Development and analysis of the Soil Water Infiltration Global database.

In this paper, we present and analyze a novel global database of soil infiltration measurements, the Soil Water Infiltration Global (SWIG) database. In total, 5023 infiltration curves were collected across all continents in the SWIG database. These data were either provided and quality checked by the scientists who performed the experiments or they were digitized from published articles. Data from 54 different countries were included in the database with major contributions from Iran, China, and the USA. In addition to its extensive geographical coverage, the collected infiltration curves cover research from 1976 to late 2017. Basic information on measurement location and method, soil properties, and land use was gathered along with the infiltration data, making the database valuable for the development of pedotransfer functions (PTFs) for estimating soil hydraulic properties, for the evaluation of infiltration measurement methods, and for developing and validating infiltration models. Soil textural information (clay, silt, and sand content) is available for 3842 out of 5023 infiltration measurements (~76%) covering nearly all soil USDA textural classes except for the sandy clay and silt classes. Information on land use is available for 76% of the experimental sites with agricultural land use as the dominant type (~40%). We are convinced that the SWIG database will allow for a better parameterization of the infiltration process in land surface models and for testing infiltration models. All collected data and related soil characteristics are provided online in *.xlsx and *.csv formats for reference, and we add a disclaimer that the database is for public domain use only and can be copied freely by referencing it. Supplementary data are available at https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.885492 (Rahmati et al., 2018). Data quality assessment is strongly advised prior to any use of this database. Finally, we would like to encourage scientists to extend and update the SWIG database by uploading new data to it

Relevance of biofilms in pediatric tonsillar disease

In this investigation, we study the relation between chronic inflammation of the tonsils, clinical features, and the presence of biofilms in the crypts in patients presenting with obstructive hypertrophy and recurrent upper airway pathology. Thirty-six patients who needed to undergo a tonsillectomy for obstructive reasons (aged 1 to 6 years), among which none of them had taken any antibiotics 30 days prior to surgery, were included. Samples were examined with hematoxylin-eosin and Gram staining, fluorescent microscopy, and confocal laser microscopy. The predominance of symptoms were those related to obstructive pathology rather than infection (p∈<∈0.01). All patients had tonsillar hypertrophy (grade III or IV), but an association with adenoids hypertrophy was detected in 66.66% of cases (p∈<∈0.05). 77.28% of tonsils presented biofilms in their crypts, but hypertrophy and tonsillar follicle number were not related to the presence or absence of biofilms. Here, we demonstrated that symptoms like harsh raucous sound, tonsillar and adenoids hypertrophy, apnea, and cervical adenopathies are clearly related to the presence of biofilm in tonsils. Our results allow us to propose that biofilms are involved in the pathogenesis of tonsils and adenoids hypertrophy. The prevention of biofilms formation should be focused in the early stages, attempting to restrain bacterial attachment to the respiratory mucosa.Fil: Diaz, R. R.. Universidad Católica de Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Picciafuoco, S.. Universidad Católica de Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Paraje, María Gabriela. Universidad Católica de Córdoba; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biología Vegetal; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Departamento de Farmacia; ArgentinaFil: Villegas, N. A.. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Departamento de Farmacia; Argentina. Universidad Católica de Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Miranda, Juan Antonio. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Departamento de Farmacia; ArgentinaFil: Albesa, Inés. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Departamento de Farmacia; Argentina. Universidad Católica de Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Cremonezzi, David César. Universidad Católica de Córdoba. Facultad de Medicina; ArgentinaFil: Commisso, R.. Universidad Católica de Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Paglini Oliva, P.. Universidad Católica de Córdoba. Facultad de Medicina; Argentin