Tyrosine Ameliorates Some of the Clinical,Biochemical and Haematological Effects of Acute Stress Associated with Transportation of Desert Sheep

We studied some clinical, biochemical and haematological variables in Desert (Najdi) sheep acutely stressed in the course of individual road transportation, and the influence thereon of pretreatment with tyrosine. Transportation for 30 min resulted in variable but statistically insignificant increases in heart, pulse and respiratory rates. It also caused significant increases in the plasma concentration of cortisol (from 43.5 to 101.7 mmol/L) and glucose (from 3.1 to 4.5 mmol/L), and a decrease in that of magnesium (from 0.85 to 0.72 mmol/L). The endogenous thiocyanate level was unaffected. The transportation stress also decreased the haematocrit (PCV) and the number of lymphocytes, and increased the concentration of haemoglobin. Pretreatment of sheep with tyrosine at a dose of 100 mg/kg by the intravenous route significantly ameliorated the stress-induced clinical, biochemical and haematological changes. The treatment caused no overt adverse effects.     

陕北黄土高原多沙粗沙区乡村聚落土壤水蚀定位观测研究

为研究乡村聚落的土壤侵蚀,在陕北榆林、绥德、延安建立观测站,于2003年对乡村聚落中的户间道路、户间空地、院落在降雨时的次径流泥沙含量、平均含沙量、次侵蚀强度及观测期降雨形成的总侵蚀强度,进行了观测与分析。其观测结果,均说明户间道路、户间空地径流平均含沙量较大,榆林为29.37g/L、29.96g/L,缓德为21.06g/L、17.53g/L、延安为54.6g/L2、9.18g/L,而院落平均径流含沙量较小,榆林、绥德、延安分别为9.47g/L、8.64g/L、14.87g/L。观测期降雨侵蚀总强度,三个观测站均以户间道路最大,分别为1142t/km2、2156.6t/km26、285.7t/km2;户间空地次之,分别为744.5t/km2、1192.6t/km2、1953.2t/km2;院落较小,分别为161.1t/km23、78.7t/km2、1274.3t/km2。说明乡村聚落土壤侵蚀不可忽视,应加强防治。     

塔克拉玛干沙漠公路沿线植被及特点

本文以塔克拉玛干浙江省公路为主线，调查由沙漠北缘至腹地自然概况，植物组成及分布特点，植被类型等，结果表明，塔克拉玛干沙漠公路沿线植物组成非常贫乏，仅１８种；生态学特性则以中生，耐盐的高位芽植物占主导地位；大多数植物以根蘖为主要繁殖形式；植被类型简单、隐域性盐化草甸植被占有一定的地位。     

Bush cover and range condition assessments in relation to landscape and grazing in southern Ethiopia

Progressive growth of bush cover in dry savannahs is responsible for declines in range conditions. In southern Ethiopia, the Booran pastoralists assisted our understanding of spatial patterns of bush cover and range conditions in 54 landscape patch types grouped into six landscape units within an area of 30000 km². The size of landscape patches sampled was 625 m². We assessed the relationships between bush cover, grass cover and bare soil and grazing pressure and soil erosion and changes in range condition. Externally, political conflicts and internally, break down of land use, and official bans on the use of fire promoted bush cover and the decline in range conditions. Bush cover was negatively correlated with grass cover, and positively correlated with bare soil. Grass cover was negatively correlated with bare soil and grazing pressure in most landscape patch types. Grazing pressure was not significantly correlated with bush cover or bare soil, while soil erosion was directly related to bare soil. Soil erosion was absent in 64% of the landscape patch types, and seemingly not a threat to the rangelands. The relationship between bush cover, grass cover, bare soil and soil erosion is complex and related to climate, landscape geology, and patterns of land use. Main threats to range conditions are bush climax, loss of grass cover and unpalatable forbs. Currently, >70% of the landscape patch types are in poor to fair range conditions. Decline in range conditions, unless reversed, will jeopardise the pastoral production system in southern Ethiopia.     

人为干扰对典型草原土壤侵蚀影响的价值评价

基于不同干扰条件下典型草原风洞试验的研究结果,计算了风蚀所造成的各种损失(养分、有机碳的损失及废弃地的形成等等),在此基础上,定量评价了人为干扰对土壤侵蚀过程的影响。研究结果表明,禁牧可以明显减小由风蚀所导致的草原生态系统的价值损失,而开垦和放牧则会增加其价值损失(包括速效养分、有机碳和废弃地形成)。总的来看,不同风速下不同生态系统的价值损失速率由大到小的排列顺序为:新开垦农田>农田>自由放牧草原>2003年禁牧草原>1987年禁牧草原;同时,风速越大不同干扰类型之间的价值损失差值越大。     

Results of grid keratotomy, superficial keratectomy and debridement for the management of persistent corneal erosions in 92 dogs

Ninety-two cases of persistent corneal erosions in dogs were analyzed for breed, gender, age and which eye was affected. The results of the treatment of 92 persistent corneal erosions in dogs by superficial keratectomy (SK), grid keratotomy (GK), or debridement with a sterile dry cotton swab are presented. These techniques gave better rates of healing than have been previously reported. All cases of persistent corneal erosions healed in this study. However, it must be noted that three cases treated with debridement only failed to heal after several treatments and were eventually treated with SK. After one procedure 80 out of 92 (87%) had healed. After one procedure, 63% of cases treated with debridement healed, 100% of cases treated with SK healed, and 85% of cases treated with GK healed. At the first postoperative visit, 88% (21/24 cases) of ulcers treated by SK had healed, and 75% (39/52 cases) of ulcers treated by GK had healed. Only 25% of the persistent corneal erosions had healed at the first visit after debridement. All 24 cases of persistent corneal erosions treated with SK healed after one treatment in a mean +/- SD of 9.3 +/- 3.9 days (median of 7 days). Fifty-two cases were managed with GK; 44 (83%) of these healed with one procedure and eight cases required a second GK procedure to resolve. A mean +/- SD of 13.4 +/- 5.1 days (median of 11.5 days) following GK was required for the persistent corneal erosions to heal. Nineteen cases were initially managed by debridement with a dry cotton swab under local anesthesia. Sixteen out of these 19 debridement cases healed (giving an overall healing rate of 84%) in a mean +/- SD time of 23.4 +/- 11.1 days (median 21.5). There were three cases that did not heal with debridement. These cases were debrided at 10-20 day intervals for 30-60 days, and were then treated with SK. Two of these cases healed within 7 days, the other case required 18 days to heal. Sixty-three per cent of persistent corneal erosions treated with debridement healed after one procedure; however, only four out of 19 cases (21%) were healed at the first revisit. Complications were rare: corneal edema occurred in two cases following multiple GK, and excessive granulation tissue in one case was managed with a SK. There was the occurrence of an ulcer adjacent to the surgery site in four cases, two cases following GK and two cases following SK.     

山区道路生态环境评价指标体系研究

针对山区道路的生态环境特性，遵循评价指标选取的原则，采用层次分析法对目标层山区道路生态环境评价指标进行了筛选、优化，最终形成了2大类准则层（自然环境指标、社会环境指标）和17个指标层的山区道路生态环境评价指标体系。     

基于AHP的道路黑点交通安全影响因素分析及应用

阐述道路黑点交通事故的生成特征,通过AHP法建立交通安全影响因素的层次结构模型,形成了诸因素重要程度量化分析方法,为减少和预防密集型交通事故提供切实依据;应用该方法对某大型交叉口进行了分析和计算,确定了各安全影响因素的权重,提出了相应的安全保障措施。     

Erosion rates obtained from check-dam sedimentation (SE Spain). A multi-method comparison

The main aims of this article are to calculate the erosion rates from sediments accumulated in the check dams and to compare the results with those of other methodologies.     

Using the VS‐Fast methodology for soil degradation assessment: a case study from Senegal

Soil degradation threatens sustainable food production and accelerates global warming. Poorer countries, whose agricultural sectors are highly dependent on their natural resource bases, are hit particularly hard by declining soil productivity. Calls for soil‐quality monitoring are therefore, justified and this could inform decision‐makers on the preparation of appropriate interventions. However, the provision of monitoring methodologies is not an easy task. Soil degradation affects several soil characteristics that at larger scales cannot be evaluated with models or remote‐sensing techniques. Therefore, this study focuses on investigating the use of field‐based soil assessment methodologies to differentiate degrees of soil degradation. Specifically, we test the Visual Soil Field Assessment Tool (VS‐Fast) for detecting and monitoring soil degradation using a cross‐section of 71 sites in Senegal, the soil quality of which were classed by local experts. We found low correlation between VS‐Fast classes and expert assessments. By using an ordered logit model to quantify class boundaries, we show that experts categorized areas as ‘degraded’ for a wider range and higher VS‐Fast scores than the corresponding VS‐Fast class. Yet, from general linear models and analysis of variance procedures we found that areas classed by experts as ‘degraded’ had statistically significant lower VS‐Fast scores compared to those that were judged as ‘normal’ and ‘good’, while differences of the VS‐Fast scores between the latter two were negligible. It is remarkable that the visual assessment, the cheaper component of the VS‐Fast score, performs better in differentiating degradation status than its measured counterpart. The results support the need to investigate the applicability of other VSA methodologies that only use field observations and tactile methods.