Effect on renal function of restoration of euthyroidism in hyperthyroid cats with iatrogenic hypothyroidism.

BACKGROUND: Iatrogenic hypothyroidism is associated with an increased incidence of azotemia after treatment of hyperthyroidism, and decreased survival time in azotemic hyperthyroid cats. HYPOTHESIS: Restoration of euthyroidism will decrease plasma creatinine concentrations. ANIMALS: Nineteen client-owned, methimazole- or carbimazole-treated, hyperthyroid cats with documented iatrogenic hypothyroidism (based on subnormal plasma total thyroxine concentrations [TT4] and increased plasma thyroid-stimulating hormone concentrations). METHODS: Prospective interventional study. Doses of antithyroid medication were reduced until euthyroidism was restored (TT4 10-40 nmol/L). Plasma creatinine concentration and selected other clinicopathologic variables were evaluated before and after restoration of euthyroidism and compared by nonparametric statistics. Data are presented as median [25th, 75th percentile]. RESULTS: Restoration of euthyroidism was associated with a significant decrease in plasma creatinine concentrations (2.61 [1.90, 3.26] mg/dL versus 2.07 [1.42, 2.82] mg/dL; P < .001) and body weight (4.03 [3.59, 4.53] kg versus 3.89 [3.34, 4.18] kg; P = .019), and a significant increase in packed cell volume (30 [28, 39]% versus 34 [29, 39]%; P = .038), heart rate (174 [163, 201] bpm versus 190 [164, 202] bpm; P = .009), and plasma alkaline phosphatase activity (26.6 [17.0, 33.0] IU/L versus 38.0 [23.5, 46.5] IU/L; P < .001). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Restoration of euthyroidism in medically treated hyperthyroid cats with iatrogenic hypothyroidism causes a reduction in plasma creatinine concentrations, and thus might improve renal function; however, this could be influenced by concurrent changes in body weight

A STUDY ON THE PROXIMATE ANALYSIS OF HYDROGENATED FAT IN BAKERY PRODUCTS

Margarine is an important functional ingredient for several bakery and confectionary products. It places a major role in the organoleptic attributes of these bakery products. This article contextualizes on “Bakery Products” available in Indian market. It is analyzed and tested through laboratory using various methods of test such as phytochemical screening, proximate analysis, and elemental analysis which are the major laboratory test done. In that subcategory test such as flavonoids, tannis, alkaloids, polyphenols etc. In that, each product is sampled, analyzed, and tested by chemical to know the exact quantity and the quality of various ingredients of the product and to know how much it is important for that packet products manufacturer

Extreme Food-Plant Specialisation in Megabombus Bumblebees as a Product of Long Tongues Combined with Short Nesting Seasons

© 2015 Huang et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ The attached file is the published version of the article

Online scan of FASD prevention and health promotion resources for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities

© 2017 The Authors. Health Promotion Journal of Australia published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Australian Health Promotion Association Issue addressed: Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) includes a range of life-long impairments caused by alcohol exposure in utero. Health professionals are vital to preventing FASD but many are hesitant to discuss FASD with clients due to their need for additional resources to aid the conversation. This scan sought to identify the scope and gaps in publicly available FASD prevention and health promotion resources, and assess their cultural appropriateness for use among five key groups of Indigenous Australian people including: (i) pregnant women, (ii) women of childbearing age, (iii) grandmothers and aunties, (iv) men, and (v) health professionals. Methods: Relevant resources published 1995-2017 were identified through the Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet, FASD organisation websites, grey literature, Google searches, and field experts. Results were screened by inclusion and cultural appropriateness criteria developed and piloted by the research team, and further screened by health professionals attending FASD training workshops. Results: 115 of the 2146 identified resources were eligible. Relevant resources were found for all five key groups; however, no resources were specifically designed for men, grandmothers or aunties. Conclusions: A range of high-quality, culturally appropriate resources were identified, however, health professionals attending the training workshops were not aware of their availability. Further resource development is suggested for men, grandmothers and aunties. So what?: Prioritisation of active dissemination and implementation strategies is suggested to increase awareness and use of future resource developments. The inclusion of a resource trial among health professionals is a recommended strategy to increase awareness and use of newly developed resources

Spontaneous Stratification in Granular Mixtures

Granular materials size segregate when exposed to external periodic perturbations such as vibrations. Moreover, mixtures of grains of different sizes spontaneously segregate in the absence of external perturbations: when a mixture is simply poured onto a pile, the large grains are more likely to be found near the base, while the small grains are more likely to be near the top. Here, we report a spontaneous phenomenon arising when we pour a mixture between two vertical plates: the mixture spontaneously stratifies into alternating layers of small and large grains whenever the large grains are rougher than the small grains. In contrast, we find only spontaneous segregation when the large grains are more rounded than the small grains. The stratification is related to the occurrence of avalanches; during each avalanche the grains comprising the avalanche spontaneously stratify into a pair of layers through a "kink" mechanism, with the small grains forming a sublayer underneath the layer of large grains.Comment: 4 pages, 6 figures, http://polymer.bu.edu/~hmakse/Home.htm

Severe Inflammation Following Vaccination Against Streptococcus pneumoniae in Patients With Cryopyrin-Associated Periodic Syndromes

OBJECTIVE: Pneumococcal vaccination is recommended for patients receiving immunosuppressive drugs. We describe unusually severe adverse reactions to pneumococcal vaccination in each of 7 consecutive patients with cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes (CAPS). METHODS: Seven consecutive patients with CAPS were vaccinated with pneumococcal polysaccharide or conjugate vaccines. Clinical information was collected retrospectively. RESULTS: Within a few hours after the vaccination, all 7 patients developed severe local reactions at the injection site. Two patients had to be hospitalized for systemic reactions including fever. All symptoms resolved in a period of 3–17 days. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that pneumococcal vaccines can trigger a severe local and systemic inflammatory reaction in patients with CAPS and possibly patients with other autoinflammatory diseases. Careful consideration is warranted when implementing current European League Against Rheumatism immunization guidelines in this patient population

Evaluating a Shared Spaces Intervention. A Case Study of Street Users in Auckland, New Zealand

The environmental qualities of urban spaces have the potential to influence peoples’ behaviours, including mode of transport and physical activity patterns, shopper spending habits, and social engagement and behavioural characteristics. Increasingly, urban planners and transport engineers are integrating concepts such as self -­‐ explaining roads and shared spaces into environmental design approaches, for improved driver behaviour, pedestrian safety, and health behaviours. Despite this, research focusing on the effects of such interventions is limited, largely due to the substantial expense of implementing built environment infrastructure, and a general disconnect between researchers and regulatory bodies responsible for intervention implementation. Greater focu s needs to be on understanding the effects these interventions can have on the general population, to inform future infrastructural initiatives and investment. This study compares the profiles and perceptions of street users immediately post and sixteen mo nths after a major streetscape upgrade to a shared spaces mode in the the Fort Street precinct (central business district), in Auckland, New Zealand. A convenience sample strategy was employed for data collection and participants completed in -­‐ person survey s . Descriptive data treatment and inferential statistical analyses were undertaken to compare user profiles and opinions pre and post streetscape upgrades. In total , 373 street users in the Fort Street precinct participated in this research. Overall, findi ngs indicate positive perceptions of the Fort Street upgrades and positive impacts on health -­‐ related behaviours. Recommendations for further improvements to the area predominantly focused on improving pedestrian safety, including reducing traffic speeds, r educing car usage of the area, and providing better clarity on appropriate driver behaviours.Auckland Council and Auckland Transpor

A dusty pinwheel nebula around the massive star WR 104

Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars are luminous massive blue stars thought to be immediate precursors to the supernova terminating their brief lives. The existence of dust shells around such stars has been enigmatic since their discovery some 30 years ago; the intense radiation field from the star should be inimical to dust survival. Although dust-creation models, including those involving interacting stellar winds from a companion star, have been put forward, high-resolution observations are required to understand this phenomena. Here we present resolved images of the dust outflow around Wolf-Rayet WR 104, obtained with novel imaging techniques, revealing detail on scales corresponding to about 40 AU at the star. Our maps show that the dust forms a spatially confined stream following precisely a linear (or Archimedian) spiral trajectory. Images taken at two separate epochs show a clear rotation with a period of 220 +/- 30 days. Taken together, these findings prove that a binary star is responsible for the creation of the circumstellar dust, while the spiral plume makes WR 104 the prototype of a new class of circumstellar nebulae unique to interacting wind systems.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures, Appearing in Nature (1999 April 08

Redox transfer at subduction zones: insights from Fe isotopes in the Mariana forearc

Subduction zones are active sites of chemical exchange between the Earth’s surface and deep interior and play a fundamental role in regulating planet habitability. However, the mechanisms by which redox sensitive elements (e.g., iron, carbon and sulfur) are cycled during subduction remains unclear. Here we use Fe stable isotopes (δ56Fe), which are sensitive to redox-related processes, to examine forearc serpentinite clasts recovered from deep sea drilling of mud volcanoes formed above the Mariana subduction zone in the Western Pacific. We show that serpentinisation of the forearc by slab-derived fluids produces dramatic δ56Fe variation. Unexpected negative correlations between serpentinite bulk δ56Fe, fluid-mobile element concentrations (e.g., B, As) and Fe3+/ƩFe suggest a concomitant oxidation of the mantle wedge through the transfer of isotopically light iron by slab-derived fluids. This process must reflect the transfer of either sulfate- or carbonate-bearing fluids that preferentially complex isotopically light Fe