Promoting the scholarship of teaching: Results of a workshop on enhancing education in wildlife conservation

We describe the justification, format, and assessment of a workshop Enhancing Education in Wildlife Ecology, Conservation, Management: An Exchange of Ideas facilitated at the Wildlife Society\u27s Fourth Annual Conference. The workshop was designed to meet the professional development needs of college and university wildlife educators. Over 80 participants from academic and agency backgrounds attended a keynote address and breakout sessions to discuss pedagogical techniques and approaches to teaching specific wildlife course content. Breakout sessions on active learning in large classrooms, constructed controversies, and using writing in the classroom were identified by most participants as most important. The diverse backgrounds of session participants affected the nature of discussions in course-content focused sessions. Participants routinely expressed satisfaction about the opportunity to exchange ideas about teaching methods with colleagues

Multi-scale Cover Selection by White-tailed Deer, Odocoileus virginianus, in an Agro-forested Landscape

Resource selection studies are commonly conducted at a single spatial scale, but this likely does not fully or accurately assess the hierarchical selection process used by animals. We used a multi-spatial scale approach to quantify White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) cover selection in south-central Michigan during 2004–2006 by varying definitions of use and availability and ranking the relative importance of cover types under each study design. The number of cover types assigned as selected (proportional use > proportional availability) decreased from coarse (landscape level) to fine (within home range) scales, although at finer scales, selection seemed to be more consistent. Although the relative importance changed substantially across spatial scales, two cover types (conifers, upland deciduous forests) were consistently ranked as the two most important, providing strong evidence of their value to deer in the study area. Testing for resource selection patterns using a multi-spatial scale approach would provide additional insight into the ecology and behavior of a particular species

Persistent Spillback of Bovine Tuberculosis From White-Tailed Deer to Cattle in Michigan, USA: Status, Strategies, and Needs

Free-ranging white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) are believed to be a self-sustaining reservoir for bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in northeastern Lower Michigan, USA. Although a comprehensive control program is in place and on-farm mitigation strategies to curtail bTB transmission between cattle and deer have been implemented for over a decade, cattle and deer continue to become infected with the disease. Thus, renewed motivation to eradicate bTB is needed if that is truly the goal. Recurrent detection of bTB in cattle in the region is of mounting concern for state and federal agricultural agencies, producers, and wildlife managers. Current on-farm mitigation efforts include fencing and refined cattle feeding and watering practices. Liberal removal of antlerless deer through hunter harvest and disease control permits (DCPs) issued to cattle producers and agency sharp shooters have also been ongoing. Although these strategies have merit and efforts to reduce prevalence in deer and occurrence of positive farms are elevated, additional actions are needed. Heightened management actions to combat bTB in deer could include deer vaccination programs, strategic habitat manipulations to redistribute deer from farms, and precision removal of deer in proximity to high-risk farms. Foundational research to address development and delivery of vaccine to free-ranging deer is complete. Strategic management and habitat manipulation could reduce and disperse local concentrations of deer while better meeting wildlife, forestry, and agricultural goals. The responses of local deer populations to targeted removal of individuals are generally understood and there is potential to reduce deer activity around agricultural operations while allowing them to persist nearby on natural foods. We summarize the history and progress to date, discuss the realized merit of novel management strategies, and suggest options to rid deer and cattle in Michigan of bTB

Kenya model: Development and implementation of an overseas study course on African wildlife ecology and management

The brochure declares: What better place to study a diversity of wildlife species and ecosystems than Kenya\u27s spectacular National Parks and Conservation Areas? Enticing! Exhilarating! A once in a life time experience! African Wildlife Ecology and Management in Kenya is an intensive two and a half week overseas study program offered by Michigan State University\u27s (MSU) Department of Fisheries and Wildlife. Through this hands-on experience, students apply wildlife management principles to issues in Kenya\u27s National Parks and Conservation Areas. Planning and coordination of this course requires a year\u27s worth of thoughtful preparation in order to provide students with a dynamic yet placid in-country experience. To better aid other educators and coordinators in development and implementation of similar courses, we present a detailed account of the history and evolution of African Wildlife Ecology and Management in Kenya. How was this course conceived? How was support garnered from the University? What is required for developing such a course? Furthermore, we present information on why different sites within Kenya were selected and how the order of visitation to these sites allows for a logical progression and increasingly more elaborate acquisition of knowledge of course material. Finally, we describe the various projects assigned to students and the rational for assigning them; the basis for using student groups throughout the in-country experience; the use of alternative forms of assessment to evaluate student learning; assigned readings and course packet development and contents; and implications of limited time and lack of technology while in-country

Persistent Spillback of Bovine Tuberculosis From White-Tailed Deer to Cattle in Michigan, USA: Status, Strategies, and Needs

Free-ranging white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) are believed to be a self-sustaining reservoir for bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in northeastern Lower Michigan, USA. Although a comprehensive control program is in place and on-farm mitigation strategies to curtail bTB transmission between cattle and deer have been implemented for over a decade, cattle and deer continue to become infected with the disease. Thus, renewed motivation to eradicate bTB is needed if that is truly the goal. Recurrent detection of bTB in cattle in the region is of mounting concern for state and federal agricultural agencies, producers, and wildlife managers. Current on-farm mitigation efforts include fencing and refined cattle feeding and watering practices. Liberal removal of antlerless deer through hunter harvest and disease control permits (DCPs) issued to cattle producers and agency sharp shooters have also been ongoing. Although these strategies have merit and efforts to reduce prevalence in deer and occurrence of positive farms are elevated, additional actions are needed. Heightened management actions to combat bTB in deer could include deer vaccination programs, strategic habitat manipulations to redistribute deer from farms, and precision removal of deer in proximity to high-risk farms. Foundational research to address development and delivery of vaccine to free-ranging deer is complete. Strategic management and habitat manipulation could reduce and disperse local concentrations of deer while better meeting wildlife, forestry, and agricultural goals. The responses of local deer populations to targeted removal of individuals are generally understood and there is potential to reduce deer activity around agricultural operations while allowing them to persist nearby on natural foods. We summarize the history and progress to date, discuss the realized merit of novel management strategies, and suggest options to rid deer and cattle in Michigan of bTB

PERCUTANEOUS ETHANOL INJECTION IN BENIGN NONTOXIC MULTINODULAR GOITER

Introduction: Benign non-toxic multinodular goiter is one of the most common endocrine diseases that affect the current population, and it is, in turn, the endocrine disease that most frequently requires surgical intervention. Objective: To show the results of percutaneous ethanol injection in the treatment of patients with benign non-toxic multinodular goiter in the short and medium term. Methods: A prospective longitudinal study was conducted in patients with benign nontoxic multinodular goiter treated with percutaneous ethanol injection. The categorical variables were described by absolute frequencies and percentages, and for the numerical variables the mean, standard deviation, as well as the minimum and maximum values were calculated. To evaluate the changes between the initial and final volumes of the nodules, the Student's t-test for related samples was used. Results: The mean percentage reduction in the volume of the nodules was 48.23 ± 9.55; 58.05 ± 11.79 and 69.49 ± 13.11; a month, 3 months and 6 months after the treatment, respectively. Clinical success was complete in 67.3%, 75.5%, and 87.8% of the patients, at 1, 3, and 6 months of post-treatment follow-up, respectively. There were no complications. Conclusions: Percutaneous ethanol injection is an alternative to surgery for the treatment of patients with benign non-toxic multinodular goiter, it is safe, effective, with transient adverse effects and very rare complications in the short and medium term.RESUMENIntroducción: El bocio multinodular no tóxico benigno es una de las enfermedadesendocrinas más comunes que afectan a la población actual, y es a su vez la enfermedadendocrina que con mayor frecuencia requiere intervención quirúrgica.Objetivo: Mostrar los resultados de la inyección percutánea de etanol en el tratamiento depacientes con bocio multinodular no tóxico benigno a corto y mediano plazo.Métodos: Se realizó un estudio longitudinal, prospectivo, en pacientes con bociomultinodular no tóxico benigno, tratados con inyección percutánea de etanol. Las variablescategóricas se describieron por frecuencias absolutas y porcentajes y para las numéricas secalculó la media, la desviación estándar, así como el valor mínimo y el máximo. Paraevaluar los cambios entre los volúmenes inicial y final de los nódulos se utilizó la prueba t deStudent para muestras relacionadas.Resultados: La media del porciento de reducción del volumen de los nódulos fue de 48,23 ±9,55; 58,05 ± 11,79 y 69,49 ± 13,11; al mes, 3 meses y 6 meses de realizado el tratamientorespectivamente. El éxito clínico fue completo en el 67,3 %, 75,5 % y el 87,8 % de lospacientes, al mes, 3 meses y 6 meses de seguimiento post tratamiento respectivamente. Nose presentaron complicaciones.Conclusiones: La inyección percutánea de etanol es una alternativa a la cirugía para el tratamiento de los pacientes con bocio multinodular no tóxico benigno, es segura, efectiva, con efectos adversos transitorios y complicaciones muy poco frecuentes a corto y mediano plazo.Introdução: O bócio multinodular benigno não tóxico é uma das doenças endócrinas mais comuns que afetam a população atual, sendo, por sua vez, a doença endócrina que mais frequentemente requer intervenção cirúrgica. Objetivo: Mostrar os resultados da injeção percutânea de etanol no tratamento de pacientes com bócio multinodular benigno não tóxico a curto e médio prazo. Métodos: Foi realizado um estudo longitudinal prospectivo em pacientes com bócio multinodular benigno não tóxico tratados com injeção percutânea de etanol. As variáveis ​​categóricas foram descritas por frequências absolutas e percentuais, e para as variáveis ​​numéricas foram calculados a média, desvio padrão, bem como os valores mínimo e máximo. Para avaliar as mudanças entre os volumes inicial e final dos nódulos, foi utilizado o teste t de Student para amostras relacionadas. Resultados: A redução percentual média no volume dos nódulos foi de 48,23 ± 9,55; 58,05 ± 11,79 e 69,49 ± 13,11; um mês, 3 meses e 6 meses após o tratamento, respectivamente. O sucesso clínico foi completo em 67,3%, 75,5% e 87,8% dos pacientes, em 1, 3 e 6 meses de acompanhamento pós-tratamento, respectivamente. Não houve complicações. Conclusões: A injeção percutânea de etanol é uma alternativa à cirurgia para o tratamento de pacientes com bócio multinodular benigno não tóxico, é segura, eficaz, com efeitos adversos transitórios e complicações muito raras a curto e médio prazo

Use of rhodamine B as a biomarker in a simulated oral vaccine deployment against bovine tuberculosis in white-tailed deer

IntroductionFree-ranging white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in northeastern lower Michigan, (United States) are a self-sustaining reservoir for bovine tuberculosis (bTB). Farm mitigation practices, baiting bans, and antlerless deer harvests have been ineffective in eliminating bTB in white-tailed deer and risks to cattle. The apparent prevalence has remained relatively constant in deer, prompting interest among wildlife researchers, managers, and veterinarians for an effective means of vaccinating deer against bTB. The commonly used human vaccine for bTB, Bacillus Calmette Guerin (BCG), is the primary candidate with oral delivery being the logical means for vaccinating deer.Materials and methodsWe developed vaccine delivery units and incorporated the biomarker Rhodamine B before delivering them to deer to assess the level of coverage achievable. Following deployment of Rhodamine B-laden vaccine delivery units on 17 agricultural study sites in Alpena County, MI in Mar/Apr 2016, we sampled deer to detect evidence of Rhodamine B consumption.Results and discussionWe collected a total of 116 deer and sampled them for vibrissae/rumen marking and found 66.3% (n = 77) of the deer collected exhibited evidence of vaccine delivery unit consumption. Understanding the level of coverage we achieved with oral delivery of a biomarker in vaccine delivery units to deer enables natural resource professionals to forecast expectations of a next step toward further minimizing bTB in deer

Discrete Multiscale Analysis: A Biatomic Lattice System

We discuss a discrete approach to the multiscale reductive perturbative method and apply it to a biatomic chain with a nonlinear interaction between the atoms. This system is important to describe the time evolution of localized solitonic excitations. We require that also the reduced equation be discrete. To do so coherently we need to discretize the time variable to be able to get asymptotic discrete waves and carry out a discrete multiscale expansion around them. Our resulting nonlinear equation will be a kind of discrete Nonlinear Schr\"odinger equation. If we make its continuum limit, we obtain the standard Nonlinear Schr\"odinger differential equation

A Comprehensive Investigation on Common Polymorphisms in the MDR1/ABCB1 Transporter Gene and Susceptibility to Colorectal Cancer

ATP Binding Cassette B1 (ABCB1) is a transporter with a broad substrate specificity involved in the elimination of several carcinogens from the gut. Several polymorphic variants within the ABCB1 gene have been reported as modulators of ABCB1-mediated transport. We investigated the impact of ABCB1 genetic variants on colorectal cancer (CRC) risk. A hybrid tagging/functional approach was performed to select 28 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that were genotyped in 1,321 Czech subjects, 699 CRC cases and 622 controls. In addition, six potentially functional SNPs were genotyped in 3,662 German subjects, 1,809 cases and 1,853 controls from the DACHS study. We found that three functional SNPs (rs1202168, rs1045642 and rs868755) were associated with CRC risk in the German population. Carriers of the rs1202168_T and rs868755_T alleles had an increased risk for CRC (Ptrend = 0.016 and 0.029, respectively), while individuals bearing the rs1045642_C allele showed a decreased risk of CRC (Ptrend = 0.022). We sought to replicate the most significant results in an independent case-control study of 3,803 subjects, 2,169 cases and 1,634 controls carried out in the North of Germany. None of the SNPs tested were significantly associated with CRC risk in the replication study. In conclusion, in this study of about 8,800 individuals we show that ABCB1 gene polymorphisms play at best a minor role in the susceptibility to CRC