1,493 research outputs found
Amniotic fluid absorption and growth functions in humans: what can we indirectly learn from congenital digestive atresias?
Background: Amniotic fluid (AF) was thought of just as a mechanical cushioning to the foetus. Nowadays, its role
during pregnancy is getting more attention, suggesting hitherto unknown aspects. The aim of the study is to speculate
on AF nutritional functions and its clinical repercussions based on what digestive tract (DT) atresias seem to
suggest.
Methods: A retrospective analysis of the patients admitted to our department for DT atresias between 2000 and
2020 was conducted. Patientsâ birth weight (BW), gestational age (GA) at birth and diagnosis were recorded. The following
were excluded from the study: oesophageal atresias (OA) with tracheoesophageal fistula (TOF), colonic and
anal atresias and patients with associated major comorbidities. A control group was made of patients admitted to
our ward in the same period for congenital pulmonary airway malformations (CPAM). To standardize the BW, it was
coupled with birth GA calculating the newborn percentiles. The mean newborn percentiles of OAs, duodenal atresias
(DAs), jejunal atresias (JAs), and ileal atresias (IAs) were independently compared with the control group using Studentâs
t-test. Lastly, the significance of the frequenciesâ distribution of newborns born small for gestational age (SGA)
between the DT atresias and the control group was evaluated with the Ï2 test, and the OR were calculated. A p-value
< 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Results: A total of 231 patients were eligible for the study: 36 OAs without TOF, mean BW 2488.8 ± 491 g (range
1630â3750 g), mean GA 36.8 ± 2.1 weeks (31â40 weeks), mean newborn percentile 18 ± 22 (1â75); 20 DAs, mean BW
2586.8 ± 577.9 g (1250â3462 g), mean GA 36.2 ± 2.5 weeks (31â40 weeks), mean newborn percentile 31 ± 23 (3â79);
17 JAs, mean BW 2483.5 ± 621.7 g (900â3205 g), mean GA 34.8 ± 2.1 weeks (30â38 weeks), mean newborn percentile
44 ± 28 (4â96); 17 IAs, mean BW 2646.1 ± 769.8 g (1162.0â3888 g), mean GA 35.9 ± 3.2 weeks (30â41 weeks), mean
newborn percentile 44 ± 26 (1â82); and 141 CPAMs with mean BW 3287.4 ± 492.0 g (980â4580 g), mean GA 38.7 ±
1.8 weeks (26â41 weeks), mean newborn percentile 43 ± 26 (1â99). The number of SGA neonates was 18 between
OA patients (50%), 4 between DAs (20%), 1 between JAs (6%), 2 between IAs (12%) and 11 between CPAMs (8%). The
mean percentile of the OAs and DAs was lower than the control group with a p of < .01 and .03 while no statistical significance
was found in the comparison between DAs, JAs, IAs and CPAMs with a p of .06, .86 and .59. The incidence of
SGA in the control group resulted lower than the one in the DT atresias where it becomes higher the more proximal
the atresia is (p < .05). The OR of SGA newborn in the OA group was 11.8, in DA 3.0, in JA 0.7 and in IA 1.6.
Conclusion: AF showed to have a great impact on foetal growth, and its preferred site of absorption seemed to be
the stomach and duodenum. Its nutritional role could have an important predictive value in diagnosing DT atresia
both prenatally and postnatally
Neutrino Detection with Inclined Air Showers
The possibilities of detecting high energy neutrinos through inclined showers
produced in the atmosphere are addressed with an emphasis on the detection of
air showers by arrays of particle detectors. Rates of inclined showers produced
by both down-going neutrino interactions and by up-coming decays from
earth-skimming neutrinos as a function of shower energy are calculated with
analytical methods using two sample neutrino fluxes with different spectral
indices. The relative contributions from different flavors and charged, neutral
current and resonant interactions are compared for down-going neutrinos
interacting in the atmosphere. No detailed description of detectors is
attempted but rough energy thresholds are implemented to establish the ranges
of energies which are more suitable for neutrino detection through inclined
showers. Down-going and up-coming rates are compared.Comment: Submitted to New Journal of Physic
New benzo[a]phenoxazines bearing the (4,6-dichloro-1,3,5-triazin-2-yl)amino group: synthesis and photophysical properties
Synthesis of new benzo[a]phenoxazinium chlorides possessing the (4,6-dichloro-1,3,5-
triazin-2-yl)amino at 5-amino function of the heterocycles is described. The preliminary photophysical
properties of these compounds in anhydrous ethanol when acidified with TFA or basified with TEAH
is also investigated, as well as their response in aqueous media. These benzo[a]phenoxazinium
chlorides exhibited fluorescence with maximum emission wavelengths between 628 and 676 nm, in
anhydrous ethanol and water.Thanks are due to the Fundação para a CiĂȘncia e Tecnologia (FCT, Portugal) for financial support to
the NMR portuguese network (PTNMR, Bruker Avance III 400-Univ. Minho), FCT and FEDER
(European Fund for Regional Development)-COMPETE-QREN-EU for financial support to the
Research Centres CFUM [PEst-C/FIS/UI0607/2011 (F-COMP-01-0124-FEDER-022711)] and CQ/UM
[PEst-C/QUI/UI0686/2013(FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-022716)]. A post-doctoral grant to B. R. Raju
(SFRH/BPD/62881/2009) is also acknowledged to FCT, POPH-QREN, FSE.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
The relationship between consumer ethnocentrism, cosmopolitanism and product country image among younger generation consumers: the moderating role of country development status
Although the differences between developed and developing countries have been extensively studied in the context of globalization strategies, few studies have so far been conducted on the relationship between country development status and the possession by countries of a favorable (or unfavorable) product country image (PCI). Moreover, the results of such studies to date have been inconclusive. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the moderating role of country developmental status on PCI coupled with two antecedents of PCI, namely consumer ethnocentrism and cosmopolitanism. The paper also distinguishes between the PCI of the home and foreign country images of respondents. We test a new model that incorporates these constructs with a sample of 2655 younger generation consumers. The results show that country development status moderates some relationships but does not moderate others. These findings have significant implications for international companies from both developed and developing countries when developing global strategy
Exploiting the Temporal Logic Hierarchy and the Non-Confluence Property for Efficient LTL Synthesis
The classic approaches to synthesize a reactive system from a linear temporal
logic (LTL) specification first translate the given LTL formula to an
equivalent omega-automaton and then compute a winning strategy for the
corresponding omega-regular game. To this end, the obtained omega-automata have
to be (pseudo)-determinized where typically a variant of Safra's
determinization procedure is used. In this paper, we show that this
determinization step can be significantly improved for tool implementations by
replacing Safra's determinization by simpler determinization procedures. In
particular, we exploit (1) the temporal logic hierarchy that corresponds to the
well-known automata hierarchy consisting of safety, liveness, Buechi, and
co-Buechi automata as well as their boolean closures, (2) the non-confluence
property of omega-automata that result from certain translations of LTL
formulas, and (3) symbolic implementations of determinization procedures for
the Rabin-Scott and the Miyano-Hayashi breakpoint construction. In particular,
we present convincing experimental results that demonstrate the practical
applicability of our new synthesis procedure
Response of the bacterial communities associated with maize rhizosphere to poultry litter as an organomineral fertilizer.
Maize is an important food source worldwide and is of considerable industrial importance. Low maize yields are mostly due to low soil fertility, so expensive mineral fertilizers are often used to offset the lack of nutrients. Poultry litter (PL) is one of the most valuable and phosphorous-rich animal wastes. However, PL usually contains veterinary antibiotic residues, particularly fluoroquinolones (FQs), which may alter soil microorganism diversity and resistance patterns. In this study, we aimed to understand the impact of applying mineral (triple superphosphate?STP) or organomineral (STP with PL and reactive Bayovar phosphate with PL) fertilizers (130 or 260 kg/ha of total P2O5) on the structure and composition of the soil bacteriome and on phosphate-mineralizing bacteria associated with the maize rhizosphere. Maize plants were sampled at 60 and 90 days after sowing and a clear rhizosphere effect was observed in all samples. No specific groups of bacterial genera predominated (>3% relative abundance) according to the different fertilizer treatments and most of the genera were shared among samples. Multivariate analyses of 16S rRNA sequences revealed clear clustering based on sampling time and distinct separation from bulk soil samples. Abundances of phosphate-mineralizing bacteria varied depending on the sampling time.We observed a positive effect on phytase activity under the 260 kg STP with PL treatment. Although the FQ enrofloxacin and its main metabolite ciprofloxacin were detected in PL, their concentrations in fertilized soils were below quantification thresholds. Quinolone resistance genes were not detected in the maize rhizosphere or bulk soil. Together, these results suggest that the rhizosphere effect, plant age and applied amounts of fertilizer are more influential on bacterial communities than the type of fertilizer used. Thus, application of PL as an organomineral fertilizer does not appear to have extensive impacts on the bacterial diversity of maize rhizosphere, so it could be an excellent option for enhancing maize production
Does implementation matter if comprehension is lacking? A qualitative investigation into perceptions of advance care planning in people with cancer
Purpose: While advance care planning holds promise, uptake is variable and it is unclear how well people engage with or comprehend advance care planning. The objective of this study was to explore how people with cancer comprehended Advance Care Plans and examine how accurately advance care planning documentation represented patient wishes.
Methods: This study used a qualitative descriptive design. Data collection comprised interviews and an examination of participantsâ existing advance care planning documentation. Participants included those who had any diagnosis of cancer with an advance care plan recorded: Refusal of Treatment Certificate; Statement of Choices; and/or Enduring Power of Attorney (Medical Treatment) at one cancer treatment centre.
Results: Fourteen participants were involved in the study. Twelve participants were female (86%). The mean age was 77 (range: 61-91) and participants had completed their advance care planning documentation between 8 and 72 weeks prior to the interview (mean 33 weeks). Three themes were evident from the data: Incomplete advance care planning understanding and confidence; Limited congruence for attitude and documentation; Advance care planning can enable peace of mind. Complete advance care planning understanding was unusual; most participants demonstrated partial comprehension of their own advance care plan, and some indicated very limited understanding. Participantsâ attitudes and their written document congruence was limited, but advance care planning was seen as helpful.
Conclusions: This study highlighted advance care planning was not a completely accurate representation of patient wishes. There is opportunity to improve how patients comprehend their own advance care planning documentation
Relativistic quantum dynamics in strong fields: Photon emission from heavy, few-electron ions
Recent progress in the study of the photon emission from highly-charged heavy
ions is reviewed. These investigations show that high- ions provide a unique
tool for improving the understanding of the electron-electron and
electron-photon interaction in the presence of strong fields. Apart from the
bound-state transitions, which are accurately described in the framework of
Quantum Electrodynamics, much information has been obtained also from the
radiative capture of (quasi-) free electrons by high- ions. Many features in
the observed spectra hereby confirm the inherently relativistic behavior of
even the simplest compound quantum systems in Nature.Comment: Version 18/11/0
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