The Formation of Cosmic Structures in a Light Gravitino Dominated Universe

We analyse the formation of cosmic structures in models where the dark matter is dominated by light gravitinos with mass of $100$ eV -- 1 keV, as predicted by gauge-mediated supersymmetry (SUSY) breaking models. After evaluating the number of degrees of freedom at the gravitinos decoupling ($g_*$), we compute the transfer function for matter fluctuations and show that gravitinos behave like warm dark matter (WDM) with free-streaming scale comparable to the galaxy mass scale. We consider different low-density variants of the WDM model, both with and without cosmological constant, and compare the predictions on the abundances of neutral hydrogen within high-redshift damped Ly--$\alpha$ systems and on the number density of local galaxy clusters with the corresponding observational constraints. We find that none of the models satisfies both constraints at the same time, unless a rather small $\Omega_0$ value (\mincir 0.4) and a rather large Hubble parameter (\magcir 0.9) is assumed. Furthermore, in a model with warm + hot dark matter, with hot component provided by massive neutrinos, the strong suppression of fluctuation on scales of \sim 1\hm precludes the formation of high-redshift objects, when the low--$z$ cluster abundance is required. We conclude that all different variants of a light gravitino DM dominated model show strong difficulties for what concerns cosmic structure formation. This gives a severe cosmological constraint on the gauge-mediated SUSY breaking scheme.Comment: 28 pages,Latex, submitted for publication to Phys.Rev.

Therapeutic strategies to slow chronic kidney disease progression

Childhood chronic kidney disease commonly progresses toward end-stage renal failure, largely independent of the underlying disorder, once a critical impairment of renal function has occurred. Hypertension and proteinuria are the most important independent risk factors for renal disease progression. Therefore, current therapeutic strategies to prevent progression aim at controlling blood pressure and reducing urinary protein excretion. Renin-angiotensin-system (RAS) antagonists preserve kidney function not only by lowering blood pressure but also by their antiproteinuric, antifibrotic, and anti-inflammatory properties. Intensified blood pressure control, probably aiming for a target blood pressure below the 75th percentile, may exert additional renoprotective effects. Other factors contributing in a multifactorial manner to renal disease progression include dyslipidemia, anemia, and disorders of mineral metabolism. Measures to preserve renal function should therefore also comprise the maintenance of hemoglobin, serum lipid, and calcium-phosphorus ion product levels in the normal range

Safety of intravenous ferric carboxymaltose versus oral iron in patients with nondialysis-dependent CKD: an analysis of the 1-year FIND-CKD trial.

Background: The evidence base regarding the safety of intravenous (IV) iron therapy in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) is incomplete and largely based on small studies of relatively short duration. Methods: FIND-CKD (ClinicalTrials.gov number NCT00994318) was a 1-year, open-label, multicenter, prospective study of patients with nondialysis-dependent CKD, anemia and iron deficiency randomized (1:1:2) to IV ferric carboxymaltose (FCM), targeting higher (400-600 µg/L) or lower (100-200 µg/L) ferritin, or oral iron. A post hoc analysis of adverse event rates per 100 patient-years was performed to assess the safety of FCM versus oral iron over an extended period. Results: The safety population included 616 patients. The incidence of one or more adverse events was 91.0, 100.0 and 105.0 per 100 patient-years in the high ferritin FCM, low ferritin FCM and oral iron groups, respectively. The incidence of adverse events with a suspected relation to study drug was 15.9, 17.8 and 36.7 per 100 patient-years in the three groups; for serious adverse events, the incidence was 28.2, 27.9 and 24.3 per 100 patient-years. The incidence of cardiac disorders and infections was similar between groups. At least one ferritin level ≥800 µg/L occurred in 26.6% of high ferritin FCM patients, with no associated increase in adverse events. No patient with ferritin ≥800 µg/L discontinued the study drug due to adverse events. Estimated glomerular filtration rate remained the stable in all groups. Conclusions: These results further support the conclusion that correction of iron deficiency anemia with IV FCM is safe in patients with nondialysis-dependent CKD

Nurses' perceptions of aids and obstacles to the provision of optimal end of life care in ICU

Contains fulltext : 172380.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access

Psychological profile of Greek doctors: Differences among five specialties

The aim of the present study was to explore the differences in the psychological profiles between genders and different specialties among Greek doctors. Five-thirty nine doctors in five different specialties, namely 115 general practitioners, 168 internists, 81 surgeons, 108 microbiologists and 67 anesthesiologists, participated in the study. 253 participants were specialized doctors and 286 participants were medical residents. The sample consisted of 280 women and 259 men. The mean age of the sample was 38.75(±7.98) years. A cross sectional survey study was conducted. Symptom Check List 90-Revised (SCL-90-R) was used to collect the data. Multivariate Analysis of Variance indicated the significant effect of specialty (Wilks Lambda =.20, p =.000), the effect of gender (Wilks Lambda =.90, p =.000) as well as their interaction (Wilks Lambda =.68, p =.000) on participants scores in SCL-90-R subscales. Internists reported high scores in 8 out of 9 subscales of SCL-90-R. Surgeons scored significantly higher compared to all other specialties in hostility(HS) subscale. Women reported statistically higher scores in almost all subscales of the SCL-90-R test compared to men, apart from HS (p =.191). Gender and specialty choice play role in the psychological profile of Greek doctors. Women and internists seem to be more prone to psychopathology. These findings should be taken into account in future studies and interventions. © 2015 Taylor & Francis

Acute and Sub-Lethal Toxicity of Aluminum on Developing Zebrafish Embryos

Acute toxicity and sub-lethal developmental aluminum (Al) toxicity on zebrafish embryos were determined in the present work. Four-hour postfertilization zebrafish embryos were randomly divided into three experimental groups and a control. The developing embryos were exposed to 500, 50, and 0.05 mg l−1 Al2(SO4)3 solution for 96 h postfertilization. Exposure to Al resulted in delayed embryonic development and hatching and low levels of survival. The magnitude of the effects increased with increasing concentrations of Al. Compared to post-hatching stages, the magnitude of toxicity was higher in the pre-hatching embryonic stages of development. © 2021, The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

Performance of a small-scale modular aquaponic system

Aquaponic systems aim to exploit the advantages of aquaculture and hydroponic systems. A reasonable fish production can be sustained and at the same time a wide range of green plants and vegetables will be beneffited from the nutrient-rich outflow of the fish tanks, providing nitrification services to reduce the ammonia and nitrite loads. In this paper, the performance of a small-scale modular aquaponic system was assessed for the critical initial running period of 14 days during September 2011, using lettuce, basil and Nile tilapia. It was evident from the results that mid-range fish stocking densities and accordingly nutrient loads are able to support a plant harvest at a ratio of 1:4 to 1:5 (amount of fish feed provided: harvestable biomass) in both species, depending on the initial size of the plants. Very small plants with sensitive root system should be avoided, as well as increased ammonia loads. Further improvements could be achieved by fine-tunning of the flow characteristics of the system, the standardization of water quality profile, the appropriate selection of substrate and the addition of extra biofiltration compartment

Reduced metabolic rate and increased heart beat as early signs of sub lethal copper toxicity in developing Zebrafish

The current study looks at acute and sub-lethal Copper toxicity on developing zebrafish embryos up to 96 hours post fertilisation (PSF). We allocated four-hour PSF zebrafish embryos in four groups with duplicates, and 500 mg, 50 mg, and 0.05 mg l-1 and a control group for 96 hours PSF. All fish exposed to 500 mg l-1 copper died within the first 6 hours PSF. Significant sub-lethal copper toxic effects on developing Zebrafish were manifested in the 0.05 and the 50 mg groups, by increased heartbeat rate within the first 25 hours PSF in the 0.05 and 50 mg group. The sub-lethal toxic effect was also manifested in the metabolism of developing embryos, with a reduced rate of utilisation of yolk and lower growth rate and anatomical malformations within the first 25 hours in the 50 mg group and after 50 hours PSF in both the 0.05 and 50 mg group. The results indicate that reduced metabolic rate and increased heartbeat rate are potential early signs of sub-lethal Cu toxicity in developing Zebrafish well before other developmental defects are visually evident. © 2020 Asian Journal of Agriculture and Biology