Reply to Melissa Moschella

Professor Moschella begins by discussing confusions in the brain death debate surrounding the use of the concepts of “integration” and “wholeness.” Some scholars, she says, such as Alan Shewmon, take the presence of biological integration as an indication of ontological wholeness. Others, such as the members of the President’s Council for Bioethics, think that some bodily integration can persist in the body of a brain-dead individual; but that the subject in which it persists in not a whole

Chlorantraniliprole: Lack of effects on bumblebee reproduction (Bombus terrestris) under semi-field conditions in Phacelia tanacetifolia

Background: In a semi-field trial the effect of chlorantraniliprole spray application on Phacelia tanacetifolia on the bumblebee, Bombus terrestris L. (Hymenoptera, Apidae), was studied. Results: Chlorantraniliprole applied twice at 60 g a.s./ha as a spray application on flowering Phacelia with a 9-day spray interval during daily bumblebee flight did not have any pertinent effects regarding all parameters assessed, i.e. mortality, flight activity, hive weight, condition of colonies, development of bumblebee brood, production of young queen offspring and vigor relative to the water treated control. Similar numbers of young queens and drones were determined in the chlorantraniliprole and control treatments. No residues above the level of quantification (LOQ) of 0.001 mg/kg were found in any of the control samples in pollen or nectar. Residues of chlorantraniliprole above the LOQ level were found for all matrices after application in the chlorantraniliprole treatment. Residues in pollen samples were generally higher compared to the nectar samples, while chlorantraniliprole residue levels declined rapidly in both matrices after each spray application.Conclusion: In a semi-field trial no effects of chlorantraniliprole applied twice at 60 g a.s./ha on the bumblebee, Bombus terrestris, including reproduction was found.Keywords: chlorantraniliprole, insecticide, side-effects, bumblebee, Bombus terrestri

A cross-sectional MR study of body fat volumes and distribution in chronic schizophrenia

People with schizophrenia show higher risk for abdominal obesity than the general population, which could contribute to excess mortality. However, it is unclear whether this is driven by alterations in abdominal fat partitioning. Here, we test the hypothesis that individuals with schizophrenia show a higher proportion of visceral to total body fat measured using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We recruited 38 participants with schizophrenia and 38 healthy controls matched on age, sex, ethnicity and body mass index. We found no significant differences in body fat distribution between groups, suggesting that increased abdominal obesity in schizophrenia is not associated with altered fat distribution

Retention of mouth-to-mouth, mouth-to-mask and mouth-to-face shield ventilation

Background: Retention of mouth-to-mouth, mouth-to-mask and mouth-to-face shield ventilation techniques is poorly understood.Methods: A prospective randomised clinical trial was undertaken in January 2004 in 70 candidates randomly assigned to training in mouth-to-mouth, mouth-to-mask or mouth-to-face shield ventilation. Each candidate was trained for 10 min, after which tidal volume, respiratory rate, minute volume, peak airway pressure and the presence or absence of stomach inflation were measured. 58 subjects were reassessed 1 year later and study parameters were recorded again. Data were analysed with ANOVA, \textgreekq2 and McNemar tests.Results: Tidal volume, minute volume, peak airway pressure, ventilation rate and stomach inflation rate increased significantly at reassessment with all ventilation techniques compared with the initial assessment. However, at reassessment, mean (SD) tidal volume (960 (446) vs 1008 (366) vs 1402 (302) ml; p<0.05), minute volume (12 (5) vs 13 (7) vs 18 (3) l/min; p<0.05), peak airway pressure (14 (8) vs 17 (13) vs 25 (8) cm H2O; p<0.05) and stomach inflation rate (63% vs 58% vs 100%; p<0.05) were significantly lower with mouth-to-mask and mouth-to-face shield ventilation than with mouth-to-mouth ventilation. The ventilation rate at reassessment did not differ significantly between the ventilation techniques.Conclusions: One year after a single episode of ventilation training, lay persons tended to hyperventilate; however, the degree of hyperventilation and resulting stomach inflation were lower when a mouth-to-mask or a face shield device was employed. Regular training is therefore required to retain ventilation skills; retention of skills may be better with ventilation devices

Sucrose as a Feeding Deterrent for Fruit-Eating Birds

Economic losses due to bird damage to small fruits such as blueberries, grapes, and cherries can be very high and are expected to increase in the future. The primary sugars in these fruits are glucose and fructose. Sucrose is present in very low concentrations only. Our research has unveiled a physiological trait common to many fruit-eating species in the phylogenetically related families Muscicapidae, Mirnidae, and Sturnidae. These birds are unable to digest sucrose because they lack the intestinal enzyme sucrase which hydrolyzes sucrose into glucose and fructose prior to absorption. In cage tests these birds prefer glucose and fructose to sucrose solutions and reject concentrated sucrose solutions and artificial gel fruits made with sucrose. Is it reasonable and feasible to attempt development of high-sucrose cultivars with the goal of deterring birds in fruit crops? Variation in the proportion of sucrose in mature fruits is present among strawberry, cherry, and blueberry cultivars. Consequently, genetic resources are available to develop high-sucrose cultivars through traditional breeding practices or bioengineering. We suggest that major fm i t-depredating species, such as American robins and European starlings, will avoid eating high-sucrose fruits in an agricultural setting provided that (1) sucrose concentration in these fruits is sufficiently high, (2) there is alternate food available, and (3) high-sucrose fruits are planted in relatively large stands. Despite the obvious need for more data, we believe that increasing the sucrose content of small-berried fruits is a promising direction in integrated pest management research that can result in substantial reductions in bird damage

Chlorantraniliprole (Rynaxypyr): A novel DuPont™ insecticide with low toxicity and low risk for honey bees (Apis mellifera) and bumble bees (Bombus terrestris) providing excellent tools for uses in integrated pest management

contribution to session IVTest methodology Background: The effects on bees of chlorantraniliprole (DPX-E2Y45, DuPont™ Rynaxypyr), a new anthranilic diamide insecticide with a novel and very specific mode of action activating insect ryanodine receptors were investigated.Results: Acute toxicity tests with chlorantraniliprole and the formulations, Coragen and Altacor, demonstrated low intrinsic toxicity to honey bees. Low risk for honey bees was demonstrated in semi-field tunnel tests with flowering Phacelia or wheat (with daily sprays of sugar solution to simulate honey dew) at application rates of Coragen of up to 60 g chlorantraniliprole/ha. Low potential of systemic exposure via pollen and nectar of honeybees to chlorantraniliprole was documented in a residue Phacelia tunnel trial with chlorantraniliprole applied to and mixed into bare soil. The impact of Altacor on bumble bees was studied in a greenhouse test in tomato at 40 g chlorantraniliprole/ha. Bumble bees directly over-sprayed during foraging activity with chlorantraniliprole or exposed to treated plants behaved as controls. Conclusion: Chlorantraniliprole formulations provide excellent tools for integrated pest management (IPM) programmes to conserve pollinating honey bees and bumble bees. Keywords: Chlorantraniliprole, Rynaxypyr®, insecticide, side-effects, honey bee, bumble bee, integrated pest management (IPM

Variations in air quality of new Ohio dairy facilities with natural ventilation systems

As dairy operations evolve towards larger, concentrated facilities, air quality on and around the dairy farms becomes a concern. Data on air quality in and around large dairy facilities are insufficient and therefore very much needed. In this study, preliminary data on air quality spatial distribution and temporal variations on two new large dairy facilities with naturally ventilated free stall barns and outside manure storage were collected. Concentration of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and ammonia (NH3) at 12 to 14 locations on each farm were measured in three seasons using portable gas analyzers. Odor samples were collected at odor sources, upwind and downwind locations. Dust was measured using a portable dust mass concentration meter Gas levels inside the dairy buildings at one leeward location were continuously monitored for three days in two seasons. In addition, indoor and outdoor temperature, relative humidity, and air velocity were measured to determine effects of these parameters on air quality. The study found that manure storage ponds have the most effect on air quality during warm and hot seasons. Variations of air quality inside the dairy building were insignificant. Inside the dairy buildings, the average dust mass concentrations range from 0.9 to 1.5 mg m(-3); ammonia 1.4 to 3 ppm, hydrogen sulfide 2 to 32 ppb; and odor concentration 90 to 140 OU m(-3). However at the downwind berm of the manure storage ponds, odor concentration reached 1256 OU/m(3) during the hot weather months. Weather conditions also affected the outdoor dispersion of air emissions. Most of the time, gas levels at 152 m downwind of the barn and manure storage were similar to upwind levels, but on hot and windy days these levels reached a point high enough to raise concerns. Inside the building, the hydrogen sulfide concentrations were not significantly different from hour to hour within a day or from day to day within a season. Although daily variation of mean ammonia concentrations were significantly different, hourly mean ammonia concentrations were not significantly different between morning hours and afternoon hours within any given day

Disentangling input and output-related components of spatial neglect

Spatial neglect is a heterogeneous disorder with a multitude of manifestations and subtypes. Common clinical paper and pencil neglect tests fail to differentiate between these subtypes. For example, neglect patients typically bisect lines to the right. This bias can be caused by an underestimation of the left half of the line (input-related deficit), by the failure to direct actions toward the left side of space (output-related deficit), or by a mixture of these impairments. To disentangle these impairments, we used a test consisting of a line bisection task on a touch screen monitor (manual motor task) and the subsequent judgment of one's own bisection performance (visual perceptual task). It was hypothesized that patients with mainly output-related neglect should be better able to recognize their misbisected lines than patients with purely input-related neglect. In a group of 16 patients suffering from spatial neglect after right brain damage, we found that patients were three times more likely to suffer from a predominantly input-related than from an output-related subtype. The results thus suggest that neglect is typically an input-related impairment. Additional analysis of the line bisection task revealed that temporal (slowness in initiation and execution of contralateral movements) and spatial (insufficient movement amplitude toward the contralesional side) aspects of output-related neglect were mutually unrelated. This independence raises the possibility that a fine-grained differentiation of output-related neglect is required. That is, impairments in lateralized temporal and spatial aspects of movements may underlie different neglect subtypes

Origin of molecular oxygen in Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

Molecular oxygen has been detected in the coma of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko with abundances in the 1-10% range by the ROSINA-DFMS instrument on board the Rosetta spacecraft. Here we find that the radiolysis of icy grains in low-density environments such as the presolar cloud may induce the production of large amounts of molecular oxygen. We also show that molecular oxygen can be efficiently trapped in clathrates formed in the protosolar nebula, and that its incorporation as crystalline ice is highly implausible because this would imply much larger abundances of Ar and N2 than those observed in the coma. Assuming that radiolysis has been the only O2 production mechanism at work, we conclude that the formation of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko is possible in a dense and early protosolar nebula in the framework of two extreme scenarios: (1) agglomeration from pristine amorphous icy grains/particles formed in ISM and (2) agglomeration from clathrates that formed during the disk's cooling. The former scenario is found consistent with the strong correlation between O2 and H2O observed in 67P/C-G's coma while the latter scenario requires that clathrates formed from ISM icy grains that crystallized when entering the protosolar nebula.Comment: The Astrophysical Journal Letters, in pres