(Hydroxyphenyl)oxazoline: a Novel and Remarkably Facile Entry into the Area of Chiral Cationic Alkylzirconium Complexes Which Serve as Polymerization Catalysts

How can the entry into the area of chiral cationic alkyl derivatives of group 4 metals be simplified? We succeeded in, using readily available amino alcohols, which have been converted into chiral (hydroxyphenyl)oxazolines. These compounds have been employed in the organometallic derivatization of early transition metals

Thyroid Dysfunction and Anemia: A Prospective Cohort Study and a Systematic Review.

Even though the association between thyroid dysfunction and anemia is commonly described, it is not known whether it is clinically relevant. This study set out to quantify the association of thyroid dysfunction on hemoglobin (Hb) concentration and risk of anemia. A systematic review (MEDLINE and EMBASE, from inception until May 15, 2017) was conducted to interpret the findings in context. Participants from the EPIC-Norfolk cohort with available baseline thyrotropin (TSH), free thyroxine (fT4), and Hb were included. Euthyroidism was defined as TSH 0.45-4.49 mIU/L (reference category), hypothyroidism as TSH ≥4.50 mIU/L (subclinical [SHypo] with normal fT4 or overt [OHypo] with low fT4), and hyperthyroidism as TSH ≤0.44 mIU/L (subclinical [SHyper] with normal fT4 or overt [OHyper] with elevated fT4). Anemia was defined as Hb <12 g/dL in women and Hb <13 g/dL in men. In the cross-sectional analyses, multiple linear regression was used to compare Hb across TSH categories. In the prospective analysis, participants with OHypo/OHyper at baseline were excluded, as it was assumed that they were treated for overt thyroid disease. A covariance model was used to determine change in Hb concentration from baseline to last follow-up, and multivariable Cox regression was used to analyze anemia risk. In the cross-sectional population (n = 12,337), the adjusted Hb was 0.22 g/dL lower [confidence interval (CI) 0.07-0.38] in OHypo compared to euthyroids, and 0.08 g/dL lower [CI -0.23 to 0.38] in OHyper. In the prospective analysis, 460/7031 participants developed anemia over a median follow-up of 4.7 years. The adjusted mean Hb change over time was -0.04 g/dL in SHypo [CI -0.14 to 0.06] and 0.05 g/dL in SHyper [CI -0.10 to 0.20]. The adjusted hazard ratio for anemia was 0.99 [CI 0.67-1.48] in SHypo, and 0.52 [CI 0.23-1.16] in SHyper. The systematic review returned no other prospective studies on this association, but cross-sectional and case-control studies showed comparable results. In this first prospective population-based cohort, subclinical thyroid dysfunction was not associated with a change in Hb concentration during follow-up and was not an independent risk factor for developing anemia; variations in Hb concentration in patients with overt thyroid dysfunction were not clinically relevant

the role of pigs as pharyngeal carriers of human pathogenic yersinia enterocolitica strains

From March 2007 to January 2008, a total of 170 pigs at slaughter were tested for Y. enterocolitica contamination in tonsils tissue. The animals came from 125 different farms located in four regions of Northern Italy. Y. enterocolitica was isolated from 19 out of 170 (11.2%) tonsils samples. The prevalent bio-serotype (68.4%) was 4/O:3, followed by bioserotypes 1A/O:8 (15.8%), 1A/O:5 (10.5%) and 4/O:8 (5.2%). Among bio-serotype 4/O:3, several strains possessed yadA, ail and ystA virulence genes

Randomized trial on adjuvant treatment with FOLFIRI followed by docetaxel and cisplatin versus 5-fluorouracil and folinic acid for radically resected gastric cancer

Some trial have demonstrated a benefit of adjuvant fluoropirimidine with or without platinum compounds compared with surgery alone. ITACA-S study was designed to evaluate whether a sequential treatment of FOLFIRI [irinotecan plus 5-fluorouracil/folinic acid (5-FU/LV)] followed by docetaxel plus cisplatin improves disease-free survival in comparison with 5-FU/LV in patients with radically resected gastric cancer. Patients with resectable adenocarcinoma of the stomach or gastroesophageal junction were randomly assigned to either FOLFIRI (irinotecan 180 mg/m(2) day 1, LV 100 mg/m(2) as 2 h infusion and 5-FU 400 mg/m(2) as bolus, days 1 and 2 followed by 600 mg/m(2)/day as 22 h continuous infusion, q14 for four cycles) followed by docetaxel 75 mg/m(2) day 1, cisplatin 75 mg/m(2) day 1, q21 for three cycles (sequential arm) or De Gramont regimen (5-FU/LV arm). From February 2005 to August 2009, 1106 patients were enrolled, and 1100 included in the analysis: 562 in the sequential arm and 538 in the 5-FU/LV arm. With a median follow-up of 57.4 months, 581 patients recurred or died (297 sequential arm and 284 5-FU/LV arm), and 483 died (243 and 240, respectively). No statistically significant difference was detected for both disease-free [hazard ratio (HR) 1.00; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.85-1.17; P = 0.974] and overall survival (OS) (HR 0.98; 95% CI: 0.82-1.18; P = 0.865). Five-year disease-free and OS rates were 44.6% and 44.6%, 51.0% and 50.6% in the sequential and 5-FU/LV arm, respectively. A more intensive regimen failed to show any benefit in disease-free and OS versus monotherapy

Systematic aortic and pelvic lymphadenectomy versus resection of bulky nodes only in optimally debulked advanced ovarian cancer: A randomized clinical trial

The role of systematic aortic and pelvic lymphadenectomy in patients with optimally debulked advanced ovarian cancer is unclear and has not been addressed by randomized studies. We conducted a randomized clinical trial to determine whether systematic aortic and pelvic lymphadenectomy improves progression-free and overall survival compared with resection of bulky nodes only. Methods: From January 1991 through May 2003, 427 eligible patients with International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage IIIB-C and IV epithelial ovarian carcinoma were randomly assigned to undergo systematic pelvic and para-aortic lymphadenectomy (n = 216) or resection of bulky nodes only (n = 211). Progression-free survival and overall survival were analyzed using a logrank statistic and a Cox multivariable regression analysis. All statistical tests were two-sided. Results: After a median followup of 68.4 months, 292 events (i.e., recurrences or deaths) were observed, and 202 patients had died. Sites of first recurrences were similar in both arms. The adjusted risk for first event was statistically significantly lower in the systematic lymphadenectomy arm (hazard ratio [HR] =.75, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.59 to 0.94; P =.01) than in the no-lymphadenectomy arm, corresponding to 5-year progression-free survival rates of 31.2 and 21.6% in the systematic lymphadenectomy and control arms, respectively (difference = 9.6%, 95% CI = 1.5% to 21.6%), and to median progression-free survival of 29.4 and 22.4 months, respectively (difference = 7 months, 95% CI = 1.0 to 14.4 months). The risk of death was similar in both arms (HR = 0.97, 95% CI = 0.74 to 1.29; P =.85), corresponding to 5-year overall survival rates of 48.5 and 47%, respectively (difference = 1.5%, 95% CI = -8.4% to 10.6%), and to median overall survival of 58.7 and 56.3 months, respectively (difference = 2.4 months, 95% CI = -11.8 to 21.0 months). Median operating time was longer, and the percentage of patients requiring blood transfusions was higher in the systematic lymphadenectomy arm than in the no-lymphadenectomy arm (300 versus 210 minutes, P <.001, and 72% versus 59%; P =.006, respectively). Conclusion: Systematic lymphadenectomy improves progression-free but not overall survival in women with optimally debulked advanced ovarian carcinoma

Agricultura e biodiversidade nas ciências sociais brasileiras: alimentando a comunicação entre ciência e políticas públicas.

O presente artigo decorre de uma reflexão sustentada em dois pressupostos: a) que as ciências e, em particular, as sociais, podem contribuir para informar as tomadas de decisão e a formulação de políticas públicas visando a melhoria da vida das pessoas no planeta e b) que o papel da agricultura na conservação da biodiversidade é uma questão atual de extrema relevância e que merece ser aprofundada. A relação entre a agricultura e a biodiversidade tem sido objeto de questionamentos recentes na sociedade e no campo das políticas públicas. Contudo, se os estudos relacionados à biodiversidade e à agricultura, separadamente, têm observado um considerável crescimento no Brasil, poucos são os investimentos de pesquisa sobre a relação entre esses dois grandes temas. A partir dessas considerações, seguimos dois objetivos principais: 1) investigar como o papel da agricultura familiar na preservação da biodiversidade tem sido abordado pelas Ciências Sociais no Brasil, particularmente nos artigos publicados em periódicos brasileiros nos últimos 20 anos; 2) testar uma metodologia de revisão bibliográfica, criteriosa, que possa ser útil aos tomadores de decisão em políticas públicas e demais interessados

Equilibrium and dynamical properties of two dimensional self-gravitating systems

A system of N classical particles in a 2D periodic cell interacting via long-range attractive potential is studied. For low energy density $U$ a collapsed phase is identified, while in the high energy limit the particles are homogeneously distributed. A phase transition from the collapsed to the homogeneous state occurs at critical energy U_c. A theoretical analysis within the canonical ensemble identifies such a transition as first order. But microcanonical simulations reveal a negative specific heat regime near $U_c$. The dynamical behaviour of the system is affected by this transition : below U_c anomalous diffusion is observed, while for U > U_c the motion of the particles is almost ballistic. In the collapsed phase, finite $N$-effects act like a noise source of variance O(1/N), that restores normal diffusion on a time scale diverging with N. As a consequence, the asymptotic diffusion coefficient will also diverge algebraically with N and superdiffusion will be observable at any time in the limit N \to \infty. A Lyapunov analysis reveals that for U > U_c the maximal exponent \lambda decreases proportionally to N^{-1/3} and vanishes in the mean-field limit. For sufficiently small energy, in spite of a clear non ergodicity of the system, a common scaling law \lambda \propto U^{1/2} is observed for any initial conditions.Comment: 17 pages, Revtex - 15 PS Figs - Subimitted to Physical Review E - Two column version with included figures : less paper waste