Cadmium levels of edible offal from Saanen goat male kids

Concentration of cadmium was investigated in the heart, tongue, lungs, spleen, liver, kidney, testis, brain and thymus of 15 Saanen goat male kids. This element was determined by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES), after microwave digestion. The cadmium concentration was significantly influenced by the type of edible offal. Mean cadmium concentrations ranged from 0.018 mg/kg (heart) to 0.114 mg/kg (kidney). The maximum cadmium concentrations found in the kidney (0.133 mg/kg) and liver (0.075 mg/kg) were below maximum levels (1.0 and 0.5 mg/kg, respectively) set by legislation for these tissues

Bio-energy retains its mitigation potential under elevated CO2

Background If biofuels are to be a viable substitute for fossil fuels, it is essential that they retain their potential to mitigate climate change under future atmospheric conditions. Elevated atmospheric CO2 concentration [CO2] stimulates plant biomass production; however, the beneficial effects of increased production may be offset by higher energy costs in crop management. Methodology/Main findings We maintained full size poplar short rotation coppice (SRC) systems under both current ambient and future elevated [CO2] (550 ppm) and estimated their net energy and greenhouse gas balance. We show that a poplar SRC system is energy efficient and produces more energy than required for coppice management. Even more, elevated [CO2] will increase the net energy production and greenhouse gas balance of a SRC system with 18%. Managing the trees in shorter rotation cycles (i.e. 2 year cycles instead of 3 year cycles) will further enhance the benefits from elevated [CO2] on both the net energy and greenhouse gas balance. Conclusions/significance Adapting coppice management to the future atmospheric [CO2] is necessary to fully benefit from the climate mitigation potential of bio-energy systems. Further, a future increase in potential biomass production due to elevated [CO2] outweighs the increased production costs resulting in a northward extension of the area where SRC is greenhouse gas neutral. Currently, the main part of the European terrestrial carbon sink is found in forest biomass and attributed to harvesting less than the annual growth in wood. Because SRC is intensively managed, with a higher turnover in wood production than conventional forest, northward expansion of SRC is likely to erode the European terrestrial carbon sink

Canagliflozin and Cardiovascular and Renal Outcomes in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Chronic Kidney Disease in Primary and Secondary Cardiovascular Prevention Groups

Background: Canagliflozin reduces the risk of kidney failure in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and chronic kidney disease, but effects on specific cardiovascular outcomes are uncertain, as are effects in people without previous cardiovascular disease (primary prevention). Methods: In CREDENCE (Canagliflozin and Renal Events in Diabetes With Established Nephropathy Clinical Evaluation), 4401 participants with type 2 diabetes mellitus and chronic kidney disease were randomly assigned to canagliflozin or placebo on a background of optimized standard of care. Results: Primary prevention participants (n=2181, 49.6%) were younger (61 versus 65 years), were more often female (37% versus 31%), and had shorter duration of diabetes mellitus (15 years versus 16 years) compared with secondary prevention participants (n=2220, 50.4%). Canagliflozin reduced the risk of major cardiovascular events overall (hazard ratio [HR], 0.80 [95% CI, 0.67-0.95]; P=0.01), with consistent reductions in both the primary (HR, 0.68 [95% CI, 0.49-0.94]) and secondary (HR, 0.85 [95% CI, 0.69-1.06]) prevention groups (P for interaction=0.25). Effects were also similar for the components of the composite including cardiovascular death (HR, 0.78 [95% CI, 0.61-1.00]), nonfatal myocardial infarction (HR, 0.81 [95% CI, 0.59-1.10]), and nonfatal stroke (HR, 0.80 [95% CI, 0.56-1.15]). The risk of the primary composite renal outcome and the composite of cardiovascular death or hospitalization for heart failure were also consistently reduced in both the primary and secondary prevention groups (P for interaction >0.5 for each outcome). Conclusions: Canagliflozin significantly reduced major cardiovascular events and kidney failure in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and chronic kidney disease, including in participants who did not have previous cardiovascular disease

Canagliflozin and renal outcomes in type 2 diabetes and nephropathy

BACKGROUND Type 2 diabetes mellitus is the leading cause of kidney failure worldwide, but few effective long-term treatments are available. In cardiovascular trials of inhibitors of sodium–glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2), exploratory results have suggested that such drugs may improve renal outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes. METHODS In this double-blind, randomized trial, we assigned patients with type 2 diabetes and albuminuric chronic kidney disease to receive canagliflozin, an oral SGLT2 inhibitor, at a dose of 100 mg daily or placebo. All the patients had an estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR) of 30 to <90 ml per minute per 1.73 m2 of body-surface area and albuminuria (ratio of albumin [mg] to creatinine [g], >300 to 5000) and were treated with renin–angiotensin system blockade. The primary outcome was a composite of end-stage kidney disease (dialysis, transplantation, or a sustained estimated GFR of <15 ml per minute per 1.73 m2), a doubling of the serum creatinine level, or death from renal or cardiovascular causes. Prespecified secondary outcomes were tested hierarchically. RESULTS The trial was stopped early after a planned interim analysis on the recommendation of the data and safety monitoring committee. At that time, 4401 patients had undergone randomization, with a median follow-up of 2.62 years. The relative risk of the primary outcome was 30% lower in the canagliflozin group than in the placebo group, with event rates of 43.2 and 61.2 per 1000 patient-years, respectively (hazard ratio, 0.70; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.59 to 0.82; P=0.00001). The relative risk of the renal-specific composite of end-stage kidney disease, a doubling of the creatinine level, or death from renal causes was lower by 34% (hazard ratio, 0.66; 95% CI, 0.53 to 0.81; P<0.001), and the relative risk of end-stage kidney disease was lower by 32% (hazard ratio, 0.68; 95% CI, 0.54 to 0.86; P=0.002). The canagliflozin group also had a lower risk of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke (hazard ratio, 0.80; 95% CI, 0.67 to 0.95; P=0.01) and hospitalization for heart failure (hazard ratio, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.47 to 0.80; P<0.001). There were no significant differences in rates of amputation or fracture. CONCLUSIONS In patients with type 2 diabetes and kidney disease, the risk of kidney failure and cardiovascular events was lower in the canagliflozin group than in the placebo group at a median follow-up of 2.62 years

Antiinflammatory Therapy with Canakinumab for Atherosclerotic Disease

Background: Experimental and clinical data suggest that reducing inflammation without affecting lipid levels may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Yet, the inflammatory hypothesis of atherothrombosis has remained unproved. Methods: We conducted a randomized, double-blind trial of canakinumab, a therapeutic monoclonal antibody targeting interleukin-1β, involving 10,061 patients with previous myocardial infarction and a high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level of 2 mg or more per liter. The trial compared three doses of canakinumab (50 mg, 150 mg, and 300 mg, administered subcutaneously every 3 months) with placebo. The primary efficacy end point was nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or cardiovascular death. RESULTS: At 48 months, the median reduction from baseline in the high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level was 26 percentage points greater in the group that received the 50-mg dose of canakinumab, 37 percentage points greater in the 150-mg group, and 41 percentage points greater in the 300-mg group than in the placebo group. Canakinumab did not reduce lipid levels from baseline. At a median follow-up of 3.7 years, the incidence rate for the primary end point was 4.50 events per 100 person-years in the placebo group, 4.11 events per 100 person-years in the 50-mg group, 3.86 events per 100 person-years in the 150-mg group, and 3.90 events per 100 person-years in the 300-mg group. The hazard ratios as compared with placebo were as follows: in the 50-mg group, 0.93 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.80 to 1.07; P = 0.30); in the 150-mg group, 0.85 (95% CI, 0.74 to 0.98; P = 0.021); and in the 300-mg group, 0.86 (95% CI, 0.75 to 0.99; P = 0.031). The 150-mg dose, but not the other doses, met the prespecified multiplicity-adjusted threshold for statistical significance for the primary end point and the secondary end point that additionally included hospitalization for unstable angina that led to urgent revascularization (hazard ratio vs. placebo, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.73 to 0.95; P = 0.005). Canakinumab was associated with a higher incidence of fatal infection than was placebo. There was no significant difference in all-cause mortality (hazard ratio for all canakinumab doses vs. placebo, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.83 to 1.06; P = 0.31). Conclusions: Antiinflammatory therapy targeting the interleukin-1β innate immunity pathway with canakinumab at a dose of 150 mg every 3 months led to a significantly lower rate of recurrent cardiovascular events than placebo, independent of lipid-level lowering. (Funded by Novartis; CANTOS ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01327846.

Mortality from gastrointestinal congenital anomalies at 264 hospitals in 74 low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries: a multicentre, international, prospective cohort study

Summary Background Congenital anomalies are the fifth leading cause of mortality in children younger than 5 years globally. Many gastrointestinal congenital anomalies are fatal without timely access to neonatal surgical care, but few studies have been done on these conditions in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We compared outcomes of the seven most common gastrointestinal congenital anomalies in low-income, middle-income, and high-income countries globally, and identified factors associated with mortality. Methods We did a multicentre, international prospective cohort study of patients younger than 16 years, presenting to hospital for the first time with oesophageal atresia, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, intestinal atresia, gastroschisis, exomphalos, anorectal malformation, and Hirschsprung’s disease. Recruitment was of consecutive patients for a minimum of 1 month between October, 2018, and April, 2019. We collected data on patient demographics, clinical status, interventions, and outcomes using the REDCap platform. Patients were followed up for 30 days after primary intervention, or 30 days after admission if they did not receive an intervention. The primary outcome was all-cause, in-hospital mortality for all conditions combined and each condition individually, stratified by country income status. We did a complete case analysis. Findings We included 3849 patients with 3975 study conditions (560 with oesophageal atresia, 448 with congenital diaphragmatic hernia, 681 with intestinal atresia, 453 with gastroschisis, 325 with exomphalos, 991 with anorectal malformation, and 517 with Hirschsprung’s disease) from 264 hospitals (89 in high-income countries, 166 in middleincome countries, and nine in low-income countries) in 74 countries. Of the 3849 patients, 2231 (58·0%) were male. Median gestational age at birth was 38 weeks (IQR 36–39) and median bodyweight at presentation was 2·8 kg (2·3–3·3). Mortality among all patients was 37 (39·8%) of 93 in low-income countries, 583 (20·4%) of 2860 in middle-income countries, and 50 (5·6%) of 896 in high-income countries (p<0·0001 between all country income groups). Gastroschisis had the greatest difference in mortality between country income strata (nine [90·0%] of ten in lowincome countries, 97 [31·9%] of 304 in middle-income countries, and two [1·4%] of 139 in high-income countries; p≤0·0001 between all country income groups). Factors significantly associated with higher mortality for all patients combined included country income status (low-income vs high-income countries, risk ratio 2·78 [95% CI 1·88–4·11], p<0·0001; middle-income vs high-income countries, 2·11 [1·59–2·79], p<0·0001), sepsis at presentation (1·20 [1·04–1·40], p=0·016), higher American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score at primary intervention (ASA 4–5 vs ASA 1–2, 1·82 [1·40–2·35], p<0·0001; ASA 3 vs ASA 1–2, 1·58, [1·30–1·92], p<0·0001]), surgical safety checklist not used (1·39 [1·02–1·90], p=0·035), and ventilation or parenteral nutrition unavailable when needed (ventilation 1·96, [1·41–2·71], p=0·0001; parenteral nutrition 1·35, [1·05–1·74], p=0·018). Administration of parenteral nutrition (0·61, [0·47–0·79], p=0·0002) and use of a peripherally inserted central catheter (0·65 [0·50–0·86], p=0·0024) or percutaneous central line (0·69 [0·48–1·00], p=0·049) were associated with lower mortality. Interpretation Unacceptable differences in mortality exist for gastrointestinal congenital anomalies between lowincome, middle-income, and high-income countries. Improving access to quality neonatal surgical care in LMICs will be vital to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3.2 of ending preventable deaths in neonates and children younger than 5 years by 2030

A mobile Android application for football club performance management based on the MVVM software architecture pattern

U ovom diplomskom radu zamišljena je i programski implementirana mobilna Android aplikacija za upravljanje performansama nogometnog kluba. Ova aplikacija je napravljena za trenere nogometnih klubova kako bi nakon treninga mogli evidentirati svoje utiske s treninga, imati uvid u napredak svojih igrača ili cjelokupnog tima i kako bi sve navedeno mogli poboljšati. Aplikacija je programski ostvarena u razvojnom okruženju Android Studio te je pisana u programskom jeziku Kotlin. Korisničko sučelje aplikacije također je ostvareno u Kotlinu pomoću biblioteke Jetpack Compose. Za lokalno spremanje podataka korištena je baza podataka Room, a za dohvaćanje podataka s vanjskog poslužitelja korištena je biblioteka Retrofit. Aplikacija je zasnovana na arhitekturi Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM) koja je trenutni standard za razvoj Android aplikacija. Svrha ove aplikacije je olakšati posao treneru i pružiti mu sustavni pregled treninga i igračkih te timskih karakteristika na temelju kojih je moguće poboljšati njihove performanse. Provedeno je ispitivanje definiranih funkcionalnosti aplikacije, a sva tri provedena testa pokazala su uspješnost u njenom ostvarenju. Provedena ispitivanja obuhvaćaju dohvaćanje podataka s vanjskog poslužitelja, rad s bazom podataka te funkcionalnost prikazivanja mogućih poboljšanja za pojedine igrače ili cjelokupni tim. Korištenjem predloška programske arhitekture MVVM postižu se pogodnosti poput slojevitosti koda, pravilna povezanost koda, načela čistog koda te odvajanje odgovornosti u kodu.In this master thesis, a mobile Android application for managing the performance of a football club was conceived and implemented programmatically. This application was made for coaches of football clubs so that after training they could record their impressions from training, have an insight into the progress of their players or the entire team and so that they could improve all of the above. The application was created programmatically in the Android Studio development environment and was written in the Kotlin programming language. The user interface of the application is also realized in Kotlin using the Jetpack Compose library. The Room database was used to store data locally, and the Retrofit library was used to retrieve data from an external server. The application is based on the Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM) architecture, which is the current standard for Android application development. The purpose of this application is to make the coach's job easier and provide him with a systematic overview of training and player and team characteristics on the basis of which it is possible to improve their performance. A test of the application's defined functionalities was conducted, and all three conducted tests showed success in its implementation. The tests carried out include retrieving data from an external server, working with a database, and the functionality of displaying possible improvements for individual players or the entire team. By using the MVVM programming architecture template, benefits such as code layering, proper code connectivity, clean code principles, and separation of concerns in code are achieved

A mobile Android application for football club performance management based on the MVVM software architecture pattern

U ovom diplomskom radu zamišljena je i programski implementirana mobilna Android aplikacija za upravljanje performansama nogometnog kluba. Ova aplikacija je napravljena za trenere nogometnih klubova kako bi nakon treninga mogli evidentirati svoje utiske s treninga, imati uvid u napredak svojih igrača ili cjelokupnog tima i kako bi sve navedeno mogli poboljšati. Aplikacija je programski ostvarena u razvojnom okruženju Android Studio te je pisana u programskom jeziku Kotlin. Korisničko sučelje aplikacije također je ostvareno u Kotlinu pomoću biblioteke Jetpack Compose. Za lokalno spremanje podataka korištena je baza podataka Room, a za dohvaćanje podataka s vanjskog poslužitelja korištena je biblioteka Retrofit. Aplikacija je zasnovana na arhitekturi Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM) koja je trenutni standard za razvoj Android aplikacija. Svrha ove aplikacije je olakšati posao treneru i pružiti mu sustavni pregled treninga i igračkih te timskih karakteristika na temelju kojih je moguće poboljšati njihove performanse. Provedeno je ispitivanje definiranih funkcionalnosti aplikacije, a sva tri provedena testa pokazala su uspješnost u njenom ostvarenju. Provedena ispitivanja obuhvaćaju dohvaćanje podataka s vanjskog poslužitelja, rad s bazom podataka te funkcionalnost prikazivanja mogućih poboljšanja za pojedine igrače ili cjelokupni tim. Korištenjem predloška programske arhitekture MVVM postižu se pogodnosti poput slojevitosti koda, pravilna povezanost koda, načela čistog koda te odvajanje odgovornosti u kodu.In this master thesis, a mobile Android application for managing the performance of a football club was conceived and implemented programmatically. This application was made for coaches of football clubs so that after training they could record their impressions from training, have an insight into the progress of their players or the entire team and so that they could improve all of the above. The application was created programmatically in the Android Studio development environment and was written in the Kotlin programming language. The user interface of the application is also realized in Kotlin using the Jetpack Compose library. The Room database was used to store data locally, and the Retrofit library was used to retrieve data from an external server. The application is based on the Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM) architecture, which is the current standard for Android application development. The purpose of this application is to make the coach's job easier and provide him with a systematic overview of training and player and team characteristics on the basis of which it is possible to improve their performance. A test of the application's defined functionalities was conducted, and all three conducted tests showed success in its implementation. The tests carried out include retrieving data from an external server, working with a database, and the functionality of displaying possible improvements for individual players or the entire team. By using the MVVM programming architecture template, benefits such as code layering, proper code connectivity, clean code principles, and separation of concerns in code are achieved

Mobile Android application for support the visiting of touristic attractions

U ovom završnom radu osmišljena je i programski ostvarena Android mobilna aplikacija za obilazak turističkih sadržaja u Tvrđi. Ova aplikacija je napravljena u Android Studiju gdje je za funkcionalnosti aplikacije korišten programski jezik Java, a za dizajn opisni jezik XML. Aplikacija omogućuje korisniku stvaranje profila i preporučene rute za obilazak te mogućnost dohvata novih informacija o određenim znamenitostima prema kreiranom korisničkom profilu. Korisnički profil moguće je spremiti u bazu podataka i prikazati na jednostavnoj listi. Korisniku se nudi opcija spremanja bilo koje lokacije koju je posjetio na globalnu listu lokacija. Korisniku je omogućeno prikazati spremljene lokacije na listi ili na zaslonu Google Mapsa. Ispitivanjem funkcionalnosti mobilne aplikacije utvrđena je njena ispravnost na primjerima korištenja. Cilj rada je omogućiti mobilnu aplikaciju koja turistima olakšava obilaske i smanjuje troškove obilaska znamenitosti. Također, svrha ove aplikacije je stvaranje kvalitetnog turističkog obilaska za niz različitih ljudi koji posjećuju Tvrđu uz minimalne napore turista i rješavanje problema nepersonaliziranih turističkih obilazaka ponudom rangiranja informacija temeljenih na korisnikovim sklonostima.In this Bachelor's thesis, an Android mobile application for touring tourist facilities in the Fortress was designed and programmatically realized. This application was made in the Android Studio where the Java programming language was used for the application's functionalities, and the XML descriptive language for the design of the application. The application allows the user to create a profile and recommended tour routes, as well as the ability to retrieve new information about certain attractions according to the created user profile. The user profile can be saved in a database and displayed in a simple list. The user is offered the option of saving any location he has visited to the global list of locations. The user is allowed to view saved locations in a list or on the Google Maps screen. By examining the functionality of the mobile application, its correctness was determined on examples of use. The aim of the paper is to provide a mobile application that makes it easier for tourists to visit and reduces the cost of sightseeing. Also, the purpose of this application is to create a quality tour for a number of different people who visit the Fortress with minimal effort of tourists and solve the problem of non-personalized tours by offering ranking information based on user preferences

A mobile Android application for football club performance management based on the MVVM software architecture pattern

U ovom diplomskom radu zamišljena je i programski implementirana mobilna Android aplikacija za upravljanje performansama nogometnog kluba. Ova aplikacija je napravljena za trenere nogometnih klubova kako bi nakon treninga mogli evidentirati svoje utiske s treninga, imati uvid u napredak svojih igrača ili cjelokupnog tima i kako bi sve navedeno mogli poboljšati. Aplikacija je programski ostvarena u razvojnom okruženju Android Studio te je pisana u programskom jeziku Kotlin. Korisničko sučelje aplikacije također je ostvareno u Kotlinu pomoću biblioteke Jetpack Compose. Za lokalno spremanje podataka korištena je baza podataka Room, a za dohvaćanje podataka s vanjskog poslužitelja korištena je biblioteka Retrofit. Aplikacija je zasnovana na arhitekturi Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM) koja je trenutni standard za razvoj Android aplikacija. Svrha ove aplikacije je olakšati posao treneru i pružiti mu sustavni pregled treninga i igračkih te timskih karakteristika na temelju kojih je moguće poboljšati njihove performanse. Provedeno je ispitivanje definiranih funkcionalnosti aplikacije, a sva tri provedena testa pokazala su uspješnost u njenom ostvarenju. Provedena ispitivanja obuhvaćaju dohvaćanje podataka s vanjskog poslužitelja, rad s bazom podataka te funkcionalnost prikazivanja mogućih poboljšanja za pojedine igrače ili cjelokupni tim. Korištenjem predloška programske arhitekture MVVM postižu se pogodnosti poput slojevitosti koda, pravilna povezanost koda, načela čistog koda te odvajanje odgovornosti u kodu.In this master thesis, a mobile Android application for managing the performance of a football club was conceived and implemented programmatically. This application was made for coaches of football clubs so that after training they could record their impressions from training, have an insight into the progress of their players or the entire team and so that they could improve all of the above. The application was created programmatically in the Android Studio development environment and was written in the Kotlin programming language. The user interface of the application is also realized in Kotlin using the Jetpack Compose library. The Room database was used to store data locally, and the Retrofit library was used to retrieve data from an external server. The application is based on the Model-View-ViewModel (MVVM) architecture, which is the current standard for Android application development. The purpose of this application is to make the coach's job easier and provide him with a systematic overview of training and player and team characteristics on the basis of which it is possible to improve their performance. A test of the application's defined functionalities was conducted, and all three conducted tests showed success in its implementation. The tests carried out include retrieving data from an external server, working with a database, and the functionality of displaying possible improvements for individual players or the entire team. By using the MVVM programming architecture template, benefits such as code layering, proper code connectivity, clean code principles, and separation of concerns in code are achieved