Testing Choice Experiment for Benefit Transfer

Benefit transfer is a cost-effective method for estimating the value of environmental goods that relies on information obtained in previous studies. The multi-attribute approach of choice experiment should provide advantages in terms of benefit transfer allowing differences in environmental improvements between sites as well as differences in socio-economic and attitude characteristics between respondent populations. Furthermore, choice experiment allows the estimation of implicit prices and the welfare change for many scenarios. If the transferability of these values is confirmed, that would be good news for benefit transfer practitioners. This paper investigates the capability of choice experiment method to be used in environmental benefit transfer.choice experiment, benefit transfer, soil erosion, Research Methods/ Statistical Methods, Q30,

Development Of An Instrument To Measure Beliefs And Attitudes From Heart Valve Disease Patients.

The objective of this study was to verify content validity and reliability of "CAV-Instrument" -- an instrument to measure beliefs and attitudes of heart valve disease patients concerning their illness and treatment. The instrument was analyzed by three judges (using predetermined criteria) and submitted to the pretest (n = 17 subjects). The majority of the items were evaluated as adequate regarding their pertinence, clearness and significance regarding the analyzed questions. The pretest showed the necessity for small changes in some statements, which optimized instrument comprehension by the patients. The restructured instrument was applied to 46 patients to verify internal consistency. The whole instrument and most of its scales presented satisfactory internal consistency. It is concluded that the instrument has content validity and is internally consistent, ratifying the adequacy of its application to measure the strength of association among the researched variables.12345345

bird density stress markers and growth performance in the italian chicken breed milanino

Summary The Milanino is an Italian chicken breed included in a conservation project run by the University of Milan. It is characterized by good fertility, heavy body weights, high adaptation ability to adverse climate conditions, and disease resistance. Because of these characteristics, the Milanino could represent an important genetic resource for alternative production systems. This research was aimed at studying the effect of bird density on growth and slaughter performance, as well as stress response in Milanino chickens kept in outdoor pens. One hundred and sixty Milanino chickens were randomly assigned to 2 experimental groups kept at different densities (2 m2/bird and 8 m2/bird) and were slaughtered at 185 days of age. Growth and slaughter performance and stress condition were recorded. The interaction bird density * sex * age significantly affected body weight and an opposite trend was found between females and males: heavier females were found in the high-density group, while heavier males were found in the low-density group. Bird density did not affect carcass weight data. The stress marker (H/L ratio) was significantly higher in birds kept at the higher density (2 m2/bird). In conclusion, the Milanino provided satisfactory growth performance with different rearing density but the lower density, 8 m2/bird, should be preferred to minimize welfare problems for male birds

Diversidad de anfibios: su importancia en los ecosistemas y declinación de poblaciones

En este capítulo se abordan diferentes aspectos relacionados con los anfibios respondiendo a preguntas tales como qué son los anfibios, cuáles son sus características principales y cuál es su importancia en los ecosistemas. Además se incluyen referencias acerca de su diversidad en Argentina, principalmente en las provincias de Corrientes, Chaco y Formosa y comentarios sobre los principales factores relacionados con la declinación global de anfibios.Fil: Cespedez, Jorge Abel. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Naturales y Agrimensura. Departamento de Biología. Laboratorio de Herpetología; ArgentinaFil: Zaracho, Victor Hugo. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Naturales y Agrimensura. Departamento de Biología. Laboratorio de Herpetología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste; ArgentinaFil: Álvarez, B.B.. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Naturales y Agrimensura. Departamento de Biología. Laboratorio de Herpetología; ArgentinaFil: Colombo, M.C.. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Naturales y Agrimensura. Departamento de Biología. Laboratorio de Herpetología; Argentin

Reversible Band Gap Engineering in Carbon Nanotubes by Radial Deformation

We present a systematic analysis of the effect of radial deformation on the atomic and electronic structure of zigzag and armchair single wall carbon nanotubes using the first principle plane wave method. The nanotubes were deformed by applying a radial strain, which distorts the circular cross section to an elliptical one. The atomic structure of the nanotubes under this strain are fully optimized, and the electronic structure is calculated self-consistently to determine the response of individual bands to the radial deformation. The band gap of the insulating tube is closed and eventually an insulator-metal transition sets in by the radial strain which is in the elastic range. Using this property a multiple quantum well structure with tunable and reversible electronic structure is formed on an individual nanotube and its band-lineup is determined from first-principles. The elastic energy due to the radial deformation and elastic constants are calculated and compared with classical theories.Comment: To be appear in Phys. Rev. B, Apr 15, 200

Impact of Mutation Density and Heterogeneity on Papillary Thyroid Cancer Clinical Features and Remission Probability

BACKGROUND: The need to integrate the classification of cancer with information on the genetic pattern has emerged in recent years for several tumors. METHODS: The genomic background of a large series of 208 papillary thyroid cancers (PTC) followed at a single center was analyzed by a custom MassARRAY genotyping platform, which allows the simultaneous detection of 19 common genetic alterations, including point mutations and fusions. RESULTS: Of the PTCs investigated, 71% were found to have pathognomonic genetic findings, with BRAFV600E and TERT promoter mutations being the most frequent monoallelic alterations (42% and 23.5%, respectively), followed by RET/PTC fusions. In 19.2% of cases, two or more point mutations were found, and the co-occurrence of a fusion with one or more point mutation(s) was also observed. Coexisting BRAFV600E and TERT promoter mutations were detected in a subgroup of aggressive PTCs (12%). A correlation between several aggressive features and mutation density was found, regardless of the type of association (i.e., only point mutations, or point mutations and fusions). Importantly, Kaplan-Meier curves demonstrated that mutation density significantly correlated with a higher risk of persistent disease. In most cases, the evaluation of the allelic frequencies normalized for the cancer cell content indicated the presence of the monoallelic mutation in virtually all tumor cells. A minority of cases was found to harbor low allelic frequencies, consistent with the presence of the mutations in a small subset of cancer cells, thus indicating tumor heterogeneity. Consistently, the presence of coexisting genetic alterations with different allelic frequencies in some tumors suggests that PTC can be formed by clones/subclones with different mutational profiles. CONCLUSIONS: A large mono-institutional series of PTCs was fully genotyped by means of a cost- and time-effective customized panel, revealing a strong impact of mutation density and genetic heterogeneity on the clinical features and on disease outcomes, indicating that an accurate risk stratification of thyroid cancer cannot rely on the analysis of a single genetic event. Finally, the heterogeneity found in some tumors warrants attention, since the occurrence of this phenomenon is likely to affect response to targeted therapies

Streptococcus thermophilus urease activity boosts Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus homolactic fermentation

The proto-cooperation between Streptococcus thermophilus and Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus in the yogurt consortium enhances the growth rate and size of each population. In contrast, the independent growth of the two species in milk leads to a slower growth rate and a smaller population size. In this study, we report the first evidence that the urease activity of S. thermophilus increases the intracellular pH of L. delbrueckii in the absence of carbon source. However, in milk, in the presence of lactose the alkalizing effect of urea-derived ammonia was not detectable. Nevertheless, based on glucose consumption and lactic acid production at different pHin, L. delbrueckii showed an optimum of glycolysis and homolactic fermentation at alkaline pH values. In milk, we observed that ammonia provided by urea hydrolysis boosted lactic acid production in S. thermophilus and in L. delbrueckii when the species were grown alone or in combination. Therefore, we propose that urease activity acts as an altruistic cooperative trait, which is costly for urease-positive individuals but provides a local benefit because other individuals can take advantage of urease-dependent ammonia release

Expanding the phenotype associated to KMT2A variants: overlapping clinical signs between Wiedemann–Steiner and Rubinstein–Taybi syndromes

Lysine-specific methyltransferase 2A (KMT2A) is responsible for methylation of histone H3 (K4H3me) and contributes to chromatin remodeling, acting as \u201cwriter\u201d of the epigenetic machinery. Mutations in KMT2A were first reported in Wiedemann\u2013Steiner syndrome (WDSTS). More recently, KMT2A variants have been described in probands with a specific clinical diagnosis comprised in the so-called chromatinopathies. Such conditions, including WDSTS, are a group of overlapping disorders caused by mutations in genes coding for the epigenetic machinery. Among them, Rubinstein\u2013Taybi syndrome (RSTS) is mainly caused by heterozygous pathogenic variants in CREBBP or EP300. In this work, we used next generation sequencing (either by custom-made panel or by whole exome) to identify alternative causative genes in individuals with a RSTS-like phenotype negative to CREBBP and EP300 mutational screening. In six patients we identified different novel unreported variants in KMT2A gene. The identified variants are de novo in at least four out of six tested individuals and all of them display some typical RSTS phenotypic features but also WDSTS specific signs. This study reinforces the concept that germline variants affecting the epigenetic machinery lead to a shared molecular effect (alteration of the chromatin state) determining superimposable clinical conditions

L’iperuricemia cronica con e senza deposito di urato

Background L\u2019iperuricemia cronica con e senza deposito di urato monosodico nei tessuti \ue8 una malattia sistemica e pu\uf2 essere considerata un fattore di rischio indipendente per lo sviluppo di molteplici complicanze quali sindrome metabolica, ipertensione, malattia cardiovascolare e malattia renale. In Italia, si calcola che le persone affette da iperuricemia cronica con e senza deposito di urato siano circa 1 milione, ma il dato \ue8 probabilmente sottovalutato. L\u2019impatto economico della patologia non \ue8 quindi trascurabile e la sua valutazione assume sempre pi\uf9 importanza sia in termini di costi diretti che di costi indiretti dovuti alle complicanze dell\u2019iperuricemia cronica. Queste brevi premesse sono sufficienti per comprendere come la gestione del paziente con iperuricemia meriti un approfondimento e riflessione multidisciplinare al fine di migliorare il processo clinico-assistenziale nelle diverse realt\ue0 regionali e a livello nazionale. Con questo obiettivo \ue8 stato sviluppato il progetto ARTU - Appraisal board Round Table for Uricemia, una tavola di lavoro multidisciplinare che si propone di valutare il quadro attuale e le prospettive future in ambito della gestione del paziente con iperuricemia, integrando, nel processo di miglioramento, le competenze di tutti i professionisti coinvolti. La tavola rotonda a livello lombardo ha unito i pareri e le competenze provenienti da clinici dalla medicina specialistica (cardiologia, nefrologia, geriatria), dalla medicina generale e dal mondo farmacoeconomico. La discussione \ue8 stata incentrata sull\u2019approfondimento e condivisione di contenuti di fondamentale importanza per la conoscenza e gestione della patologia, ed indirizzata a segnalare i punti pi\uf9 critici e quelli ancora interrogativi a cui trovare una risposta. In tal senso la redazione di un documento di consensus firmato da un team di Key Opinion Leader potrebbe essere un primo step significativo a livello nazionale. La tavola rotonda ha avuto quali temi cardine: gli aspetti epidemiologici della patologia, l\u2019analisi della letteratura scientifica a disposizione in merito all\u2019impatto clinico ed economico della patologia, la valutazione delle linee guida e raccomandazioni di riferimento disponibili, la diagnosi e terapia, gli aspetti pratici, organizzativi e farmacoeconomici