Effect of restricted feeding under rearing on reproduction, body condition and blood metabolites of rabbit does selected for growth rate

[EN] Young rabbit females selected for growth rate can have nutritional needs which may not be met by the common practice of feed restriction during rearing in commercial rabbit production. The aim of this study was to analyse the effect of two different feeding programmes: restricted and ad libitum feeding, applied in young rabbit females for one month at the end of rearing, on reproductive performance, body condition and circulating metabolic hormones and metabolites in a rabbit line selected by growth rate in 3 consecutive reproductive cycles. Thus, twenty-four 16-week-old does were randomly assigned to a group in which the daily recommended nutrient intakes were satisfied (fed restricted: 130 g/day, n=13) or a group fed to satiety (ad libitum: 235.5 g/day, n=11) during one month. Then, all does were inseminated in 3 consecutive cycles using a 42-day reproductive cycle. Measurements of does’ body weight, perirenal fat thickness and plasma leptin, non-esterified-fatty-acids (NEFA), beta-hydroxybutyrate (BOHB) and fructosamine were performed at artificial insemination (AI), parturition and weaning time in 3 consecutive cycles. Reproductive performance of does was evaluated based on fertility, litter size at parturition, prolificacy and productivity. Differences in body weight were found only in the 1st cycle, ad libitum fed females being heavier than restricted ones. Nevertheless, body weight variances disappeared in later cycles. No differences were found in perirenal fat thickness. Finally, in ad libitum fed females slight differences were found in plasma levels of NEFAs (452 vs. 258 μekv/L and 527 vs. 306 μekv/L for 1st and 2nd cycles) and BOHB (0.26 vs. 0.03 mM for 2nd cycle), but disappeared in the 3rd reproductive cycle. Fertility, prolificacy and productivity was not significantly affected by the feeding programme. Nevertheless, total litter size showed to be higher in ad libitum fed females at second parturition (8.7 vs. 5.9 kits). Therefore, the evaluated feeding programmes until first AI in females selected by growth rate had no effect on their reproductive outcomes, as the global reproductive performance was not affected.This work was supported by the Spanish Research Project AGL2014- 53405-C2-1-P (CICYT). Carmen Naturil was supported by a research grant from the Education Ministry of the Valencian Regional Government (programme VALi+d. ACIF ⁄ 2013 ⁄ 296). English text version revised by N. Macowan English Language Service.Naturil-Alfonso, C.; Marco-Jiménez, F.; Pascual, J.; Vicente, J. (2017). Effect of restricted feeding under rearing on reproduction, body condition and blood metabolites of rabbit does selected for growth rate. World Rabbit Science. 25(4):303-312. https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.2017.6848SWORD30331225

Effect of increasing lignin in isoenergetic diets at two soluble fibre levels on digestion, performance and carcass quality of growing rabbits

To assess the effect of increasing dietary lignin in isoenergetic diets at two soluble fibre (SF) levels on digestion, performance and carcass quality of growing rabbits, four diets were formulated according a 2 × 2 factorial design: low SF-low lignin (LSF/LL), low SF-high lignin (LSF/HL), high SF-low lignin (HSF/LL) and high SF-high lignin (HSF/HL). On average, in HSF diets SF was increased by 49 g/kg DM, mainly replacing starch (−53 g/kg DM), and in HL diets lignin was increased by 40 g/kg, mainly reducing starch (-78 g/kg DM), with increasing EE (+31 g/kg DM). Two hundred and sixty crossbred weaned rabbits (35 days old) were assigned to the experimental diets, individually housed and fed ad libitum until 63 days of age. Digestibility (from 49 to 53 days old), growth performance (from 35 to 63 days old), carcass quality (at 63 days old) and caecal environment (at 63 days old) were studied in 12, 65, 45 and 16 rabbits per diet, respectively. High SF diets showed higher CTTAD of fibrous fractions (+0.206±0.011, +0.207±0.015, +0.214±0.011 and +0.167±0.015 for aNDFom, ADFom, hemicelluloses and cellulose, respectively, P < 0.001), OM (+0.042±0.004, P < 0.001) and GE (+0.055±0.005, P < 0.001), resulting in high DE content (10.6 vs. 9.30 MJ/kg DM). In contrast, CTTAD of CP was lower (−0.023±0.009, P = 0.013), as well as the DP content (96.9 vs. 103 g/kg DM). This dietary variation reduced the DM content of caecal digesta (−28±3 g/kg, P < 0.001), besides increasing its VFA concentration (+18.0±4.0 mmol/L, P < 0.001) and reducing its pH (−0.28±0.05, P < 0.001). Feed intake and LW gain decreased, with an improvement of feed to gain ratio (−13.8 %, −4.7 %, −9.4 %, respectively; P < 0.001). The proportion of gastrointestinal tract was increased, with a subsequent reduction in dressing out (+19±2 g/kg LW and −15±2 g chilled carcass weight/kg LW, respectively, P < 0.001). High lignin diets showed lower CTTAD of OM (-0.055±0.004, P < 0.001) and GE (−0.034±0.005, P < 0.001) without affecting DE and DP contents. This dietary variation increased DM content of caecal digesta (+21±3 g/kg, P < 0.001), but did not affect the other caecal digesta traits. Feed intake was higher (+4.9 %, P < 0.001), although differences were dependent on the growth phase and the SF level (maximum difference at 35–49 days with low SF diets, +11.0 %, P < 0.001; minimum difference at 49–63 days with high SF diets, +1.0 %, P = 0.689), but did not affect LW gain and consequently impaired the feed to gain ratio (+5.1 %, P < 0.001). No effect was observed on dressing out, but the dissectible fat proportion increased (+6.7±1.1 g/kg reference carcass weight, P < 0.001).info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Preliminary evaluation of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum) seed gum as a potential prebiotic for growing rabbits in Tunisia: effects on in vivo faecal digestibility and in vitro fermentation

[EN] This study aims to determine the effect of dietary inclusion of fenugreek seed gum (FSG), rich in galactomannans, on nutrient apparent digestibility and caecal environment, as well as on in vitro caecal fermentation of Tunisian growing rabbits. Three experimental diets were formulated, including 0, 0.25 and 0.5% of FSG (FSG0, FSG0.25 and FSG0.5, respectively) for the in vivo trial and 0, 0.125, 0.25, 0.5 and 100% of FSG (FSG0, FSG0125, FSG0.25, FSG0.5 and FSG100, respectively) for the in vitro trial. In the in vivo trial, 45 weaned rabbits 31 d old (15 per treatment) were housed in individual cages until 94 d of age. Apparent digestibility coefficients were determined at two ages, from 38 to 41 and from 56 to 59 d old, and caecal traits were recorded after slaughtering. In the in vitro trial, the five experimental diets were incubated with a rabbit caecal inoculum. Gas production was measured and modelled until 72 h and the fermentation traits were measured. Apparent faecal digestibility coefficients of main nutrients and main caecal environment traits were not significantly affected by the dietary inclusion of FSG (P&gt;0.05). However, animals fed with FSG showed lower caecal pH (–0.15; P&lt;0.05) values. Regarding the in vitro fermentation, FSG100 increased asymptotic gas production (+11.25, P&lt;0.001), sharpness of the switching characteristic of the profile (+1.98, P&lt;0.001) and the maximum substrate degradation rate (RM) (+0.188, P&lt;0.001), but decreasing the time after incubation at which half of the asymptotic amount of gas has been formed (–5.86, P&lt;0.001) and at which RM occurs (–4.53, P&lt;0.01). Likewise, FSG100 significantly decreased caecal pH (–1.035, P&lt;0.001), lactic acid (–9.51, P&lt;0.069) and N-NH3 concentrations (–12.81, P&lt;0.001). Meanwhile, it increased the total volatile fatty acids (VFA) production (+43.15, P&lt;0.001). Gradual dietary inclusion of FSG from 0 to 0.5% only significantly increased total VFA production in the caecum (+100 mmol/L per percentage point of FSG inclusion; P&lt;0.05). In conclusion, FSG is highly and rapidly in vitro fermented by rabbit caecal bacteria. However, dietary inclusion of FSG up to 0.5%, might be insufficient to affect the apparent digestibility and fermentation profile of growing rabbits to a great extent.This study is supported by the Interministerial Commission for Science and Technology (CICYT) of the Spanish Government (AGL2017-85162-C2-1R), the Universitat Politècnica de València (Project 20180290; Spain), and the Higher School of Agriculture of Mateur of the Carthage University (Tunisia Republic). Grant assistance for Jihed Zemzmi from the Carthage University is also gratefully acknowledged.Zemzmi, J.; Ródenas, L.; Blas, E.; Abdouli, H.; Najar, T.; Pascual, J. (2020). Preliminary evaluation of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum) seed gum as a potential prebiotic for growing rabbits in Tunisia: effects on in vivo faecal digestibility and in vitro fermentation. World Rabbit Science. 28(3):113-122. https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.2020.12994OJS113122283Abad-Guamán R., Larrea-Dávalos J.A., Carabaño R., García J., Carro M.D. 2018. Influence of inoculum type (ileal, caecal and faecal) on the in vitro fermentation of different sources of carbohydrates in rabbits. World Rabbit Sci., 26: 227-240. https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.2018.9726AOAC. 2002. Official methods of analysis of the AOAC International. 17th ed. AOAC International., Gaithersburg, MD USA.Bartley G.B., Hiltry M.D., Andreson B.D., Clairemont A.C., Maschke S.P. 1981. "Maple-syrup" urine odor due to fenugreek ingestion. New Engl. J. Med., 305: 467. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJM198108203050823Batey I.L. 1982. Starch Analysis Using Thermostable Alpha-Amylases. Starch/Stärke, 34: 125-128. https://doi.org/10.1002/star.19820340407Boletín Oficial del Estado. 2013. Real Decreto 53/2013, por el que se establecen las normas básicas aplicables para la protección de los animales utilizados en experimentación y otros fines científicos, incluyendo la docencia. BOE, 34: 11370-11421.Bónai A., Szendrő Zs., Matics Zs., Fébel H., Kametler L., Tornyos G., Horn P., Kovács F., Kovács M. 2010. Effect of inulin supplementation and age on growth performance and digestive physiological parameters in weaned rabbits. World Rabbit Sci., 18: 121-129. https://doi.org/10.4995/WRS.2010.5883Borshchevskaya L.N., Gordeeya T.L., Kalinina A.N., Sineokii S.P. 2016. Spectrophotometric determination of lactic acid. J. Anal. Chem., 71: 755-758. https://doi.org/10.1134/S1061934816080037Bovera F., Marono S., Di Meo C., Piccolo G., Iannaccone F., Nizza A. 2010. Effect of mannanoligosaccharides supplementation on caecal microbial activity of rabbits. Animal., 4: 1522-1527. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1751731110000558Carabaño R., Villamide M.J., García J., Nicodemus N., Llorente A., Chamorro S., Menoyo D., García-Rebollar P., García-Ruiz A.I., De Blas J.C. 2009. New concepts and objectives for proteinamino acid nutrition in rabbits: a review. World Rabbit Sci., 17: 1-14. https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.2009.664Evans E., Jebelian V. 1982. Effects of age upon nutrient digestibility by fryer rabbits. J. Appl. Rabbit Res., 5: 8-9.Falcão-E-Cunha L., Castro-Solla L., Maertens L., Marounek M., Pinheiro V., Freire J., Mourão J.L. 2007. Alternatives to antibiotic growth promoters in rabbit feeding: A review. World Rabbit Sci., 15: 127-140. https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.2007.597Fernández-Carmona J., Blas E., Pascual J.J., Maertens L., Gidenne T., Xicatto G., García, J. 2005. Recommendations and guidelines for applied nutrition experiments in rabbits. World Rabbit Sci., 13: 209-228. https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.2005.516Gidenne T. 1995. Effect of fibre level reduction and glucooligosaccharide addition on the growth performance and caecal fermentation in the growing rabbit. Anim. Feed Sci. Technol., 56: 253-263. https://doi.org/10.1016/0377-8401(95)00834-9Gidenne T., Licois D. 2005. Effect of a high fibre intake on the resistance of the growing rabbit to an experimental inoculation with an enteropathogenic strain of Escherichia coli. Animal Sci., 80: 281-288. https://doi.org/10.1079/ASC41570281Gómez-Conde M.S., Garcia J., Chamorro S., Eirás P., Rebollar P.G., De Rozas A.P., Badiola I., De Blas C., Carabaño R. 2007. Neutral detergent-soluble fiber improves gut barrier function in twenty-five-day-old weaned rabbits. J. Ani. Sci., 85: 3313-3321. https://doi.org/10.2527/jas.2006-777Gómez-Conde M.S., Pérez de Rozas A., Badiola I., Pérez-Alba L., de Blas C., Carabaño R., García J. 2009. Effect of neutral detergent soluble fibre on digestion, intestinal microbiota and performance in twenty five day old weaned rabbits. Livest. Sci., 125: 192-198. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.livsci.2009.04.010Groot J.C.J., Cone J.W., Williams B.A., Debersaques F.M.A., Lantinga E.A. 1996. Multiphasic analysis of gas production kinetics for in vitro fermentation of ruminant feeds. Anim. Feed Sci. Technol., 64: 77-89. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0377-8401(96)01012-7Jiang J.X., Zhu L.W., Zhang W.M.,Sun R.C. 2007. Characterization of Galactomannan Gum from Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum graecum) Seeds and its rheological properties. Int. J. Polym. Mater. Po., 56: 1145-1154. https://doi.org/10.1080/00914030701323745Jouany J.P. 1982. Volatile Fatty Acid and Alcohol Determination in Digestive Contents, Silage Juices, Bacterial Cultures and Anaerobic Fermentor Contents. Sciences des Aliments. 2: 131-144.Korman S.H., Cohen E., Preminger A. 2001. Pseudo-maple syrup urine disease due to maternal prenatal ingestion of fenugreek. J. Pediatr. Child Health, 37: 403-404. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1440-1754.2001.00617.xKoroleff F. 1966. Direct spectrophotometric determination of ammonia in precipitation. Tellus XVIII., 2. https://doi.org/10.3402/tellusa.v18i2-3.9343Lipinski K., Purwin C., Tywonczuk J., Zdunczyk Z., Wroblewska M., Laniewska-Trokenheim L., Warminska-Radyko L. 2005. Effects of feed additives on nutrient digestibility and the bacterial status of faeces in pigs. J. Anim. Feed Sci., 14: 369-372. https://doi.org/10.22358/jafs/70582/2005Majeed M., Majeed S., Nagabhushanam K., Arumugam S., Natarajan S., Beede K., Furqan A. 2018. Galactomannan from Trigonella foenum-graecum L. Seed: Prebiotic application and its fermentation by prebiotic Bacillus coagulans strain MTCC 5856. Food Sci. Nutr., 6: 666-673. https://doi.org/10.1002/fsn3.606Marten G.C., Barnes R.F. 1980. Prediction of energy digestibility of forages with in vitro rumen fermentation and fungal enzyme systems. In: W.J. Pigden, C.C. Balch, M. Graham (Eds.), In Proc.: The International Workshop on Standardization of Analytical Methodology for Feeds, Int. Dev. Res. Center, Ottawa, Ont., Canada. 61-71.Martínez-Vallespín B., Martínez-Paredes E., Ródenas L., Cervera C., Pascual J.J., Blas E. 2011. Combined feeding of rabbit female and young: Partial replacement of starch with acid detergent fibre or/and neutral detergent soluble fibre at two protein levels. Livest. Sci., 141: 155-165. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.livsci.2011.05.014Martínez-Vallespín B., Martínez-Paredes B., Ródenas L., Moya J.M., Cervera C., Pascual J.J., Blas E. 2013. Partial replacement of starch with acid detergent fibre and/or neutral detergent soluble fibre at two protein levels: Effects on ileal apparent digestibility and caecal environment of growing rabbits. Livest. Sci., 154: 123-130. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.livsci.2013.02.012Mazza G., Di Tommaso D., Foti S. 2002. Volatile constituents of Sicilian fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graceum L.) seeds. Sciences des Aliments, 22: 249-264. https://doi.org/10.3166/sda.22.249-264Mertens D.R. 2002. Gravimetric determination of amylase-treated neutral detergent fiber in feeds with refluxing in beakers or crucibles: Collaborative study. J. AOAC Int., 85: 1217-1240.Naidu M.M., Shyamala B.N., Naik J.P., Sulochanamma G., Srinivas P. 2011. Chemical composition and antioxidant activity of the husk and endosperm of fenugreek seeds. LWT-Food Sci. Technol., 44: 451-456. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lwt.2010.08.013Ocasio-Vega C., Abad-Guamán R., Delgado R., Carabaño R., Dolores Carro M., Javier García. 2018. Effect of cellobiose supplementation and dietary soluble fibre content on in vitro caecal fermentation of carbohydraterich substrates in rabbits. Arch. Anim. Nutr., 72: 221-238. https://doi.org/10.1080/1745039X.2018.1458459Perez J.M., Lebas F., Gidenne T., Maertens L., Xiccato G., Parigi-Bini R., Dalle Zotte A., Cossu M.E, Carazzolo A., Villamide M.J., Carabaño R., Fraga M.J., Ramos M.A., Cervera C., Blas E., Fernández J., Falcão-e-Cunha L., Freire J. 1995. European reference method for in vivo determination of diet digestibility in rabbits. World Rabbit Sci., 3: 41-43. https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.1995.239Read T., Gidenne T., Combes S., Labatut D., Bricard D., Bébin K., Fortun-Lamothe L. 2017. Digestibilité comparée chez le lapin: effets de l'âge, de l'état et du stade physiologiques. In Proc.: 17èmes Journées de la Recherche Cunicole, 21-22 Novembre, 2017. Le Mans, France. 117-180.Robertson J. B., Van Soest P. J., James W. P. T., & Theander O. 1981. The analysis of dietary fiber in food. The detergent system of analysis and its application to human foods. James, WPT and Theander, O., eds. Marcel Dekker, New York, NY, 123-158.Rosell J.M., de la Fuente L.F., Badiola J.I., Fernández de Luco D., Casal J., Saco M. 2009. Study of urgent visits to commercial rabbit farms in Spain and Portugal during 1997-2007. World Rabbit Sci., 17: 127 -136. https://doi.org/10.4995/wrs.2009.652SAS. 2009. SAS/STAT User's Guide (Release 9.2). SAS Institute. 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The Puzzling Stability of Monatomic Gold Wires

We have examined theoretically the spontaneous thinning process of tip-suspended nanowires, and subsequently studied the structure and stability of the monatomic gold wires recently observed by Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). The methods used include thermodynamics, classical many-body force simulations, Local Density (LDA) and Generalized Gradient (GGA) electronic structure calculations as well as ab-initio simulations including the two tips. The wire thinning is well explained in terms of a thermodynamic tip suction driving migration of surface atoms from the wire to the tips. For the same reason the monatomic wire becomes progressively stretched. Surprisingly, however, all calculations so far indicate that the stretched monatomic gold wire should be unstable against breaking, contrary to the apparent experimental stability. The possible reasons for the observed stability are discussed.Comment: 4 figure

Dissimilar esponses of ancient grapevines recovered in Navarra (Spain) to arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis in terms of berry quality

The exploitation of genetic diversity within agricultural plants, including grapevine, is suggested as a valuable tool to cope with the negative impacts of climate change on yield and crop quality. In some winegrowing regions of Europe, there is a renewed interest in knowing the grapevine genetic resources available, focusing on the prospection, recovery, and study of ancient cultivars typical of every zone. Grapevines are naturally associated with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), which provide some benefits to the host plant, although such effects depending on many factors, including variety. Therefore, the aim of this research was to characterize the potential fruit quality of eight old grapevine varieties recovered in Navarre (northeastern of the Iberian Peninsula), associated or not with AMF. The study was carried out on fruit-bearing cuttings grown under controlled conditions (greenhouse). Overall, AMF inoculation reduced bunch and berry mass, as well as phenolic content in fruits. In some varieties, AMF association improved some berry traits by increasing the concentrations of soluble solids and anthocyanins; in others, berry colour, total phenolic and anthocyanin content were diminished in AMF-inoculated plants. The results, therefore, suggest that intraspecific diversity of old grapevines could include different abilities to respond to arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis

Feeding programmes based on highly-digestible fibre weaning diets: effects on health, growth performance and carcass and meat quality in rabbits

The effect of three different dietary programmes on health, growth performance and carcass and meat quality in young rabbits weaned at 28 d was studied using a diet (F) rich in highly-digestible fibre, from 17 to 63 d of age (group FF); using diet F from 17 to 42 d followed by a diet poor in highly-digestible fibre and rich in starch and fat (S) until 63 d (group FS); and using a standard diet C with intermediate highly-digestible fibre and starch content, containing 100 ppm of zinc-bacitracin, from 17 to 63 d (group CC). A highly-digestible fibre diet could be useful to reduce the incidence of digestive disorders. However, it decreased slaughter weight (2294 g in FF vs. 2406 g in CC; P<0.05) and carcass and meat traits, e.g. dressing out percentage (55.4% in FF vs. 56.7% in CC; P<0.05), meat to bone ratio (5.73 in FF vs. 5.94 in CC; P<0.05) and hind leg fat content (3.81% in FF vs. 4.71% in CC; P<0.05) at 63 d of age. Switching to a high starch and fat diet at late fattening improved chilled carcass weight at 63 d of age (1339 g in FS vs. 1263 g in FF; P<0.05) mainly through the promotion of liver development (7.53% in group FS vs. 6.47% in group FF; P<0.05) and fat deposition (3.89% in FS vs. 2.63% in FF; P<0.05), and increased hind leg fat content (+1.2 points of fat percentage; P<0.05). However, this switch increased health risk (35.1% in FS vs. 17.6% in FF; P<0.05).This study was supported by the Interministerial Commission for Science and Technology (CICYT) from the Spanish Government Grant number AGL2011-30170-C02-01 is gratefully acknowledged. Funding from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness for Madam Pascual's contract (PTA2011-5888-T) is also gratefully acknowledged.Pascual Amorós, MDLD.; Soler Sanchis, MD.; Cervera Fras, MC.; Pla Torres, M.; Pascual Amorós, JJ.; Blas Ferrer, E. (2014). Feeding programmes based on highly-digestible fibre weaning diets: effects on health, growth performance and carcass and meat quality in rabbits. Livestock Science. 169:88-95. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.livsci.2014.07.007S889516

Nefrectomía parcial laparoscópica. Análisis de los primeros 30 casos de nuestra serie y revisión de la literatura

Objective: Our goal is to analyze the surgical and clinicopathological results of our first 30 laparoscopic partial nephrectomies (LPN) performed consecutively and correlate the results with the literature. Material and methods: This is a cases series, with 30 patients (20 men and 10 women) operated between 2006 and 2008. We assessed the clinicopathological factors and complications. The mean and median follow-up was 25 and 5 months. Results: Resected tumors had an average size of 2.4 cm. 60% of the tumors were malignant. The pathological stage was pT1 in 100% of cases (47% grade I, 53% Fuhrman grade II). Surgical margins were positive in 3 cases, switching to open surgery. Intraoperative bleeding was 74.66 cc (35.7±SD) and 70 cc of mean and median. The mean operative time was 214.4min (±69) and ischemia time of 31.3min (±13.8). Conclusions: Our results are similar to those reported in the literature, except for positive margins and conversion attributable to the learning curve

¿Existe un intervalo de tiempo de isquemia fría seguro para el injerto renal?

Objective: It is aimed to characterize the true relationship of the cold ischemia time (CIT) with graft survival and with the principal post-transplantation events.aterial and methods: We analyzed 378 kidney transplants, studying the relationship of the CIT with graft survival using a univariate analysis according to the COX model and seeking the optimum cutoff according to the Kaplan-Meier method and log-rank test. The relationship between CIT and the principal events of the post-transplant was studied using the binary logistic regression. Results: The mean follow-up of all the group was 77.8 months (± 51 SD) and the mean CIT was 14.8 hours (± 5.1 SD). The univariate analysis revealed that the CIT was not related with the graft survival as a continuous variable (OR = 1.04; 95% CI: 0.9-1.08; p > 0.05). On establishing the cutoff at 18 hours, we found differences in the actuarial survival. Survival at 5 years was 91% with CIT 18 h. Each hour of cold ischemia increased risk of delay in the graft function by 10% (OR = 1.1; 95% CI: 1.05-1.15; p < 0.001) and also conditioned a greater incidence of acute rejection (41.5% vs. 55.3%; p = 0.02) and less time to the first rejection episode (72.6 days ± 137 vs. 272.2 days ± 614.8; p = 0.023) after 18 hours. The CIT did not seem to be related (p < 0.05) with the rest of the post-transplantation events, such as surgical complications or hospital admissions. Conclusions: In our experience, cold ischemia under 18 hours does not seem to negatively affect graft survival

A first-principles approach to electrical transport in atomic-scale nanostructures

We present a first-principles numerical implementation of Landauer formalism for electrical transport in nanostructures characterized down to the atomic level. The novelty and interest of our method lies essentially on two facts. First of all, it makes use of the versatile Gaussian98 code, which is widely used within the quantum chemistry community. Secondly, it incorporates the semi-infinite electrodes in a very generic and efficient way by means of Bethe lattices. We name this method the Gaussian Embedded Cluster Method (GECM). In order to make contact with other proposed implementations, we illustrate our technique by calculating the conductance in some well-studied systems such as metallic (Al and Au) nanocontacts and C-atom chains connected to metallic (Al and Au) electrodes. In the case of Al nanocontacts the conductance turns out to be quite dependent on the detailed atomic arrangement. On the contrary, the conductance in Au nanocontacts presents quite universal features. In the case of C chains, where the self-consistency guarantees the local charge transfer and the correct alignment of the molecular and electrode levels, we find that the conductance oscillates with the number of atoms in the chain regardless of the type of electrode. However, for short chains and Al electrodes the even-odd periodicity is reversed at equilibrium bond distances.Comment: 14 pages, two-column format, submitted to PR