Tips til at reducere pattegrisedødeligheden på øko-bedrifter

Nye undersøgelser har afsløret at ihjellægning og sult er de primære dødsårsager for pattegrise i den økologiske produktion. Ihjellægning kan imidlertid skyldes mange forskellige ting. Det kan være, 1) at grisene er for svage fra fødslen, 2) at de fryser og derfor ikke søger væk fra soens varme, 3) at de ikke får den nødvendige råmælk (kamp om ressourcerne), 4) at soen ikke har de nødvendige moderegenskaber eller 5) at hytten ikke er indrettet godt nok til at varetage pattegrisenes tarv. Det er derfor vigtigt at have fokus både på søernes tilstand, klimaet i og omkring hytten, hyttens udformning og grisenes egnethed til driftsformen (genetik), når man vil reducere pattegrisedødeligheden på sin bedrift

Landbrugsskolelærere bedre klædt på til øko-undervisning

På temadag besøgte en række undervisere »Hestbjerg Økologi«, hvor indehaver Bertel Hestbjerg viste rundt på sin bedrift og fortalte om økologisk svineproduktion. Den viden skal nu ud i undervisningsledde

Video: Sår urter i kløvergræsset - skal give bedre biodiversitet

Frode Lehmann sår urter i sine kløvergræsmarke

Photosystem II Functionality in Barley Responds Dynamically to Changes in Leaf Manganese Status

A catalytic manganese (Mn) cluster is required for the oxidation of water in the oxygen-evolving complex (OEC) of photosystem II (PSII) in plants. Despite this essential role of Mn in generating the electrons driving photosynthesis, limited information is available on how Mn deficiency affects PSII functionality. We have here used parameters derived from measurements of fluorescence induction kinetics (OJIP transients), non-photochemical quenching and PSII subunit composition to investigate how latent Mn deficiency changes the photochemistry in two barley genotypes differing in Mn efficiency. Mn deficiency caused dramatic reductions in the quantum yield of PSII and led to the appearance of two new inflection points, the K step and the D dip, in the OJIP fluorescence transients, indicating severe damage to the OEC. In addition, Mn deficiency decreased the ability to induce non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) in the light, rendering the plants incapable of dissipating excess energy in a controlled way. Thus, the Mn deficient plants became severely affected in their ability to recover from high light-induced photoinhibition, especially under strong Mn deficiency. Interestingly, the Mn-efficient genotype was able to maintain a higher non-photochemical quenching than the Mn-inefficient genotype when exposed to mild Mn deficiency. However, during severe Mn deficiency, there were no differences between the two genotypes, suggesting a general loss of the ability to disassemble and repair PSII. The pronounced defects of PSII activity were supported by a dramatic decrease in the abundance of the OEC protein subunits, PsbP and PsbQ in response to Mn deficiency for both genotypes. We conclude that regulation of photosynthetic performance by means of maintaining and inducing NPQ mechanisms contribute to genotypic differences in the Mn efficiency of barley genotypes growing under conditions with mild Mn deficiency

Exercise therapy after ultrasound-guided corticosteroid injections in patients with subacromial pain syndrome:a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Subacromial pain syndrome (SAPS) accounts for around 50 % of all cases of shoulder pain. The most commonly used treatments are glucocorticosteroid (steroid) injections and exercise therapy; however, despite treatment SAPS patients often experience relapse of their symptoms. Therefore the clinical effect of combining steroid and exercise therapy is highly relevant to clarify. The aim of this randomized controlled trial was to investigate if exercise therapy added to steroid injection in patients with SAPS will improve the effect of the injection therapy on shoulder pain. METHODS: In this two-arm randomized trial running over 26 weeks, patients with unilateral shoulder pain (> 4 weeks) and thickened subacromial bursa (> 2 mm on US) were included. At baseline all participants received two steroid injections into the painful shoulder with an interval of one week. Subsequently they were randomized (1:1) to either 10 weeks exercise of the involved shoulder (intervention group) or exercise of the uninvolved shoulder (control group). The patients were re-examined after the exercise program (at week 13) and again at week 26. The primary outcome assessed after 26 weeks was change in shoulder pain analyzed using the intention-to-treat principle (non-responder imputation). RESULTS: Ninety-nine SAPS patients (58 female) participated (49 intervention/50 control). At both follow up visits (week 13 and 26) no statistically significant between-group differences in pain changes on a visual analog scale (mm) were seen (13 weeks: pain at rest 1.7 (95 % CI –3.6 to 7.0; P = 0.53); pain in activity 2.2 (95 % CI –6.5 to 10.9; P = 0.61), 26 weeks: rest 5.6 (95 % CI –0.9 to 12.1; P = 0.09); activity 2.2 (95 % CI –6.8 to 11.2; P = 0.62). The reduction in pain was most evident in the control group at all four pain measurements. The only difference between groups was seen by US examination at week 13, where fewer participants with impingement were observed in the intervention group compared with the controls (9 vs. 19 participants; P = 0.03). CONCLUSION: Exercise therapy in the painful shoulder in SAPS patients did not improve the effectiveness of steroid injections for shoulder pain in patients with unilateral SAPS and enlarged subacromial bursa on US examination. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT01506804). Registration date 5 May 2011. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13075-016-1002-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users