined by numbers of cells and that defined by cell percentages. Furthermore, VL dynamics were associated with substantial differences in expression of CD4þ and CD8þ cell activation markers, with only individuals with high-level rebound/nonresponse (>5000 copies/ml) experiencing significantly greater activation and impaired reconstitution. There was little difference between participants who suppressed consistently and who exhibited transient blips or even low-level rebound by 144 weeks (P > 0.2 vs. suppressed consistently). Conclusion: Detectable viral load below the threshold at which WHO guidelines recommend that treatment can be maintained without switching (1000 copies/ml) appear to have at most, small effects on reconstitution and activation, for patients taking a PI-based second-line regime

Is There Synchronicity in Nitrogen Input and Output Fluxes at the Noland Divide Watershed, a Small N-Saturated Forested Catchment in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park?

High-elevation red spruce [Picea rubens Sarg.]-Fraser fir [Abies fraseri (Pursh.) Poir] forests in the Southern Appalachians currently receive large nitrogen (N) inputs via atmospheric deposition (30 kg N ha�1 year�1) but have limited N retention capacity due to a combination of stand age, heavy fir mortality caused by exotic insect infestations, and numerous gaps caused by windfalls and ice storms. This study examined the magnitude and timing of the N fluxes into, through, and out of a small, first-order catchment in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It also examined the role of climatic conditions in causing interannual variations in the N output signal. About half of the atmospheric N input was exported annually in the streamwater, primarily as nitrate (NO3-N). While most incoming ammonium (NH4-N) was retained in the canopy and the forest floor, the NO3-N fluxes were very dynamic in space as well as in time. There was a clear decoupling between NO3-N input and output fluxes. Atmospheric N input was greatest in the growing season while largest NO3-N losses typically occurred in the dormant season. Also, as water passed through the various catchment compartments, the NO3-N flux declined below the canopy, increased in the upper soil due to internal N mineralization and nitrification, and declined again deeper in the mineral soil due to plant uptake and microbial processing. Temperature control on N production and hydrologic control on NO3-N leaching during the growing season likely caused the observed inter-annual variation in fall peak NO3-N concentrations and N discharge rates in the stream

Phenotype, genotype, and worldwide genetic penetrance of LRRK2-associated Parkinson's disease: a case-control study

Background: Mutations in LRRK2, the gene that encodes leucine-rich repeat kinase 2, are a cause of Parkinson's disease (PD). The International LRRK2 Consortium was established to answer three key clinical questions: can LRRK2-associated PD be distinguished from idiopathic PD; which mutations in LRRK2 are pathogenic; and what is the age-specific cumulative risk of PD for individuals who inherit or are at risk of inheriting a deleterious mutation in LRRK2? Methods: Researchers from 21 centres across the world collaborated on this study. The frequency of the common LRRK2 Gly2019Ser mutation was estimated on the basis of data from 24 populations worldwide, and the penetrance of the mutation was defined in 1045 people with mutations in LRRK2 from 133 families. The LRRK2 phenotype was defined on the basis of 59 motor and non-motor symptoms in 356 patients with LRRK2-associated PD and compared with the symptoms of 543 patients with pathologically proven idiopathic PD. Findings: Six mutations met the consortium's criteria for being proven pathogenic. The frequency of the common LRRK2 Gly2019Ser mutation was 1% of patients with sporadic PD and 4% of patients with hereditary PD; the frequency was highest in the middle east and higher in southern Europe than in northern Europe. The risk of PD for a person who inherits the LRRK2 Gly2019Ser mutation was 28% at age 59 years, 51% at 69 years, and 74% at 79 years. The motor symptoms (eg, disease severity, rate of progression, occurrence of falls, and dyskinesia) and non-motor symptoms (eg, cognition and olfaction) of LRRK2-associated PD were more benign than those of idiopathic PD. Interpretation: Mutations in LRRK2 are a clinically relevant cause of PD that merit testing in patients with hereditary PD and in subgroups of patients with PD. However, this knowledge should be applied with caution in the diagnosis and counselling of patients. Funding: UK Medical Research Council; UK Parkinson's Disease Society; UK Brain Research Trust; Internationaal Parkinson Fonds; Volkswagen Foundation; National Institutes of Health: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke and National Institute of Aging; Udall Parkinson's Disease Centre of Excellence; Pacific Alzheimer Research Foundation Centre; Italian Telethon Foundation; Fondazione Grigioni per il Morbo di Parkinson; Michael J Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research; Safra Global Genetics Consortium; US Department of Veterans Affairs; French Agence Nationale de la Recherche