Indigenous management of Dystocia in ruminant livestock of northern guinea savanna of Nigeria

This study, conducted in Bauchi and Zaria areas of the northern guinea savanna zone of Nigeria involved livestock that encountered problems during parturition Ninety eight Hausa-Fulani livestock holdings involving cattle, sheep and goats were investigated. The study focused on causes of and remedies for dystocia. The study showed that farmers have traditional means of handling difficult birth in ruminants. The identifiable causes of dystocia included age and size of dam, abnormal foetal presentation, poor health, multiple foetuses and weight and sex of the young. The management of this problem included the use of hand to correct foetal position, lubrication of the vulvo-vagina passage with mashed okra fruit for easy passage, and oral administration of solutions from native herbs, snake scales, potash and ashes.

Mammalian herbivory in post-fire chaparral impacts herbaceous composition but not N and C cycling

Aims Classical theory predicts that herbivores impact herb assemblages and soil nitrogen (N) cycling through selective plant consumption and the deposition of N-rich waste, with effects dependent upon ecosystem N availability. Herbivores are predicted to accelerate N cycling when N availability is high and decelerate cycling when availability is low. However, experimental tests of these theories in natural systems are limited and have yielded contradictory results. California’s widespread chaparral shrublands provide a tractable system in which to test these theories. They are prone to periodic crown-fire, which temporarily removes living shrub cover, deposits mineral N on soils, and allows diverse herbaceous assemblages to dominate the landscape for 3-5 years. Chaparral is also increasingly vulnerable to herbaceous invasion; mammalian herbivory may limit the establishment of non-native herbs in the shrub understory. Methods We implemented a two-year herbivore-exclosure experiment (Hopland, California) to assess the impact of mammalian herbivory during early post-fire chaparral succession, both on herbaceous plant assemblages and soil N and C cycling. We predicted that, in high-N post-fire conditions, mammalian herbivory would not demonstrate a strong preference for N-fixing herbs, would accelerate N cycling, and would reduce the abundance of non-native herbs. Important Findings Excluding mammalian herbivores increased herb standing biomass by 54%, but changed neither the relative abundance of N-fixing vs. non-N-fixing herbs nor any measure of N or C cycling. Herbivore impacts on nutrient cycling may not be significant over the two-year time scale of the experiment and physical effects of herbivore activity could have counteracted the influence of plant litter and animal dung/urine inputs. Mammalian herbivores concentrated their feeding on typical non-native herbs, slightly decreasing their relative abundance; however, mammalian herbivory was not sufficient to stem the invasion of chaparral by invasive herbs or alter C and N cycling over the first two years after fire.

AVALIAÇÃO DO MARCO REGULATÓRIO NA PRODUÇÃO DE MEDICAMENTOS FITOTERÁPICOS NO BRASIL

Resumo: Para analisar a legislação para fitoterápicos no Brasil e as mudanças propostas com o Projeto de Lei n.o 3381/2004, que tenta modernizá-la, foi utilizado o Delphi Eletrônico, que busca o consenso de opiniões entre especialistas na área. Assim, foram aplicados 100 questionários e, a partir dos resultados, foi possível constatar que a atual legislação é uma das maiores barreiras do setor, devido às exigências e altos custos com pesquisas, assim como a falta de estudo sobre as plantas nativas, o que privilegia a entrada de plantas exóticas no país. A falta de informação, descrédito e desconfiança dos profissionais prescritores, também, têm prejudicado o setor. A pesquisa conclui, portanto, que se o Projeto de Lei for aprovado, trará mudanças positivas como: influência no comportamento das indústrias brasileiras, aumentando sua produção; alteração na localização geográfica das indústrias deste setor, causando a descentralização; aumento na utilização de plantas nativas que, consequentemente, ocasionará a diminuição nos níveis de importação.Palavras-chave: Plantas Medicinais, fitoterápicos, legislação.EVALUATION OF THE REGULATORY MARK IN THE PRODUCTION OF PHYTOTHERAPEUTIC MEDICINES IN BRAZILAbstract: To analyze the legislation of phytotherapeutic in Brazil and the changes proposed by the Law Project 3381/2004, that tempts to modernize it, was utilized the Electronic Delphi, that looks for opinion consensus among specialists of the area. Therefore, one hundred questionnaires were applied and the results discovered that the current legislation is one of the biggest limits to the production chain, due to the exigencies and high costs with researches, as well as the lack of study about native herbs, that makes easier the entrance of exotic plants in the country. The lack of information, discredit and suspicion of the prescriber professionals, also, have prejudiced of the area. Concludes that if the Law Project comes to be approved, it will bring positive changes like: influence in the behavior of Brazilian industries, increasing its production; change of geographical place of the industries of this sector, causing decentralization; improve the use of native herbs that, consequently will cause a decrease in the importation levels.Key words: Medicinal plants, phytotherapeutics, legislation.