High Nitrogen Costs of Dairy Production in Europe: Worsened by Intensification

Intensification of agriculture has been proposed as one way of minimizing emissions per unit of product, apparently legitimizing the ongoing structural changes in agriculture. We have investigated the relationship between the farming intensity and the nitrogen (N) dissipation by calculating the overall N emission factor (E: total N surplus per unit of N in the produce) from several studies of dairy farms, covering a wide range of environments and production intensities. Fundamental steps were 1) the distinction between trophic levels, mineral, plant and animal N; and 2) the inclusion of N losses related to bought feed. The results show that E increases significantly with the production intensity of the dairy farm. The tradition for separate optimization of the animal and crop sectors may be a reason. We suggest that the N pollution can be mitigated by more extensive farming, both by re-coupling crop and animal production side by side, and by keeping land under cultivation when production is reduced

Lite nitrogentap fra mjølkegarder som baserer seg på egen fôrprodukjson

Tap av nitrogen (N) er et stort problem i landbruket, og i Europeiske direktiver blir det krevd forandring i landbrukspraksis for å redusere avrenningen. Ekstensiv mjølkeproduksjonen basert på heimeprodusert fôr er den mest effektive måten å bedre N-effektiviteten på. N-effektiviteten på gardsnivå reduseres dersom innkjøpet av fôr er høgt i forhold til planteproduksjonspotensialet på garden

Feeding habits of extant and fossil canids as determined by their skull geometry

The canids belong to one of the most prominent families of mammalian carnivores. Feeding adaptations of extant species is well documented by field observations; however, we are still missing palaeoecological insights for many enigmatic fossil specimens. We employ geometric morphometrics to quantify skull size and shape in extant and fossil members of the Canini tribe, inclusive of jackals and wolf-like taxa. Skull data are tested to identify correlates of dietary adaptations in extant species for predicting adaptations in fossils. Main vectors of shape variation correlate with the relative skull-palatal length, the position of the upper carnassial tooth and the anterior tip of the secondary palate. Allometry occurs in the palatal shape but size explains only a small fraction (about 4%) of shape variance. Although we quantified only palatal and tooth shape for the inclusion of fragmentary fossils, discriminant function analysis successfully classify extant Canini in dietary groups (small, medium and large prey specialist) with 89% of accuracy. The discriminant functions provide insights into many enigmatic specimens such as Eucyon adoxus (=small prey), fossil jackal-like from Koobi Fora formation (=small prey) and the Plio-Pleistocene Old World canid guild (Canis etruscus, C. arnensis and Lycaon falconeri). Clearly, both skull size and shape are excellent predictors of feeding habits in Canini thus also provide information about fossil taxonomic affinities

THE POGGIO ROSSO LOCALITY CALIBRATED TO THE END-PLIOCENE AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE FOR DATING THE LATE VILLAFRANCHIAN MAMMAL FAUNAS OF THE UPPER VALDARNO, CENTRAL ITALY

A rich deposit of mammals was discovered in September 1995 at Poggio Rosso, the hill-top of the Matassino clay pit, in the Upper Valdarno Basin, 30 m above another deposit whose local fauna was assembled 30 years earlier. This latter provided the Matassino Locality, assigned to the beginning of the late Villafranchian Mammal Neogene age on the basis of its affinity with the Olivola faunal unit, which was also taken to represent the earliest assemblage in the Pleistocene. The paleomagnetic record in the short section across the Matassino Locality revealed the Olduvai chron, which was imprinted also in the fossil-bearing stratum of Poggio Rosso, so constraining both their ages to the latest Pliocene. The Poggio Rosso fauna, yet to be paleontologically determined, and the other late Villafranchian faunas collected in the Upper Valdarno from the Montevarchi complex fit a similar time span. Therefore, their magnetostratigraphically calibrated ages provide the time constraints for the biochronological relationships between faunas which can be tuned to several tie points for numerically evaluating their diversification steps during the whole Olduvai chron and shortly out of it.

Integrating Economics and Ecology

SupplementThis report documents the results from an analysis of policy measures to reduce losses of nitrogen, phosphorus and soil from the agricultural sector to the environment. These kinds of losses are nonpoint, and standard emission oriented policy measures like effluent taxes are prohibitively costly to use. The policy altematives are therefore to regulate the input of potentially polluting substances - in this case reduce the use of fertilizers, to prescribe changes in agronomic practices as conducted on the farm or to change product prices. Principally this study analyzes the effects of these types of regulations, their ability to reduce losses of nutrients and soil, and the private and social costs thereby invoked

Chronic NSAIDs Therapy and Upper Gastrointestinal Tract – Mechanism of Injury, Mucosal Defense, Risk Factors for Complication Development and Clinical Management

Non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are the most prescribed medications worldwide because of their analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties. In fact, NSAIDs are generally prescribed for pain management in musculoskeletal or osteoarticolar pathologies and for rheumatic diseases, very common diseases in the general population. About twenty million US patients were prescribed NSAIDs every year. Although NSAIDs are generally well tolerated, chronic therapy is responsible for a significant morbidity and mortality rate; in fact, the incidence of GI events is significantly higher (about four fold) in patients receiving NSAIDs chronic therapy. Adverse gastrointestinal events related to NSAIDs therapy occur in a little but significant amount of patients, resulting in an important morbidity and mortality. In the US more than 150 per 100.000 patients were admitted every year for NSAIDs related adverse events, resulting in about 15000 deaths. The chapter covers the mechanism of NSAIDs related injury, mucosal defense, risk factors for complication development and the clinical management

PALEOMAGNETIC AND PALYNOLOGIC INVESTIGATIONS IN THE UPPER VALDARNO BASIN (CENTRAL ITALY): CALIBRATION OF AN EARLY VILLAFRANCHIAN FAUNA

The silty clays embedding an early Villafranchian mammal fauna of the Triversa faunal unit (f.u.) have been paleomagnetically and palynologically studied in a continuous sequence exposed in the Santa Barbara quarry.The study has allowed to date the earliest occurrence in Italy of a faunal assemblage of this unit and to define the corresponding climatic conditions. The sampled section has provided a magnetic polarity sequence of the late Gauss,where the fossiliferous layer fits the Kaena reversed interval.Its age of ca. 3.1 Ma,during subtropical climate conditions correlatable to the Reuverian of Netherlands, suggests an older age for the beginning of the Villafranchian, possibly associated to a more dramatic scenario able to trigger the faunal turnover. &nbsp

Lamivudine treatment for severe acute HBV hepatitis

Treatment for acute hepatitis B is recommended in order to reduce the risk of progression to fulminant hepatitis and the need of OLT. We report our experience on treatment with high dose lamivudine, in patients with severe acute HBV infection. The diagnosis was based on clinical and virological findings and exclusion of other known causes of liver damage. The decision to treat was based on the prolongation of INR together with increasing values of bilirubin and ALT. Four patients received Lamivudine 200 mg/daily until clearance of serum HBV-DNA and then 100 mg/daily until clearance of HBsAg and appearance of anti-HBs antibodies. One patient received 100 mg/daily because of chronic renal impairment. The median period of hospitalization was 13 days, and none of the patients had complications, related either to underlying disease or to therapy. The complete normalization of serum transaminases and bilirubin occurred on average after 5.5 weeks and 3 weeks respectively. All patients cleared serum HBV-DNA within three months, lost HBeAg and HBsAg and seroconverted to anti-HBe; four patients developed anti-HBs at a protective titre. Early antiviral treatment attenuates the clinical and biochemical impairment leading to fast healing and promoting complete recovery