Forest inventory-based assessments of the invasion risk of Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco and Quercus rubra L. in Germany

European Journal of Forest Research - In Europe, some non-native tree species (NNT) are classified as invasive because they have spread into semi-natural habitats. Yet, available risk assessment...     

Investigation of the effect of Equivac® HeV Hendra virus vaccination on Thoroughbred racing performance

Objective

To evaluate the effect of Equivac® HeV Hendra virus vaccine on Thoroughbred racing performance.

Design

Retrospective pre‐post intervention study.

Methods

Thoroughbreds with at least one start at one of six major south‐eastern Queensland race tracks between 1 July 2012 and 31 December 2016 and with starts in the 3‐month periods before and after Hendra virus vaccinations were identified. Piecewise linear mixed models compared the trends in ‘Timeform rating’ and ‘margin to winner’ before and after initial Hendra virus vaccination. Generalised linear mixed models similarly compared the odds of ‘winning’, ‘placing’ (1st–3rd) and ‘winning any prize money’. Timeform rating trends were also compared before and after the second and subsequent vaccinations.

Results

Analysis of data from 4208 race starts by 755 horses revealed no significant difference in performance in the 3 months before versus 3 months after initial Hendra vaccination for Timeform rating (P = 0.32), ‘Margin to winner’ (P = 0.45), prize money won (P = 0.25), wins (P = 0.64) or placings (P = 0.77). Further analysis for Timeform rating for 7844 race starts by 928 horses failed to identify any significant change in Timeform rating trends before versus after the second and subsequent vaccinations (P = 0.16) or any evidence of a cumulative effect for the number of vaccines received (P = 0.22).

Conclusion

No evidence of an effect of Hendra virus vaccination on racing performance was found. The findings allow owners, trainers, industry regulators and animal health authorities to make informed decisions about vaccination.     

Experimentelle Ergebnisse über die Änderung des Gehalts an wertgebenden Inhaltsstoffen bei Zubereitung und Verarbeitung von Gemüse. Mitt. II: Verschiedene Inhaltsstoffe

A comparison of laboratory experiments on the effect preparation of various vegetables on a household scale has on the nutritional elements in fresh and preserved vegetables is given. Comparing the following methods of preparation: fresh vegetables in regular pots or in a pressure cooker on a household scale; blanching vegetables with water or steam; adding tap water and filtered blanching water to water and steam blanched vegetables in canning; and freezing water and steam blanched vegetables. The changes in contents of nutritional elements caused by the various techniques of preparation and preservation lead to the following conclusions:

1. The smallest loss of nutritional elements occurs when fresh vegetables are prepared on a household scale, provided the vegetables are really fresh and a minimum amount of water is used for cooking.
2. Blanching vegetables with steam for preservation has a more favourable effect on the content of nutritional elements than blanching with water.
3. A higher nutritional value is retained in canned goods if filtered blanching water is used as canning liquid rather than fresh tap water.
4. The liquid in canned goods contains a large quantity of nutritional elements, therefore, it should be used not wasted.