Cacao agroforestry systems do not increase pest and disease incidence compared with monocultures under good cultural management practices

Pests and diseases threaten cacao production worldwide. Agroforestry systems are traditionally seen by farmers as one of the causes of increased pest and disease incidence, in contrast with full-sun monocultures. Cultural management practices - e.g. regular tree pruning, frequent pod harvest, regular removal of infested pods, weed management - have been reported to be crucial for pest and disease management. We performed two experiments for the purpose of assessing the effect of (i) different cacao production systems, and (ii) the frequency of harvest and removal of infested pods on the incidence of pests and diseases and on the cacao yield. The first experiment was performed in a long-term system comparison trial in Bolivia, where data on pest and disease incidence were recorded for three years in five production systems: two monocultures and two agroforestry system under organic and conventional farming, and one successional agroforestry system, i.e. a high tree density multi-strata system. Pest and disease management did not differ between systems and relied on cultural management practices. Overall, the incidence of pests and diseases did not differ between production systems, which indicated they were not the driver of yield differences between them. Across production systems, only 14% of the pods were affected by pests and diseases; 70% of these were affected by frosty pod rot. More than 80% of the pods infected by frosty pod rot were removed before the sporulation phase. In the second experiment, the effects of the frequency of harvest and removal of infected pods - every 15 days versus every 25 days - on pest and disease incidence and yield were tested in four farmers’ fields. Fortnightly harvest and diseased pod removal significantly decreased disease incidence and increased cacao yield, by 25% and 46% respectively. Our results show that cacao agroforestry systems do not increase pest and disease incidence compared with monocultures when good cultural management practices are implemented, which, in turn, can increase the productivity of the cacao plantations

'Persilscheine' für den Schreibtischtäter: das Beispiel des NS-Kriminalbiologen Dr. Dr. Robert Ritter

Der Arzt Robert Ritter war als Kriminalbiologe in den Diensten des Reichsgesundheits- und Reichskriminalpolizeihauptamtes maßgeblich an der Vorbereitung des Völkermords an Sinti und Roma beteiligt. Der Autor hat in seiner Habilitationsschrift von 1991 das unheilvolle Wirken Ritters beschrieben. Der vorliegende Beitrag versteht sich als eine Art Ergänzung. Erstmals wird seine Personalakte bei der Stadt Frankfurt/Main ausgewertet. Sie gibt Aufschluß über die Strategie Ritters, sich in der Nachkriegszeit als vom Nationalsozialismus unbelastet darzustellen und eine neue Karriere als Arzt und Psychiater zu beginnen. Beschrieben wird die 'Reinigung' der eigenen Biografie durch die damals weitverbreitete Jagd nach 'Persilscheinen' und Gefälligkeitsgutachten in den alten 'Seilschaften'. (pmb

Die nationalsozialistische 'Euthanasie' in sächsischen Anstalten und ihre strafrechtliche Ahndung in der SBZ

Zahllose Patienten - Experten sprechen von über einhunderttausend Menschen - starben im Laufe des Zweiten Weltkriegs in psychiatrischen Kliniken und Anstalten des Deutschen Reichs und in den besetzten Ländern den 'Euthanasie'-Tod. Sie galten als 'Ballastexistenzen' und 'unnütze Esser'. Mit Giftgas, Medikamenten und durch 'Hungerkuren' brachte man ihr als 'lebensunwert' befundenes Leben zum Erlöschen. Im Sommer 1947 standen in Dresden Ärzte, Krankenschwestern und Pfleger vor Gericht, die in der 'Tötungsanstalt' Sonnenstein/Pirna viele tausend Menschen ermordet hatten. Unter den Angeklagten befand sich auch einer der Hauptschuldigen an der von Hitler selbst angeordneten 'Tötungsaktion' im Dritten Reich, der am Ende des Prozesses zum Tode verurteile Arzt Professor Dr. Paul Nitsche. Bis zum Herbst 1989 unterblieb die sozialhistorische Aufarbeitung der 1933-1945 vollzogenen Geschehnisse in Anstalten, die sich auf dem Gebiet der ehemaligen DDR befanden. Der vorliegende Beitrag sichtet und kommentiert die umfangreichen Akten zum Dresdener 'Euthanasie'-Prozeß. (ICE)'During the second World War innumerable patients - experts say more than 100 000 people - were killed in psychiatric clinics and other institutions in Germany and its occupied territories. Being considered as 'ballast creatures' ('Ballastexistenzen') and 'useless eaters' euthanasia became their fate. Their existence, classified 'unworth living' was extinguished by means of poison gas, medicaments and so-called 'hunger treatments'. In the summer of 1947 physicians, nurses and orderlies, who had killed thousands of people within the 'killing premises' (Tötungsanstalt) of Sonnenstein/Pirna had to stand trial in Dresden. Among the accused was the physician Prof. Dr. Paul Nitsche, one of the main offenders within Hitler's 'IIIrd Reich killing scheme'. At the end of the trial, he was sentenced to death. A sociohistorical investigation of what happened within psychiatric institutions on the territory of the former GDR between 1933 and 1945 has not been effected until autumn 1989. After the opening of the German-German border, the author of the article had the opportunity to analyse a larg quantity of documents, particularly about the 'Dresden - euthanasia trial', so far kept by the Chief State Prosecutor of the former GDR. His article is bases upon these documents.' (author's abstract

'Wie viel lieber würde ich mich richtig verabschieden...': 'Republikflüchtige' DDR-Lehrer in den Jahren 1949-1961

Zu den Flüchtlingen, die zwischen 1949 und 1961 die DDR verließen, gehören bemerkenswerterweise mehrere Tausend Lehrer, die ihre Ausbildung im SED-Staat erhalten hatten. Eine Aufarbeitung der häufigen Fluchten innerhalb des Schulwesens selbst blieb die Ausnahme. Es genügte gewöhnlich, daß sich die Kollegen von dem betreffenden Lehrer distanzierten und eine Art Treuegelöbnis zur DDR abgaben. Nimmt man das im vorliegenden Beitrag erstmals veröffentlichte statistische Material als Spiegelbild der Gesamtgesellschaft der DDR kurz vor Errichtung des 'antifaschistischen Schutzwalls' im August 1961, so war die Unzufriedenheit mit den gegebenen Verhältnissen allseits vorhanden; sie betraf Frauen wie Männer im Lehrerberuf, ging durch alle Altersgruppen und Qualifikationen, und auch und gerade die Mitgliedschaft in der SED verhinderte es nicht, der DDR den Rücken zu kehren. (ICE)'Soon after the end of the Second World War the Soviet Occupation Zone saw politically guiltless teachers beginning to do their job. Newcomer teachers from different professional backgrounds joined them. In some cases they had finished school very recently and obtained pedagogical qualifications by doing furhter education courses at the same time. In the period until the construction of the German-German border in 1961 many of these teachers left the German Democratic Republic because they were dissatisfied with their educatinal possibilities or with the political system in general. Additionally the Federal Republic of Germany enticed some of them away from the GDR. In order not to lose their teachers, the leaders of the GDR tried to improve the social and cultural situation of the teachers. Simultaneously they collected statistical information on the problem of illegal emigration of teachers. The material proved that teachers from all parts of the GDR fled for different reasons. Young teachers fled more frequently than older ones. Only the construction of the wall in 1961 put a stop to the illegal emigration of teachers.' (author's abstract

Multiple FNH-Like Lesions in a Patient with Chronic Budd-Chiari Syndrome: Gd-EOB-Enhanced MRI and BR1 CEUS Findings

A-26-year old female patient with chronic Budd-Chiari syndrome due to different underlying blood disorders applied for a two-year followup of the liver with Gadolinium-ethoxybenzyl-diethylenetriaminepentaacetic-acid-(Gd-EOB-DTPA-) enhanced MRI. The liver function tests were raised. Besides showing a progressive hepatosplenomegaly and a cirrhotic liver alteration, the MRI revealed multiple new nodular lesions in all liver segments. These lesions showed typical patterns in the precontrast images, while there was an arterial and a persistent portal venous enhancement. In the hepatobiliary liver-specific late phase, a central “washout” and a persistent rim enhancement were observed (target sign). The additionally performed contrast-enhanced ultrasonography showed a strong zentrifugal arterial enhancement of the lesions followed by an isoechoic enhancement in the portal venous and delayed liver phase. Histologically these lesions turned out as focal nodular hyperplasias (FNH) or FNH-like lesions, also known as large regenerative nodules (LRNs). Differentiation between regenerative nodules like LRN and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in cirrhotic livers is crucial, and the target sign in the hepatobiliary phase of Gd-EOB-DTPA as well as the centrifugal arterial enhancement followed by an isoenhancement during a CEUS might be useful for establishing the correct diagnosis of such hypervascular lesions with proliferated and likely aberrant bile ducts

Prostate Cancer Detection with mpMRI According to PI-RADS v2 Compared with Systematic MRI/TRUS-Fusion Biopsy: A Prospective Study

BACKGROUND: mpMRI assesses prostate lesions through their PI-RADS score. The primary goal of this prospective study was to demonstrate the correlation of PI-RADS v2 score and the volume of a lesion with the presence and clinical significance of prostate cancer (PCa). The secondary goal was to determine the extent of additionally PCa in inconspicuous areas. METHODS: All 157 patients underwent a perineal MRI/TRUS-fusion prostate biopsy. Targeted biopsies as well as a systematic biopsy were performed. The presence of PCa in the probes was specified by the ISUP grading system. RESULTS: In total, 258 lesions were biopsied. Of the PI-RADS 3 lesions, 24% were neoplastic. This was also true for 36.9% of the PI-RADS 4 lesions and for 59.5% of the PI-RADS 5 lesions. Correlation between ISUP grades and lesion volume was significant (p < 0.01). In the non-suspicious mpMRI areas carcinoma was revealed in 19.7% of the patients. CONCLUSIONS: The study shows that the PI-RADS v2 score and the lesion volume correlate with the presence and clinical significance of PCa. However, there are two major points to consider: First, there is a high number of false positive findings. Second, inconspicuous mpMRI areas revealed PCa

Introducing Aliphatic Fluoropeptides: Perspectives on Folding Properties, Membrane Partition and Proteolytic Stability

A de novo designed class of peptide-based fluoropolymers composed of fluorinated aliphatic amino acids as main components is reported. Structural characterization provided insights into fluorine-induced alterations on β-strand to α-helix transition upon an increase in SDS content and revealed the unique formation of PPII structures for trifluorinated fluoropeptides. A combination of circular dichroism, fluorescence-based leaking assays and surface enhanced infrared absorption spectroscopy served to examine the insertion and folding processes into unilamellar vesicles. While partitioning into lipid bilayers, the degree of fluorination conducts a decrease in α-helical content. Furthermore, this study comprises a report on the proteolytic stability of peptides exclusively built up by fluorinated amino acids and proved all sequences to be enzymatically degradable despite the degree of fluorination. Herein presented fluoropeptides as well as the distinctive properties of these artificial and polyfluorinated foldamers with enzyme-degradable features will play a crucial role in the future development of fluorinated peptide-based biomaterials

Refining the criteria for immediate total-body CT after severe trauma

Objectives: Initial trauma care could potentially be improved when conventional imaging and selective CT scanning is omitted and replaced by immediate total-body CT (iTBCT) scanning. Because of the potentially increased radiation exposure by this diagnostic approach, proper selection of the severely injured patients is mandatory. Methods: In the REACT-2 trial, severe trauma patients were randomized to iTBCT or conventional imaging and selective CT based on predefined criteria regarding compromised vital parameters, clinical suspicion of severe injuries, or high-risk trauma mechanisms in five trauma centers. By logistic regression analysis with backward selection on the 15 study inclusion criteria, a revised set of criteria was derived and subsequently tested for prediction of severe injury and shifts in radiation exposure. Results: In total, 1083 patients were enrolled with median ISS of 20 (IQR 9–29) and median GCS of 13 (IQR 3–15). Backward logistic regression resulted in a revised set consisting of nine original and one adjusted criteria. Positive predictive value improved from 76% (95% CI 74–79%) to 82% (95% CI 80–85%). Sensitivity decreased by 9% (95% CI 7–11%). The area under the receiver operating characteristics curve remained equal and was 0.80 (95% CI 0.77–0.83), original set 0.80 (95% CI 0.77–0.83). The revised set retains 8.78 mSv (95% CI 6.01–11.56) for 36% of the non-severely injured patients. Conclusions: Selection criteria for iTBCT can be reduced from 15 to 10 clinically criteria. This improves the positive predictive value for severe injury and reduces radiation exposure for less severely injured patients. Key Points: • Selection criteria for iTBCT can be reduced to 10 clinically useful criteria. • This reduces radiation exposure in 36% of less severely injured patients. • Overall discriminative capacity for selection of severely injured patients remained equal

Refining the criteria for immediate total-body CT after severe trauma

Objectives Initial trauma care could potentially be improved when conventional imaging and selective CT scanning is omitted and replaced by immediate total-body CT (iTBCT) scanning. Because of the potentially increased radiation exposure by this diagnostic approach, proper selection of the severely injured patients is mandatory. Methods In the REACT-2 trial, severe trauma patients were randomized to iTBCT or conventional imaging and selective CT based on predefined criteria regarding compromised vital parameters, clinical suspicion of severe injuries, or high-risk trauma mechanisms in five trauma centers. By logistic regression analysis with backward selection on the 15 study inclusion criteria, a revised set of criteria was derived and subsequently tested for prediction of severe injury and shifts in radiation exposure. Results In total, 1083 patients were enrolled with median ISS of 20 (IQR 9-29) and median GCS of 13 (IQR 3-15). Backward logistic regression resulted in a revised set consisting of nine original and one adjusted criteria. Positive predictive value improved from 76% (95% CI 74-79%) to 82% (95% CI 80-85%). Sensitivity decreased by 9% (95% CI 7-11%). The area under the receiver operating characteristics curve remained equal and was 0.80 (95% CI 0.77-0.83), original set 0.80 (95% CI 0.77-0.83). The revised set retains 8.78 mSv (95% CI 6.01-11.56) for 36% of the non-severely injured patients. Conclusions Selection criteria for iTBCT can be reduced from 15 to 10 clinically criteria. This improves the positive predictive value for severe injury and reduces radiation exposure for less severely injured patients

Methodik

Die vegetationskundliche und strukturelle Zuordnung der Lebensraumtypen erfolgt nach der vorrangig von Braun-Blanquet entwickelten Vegetationsklassifizierung, einer hierarchischen Gliederung der Vegetationstypen (Syntaxonomie), die die Ebenen der Assoziation, des Verbandes, der Ordnung und der Klasse umfasst. Hierbei ist die Assoziation die grundlegende Einheit, in der die Pflanzengesellschaften zusammengefasst werden, die sich durch gleiche charakteristische Arten(gruppen)kombinationen auszeichnen. Der Verband vereinigt ähnliche Assoziationen. Das sind bereits umfassendere, jedoch standörtlich noch recht einheitliche Vegetationseinheiten. In Ordnungen werden ähnliche Verbände zusammengefasst. Die Klasse vereinigt ähnliche Ordnungen