Leaf Anatomy and Photochemical Behaviour of Solanum lycopersicum

Plants can be exposed to ionising radiation not only in Space but also on Earth, due to specific technological applications or after nuclear disasters. The response of plants to ionising radiation depends on radiation quality/quantity and/or plant characteristics. In this paper, we analyse some growth traits, leaf anatomy, and ecophysiological features of plants of Solanum lycopersicum L. “Microtom” grown from seeds irradiated with increasing doses of X-rays (0.3, 10, 20, 50, and 100 Gy). Both juvenile and compound leaves from plants developed from irradiated and control seeds were analysed through light and epifluorescence microscopy. Digital image analysis allowed quantifying anatomical parameters to detect the occurrence of signs of structural damage. Fluorescence parameters and total photosynthetic pigment content were analysed to evaluate the functioning of the photosynthetic machinery. Radiation did not affect percentage and rate of seed germination. Plants from irradiated seeds accomplished the crop cycle and showed a more compact habitus. Dose-depended tendencies of variations occurred in phenolic content, while other leaf anatomical parameters did not show distinct trends after irradiation. The sporadic perturbations of leaf structure, observed during the vegetative phase, after high levels of radiation were not so severe as to induce any significant alterations in photosynthetic efficiency

Influence of the Nb/P ratio of acidic Nb-P-Si oxides on surface and catalytic properties

In this work, two acidic Nb-P-Si mixed oxide gel-derived materials characterized by Nb/P molar ratios equal to 2 (5Nb2.5 P) and 1 (2.5NbP) were investigated for their surface and bulk properties in relation with the catalytic performances in the fructose dehydration reaction. The structural characteristics of the studied samples and the changes occurring after water treatment and after reaction were investigated by 29Si and 31P solid state nuclear magnetic resonance (MAS-NMR) and X-ray photoelectron (XPS) spectroscopies, while the characterization of their acidic properties was performed by base (2-phenylethylamine) adsorption in liquid phase. MAS-NMR showed that the phosphorus remains firmly anchored into the siloxane matrix after exposure to cold water for 5Nb2.5 P sample and XPS confirmed the homogeneity of the sample composition. Both samples exhibited good intrinsic acidity and maintained significant effective acidity in polar-protic liquids; 2.5NbP manifested a double amount of acid sites compared to 5Nb2.5 P, when 2-phenylethylamine is used as probe. Fructose dehydration to 5-(hydroxymethyl)furfural (HMF) on the two gel-derived catalysts was performed in water and in water-isopropanol solution under mild conditions (130 °C) working in a recirculation reaction line comprising a tubular catalytic reactor. In water-isopropanol solution, the samples displayed good performances, as expected thanks to the lively effective acidity. Around 45-50% fructose conversion was attained on both samples, with selectivity to HMF equal to about 50% on 2.5NbP gel-derived catalyst. Recycling tests showed satisfactorily stable activity during three consecutive runs

Sustained Weight Loss Following 12-Month Pramlintide Treatment as an Adjunct to Lifestyle Intervention in Obesity

OBJECTIVE—To assess long-term weight loss efficacy and safety of pramlintide used at different dosing regimens and in conjunction with lifestyle intervention (LSI)

Prevalencia de IACS en el HIGA San Roque de Gonnet : Otra medida de la calidad de atención

Las infecciones asociadas a los cuidados de la salud (IACS) son un grave problema de salud pública y uno de los indicadores de la calidad de la asistencia. Todos reconocemos que hoy es de vital importancia su vigilancia y prevención. En el HIGA San Roque de Gonnet se implementan dos herramientas para evaluar los índices de riesgo de IACS. Desde el 2005 el hospital realiza vigilancia continua en áreas críticas (UTIUCIN) y cirugías limpias de Traumatología y Neurocirugía. Desde el 2010 se incorpora al Estudio Nacional de Prevalencia de Infecciones Hospitalarias de Argentina (ENPIHA) que se realiza anualmente en el mes de agosto. Este instrumento de vigilancia permite proporcionar datos homogéneos y comparables para nuestra Institución. Son esperables según la bibliografía tasas entre 3 y 9 % ; los datos obtenidos en nuestra institución son imprescindibles para gestionar las actividades del Comité de Control de Infecciones y son una evidencia de la calidad de atención que se ofrece a nuestros pacientes.Facultad de Ciencias Médica

Relation between awareness of circulatory disorders and smoking in a general population health examination

BACKGROUND: Little is known about proportions of smokers who maintain smoking after they are aware of a circulatory disorder. The goal was to analyze the extent to which the number of circulatory disorders may be related to being a current smoker. METHODS: Cross-sectional survey study with a probability sample of residents in Germany investigated in health examination centers. Questionnaire data of 3,778 ever smoking participants aged 18 – 79 were used, questions included whether the respondent had ever had hypertension, myocardial infarction, other coronary artery disease, heart failure, stroke, other cerebrovascular disease, peripheral vascular disease, and venous thrombosis. Logistic regression was calculated for circulatory disorders and their number with current smoking as the dependent variable, and odds ratios (OR) are presented adjusted for physician contact, inpatient treatment, smoking cessation counseling, heavy smoking, exercise, overweight and obesity, school education, sex and age. RESULTS: Among ever smokers who had 1 circulatory disorder, 52.1 % were current smokers and among those who reported that they had 3 or more circulatory disorders 28.0 % were current smokers at the time of the interview. The adjusted odds of being a current smoker were lower for individuals who had ever smoked in life and had 2 or more central circulatory disorders, such as myocardial infarction, heart failure or stroke, than for ever smokers without central circulatory disorder (2 or more disorders: adjusted OR 0.6, 95 % confidence interval, CI, 0.4 to 0.8). CONCLUSION: Among those with central circulatory disorders, there is a substantial portion of individuals who smoke despite their disease. The data suggest that only a portion of smokers among the general population seems to be discouraged from smoking by circulatory disorders or its accompanying cognitive or emotional processes

Galaxy Clustering in Early SDSS Redshift Data

We present the first measurements of clustering in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) galaxy redshift survey. Our sample consists of 29,300 galaxies with redshifts 5,700 km/s < cz < 39,000 km/s, distributed in several long but narrow (2.5-5 degree) segments, covering 690 square degrees. For the full, flux-limited sample, the redshift-space correlation length is approximately 8 Mpc/h. The two-dimensional correlation function \xi(r_p,\pi) shows clear signatures of both the small-scale, ``fingers-of-God'' distortion caused by velocity dispersions in collapsed objects and the large-scale compression caused by coherent flows, though the latter cannot be measured with high precision in the present sample. The inferred real-space correlation function is well described by a power law, \xi(r)=(r/6.1+/-0.2 Mpc/h)^{-1.75+/-0.03}, for 0.1 Mpc/h < r < 16 Mpc/h. The galaxy pairwise velocity dispersion is \sigma_{12} ~ 600+/-100 km/s for projected separations 0.15 Mpc/h < r_p < 5 Mpc/h. When we divide the sample by color, the red galaxies exhibit a stronger and steeper real-space correlation function and a higher pairwise velocity dispersion than do the blue galaxies. The relative behavior of subsamples defined by high/low profile concentration or high/low surface brightness is qualitatively similar to that of the red/blue subsamples. Our most striking result is a clear measurement of scale-independent luminosity bias at r < 10 Mpc/h: subsamples with absolute magnitude ranges centered on M_*-1.5, M_*, and M_*+1.5 have real-space correlation functions that are parallel power laws of slope ~ -1.8 with correlation lengths of approximately 7.4 Mpc/h, 6.3 Mpc/h, and 4.7 Mpc/h, respectively.Comment: 51 pages, 18 figures. Replaced to match accepted ApJ versio

The First Hour of Extra-galactic Data of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Spectroscopic Commissioning: The Coma Cluster

On 26 May 1999, one of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) fiber-fed spectrographs saw astronomical first light. This was followed by the first spectroscopic commissioning run during the dark period of June 1999. We present here the first hour of extra-galactic spectroscopy taken during these early commissioning stages: an observation of the Coma cluster of galaxies. Our data samples the Southern part of this cluster, out to a radius of 1.5degrees and thus fully covers the NGC 4839 group. We outline in this paper the main characteristics of the SDSS spectroscopic systems and provide redshifts and spectral classifications for 196 Coma galaxies, of which 45 redshifts are new. For the 151 galaxies in common with the literature, we find excellent agreement between our redshift determinations and the published values. As part of our analysis, we have investigated four different spectral classification algorithms: spectral line strengths, a principal component decomposition, a wavelet analysis and the fitting of spectral synthesis models to the data. We find that a significant fraction (25%) of our observed Coma galaxies show signs of recent star-formation activity and that the velocity dispersion of these active galaxies (emission-line and post-starburst galaxies) is 30% larger than the absorption-line galaxies. We also find no active galaxies within the central (projected) 200 h-1 Kpc of the cluster. The spatial distribution of our Coma active galaxies is consistent with that found at higher redshift for the CNOC1 cluster survey. Beyond the core region, the fraction of bright active galaxies appears to rise slowly out to the virial radius and are randomly distributed within the cluster with no apparent correlation with the potential merger of the NGC 4839 group. [ABRIDGED]Comment: Accepted in AJ, 65 pages, 20 figures, 5 table

The Sloan Digital Sky Survey Quasar Catalog I. Early Data Release

We present the first edition of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Quasar Catalog. The catalog consists of the 3814 objects (3000 discovered by the SDSS) in the initial SDSS public data release that have at least one emission line with a full width at half maximum larger than 1000 km/s, luminosities brighter than M_i^* = -23, and highly reliable redshifts. The area covered by the catalog is 494 square degrees; the majority of the objects were found in SDSS commissioning data using a multicolor selection technique. The quasar redshifts range from 0.15 to 5.03. For each object the catalog presents positions accurate to better than 0.2" rms per coordinate, five band (ugriz) CCD-based photometry with typical accuracy of 0.05 mag, radio and X-ray emission properties, and information on the morphology and selection method. Calibrated spectra of all objects in the catalog, covering the wavelength region 3800 to 9200 Angstroms at a spectral resolution of 1800-2100, are also available. Since the quasars were selected during the commissioning period, a time when the quasar selection algorithm was undergoing frequent revisions, the sample is not homogeneous and is not intended for statistical analysis.Comment: 27 pages, 4 figures, 4 tables, accepted by A

Assessing the State of Obesity Care: Quality, Access, Guidelines, and Standards

BACKGROUND: An international panel of obesity medicine experts from multiple professional organizations examined patterns of obesity care and current obesity treatment guidelines to identify areas requiring updating in response to emerging science and clinical evidence. AIMS: The panel focused on multiple medical health and societal issues influencing effective treatment of obesity and identified several unmet needs in the definition, assessment, and care of obesity. METHODS: The panel was held in Leesburg, Virginia in September 2019. RESULTS: The panelists recommended addressing these unmet needs in obesity medicine through research, education, evaluation of delivery and payment of care, and updating clinical practice guidelines (CPG) to better reflect obesity\u27s pathophysiological basis and heterogeneity, as well as the disease\u27s health, sociocultural, and economic complications; effects on quality of life; need for standards for quantitative comparison of treatment benefits, risks, and costs; and the need to more effectively integrate obesity treatment guidelines into routine clinical practice and to facilitate more direct clinician participation to improve public understanding of obesity as a disease with a pathophysiological basis. The panel also recommended that professional organizations working to improve the care of people with obesity collaborate via a working group to develop an updated, patient-focused, comprehensive CPG establishing standards of care, addressing identified needs, and providing for routine, periodic review and updating. CONCLUSIONS: Unmet needs in the definition, assessment and treatment of obesity were identified and a blueprint to address these needs developed via a clinical practice guideline that can be utilized worldwide to respond to the increasing prevalence of obesity

Colors of 2625 Quasars at 0<z<5 Measured in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Photometric System

We present an empirical investigation of the colors of quasars in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) photometric system. The sample studied includes 2625 quasars with SDSS photometry. The quasars are distributed in a 2.5 degree wide stripe centered on the Celestial Equator covering $\sim529$ square degrees. Positions and SDSS magnitudes are given for the 898 quasars known prior to SDSS spectroscopic commissioning. New SDSS quasars represent an increase of over 200% in the number of known quasars in this area of the sky. The ensemble average of the observed colors of quasars in the SDSS passbands are well represented by a power-law continuum with $\alpha_{\nu} = -0.5$ ($f_{\nu} \propto \nu^{\alpha}$). However, the contributions of the $3000 {\rm \AA}$ bump and other strong emission lines have a significant effect upon the colors. The color-redshift relation exhibits considerable structure, which may be of use in determining photometric redshifts for quasars. The range of colors can be accounted for by a range in the optical spectral index with a distribution $\alpha_{\nu}=-0.5\pm0.65$ (95% confidence), but there is a red tail in the distribution. This tail may be a sign of internal reddening. Finally, we show that there is a continuum of properties between quasars and Seyfert galaxies and we test the validity of the traditional division between the two classes of AGN.Comment: 66 pages, 15 figures (3 color), accepted by A