Fokus på robusthed i økologisk slagtekyllingeproduktion

Naturlig modstandskraft er vigtig i fremtidens økologiske produktionssystemer for at opfylde markedets krav og forbedre den overordnede produktivitet. Men udviklingen af et robust immunsystem vil sandsynligvis være på bekostning af andre funktioner såsom vækst og reproduktion. I Organic RDD projektet SUMMER har man undersøgt tarmsundhed og immunsystem hos forskellige afstamninger af slagtekyllinger med forskellige vækstpotentialer Deimmunologiske undersøgelser viser, at der er forskel på de basale immunfunktioner mellem afstamningerne. Den afstamning med det laveste vækstpotentiale SU51 ser ud til at have et mere robust immunsystem end den afstamning med det største potentiale JA757

Termination of pregnancy due to Thalassemia major, Hemophilia, and Down's Syndrome: the views of Iranian physicians

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Genetic disorders due to <b>kindred </b>marriages are common medical conditions in Iran; however, the legal aspects of abortion remain controversial. This study was undertaken to determine physicians' opinions regarding the termination of pregnancy for three genetic diseases: thalassemia major, hemophilia, and Down's syndrome.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A questionnaire was administered to selected physicians by stratified random sampling to determine the following: age, gender, knowledge about prenatal diagnosis of diseases in high risk pregnancies, agreement with abortion, recommended gestational age for abortion, and, if opposed to abortion, the reason.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Of 323 physicians, who participated in the study, 91.3(295), 40.6(131), and 78.6%(254) were in agreement and 8.7(28), 59.4(192), and 21.4%(69) were opposed to abortion for thalassemia major, hemophilia, and Down's syndrome, respectively. Among 289 physicians opposed to abortion in respect of each of all three conditions, the following reasons were cited: religion, 18; emotional, 10; quality of care, 23; hope to find a new treatment option in the future, 103; miscellaneous reasons, 6; and a combination of these reasons, 129. Among 680 physicians in agreement with abortion in relation to all of the diseases, 4.6%(31) were agreed with abortion in less than 12 weeks gestation, 79.2%(538) in less than 16 weeks gestation, 5.6%(38) in less than 20 weeks gestation, 2.2%(15) in less than 24 weeks gestation, and 8.4%(58) were agreed with beyond the 24 weeks of gestational age.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The majority of physicians were in agreement with abortion for thalassemia major and Down's syndrome because of the overall prognosis, but opposed to abortion for hemophilia.</p

Better Prognosis in Newborns with Trisomy 13 Who Received Intensive Treatments: A Retrospective Study of 16 Patients

Intensive treatment for newborns with trisomy 13 is controversial because of their lethal prognosis. We report the better life prognosis of patients with trisomy 13 who received intensive treatment. At our hospital, we provided an intensive management to such patients including resuscitation and surgical procedures as required. Herein, we present the results of a retrospective study (1989–2010) of 16 trisomy 13 cases who received an intensive treatment. None was diagnosed to have trisomy 13 before birth; 9 were delivered by C-section and oxygen was administered to all patients during postpartum resuscitation. Mechanical ventilation was used in 9 patients after tracheal intubation and tracheotomy was performed in 2 patients when withdrawing of extubation was difficult. Regarding prognosis, 9 patients died, 3 were referred to another hospital, and 4 were discharged from the hospital. Four and 7 patients died within 7 and 30 days after birth, respectively. Nine patients survived for >1 month, 7 for >180 days, and 5 for >3 years. Median survival for 16 patients was 733 days. The patients who received intensive treatments survived longer compared to the previous data. This study provides useful information concerning genetic counseling, especially from an ethical point of view, before providing intensive management to newborns with trisomy 13

Bedside rationing by general practitioners: A postal survey in the Danish public healthcare system

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>It is ethically controversial whether medical doctors are morally permitted to ration the care of their patients at the bedside. To explore whether general practitioners in fact do ration in this manner we conducted a study within primary care in the Danish public healthcare system. The purpose of the study was to measure the extent to which general practitioners (GPs) would be willing to factor in cost-quality trade-offs when prescribing medicine, and to discover whether, and if so to what extent, they believe that patients should be informed about this.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Postal survey of 600 randomly selected Danish GPs, of which 330 responded to the questionnaire. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS, version 14.0) was used to produce general descriptive statistics. Significance was calculated with the McNemar and the chi-square test. The main outcome measures of the study were twofold: an assessment of the proportion of GPs who, in a mainly hypothetical setting, would consider cost-quality trade-offs relevant to their clinical decision-making given their economic impact on the healthcare system; and a measure of the extent to which they would disclose this information to patients.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In the hypothetical setting 95% of GPs considered cost-quality trade-offs relevant to their clinical decision-making given the economic impact of such trade-offs on the healthcare system. In all 90% stated that this consideration had been relevant in clinical decision-making within the last month. In the hypothetical setting 55% would inform their patients that they considered a cost-quality trade-off relevant to their clinical decisions given the economic impact of such trade-offs on the healthcare system. The most common reason (68%) given for not wanting to inform patients about this matter was the belief that the information would not prove useful to patients. In the hypothetical setting cost-quality trade-offs were considered relevant significantly more often in connection with concerns about costs to the patient (86%) than they were in connection with concerns about costs to the healthcare system (55%; p < 0.001).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Although readiness to consider cost-quality trade-offs relevant to clinical decisions is prevalent among GPs in Denmark, only half of GPs would disclose to patients that they consider this relevant to their clinical decision-making. The results of this study raise two important ethical problems. First, under Danish law physicians are required to inform patients about all equal treatments. The fact that only a few GPs would inform their patients about all of the relevant treatments therefore seems to contravene Danish law. Second, it is ethically controversial that physicians act as economic gatekeepers.</p

Hemodynamic Responses Evoked by Neuronal Stimulation via Channelrhodopsin-2 Can Be Independent of Intracortical Glutamatergic Synaptic Transmission

Maintenance of neuronal function depends on the delivery of oxygen and glucose through changes in blood flow that are linked to the level of ongoing neuronal and glial activity, yet the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Using transgenic mice expressing the light-activated cation channel channelrhodopsin-2 in deep layer pyramidal neurons, we report that changes in intrinsic optical signals and blood flow can be evoked by activation of a subset of channelrhodopsin-2-expressing neurons in the sensorimotor cortex. We have combined imaging and pharmacology to examine the importance of glutamatergic synaptic transmission in this form of neurovascular coupling. Blockade of ionotropic glutamate receptors with the antagonists CNQX and MK801 significantly reduced forepaw-evoked hemodynamic responses, yet resulted in no significant reduction of channelrhodopsin-evoked hemodynamic responses, suggesting that stimulus-dependent coupling of neuronal activity to blood flow can be independent of local excitatory synaptic transmission. Together, these results indicate that channelrhodopsin-2 activation of sensorimotor excitatory neurons produces changes in intrinsic optical signals and blood flow that can occur under conditions where synaptic activation of neurons or other cells through ionotropic glutamate receptors would be blocked

First Results from the Hertzsprung SONG Telescope: Asteroseismology of the G5 Subgiant Star μ Herculis

We report the first asteroseismic results obtained with the Hertzsprung Stellar Observations Network Group Telescope from an extensive high-precision radial-velocity observing campaign of the subgiant μ Herculis. The data set was collected during 215 nights in 2014 and 2015. We detected a total of 49 oscillation modes with l values from zero to three, including some l = 1 mixed modes. Based on the rotational splitting observed in l = 1 modes, we determine a rotational period of 52 days and a stellar inclination angle of 63°. The parameters obtained through modeling of the observed oscillation frequencies agree very well with independent observations and imply a stellar mass between 1.11 and 1.15 $M_{\odot}$ and an age of ${7.8}_{-0.4}^{+0.3}$ Gyr. Furthermore, the high-quality data allowed us to determine the acoustic depths of the He ii ionization layer and the base of the convection zone

X-shooter, the new wide band intermediate resolution spectrograph at the ESO Very Large Telescope

X-shooter is the first 2nd generation instrument of the ESO Very Large Telescope(VLT). It is a very efficient, single-target, intermediate-resolution spectrograph that was installed at the Cassegrain focus of UT2 in 2009. The instrument covers, in a single exposure, the spectral range from 300 to 2500 nm. It is designed to maximize the sensitivity in this spectral range through dichroic splitting in three arms with optimized optics, coatings, dispersive elements and detectors. It operates at intermediate spectral resolution (R~4,000 - 17,000, depending on wavelength and slit width) with fixed echelle spectral format (prism cross-dispersers) in the three arms. It includes a 1.8"x4" Integral Field Unit as an alternative to the 11" long slits. A dedicated data reduction package delivers fully calibrated two-dimensional and extracted spectra over the full wavelength range. We describe the main characteristics of the instrument and present its performance as measured during commissioning, science verification and the first months of science operations.Comment: accepted for publication in A&

Limits of neonatal treatment: a survey of attitudes in the Danish population.

OBJECTIVES: To study attitudes in the Danish population towards treatment of severely handicapped and extremely preterm infants and to define areas of consensus and controversy. DESIGN: Mail-delivered questionnaire. SETTING: Denmark. Survey sample--A random sample of 1080 persons aged from 18 to 45 years. RESULTS: The overall response rate was 68%. There was strong consensus (more than 75% agreement) that life-prolonging treatment should be provided for an infant born after 24 weeks' gestation with respiratory distress and, for an infant with myelomeningocele, when the parents were in favour of treatment. Further, there was almost uniform agreement that not all infants should be treated no matter how serious the condition. Major controversies concerned the severity of a condition needed to justify omission of life-prolonging treatment, the role of parental attitude and the options in non-treatment cases. Forty-six per cent thought it ought to be legal to kill the infant in at least some of these cases. CONCLUSION: Although the study revealed wide divergences of opinion with regard to questions about limits of treatment and about end-of-life decisions it also showed that there was general acceptance both that life-prolonging treatment ought to be provided even in relatively severe cases if this was in accordance with parental wishes, and that life should not be saved at all costs