Evaluation of a method for determining concentrations of isoeugenol, an AQUI-S residue, in fillet tissue from freshwater fish species

AQUI-S is a fish anesthetic/sedative that is approved for use in a number of countries throughout the world and has the potential for use in the United States. The active ingredient in AQUI-S is isoeugenol. A method for determining isoeugenol concentrations in edible fillet tissue is needed for regulatory purposes, including surveillance and potential use in studies fulfilling human food safety data requirements if U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval is pursued. A method was developed and evaluated for determining isoeugenol concentrations in fillet tissue using relatively common procedures and equipment. The method produced accurate and precise results with fillet tissue from 10 freshwater fish species. The percentage of isoeugenol recovered from samples fortified with isoeugenol at nominal concentrations of 1, 50, and 100 g/g for all species was always \u3e80 and \u3c97. Within-day precision for samples fortified at those same concentrations was 10, and day-to-day precision was 4.0. Method precision with fillet tissue containing biologically incurred isoeugenol was 8.1. There were no or minimal chromatographic interferences in control fillet tissue extracts from 9 of the 10 species. The method detection limits for all but one species ranged from 0.004 to 0.014 g/g, and the quantitation limits ranged from 0.012 to 0.048 g/g

Effect of kaolin clay on migrant alate aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae) in blueberry fields in the context of Blueberry scorch virus

The efficacy of kaolin clay (Surround® WP) in reducing the number of migrant aphids on blueberry, Vaccinium corymbosum L. (Ericaceae) and the incidence of Blueberry scorch virus (BlScV) was determined. Two applications of kaolin clay reduced the number of alatae collected on treated ‘Berkeley’ plants by as much as a factor of eight between 4 June and 16 August. However, five of 100 test plants located near infected fields and exposed only to migrant alatae between 10 May and 16 August became infected with BlScV: three controls and two treated with kaolin clay. The work demonstrates the importance of migrant alatae in the spread of BlScV; 5% transmission is consistent with previous estimates of annual virus spread by winged and non-winged aphids. Three of the plants became infected between 10 and 27 May (one control and two treated with kaolin clay), indicating the importance of aphid flights in May for virus transmission. Rainfall removed much of the kaolin clay and this may have affected its efficacy. The aphid data demonstrated that migrant alatae are able to discriminate between untreated and kaolin—treated blueberry plants, and that Ericaphis fimbriata (Richards), which utilizes blueberry as a host, discriminates better than other migrant species. Water trap data do not necessarily reflect the total migrant aphid composition found on plants in the field. Plant growth was not affected by the kaolin clay, but the fruit had clay residues amongst the bracts of the calyx limiting the use of this product on producing fields to the period before fruit set. Kaolin clay may be best suited to protection of nursery stock, but further work is needed to improve efficacy during wet weather and determine optimal application frequency.Note: Use of trade names or trademarks does not imply endorsement of the companies or products named nor criticism of similar ones not named

Parametricity and Dependent Types

Reynolds' abstraction theorem shows how a typing judgement in System F can be translated into a relational statement (in second order predicate logic) about inhabitants of the type. We (in second order predicate logic) about inhabitants of the type. We obtain a similar result for a single lambda calculus (a pure type system), in which terms, types and their relations are expressed. Working within a single system dispenses with the need for an interpretation layer, allowing for an unusually simple presentation. While the unification puts some constraints on the type system (which we spell out), the result applies to many interesting cases, including dependently-typed ones

Friends with benefits: implementing corecursion in foundational proof assistants

We introduce AmiCo, a tool that extends a proof assistant, Isabelle/HOL, with flexible function definitions well beyond primitive corecursion. All definitions are certified by the assistant’s inference kernel to guard against inconsistencies. A central notion is that of friends: functions that preserve the productivity of their arguments and that are allowed in corecursive call contexts. As new friends are registered, corecursion benefits by becoming more expressive. We describe this process and its implementation, from the user’s specification to the synthesis of a higher-order definition to the registration of a friend. We show some substantial case studies where our approach makes a difference

Systematic review with meta-analysis: cytokines in fibromyalgia syndrome

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To perform a systematic review and meta-analysis on cytokine levels in patients with fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Through December 2010 we systematically reviewed the databases PubMed, MEDLINE, and PsycINFO and screened the reference lists of 22 review articles for suitable original articles. Original articles investigating cytokines in patients with FMS were included. Data were extracted by two independent authors. Differences of the cytokine levels of FMS patients and controls were summarized by standardized mean differences (SMD) using a random effects model. Study quality was assessed applying methodological scores: modified Center of Evidence Based Medicine, Newcastle-Ottawa-Scale, and Würzburg Methodological Quality Score.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Twenty-five articles were included investigating 1255 FMS patients and 800 healthy controls. Data of 13/25 studies entered meta-analysis. The overall methodological quality of studies was low. The results of the majority of studies were not comparable because methods, investigated material, and investigated target cytokines differed. Systematic review of the selected 25 articles revealed that FMS patients had higher serum levels of interleukin (IL)-1 receptor antagonist, IL-6, and IL-8, and higher plasma levels of IL-8. Meta-analysis of eligible studies showed that FMS patients had higher plasma IL-6 levels compared to controls (SMD = -0.34 [-0.64, -0.03] 95% CI; p = 0.03). The majority of investigated cytokines were not different between patients and controls.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The pathophysiological role of cytokines in FMS is still unclear. Studies of higher quality and with higher numbers of subjects are needed.</p

Chemical properties and protective effect of Rosmarinus officinalis: mitigation of lipid peroxidation and DNA-damage from arsenic exposure

Recent studies have implicated dietary factors in the cause and prevention of important diseases, with strong evidence that plant’s compounds can protect against these diseases. Moreover, food security and environmental contamination are topics in focus at the moment. In this view, contamination by arsenic (As) has received much attention as well as some spices with medicinal properties. Among these plants, the use of Rosmarinus officinalis L. has demonstrated antioxidant properties besides being used for circulatory disorders. Therefore, we measured the mitotic index of Allium cepa L. and characterized the antioxidant effects to determine the capacity of R. officinalis to ameliorate arsenic-induced DNA damage. R. officinalis extract showed no mutagenic effects and exhibited antimutagenic potential, reducing the DNA damage, anaphase-telophase briges and micronuclei chromosome aberrations that result from treatment with the arsenic. Additionally, reduction in arsenic- induced lipid peroxidation was also observed

SIGMORPHON 2021 Shared Task on Morphological Reinflection: Generalization Across Languages

This year's iteration of the SIGMORPHON Shared Task on morphological reinflection focuses on typological diversity and cross-lingual variation of morphosyntactic features. In terms of the task, we enrich UniMorph with new data for 32 languages from 13 language families, with most of them being under-resourced: Kunwinjku, Classical Syriac, Arabic (Modern Standard, Egyptian, Gulf), Hebrew, Amharic, Aymara, Magahi, Braj, Kurdish (Central, Northern, Southern), Polish, Karelian, Livvi, Ludic, Veps, Võro, Evenki, Xibe, Tuvan, Sakha, Turkish, Indonesian, Kodi, Seneca, Asháninka, Yanesha, Chukchi, Itelmen, Eibela. We evaluate six systems on the new data and conduct an extensive error analysis of the systems' predictions. Transformer-based models generally demonstrate superior performance on the majority of languages, achieving >90% accuracy on 65% of them. The languages on which systems yielded low accuracy are mainly under-resourced, with a limited amount of data. Most errors made by the systems are due to allomorphy, honorificity, and form variation. In addition, we observe that systems especially struggle to inflect multiword lemmas. The systems also produce misspelled forms or end up in repetitive loops (e.g., RNN-based models). Finally, we report a large drop in systems' performance on previously unseen lemmas.Peer reviewe

Family ties of crack cocaine users cared for in a psychiatric emergency department

This study characterizes the family ties of crack cocaine users cared for in a psychiatric emergency department in southern Brazil. It is a qualitative study with a series of cases carried out in the city of Maringá, PR, Brazil from April to June 2010. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, analyzed using content analysis, and organized into two categories: family ties as facilitators in the use of crack cocaine and other drugs; and fragmented family ties of crack users. Loss of relational bonds with family and social milieu was observed among the ten studied users in addition to the presence of drugs and violence in the family sphere. Further studies addressing the use of crack and its interface with the family are encouraged, taking into consideration that families have an essential role in the initiation and continuity of drug use.El objetivo del estudio fue conocer el vínculo familiar de usuarios de crack atendidos en una Unidad de Emergencia Psiquiátrica del Sur de Brasil. Se trata de una investigación cualitativa, con delineamiento de serie de casos, realizada en el municipio de Maringá, en Paraná, en el período de abril a junio de 2010. Para la recolección de datos se utilizó un guión semiestructurado de entrevista. Los datos fueron analizados siguiendo la técnica de análisis de contenido y organizados en dos categorías: el vínculo familiar como facilitador del uso de crack y otras drogas, y el vínculo familiar fragmentado de los usuarios de crack. Entre los diez usuarios investigados, se evidenció: pérdida de los vínculos relacionales con la familia y con el medio social y, presencia de drogas y violencia en el ambiente familiar. La realización de investigaciones sobre el uso de crack y su interfaz con la familia deben ser estimuladas, ya que las familias poseen un papel fundamental en la iniciación y continuidad del uso de drogas.O objetivo deste estudo foi conhecer o vínculo familiar de usuários de crack, atendidos em uma unidade de emergência psiquiátrica do Sul do Brasil. Trata-se de pesquisa qualitativa, com delineamento de série de casos, realizada no município de Maringá, PR, no período de abril a junho de 2010. Para a coleta dos dados utilizou-se roteiro semiestruturado de entrevista. Os dados foram analisados seguindo a técnica de análise de conteúdo e organizados em duas categorias: o vínculo familiar como facilitador do uso de crack e outras drogas, e o vínculo familiar fragmentado de usuários de crack. Entre os dez usuários investigados, evidenciou-se a perda dos vínculos relacionais com a família e o meio social, presença de drogas e violência no ambiente familiar. A realização de pesquisas sobre o uso de crack e sua interface com a família deve ser estimulada, visto que as famílias possuem papel fundamental na iniciação e continuidade ao uso de drogas