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In Benin, adaptation to climate change in the livestock sector has led cattle farmers to develop different livestock practices. Most research has focused on evaluating the effects of these practices on livestock productivity. However, information on the effect of these practices on carbon (C) sequestration in farmland soils is lacking. Soil C sequestration has been identified as a potential strategy to offset greenhouse gas emissions. Thus, the present study aimed at filling this gap. The calculation was one hand based on inventory data obtained from literature sources (excrement production of each cattle category, moisture content of each crop, ratio of crop residue to main product, and C content of the main product and excrement) and on the other hand on activity data (cattle herd size, manure applied, land use area, crop yield, and crop residues management) obtained from surveys carried out among 360 cattle farmers belonging to 3 cattle farming types. The results revealed that whatever the cattle farming type, annual C input from manure was higher (p˂0.05) than C input from crop residues. Annual C sequestration in farmland soil of farms integrating livestock with cereal-legume and forage crops was significantly higher (Type 2: 158.07 ± 1.79 kg C ha-1 year-1) followed by farms integrating livestock with cereal-legume crops (Type 1: 99.51 ± 0.95 kg C ha-1 year-1), which in turn had a higher value than farms practicing pastoral mobility (Type 3: 78.46 ± 0.70 kg C ha-1 year-1). These results highlight the potential for climate change mitigation through these farming practices. This is justified because the quantity of C sequestered in farmland soil of all cattle farming types was significant. Thus, for future research, it is necessary to include soil C sequestration in the calculations of farms' carbon footprint.

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We aimed at quantifying the extent to which agricultural management practices linked to animal production and land use affect environmental outcomes at a larger scale. Two practices closely linked to farm environmental performance at a larger scale are farming intensity, often resulting in greater off-farm environmental impacts (land, non-renewable energy use etc.) associated with the production of imported inputs (e.g. concentrates, fertilizer); and the degree of self-sufficiency, i.e. the farm's capacity to produce goods from its own resources, with higher control over nutrient recycling and thus minimization of losses to the environment, often resulting in greater on-farm impacts (eutrophication, acidification etc.). We explored the relationship of these practices with farm environmental performance for 185 French specialized dairy farms. We used Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling to build, and relate, latent variables of environmental performance, intensification and self-sufficiency. Proxy indicators reflected the latent variables for intensification (milk yield/cow, use of maize silage etc.) and self-sufficiency (home-grown feed/total feed use, on-farm energy/total energy use etc.). Environmental performance was represented by an aggregate 'eco-efficiency' score per farm derived from a Data Envelopment Analysis model fed with LCA and farm output data. The dataset was split into two spatially heterogeneous (bio-physical conditions, production patterns) regions. For both regions, eco-efficiency was significantly negatively related with milk yield/cow and the use of maize silage and imported concentrates. However, these results might not necessarily hold for intensive yet more self-sufficient farms. This requires further investigation with latent variables for intensification and self-sufficiency that do not largely overlap- a modelling challenge that occurred here. We conclude that the environmental 'sustainability' of intensive dairy farming depends on particular farming systems and circumstances, although we note that more self-sufficient farms may be preferable when they may benefit from relatively low land prices and agri-environment schemes aimed at maintaining grasslands.

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Chemokines are primarily low molecular mass proteins that are produced and usually released by a wide variety of cell types. Differential chemokine responses can be excellent early markers of immune dysfunction, allowing clinical intervention prior to expression of full blown undesirable effector responses. Thus, assessment of the nature and intensity of Ag-dependent chemokine production provides a valuable tool for probing human immune regulation.Here, we provide detailed instructions on approaches we have developed to assess the nature and intensity of recall responses to a wide variety of exogenous and endogenous antigens capable of consistently stimulating chemokine responses by PBMC from adult and pediatric populations. This chapter is divided into two sections. The first is focused on culture techniques for eliciting antigen-driven chemokine responses for a panel of chemokines that are relevant to immune function. The second section details assay systems for their quantitative analysis.

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BACKGROUND: Most medical school applicants are screened out preinterview. Some cognitive scores available preinterview and some noncognitive scores available at interview demonstrate reasonable reliability and predictive validity. A reliable preinterview noncognitive measure would relax dependence upon screening based entirely on cognitive tendencies. METHOD: In 2005, applicants interviewing at McMaster University's Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine completed an offsite, noninvigilated, Autobiographical Submission (ABS) preinterview and another onsite, invigilated, ABS at interview. Traditional and new ABS scoring methods were compared, with raters either evaluating all ABS questions for each candidate in turn (vertical scoring-traditional method) or evaluating all candidates for each question in turn (horizontal scoring-new method). RESULTS: The new scoring method revealed lower internal consistency and higher interrater reliability relative to the traditional method. More importantly, the new scoring method correlated better with the Multiple Mini-Interview (MMI) relative to the traditional method. CONCLUSIONS: The new ABS scoring method revealed greater interrater reliability and predictive capacity, thus increasing its potential as a screen for noncognitive characteristics.

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