Evolution of the use of corticosteroids for the treatment of hospitalised COVID-19 patients in Spain between March and November 2020: SEMI-COVID national registry

Objectives: Since the results of the RECOVERY trial, WHO recommendations about the use of corticosteroids (CTs) in COVID-19 have changed. The aim of the study is to analyse the evolutive use of CTs in Spain during the pandemic to assess the potential influence of new recommendations. Material and methods: A retrospective, descriptive, and observational study was conducted on adults hospitalised due to COVID-19 in Spain who were included in the SEMI-COVID- 19 Registry from March to November 2020. Results: CTs were used in 6053 (36.21%) of the included patients. The patients were older (mean (SD)) (69.6 (14.6) vs. 66.0 (16.8) years; p < 0.001), with hypertension (57.0% vs. 47.7%; p < 0.001), obesity (26.4% vs. 19.3%; p < 0.0001), and multimorbidity prevalence (20.6% vs. 16.1%; p < 0.001). These patients had higher values (mean (95% CI)) of C-reactive protein (CRP) (86 (32.7-160) vs. 49.3 (16-109) mg/dL; p < 0.001), ferritin (791 (393-1534) vs. 470 (236- 996) µg/dL; p < 0.001), D dimer (750 (430-1400) vs. 617 (345-1180) µg/dL; p < 0.001), and lower Sp02/Fi02 (266 (91.1) vs. 301 (101); p < 0.001). Since June 2020, there was an increment in the use of CTs (March vs. September; p < 0.001). Overall, 20% did not receive steroids, and 40% received less than 200 mg accumulated prednisone equivalent dose (APED). Severe patients are treated with higher doses. The mortality benefit was observed in patients with oxygen saturation </=90%. Conclusions: Patients with greater comorbidity, severity, and inflammatory markers were those treated with CTs. In severe patients, there is a trend towards the use of higher doses. The mortality benefit was observed in patients with oxygen saturation </=90%

A search for resonances decaying into a Higgs boson and a new particle X in the XH → qqbb final state with the ATLAS detector

A search for heavy resonances decaying into a Higgs boson (H) and a new particle (X) is reported, utilizing 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data at collected during 2015 and 2016 with the ATLAS detector at the CERN Large Hadron Collider. The particle X is assumed to decay to a pair of light quarks, and the fully hadronic final state is analysed. The search considers the regime of high XH resonance masses, where the X and H bosons are both highly Lorentz-boosted and are each reconstructed using a single jet with large radius parameter. A two-dimensional phase space of XH mass versus X mass is scanned for evidence of a signal, over a range of XH resonance mass values between 1 TeV and 4 TeV, and for X particles with masses from 50 GeV to 1000 GeV. All search results are consistent with the expectations for the background due to Standard Model processes, and 95% CL upper limits are set, as a function of XH and X masses, on the production cross-section of the resonance

Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density

Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals &lt;1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data

The intrinsic B-mode polarisation of the cosmic mMicrowave background

We estimate the B-polarisation induced in the Cosmic Microwave Background by the non-linear evolution of density perturbations. Using the second-order Boltzmann code SONG, our analysis incorporates, for the first time, all physical effects at recombination. We also include novel contributions from the redshift part of the Boltzmann equation and from the bolometric definition of the temperature in the presence of polarisation. The remaining line-of-sight terms (lensing and time-delay) have previously been studied and must be calculated non-perturbatively. The intrinsic B-mode polarisation is present independent of the initial conditions and might contaminate the signal from primordial gravitational waves. We find this contamination to be comparable to a primordial tensor-to-scalar ratio of r≃10−7 at the angular scale ℓ≃100, where the primordial signal peaks, and r≃5⋅10−5 at ℓ≃700, where the intrinsic signal peaks. Therefore, we conclude that the intrinsic B-polarisation from second-order effects is not likely to contaminate future searches of primordial gravitational waves

Exigência de treonina, com base no conceito de proteína ideal, de alevinos de tilápia-do-nilo Digestible threonine requirement of Nile tilapia fingerlings using ideal protein concept

Avaliou-se o efeito dos níveis de treonina digestível, com base no conceito de proteína ideal, em rações com 1,35% de lisina digestível sobre o desempenho de alevinos de tilápia-do-nilo (Oreochromis niloticus). Utilizaram-se 432 alevinos revertidos de tilápia, linhagem tailandesa, com peso inicial de 1,64 ± 0,03 g, em delineamento inteiramente ao acaso, com seis tratamentos, cada um com seis repetições, e doze peixes por unidade experimental. Os tratamentos consistiram de cinco rações com diversas relações treonina:lisina digestível (69,0; 74,0; 79,0; 84,0 e 89,0%) e relação metionina + cistina:lisina digestível de 70,0% e uma ração com relação treonina:lisina digestível de 84,0% e de metionina + cistina:lisina digestível de 75,0%, todas isoenergéticas e isoprotéicas. Os peixes foram mantidos em 36 aquários de 130 L, dotados de abastecimento de água, temperatura controlada e aeração individuais, e alimentados à vontade, seis vezes ao dia, durante 30 dias. Avaliaram-se o desempenho, a composição corporal, as deposições de proteína e gordura e a eficiência de retenção de nitrogênio dos peixes. O consumo de ração, o teor de proteína corporal e a deposição de proteína corporal aumentaram de forma linear de acordo com a relação treonina:lisina na ração, contudo, não foram influenciados pelo aumento da relação metionina + cistina:lisina da ração. Os níveis de treonina total ou digestível que proporcionaram os melhores resultados de desempenho em alevinos de tilápia-do-nilo foram de 1,11 e 0,99%, enquanto os níveis que promoveram melhor deposição de proteína corporal foram de 1,43 e 1,28%, que correspondem às relações treonina:lisina total de 71,0 e 69,0% e treonina:lisina digestível de 90,0 e 89,0%.<br>The effects of digestible threonine levels, based on ideal protein concept in diets with 1.35% of digestible lysine on Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) fingerlings performance. Four hundred thirty two reverted Nile tilapia, Thailand strain, with initial weight of 1.64 ± 0.03 g, were allotted to completely randomized design, with six diets and six replications with twelve fishes each. The five diets, isoenergetic isoproteic, consisted of various threonine:digestible lysine ratio (69.0, 74.0, 79.0, 84.0, and 89.0%) and methionine + cystine:digestible lysine ratio of 70.0% and one diet with threonine:digestible lysine of 84.0% and methionine + cystine:digestible lysine of 75.0%. The fish were kept in 36 aquariums of 130 L, equipped with water supply, controlled temperature and individual aeration, and ad libitum fed six times a day for 30 days. Performance, body composition, protein and fat depositions and nitrogen retention efficiency of fishes were evaluated. Consumption of feed, body protein content and body protein deposition increased in a linear fashion in accordance to threonine:digestible lysine in the diet, however, was not affected by the increase of dietary methionine + cystine:digestible lysine. Total or digestible threonine levels that provided the best results of performance of Nile tilapia fingerlings were 1.11 and 0.99%, while the levels that promoted better body protein deposition were 1.43 and 1.28%, which correspond to threonine:total lysine ratio of 71.0 and 69.0% and threonine:digestible lysine of 90.0 and 89.0%

Aspects of urinary tract infections and antimicrobial resistance in hospitalized urology patients in Asia: 10-Year results of the Global Prevalence Study of Infections in Urology (GPIU)

10.1016/j.jiac.2017.11.013Journal of Infection and Chemotherapy244278-283JICH