Trichoderma harzianum as a growth enhancer of pot and cut floriculture crops

Trichoderma species have been used extensively for biocontrol of soilborne pathogens. These fungi may also have a growth-enhancing effect independent of mechanisms associated with biocontrol. Although several plants are responsive to growth enhancement by Trichoderma spp., cut and potted flower production applications remain largely uninvestigated. Optimization of rate and delivery method is necessary to facilitate commercial use of this fungus. Integrating Trichoderma into current greenhouse production schedules could serve to decrease use of fungicides, growth regulators, and labor in the greenhouse, hence lowering costs and environmental impact. Specific goals of my research were: (i) to optimize rate of media amendment with Trichoderma harzianum-isolate T-12 (T- 12) as a powdered peat-bran formulation; (ii) to compare amending the rooting medium with T-12 to treating unrooted cuttings with IBA to promote rooting; (iii) to compare the powdered peat-bran formulation to an alginate pellet preparation of the fungus as methods of delivery; (iv) and to investigate T-12 as a growth enhancer of several cut and pot floricuture crops. Zero, 5, or 25 g of T-12 peat-bran amendment was added per kilogram medium in an effort to enhance the rooting of four chrysanthemum [Dendranthema X grandiflorum (Ramat.) Kitamura] cultivars, two considered easy-to-root (‘Davis\u27 and \u27White Marble\u27) and two considered hard-to-root (‘Dark Bronze Charm\u27 and ‘Golden Bounty\u27). The experiment was repeated with the same rates and cultivars with and without dipping cuttings into a 0 or 7.4mM solution of IBA. We also investigated an alternative method of delivering the fungus to the medium, adding T-12 either as a powdered peat-bran amendment at the rates of 0, 5, or 50g*kg-1 or as alginate pellets at 0, 80, or 800g*kg-1 produced by reacting a mixture of aqueous sodium alginate containing T-12 powder with Ca++. Finally, we amended the growing medium of several cut flower species and potted poinsettias with T-12 as a powdered peat-bran amendment to investigate enhanced growth. Addition of the powdered T-12 amendment at 5 and 25 g*kg-1 increased root and shoot fresh weights during 21 days of rooting. Midway between transplant to flowering, increases in height, shoot dry weight, and root fresh and dry weight were detected in ‘Dark Bronze Charm\u27 with T-12 relative to the control; increases in height, shoot fresh and dry weight, and number of nodes were detected in ^Golden Bounty\u27 with T-12. Amending medium with 5g-kg-1 was equivalent to treating ^White Marble\u27 cuttings with 7.4mM IBA with regard to root length, fresh and dry weight, and ^Davis\u27 for root length. Both pellet treatments gave increased shoot height on day 14 and 21, with 800g*kg-1 being more effective, over all other treatments, which were similar to controls. Amendment with 50g T-12 powder kg-1 increased root length, 80g T-12 pellets kg-1 medium resulted in decreased root dry weight compared to other treatments, and 800g T-12 pellets-kg-1 medium increased shoot dry weight. In the cut flower study, we saw increases in height due to T-12 treatment in zinnia (Zinnia elegans) and dill (Anethum graveolens) and increased flower number in zinnia. Poinsettias treated with T-12 had greater heights or widths than controls periodically throughout the study, although these differences may not be of commercial interest

Assessment of the Use of Non-Pharmacological Methods for Managing Depression in Patients with Myotonic Dystrophy (DM) and Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy (FSHD)

Background: Myotonic dystrophy (DM) and facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD) are two types of muscular dystrophies with multi-system manifestations. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine 1: the prevalence of depression in patients with myotonic dystrophy (DM) and facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD) and 2: which non-pharmacological methods DM and FSHD patients are using to manage their depression. Methods: A survey was conducted using the online system, Qualtrics. The voluntary and anonymous survey was emailed to 1,205 eligible patients from the National Registry for DM and FSHD Patients and Family Members at the University of Rochester. Participants were at least 18 years old, a member of the registry, and diagnosed with DM or FSHD. The 65 question survey included questions on basic demographic information, depression diagnosis, medication use and effectiveness, and non-pharmacological management. Surveys were collected between May 2017 and August 2017 and the responses were analyzed and compared to the general population. The study was approved by the St. John Fisher College Institutional Review Board and the Registry Scientific Advisory Committee. Results: Of the 1,205 surveys that were sent, 466 patients responded. A total of 46 percent of patients had DM (DM1 30 percent, n=138/460 and DM2 16 percent, n=75/460) and 48 percent (n=223/460) of respondents had FSHD. Of the study respondents, 34 percent (n=150/436) reported being diagnosed with depression, while 8 percent (n=24/294) feel depressed, but haven’t been diagnosed. Non-pharmacological techniques used by patients who were diagnosed with depression or feel that they are depressed included: exercise (33 percent, n=57/150), relaxation techniques once per week (51 percent, n=50/98), and visiting a counselor or therapist once per week (11 percent, n=4/37). The most common type of relaxation technique used was meditation (52 percent, n=77/147) followed by yoga (18 percent, n=24/147). In conclusion, 32 percent (n=34/107) stated that relaxation techniques helped them, and 49 percent (n=52/107) stated that relaxation techniques may have helped them. Conclusion: Patients with both DM and FSHD have been diagnosed with depression. To manage their depression, and similar to what occurs in the general population, DM and FSHD patients are using a combination of both pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic strategies. DM and FSHD patients also believe that these non-pharmacologic methods, which include exercise, counseling, and relaxation techniques are helpful in their managing depression

Psychological and educational interventions for preventing falls in older people living in the community

This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (Intervention). The objectives are as follows:To assess the effects (benefits and harms) of psychological interventions (such as cognitive behavioural therapy) (with or without an education component) for preventing falls in older people living in the community.To assess the effects (benefits and harms) of educational interventions for preventing falls in older people living in the community

Does the provision of a DVD-based audio-visual presentation improve recruitment in a clinical trial? A randomised trial of DVD trial invitations

Abstract Background Recruitment to clinical trials can be challenging. Methods that improve the efficiency of trial recruitment are needed to increase successful study completions. The aim of this study was to ascertain whether sending an audio-visual presentation on a digital versatile disc (DVD), along with usual study invitation materials, would improve recruitment to the Febuxostat versus Allopurinol Streamlined Trial (FAST), a clinical trial in patients with established gout. Methods Potential participants for the FAST study who were identified by searches of GP records in Scottish primary care practices between August 2013 and July 2014 were included in this study. Individuals were randomly allocated to receive either a standard invitation (letter and information leaflet) or a standard invitation and a DVD containing an audio-visual presentation explaining the background and operation of FAST. Data on invitation response rates, screening attendances and randomisations were collected by research nurses. Results One thousand fifty potential participants were invited to take part in FAST during this period. 509 individuals were randomised to receive the DVD presentation and the standard invitation and 541 received a standard invitation only. DVD recipients were less likely to respond to the initial invitation (adjusted OR 0.76, CI 0.58–0.99) and marginally less likely to return a positive response (OR 0.75, CI 0.59–0.96). There was no statistically significant difference between the groups in attendance for screening or randomisation. The DVD did not influence the age, gender, or socioeconomic deprivation scores of those responding positively to a letter of invitation. Conclusions The inclusion of a DVD presentation with FAST study invitations did not make any practical difference to the rate of positive response to invitation. Further innovation and evaluation will be required to improve recruitment to clinical trials. Trial registration EU Clinical Trials Register. EudraCT Number: 2011–001883-23. ISRCTN registry. ISRCTN72443278

Argumentation Element Annotation Modeling using XLNet

This study demonstrates the effectiveness of XLNet, a transformer-based language model, for annotating argumentative elements in persuasive essays. XLNet's architecture incorporates a recurrent mechanism that allows it to model long-term dependencies in lengthy texts. Fine-tuned XLNet models were applied to three datasets annotated with different schemes - a proprietary dataset using the Annotations for Revisions and Reflections on Writing (ARROW) scheme, the PERSUADE corpus, and the Argument Annotated Essays (AAE) dataset. The XLNet models achieved strong performance across all datasets, even surpassing human agreement levels in some cases. This shows XLNet capably handles diverse annotation schemes and lengthy essays. Comparisons between the model outputs on different datasets also revealed insights into the relationships between the annotation tags. Overall, XLNet's strong performance on modeling argumentative structures across diverse datasets highlights its suitability for providing automated feedback on essay organization.Comment: 28 page

Postitive Youth Development

• Positive youth development is an assets-based approach for cultivating competencies essential to personal well-being. • When environmental education enables children and youths to contribute to improving urban environments, it can not only increase cities\u27 sustainability and resilience but also foster young people\u27s personal growth. • Participatory action research, peer education, and youth civic engagement are three educational approaches that can lead to positive change for both urban environments and youths living within them

Motherhood and Family Law

Throughout the broad sweep of history and related disciplines, including the law, can be found instruction with respect to the issue of motherhood. In one sense, it transcends culture; in another, it is a cultural construct. It is imbued with gender specificity and is profoundly important to children. This thesis explores motherhood’s relationship with family law and seeks to illustrate how, through uneasy tensions over time, it may have been compromised in modern child care law in New Zealand. It discusses whether parenting law should continue to adopt a gender neutral approach or whether, in considering a child’s welfare and best interests, there may be a case for greater recognition and restoration of gendered parenting relationships and perhaps, therefore, a repeal of s4(3) of the Care of Children Act 2004

Analysis of Non-Kinship Foster Parent Training Needs and Their Support of Foster Youth: An Occupational Therapy Perspective

This poster discusses the training needs of non-kinship foster parents and how they support the youth in their care. A quantitative survey was used to find relationships between experience fostering and foster parent preparedness or desire for additional training. The survey also included a section for participants to write down their training needs; themes from this question are found on the poster. The poster further discusses future recommendations and implications for OT practice in working with this population.https://soar.usa.edu/otdcapstonesfall2023/1007/thumbnail.jp