Teleological Essentialism: Generalized

Natural/social kind essentialism is the view that natural kind categories, both living and non-living natural kinds, as well as social kinds (e.g., race, gender), are essentialized. On this view, artifactual kinds are not essentialized. Our view—teleological essentialism—is that a broad range of categories are essentialized in terms of teleology, including artifacts. Utilizing the same kinds of experiments typically used to provide evidence of essentialist thinking—involving superficial change (study 1), transformation of insides (study 2) and inferences about offspring (study 3)—we find support for the view that a broad range of categories—living natural kinds, non-living natural kinds and artifactual kinds—are essentialized in terms of teleology. Study 4 tests a unique prediction of teleological essentialism and also provides evidence that people make inferences about purposes which in turn guide categorization judgments

DEVELOPING THE USE OF EPIDIDYMAL SEMEN FOR FARM ANIMAL CRYOBANKS AND SOME FIELD APPLICATIONS

The aim of this thesis was to increase our knowledge in the use of epididymal semen for the creation of cryobanks for farm animal genetic resources, and more generally to contribute to the area of conservation and sustainable use of farm animal genetic resources (AnGR).Three experiments were conducted in cattle and goat species. In cattle the effects of two epididymal sperm extraction methods, the float-up and the retrograde flushing technique were compared in terms of quality of epididymal sperm recovered. Results suggest that in this species retrograde flushing technique is the method of choice to obtain viable sperm from the epididymis (Turri et al., 2011. Reprod Dom Anim, doi: 10.1111/j.1439-0531.2011.01948.x, in press). In the second experiment, the relationship between body weight, secondary sexual traits and epididymal semen quality in Camosciata della Alpi bucks was evaluated. It was concluded that epididymal semen quality in goat species is influenced by body weight, scrotal circumference, horn diameter and length, and testicular and epididymal weight. In the third experiment, the effects of time elapsed between animal\u2019s death and sperm recovery (0, 24, 48, 72 hours) from the epididymis and the effect of testicles storage temperature (environmental temperature or 5\ub0C) on quality and freezability of epididymal buck spermatozoa were investigated. Sperm recovery was performed by using the retrograde flushing technique. It was concluded that goat epididymal spermatozoa extracted by testicles stored at 5\ub0C until 48 hours post-mortem are able to maintain their quality in terms of total motility, viability and sperm morphologies, also after cryopreservation. A field application was carried out within the creation of the Lombardia Farm Animal Genetic Resources Cryobank (LABank), when epididymal spermatozoa of the Brianzola sheep were collected instead of conventional semen collection. At present in the LABank genetic material of Varzese cattle, Brianzola sheep and Frisa, Orobica and Verzaschese goats breeds is stored. Information of donors animals and material stored are managed through the software CryoWEB (http://cryoweb.vete_vsa.unimi.it/). A coordination system of Italian collections was also developed, through the creation of the \u201cNetwork of the Italian cryobanks of farm animal genetic resources\u201d CRIONET-IT (http://www.genrescryonet.unimi.it/). Finally, farmers\u2019 motives and values in keeping local cattle breed were investigated trough 371 interviews of farmers of 15 local cattle breeds, in 8 European countries. The work was part of EC EURECA project (Towards self-sustainable EUropean REgional CAttle breeds) aimed to define guidelines for the management of in situ and ex situ regional conservation programmes, with reference to the cattle species (Gandini et al., 2010. Animal Genetic Resources, 47, 45\u201358)

Bibliometric analysis as mesaure [sic] of long-term performance in pancreatic cancer research.

Introduction: Research on pancreatic cancer consists in basic, translational and clinical research. Bibliometric indexes as IF and H-Index have been proposed as measures of quality and performance for medical research. Our goal was to analyze the IF and the 5-years H-Index of the publications about pancreatic cancer research

Minimally invasive treatment of urinary fistulas using n-butyl-2-cyanoacrylate : a valid first option

BACKGROUND: A few single case reports and only one clinical series have been published so far about the use of N-butyl-2-cyanoacrylate in the treatment of urinary fistulas persisting after conventional urinary drainage. CASE PRESENTATION: We treated five patients with a mean age of 59.2 years presenting iatrogenic urinary fistulas which persisted following conventional drainage manouvres. There were 3 calyceal fistulas following open, laparoscopic and robotic removal of renal lesions respectively, one pelvic fistula after orthotopic ileal neobladder and a bilateral dehiscence of uretero-sigmoidostomy. We used open-end catheters of different sizes adopting a retrograde endoscopic approach for cyanoacrylate injection in the renal calyces, while a descending percutaneous approach via the pelvic drain tract and bilateral nephrostomies respectively was used for the pelvic fistulas. Fluoroscopic control was always used during the occlusion procedures. The amount of adhesive injected ranged between 2 and 5 cc and in one case the procedure was repeated. With a median follow-up of 11 months we observed clinical and radiological resolution in 4 cases (80%), while a recurrent and infected calyceal fistula after laparoscopic thermal renal damage during tumor enucleoresection required nephrectomy. No significant complications were documented. CONCLUSIONS: In an attempt to spare further challenging surgery in patients that had been already operated on recently, minimally invasive occlusion of persistent urinary fistulas with N-butyl-2-cyanoacrylate represents a valid first line treatment, justified in cases when the urinary output is not excessive and there is a favorable ratio between the length and diameter of the fistulous tract

Complete intraperitoneal displacement of a double J stent: a first case.

OBJECTIVES: Ureteral double-J stents are known to migrate proximally and distally within the urinary tract, while perforation and stent displacement are uncommon. Possible mechanisms of displacement are either original malpositioning with ureteral perforation or subsequent fistula and erosion of the excretory system, due to infection or long permanence of the device. We present the unique case of complete intraperitoneal stent migration in a 59-year-old caucasian male without evidence of urinary fistula at the moment of diagnosis, so far an unreported complication. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eight months after the placement of a double-J stent for lower right ureteral stricture at a district hospital, the patient came at our observation for urosepsis and hydro-uretero-nephrosis. A CT scan demonstrated intraperitoneal migration of the stent outside the urinary tract. Cystoscopy failed to visualize the lower extremity of the stent, a percutaneous nephrostomy was placed to drain the urinary system and the stent was removed through a small abdominal incision on the right lower quadrant. RESULTS: In our case we presume that during the positioning manoeuvre the guide wire perforated simultaneously the lower ureteral wall and the pelvic peritoneum, and that once the upper end of the stent was coiled, the lower extremity was also attracted intraperitoneally. The lack of pain due to the spinal lesion concurred to this unusual complication. CONCLUSIONS: We must be aware that ureteral double J stents may be found displaced even inside the peritoneal cavity, and that the use of retrograde pyelography during placement is of paramount importance to exclude misplacement of an apparently normally coiled upper extremity of the stent

Small RNA sequencing of cryopreserved semen from single bull revealed altered miRNAs and piRNAs expression between High- and Low-motile sperm populations

Putative piRNA clusters that were assigned by proTRAC to the High Motile (HM) and Low Motile (LM) sperm fractions. (XLSX 21 kb

Teleological Essentialism

Placeholder essentialism is the view that there is a causal essence that holds category members together, though we may not know what the essence is. Sometimes the placeholder can be filled in by scientific essences, such as when we acquire scientific knowledge that the atomic weight of gold is 79. We challenge the view that placeholders are elaborated by scientific essences. On our view, if placeholders are elaborated, they are elaborated Aristotelian essences, a telos. Utilizing the same kinds of experiments used by traditional essentialists—involving superficial change (study 1), transformation of insides (study 2), acquired traits (study 3) and inferences about offspring (study 4)—we find support for the view that essences are elaborated by a telos. And we find evidence (study 5) that teleological essences may generate category judgments

Monosegment ALPPS hepatectomy preserving segment 4 for colorectal liver metastases : literature review and our experience

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