How to improve collection on organic agriculture in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe

Annually, the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture FiBL collects data on key indicators of organic agriculture in European Union such as area, production and trade data among national data sources (for trade data) and Eurostat (for area, production and operator data; Eurostat 2018). Data are compiled in a MySQL database, and quality checks are carried out following the ORMACODE of the EUfunded OrganicDataNetwork (OrganicDataNetwork et al 2014), much of which is based on Eurostat’s Statistics Code of Practice (Eurostat 2011). Checks include the comparison against the previous year, the neighbouring countries, and the overall total. In case of inconsistencies, data providers are asked for clarification. FiBL publishes the data annually in collaboration with IFOAM – Organics International in a statistical yearbook (Willer & Lernoud 2018)

Transfusion Therapy and Blood Banking in the Dog and Cat

The first successful transfusion of blood from one dog to another was first reported in 1665 by Richard Lower. He anastomosed a carotid artery of a donor dog to the jugular vein of an acutely bled recipient. At this time in history, blood was regarded as the essence of life and useful only for its alleged psychic effects. It wasn\u27t until 1818 that whole blood was used for its intrinsic value when a London obstetrician initiated blood replacement therapy for postpartum hemorrhage. As veterinary critical care becomes more and more sophisticated, the advantages of a basic knowledge of transfusion therapy and blood banking are increasingly apparent. The purpose of this article is to offer current knowledge on: 1) storing blood, 2) selection of donors, 3) blood grouping and crossmatching, 4) blood collection, 5) indications for component transfusions, 6) administration, and 7) complications

Organic Eprints - making research in Organic Food and Farming more visible

Organic Eprints is an Open Access archive for research in organic food and farming. While based in Europe, it is international and open for deposits from all over the world. Since the start in 2002, the archive has steadily grown to over 10,000 deposits in 2010. Open Access enables more users to download and read the deposited papers, and this may lead to increased citations. Development of a platform based on Organic Eprints among other agriculture-related archives should make search even stronger. All researchers who work with organic food and farming are encouraged to register and deposit their work in Organic Eprints

Maßnahmen und Ansatzpunkte zur Verbesserung quantitativer Marktinformationen für den Öko-Markt

Marktbeteiligte aus Politik, Wissenschaft und Wirtschaft hatten Bedarf an systematisch abrufbaren, geprüften Daten zum Öko-Markt angemeldet. In einer Projekt-Datenbank wurden die verfügbaren europäischen Strukturdaten zum gesamten und ökologischen Landbau ab 2000 zusammengeführt und so miteinander verknüpft, dass jeweils ein konsistenter Datensatz pro Land und Jahr abgerufen werden kann. Zusätzlich werden konkurrierende Angaben in einem Quellenvergleich übersichtlich dargestellt und ermöglichen es, die Datengenauigkeit einzuschätzen. Für Deutschland stehen zudem aggregierte Umsatzdaten zur Verfügung. Der Aufbau aus den einzelnen Quellen erfolgte nach der Methode Multiple Data Integration der Firma fleXinfo. Systematische Koordinaten und Kennzahlen ermöglichen dem User eine flexible Auswahl, Gliederung und Zusammenfassung. Alle Daten können von den projekteigenen Internetseiten www.zmp.de/biodaten herunter geladen werden. Somit existiert erstmals eine zentrale Datenbank, die es allen Interessenten ermöglicht, nach den jeweiligen Fragestellungen Daten für die EU-25 Länder zu recherchieren und geprüfte Ergebnisse zu erhalten, die dem derzeit bestmöglichen Informationsstand entsprechen. Die drei Methoden zur Erhebung der Strukturdaten im deutschen Öko-Landbau (durch Statistisches Bundesamt, BLE und ZMP) wurden miteinander verglichen und auf mögliche Fehlerquellen hin analysiert. Schließlich wurden unterschiedliche Umsatzdaten für den Naturkostfachhandel methodisch überprüft und anhand verschiedener Stichproben verifiziert. Es wurde eine einheitliche Methodik erarbeitet, die künftig als Benchmark für die deutsche Naturkostbranche dienen kann

Effects of creatine supplementation on muscle weakness in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Background and objectives. Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) frequently suffer from muscle weakness. Oral administration of creatine has been shown to improve muscle strength in healthy subjects. The objective of this study was to examine the effect of oral creatine supplementation on muscle weakness, disease activity and activities of daily living in patients with RA. Methods. During a period of 3 weeks, 12 patients with RA were treated with creatine monohydrate (20 g/day for 5 days followed by 2 g/day for 16 days). They were examined on entry and at the end of the study. The patients were investigated clinically, blood and urine samples were obtained, muscle biopsies were performed before and after treatment, muscle strength was determined, and self‐administered patient questionnaires were completed. Results. From all patients we were able to obtain full clinical and questionnaire data, while biopsies were taken from 12 patients at the start and from nine patients at the end of the study. Muscle strength, as determined by the muscle strength index, increased in eight of 12 patients. In contrast, physical functional ability and disease activity did not change significantly. The creatine concentration in serum and skeletal muscle increased significantly, while creatine phosphate and total creatine did not increase in skeletal muscle. The skeletal muscle creatine content was associated with muscle strength at baseline but not after administration of creatine. The changes in muscle strength were not associated with the changes in skeletal muscle creatine or creatine phosphate. Conclusion. Although the skeletal muscle creatine content and muscle strength increased with creatine administration in some patients with RA, a clear clinical benefit could not be demonstrated for this treatment when the patients were considered as one grou

The promoter polymorphism -232C/G of the PCK1 gene is associated with type 2 diabetes in a UK-resident South Asian population

Background: The PCK1 gene, encoding cytosolic phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK-C), has previously been implicated as a candidate gene for type 2 diabetes (T2D) susceptibility. Rodent models demonstrate that over-expression of Pck1 can result in T2D development and a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the promoter region of human PCK1 (-232C/G) has exhibited significant association with the disease in several cohorts. Within the UK-resident South Asian population, T2D is 4 to 6 times more common than in indigenous white Caucasians. Despite this, few studies have reported on the genetic susceptibility to T2D in this ethnic group and none of these has investigated the possible effect of PCK1 variants. We therefore aimed to investigate the association between common variants of the PCK1 gene and T2D in a UK-resident South Asian population of Punjabi ancestry, originating predominantly from the Mirpur area of Azad Kashmir, Pakistan. \ud \ud Methods: We used TaqMan assays to genotype five tagSNPs covering the PCK1 gene, including the -232C/G variant, in 903 subjects with T2D and 471 normoglycaemic controls. \ud \ud Results: Of the variants studied, only the minor allele (G) of the -232C/G SNP demonstrated a significant association with T2D, displaying an OR of 1.21 (95% CI: 1.03 - 1.42, p = 0.019). \ud \ud Conclusion: This study is the first to investigate the association between variants of the PCK1 gene and T2D in South Asians. Our results suggest that the -232C/G promoter polymorphism confers susceptibility to T2D in this ethnic group. \ud \ud Trial registration: UKADS Trial Registration: ISRCTN38297969

Associating ground magnetometer observations with current or voltage generators

A circuit analogy for magnetosphere‐ionosphere current systems has two extremes for drivers of ionospheric currents: ionospheric electric fields/voltages constant while current/conductivity vary—the “voltage generator”—and current constant while electric field/conductivity vary—the “current generator.” Statistical studies of ground magnetometer observations associated with dayside Transient High Latitude Current Systems (THLCS) driven by similar mechanisms find contradictory results using this paradigm: some studies associate THLCS with voltage generators, others with current generators. We argue that most of this contradiction arises from two assumptions used to interpret ground magnetometer observations: (1) measurements made at fixed position relative to the THLCS field‐aligned current and (2) negligible auroral precipitation contributions to ionospheric conductivity. We use observations and simulations to illustrate how these two assumptions substantially alter expectations for magnetic perturbations associated with either a current or a voltage generator. Our results demonstrate that before interpreting ground magnetometer observations of THLCS in the context of current/voltage generators, the location of a ground magnetometer station relative to the THLCS field‐aligned current and the location of any auroral zone conductivity enhancements need to be taken into account.Key PointsConductivity and location assumptions used to interpret ground magnetic perturbations yield conflicting resultsHigh‐latitude currents associated with voltage generators may instead be associated with current generators, and vice versaWithout better constraints on conductivity/station location relative to currents, conflicts will not be resolvedPeer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138366/1/jgra53632.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138366/2/jgra53632_am.pd

Evolution of cooperation driven by zealots

Recent experimental results with humans involved in social dilemma games suggest that cooperation may be a contagious phenomenon and that the selection pressure operating on evolutionary dynamics (i.e., mimicry) is relatively weak. I propose an evolutionary dynamics model that links these experimental findings and evolution of cooperation. By assuming a small fraction of (imperfect) zealous cooperators, I show that a large fraction of cooperation emerges in evolutionary dynamics of social dilemma games. Even if defection is more lucrative than cooperation for most individuals, they often mimic cooperation of fellows unless the selection pressure is very strong. Then, zealous cooperators can transform the population to be even fully cooperative under standard evolutionary dynamics.Comment: 5 figure

Genetic associations with temporal shifts in obesity and severe obesity during the obesity epidemic in Norway:A longitudinal population-based cohort (the HUNT Study)

Background Obesity has tripled worldwide since 1975 as environments are becoming more obesogenic. Our study investigates how changes in population weight and obesity over time are associated with genetic predisposition in the context of an obesogenic environment over 6 decades and examines the robustness of the findings using sibling design. Methods and findings A total of 67,110 individuals aged 13–80 years in the Nord-Trøndelag region of Norway participated with repeated standardized body mass index (BMI) measurements from 1966 to 2019 and were genotyped in a longitudinal population-based health study, the Trøndelag Health Study (the HUNT Study). Genotyping required survival to and participation in the HUNT Study in the 1990s or 2000s. Linear mixed models with observations nested within individuals were used to model the association between a genome-wide polygenic score (GPS) for BMI and BMI, while generalized estimating equations were used for obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) and severe obesity (BMI ≥ 35 kg/m2). The increase in the average BMI and prevalence of obesity was steeper among the genetically predisposed. Among 35-year-old men, the prevalence of obesity for the least predisposed tenth increased from 0.9% (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.6% to 1.2%) to 6.5% (95% CI 5.0% to 8.0%), while the most predisposed tenth increased from 14.2% (95% CI 12.6% to 15.7%) to 39.6% (95% CI 36.1% to 43.0%). Equivalently for women of the same age, the prevalence of obesity for the least predisposed tenth increased from 1.1% (95% CI 0.7% to1.5%) to 7.6% (95% CI 6.0% to 9.2%), while the most predisposed tenth increased from 15.4% (95% CI 13.7% to 17.2%) to 42.0% (95% CI 38.7% to 45.4%). Thus, for 35-year-old men and women, respectively, the absolute change in the prevalence of obesity from 1966 to 2019 was 19.8 percentage points (95% CI 16.2 to 23.5, p < 0.0001) and 20.0 percentage points (95% CI 16.4 to 23.7, p < 0.0001) greater for the most predisposed tenth compared with the least predisposed tenth, defined using the GPS for BMI. The corresponding absolute changes in the prevalence of severe obesity for men and women, respectively, were 8.5 percentage points (95% CI 6.3 to 10.7, p < 0.0001) and 12.6 percentage points (95% CI 9.6 to 15.6, p < 0.0001) greater for the most predisposed tenth. The greater increase in BMI in genetically predisposed individuals over time was apparent after adjustment for family-level confounding using a sibling design. Key limitations include a slightly lower survival to date of genetic testing for the older cohorts and that we apply a contemporary genetic score to past time periods. Future research should validate our findings using a polygenic risk score constructed from historical data. Conclusions In the context of increasingly obesogenic changes in our environment over 6 decades, our findings reveal a growing inequality in the risk for obesity and severe obesity across GPS tenths. Our results suggest that while obesity is a partially heritable trait, it is still modifiable by environmental factors. While it may be possible to identify those most susceptible to environmental change, who thus have the most to gain from preventive measures, efforts to reverse the obesogenic environment will benefit the whole population and help resolve the obesity epidemic