Ekologisk sortprovning av vallväxter

Vallgräsen missgynnas ofta i en ekologisk vall genom sämre kväveförsörjning än baljväxterna, och därför är sorternas konkurrensförmåga i blandvall en viktig egenskap att undersöka. Sorter av timotej, ängssvingel, och engelskt rajgräs provas i blandning med baljväxt för att efterlikna praktiska förhållanden. Fem handelssorter per art har valts ut, vilka representerar etablerade och i en nära framtid, ny sorter på marknaden. Försök har anlagts på tre platser för att spegla olika förhållanden i södra och mellersta Sverige. Eftersom förhållandet mellan gräs och baljväxt förändras över tiden är det viktigt att studera uthålligheten i minst tre skördeår. Målet är att under ekologisk provning bestämma skillnad i avkastning, konkurrensförmåga och näringsinnehåll mellan sorter av timotej, ängssvingel, och engelskt rajgräs. Projektet finansieras 2003-2008 av Jordbruksverket

Association between age, gender and multimorbidity level and receiving home health care:A population-based Swedish study Family Practice

Background: Home health care is an important part of primary health care. How delivery of home health care is organised is probably important for sustainability of the healthcare system as a whole. More than 50 % of individuals over 65 years old have multimorbidity, which increases with higher age, also influencing the needs of home health care. Our aim was to study the proportion of the population above 65 years receiving home health care according to age, gender and multimorbidity level. Methods: The study population comprised 32,130 people aged 65 or more, living in Blekinge County in southern Sweden. We analysed data from patient electronic medical records for patients receiving home health care delivered in patients' own homes by nurses, physiotherapists and occupational therapists. We used the Adjusted Clinical Groups Case-Mix System in order to group individuals according to diagnoses into six levels of multimorbidity. In order to analyse the differences between individuals receiving home health care and those who did not, we used Chi squared test. Logistic regression analysis was conducted in order to study how the dependent variable was influenced by the independent variables. Results: A total of 7860 (28 %) of the studied population received home health care in 2011. Logistic regression analysis showed that men had 26 % lower odds of receiving home care compared to women (OR = 0.74, 95 % CI 0.69-0.78). There was also a substantial group (22 %) with low multimorbidity level among people receiving home health care. Adjusting for gender and age showed no differences in odds of receiving home health care for patients with lower levels of multimorbidity. However, for patients with higher levels of morbidity the odds increased dramatically for both genders. Conclusion: The question of to whom and to what extent home health care should be provided is an important challenge for policy makers. Our results show that there are differences in the use of home health care dependent on gender, age and multimorbidity level, but also that home health care is provided to individuals with low morbidity. Further studies could explain the factors influencing home health care use.</p

GPCRTree: online hierarchical classification of GPCR function

Background: G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) play important physiological roles transducing extracellular signals into intracellular responses. Approximately 50% of all marketed drugs target a GPCR. There remains considerable interest in effectively predicting the function of a GPCR from its primary sequence. Findings: Using techniques drawn from data mining and proteochemometrics, an alignment-free approach to GPCR classification has been devised. It uses a simple representation of a protein's physical properties. GPCRTree, a publicly-available internet server, implements an algorithm that classifies GPCRs at the class, sub-family and sub-subfamily level. Conclusion: A selective top-down classifier was developed which assigns sequences within a GPCR hierarchy. Compared to other publicly available GPCR prediction servers, GPCRTree is considerably more accurate at every level of classification. The server has been available online since March 2008 at URL: http://igrid-ext.cryst.bbk.ac.uk/gpcrtree

PB.23: Effect of detector type on cancer detection in digital mammography

This work measured the effect that image quality associated with different detectors has on cancer detection in mammography using a novel method for changing the appearance of images.\ud \ud A set of 270 mammography cases (one view, both breasts) was acquired using five Hologic Selenias and two Hologic Dimensions X-ray units: 80 normal, 80 with simulated inserted subtle calcification clusters, 80 with subtle real noncalcification malignant lesions and 30 with benign lesions (biopsy proven). These 270 cases (Arm 1) were converted to appear as if they had been acquired on two other imaging systems: needle image plate computed radiography (CR) (Arm 2) and powder phosphor CR (Arm 3). Three experienced mammography readers marked the location of suspected cancers in the images and classified whether each lesion would require further investigation and the confidence in that decision. Performance was calculated as the area under curve (AUC) of the alternative free-response receiver operating characteristic curv

Effect of the ionic liquid [bmim]Cl and high pressure on the activity of cellulase

The effect of the ionic liquid 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride ([bmim]Cl) and of high pressure on the activity of cellulase from Aspergillus niger were studied separately and in combination. The enzyme activity decreased with increasing concentrations of [bmim]Cl, reaching 50% the value in aqueous buffer with 20% [bmim]Cl. However, when the enzyme is held in 10% [bmim]Cl and is then assayed in 1% [bmim]Cl, it showed only 8% reduction of activity. These results can be explained by the fact that the activity of the enzyme in [bmim]Cl is linearly correlated with the decrease of the thermodynamic water activity (aw). Under pressure the enzyme activity varied from less 60% (at 200MPa) to equal (at 400 MPa), compared to atmospheric pressure. In 10% [bmim]Cl under pressure, cellulase activity is improved compared to atmospheric pressure, varying from equal (at 600 MPa) to 1.7-fold higher (at 100 MPa). This opens the possibility to improve cellulase activity in ionic liquids, and possibly of other enzymes, by carrying out the reaction under pressure

Fibre Quality in Timothy, \u3cem\u3eFestulolium\u3c/em\u3e and Tall Fescue around First Cut

Fibre quality and available energy expressed as iNDF (indigestible neutral detergent fibre) decrease with maturity stage in timothy (Nordheim-Viken and Volden 2009). It is widely accepted that fibre quality also decreases with plant age in other forage grasses. However, climate factors such as temperature and water availability can interact with maturity stage in determining iNDF (Nordheim-Viken and Volden 2009). In the Norfor system, iNDF is an important measure of available energy in forage evaluation for ruminants (Åkerlind et al. 2011). This study examined how fibre quality in different forage grasses was affected by maturity stage and climate

Long-Term Changes in Dry Matter Yield in Variety Trials of Forage Species in Sweden

Using results from official variety testing in Sweden, long-term changes (1964-2018) in total annual dry matter (DM) yield for pure stands of red clover (Trifolium pratense) and timothy (Phleum pratense) were analysed and compared for two Swedish trial site areas: a central area (59.6-61.5°N) and a southern area (55.5-57.0°N). All trials were managed using a standard protocol, with only minor changes over time. On average for all varieties of timothy in the trials, there was an increase of 91.6 kg ha-1 in total DM yield in the first harvest year, probably due to genetically improved varieties, increasing from two to three cuts and a changing climate. For red clover, there was a lower yearly increase of 45.9 kg ha-1 in total DM yield in the first harvest year. Four-fold larger variation in red clover yield was seen in the second half of the study period (after 1993) compared with the first, possibly due to a more fluctuating climate, particularly in winter, and more overwintering damage. In timothy, the variation in yield over the entire period was more stable, but still increased by around 80 % in the second half of the period compared with the first. For the most frequently included timothy variety, SW Kämpe II, which was present in trials between 1965 and 2001, total DM yield in the first harvest year (96.8 kg ha-1 ) was similar to the trial mean over the period for all timothy varieties. For the most frequently included red clover variety, Hermes II (present 1955-1996), total DM yield in the first harvest year increased by 33.2 kg ha-1 , i.e., less than the trial mean for that species

Forage Production, Utilization and Environmental Conservation in Sweden

Symposium Pape