Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

Frações granulométricas da matéria orgânica do solo em consórcio de milho safrinha com capim-marandu sob fontes de nitrogênio.

The objective of this work was to determine the effect of off-season corn intercropped with Urochloa brizantha 'Marandu' and of nitrogen sources on the granulometric fractions of soil organic matter under a no-tillage system. The treatments were arranged in a 2x4 factorial arrangement – two types of corn cultivation (with or without pasture) and four nitrogen sources (without nitrogen, urea, ammonium sulfate+urea, and ammonium sulfate) –, in randomized complete blocks with four replicates. The experiment was carried out from 2005 to 2013. Soil sampling was performed in 2013, after corn harvest in fall/winter, at four depths: 0–5, 5–10, 10–20, and 20–40 cm. Total (TOC), labile (LC), particulate (POC), and mineral-associated organic carbon (MOC) contents were determined. The intercropping of corn with U. brizantha 'Marandu' results in a higher concentration of TOC, LC, and POC than single corn cultivated in fall/winter. Ammonium sulfate+urea increases TOC contents at the 0–5-cm depth, but decreases them at the 20–40-cm depth, besides increasing the MOC contents at all depths. The highest total, labile, and particulate organic carbon contents are observed at the 0–5 and 5–10-cm depths.O objetivo deste trabalho foi determinar o efeito do consórcio de milho safrinha com Urochloa brizantha 'Marandu' e de fontes de nitrogênio nas frações granulométricas da matéria orgânica do solo em sistema plantio direto. Os tratamentos foram dispostos em arranjo fatorial 2x4 – dois tipos de cultivo de milho (com ou sem pasto) e quatro fontes de nitrogênio (sem nitrogênio, ureia, sulfato de amônio+ureia e sulfato de amônio) –, em blocos ao acaso, com quatro repetições. O experimento foi conduzido de 2005 a 2013. As coletas do solo foram realizadas em 2013, após a colheita do milho no outono/inverno, em quatro profundidades: 0–5, 5–10, 10–20 e 20–40 cm. Foram determinados os teores de carbono orgânico total (COT), lábil (CL), particulado (COP) e mineral (COM). O consórcio de milho com U. brizantha 'Marandu' resulta em maior teor de COT, CL e COP do que o cultivo de milho solteiro no outono/inverno. O sulfato de amônio+ureia aumenta os teores de COT na camada de 0–5 cm, mas os diminui na de 20–40 cm, além de incrementar os teores de COM em todas as profundidades. Os maiores teores de carbono orgânico total, lábil e particulado são verificados nas profundidades de 0–5 e 5–10 cm

Delivery of antigen to nasal-associated lymphoid tissue microfold cells through secretory IgA targeting local dendritic cells confers protective immunity.

BACKGROUND: Transmission of mucosal pathogens relies on their ability to bind to the surfaces of epithelial cells, to cross this thin barrier, and to gain access to target cells and tissues, leading to systemic infection. This implies that pathogen-specific immunity at mucosal sites is critical for the control of infectious agents using these routes to enter the body. Although mucosal delivery would ensure the best onset of protective immunity, most of the candidate vaccines are administered through the parenteral route. OBJECTIVE: The present study evaluates the feasibility of delivering the chemically bound p24gag (referred to as p24 in the text) HIV antigen through secretory IgA (SIgA) in nasal mucosae in mice. RESULTS: We show that SIgA interacts specifically with mucosal microfold cells present in the nasal-associated lymphoid tissue. p24-SIgA complexes are quickly taken up in the nasal cavity and selectively engulfed by mucosal dendritic cell-specific intercellular adhesion molecule 3-grabbing nonintegrin-positive dendritic cells. Nasal immunization with p24-SIgA elicits both a strong humoral and cellular immune response against p24 at the systemic and mucosal levels. This ensures effective protection against intranasal challenge with recombinant vaccinia virus encoding p24. CONCLUSION: This study represents the first example that underscores the remarkable potential of SIgA to serve as a carrier for a protein antigen in a mucosal vaccine approach targeting the nasal environment

Best Management Practices (BMPs) for Nitrogen Fertilizer in Forage Grasses.

There is a concern about the growing population and limitation in natural resources which are taking the population to direct its agricultural systems into a more productive and efficient activity, looking to avoid a negative impact on the surrounding environment. The industry energy expended to produce nitrogen (N)-fertilizer is considered an indirect consumption of energy in agriculture, which is higher with an increasing forage yield. Nitrogen is the key nutrient associated with high-yielding production in forage grass and grain crops. The aim of this chapter is to introduce the best management practices (BMPs) for N-fertilizer application in forage grasses to improve N-use efficiency, since the most economical way to feed livestock is forage plants where its potential biomass production is not well explored. The BMPs basically follow three management practices: (1) soil nutrient availability and forage requirement, (2) fertilizer application, and (3) decrease in nutrient losses from soil. In order to take a decision on applying N-fertilizer to accomplish forage grasses production with social, economic, and environmental benefits, the N-fertilizer use in forage grasses is going to follow the ?Right rate, Right source, Right place, and Right time (4R) nutrient stewardship.? The application of the 4R?s nutrients stewardship is directly associated with economic, social, and environmental impact. The capacity of the 4R?s implementation worldwide turns into a best guide to improve the striving of better N-use efficiency in forage grass. The 4R?s are interrelated; thus, the recommendation of N-fertilizer rates cannot be prescribed without the combination of the 4R?s where a whole system to be followed should be considered to decide about N-fertilizer in pasture. Consequently, any decision in one of the 4R?s is going to affect the expected N-fertilizer results and dry matter production.bitstream/item/189383/1/Best-management-practices-BMPs.pd

Performance of Peltophorum dubium under intraspecific tree competition and cardinal directions as possibility for integrated livestock-forestry systems.

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Agricultural management systems affect on physical, chemical and microbial soil properties.

The purpose of this research was to assess the effects of replacement of native ?Cerrado? vegetation (NV) into croplands on soil chemical, physical and microbial properties. This research was carried out on a farm under Rhodic Hapludox soil with different types of agricultural managements systems, and it was used a NV to compare the systems. The experimental design was set up in completely randomized with five treatments and five repetitions. The treatments adopted were several agricultural management systems as follow; NV; CS_Crop system; LS_Livestock system; ICLS-4_Integrated crop-livestock system with four years of implementation; ICLS-8_Integrated crop-livestock system with eight years of implementation. It was assessed some chemical, physical, and microbial parameters in the soil, as soil pH, P content, exchangeable cations, cation exchange capacity, base saturation, cations saturation, soil organic carbon (SOC), soil bulk density (SBD), aggregate stability, microbial biomass carbon (MBC), basal breathing, and microbial quotient. The replacement of NV to ICLS decreased SOC, MBC, soil aggregate stability and increase of SBD. The ICLS improved ?Cerrado? soil fertility over time adoption. This integrated system increased the quantity of exchangeable K+ and P content in ?Cerrado? soil. The ICLS-8 showed soil environment nearby the NV. Even the difficulty in obtaining the same physical and microbial condition of NV, the results of this research point out quite important observations, because just no-till system is not enough to obtain improvement of soil quality and the ICLS can return the soil properties close to native ?Cerrado? vegetation.201

Cover crops affect on soil organic matter fractions under no till system.

The purpose of this research was to identify the soil organic matter (SOM) fractions changes in a crop rotation system under no-till system (NTS). This research was carried out from October 2010 to February 2014 in a Rhodic Hapludox. The experiment was set up in completely randomized blocks in a factorial design with eight cover crops and three soil depths (0-5, 5-10 and 10-20 cm) with four repetitions. Cover crops: fall-winter corn, intercropping fall-winter corn with Brachiaria ruziziensis, intercropping fall-winter corn with B. brizantha cv. Marandu, intercropping fall-winter corn with Crotalaria spectabilis, B. ruziziensis, B. brizantha cv. Marandu, Pennisetum glaucum L. and set-aside area. The results of SOM granulometric fractionation showed that 6.5% of the total organic carbon (TOC) stocks were in the particulate organic carbon (POC) fraction. The low values of POC observed in this research are associated with the weather condition of experimental site, which shows high temperature and moisture. In relation to the labile carbon (LC), the highest LC stock was observed in 0-5 cm depth, which differed from the 10-20 cm depth. The POC, LC and labile nitrogen (LN) were the SOM fractions that showed to be more sensitive to detect the changes promoted by the cover crops and soil depths in NTS, as well as the carbon management index (CMI). The intercropping fall-winter corn with B. brizantha cv. Marandu and B. ruziziensis were efficient in increasing the CMI in deeper depth (10-20 cm).201

Soybean agronomic performance in narrow and wide row spacing associated with NPK fertilizer under no-tillage.

The purpose of this research was to evaluate soybean agronomic traits performance under row spacing associated with NPK fertilizer. The experimental design was set up in a randomized complete block and the treatments were arranged with factorial concept, consisting of four NPK (02-20-18%) fertilizer rates (0; 200; 400 and 600 kg ha-1) and five row spacing (0.35; 0.45; 0.50; 0.60 and 0.70 m), with three replications. The measurements were performed in two consecutive cropping seasons. The following variables were determined: time of canopy closure; plant height; the height of the first pod insertion; number of pods per plant; number of branches per plant; number of grains per pod; 1000-grain weight; and grain yield. The narrow row spacing (below than 0.40 m) may be a profitable alternative to reduce intraspecific plant competition resulting in improvement of soybean agronomic performance, resulting faster canopy closure and relative equidistance among soybean plants. Narrow rows promoted increase in soybean grain yield. The row spacing of 0.35 m associated with 600 kg ha-1 of NPK fertilizer was the profitable combination to achieve the highest soybean grain yield. The wide row spacing demand more fertilizer to remain the same performance than in 0.35 m spacing row.201