Protocol voor meting van fijnstofemissie uit huisvestingssystemen in de veehouderij 2010 = Protocol for the measurement of fine emissions from housings in animal production

This report describes a measurement protocol for fine dust emissions from animal housing systems. The protocol is based on sampling periods of 24 hours spread over one year and can be applied in specified animal categories

Ontwerp van nieuwe meetprotocollen voor het meten van gasvormige emissies in de landbouw

Binnen het Europese onderzoeksproject Welfare Quality® werden protocollen opgesteld die het mogelijk maken om het welzijn aan het dier zélf te meten. De protocollen zijn echter lijvig, waardoor één welzijnsmeting afhankelijk van de diersoort 5 tot 8 uur vergt. Het ministerie van EL&I wil de protocollen vereenvoudigen, zodat ze gemakkelijk zijn in te zetten op veebedrijven

PAS Aanvullende reservemaatregelen Landbouw: uitwerking van een quick scan

In many Natura 2000 area’s, the nitrogen deposition is higher than wished for. This led to a deadlock in economic development of, among others, livestock husbandry. The interdepartmental program ‘Programma Aanpak Stikstof’ (PAS), is meant to overcome the standstill of grants of permits to produce, while in term preservation goals of nature area’s can be achieved. For the three sector groups Traffic and Transportation, Industry and Energy, and Agriculture source measures are inventoried to deal with the bottlenecks. By order of the Ministry of Economic Affairs this report presents the inventory of measures for agriculture

Effect of the chemokine receptor CXCR7 on proliferation of carcinoma cells in vitro and in vivo

The chemokine CXCL12/SDF-1 and its receptor CXCR4 have been implicated in invasion, survival and proliferation of carcinoma cells. Recently, CXCR7 was identified as a second receptor for CXCL12. We observed that CXCL12 promoted proliferation of CT26 colon and KEP1 mammary carcinoma cells, and this was blocked when CXCR7 was downregulated by ‘intrakines' or RNAi, but not by CXCR4 inhibitors. The K1R mutant of CXCL12, which acts as a CXCR4 antagonist, also promoted proliferation through CXCR7 and is therefore a selective CXCR7 agonist. The effect of CXCR7 was not due to reduced apoptosis, and CXCR7 mediated chemotaxis of the carcinoma cells towards CXCL12. These results differ from those in a previous report on other carcinoma cells. We conclude that CXCL12 can be a potent growth factor for carcinoma cells by acting on CXCR7. Nevertheless, we observed no effect of complete and stable CXCR7 suppression on the growth of s.c. tumours or lung metastases of KEP1 and CT26 cells. A CXCR7 inhibitor has been reported to reduce growth of other tumours. Our results indicate that this inhibitor may not be applicable to therapy of all carcinomas

Social capital and active membership in the Ghana National Health Insurance Scheme - a mixed method study

BACKGROUND: People’s decision to enroll in a health insurance scheme is determined by socio-cultural and socio-economic factors. On request of the National health Insurance Authority (NHIA) in Ghana, our study explores the influence of social relationships on people’s perceptions, behavior and decision making to enroll in the National Health Insurance Scheme. This social scheme, initiated in 2003, aims to realize accessible quality healthcare services for the entire population of Ghana. We look at relationships of trust and reciprocity between individuals in the communities (so called horizontal social capital) and between individuals and formal health institutions (called vertical social capital) in order to determine whether these two forms of social capital inhibit or facilitate enrolment of clients in the scheme. Results can support the NHIA in exploiting social capital to reach their objective and strengthen their policy and practice. METHOD: We conducted 20 individual- and seven key-informant interviews, 22 focus group discussions, two stakeholder meetings and a household survey, using a random sample of 1903 households from the catchment area of 64 primary healthcare facilities. The study took place in Greater Accra Region and Western Regions in Ghana between June 2011 and March 2012. RESULTS: While social developments and increased heterogeneity seem to reduce community solidarity in Ghana, social networks remain common in Ghana and are valued for their multiple benefits (i.e. reciprocal trust and support, information sharing, motivation, risk sharing). Trusting relations with healthcare and insurance providers are, according healthcare clients, based on providers’ clear communication, attitude, devotion, encouragement and reliability of services. Active membership of the NHIS is positive associated with community trust, trust in healthcare providers and trust in the NHIS (p-values are .009, .000 and .000 respectively). CONCLUSION: Social capital can motivate clients to enroll in health insurance. Fostering social capital through improving information provision to communities and engaging community groups in health care and NHIS services can facilitate peoples’ trust in these institutions and their active participation in the scheme

Comparison of sampling methods for animal manure

Currently available and recently developed sampling methods for slurry and solid manure were tested for bias and reproducibility in the determination of total phosphorus and nitrogen content of samples. Sampling methods were based on techniques in which samples were taken either during loading from the hose or from the transport vehicle after loading. Most methods were unbiased. New sampling methods for slurry from the hose were substantially more reproducible than existing methods. For practical reasons, the mechanization of sampling is desirable, and to minimize the influence of human activity on sample quality, the automation of sampling is advisable