Qualidade experimental nos ensaios de competição de cultivares em função da variabilidade de variáveis morfológicas

O objetivo do trabalho foi verificar a relação entre a diferença mínima significativa em percentagem da média (DMS%) da variável rendimento de grãos, com a média e erro experimental das características morfológicas observadas no decorrer do experimento, ciclo dos cultivares estudadas e número de tratamentos adotados. Com os dados dos ensaios estaduais de competição de cultivares de milho no estado do Rio Grande do Sul, utilizou-se a análise de trilha, tendo como variável principal a DMS% e como variáveis explicativas as demais variáveis observadas nos experimentos, mostrando que variáveis como rendimento de grãos, altura da planta, altura de inserção da primeira espigas e número final de plantas, com valores mais homogêneos dentro de cada experimento, proporcionam um menor quadrado médio do erro, fazendo com que a precisão do experimento seja melhorada

Tamanho e forma de parcela em experimentos com morangueiro cultivado em solo ou em hidroponia Plot size and shape in trials using strawberry cultivated with soil or using hydroponics

O objetivo deste trabalho foi estimar a forma e o tamanho de parcela ótimos para ensaios com a cultura do morangueiro (Fragaria x ananassa) em cultivo hidropônico e em solo. Foram conduzidos dois, experimentos, um em cultivo convencional no solo, em túneis baixos, e outro em cultivo hidropônico. Em cada experimento, avaliaram-se os efeitos do tamanho e do formato das parcelas sobre a precisão experimental. Cada planta foi considerada uma unidade básica, e o número de unidades básicas por parcela variou de 1 (48 parcelas) a 24 (duas parcelas). Foram ajustadas funções para a determinação do coeficiente de variação entre as parcelas e para a determinação da variância por unidade básica entre as parcelas. O cultivo no solo apresentou maior variabilidade experimental que o cultivo hidropônico. O aumento no número de plantas por parcela causou redução acentuada na variabilidade experimental, especialmente quando se usou o formato de parcela retangular. O tamanho ótimo estimado das parcelas é de dez plantas, no cultivo com solo, e de seis plantas, no cultivo hidropônico.<br>The objective of this work was to estimate the optimal size and shape of plots to be used in experiments of strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) cultivation in soil or using hydroponics. Two experiments were conducted, one in soil in low tunnels, and another in a hydroponic system. In each experiment, the effects of plot sizes and shapes on experimental accuracy were evaluated. Each plant was considered an experimental basic unit, and the number of plants per plot varied from 1 (48 plots) to 24 (two plots). Functions were adjusted to determine the coefficient of variation among plots and the variance per basic unit between plots. Plants grown in soil had higher experimental variability than the plants grown in hydroponics. Increasing the number of plants per plot caused strong reduction in the experimental variability, especially when a rectangular plot shape was used. The optimal estimated plot size was ten plants in soil and six plants in the hydroponic system

A pilot randomised controlled trial of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for medication decision-making and quality of life in women with breast cancer : the ACTION trial

Objective Non-adherence to adjuvant endocrine therapy (AET) in women with breast cancer is common and associated with medication side-effects and distress. We co-designed an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) intervention to enhance medication decision-making and quality of life (ACTION). We undertook a pilot trial of ACTION to inform the feasibility of a phase III trial, and to examine intervention acceptability. Methods This was a multi-site, exploratory, two-arm, individually randomized external pilot trial. Women with early breast cancer prescribed AET were randomised (1:1) to receive usual care (UC) or UC+ACTION. The ACTION intervention comprised a remotely delivered one-to-one ACT session followed by three group sessions delivered by clinical psychologists, alongside a website containing ideas for the self-management of side effects. Results: Of the 480 women screened for eligibility, 260 (54.2%) were approached and 79 (30.4%) randomized. 71 (89.9%) women provided data at 3-months and 70 (88.6%) at 6-months. 40 women were randomized to receive UC+ACTION and 32 (80.0%) completed the intervention. Most (75.0%) accessed the website at least once. ACTION was acceptable to participants (Borkovec & Nau Scale: mean=7.8 [SD=2.7] out of 10). Signals of effectiveness in favour of the UC+ACTION arm were observed for medication adherence (ASK-12), quality of life (WSAS), health-related quality of life (FACT-G and FACT-ES-19/23), distress (GAD-7, PHQ-9) and psychological flexibility (VQ). Conclusions: The ACTION intervention was acceptable to patients. There were promising signals for effectiveness on primary and secondary outcomes. A phase III randomised controlled trial is feasible. Trial registration: ISRCTN12027752