Latitudinal variation in arrival and breeding phenology of the pied flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca using large-scale citizen science data

Funding – TAM thanks partial support by CEAUL (funded by FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal, through the project UID/MAT/00006/2019).Many species have advanced the timing of annual reproductive cycles in response to climatic warming, sometimes leading to asynchrony between trophic levels, with negative population consequences. Long-distance migratory birds, reliant on short seasonal food pulses for breeding, are considered particularly susceptible to such disjunction because late arrival may preclude optimal timing of egg-laying. It is unknown whether the relative timing of arrival and egg-laying is sufficiently plastic, in time and space, to enable an adaptive response when arrival times change relative to local food resources. We used citizen science data, describing pied flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca arrival and egg-laying dates, to explore temporal (2013–2016) and spatial (across Great Britain) variation in the phenology of arrival, laying and their difference. To assess the long-term trend in arrival and laying at a single location, we used data from a long-term field study. The arrival-laying interval was consistently shorter in the north, driven by the contrast between spatial variation in arrival date and spatial invariance in laying date. To understand whether a short arrival-laying interval may have consequences for productivity, we assessed the association between this interval and clutch size. We found no statistically significant correlation between these two variables. To examine long-term changes in arrival and laying dates, we focussed on a single location in southwestern England. Both dates of first male arrival and first egg laid in a season advanced since 1986, with no evidence of interval shortening. Together, our results demonstrate spatial and annual variation in the arrival-laying interval, with no detected effect on fecundity. Thus, the interval from arrival to laying is likely dictated by spatially and temporally varying local conditions, suggesting these migrant birds may have the ability to adapt this interval to align with local conditions and mitigate potential mismatch impacts.PostprintPeer reviewe

Influence of cardiac autonomic neuropathy on cardiac repolarisation during incremental adrenaline infusion in type 1 diabetes

Aims/hypothesis We examined the effect of a standardised sympathetic stimulus, incremental adrenaline (epinephrine) infusion on cardiac repolarisation in individuals with type 1 diabetes with normal autonomic function, subclinical autonomic neuropathy and established autonomic neuropathy. Methods Ten individuals with normal autonomic function and baroreceptor sensitivity tests (NAF), seven with subclinical autonomic neuropathy (SAN; normal standard autonomic function tests and abnormal baroreceptor sensitivity tests); and five with established cardiac autonomic neuropathy (CAN; abnormal standard autonomic function and baroreceptor tests) underwent an incremental adrenaline infusion. Saline (0.9% NaCl) was infused for the first hour followed by 0.01 μg kg−1 min−1 and 0.03 μg kg−1 min−1 adrenaline for the second and third hours, respectively, and 0.06 μg kg−1 min−1 for the final 30 min. High resolution ECG monitoring for QTc duration, ventricular repolarisation parameters (T wave amplitude, T wave area symmetry ratio) and blood sampling for potassium and catecholamines was performed every 30 min. Results Baseline heart rate was 68 (95% CI 60, 76) bpm for the NAF group, 73 (59, 87) bpm for the SAN group and 84 (78, 91) bpm for the CAN group. During adrenaline infusion the heart rate increased differently across the groups (p = 0.01). The maximum increase from baseline (95% CI) in the CAN group was 22 (13, 32) bpm compared with 11 (7, 15) bpm in the NAF and 10 (3, 18) bpm in the SAN groups. Baseline QTc was 382 (95% CI 374, 390) ms in the NAF, 378 (363, 393) ms in the SAN and 392 (367, 417) ms in the CAN groups (p = 0.31). QTc in all groups lengthened comparably with adrenaline infusion. The longest QTc was 444 (422, 463) ms (NAF), 422 (402, 437) ms (SAN) and 470 (402, 519) ms (CAN) (p = 0.09). T wave amplitude and T wave symmetry ratio decreased and the maximum decrease occurred earlier, at lower infused adrenaline concentrations in the CAN group compared with NAF and SAN groups. AUC for the symmetry ratio was different across the groups and was lowest in the CAN group (p = 0.04). Plasma adrenaline rose and potassium fell comparably in all groups. Conclusions/interpretation Participants with CAN showed abnormal repolarisation in some measures at lower adrenaline concentrations. This may be due to denervation adrenergic hypersensitivity. Such individuals may be at greater risk of cardiac arrhythmias in response to physiological sympathoadrenal challenges such as stress or hypoglycaemia

Designing surgical clothing and drapes according to the new technical standards

Hospitals will continue to be the largest consumers of disposables, because of the diverse range of procedures they provide. Favourable growth is forecast for nonwovens. Increasing concern over contamination and nosocomial infections will boost the demand for consumables and disposables surgical gowns and drapes. But, until now neither the manufacturers nor the end users of surgical gowns and drapes could agree on standards. So, a mandatory European standard is being developed to establish basic requirements and test methods for disposable and reusable materials used for surgical gowns and drapes. Once this standard has been adopted, the continued use of cotton textiles and conventional cotton-polyester mixed textiles will become questionable.(undefined

Bio-based synthesis of oxidation resistant copper nanowires using an aqueous plant extract

Copper nanowires have recently emerged as promising nanomaterials for transparent conducting electrodes applications, however, their production commonly involves the use of harmful reagents. In this study, we describe for the first time a simple and cost-effective bio-based synthesis of copper nanowires using an aqueous plant extract (Eucalyptus globulus) as the reducing/stabilizing agent and oleic acid and oleylamine as surfactants. Well-dispersed crystalline copper nanowires (λmáx = 584–613 nm) were obtained with average diameters in the nanometric range (44 and 145 nm) and lengths in the micrometric range (from 5 to dozens of micrometres) using extract concentrations between 10 and 50 mg mL−1. Moreover, the aspect ratio of these nanowires can be adjusted (from around 14–20 to 160–400) by changing the experimental conditions, namely the use of oleic acid. Phenolic compounds were found to have a key role in this bioreduction process allowing to obtain practically only nanowires (without other morphologies). Nevertheless, the use of oleic acid/oleylamine is essential to manipulate their size and aspect ratio. Most importantly, these bio-based copper nanowires were found to be resistant under storage in ethanol and when submitted to air exposure, both for 2 weeks, certainly due to the adsorption of antioxidant biomolecules (phenolic) at their surface, thus avoiding the use of other polymeric protective layers. The conductivity of the CuNWs was found to be 0.009 S cm−1. As a result, this study opens a new standpoint in this field, “closing the door” to the use of hazardous reagents and synthetic polymeric protective layers, on the production of stable copper nanowires with potential application as conductive materials.publishe

Electromyographic activity of shoulder muscles during exercises performed with oscillatory and non-oscillatory poles

BACKGROUND: Pain and dysfunction of the shoulder complex are commonly found physiotherapy practice. These musculoskeletal abnormalities are related to instability and inadequate kinematic function, that depend on the integrity of the muscle tissues. Thus, to enhance the results of exercise therapies, and prevent and attenuate pain and dynfunction, the use of oscillatory pole has been implemented in clinical practice. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to analyze the electromyographic (EMG) activity of shoulder stabilizing muscles during exercises performed with an oscillatory and a non-oscillatory pole. METHODS: Twelve female volunteers, aged 20.4 years±1.9, participated in this study. EMG data were collected from upper trapezius (UT), lower trapezius (LT) and middle deltoid (MD) during three different exercises with an oscillatory and a non-oscillatory pole. The EMG signals were analyzed in the time domain through the calculation of Root Mean Square (RMS). The RMS values were normalized by the peak value obtained over all trials for each muscle. Statistical analysis was performed with repeated measures ANOVA and post-hoc of Bonferroni tests. RESULTS: The EMG activity of UT, LT and MD muscles were significantly higher with the oscillatory pole than the non-oscillatory pole (all p<0,001). There were no significant differences in the activation of these muscles between exercises. CONCLUSION: The results of the present study indicated that the oscillatory pole does require higher activation of the shoulder muscles and therefore, may be useful in the training of the shoulder complex

Is anodal transcranial direct current stimulation a potential ergogenic resource for muscle strength and effort perception? A critical review

Nas últimas décadas, vários estudos estão investigando a dose-resposta ideal em termos de frequência, intensidade e volume de treinamento para alcançar o aumento da força muscular, tanto em atletas quanto em não atletas. A dose-resposta é fundamental para a prescrição do treinamento, uma vez que sua manipulação equivocada pode acarretar alto risco de desenvolvimento de lesões por esforços repetitivos, bem como pelo não desenvolvimento da força esperada. Em indivíduos com nível avançado de treinamento de força, é extremamente importante aumentar sua intensidade e volume de treinamento. Nesse sentido, com os avanços encontrados na área de treinamento de força e a necessidade de novas estratégias para otimizar ganhos de força, um novo método vem ganhando força na literatura, a estimulação transcraniana por corrente contínua (ETCC). Portanto, o objetivo deste estudo é analisar criticamente os efeitos do ETCC como potencial recurso ergogênico para a realização de força muscular e percepção de esforço, bem como se seu uso é ético ou não. Para tanto, foram pesquisadas as bases de dados Pubmed/Medline, ISI Web of Knowledge e Scielo, apenas em inglês, e com as palavras-chave: força muscular, resistência muscular, estimulação transcraniana por corrente contínua, ETCC. Nós comparamos o efeito do ETCC anódico (ETCC-a) com uma condição sham/controle nos resultados de ETCC para força muscular e percepção de esforço força muscular e percepção de esforço. Nenhum estudo menciona efeitos colaterais negativos da intervenção. Os dados mostram diferenças entre os estudos que investigam os estudos de avaliação da força muscular e resistência muscular, em termos do uso bem sucedido de ETCC. Estudos que investigaram a eficiência do ETCC na melhora da força muscular demonstraram efeitos positivos do ETCC-a em 66,7% dos parâmetros testados. Amaioria dos dados mostra consistentemente a influência do ETCC-a na força muscular, mas não no desempenho de resistênciaEn las últimas décadas, diversos estudios están investigando la dosis-respuesta ideal en cuanto a la frecuencia, intensidad y volumen de entrenamiento para alcanzar el aumento de fuerza muscular, sea en atletas y no atletas. La dosis-respuesta es fundamental para la prescripción de entrenamiento, pues su manipulación equivocada puede llevar a un alto de riesgo de desarrollo de lesiones por esfuerzo repetitivo, así como para el no desarrollo de la fuerza esperada. En sujetos con nivel avanzado de entrenamiento de fuerza es extremadamente importante aumentar su intensidad y volumen de entrenamiento. En este sentido, con los avances encontrados en el área de entrenamiento de fuerza y la necesidad de nuevas estrategias para optimizar las ganancias de fuerza, un nuevo método está ganando fuerza en la literatura, la estimulación transcraneal por corriente continua (ETCC). Por lo tanto, el objetivo del presente estudio es analizar de forma crítica los efectos de la ETCC como potencial recurso ergogénico al desempeño de fuerza muscular y percepción de esfuerzo, así como si su uso es ético o no. Por lo tanto, se realizó una búsqueda en las bases de datos Pubmed/Medline, ISI Web of Knowledge y Scielo, solamente en inglés y con las palabras clave: fuerza muscular, resistencia muscular, estimulación transcraneal de corriente continua, ETCC. Comparamos el efecto de la ETCC anódica (ETCC-a) a una condición sham/control sobre los resultados de la fuerza muscular y percepción de esfuerzo. Ningún estudio menciona efectos secundarios negativos de la intervención. Los datos muestran diferencias entre los estudios que investigan la fuerza muscular y los estudios de evaluación de resistencia muscular, en lo que se refiere al uso exitoso de la ETCC. Los estudios que investigan la eficiencia de la ETCC en la mejora de la fuerza muscular demuestran efectos positivos de la ETCC-a en el 66,7% de los parámetros probados. La mayoría de los datos muestran consistentemente influencia de la ETCC-a en la fuerza muscular, pero no en el rendimiento de resistencia.In the last decades, several studies are investigating the optimal dose-response in terms of frequency, intensity and volume of training to achieve increased muscle strength in both athletes and non-athletes. Dose-response is critical to the prescription of training, since its mismanagement may pose a high risk of developing repetitive strain injuries as well as failure to develop the expected strength. In individuals with advanced level of strength training, it is extremely important to increase their intensity and training volume. In this sense, with the advances in the area of strength training and the need for new strategies to optimize force gains, a new method is gaining strength in the literature, the transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). Therefore, the purpose of this study is to critically analyze the effects of tDCS as a potential ergogenic resource for achieving muscle strength and perceived exertion, as well as whether its use is ethical or not. To do so, we searched the databases Pubmed/Medline, ISI Web of Knowledge and Scielo, in English only, and with the keywords: muscle strength, muscular endurance, transcranial direct current stimulation, tDCS. We compared the effect of anodic tDCS (a-tDCS) with a sham/control condition on muscle strength and perceived exertion results. No study mentions the negative side effects of the intervention. The data show differences between studies investigating studies of muscle strength and muscle endurance in terms of the successful use of tDCS. Studies that investigated tDCS efficiency in improving muscle strength demonstrated positive effects of a-tDCS on 66.7% of the parameters tested. Most data consistently show the influence of a-tDCS on muscle strength, but not on resistance performance.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Validity And Reliability Of A Self-efficacy Expectancy Scale For Adherence To Antiretroviral Therapy For Parents And Carers Of Children And Adolescents With Hiv/aids [validação E Reprodutibilidade De Uma Escala De Auto-eficácia Para Adesão Ao Tratamento Anti-retroviral Em Pais Ou Cuidadores De Crianças E Adolescentes Vivendo Com Hiv/aids]

Objective: To validate and evaluate the reproducibility of a self-efficacy (SE) scale for adherence to antiretroviral therapy in children and adolescents with HIV/AIDS, taking into account the perspective of parents/guardians. Methods: The study was carried out at the Hospital-Dia, Centro de Referência e Treinamento em DST/AIDS (CRT/SP), in São Paulo, Brazil. The parents/guardians of 54 children and adolescents aged 6 months to 20 years were interviewed during routine consultations at our service. Data on SE were collected using the Self-Efficacy for Following Anti-Retroviral Prescription Scale, and SE scores were calculated in two different ways: factor analysis and a predefined formula. The scale's internal consistency was verified using Cronbach's α coefficient. Validity was tested by comparing the mean scores of a group of patients who did adhere to antiretroviral treatment with those of a group that did not (Mann-Whitney test) and by calculating the Spearman correlation coefficient for agreement between scores and clinical parameters. Reproducibility was verified using the Wilcoxon test, intraclass correlation coefficients (ricc) and Bland-Altman plots. Results: The SE scale demonstrated good internal consistency (α = 0.87) and good reproducibility (r icc = 0.69 and r icc = 0.75). In terms of validity, the SE scale was capable of differentiating adherent patients from those who did not adhere to their antiretroviral treatment (p = 0.002) and exhibited a significant correlation with CD4 counts (r = 0.28; p = 0.04). Conclusions: The SE scale can be used to assess adherence to antiretroviral therapy in children and adolescents with HIV/AIDS, taking into account the perspective of parents/carers. Copyright © 2008 by Sociedade Brasileira de Pediatria.8414146Matida, L.H., da Silva, M.H., Tayra, A., Succi, R.C., Gianna, M.C., Gonçalves, A., Prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV in São Paulo State, Brazil: An update (2005) AIDS, 19 (SUPPL. 4), pp. S37-S41Gibb, D.M., Goodall, R.L., Giacomet, V., McGee, L., Compagnucci, A., Lyall, H., Paediatric European Network for Treatment of Aids Steering Committee. Adherence to prescribed antiretroviral therapy in human immunodeficiency virus-infected children in the PENTA 5 trial (2003) Pediatr Infect Dis J, 22, pp. 56-62Pluciennik, A.M., (2003) Transmissão materno infantil do vírus da imunodeficiência humana adquirida: Quanto custa não prevenir [tese], , São Paulo: Faculdade de Saúde Pública da USP;Dyke, R.B.V., Lee, S., Johnson, G.M., Wiznia, A., Mohan, K., Stanley, K., Reported adherence as a determinant of response to highly active antiretroviral therapy in children who have human immunodeficiency virus infection (2002) Pediatrics, 109 (4), pp. 1-7Starace, F., Massa, A., Amico, K.R., Fisher, J.D., Adherence to antiretroviral therapy: An empirical test of the information-motivation-behavioral skills model (2006) Health Psychol, 25, pp. 153-162Shah, C.A., Adherence to high activity antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in pediatric patients infected with HIV: Issues and interventions (2007) Indian J Pediatr, 74, pp. 55-60Leite, J.C., Drachler, M.L., Centeno, M.O., Pinheiro, C.A., Silveira, V.L., Desenvolvimento de uma escala de auto-eficácia para adesão ao tratamento anti-retroviral. (2002) Psicol Reflex Crit, 15, pp. 121-133Bandura, A., Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change (1977) Psychol Rev, 84, pp. 191-215Gortmaker SL, Lenderking WR, Clark C, Lee S, Fowler MG, Oleske JMThe ACTG 219 Team. Development and use of a pediatric quality of life questionnaire in AIDS clinical trials: reliability and validity of the general health assessment for children. In: Drotar D. Measuring health-related quality of life in children and adolescents: implications for research and practice. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates1998. p. 219-35Eiser, C., Morse, R., Quality-of-life measures in chronic diseases of childhood (2001) Health Technol Assess, 5, pp. 1-95Streiner, D.L., Norman, G.R., (2003) Health measurement scales: A practical guide to their development and use, , 3rd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press;Drotar D, Levi R. Critical issues and needs in health-related quality of life assessment of children and adolescents with chronic health condition. In: Drotar D. Measuring health-related quality of life in children and adolescents: implications for research and practice. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates1998. p. 3-2

A convenient band-gap interpolation technique and an improved band line-up model for InGaAlAs on InP

The band-gap energy and the band line-up of InGaAlAs quaternary compound material on InP are essential information for the theoretical study of physical properties and the design of optoelectronics devices operating in the long-wavelength communication window. The band-gap interpolation of In1-x-y Ga (x) Al (y) As on InP is known to be a challenging task due to the observed discrepancy of experimental results arising from the bowing effect. Besides, the band line-up results of In1-x-y Ga (x) Al (y) As on InP based on previously reported models have limited success by far. In this work, we propose an interpolation solution using the single-variable surface bowing estimation interpolation method for the fitting of experimentally measured In1-x-y Ga (x) Al (y) As band-gap data with various degree of bowing using the same set of input parameters. The suggested solution provides an easier and more physically interpretable way to determine not only lattice matched, but also strained band-gap energy of In1-x-y Ga (x) Al (y) As on InP based on the experimental results. Interpolated results from this convenient method show a more favourable match to multiple independent experiment data sets measured under different temperature conditions as compared to those obtained from the commonly used weighted-sum approach. On top of that, extended framework of the model-solid theory for the band line-up of In1-x-y Ga (x) Al (y) As/InP heterostructure is proposed. Our model-solid theory band line-up result using the proposed extended framework has shown an improved accuracy over those without the extension. In contrast to some previously reported works, it is worth noting that the band line-up result based on our proposed extended model-solid theory has also shown to be more accurate than those given by Harrison's mode