Innovative Data Visualization Tools: Facilitating Logistics Management in Times of Crisis

This paper attempts to address the macroeconomic consequences of various crises impacting the economy, supply & demand balance, and supply chains. The authors, as a part of a joint logistic company-academia effort, enhanced the analytical potential in the field of data evaluation by providing a tool that monitors key indicators for road freight transportation across Europe. The tool, based on a vast dataset, calculates values for given places and time windows to visualize them on maps. Using it, we highlight the changes in the transport market, emerging in times of pandemic and afterward

Effects of selection for yolk cholesterol on growth and meat quality in Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica)

Descendants () of S18 generation of Japanese quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica), selected for low (line 11, n=15) or for high (line 12, n=6) yolk cholesterol content were used for this experiment. The high (12) and low (11) lines were developed from a control egg type (line13) wild color plumage stock 07, from Poultry Breeding Station in Ivanka at Danube (Slovakia) that was maintained without conscious selection. The results of selected lines were compared to this one from unselected lines, egg type (line 13, n=15) and meat type (line 8, n=15), to study productive performance (growth and carcass weight) as well as meat quality traits (intramuscular collagen properties, fatty and cholesterol content). The birds were grown up to 35 days of age. Quails were fed ad libitum with commercial diets according to their ages. Animals had free access to water during the experiment. The body weight of the quails was controlled every week (from week 1 to 5). At the slaughter (at avg. weight of 104.0, 107.7, 110.6 g vs 209.3 g for lines 11, 12, 13 vs 8, respectively; P<0.05) the hot carcass weight was recorded and dressing percentage was calculated. Pectoralis superficialis muscles were removed from the carcasses to assess intramuscular collagen (IMC) properties (collagen and crosslink concentrations), intramuscular lipid and cholesterol contents. Growth and slaughter performance, intramuscular fat percentage and IMC properties of Pectoralis superficialis were not different between the birds selected for low (line 11) and high (line 12) yolk cholesterol content and were also found to be similar between the quails of egg type and those selected for yolk cholesterol content (lines 11 and 12). Compared to the birds of egg type line and those selected for yolk cholesterol content, the quails of meat type had higher growth and carcass traits (P<0.05), while meat quality traits were found to be similar. The meat of the quails selected for low cholesterol in the egg yolk (line 11) had lower (P<0.05) cholesterol (-35.9%) than that of the birds characterized by high cholesterol in the egg yolk (line 12). In conclusion, divergent selection for yolk cholesterol content did not significantly influence growth and slaughter traits, intramuscular fat and IMC properties of Japanese quail, while it affected the amount of cholesterol in meat. The quails of meat type showed the highest growth and slaughter traits

PROBIOTICS, PREBIOTICS AND SNYBIOTICS IN POULTRY MODE OF ACTION, LIMITATION, AND ACHIEVEMENTS

The withdrawal of antibiotic growth promoters from poultry industry have forced farmers to seek alternatives for the posing a risk factors of cross-resistance acquisition by harmful bacteria. A particular nuisance became salmonellosis and campylobacteriosis forcing to the elimination of whole poultry flocks as well as causing dangerous zoonotic diseases in humans. An excellent replacement for antibiotics have become the pro-, pre-and synbiotic substances which have a beneficial effect on the host organism through the development intensification of healthy intestinal microbial strains and the elimination of pathogenic strains. Such preparations may be administered both in the water spray as well as in feed. Excellent and promising method appears to be their injection directly into the egg air chamber in the 12th day of incubation. However, further studies are required to determine the appropriate doses as well as combinations of bioactive substances and to determine the optimal way for their delivery

In ovo validation model to assess the efficacy of commercial prebiotics on broiler performance and oxidative stability of meat

Abstract The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of in ovo injection of 2 different prebiotics, DiNovo (DN; Laminaria spp., extract containing laminarin and fucoidan) and Bi2 tos (BI; non-digestive trans-galactooligosaccharides from milk lactose digested with Bifidobacterium bifidum NCIMB 41171), on growth, slaughter traits, intramuscular fat percentage (IF) and muscle fiber diameter, and lipid oxidation of meat in chickens reared under commercial conditions, following an in ovo trial protocol. On d 12 of embryonic incubation, 350,560 Ross 308 eggs were randomly divided into 3 experimental groups and automatically injected in ovo with: physiological saline (control group), BI at dose of 3.5 mg/embryo and DN at dose of 0.88 mg/embryo. Hatched chicks (males and females) were allocated dependent on treatment group into 3 poultry houses on each farm (3 farms in total) with a stocking density of 21.2 to 21.5 chicks/m2. At 42 d of age, 14 randomly chosen birds (7 males and 7 females), per each treatment from each farm, were individually weighed and slaughtered. The results showed no significant differences of final number of chickens/chicken house, mortality, BW per treatment, stocking density (kg/m2), feed intake, feed conversion rate (FCR), and European Broiler Index among 3 experimental groups. Treatments with BI and DN were associated with slight increases (P > 0.05) in average BW and a minor improvement (P > 0.05) of FCR in BI group. Slaughtered chickens from DN and BI treated groups had significantly increase of BW, carcass weight, carcass yield, and breast muscle weight compared with the control group. IF and muscle fiber diameter were similar among groups. Males had significantly higher slaughter traits compared to females, except for breast muscle yield. The prebiotic treatments led to a higher lipid oxidation in meat, even if the detected TBA reactive substances were below the critical value recognized for meat acceptability. In conclusion, in ovo administration of prebiotics was associated with improvements in a number of parameters of relevance to commercial poultry production

Fatty acid composition of meat and genetic mapping of quantitative trait loci in 3 generations of Japanese quail populations

The present study was carried out to evaluate the effect of different lines and generations of adult males and females of Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) on total lipid, fatty acid (FA) composition and cholesterol content of breast muscle, as well as the identification of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) controlling the above mentioned meat quality traits. Forty-four quails (generation F0), 22 Pharaoh (F-33) meat-type males and 22 Standard (S-22) laying-type females, were crossed to produce the F1 hybrids generation. F2 generation was created by mating one F1 male with one F1 female, full siblings. The birds, randomly chosen from F0 (22 males and 22 females), F1 (22 males and 22 females) and F2 (84 males and 152 females), were raised to 20 weeks of age in collective cages. After slaughter the carcasses were dissected and the breast muscle was removed for the chemical analysis. Genomic DNA was extracted from the whole blood and 30 microsatellite markers located on two quail chromosomes were genotyped. S-22 quails exhibited higher amounts of total saturated fatty acids (SFA) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), while F-33 quails had a greater content of total monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA). F-33 quails supplied meat with lower atherogenic and thrombogenic indexes. A partial effect of sex on the FA composition of quail meat was found in the F1 generation; while in the F2 generation a sex-effect was more evident. F2 females exhibited a higher PUFA content and PUFA/SFA ratio, and a lower muscle cholesterol content compared to F2 males. In conclusion, total lipid, FA composition and cholesterol content were affected by first- and second-generation crosses. For the cholesterol content a QTL showing additive effect has been detected on CJA02 at 85 cM; no QTLs were found for total SFA, MUFA and PUFA. To current knowledge, this is the first study of a QTL associated with muscle cholesterol in quails

An Interactive Viewer for Mathematical Content Based On Type Theory

Contains fulltext : 175979.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)24 p

Anisotropic intrinsic lattice thermal conductivity of phosphorene from first principles

Phosphorene, the single layer counterpart of black phosphorus, is a novel two-dimensional semiconductor with high carrier mobility and a large fundamental direct band gap, which has attracted tremendous interest recently. Its potential applications in nano-electronics and thermoelectrics call for a fundamental study of the phonon transport. Here, we calculate the intrinsic lattice thermal conductivity of phosphorene by solving the phonon Boltzmann transport equation (BTE) based on first-principles calculations. The thermal conductivity of phosphorene at $300\,\mathrm{K}$ is $30.15\,\mathrm{Wm^{-1}K^{-1}}$ (zigzag) and $13.65\,\mathrm{Wm^{-1}K^{-1}}$ (armchair), showing an obvious anisotropy along different directions. The calculated thermal conductivity fits perfectly to the inverse relation with temperature when the temperature is higher than Debye temperature ($\Theta_D = 278.66\,\mathrm{K}$). In comparison to graphene, the minor contribution around $5\%$ of the ZA mode is responsible for the low thermal conductivity of phosphorene. In addition, the representative mean free path (MFP), a critical size for phonon transport, is also obtained.Comment: 5 pages and 6 figures, Supplemental Material available as http://www.rsc.org/suppdata/cp/c4/c4cp04858j/c4cp04858j1.pd

Metastatic tumors of pancreas — whether and when surgical intervention is gainful for diseased people. Retrospective analysis of data from three surgery centers

Introduction. Metastatic tumors in the pancreas constitute a small (2–5%), but steadily growing percentage of all neoplasms of this organ. The aim of the study was to analyze the surgical treatment of metastases in the pancreas, in particular its effectiveness and the risk of surgical complications. Material and methods. The retrospective analysis was performed on 21 patients treated surgically in three surgical centers. This group included 16 women (76%) and 5 men (24%). The median age at the time of diagnosis of the underlying disease was 55.5 years (41–71). We analyzed the location of secondary lesions, their size, number, type and radicality of surgical intervention, histopathological diagnosis of the disease, as well as the occurrence of postoperative complications. Results. The starting point for metastatic lesions in 16 patients (76%) was renal cell carcinoma (RCC), in other cases — skin melanoma, eyeball melanoma, adenocarcinoma of the rectum, non-small-cell bronchi carcinoma. R0 radical surgery was performed in 15 patients (74%) and perioperative mortality was 5% (1 patient died). The median total survival time was 151 months (10–342), with 168 months for RCC (25–344) and 62 months for the remaining cancers (10–241). Conclusions. The main factor that determines the patient’s future fate is the type of primary neoplasm and surgical treatment of metastatic tumors in the pancreas is the best solution for selected RCC cases

Guzy przerzutowe trzustki — czy i kiedy leczenie operacyjne jest korzystne dla chorego. Analiza retrospektywna materiału trzech ośrodków chirurgicznych

Wstęp. Guzy przerzutowe trzustki stanowią niewielki (2–5%), ale stale rosnący, odsetek wszystkich nowotworów tego narządu. Celem pracy była analiza leczenia operacyjnego przerzutów nowotworowych do trzustki, w szczególności jego skuteczności i ryzyka powikłań chirurgicznych. Materiał i metody. Analizie retrospektywnej poddano 21 chorych leczonych operacyjnie w trzech ośrodkach chirurgicznych. W tej grupie znajdowało się 16 kobiet (76%) i 5 mężczyzn (24%). Mediana wieku chorych w chwili rozpoznania choroby podstawowej wyniosła 55,5 roku (41–71). Przeanalizowano lokalizację zmian wtórnych, ich wielkość, liczbę, typ oraz radykalność interwencji chirurgicznej, rozpoznanie histopatologiczne choroby, a także wystąpienie powikłań pooperacyjnych. Wyniki. Punktem wyjścia zmian przerzutowych u 16 chorych (76%) był rak nerkowokomórkowy nerki (renal cel carcinoma, RCC), w pozostałych przypadkach — czerniak skóry, czerniak gałki ocznej, rak gruczołowy odbytnicy, rak niedrobnokomórkowy oskrzela. Operację o radykalności R0 udało się wykonać u 15 chorych (74%), a śmiertelność okołooperacyjna wynosiła 5% (zmarł 1 chory). Mediana całkowitego czasu przeżycia wynosiła 151 miesięcy (10–342), przy czym dla RCC było to 168 miesięcy (25–344), a dla pozostałych nowotworów 62 miesiące (10–241). Wnioski. Głównym czynnikiem, który determinuje dalszy los chorego, jest rodzaj nowotworu pierwotnego, a leczenie operacyjne guzów przerzutowych trzustki jest najlepszym rozwiązaniem dla wyselekcjonowanych przypadków RCC