Simultaneous selection indices for yield and stability in sugarcane

In Venezuela, sugarcane is grown in distinct environments, including soil categories and cultural practices. This research aimed to identify high-yield and stable sugarcane (Saccharum spp., hybrid) genotypes using selection indices. The experimental material consisted of sixteen genotypes and two commercial varieties as control. The genotypes were evaluated in five locations and by two harvest cycles. The yield in Ton Pol per hectare (TPH) was subjected to an analysis of variance according to the AMMI model. Methodologies of adaptability, stability, and indices that combine both stability and yield were determined. It was possible to distinguish the indices in three groups in the biplot. The superiority index (Pi), geometric adaptability index (GEI), and reliability index (Ii) were located in group 1 (G1). This group coincided in classifying genotypes CR87-339, C323-68, and V98-76 as the most stable and the best yield. The second group (G2) consisted of Kang's rank-sum (RS), Stability index (I), Sustainability index (SI), and geometric adaptability index (GDI) and located the genotypes CR87-339 and C323-68 as the most desired. The third group (G3) was constituted by the Ecovalence statistics (W), Shukla’s unbiased stability variance (σ2i) and the AMMI value (ASV) and classified the genotypes CP87-1762, V90-6 and CP 92-1641 as the best. The indices that best discriminated the genotypes and most associated with yield were PI, GAI and Ii

The decline of autochthonous leprosy in the Valencia Region of Spain: patterns and trends 1940-2015

Objectives: The aim of this study was to describe the patterns and trends of autochthonous leprosy in the Valencia Region (Spain). Methods: We included all new leprosy cases originating from the Valencia Region between the years 1940 and 2015. Patients originating from other countries or other Spanish regions were excluded. New cases were analysed by age, sex, clinical type, occupation, and geographic distribution. Results: A total of 442 patients with presumably autochthonous leprosy were included. Incidence rates consistently declined over the study period. Mean age at onset gradually increased from 34.2 years during the period 1940-1949 to 59.5 years during 2000-2015. There were no cases with clinical onset after 2006 and no cases born after 1973. Patients were predominantly males (57.7%) and 85.4% had multibacillary leprosy. The proportion of multibacillary cases increased gradually after 1970. The majority of male patients (67.9%) worked in agriculture. Most of the cases, especially during the later periods, were concentrated in the coastal regions. Conclusions: Our findings are consistent with trends described in other regions with declining leprosy incidence rates and suggest that the transmission of M. leprae infection in this area may well have now stopped. Autochthonous leprosy in this region has had a male predominance and a high proportion of multibacillary cases. The geographic distribution and the high incidence in agricultural workers suggest that environmental factors should be further explored

Effects of condensed tannins of Schinopsis balansae in dairy goat’s productive performance

La utilización de taninos condensados de quebracho (TCQ) puede resultar beneficiosa, inocua o perjudicial en el comportamiento productivo de los rumiantes. El objetivo del presente trabajo fue el de evaluar los efectos de la inclusión de TCQ al 2% del consumo estimado de materia seca (CMS) en la dieta de cabras lecheras sobre el consumo, la producción y la composición de leche. Se emplearon 16 cabras Saanen en inicio de lactancia. El periodo experimental fue de 11 semanas. Los tratamientos fueron: sin suministro de taninos condensados de quebracho (STQ) y con suministro (CTQ). El diseño experimental fue un diseño completamente al azar con mediciones repetidas en el tiempo. El análisis estadístico de los datos se realizó a través del programa InfoStat versión 2017p. No se registraron diferencias estadísticamente significativas para ninguno de los parámetros productivos considerados. Por lo que es posible concluir que la inclusión de TCQ en las condiciones y dosis empleada no reportó beneficio alguno en los parámetros evaluados.The inclusion of quebracho condensed tannins (TCQ) can be beneficial, innocuous or harmful in ruminant’s productive performance. The aim of these work was to evaluate the effects on intake, milk production and composition of TCQ inclusion in dairy goat’s diet at a concentration of 2% of estimated dry matter intake (CMS). Sixteen Saanen goats in early lactation were used. The experimental period was 11 weeks. The treatments were: no supply of quebracho condensed tannins (STQ) and with supply (CTQ). The experimental design was a completely randomized design with measurements repeated over time. Infostat program, 2017p has been used to carry out the statistical analysis. No statistically significant differences were registered for any of the productive parameters considered. So it is possible to conclude that TCQ inclusion in the conditions and dose used did not report any benefit in the parameters evaluated).EEA SaltaFil: Martinez, Gabriela Marcela. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Salta; ArgentinaFil: Suarez, Victor Humberto. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Investigación Animal Chaco Semiarido; ArgentinaFil: Olmos, L.H. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Investigación Animal Chaco Semiarido; ArgentinaFil: Alfaro, Rodolfo Jose. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Salta; ArgentinaFil: Alfaro, Emilio Jose. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Salta; ArgentinaFil: Yanes, Ramon Pedro. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Salta; ArgentinaFil: Orosco, Silvia Marisol. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Investigación Animal Chaco Semiarido; Argentin

Natural User Interfaces for Human-Drone Multi-Modal Interaction

Personal drones are becoming part of every day life. To fully integrate them into society, it is crucial to design safe and intuitive ways to interact with these aerial systems. The recent advances on User-Centered Design (UCD) applied to Natural User Interfaces (NUIs) intend to make use of human innate features, such as speech, gestures and vision to interact with technology in the way humans would with one another. In this paper, a Graphical User Interface (GUI) and several NUI methods are studied and implemented, along with computer vision techniques, in a single software framework for aerial robotics called Aerostack which allows for intuitive and natural human-quadrotor interaction in indoor GPS-denied environments. These strategies include speech, body position, hand gesture and visual marker interactions used to directly command tasks to the drone. The NUIs presented are based on devices like the Leap Motion Controller, microphones and small size monocular on-board cameras which are unnoticeable to the user. Thanks to this UCD perspective, the users can choose the most intuitive and effective type of interaction for their application. Additionally, the strategies proposed allow for multi-modal interaction between multiple users and the drone by being able to integrate several of these interfaces in one single application as is shown in various real flight experiments performed with non-expert users

A Flexible and Dynamic Mission Planning Architecture For UAV Swarm Coordination

In this paper a scalable and flexible Architecture for real-time mission planning and dynamic agent-to-task assignment for a swarm of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) is presented. The proposed mission planning architecture consists of a Global Mission Planner (GMP) which is responsible of assigning and monitoring different high-level missions through an Agent Mission Planner (AMP), which is in charge of providing and monitoring each task of the mission to each UAV in the swarm. The objective of the proposed architecture is to carry out high-level missions such as autonomous multiagent exploration, automatic target detection and recognition, search and rescue, and other different missions with the ability of dynamically re-adapt the mission in real-time. The proposed architecture has been evaluated in simulation and real indoor flights demonstrating its robustness in different scenarios and its flexibility for real-tim

Accuracy of transcutaneous bilirubin on covered skin in preterm and term newborns receiving phototherapy using a JM-105 bilirubinometer

OBJECTIVE: Determine the suitability of transcutaneous bilirubin (TCB) as a tool to assess the effectiveness of phototherapy on patched skin. STUDY DESIGN: A prospective observational study was conducted. We covered a fragment of skin (sternum) with a photo-opaque patch. Several simultaneous TCB and TSB measurements were performed with the JM-105 bilirubinometer. Bland and Altman test evaluated the agreement between bilirubin levels. RESULT: A total of 217 patients were studied, 48.8% were preterm. The mean difference between TSB and TCB before the start of treatment was 1.07 mg/dL. During phototherapy, differences on covered skin were 0.52, 0.27, and 0.39 mg/dL at 24, 48, and 72 h of therapy respectively. The best correlation was observed at 48 h in preterm infants. CONCLUSION: The measurement of TCB on patched skin (PTCB) is useful for monitoring the response to phototherapy in term and preterm infants. We use a patch with a removable flap that eases successive measures without disturbing the patients

Enfrentando los riesgos socionaturales

El objetivo del libro es comprender la magnitud de los Riesgos Socionaturales en México y Latinoamérica, para comprender el peligro que existe por algún tipo de desastre, ya sea inundaciones, sismos, remoción en masa, entre otros, además conocer qué medidas preventivas, correctivas y de contingencias existen para estar atentos ante alguna señal que la naturaleza esté enviando y así evitar alguna catástrofe. El libro se enfoca en los aspectos básicos de análisis de los peligros, escenarios de riesgo, vulnerabilidad y resiliencia, importantes para la gestión prospectiva o preventiva

A Prospective, Multicenter, Real-World Registry of Coronary Lithotripsy in Calcified Coronary Arteries

BACKGROUND Intravascular lithotripsy (IVL) has demonstrated effectiveness in the treatment of calcified lesions in selected patients with stable coronary disease. OBJECTIVES The authors sought to assess the performance of coronary IVL in calcified coronary lesions in a real-life, all comers, setting. METHODS The REPLICA-EPIC18 study prospectively enrolled consecutive patients treated with IVL in 26 centers in Spain. An independent core laboratory performed the angiographic analysis and event adjudication. The primary effectiveness endpoint assessed procedural success (successful IVL delivery, final diameter stenosis <20%, and absence of in- hospital major adverse cardiovascular events [MACE]). The primary safety endpoint measured freedom from MACE at 30 days. A predefined substudy compared outcomes between acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and chronic coronary syndrome (CCS) patients. RESULTS A total of 426 patients (456 lesions) were included, 63% of the patients presenting with ACS. IVL delivery was successful in 99% of cases. Before IVL, 49% of lesions were considered undilatable. The primary effectiveness endpoint was achieved in 66% of patients, with similar rates among CCS patients (68%) and ACS patients (65%). Likewise, there were no significant differences in angiographic success after IVL between CCS and ACS patients. The rate of MACE at 30 days (primary safety endpoint) was 3% (1% in CCS and 5% in ACS patients [P = 0.073]). CONCLUSIONS Coronary IVL proved to be a feasible and safe procedure in a real-life setting, effectively facilitating stent implantation in severely calcified lesions. Patients with ACS on admission showed similar angiographic success rates but showed a trend toward higher 30-day MACE compared with patients with CCS. (REPLICA-EPIC18 study [Registry of Coronary Lithotripsy in Spain]; NCT04298307) (c) 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier on behalf of the American College of Cardiology Foundation. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)