A note on the effect of supplementation with microbial phytase and organic acids on feed intake and growth performance of growing pigs

peer-reviewedThis experiment was designed to investigate the effects of supplementation with phytase, either alone or in combination with organic acids, on feed intake and growth of pigs from 8 to 89 kg live weight. Some 240 pigs were used in four experimental treatments comprising: (1) control, (2) control plus phytase, (3) control plus phytase plus liquid organic acids (formic, propionic), and (4) control plus phytase plus powdered organic acids (formic, fumaric, propionic). Feed intake and growth rate in the weaner stage were increased (P < 0.05) by phytase supplementation, with some additional benefits from organic acid inclusion. Interval to slaughter was reduced (P < 0.05) by phytase supplementation

Intradermally Administered Yellow Fever Vaccine at Reduced Dose Induces a Protective Immune Response: A Randomized Controlled Non-Inferiority Trial

Background:Implementation of yellow fever vaccination is currently hampered by limited supply of vaccine. An alternative route of administration with reduced amounts of vaccine but without loss of vaccine efficacy would boost vaccination programmes.Methods and Findings:A randomized, controlled, non-inferiority trial was conducted in a Dutch university center between August 2005 and February 2007. A total of 155 primary vaccinated and 20 previously vaccinated volunteers participated. Participants were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to receive intradermal (i.d.) vaccination with live attenuated yellow fever 17D vaccine at a reduced dose (1/5th; 0·1 mL) or the conventional subcutaneous (s.c.) vaccination (0·5 mL). Antibody neutralization titers were determined at 2, 4 and 8 weeks and 1 year after vaccination by counting the reduction in virus-induced plaques in the presence of serial serum dilutions. Adverse events were documented in a 3-week dairy. Viraemia was measured 5 days after vaccination. From 2 weeks up to one year after vaccination, the maximum serum-dilution at which 80% of the virus plaques were neutralized, which indicates protection against yellow fever, did not differ between those given a reduced i.d. dose or standard s.c. dose of vaccine. In all cases the WHO standard of seroprotection (i.e. 80% virus neutralization) was reached (in 77/77 and 78/78, respectively). Similar results were found in the previously vaccinated individuals. Viraemia was detected in half of the primary vaccinated participants, which was not predictive of serological response. In revaccinees no viraemia was detected.Conclusions:Intradermal administration of one fifth of the amount of yellow fever vaccine administered subcutaneously results in protective seroimmunity in all volunteers. Albeit this vaccination route should enable vaccination of five-times as many individuals at risk for disease, these results should now be confirmed in field studies in areas with potential yellow fever virus transmission to change vaccination policy.Trial Registration:Nederlands Trial Register ISRCTN46326316

Probing the time dependence of dark energy

A new method to investigate a possible time-dependence of the dark energy equation of state $w$ is proposed. We apply this methodology to two of the most recent data sets of type Ia supernova (Union2 and SDSS) and the baryon acoustic oscillation peak at $z = 0.35$. For some combinations of these data, we show that there is a clear departure from the standard $\Lambda$CDM model at intermediary redshifts, although a non-evolving dark energy component ($dw/dz = 0$) cannot be ruled out by these data. The approach developed here may be useful to probe a possible evolving dark energy component when applied to upcoming observational data.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, LaTe

The longitudinal impact of diet, physical activity, sleep, and screen time on Canadian adolescents' academic achievement: An analysis from the COMPASS study

The final publication is available at Elsevier via https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ypmed.2019.05.007. © 2019. This manuscript version is made available under the CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/Adequate amounts of physical activity, sleep, and screen time along with a healthy diet have been demonstrated to have positive associations with academic achievement. No longitudinal study has investigated the simultaneous relationship between all of these behaviours and academic achievement. Data from 11,016 adolescent participants of the COMPASS study in Alberta and Ontario were analysed. Students self-reported their adherence to Canadian recommendations for health behaviours and academic achievement in Math and English on school-based surveys administered in the 2015/16 and 2016/17 waves of COMPASS. Multinomial generalized estimating equations were used to evaluate the association between longitudinal changes in adherence to recommendations and academic achievement at follow-up. Models were adjusted for self-reported sociodemographic information, body weight status, and baseline academic achievement. Students who adhered to a greater number of recommendations performed better than students who adhered to fewer recommendations. Meeting recommendations for Meat and Alternatives (protein-rich foods) and screen time were consistently associated with higher academic achievement compared to students who did not meet these recommendations. A change from not meeting recommendations for Vegetables and Fruit to meeting the recommendation in the following year was associated with higher achievement in both subjects. There was no association between sleep behaviours or physical activity and academic achievement. Results indicate that adherence to recommendations for protein-rich foods, screen time, and vegetables and fruit show promise as behavioural targets for higher academic achievement among youth. Further study using objectives measurements of behaviours and further consideration of socioeconomic variables is merited.The COMPASS study was supported by a bridge grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Institute of Nutrition, Metabolism and Diabetes through the “Obesity – Interventions to Prevent or Treat” priority funding awards (OOP-110788; grant awarded to S. Leatherdale) and an operating grant from the CIHR Institute of Population and Public Health (IPPH) (MOP-114875; grant awarded to S. Leatherdale). Dr. Faught was supported by a Libin Cardiovascular Institute/Cumming School of Medicine Post-Doctoral Fellowship award. Drs. Faulkner and Leatherdale are Chairs in Applied Public Health Research funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) in partnership with Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). Dr. Storey is supported as a Distinguished Researcher, Stollery Science Lab, Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation and is also a Member of the Women and Children's Health Research Institute. Dr. Carson is supported by a CIHR New Investigator Salary Award

Meson Cloud of the Nucleon in Polarized Semi-Inclusive Deep-Inelastic Scattering

We investigate the possibility of identifying an explicit pionic component of the nucleon through measurements of polarized $\Delta^{++}$ baryon fragments produced in deep-inelastic leptoproduction off polarized protons, which may help to identify the physical mechanism responsible for the breaking of the Gottfried sum rule. The pion-exchange model predicts highly correlated polarizations of the $\Delta^{++}$ and target proton, in marked contrast with the competing diquark fragmentation process. Measurement of asymmetries in polarized $\Lambda$ production may also reveal the presence of a kaon cloud in the nucleon.Comment: 23 pages REVTeX, 7 uuencoded figures, accepted for publication in Zeit. Phys.

Directional atherectomy for treatment of restenosis within coronary stents: clinical, angiographic and histologic results

Abstract OBJECTIVES: The safety and long-term results of directional coronary atherectomy in stented coronary arteries were determined. In addition, tissue studies were performed to characterize the development of restenosis. METHODS: Directional coronary atherectomy was performed in restenosed stents in nine patients (10 procedures) 82 to 1,179 days after stenting. The tissue was assessed for histologic features of restenosis, smooth muscle cell phenotype, markers of cell proliferation and cell density. A control (no stenting) group consisted of 13 patients treated with directional coronary atherectomy for restenosis 14 to 597 days after coronary angioplasty, directional coronary atherectomy or laser intervention. RESULTS: Directional coronary atherectomy procedures within the stent were technically successful with results similar to those of the initial stenting procedure (2.31 +/- 0.38 vs. 2.44 +/- 0.35 mm). Of five patients with angiographic follow-up, three had restenosis requiring reintervention (surgery in two and repeat atherectomy followed by laser angioplasty in one). Intimal hyperplasia was identified in 80% of specimens after stenting and in 77% after coronary angioplasty or atherectomy. In three patients with stenting, 70% to 76% of the intimal cells showed morphologic features of a contractile phenotype by electron microscopy 47 to 185 days after coronary intervention. Evidence of ongoing proliferation (proliferating cell nuclear antigen antibody studies) was absent in all specimens studied. Although wide individual variability was present in the maximal cell density of the intimal hyperplasia, there was a trend toward a reduction in cell density over time. CONCLUSIONS: Although atherectomy is feasible for the treatment of restenosis in stented coronary arteries and initial results are excellent, recurrence of restenosis is common. Intimal hyperplasia is a nonspecific response to injury regardless of the device used and accounts for about 80% of cases of restenosis. Smooth muscle cell proliferation and phenotypic modulation toward a contractile phenotype are early events and largely completed by the time of clinical presentation of restenosis. Restenotic lesions may be predominantly cellular, matrix or a combination at a particular time after a coronary procedure

Usefulness of quantitative and qualitative angiographic lesion morphology, and clinical characteristics in predicting major adverse cardiac events during and after native coronary balloon angioplasty

Major, adverse cardiac events (death, myocardial infarction, bypass surgery and reintervention) occur in 4 to 7% of all patients undergoing coronary balloon angioplasty. Prospectively collected clinical data, and angiographic quantitative and qualitative lesion morphologic assessment and procedural factors were examined to determine whether the occurrence of these events could be predicted. Of 1,442 patients undergoing balloon angioplasty for native primary coronary disease in 2 European multicenter trials, 69 had major, adverse cardiac procedural or in-hospital complications after ≥1 balloon inflation and were randomly matched with patients who completed an uncomplicated in-hospital course after successful angioplasty. No quantitative angiographic variable was associated with major adverse cardiac events in univariate and multivariate analyses. Univariate analysis showed that major adverse cardiac events were associated with the following preprocedural variables: (1) unstable angina (odds ratio [OR] 3.11; p 45 ° (OR 2.34; p 45 ° (OR 2.87; p 45 ° (OR 2.54; p < 0.006) were independent predictors of major adverse cardiac events

Randomized trial of a GPIIb/IIIa platelet receptor blocker in refractory unstable angina

BACKGROUND: Patients with unstable angina despite intensive medical therapy, ie, refractory angina, are at high risk for developing thrombotic complications: myocardial infarction or coronary occlusion during percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA). Chimeric 7E3 (c7E3) Fab is an antibody fragment that blocks the platelet glycoprotein (GP) IIb/IIIa receptor and potently inhibits platelet aggregation. METHODS AND RESULTS: To evaluate whether potent platelet inhibition could reduce these complications, 60 patients with dynamic ST-T changes and recurrent pain despite intensive medical therapy were randomized to c7E3 Fab or placebo. After initial angiography had demonstrated a culprit lesion suitable for PTCA, placebo or c7E3 Fab was administered as 0.25 mg/kg bolus injection followed by 10 micrograms/min for 18 to 24 hours until 1 hour after completion of second angiography and PTCA. During study drug infusion, ischemia occurred in 9 c7E3 Fab and 16 placebo patients (P = .06). During hospital stay, 12 major events occurred in 7 placebo patients (23%), including 1 death, 4 infarcts, and 7 urgent interventions. In the c7E3 Fab group, only 1 event (an infarct) occurred (3%, P = .03). Angiography showed improved TIMI flow in 4 placebo and 6 c7E3 Fab patients and worsening of flow in 3 placebo patients but in none of the c7E3 Fab patients. Quantitative analysis showed significant improvement of the lesion in the patients treated with c7E3 Fab, which was not observed in the placebo group, although the difference between the two treatment groups was not significant. Measurement of platelet function and bleeding time demonstrated > 90% blockade of GPIIb/IIIa receptors, > 90% reduction of ex vivo platelet aggregation to ADP, and a significantly prolonged bleeding time during c7E3 Fab infusion, without excess bleeding. CONCLUSIONS: Combined therapy with c7E3 Fab, heparin, and aspirin appears safe. These pilot study results support the concept that effective blockade of the platelet GPIIb/IIIa receptors can reduce myocardial infarction and facilitate PTCA in patients with refractory unstable angina

Risk factors for lobar and non-lobar intracerebral hemorrhage in patients with vascular disease

Introduction Lobar and non-lobar non-traumatic intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) are presumably caused by different types of small vessel diseases. The aim of this study was to assess risk factors for ICH according to location. Methods In two large prospective studies, SMART (n = 9088) and ESPRIT (n = 2625), including patients with manifest cardiovascular, cerebrovascular or peripheral artery disease or with vascular risk factors, we investigated potential risk factors for ICH during follow-up according to lobar or non-lobar location by Cox proportional hazards analyses. Results During 65,156 patient years of follow up 19 patients had lobar ICH (incidence rate 29, 95% CI 19-42 per 100,000 person-years) and 24 non-lobar ICH (incidence rate 37, 95% CI 26-51 per 100,000 person-years). Age significantly increased the risk of lobar ICH (HR per 10 years increase 1.90; 95% CI 1.17-3.10) in the multivariable analysis, but not of non-lobar hemorrhage. Anticoagulant medication (HR 3.49; 95% CI 1.20-10.2) and male sex (HR 3.79; 95% CI 1.13-12.8) increased the risk of non-lobar but not lobar ICH. Conclusion This study shows an elevated risk of future ICH in patients with manifestations of, or risk factors for, cardiovascular, cerebrovascular or peripheral artery disease. Our data suggest that risk factors for ICH vary according to location, supporting the hypothesis of a differential pathophysiology of lobar and non-lobar ICH

Pathogenic characteristics of persistent feline enteric coronavirus infection in cats

Feline coronaviruses (FCoV) comprise two biotypes: feline enteric coronaviruses (FECV) and feline infectious peritonitis viruses (FIPV). FECV is associated with asymptomatic persistent enteric infections, while FIPV causes feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), a usually fatal systemic disease in domestic cats and some wild Felidae. FIPV arises from FECV by mutation. FCoV also occur in two serotypes, I and II, of which the serotype I viruses are by far the most prevalent in the field. Yet, most of our knowledge about FCoV infections relates to serotype II viruses, particularly about the FIPV, mainly because type I viruses grow poorly in cell culture. Hence, the aim of the present work was the detailed study of the epidemiologically most relevant viruses, the avirulent serotype I viruses. Kittens were inoculated oronasally with different doses of two independent FECV field strains, UCD and RM. Persistent infection could be reproducibly established. The patterns of clinical symptoms, faecal virus shedding and seroconversion were monitored for up to 10 weeks revealing subtle but reproducible differences between the two viruses. Faecal virus, i.e. genomic RNA, was detected during persistent FECV infection only in the large intestine, downstream of the appendix, and could occasionally be observed also in the blood. The implications of our results, particularly our insights into the persistently infected state, are discussed