Transpiration by trees on land with shallow water-tables: a survey of the literature suggests that transpiration is affected by soil texture

This chapter surveys the literature relating site conditions to wateruse by stands of trees growing above shallow watertables. Analysis of the data suggests that transpiration by stands of trees is affected by Epan, depth of the watertable, planting density and soil texture

Is there a relation between type of primary melanoma treatment and the development of intralymphatic metastasis? A review of the literature

AbstractBackgroundIntralymphatic metastases (ILM) originate from tumor cell emboli entrapped in dermal lymphatics between primary tumor and regional lymph node basin. Because of this origin, sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) might increase ILM by restricting lymph flow.MethodsPubmed, Embase, Cochrane and Medline were searched for articles on ILM between 1980 and September 2014. ILM Incidences were calculated after wide local excision (WLE), excision with elective lymph node dissection (ELND) or therapeutic lymph node dissection (TLND), WLE with SLNB with or without completion lymph node dissection (CLND) and delayed lymph node dissection (DLND) for patients developing nodal metastasis during follow-up.ResultsIn 36 studies, 14,729 patients underwent WLE, 1682 patients WLE/ELND, 362 patients WLE/DLND and 11,201 patients WLE/SLNB. On meta-analysis, ILM occurrence was 3.4% (95% CI 2.8–4.2%). ILM occurred most frequently in the WLE/DLND group (5.5%, 95% CI 3.5–8.7%), followed by WLE/ELND (4.7%, 95% CI 3.1–7.0%), WLE/SLNB (4.5%, 95% CI 3.5–5.7%) and WLE alone (1.9%, 95% CI 1.4–2.7%). 1330 SLNB+ patients were identified and 5783 SLNB− patients. For these groups, on meta-analysis, ILM recurrence was 13.2% (95% CI 10.8–16.2%) and 3.4% (95% CI 2.5–4.5%), respectively (p=0.01).ConclusionIn this review SLNB is associated with an increase of ILM with an incidence of 1.9% for WLE vs. 3.4% for SNLB−. Selection bias in this review cannot be excluded. However, ILM occur four times more frequently after SLNB+ than SLNB− procedures and more often after SLNB+/CLND than WLE/DLND or WLE/ELND. ILM should therefore be viewed as a bio-marker of aggressive primary disease.SynopsisSentinel lymph node biopsy is thought to increase intralymphatic metastasis by restricting lymph flow. This review demonstrates that there is an increase in metastasis, but this result has to be interpreted with caution due to possible selection bias. Aggressive tumor characteristics are likely the cause of this increase

Phosphorus supply affects seedling growth of mycorrhizal but not cluster-root forming jarrah-forest species

Aims Fertiliser is often used to kick-start ecological restoration despite growing evidence of the potentially negative impacts on plant diversity. Jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata) forest species growing on nutrient (especially phosphorus) impoverished soils in southwestern Australia have a suite of adaptations for phosphorus (P) acquisition, including the formation of cluster roots, and associations with mycorrhizal fungi. Here we investigated how escalating P supply, along with a stoichiometric adjustment of nitrogen (N) supply, impacted the growth and nutrition of a wide range of jarrah forest seedlings. Methods In a pot experiment, we measured seedling biomass and nutritional responses of 12 jarrah forest species to a gradient of P supply in relation to N supply, and for the mycorrhizal species, inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Results Three cluster-root forming species did not respond to increasing P, probably because they were reliant on seed P. Generally, mycorrhizal species showed a positive biomass response to increasing P when N was available. Mycorrhizas benefited seedling growth at low P (9 mg P added per kg of jarrah forest soil) when N was also available, and were parasitic to seedling growth at high P (243 mg P/ kg soil) without additional N. Conclusions These results highlight importance of P and N supply in determining the nature of the symbiosis between plants and mycorrhizal fungi. Since P supply has the potential to reduce plant growth, for a range of species, our results suggest careful consideration of fertiliser amounts for ecological restoration of ecosystems adapted to nutrient poor soils

Relationships between sleeve trial and wearer trial assessment of discomfort and objective measurements

The relationships were investigated between the prickle discomfort scores, assessed by human response from wearer trial garment assessment, and sleeve trial, Wool ComfortMeter (WCM) and Wool HandleMeter (WHM) assessments of fabrics, and fiber diameter characteristics including mean fiber diameter (MFD). Sleeve trial assessment followed exercise, the use of a control sleeve to reduce participant variance and four sensory traits. WHM provides eight handle parameters calibrated against a panel of experts. Four scenarios were evaluated: sleeve trial assessment with MFD; sleeve trial assessment with MFD and WCM; sleeve trial assessment with MFD, WCM and WHM parameters; and sleeve trial assessment with WCM and WHM parameters. Data were analyzed using correlation and forward stepwise general linear modeling. There was no evidence that the incidence of fibers coarser than 30 µm aided the prediction of prickle discomfort once MFD had been accounted for in the models. There were significant correlations between the WCM measurement and each sleeve trial attribute. There was no significant correlation between WHM parameters and sleeve trial assessments. The sleeve trial attribute of ‘skin feel’ offers potential to improve the predictions made of wearer trial prickle discomfort when used in association of the WCM with or without data on fabric MFD. There was little evidence to support using WHM parameters with or without the WCM in predicting wearer assessed prickle discomfort of fabrics. These results indicate that the rapid evaluation of fabrics using sleeve trial assessment can provide cost effective ranking of consumer preferences

Use of Omniflow® II Biosynthetic Graft for the Treatment of Vascular Graft and Endograft Infections

Background: Vascular graft/endograft infection is a rare but life-threatening complication of cardiovascular surgery and remains a surgical challenge. Several different graft materials are available for the treatment of vascular graft/endograft infection, each having its own advantages and disadvantages. Biosynthetic vascular grafts have shown low reinfection rates and could be a potential second best after autologous veins in the treatment of vascular graft/endograft infection. Therefore, the aim of our study was to evaluate the efficacy and morbidity of Omniflow® II for the treatment of vascular graft/endograft infection.Methods: A multicenter retrospective cohort study was performed to evaluate the use of Omniflow® II in the abdominal and peripheral region to treat vascular graft/endograft infection between January 2014 and December 2021. Primary outcome was recurrent vascular graft infection. Secondary outcomes included primary patency, primary assisted patency, secondary patency, all-cause mortality, and major amputation.Results: Fifty-two patients were included with a median follow-up duration of 26.5 (10.8–54.8) months. Nine (17%) grafts were implanted in intracavitary position and 43 (83%) in peripheral position. Most grafts were used as femoral interposition (n = 12, 23%), femoro-femoral crossover (n = 10, 19%), femoro-popliteal (n = 8, 15%), and aorto-bifemoral (n = 8, 15%) graft. Fifteen (29%) grafts were implanted extra-anatomically and 37 (71%) in situ. Eight patients (15%) presented with reinfection during follow-up, most of these patients received an aorto-bifemoral graft (n = 3, 38%). Intracavitary vascular grafting had a 33% (n = 3) reinfection rate and peripheral grafting 12% (n = 5; P = 0.025). The estimated primary patencies at 1, 2, and 3 years were 75%, 72%, and 72% for peripherally located grafts and 58% (at all timepoints) for intracavitary grafts (P = 0.815). Secondary patencies at 1, 2, and 3 years were 77% (at all timepoints) for peripherally located prostheses and 75% (at all timepoints) for intracavitary prostheses (P = 0.731). A significantly higher mortality during follow-up was observed in patients who received an intracavitary graft compared to patients with a peripheral graft (P = 0.003).Conclusions: This study highlights the efficacy and safety of the Omniflow® II biosynthetic prosthesis for the treatment of vascular graft/endograft infection, in absence of suitable venous material, with acceptable reinfection, patency, and freedom of amputation prevalences, especially in replacing peripheral vascular graft/endograft infection. However, a control group with either venous reconstruction or another alternative graft is needed to make firmer conclusions.</p

Phosphorus supply affects seedling growth of mycorrhizal but not cluster-root forming jarrah-forest species

Aims Fertiliser is often used to kick-start ecological restoration despite growing evidence of the potentially negative impacts on plant diversity. Jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata) forest species growing on nutrient (especially phosphorus) impoverished soils in southwestern Australia have a suite of adaptations for phosphorus (P) acquisition, including the formation of cluster roots, and associations with mycorrhizal fungi. Here we investigated how escalating P supply, along with a stoichiometric adjustment of nitrogen (N) supply, impacted the growth and nutrition of a wide range of jarrah forest seedlings. Methods In a pot experiment, we measured seedling biomass and nutritional responses of 12 jarrah forest species to a gradient of P supply in relation to N supply, and for the mycorrhizal species, inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Results Three cluster-root forming species did not respond to increasing P, probably because they were reliant on seed P. Generally, mycorrhizal species showed a positive biomass response to increasing P when N was available. Mycorrhizas benefited seedling growth at low P (9 mg P added per kg of jarrah forest soil) when N was also available, and were parasitic to seedling growth at high P (243 mg P/ kg soil) without additional N. Conclusions These results highlight importance of P and N supply in determining the nature of the symbiosis between plants and mycorrhizal fungi. Since P supply has the potential to reduce plant growth, for a range of species, our results suggest careful consideration of fertiliser amounts for ecological restoration of ecosystems adapted to nutrient poor soils

Use of S-100B to Evaluate Therapy Effects during Bevacizumab Induction Treatment in AJCC Stage III Melanoma

To investigate the feasibility of using bevacizumab to improve the survival of American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) stage III melanoma patients, we investigated how a single bevacizumab treatment affected nodal disease and a panel of biomarkers in clinically fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET)/computed tomography (CT)-staged, stage III melanoma patients, prior to therapeutic lymph node dissection (TLND). Four weeks before TLND, nine patients (median age 50, range 28.8-62.1 years; two male, seven female) with palpable lymph node metastases received 7.5 mg/kg bevacizumab. Before and after this treatment, all patients were assessed by measurements of the maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) by FDG-PET scan, and serum S-100B and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH). After TLND, the dissection specimen was analyzed for number of removed lymph nodes, number of metastatic lymph nodes, and tumor necrosis. Median follow-up was 15.5 (2.2-32.9) months. Histopathological analysis revealed tumor necrosis in six patients, of whom five had an S-100B decline and one had an unchanged S-100B level after bevacizumab. The other three patients showed an S-100B increase and no necrosis. Tumor necrosis was correlated with S-100B decrease (P = 0.048). No association was found between necrosis and the markers SUVmax and LDH. No wound healing disturbances were encountered. Tumor necrosis in dissection specimens was associated with declining S-100B levels, while elevated S-100B was only found in cases with no necrosis. Bevacizumab might be useful in treating AJCC stage III melanoma patients prior to TLND, and S100-B appears to be a useful marker for assessment of treatment effects

Određivanje aflatoksina, okratoksina A, fumonizina i zearalenona u žitaricama i krmivu primjenom kompetetivnoga direktnog imunoenzimatskog testa (CD-ELISA) i tankoslojne kromatografije (TLC)

Aspergillus, Penicillium, and Fusarium species frequently contaminate crops. For this reason mycotoxins such as afl atoxins (AFs), ochratoxin A (OTA), fumonisins (FBs), and zearalenone (ZEA) are found in food and feed in a wide range of concentrations, depending on environmental and storage conditions. Consumption of mycotoxin-contaminated food and feed has been associated with acute and chronic poisoning and carcinoma. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence and co-occurrence of AFs (B1+B2+G1+G2), OTA, FBs (B1+B2+B3), and ZEA in 37 samples of cereals and feed randomly collected in 2007 from households of an endemic nephropathy (EN) area in Croatia. The mycotoxins were determined using the competitive direct ELISA test (CD-ELISA) in combination with thin-layer chromatography (TLC). The most frequent mycotoxin was ZEA (92 %, mean 318.3 μg kg-1), followed by FBs (27 %, 3690 μg kg-1), AFs (24.3 %, 4.6 μg kg-1), and OTA (16.2 %, 9.8 μg kg-1). Levels of AFs, ZEA, and FBs detected by CD-ELISA signifi cantly correlated with the TLC results. However, only one OTA-positive sample was confi rmed by TLC due to its high limit of detection. The levels of these mycotoxins were below the permissible limit for animal feed. Twenty-nine percent of cereals were contaminated with FBs, OTA, or ZEA in mass fractions above the permissible limit for humans. Co-occurrence of two toxins varied between 4.2 % and 54 % and of three between 4.2 % and 7.6 %. Prolonged co-exposure to AFs, OTA, FBs, and ZEA might increase the risk of various chronic diseases.Vrste plijesni iz rodova Aspergillus, Penicillium i Fusarium česti su kontaminanti usjeva te na takvim supstratima tvore mikotoksine. Stoga su žitarice i krmiva često kontaminirana afl atoksinima (AFs), okratoksinom A (OTA), fumonizinima (FBs) i zearalenonom (ZEA) u različitim koncentracijama ovisno o mikroklimatskim uvjetima na polju i u skladištu. Konzumiranje hrane kontaminirane mikotoksinima često je povezano s akutnim ili kroničnim trovanjima, ali i s razvojem karcinoma. Cilj ovog rada bio je odrediti istodobnu pojavnost AFs (B1+B2+G1+G2), OTA, FBs (B1+B2+B3) i ZEA u uzorcima žitarica i krme (N=37) koji su nasumično skupljeni u individualnim domaćinstvima na području endemske nefropatije (EN) u Hrvatskoj (2007). Za određivanje navedenih mikotoksina korišten je kompetitivni direktni ELISA-test (CD-ELISA) u kombinaciji s tankoslojnom kromatografi jom (TLC). Najzastupljeniji mikotoksin bio je ZEA (92 %, srednja koncentracija 318.3 μg kg-1), nakon čega slijede FBs (27 %, 3690 μg kg-1), AFs (24.3 %, 4.6 μg kg-1) te OTA (16.2 %, 9.8 μg kg-1). Koncentracije AFs, FBs i ZEA određene CD-ELISA-testom statistički značajno koreliraju s rezultatima dobivenim s TLC. OTA je potvrđen metodom TLC samo u jednom uzorku zbog visokog limita detekcije. Dokazane koncentracije su ispod razina dopuštenih za krmiva, dok je 29 % uzoraka žitarica sadržavalo FBs, OTA ili ZEA u koncentracijama iznad dopuštenih u hrani za ljude. Kokontaminacija s dvama odnosno trima toksinima varirala je između 4.2 % i 54 % odnosno između 4.2 % i 7.6 %. Dugotrajni unos AFs, OTA, FBs i ZEA putem hrane može povećati rizik od razvoja različitih kroničnih bolesti zbog njihova mogućega sinergističkog djelovanja

S-100B as an extra selection tool for FDG PET/CT scanning in follow-up of AJCC stage III melanoma patients

Background and Objectives This current study assessed the value of S-100B measurement to guide fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) scanning for detecting recurrent disease in stage III melanoma patients. Methods This study included 100 stage III melanoma patients in follow-up after curative lymph node dissection. Follow-up visits included physical examination and S-100B monitoring. FDG PET/CT scanning was indicated by clinical symptoms and/or elevated S-100B. Results Of 100 patients, 13 (13%) had elevated S-100B without clinical symptoms, of whom 7 (54%) showed disease evidence upon FDG PET/CT scanning. Twenty-six patients (26%) had clinical symptoms with normal S-100B and FDG PET/CT revealed metastasis in 20 (77%). Three patients had clinical symptoms and elevated S-100B, and FDG PET/CT revealed metastasis in all three (100%). Overall, FDG PET/CT scanning revealed metastasis in 30 of the 42 patients (71.4%). For seven recurrences, elevated S-100B prompted early detection of asymptomatic disease; 10% of all asymptomatic patients in follow-up, 23% of all patients with recurrent disease. Conclusion S-100B cannot exclude recurrent disease during follow-up of stage III melanoma. However, adding S-100B measurement to standard clinical assessment can guide FDG PET/CT scanning for detecting recurrent melanoma