The AFBI Repository

The Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute Repository collects, preserves, and makes freely available research outputs and related documents created by AFBI researchers, including peer-reviewed articles and conference papers. Where material has already been published it is made available subject to the open-access policies of the original publishers. About AFBI

 

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Corrigendum: Bioinformatic Analysis of the Campylobacter jejuni Type VI Secretion System and Effector Prediction
(Frontiers Media, 2021-11-16) Robinson, Luca; Liaw, Janie; Omole, Zahra; Xia, Dong; van Vliet, Arnoud H. M.; Corcionivoschi, Nicolae; Hachani, Abderrahman; Gundogdu, Ozan; Animal Health and Welfare
A Corrigendum on Bioinformatic Analysis of the Campylobacter jejuni Type VI Secretion System and Effector Prediction by Robinson, L., Liaw, J., Omole, Z., Xia, D., van Vliet, A. H. M., Corcionivoschi, N., Hachani, A., and Gundogdu, O. (2021). Front. Microbiol. 12:694824. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.694824
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Corrigendum: Spatial and temporal environmental heterogeneity induced by internal tides influences faunal patterns on vertical walls within a submarine canyon
(Frontiers Media, 2023-11-07) Pearman, Tabitha R. R.; Robert, Katleen; Callaway, Alexander; Hall, Rob A.; Mienis, Furu; Iacono, Claudio Lo; Huvenne, Veerle A. I.; Fisheries and Aquatic Ecosystems
A Corrigendum on: Spatial and temporal environmental heterogeneity induced by internal tides influences faunal patterns on vertical walls within a submarine canyon. By Pearman TRR, Robert K, Callaway A, Hall RA, Mienis F, Lo Iacono C and Huvenne VAI (2023) Front. Mar. Sci. 10:1091855. doi: 10.3389/fmars.2023.1091855
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Investigating the Drivers of Farmers’ Engagement in a Participatory Extension Programme: The Case of Northern Ireland Business Development Groups
(MDPI, 2020-06-02) Jack, Claire; Adenuga, Adewale; Ashfield, Austen; Wallace, Michael; Economics
Participatory agricultural extension programmes aimed at encouraging knowledge transfer and the adoption of new technology and innovation at the farm level are a novel approach to advisory service provision. In order to drive sustainable agricultural production systems that address farm-level economic and environmental objectives, the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) in November 2015, developed a new participatory extension programme for farmers in Northern Ireland, the Business Development Groups (BDGs). The purpose of this paper is to examine and analyse the drivers of farmers’ decisions in relation to joining and participating in this new approach to farm extension, learning and advisory service provision. Making use of data from both primary and secondary sources, this study employs a mixed-methods approach which involves an empirical analysis of quantitative and qualitative data to examine the factors influencing membership of the BDG programme. The results of our analyses show that larger, more intensive farmers who are keen to access information from other farmers to improve their business performance are most likely to participate in the BDG programme. The study contributes to the empirical literature by establishing the need to take into consideration the different characteristics of farmers in the design and delivery of participatory extension programmes.
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Investigating Farm Fragmentation as a Risk Factor for Bovine Tuberculosis in Cattle Herds: A Matched Case-Control Study from Northern Ireland
(MDPI, 2022-02-26) Milne, Georgina; Graham, Jordon; McGrath, John; Kirke, Raymond; McMaster, Wilma; Byrne, Andrew William; Animal Health and Welfare
Bovine tuberculosis remains a challenging endemic pathogen of cattle in many parts of the globe. Spatial clustering of Mycoacterium bovis molecular types in cattle suggests that local factors are the primary drivers of spread. Northern Ireland’s agricultural landscape is comprised of highly fragmented farms, distributed across spatially discontinuous land parcels, and these highly fragmented farms are thought to facilitate localised spread. We conducted a matched case control study to quantify the risks of bovine tuberculosis breakdown with farm area, farm fragmentation, fragment dispersal, and contact with neighbouring herds. Whilst our results show small but significant increases in breakdown risk associated with each factor, these relationships were strongly confounded with the number of contiguous neighbours with bovine tuberculosis. Our key finding was that every infected neighbour led to an increase in the odds of breakdown by 40% to 50%, and that highly fragmented farms were almost twice as likely to have a bTB positive neighbour compared to nonfragmented farms. Our results suggest that after controlling for herd size, herd type, spatial and temporal factors, farm fragmentation increasingly exposes herds to infection originating from first-order spatial neighbours. Given Northern Ireland’s particularly fragmented landscape, and reliance on short-term leases, our data support the hypothesis that between-herd contiguous spread is a particularly important component of the region’s bovine tuberculosis disease system.
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Globodera pallida, a non-transgenic invertebrate as a new model for investigating Alzheimer’s disease (and other proteinopathies)?
(Medknow Publications, 2022-04-25) Althobaiti, Norah A.; Menaa, Farid; Dalzell, Johnathan; Green, Brian D.; Grassland and Plant Science
No abstract available.