802 research outputs found
Photometric and spectroscopic study of the intermediate age open cluster NGC 3960
We present CCD UBVI photometry and high-resolution spectroscopy of the
intermediate age open cluster NGC 3960. The colour - magnitude diagrams (CMDs)
derived from the photometric data and interpreted with the synthetic CMD method
allow us to estimate the cluster parameters. We derive: age = 0.9 or 0.6 Gyr
(depending on whether or not overshooting from convective regions is included
in the adopted stellar models), distance (m-M)0 = 11.6 +/- 0.1, reddening
E(B-V) = 0.29 +/- 0.02, differential reddening Delta E(B-V) = 0.05 and
approximate metallicity between solar and half of solar. We obtained high
resolution spectra of three clump stars, and derived an average [Fe/H] = -0.12
(rms 0.04 dex), in very good agreement with the photometric determination. We
also obtained abundances of alpha-elements, Fe-peak elements, and of Ba. The
reddenings toward individual stars derived from the spectroscopic temperatures
and the Alonso et al. calibrations give further support to the existence of
significative variations across the cluster.Comment: Accepted for publication on MNRAS; fig. 3, 4, 5, 6 at degraded
resolutio
The pseudobulge of NGC 1292
The photometric and kinematic properties of Sb NGC 1292 suggest it hosts a
pseudobulge. The properties of the stellar population of such a pseudobulge are
consistent with a slow buildup within a scenario of secular evolution.Comment: 2 pages, 1 figure to appear in the proceedings of "Formation and
Evolution of Galaxy Disks", Rome, October 2007, Eds. J. Funes and E. M.
Corsin
The Underestimated Role of Platelets in Severe Infection a Narrative Review
Beyond their role in hemostasis, platelets have emerged as key contributors in the immune response; accordingly, the occurrence of thrombocytopenia during sepsis/septic shock is a well-known risk factor of mortality and a marker of disease severity. Recently, some studies elucidated that the response of platelets to infections goes beyond a simple fall in platelets count; indeed, sepsis-induced thrombocytopenia can be associated with—or even anticipated by—several changes, including an altered morphological pattern, receptor expression and aggregation. Of note, alterations in platelet function and morphology can occur even with a normal platelet count and can modify, depending on the nature of the pathogen, the pattern of host response and the severity of the infection. The purpose of this review is to give an overview on the pathophysiological interaction between platelets and pathogens, as well as the clinical consequences of platelet dysregulation. Furthermore, we try to clarify how understanding the nature of platelet dysregulation may help to optimize the therapeutic approach
Impact of postmenopausal vaginal discomfort on sex and relationships in Brazil: the CLOSER survey.
The CLOSER (CLarifying Vaginal Atrophy's Impact On SEx and Relationships) survey investigated how postmenopausal vaginal atrophy (VA) affects relationships between Brazilian women and male partners.Postmenopausal women (age 55-65 years) with VA, and male partners of women with the condition, completed an online survey on the impact of VA and local estrogen treatment on intimacy and relationships.A total of 360 women and 352 men from Brazil were included. Women (83%) and men (91%) reported that they were comfortable discussing VA with their partners. Women's key source of information on VA was health-care providers (HCPs), but 44% felt that not enough information is available. VA caused 70% of women to avoid sexual intimacy and resulted in less satisfying sex. VA had a negative impact on women's feelings and self-esteem. Women (76%) and men (70%) both reported that treatment with vaginal estrogen improved their sexual relationship, primarily by alleviating women's pain during sex. Women (56%) and men (59%) felt closer to each other after treatment.VA had a negative impact on sexual relationships for both women and men in Brazil, and reduced women's self-confidence. Vaginal hormone therapy improved couples' sexual relationships. A proactive attitude of HCPs is essential to educate women on VA and the potential benefits of treatment
On the accuracy of language trees
Historical linguistics aims at inferring the most likely language
phylogenetic tree starting from information concerning the evolutionary
relatedness of languages. The available information are typically lists of
homologous (lexical, phonological, syntactic) features or characters for many
different languages.
From this perspective the reconstruction of language trees is an example of
inverse problems: starting from present, incomplete and often noisy,
information, one aims at inferring the most likely past evolutionary history. A
fundamental issue in inverse problems is the evaluation of the inference made.
A standard way of dealing with this question is to generate data with
artificial models in order to have full access to the evolutionary process one
is going to infer. This procedure presents an intrinsic limitation: when
dealing with real data sets, one typically does not know which model of
evolution is the most suitable for them. A possible way out is to compare
algorithmic inference with expert classifications. This is the point of view we
take here by conducting a thorough survey of the accuracy of reconstruction
methods as compared with the Ethnologue expert classifications. We focus in
particular on state-of-the-art distance-based methods for phylogeny
reconstruction using worldwide linguistic databases.
In order to assess the accuracy of the inferred trees we introduce and
characterize two generalizations of standard definitions of distances between
trees. Based on these scores we quantify the relative performances of the
distance-based algorithms considered. Further we quantify how the completeness
and the coverage of the available databases affect the accuracy of the
reconstruction. Finally we draw some conclusions about where the accuracy of
the reconstructions in historical linguistics stands and about the leading
directions to improve it.Comment: 36 pages, 14 figure
Clinical, pathological and microbiological profiles of spontaneous enteropathies in growing rabbits
[EN] In a rabbit production facility, health monitoring for enteropathies was performed in 15 production cycles for 20 mo. For each cycle, up to a hundred 35 d old rabbits weaned the same day were randomly selected, reared in the same fattening unit, but separately from the source batch and fed with the same feed except for antimicrobial supplementation. Clinical symptoms and enteric lesions of the selected group were recorded, using two checklists with binomial response (yes/no answer to a list of 54 clinical and enteric variables). The day after weaning, one week later, at the beginning of the enteric symptoms and 4-5 d after the start of the symptoms, inocula from the small intestine and caecum of selected animals were subjected to microbiological, C. spiroforme, Eimeria oocyst and rotavirus antigen detection tests. Representative samples of E. coli and C. perfringens isolates were tested, respectively, for serotype, biotype, eae, afr/2 genes and for a, b1, b2, e, i and enterotoxin toxin genes. The answers to the clinical-pathological variables were subjected to statistical analysis with a cluster analysis programme in order to obtain homogeneous, statistically significant groups of diseased animals (clusters). Then, the clusters were statistically associated with the laboratory outcomes. The cluster to which the enterotyphlitis lesions significantly contributed was associated with E. coli detection, E. coli O103 serotype detection and C. spiroforme ("several elements" variable). C. spiroforme ("rare elements" variable) was significantly associated with a cluster, characterised by a pathological profile consisting of bloating/rumbling noise and liquid content in stomach and caecum, without enteric inflammation. C. perfringens was significantly associated with a cluster, characterised by a pathological profile consisting of dilation/liquid content of small intestine, caecal impaction and mucoid content in the colon. Eighteen out of twenty-fi ve C. perfringens strains, examined for their toxin genotypes, proved to be toxin type A, while 7 out of 25 strains showed the a and b2 toxin genes in combination. The rotavirus antigen and Eimeria oocysts were detected from healthy rabbits (specimens of the day after weaning and one week later) in about 15% of specimens examined, but their presence in the sick animals was not significantly associated with any cluster.This study was supported by a financial contribution from Avitalia, Unione Nazionale Associazioni di Produttori Avicunicoli, Forlì, Italy, as part of the programme entitled “Miglioramento della qualità , della gestione dell’offerta delle produzioni cunicole e di rafforzamento dei rapporti di filiera. Azione 4.3”. Our thanks go to breeder Leta Covelli and Dasco srl for supplying the rabbits, to our colleague Romolo Salini and to Fabrizio Agnoletti of the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale del Veneto, Trevise, ItalyBadagliacca, P.; Letizia, A.; Candeloro, L.; Di Provvido, A.; Di Gennaro, A.; Scattolini, S.; Pompei, G.... (2010). Clinical, pathological and microbiological profiles of spontaneous enteropathies in growing rabbits. World Rabbit Science. 18(4):187-198. doi:10.4995/wrs.2010.77518719818
The Wide Field Imager Lyman-Alpha Search (WFILAS) for Galaxies at Redshift ~5.7: II. Survey Design and Sample Analysis
Context: Wide-field narrowband surveys are an efficient way of searching
large volumes of high-redshift space for distant galaxies.
Aims: We describe the Wide Field Imager Lyman-Alpha Search (WFILAS) over 0.74
sq. degree for bright emission-line galaxies at z~5.7.
Methods: WFILAS uses deep images taken with the Wide Field Imager (WFI) on
the ESO/MPI 2.2m telescope in three narrowband (70 A), one encompassing
intermediate band (220 A) and two broadband filters, B and R. We use the novel
technique of an encompassing intermediate band filter to exclude false
detections. Images taken with broadband B and R filters are used to remove low
redshift galaxies from our sample.
Results: We present a sample of seven Lya emitting galaxy candidates, two of
which are spectroscopically confirmed. Compared to other surveys all our
candidates are bright, the results of this survey complements other narrowband
surveys at this redshift. Most of our candidates are in the regime of bright
luminosities, beyond the reach of less voluminous surveys. Adding our
candidates to those of another survey increases the derived luminosity density
by ~30%. We also find potential clustering in the Chandra Deep Field South,
supporting overdensities discovered by other surveys. Based on a FORS2/VLT
spectrum we additionally present the analysis of the second confirmed Lya
emitting galaxy in our sample. We find that it is the brightest Lya emitting
galaxy (1 x 10^-16 erg s^-1 cm^-2) at this redshift to date and the second
confirmed candidate of our survey. Both objects exhibit the presence of a
possible second Lya component redward of the line.Comment: 15 pages, accepted for publication in A&A Replaced with published
versio
Novel oral anticoagulats for the treatment of left ventricle thrombosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Abstract
Funding Acknowledgements
Type of funding sources: None.
Background
novel oral anticoagulants (NOACs) are not guideline-recommanded treatment for left ventricular thrombus. Purpose: the aim of this meta-analysis is to compare NOACs versus vitamin-K atagonsits (VKAs) efficacy in treating left ventricular thrombus (LVT). Methods: we systematically searched MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Biomed Central, and Web of Science for trials comparing NOACs versus VKAs in the setting of LVT. Five studies, out of the 74 initially selected after first screening, were included in the meta-analysis. For the development of this meta-analysis, the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were followed. The shortlisted studies were retrieved as full articles and appraised independently by two unblinded reviewers. The Mantel-Haensel method with a random effect model was used for the pooled analysis. The primary outcome was the occurrence of stroke and systemic embolism. Secondary outcome was occurrence of left ventricular thrombosis resolution during treatment. Results: 707 patients were included in the analysis for the primary outcome. Of these, 230 were treated with NOACs and 477 with VKAs. The pooled OR for the primary outcome was 0.71 (95% CI 0.18-2.86, I2 67%), thus showing similar effect in term of ischaemic protection. A total of 698 patients, 228 on NOACs and 470 on VKAs were included in the analysis of the secondary outcome. The pooled OR for the secondary outcome pooled OR 0.97, 95% CI 0.56-1.68, I2 46%. Conclusions and Relevance: NOACs seem to have a similar efficacy profile compare to VKAs and so they should be considered as an alternative treatment for left ventricular thrombosis. Large prospective randomized clinical trials are needed to confirm this exploratory finding. Abstract Figure
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