Bone computed tomography mineral content evaluation in chickens: Effects of substances in homeopathic concentration

Ninety-six cobb race chickens were equally divided in 4 groups and randomly assigned to receive a standard treatment feed + homeopathic concentrations of Symphytum (S.) officinalis (9CH), or standard treatment feed + homeopathic concentrations of Tricalcarea (4CH), or standard treatment feed + homeopathic concentrations of Calcarea (C.) carbonica (30CH) or a placebo (the same feed but without any homeopathic compound) in order to assess the ability of the homeopathic compounds to increase the concentration of calcium hydroxyapatite in the sternal spongy bone tissue. We measured the concentration of calciumhydroxyapatite in the sternal spongy bone tissue of all chickens by means of a computed tomography (CT). Results: 30%, 36% and 63% increase of sternum spongy-bone mineralization was observed after a 2 years period in the treatment groups with S. officinalis (9CH), Tricalcarea (4CH) (*P < 0.05) and C. carbonica (30CH) (***P < 0.001) respectively. Conclusion: Bone mineralization is usually low in battery chickens reared in commercial poultry-sheds, creating a weakness of the whole animal supporting apparatus. Homeopathic preparations with bone-tissue tropism may improve their health quality

University library as a living lab: innovating with students

Ubiquitous and pervasive technologies are part of everyday life, including the portion of it that has something to do with the university libraries: all students use personal mobile technology and all books have embedded sensors. This paper describes three years long experience with student-lead innovation of student-oriented university library services. Stu-dents, as library users themselves, have a potential to initiate changes in the existing practices, or offer novel technological solutions based on ubiquitous and pervasive technologies that are easy to adopt and use for this user group. Within the project described in the paper, the library was established as a living lab for a student-lead innovation. At this stage, the innovators are recruited among interaction design students. The approach shows very promising results, some of which are showcased in the paper

Possible glimpses into early speciation: the effect of ovarian fluid on sperm velocity accords with post-copulatory isolation between two guppy populations.

Identifying mechanisms of reproductive isolation is key to understanding speciation. Among the putative mechanisms underlying reproductive isolation, sperm-female interactions (postmating-prezygotic barriers) are arguably the hardest to identify, not least because these are likely to operate at the cellular or molecular level. Yet sperm-female interactions offer great potential to prevent the transfer of genetic information between different populations at the initial stages of speciation. Here we provide a preliminary test for the presence of a putative postmating-prezygotic barrier operating between three populations of Trinidadian guppies (Poecilia reticulata), an internally fertilizing fish that inhabits streams with different levels of connectivity across Trinidad. We experimentally evaluate the effect of female ovarian fluid on sperm velocity (a predictor of competitive fertilization success) according to whether males and females were from the same (native) or different (foreign) populations. Our results reveal the potential for ovarian fluid to act as a postmating-prezygotic barrier between two populations from different drainages, but also that the strength of this barrier is different among populations. This result may explain the previous finding that, in some populations, sperm from native males have precedence over foreign sperm, which could eventually lead to reproductive isolation between these populations. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

KAKO PRISTUPITI FISKALNOJ DECENTRALIZACIJI?

Većinu suvremenih država, neovisno jesu li unitarne ili federalne, krasi postojanje nekoliko razina teritorijalne vlasti, što je jedan od imperativa današnjeg državnog ustroja, kako bi se što je moguće više udovoljilo raznovrsnim potrebama koje se javljaju na nižim razinama vlasti. Različite zemlje imaju različite razine vlasti, a u svakoj od njih postoje drugačije hijerarhijski složena javnopravna tijela u kojima njihovi građani putem izbora odlučuju o ponudi javnih dobara i usluga kao i o načinu na koji će ona biti financirana. Dok je uloga centralne razine danas u izgradnji nacionalne infrastrukture i razvoju kvalitetnije radne snage, kako bi država bila kompetitivna u međunarodnom okruženju, dotle se važnost lokalne razine ponajprije očituje u izgradnji poduzetničke infrastrukture, transporta i komunikacija. Stoga je sve jasnije da u današnje vrijeme niže razine vlasti imaju sve značajnu ulogu u razvoju zemlje, pa se stoga mijenja i mišljenje o tome što je važno poduzeti da bi se postigli razvojni ciljevi, tako da sve više zemalja diljem svijeta provodi reforme na području fiskalne decentralizacije. No, iako poželjna, fiskalna decentralizacija nije nimalo jednostavan i lagan zadatak za bilo koju državu. U samom procesu javljaju se brojni problemi i prepreke koji utječu na bitnu odluku o decentralizaciji, fiskalnom izravnavanju te pitanju državne intervencije

Histogram-less LiDAR through SPAD response linearization

We present a new method to acquire the 3D information from a SPAD-based direct-Time-of-Flight (d-ToF) imaging system which does not require the construction of a histogram of timestamps and can withstand high flux operation regime. The proposed acquisition scheme emulates the behavior of a SPAD detector with no distortion due to dead time, and extracts the Tof information by a simple average operation on the photon timestamps ensuring ease of integration in a dedicated sensor and scalability to large arrays. The method is validated through a comprehensive mathematical analysis, whose predictions are in agreement with a numerical Monte Carlo model of the problem. Finally, we show the validity of the predictions in a real d-ToF measurement setup under challenging background conditions well beyond the typical pile-up limit of 5% detection rate up to a distance of 3.8 m

Aneurysmal Bone Cyst located in the Mandibular Condyle

A rare case of aneurysmal bone cyst (ABC) located in the mandibular condyle in a 10-year-old boy is presented. The patient came to our attention for a sudden swelling in the right temporomandibular region, the mouth opening was not reduced

A novel mutation in SACS gene in a family from southern Italy

A form of autosomal recessive spastic ataxia (ARSACS) has been described in the Charlevoix and Saguenay regions of Quebec. So far a frameshift and a nonsense mutation have been identified in the SACS gene. The authors report a new mutation (1859insC), leading to a frameshift with a premature termination of the gene product sacsin, in two sisters from consanguineous parents. The phenotype is similar to previously described patients with ARSACS

TMJ metastasis: A unusual case report

The metastases to the TMJ from a primary lung tumour is a very rare occurrence