Los prebióticos tipo inulina en alimentación aviar II: efectos sistémicos

Conseguir y mantener una elevada eficiencia productiva es un objetivo primordial de los programas de alimentación animal. Con esta finalidad se ha intensificado la investigación sobre la utilización de prebióticos como alternativa a los antibióticos promotores del crecimiento (APC) en alimentación aviar. Los prebióticos, y entre ellos los fructanos del tipo de la inulina, pueden tener efectos positivos sobre las aves, no sólo a nivel intestinal, sino también a nivel general o sistémico. Debido a que muchos prebióticos comparten gran parte de las propiedades fisiológicas de la fibra dietética, las investigaciones recientes están prestando especial atención al estudio de los efectos de los prebióticos sobre el metabolismo lipídico y el metabolismo mineral, así como sobre el sistema inmune. En este artículo se hace una revisión de la acción de los fructanos tipo inulina en los pollos de carne, en relación con sus efectos sistémicos y su influencia sobre los índices productivos.A primary goal of the animal feeding programs is to achieve and maintain high production efficiency. With this purpose, nowadays the research in poultry feeding is focussed to the use of prebiotics as an alternative to the antibiotic growth promoters (APC). In poultry production, prebiotics, and especially inulin-type fructans, could have beneficial effects at both local (intestinal function) and systemic levels. Since many prebiotics exhibit much of the physiological properties of dietary fibre, nowadays the research is paying special attention to the study of the effects of prebiotics on lipid and mineral metabolisms and immune system. The current article is a review of some of the systemic effects of inulin-type fructans in broiler feeding as well as of the incidence on performance

Interaction of diesel engine soot with NO2 and O2 at diesel exhaust conditions. Effect of fuel and engine operation mode

This work shows a study of the reactivity of twelve different types of soot with either NO2 or O2 under reacting conditions typically present in diesel particulate filters (DPFs). The soot samples were obtained from the combustion of four conventional and alternative fuels (diesel, biodiesel and two paraffinic fuels) in a diesel engine bench operated under three different engine operation modes: a typical urban-driving mode and two variations to this mode to assess the effect of the injection settings. The main objective of the work is to relate the oxidative reactivity of the soot to the nature and the origin of each sample. The possible simultaneous elimination of soot and NOx at typical diesel exhaust conditions is examined, as well. The reactivity tests were performed in a laboratory quartz gas flow reactor, discontinuous for the solid. The soot-NO2 interaction was studied with 200 ppm of NO2 at 500 °C and the soot-O2 interaction was studied with 5% O2 at 500 °C and 600 °C. The experimental results were used to determine the time needed for the complete conversion of carbon (t) through the use of the equations of the Shrinking Core Model for solid-gas reactions with decreasing size particle and chemical reaction control. In general, the t values show that the diesel fuel generates a less reactive soot than biodiesel or the alternative paraffinic fuels. In addition, increasing the injection pressure or adding a post-injection to the original injection strategy generates a more reactive soot. These findings point out that there is potential to achieve efficient regeneration processes in DPFs through other fuels than conventional ones and via engine calibration

Effect of carob (Ceratonia siliqua L.) seed in broiler chick diets on nutrient digestibility and intestinal viscosity.

La inclusión de garrofín a niveles de 60 (ración CS-60) y 90 g/kg (ración CS-90) en una ración referencia produjo una marcada (P<O.O1) disminución de la utilización de los nutrientes. La reducción en la digestibilidad aparente de la proteína bruta y de la grasa bruta fue del 12.7 y 20.9% en la ración CS-60, y del 29.5 y 23.8% en la ración CS-90, respectivamente. La energía metabolizable aparente disminuyó siguiendo una tendencia similar a la observada en la digestibilidad de la grasa bruta. La viscosidad de la digesta en el yeyuno se incrementó acusadamente por la presencia de garrofín en la ración, lo que podría explicar la mayoría de los resultados obtenidos en este estudio.// lnclusion of carob seed at levels of 60 (CS-60 diet) and 90 glkg (CS-90 diet) in a reference diet caused a marked (P<O.Ol) depression in the utilization of nutrients. The reduction in the apparent digestibility of crude protejo and crude fat was 12.7 and 20.9% for CS-60 diet, and 29.5 and 23.8% for CS-90 diet, respectively. The apparent metabolizable energy value followed a similar depressing trend than that observed for crude fat digestibility. Viscosity of the jejunal digesta was drastically increased by the presence of carob seed in the diet, and it might explain most of the results obtained in this study

A study of older adults’ mental health across 33 countries during the covid-19 pandemic

Despite older adults’ extremely high vulnerability to COVID-19 complications and death, few studies have examined how personal characteristics and the COVID-19 pandemic have impacted the mental health of older adults at the global level. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among demographics, COVID-19 life impacts, and depression and anxiety in adults aged 60 and older from 33 countries. A sample of 823 older adults aged 60–94 and residing in 33 countries completed a 10-minute online survey following recruitment from mailing lists and social media. Being separated from and having conflicts with loved ones predicted both anxiety and depression, as did residing in a country with higher income. Getting medical treatment for severe symptoms of COVID-19 and having decreased work responsibilities predicted depression, but adjustment to working from home and younger age predicted both depression and anxiety. Participants from Europe and Central Asia reported higher depression than those from all other regions and higher anxiety than those from Latin America and the Caribbean. The COVID-19 pandemic has had serious deleterious effects on the mental health of older adults worldwide. The current findings have direct implications for mental health services that may be delivered to older adults to help facilitate healthy psychological adjustment

Trauma-Related Distress During the COVID-19 Pandemic In 59 Countries

First published online March 11, 2022The COVID-19 pandemic has upended life like few other events in modern history, with differential impacts on varying population groups. This study examined trauma-related distress among 6,882 adults ages 18 to 94 years old in 59 countries during April to May 2020. More than two-thirds of participants reported clinically significant trauma-related distress. Increased distress was associated with unemployment; identifying as transgender, nonbinary, or a cisgender woman; being from a higher income country; current symptoms and positive diagnosis of COVID-19; death of a loved one; restrictive government-imposed isolation; financial difficulties; and food insecurity. Other factors associated with distress included working with potentially infected individuals, care needs at home, a difficult transition to working from home, conflict in the home, separation from loved ones, and event restrictions. Latin American and Caribbean participants reported more trauma-related distress than participants from Europe and Central Asia. Findings inform treatment efforts and highlight the need to address trauma-related distress to avoid long-term mental health consequences.The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This work was supported by the European Commission (H2020-MSCA-IF-2018-837228-ENGRAVING). Daniela Ramos-Usuga was supported by a predoctoral fellowship from the Basque Government (PRE_2019_1_0164)

Moderate, little, or no improvements in neurobehavioral symptoms among individuals with long COVID: A 34-country retrospective study

(1) Background: Some people with COVID-19 develop a series of symptoms that last for several months after infection, known as Long COVID. Although these symptoms interfere with people’s daily functioning and quality of life, few studies have focused on neurobehavioral symptoms and the risk factors associated with their development; (2) Methods: 1001 adults from 34 countries who had previously tested positive for COVID-19 completed the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory reporting the symptoms before their COVID-19 diagnosis, during the COVID-19 infection, and currently; (3) Results: Participants reported large-sized increases before vs. during COVID-19 in all domains. Participants reported a medium-sized improvement (during COVID-19 vs. now) in somatic symptoms, a small-sized improvement in affective symptoms, and very minor/no improvement in cognitive symptoms. The risk factors for increased neurobehavioral symptoms were: being female/trans, unemployed, younger age, low education, having another chronic health condition, greater COVID-19 severity, greater number of days since the COVID-19 diagnosis, not having received oxygen therapy, and having been hospitalized. Additionally, participants from North America, Europe, and Central Asia reported higher levels of symptoms across all domains relative to Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa; (4) Conclusions: The results highlight the importance of evaluating and treating neurobehavioral symptoms after COVID-19, especially targeting the higher-risk groups identified. General rehabilitation strategies and evidence-based cognitive rehabilitation are needed in both the acute and Long COVID phases.Daniela Ramos Usuga was supported by a predoctoral fellowship from the Basque Government (PRE_2019_1_0164)

The sensitizing effects of NO2and NO on methane low temperature oxidation in a jet stirred reactor

The oxidation of neat methane (CH4) and CH4doped with NO2or NO in argon has been investigated in a jet-stirred reactor at 107 kPa, temperatures between 650 and 1200 K, with a fixed residence time of 1.5 s, and for different equivalence ratios (Φ), ranging from fuel-lean to fuel-rich conditions. Four different diagnostics have been used: gas chromatography (GC), chemiluminescence NOxanalyzer, continuous wave cavity ring-down spectroscopy (cw-CRDS) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). In the case of the oxidation of neat methane, the onset temperature for CH4oxidation was above 1025 K, while it is shifted to 825 K with the addition of NO2or NO, independently of equivalence ratio, indicating that the addition of NO2or NO highly promotes CH4oxidation. The consumption rate of CH4exhibits a similar trend with the presence of both NO2and NO. The amount of produced HCN has been quantified and a search for HONO and CH3NO2species has been attempted. A detailed kinetic mechanism, derived from POLIMI kinetic framework, has been used to interpret the experimental data with a good agreement between experimental data and model predictions. Reaction rate and sensitivity analysis have been conducted to illustrate the kinetic regimes. The fact that the addition of NO or NO2seems to have similar effects on promoting CH4oxidation can be explained by the fact that both species are involved in a reaction cycle interchanging them and whose result is 2CH3+ O2= 2CH2O + 2H. Additionally, the direct participation of NO2in the NO2+ CH2O = HONO + HCO reaction has a notable accelerating effect on methane oxidation