GENETIC IMPROVEMENT OF KANINJOT VARIETY FROM CLONAL SELECTION

Abstract: The "Kaninjot" cultivar, autochthonous and widespread is remarkable for high percentage and good quality of the oil. It has dual use. It has periodical production, but the variability that this genotype possesses has been exploited through clonal selection to find individuals with high production constant, oil percentage and bigger average fruit weight. The selection underwent two phases: In the first phase: over a population of 2583 trees, in a five year period, where each year the trees that were qualified had inflorescence and fructified, while the others were considered out of use. In the second phase for 17 clone candidates derived from selection of the first phase production evaluation was done for kg/trees/ year, (i) oil percentage % fresh matter done through Soxhlet, (iii) average fruit weight (g), (iv) production periodicity estimated through Pearce and Dobersek-Urbank. Each clone displayed differently its genetic potentials, with differences for production constant. Constant production had 6 individuals (0.00 -0.30). The variability for fruit weight was from 0.26 g up to 1.24 g more than the standard (12 individual). For the oil percentage 6 individuals with 0.1 up to 2.1% more than the average of the population were selected. In the final evaluation there resulted to be: (i) 12 clones with superior PC. (ii) 6 clones possess superior for constant production and oil percentage (PC+OP). (iii) 6 clones possess the three selection features; constant production, oil percentage and fruit weight (PC+Fw+Op). The selected individuals have differences as far as the pomological and technological characteristics are concerned

Cardiac Surgery in Jehovah's Witnesses Patients and Association With Peri-Operative Outcomes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: Strategies for blood conservation, coupled with a careful preoperative assessment, may be applied to Jehovah's Witnesses (JW) patients who are candidates for cardiac surgery interventions. There is a need to assess clinical outcomes and safety of bloodless surgery in JW patients undergoing cardiac surgery. Methods: We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies comparing JW patients with controls undergoing cardiac surgery. The primary endpoint was short-term mortality (in-hospital or 30-day mortality). Peri-procedural myocardial infarction, re-exploration for bleeding, pre-and postoperative Hb levels and cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) time were also analyzed. Results: A total of 10 studies including 2,302 patients were included. The pooled analysis showed no substantial differences in terms of short-term mortality among the two groups (OR 1.13, 95% CI 0.74-1.73, I2=0%). There were no differences in peri-operative outcomes among JW patients and controls (OR 0.97, 95% CI 0.39-2.41, I2=18% for myocardial infarction; OR 0.80, 95% CI 0.51-1.25, I2=0% for re-exploration for bleeding). JW patients had a higher level of preoperative Hb (Standardized Mean Difference [SMD] 0.32, 95% CI 0.06-0.57) and a trend toward a higher level of postoperative Hb (SMD 0.44, 95% CI -0.01-0.90). A slightly lower CPB time emerged in JWs compared with controls (SMD -0.11, 95% CI -0.30-0.07). Conclusions: JW patients undergoing cardiac surgery, with avoidance of blood transfusions, did not have substantially different peri-operative outcomes compared with controls, with specific reference to mortality, myocardial infarction, and re-exploration for bleeding. Our results support the safety and feasibility of bloodless cardiac surgery, applying patient blood management strategies

Production and biodiversity in modern olive growing

U EU je shvaćena bit konvencije iz Ria de Janeira da se na bioraznolikosti moraju temeljiti poljoprivredne politike. Ruralna politika EU predviđa uostalom čitav niz agroambijentalnih mjera koje nagrađuju poljoprivredna poduzeća koja prakticiraju akcije održivog ambijentalnog razvoja. Situacije koje su smatrane kao prijetnje okolišu jesu, pretjerano iskorištavanje resursa, nestanak bioraznolikosti i napuštanje tala što može prouzročiti gubitak obrađenog sloja, stolječima obrađivanog od strane čovjeka koji je dao ruralnom ambijentu dignitet habitata i pejzaža. Maslinarstvo, svojstveni element mediteranskog pejzaža predstavlja u tom smislu primjer kulture zaštite i sveopćeg održavanja. Usmjerena politika održivosti mora odgovarati ekonomskom, socijalnom i ekološkom problemu, osim favoriziranja usmjerene proizvodnje u interesu potrošača. Maslinarstvo ne implicira nužnost povratku tradicionalnom načinu obrađivanja kao kod slučaja biološke proizvodnje kada se mora voditi računa o fitosanitarnom i prirodnom načinu proizvodnje kako bi izbjegli korištenje pesticida.Ponovni pokušaji razvoja maslinarstva ne mogu se oslanjati na dotada korišteni biljni materijal. Treba analizirati fleksibilnost genotipa ne bi li slučajno provocirali eventualnu biološku katastrofu, što se već desilo kod ostalih voćnih vrsta nekontroliranom upotrebom sorata od jednog do drugog područja potpuno različitih osobina. Time je sortama oduzeta odlučujuća uloga svojstvene proizvodnje. Događaji koji naslućuju privredno oživljavanje modernog maslinarstva i u onim zemljama gdje nema tradicionalne proizvodnje, razni međunarodni pokušaji usmjereni prema zaštiti bioraznolikosti sačinjavaju idealni instrument za promociju novih modela za održivu proizvodnju.The UN have grasped the idea of the Convention in Rio de Janeiro to make biodiversity the keystone of agricultural policy.Plans in the rural policy in the UN include a series of agroenvironmental measures to reward agricultural firms practising sustainable environmental development. The situations considered damaging for the environment are overexplotation of resources,disappearance of biodiversity and abandonment of soils which may cause loss of the layer that has been cultivated by man for centuries giving the rural environment dignity of habitat and landscape. Olive growing,a characteristic element of Mediterranean landscape is an example of protection and general survival.The targeted policy of sustainability must meet the economic,social and ecological problems besides favouring targeted production in the interest of consumers. Olive growing respecting the environment does not mean returning to traditional cultivation as in the case of biological production when phytosanitary and natural methods of production must be considered in order to avoid the use of pesticides. Repeated attempts to develop olive growing cannot rely on the plant material used so far.Genotype flexibility should be analyzed not to provoke a biological disaster which has already happened with other fruit varieties by unconrolled use of varieties in areas of quite different characteristics.Thus the varieties have been deprived of their important role in production. The events indicative of economic revival of modern olive growing in the countries where olives have not been traditionally grown,various international attempts directed at protection of biodiversity are an ideal instrument of sustainable production

Diffuse-light absorption spectroscopy and chemometrics for discrimination and quantification of extra virgin olive oil adulterants

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Dynamic Distribution of Histone H4 Arginine 3 Methylation Marks in the Developing Murine Cortex

Epigenetic modifications regulate key transitions in cell fate during development of the central nervous system (CNS). During cortical development the initial population of proliferative neuroepithelial precursor cells give rise to neurons and then glia in a strict temporal order. Neurogenesis and gliogenesis are accompanied by a switch from symmetric to asymmetric divisions of the neural precursor cells generating another precursor and a differentiated progeny. To investigate whether specific post-translational histone modifications define specific stages of neural precursor differentiation during cortical development I focussed on the appearance of two different types of histone arginine methylation, the dimethyl symmetric H4R3 (H4R3me2s) and dimethyl asymmetric H4R3 (H4R3me2a) in the developing mouse cortex.An immunohistochemical study of the developing cortex at different developmental stages was performed to detect the distribution of H4R3me2s and H4R3me2a modifications. I analysed the distribution of these modifications in: 1) undifferentiated neural precursors, 2) post-mitotic neurons and 3) developing oligodendrocyte precursors (OLPs) using lineage-specific and histone modification-specific antibodies to co-label the cells. I found that the proliferative neuroepithelium during the stage of mainly symmetric expansive divisions is characterised by the prevalence of H4R3me2s modification and almost no detectable H4R3me2a modification. However, at a later stage, when the cortical layers with post-mitotic neurons have begun forming, both H4R3me2a and H4R3me2s modifications are detected in the post-mitotic neurons and in the developing OLPs.I propose that the H4R3me2s modification forms part of the "histone code" of undifferentiated neural precursors. The later appearance of the H4R3me2a modifications specifies the onset of neurogenesis and gliogenesis and the commitment of the NSCs to differentiate. Thus, the sequential appearance of the two different H4R3 methylation marks may define a particular cellular state of the NSCs during their development and differentiation demonstrating the role of histone arginine methylation in cortical development

Recruitment of aged donor heart with pharmacological stress echo. A case report

BACKGROUND: The heart transplant is a treatment of the heart failure, which is not responding to medications, and its efficiency is already proved: unfortunately, organ donation is a limiting step of this life-saving procedure. To counteract heart donor shortage, we should screen aged potential donor hearts for initial cardiomyopathy and functionally significant coronary artery disease. Donors with a history of cardiac disease are generally excluded. Coronary angiography is recommended for most male donors older than 45 years and female donors older than 50 years to evaluate coronary artery stenoses. A simpler way to screen aged potential donor hearts for initial cardiomyopathy and functionally significant coronary artery disease should be stress echocardiography. CASE REPORT: A marginal donor (A 57 year old woman meeting legal requirements for brain death) underwent a transesophageal (TE) Dipyridamole stress echo (6 minutes accelerated protocol) to rule out moderate or severe heart and coronary artery disease. Wall motion was normal at baseline and at peak stress (WMSI = 1 at baseline and peak stress, without signs of stress inducible ischemia). The pressure/volume ratio was 9.6 mmHg/ml/m(2 )at baseline, increasing to 14 mmHg/ml/m(2 )at peak stress, demonstrating absence of latent myocardial dysfunction. The marginal donor heart was transplanted to a recipient "marginal" for co-morbidity ( a 63 year old man with multiple myeloma and cardiac amyloidosis , chronic severe heart failure, NYHA class IV). Postoperative treatment and early immunosuppressant regimen were performed according to standard protocols. The transplanted heart was assessed normal for dimensions and ventricular function at transthoracic (TT) echocardiography on post-transplant day 7. Coronary artery disease was ruled out at coronary angiography one month after transplant; left ventriculography showed normal global and segmental LV function of the transplanted heart. CONCLUSION: For the first time stress echo was successfully used in the critical theater of screening potential donor hearts. This method is enormously more feasible, less expensive, and more environmentally sustainable than any possible alternative strategy based on stress scintigraphy perfusion imaging or coronary angiography. The selection of hearts "too good to die" on the basis of bedside resting and stress echo can be a critical way to solve the mismatch between donor need and supply

Secure collaborative supply-chain management

The SecureSCM project demonstrates the practical applicability of secure multiparty computation to online business collaboration. A prototype supply-chain management system protects the confidentiality of private data while rapidly adapting to changing business needs