bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Evolution of Insulin and How it Informs Therapy and Treatment Choices
Authors: Hirsch Irl B , Juneja Rattan , Beals John M , Antalis Caryl J , Wright Eugene E
Published: May 2020

Insulin has been available for the treatment of diabetes for almost a century, and the variety of insulin choices today represents many years of discovery and innovation. Insulin has gone from poorly defined extracts of animal pancreata to pure and precisely controlled formulations that can be prescribed and administered with high accuracy and predictability of action. Modifications of the insulin formulation and of the insulin molecule itself have made it possible to approximate the natural endogenous insulin response. Insulin and insulin formulations had to be designed to produce either a constant low basal level of insulin or the spikes of insulin released in response to meals. We discuss how the biochemical properties of endogenous insulin were exploited to either shorten or extend the time-action profiles of injectable insulins by varying the pharmacokinetics (time for appearance of insulin in the blood after injection) and pharmacodynamics (time-dependent changes in blood sugar after injection). This has resulted in rapid-acting, short-acting, intermediate-acting, and long-acting insulins, as well as mixtures and concentrated formulations. An understanding of how various insulins and formulations were designed to solve the challenges of insulin replacement will assist clinicians in meeting the needs of their individual patients.
Muscle–Organ Crosstalk: The Emerging Roles of Myokines
Authors: Severinsen Mai Charlotte Krogh , Pedersen Bente Klarlund
Published: May 2020

Physical activity decreases the risk of a network of diseases, and exercise may be prescribed as medicine for lifestyle-related disorders such as type 2 diabetes, dementia, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer. During the past couple of decades, it has been apparent that skeletal muscle works as an endocrine organ, which can produce and secrete hundreds of myokines that exert their effects in either autocrine, paracrine, or endocrine manners. Recent advances show that skeletal muscle produces myokines in response to exercise, which allow for crosstalk between the muscle and other organs, including brain, adipose tissue, bone, liver, gut, pancreas, vascular bed, and skin, as well as communication within the muscle itself. Although only few myokines have been allocated to a specific function in humans, it has been identified that the biological roles of myokines include effects on, for example, cognition, lipid and glucose metabolism, browning of white fat, bone formation, endothelial cell function, hypertrophy, skin structure, and tumor growth. This suggests that myokines may be useful biomarkers for monitoring exercise prescription for people with, for example, cancer, diabetes, or neurodegenerative diseases.
Hong Kong: Wake-Up Call
Authors: Perl Jeffrey M.
Published: May 2020

In this piece, the editor of Common Knowledge offers excerpts from his two-year correspondence with a reader in Hong Kong, who was drawn to arguments made in the journal about maintaining “quietism and resistance in the face of vile behavior.” In the summer and fall of 2019, during the insurrection in Hong Kong, his correspondent shifts rapidly from taking comfort in CK’s defense of quietism to a full embrace of “uncivil disobedience.” She implies that the solidarity the editor expresses with Hong Kong is merely rhetorical, and he responds by writing this article and quoting in it the entire text of the 1984 Joint Declaration of the Chinese and British governments on the question of Hong Kong. The declaration’s guarantees of autonomy and civil rights appear in bold italics. The editor concludes by suggesting that it falls to the United Nations Security Council to enforce the terms of the treaty.
Learning to make informed health choices: Protocol for a pilot study in schools in Barcelona
Authors: Martínez García Laura , Alonso-Coello Pablo , Asso Ministral Laia , Ballesté-Delpierre Clara , Canelo Aybar Carlos , de Britos Carol , Fernández Rodríguez Ana , Gallego Iborra Ana , Leo Rosas Victoria , Llaquet Paloma , Niño de Guzmán Quispe Ena Pery , Pérez-Gaxiola Giordano , Requeijo Carolina , Salas-Gama Karla , Samsó Jofra Laura , Terres Jordi , Urreta Iratxe , Rosenbaum Sarah
Published: May 2020

Introduction: The Informed Health Choices (IHC) project has developed learning resources to teach primary school children (10 to 12-year-olds) to assess treatment claims and make informed health choices. The aim of our study is to explore both the students’ and teachers’ experience when using these resources in the context of Barcelona (Spain).

Methods: During the 2019-2020 school year, we will conduct a pilot study with 4 th and 5 th-year primary school students (9 to 11-year-olds) from three schools in Barcelona. The intervention in the schools will include: 1) assessment of the IHC resources by the teachers before the lessons, 2) non-participatory observations during the lessons, 3) semi-structured interviews with the students after a lesson, 4) assessment of the lessons by the teachers after a lesson, 5) treatment claim assessment by the students at the end of the lessons, and 6) assessment of the IHC resources by the teachers at the end of the lessons. We will use ad hoc questionnaires and guides to register the data. We will perform a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the data to explore understandability, desirability, suitability, usefulness, facilitators and barriers of the resources. The most relevant results will be discussed and some recommendations on how to use, how to adapt (if needed), and how to implement the IHC resources to this context will be agreed. The findings of the contextualization activities could inform the design of a cluster-randomised trial, to determine the effectiveness of the IHC resources in this context prior to scaling-up its use.

Ethical considerations: The study protocol has obtained an approval exemption from the Ethics Committee of the Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau (Barcelona, Spain).
Sodium channel myotonia may be associated with high-risk brief resolved unexplained events
Authors: Cea Gabriel , Andreu Daniel , Fletcher Elaine , Ramdas Sithara , Sud Richa , Hanna Michael G. , Matthews Emma
Published: May 2020

Brief resolved unexplained events (BRUEs) have numerous and varied causes posing a challenge to investigation and management. A subset of infants with the neuromuscular disorder sodium channel myotonia, due to mutations in the SCN4A gene, experience apnoeic events due to laryngospasm (myotonia) of the upper airway muscles that may present as a BRUE. We sought to ascertain the frequency, severity and outcome of infants carrying the G1306E SCN4A mutation commonly associated with this presentation. We report 14 new cases of individuals with the G1306E mutation from three unrelated families and perform a literature review of all published cases. Infants with the G1306E mutation almost universally experience laryngospasm and apnoeic events. The severity varies significantly, spans both low and high-risk BRUE categories or can be more severe than criteria for a BRUE would allow. At least a third of cases require intensive care unit (ICU) care. Seizure disorder is a common erroneous diagnosis. Apnoeas are effectively reduced or abolished by appropriate treatment with anti-myotonic agents. Probands with the G1306E mutation who are family planning need to be counselled for the likelihood of post-natal complications. There is readily available and extremely effective treatment for the episodic laryngospasm and apnoea caused by this mutation. Proactively seeking clinical evidence of myotonia or muscle hypertrophy with consideration of CK,EMG and genetic testing in high risk BRUEs or more complex apnoeic events may reduce avoidable and prolonged ICU admissions, patient morbidity and potentially mortality.
No evidence for Ago2 translocation from the host erythrocyte into the Plasmodium parasite
Authors: Hentzschel Franziska , Obrova Klara , Marti Matthias
Published: May 2020

Background: Plasmodium parasites rely on various host factors to grow and replicate within red blood cells (RBC). While many host proteins are known that mediate parasite adhesion and invasion, few examples of host enzymes co-opted by the parasite during intracellular development have been described. Recent studies suggested that the host protein Argonaute 2 (Ago2), which is involved in RNA interference, can translocate into the parasite and affect its development. Here, we investigated this hypothesis.

Methods: We used several different monoclonal antibodies to test for Ago2 localisation in the human malaria parasite, P. falciparum and rodent P. berghei parasites. In addition, we biochemically fractionated infected red blood cells to localize Ago2. We also quantified parasite growth and sexual commitment in the presence of the Ago2 inhibitor BCI-137.

Results: Ago2 localization by fluorescence microscopy produced inconclusive results across the three different antibodies, suggesting cross-reactivity with parasite targets. Biochemical separation of parasite and RBC cytoplasm detected Ago2 only in the RBC cytoplasm and not in the parasite. Inhibition of Ago2 using BCl-137 did not result in altered parasite development.

Conclusion: Ago2 localization in infected RBCs by microscopy is confounded by non-specific binding of antibodies. Complementary results using biochemical fractionation and Ago2 detection by western blot did not detect the protein in the parasite cytosol, and growth assays using a specific inhibitor demonstrated that its catalytical activity is not required for parasite development. We therefore conclude that previous data localising Ago2 to parasite ring stages are due to antibody cross reactivity, and that Ago2 is not required for intracellular Plasmodium development.
Temporal Reframing and Participation in a Savings Program: A Field Experiment
Authors: Hershfield Hal E. , Shu Stephen , Benartzi Shlomo
Published: May 2020

This study explores whether framing savings in more or less granular formats can increase sign-ups for a recurring deposit program in a FinTech environment.
A Primal-Dual Approach to Analyzing ATO Systems
Authors: DeValve Levi , Pekeč Saša , Wei Yehua
Published: May 2020

We study assemble-to-order (ATO) problems from the literature. ATO problems with general structure and integrality constraints are well known to be difficult to solve, and we provide new insight into these issues by establishing worst-case approximation guarantees through primal-dual analyses and linear programming (LP) rounding. First, we relax the one-period ATO problem using a natural newsvendor decomposition and use the dual solution for the relaxation to derive a lower bound on optimal cost, providing a tight approximation guarantee that grows with the maximum product size in the system. Then, we present an LP rounding algorithm that achieves both asymptotic optimality as demand grows large, and a 1.8 approximation factor for any problem instance. In addition to theoretical guarantees, we perform comprehensive numerical simulations and find that our rounding algorithm outperforms existing techniques and is close to optimal. Finally, we demonstrate that our one-period LP rounding results can be used to develop an asymptotically optimal integral policy for dynamic ATO problems with backlogging and identical component lead-times.

This paper was accepted by Yinyu Ye, optimization.
Bench-Scale Pig Buildings: Validation of a Model for Studying Airborne Contaminants of Concern for Human and Animal Health
Authors: Létourneau Valérie , Duchaine Caroline , Belzile Martin , Girard Matthieu , Lemay Stéphane P. , Godbout Stéphane
Published: May 2020

Highlights

Bench-scale pig buildings are suitable for studying airborne contaminants of commercial pig buildings.

Multi-replicate designed experiments are possible using bench-scale pig buildings (experimental chambers).

Strategies to reduce airborne contaminants may be developed in a timely and cost-effective way using the chambers.

Abstract. Pig buildings produce and emit large amounts of airborne contaminants into the environment. Odors, gases, dust, and bioaerosols are responsible for the emergence of infectious, toxic, and inflammatory diseases diagnosed in animals, workers, and surrounding communities. There is therefore a need for better characterization and mitigation of airborne contaminants in commercial pig buildings. Bench-scale pig buildings could be used for the development and evaluation of reduction strategies for airborne contaminants in a timely and cost-effective manner before scaling them up for commercial use. Six bench-scale pig buildings were designed for growing animals (commercial diet and fully slatted concrete floor) and for producing odors, gases, dust, and bioaerosols from various sources (e.g., feed, manure) and animal activities. The validation of the six identical, environmentally controlled, independently ventilated and sealed bench-scale pig buildings (7.1 m3, 42 air changes per hour) is reported here. The validation implied inter-building and longitudinal (between week) comparisons of concentrations of airborne contaminants. Environmental conditions, methane (CH4), carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O), ammonia (NH3), and airborne microorganisms (total bacteria and archaea, Clostridium perfringens, Enterococcus spp., and Escherichia coli) were monitored for seven weeks in the six bench-scale pig buildings. The experiment was repeated three times. From week to week, data analysis showed that environmental conditions, gases, odors, and airborne microbial concentrations were non-statistically different between buildings. By the end of the seven-week experiment, concentrations of N2O, NH3, Enterococcus, E. coli, and archaea were higher than during week 1 in all buildings (p < 0.05). Airborne gases, odors, and microbial concentrations were equivalent to those found during the Canadian summer in commercial finishing pig buildings. In conclusion, the designed bench-scale pig buildings may serve for multi-replicate experiments and for studying airborne contaminants found in commercial pig buildings. Keywords: Airborne contaminant, Bioaerosols, Dust, Gas, Odor, Pig building.
Comparative Study of Rape Straw Cutting with Two Drum Cutting Assemblies
Authors: Bochat Andrzej , Zastempowski Marcin
Published: May 2020

Highlights

This article presents test results of a new cutting drum design for an agricultural forage harvester.

The energy consumption in the cutting process of rape decreased with increasing speed and cutting angle.

Cutting the plant material layers with the new design of the cutting drum is more efficient and productive.

Cross-cutting of plant material into chopped straw is an important alternative to the currently used cutting method.

Abstract. A comparative study of the classic design and a new design for the drum cutting assembly of a chaff cutter was conducted to determine the performance characteristics of both designs when cutting rape straw into defined lengths. The new design of the cutting drum made oblique cutting possible, which was not possible with the classic design. For assessment of the cutting process, two indicators were used: the effectiveness of the cutting process, and the unit energy consumption during the cutting process. The experimental results showed that the new design of the cutting drum resulted in a considerable increase in the effectiveness of cutting plant material into pieces, as compared to the classic design. Keywords: Chaff cutter, Cutting drum, Cutting of material layers, Cutting process effectiveness, Plant material.
Tomografia Eletromagnética de Tempos de Trânsito: Aplicação do GCV para a Busca do Parâmetro de Regularização
Authors: De Oliveira Naiane Pereira , Bassrei Amin
Published: May 2020

Na inversão tomográfica eletromagnética com a geometria de aquisição interpoços utilizamos como dados de entrada, o tempo de trânsito do pulso eletromagnético de alta frequência transmitido de uma antena a outra, desconsiderando a forma da onda em si. A inversão tomográfica eletromagnética é mal-condicionada, tal como a maioria dos problemas inversos em Geofísica de Exploração. Por esse motivo, recorremos a regularização por matrizes de derivadas como ferramenta matemática na obtenção de uma solução factível. Essa abordagem possui uma constante chamada de parâmetro de regularização (lambda), cuja escolha também constitui um problema. Para a seleção desta constante usamos uma técnica conhecida como Validação Cruzada Generalizada, que é um método baseado em considerações estatísticas. Os modelos recuperados apresentam boa concordância com o respectivo modelo verdadeiro, comprovando a aplicabilidade da tomografia eletromagnética no imageamento de reservatórios geológicos.
O Efeito Casimir para um Campo Fermiônico na Presença de um Campo Magnético Externo
Authors: Miltão M.S.R. , Farias Franz A.
Published: May 2020

Neste trabalho revisitamos a influência de um campo externo uniforme, particularmente de um campo magnético, sobre a energia de Casimir de um campo fermiônico [1, 2]. Recalculamos então o efeito Casimir nas condições citadas utilizando uma forma generalizada para as condições de contorno sobre o campo bem como o método da função zeta generalizada [3], o qual permite extrair um resultado final mais "limpo", i.e., um com menos termos divergentes espúrios.
Conexão entre os Sistemas de Referência Óptico e Rádio
Authors: Alves-Brito Alan , Martin V.A.F. , Poppe P.C.R.
Published: May 2020

Astrometria é a parte da Astronomia dedicada à medida de distâncias, movimentos, dimensões, posições e geometria dos corpos celestes, definida dentro da estrutura da Mecânica Newtoniana. Muitos instrumentos astrométricos têm sido utilizados em programas ou propostas específicos. Neste trabalho discutimos as limitações da Astrometria baseada na Terra e suas contribuições ao estabelecimento de um referencial absoluto usando o Astrolábio Fotoelétrico (ASPHO). Os principais resultados obtidos para a posição de rádio-estrelas são mostrados e discutidos confirmando a oportunidade de programas de astrolábio prismático dedicados à conexão de referenciais ópticos e de rádio. Apresentamos a medida dos ângulos de rotação entre o sistema de rádio e nossos dados ópticos bem como uma comparação com as posições óptico-rádio obtidas por outras técnicas.
Modellus: Animações Interativas Mediando a Aprendizagem Significativa dos Conceitos de Física no Ensino Médio
Authors: Santos Gustavo H. , Alves Lynn , Moret Marcelo A.
Published: May 2020

As dificuldades que alunos do ensino médio possuem na aprendizagem dos conceitos da Física são conhecidas. A utilização de métodos tradicionais de ensino e ausência de meios pedagógicos modernos constituem-se razões deste problema. Neste artigo, apresentamos quatro animções interativas, desenvolvidas em um ambiente virtual de aprendizagem computacional. Utilizamos o software Modellus como ferramenta mediadora da aprendizagemsignificativa dos conceitos de Física, com os alunos do ensino médio do Colégio Militar de Salvador. A criação do Laboratório Virtual e impacto das simulações no ensino/aprendizagem foram representadas em gráficos, estes baseados em um questionário respondido pelos alunos, durante as atividades.
Critérios de Seleção de Valores Singulares em Problemas Inversos Lineares: uma Aplicação em Tomografia de Tempos de Trânsito
Authors: Pereira Silva José Nilton , Bassrei Amin
Published: May 2020

Os problemas inversos da Geofísica geralmente podem ser formulados como um sistema de equações lineares. Tais problemas inversos são geralmente mal-postos, isto é, suas soluções são condicionadas pelos aspectos da existência, unicidade e estabilidade. A tomografia sísmica é uma tipo especial de problema inverso, que permite estimar uma função a partir de uma integral de linha da mesma. Na tomografia de tempos de trânsito, objeto deste trabalho, a incógnita do problema, ou seja, o vetor de parâmetro de modelo, é a distribuição bidimensional de vagarosidades, que é obtida a partir do conhecimento dos tempos de trânsito entre fontes e receptores, que vem a formar o vetor de parâmetro de dado. Utilizando dados sintéticos fizemos várias simulações numa aplicação de tomografia de tempos de trânsito de transmissão. O exemplo, de médio porte, é uma idealização de um reservatório de hidrocarbonetos. Foi incorporado ruído gaussiano aos tempos de trânsito em diferentes níveis. Os resultados foram satisfatórios, gerando tomogramas bastante semelhantes aos valores verdadeiros.
Estudos e Projetos de Próteses Ativas Enfatizando a Prototipagem Rápida
Authors: Da Silva Nilton Cardoso , Lopes da Silva Jorge Vicente , Rosário João Maurício
Published: May 2020

Este trabalho é relacionado com a engenharia de reabilitação, e mostra a evolução e a diversidade de formas e aplicações da física em algumas das técnicas de produção de próteses biomecânicas, seja na definição, construção e projeto da estrutura em seus diversos modelos, seja nos aspectos mecânicos, funcionais e operacionais, a exemplo da construção e do acionamento de próteses para indivíduos com amputação parcial dos membros superiores. O artigo apresenta a construção de dois modelos de próteses de apreensão. Um primeiro modelo do tipo acionamento com um atuador baseado em Shape Memory Alloy - SMA, e estudado através de três protótipos, um artesanal, um feito por usinagem convencional, e um terceiro por prototipagem rápida, sendo este último dedicado e integrado na estrutura da prótese. A proposta do segundo modelo, uma próotese acionada por motor de corrente contínua também é apresentada, sendo este integrado à garra, através de um redutor de velocidade. O projeto do modelo usando atuador baseado em SMA foi elaborado em CAD, observando que poucas alterações estruturais são necessárias na substituição deste atuador por um motor de corrente contínua.
Broadband second-harmonic and sum-frequency generation with a long-wave
infrared laser in AgGaGe5Se12
Authors: Chen Yi , Yao Baoquan , Wu Haixin , Ni Youbao , Liu Gaoyou , Dai Tongyu , Duan Xiaoming , Ju Youlun
Published: May 2020

Using an 8 µm long-wave infrared laser as the fundamental wave, we
achieved second-harmonic generation (SHG) and sum-frequency generation
simultaneously in

A
g
G
a
G
e

5

S
e

12

and obtained a 4 µm laser output.
Among them, SHG was achieved in the 173 nm spectral range of the
fundamental wave, which was consistent with theoretical calculations.
The average power of the obtained 4 µm laser was 41 mW, corresponding
to an optical-to-optical conversion efficiency of 3.2%. The measured
temperature acceptance bandwidth (

L
δ
T

) (FWHM) was 50 K·cm; the angular
acceptance bandwidth (

L
δ
θ

) (FWHM) was 13.3 mrad·cm; and the
average absorption coefficient in the wavelength range of
0.86–11.30 µm was

0.07

c
m

−
1

. In addition, the spectral acceptance
bandwidth (

L
δ
λ

) of fundamental wave in

A
g
G
a
G
e

5

S
e

12

SHG and the spectral gain bandwidth
of frequency downconversion in

A
g
G
a
G
e

5

S
e

12

were calculated. In view of the small
absorption coefficient, the large temperature acceptance bandwidth,
and the large spectral gain bandwidth, we conclude that

A
g
G
a
G
e

5

S
e

12

is a suitable nonlinear crystal for
high-power short/mid/long-wave infrared lasers and frequency
conversions of nanosecond-femtosecond infrared lasers. These results
are conducive to the further development of

A
g
G
a
G
e

5

S
e

12

lasers.
Performance of momentum-based frequency-domain MIMO equalizer in the presence of feedback delay
Authors: Yi Wenting , Sillekens Eric , Lavery Domaniç , Dzieciol Hubert , Zhou Sujie , Law Kevin , Chen Jack , Bayvel Polina , Killey Robert I.
Published: May 2020

A frequency-domain multiple-input multiple-output (FD-MIMO) equalizer employing a momentum-based gradient descent update algorithm is proposed for polarization multiplexing coherent receivers. Its performance in operation with dynamically varying optical channels is investigated and the impact of filter update delays, arising from the latency of the fast Fourier transforms (FFTs) and other digital signal processing (DSP) operations in the feedback loop, is assessed. We show that the proposed momentum-based gradient descent algorithm used to control the equalizer response has significantly greater tolerance to feedback delay than the conventional gradient descent algorithm. We considered a 92 Gbaud dual-polarization 64 QAM receiver, with DSP operating at two samples per symbol, and with the equalizer operating on blocks of 512 and 1024 samples (i.e., 512/1024-point FFT). We found that at an optical signal-to-noise power ratio (OSNR) of 35 dB, the momentum-based gradient descent algorithm can successfully track state-of-polarization (SOP) rotation at frequencies of up to 50 kHz and with filter update delays of up to 14 blocks (39 ns). In comparison, using the conventional gradient descent algorithm in an otherwise identical receiver, the equalizer performance starts to deteriorate at SOP rotation frequencies above 20 kHz.
Room temperature quantum cascade lasers with 22% wall plug efficiency in continuous-wave operation
Authors: Wang F. , Slivken S. , Wu D. H. , Razeghi M.
Published: May 2020

We report the demonstration of quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) with improved efficiency emitting at a wavelength of 4.9 µm in pulsed and continuous-wave (CW) operation. Based on an established design and guided by simulation, the number of QCL-emitting stages is increased in order to realize a 29.3% wall plug efficiency (WPE) in pulsed operation at room temperature. With proper fabrication and packaging, a 5-mm-long, 8-µm-wide QCL with a buried ridge waveguide is capable of 22% CW WPE and 5.6 W CW output power at room temperature. This corresponds to an extremely high optical density at the output facet of ∼35 MW/cm2, without any damage.
Extending epipolar geometry for real-time structured light illumination
Authors: Liu Kai , Zhang Kangkang , Wei Jinghe , Song Jianwen , Lau Daniel L. , Zhu Ce , Xu Bin
Published: May 2020

Structured light illumination, scanning along both horizontal and vertical directions, achieves more robust accuracy. By introducing the constraint of epipolar geometry, we previously proposed real-time 3D reconstruction using lookup tables; however, we only knew these offline derived tables were the combinations of the elements in calibration matrices of a camera and a projector, and suffered from long-time computation. In this Letter, by parameterizing the line perspectively mapping a 3D world coordinate into the camera and projector spaces, we propose to extend the epipolar analysis by defining phase and optical poles. Thus, we can geometrically address these parameters via analytic closed-form equations, with which we can (1) directly derive lookup tables in real time from the calibration matrices and (2) optimally reduce the number of tables from 11 to 5 to save much more memory space while further accelerating the processing rate. Experiments show that with the same level of accuracy, we significantly reduce the time to compute the lookup tables from more than 20 min to 20 ms, and increase the speed of computing point clouds from approximately 320 to 492 fps.
Occurrence of multidrug-resistant Salmonella in cattle carcass and contact surfaces in Kwata slaughterhouse, Awka, Anambra State, Nigeria
Authors: Okafor Uju Catherine , Okafor Simeon Chibuko , Ogugua Akwoba Joseph
Published: May 2020

Background and Aim: Contamination of meat with Salmonella could result in food-borne disease outbreaks among the consumers. However, there is a dearth of data assessing the presence of Salmonella in beef in Anambra State. Therefore, this study determined the prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility of Salmonella in beef and slaughter/processing facilities in Kwata slaughterhouse.

Materials and Methods: Swab samples (200) randomly collected were cultured for the isolation of Salmonella and the isolates subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility test. Data obtained were analyzed using t-test and analysis of variance with p< 0.05 considered statistically significant.

Results: Of the 200 samples cultured, 33.5% (67/200) yielded Salmonella isolates. The mean Salmonella load (colony-forming unit [CFU]/cm2) for different contact surfaces (before and after contact with carcasses) was as follows: Slaughter floor, 1.1×1010±1.1×106a and 1.0×1010±1.1×106b; display table, 1.1×1010±11.1×106a and 1.0×1010±1.1×106b; washing bucket 1.01×1010±1.0×106a and 0.8×1010±0.1×106b; knife, 1.1×1010±1.10×106a and 1×1010±1.0×106b; boot, 1.1×1010±1.0×106a and 1.0×1010±1.10×106b; file, 1.1×1010±1.0×106a and 1.0×1010±0.1×106b; and wheelbarrow, 1.1×1010±1.0×106a and 1.01×1010±0.11×106b. Salmonella counts decreased significantly (p<0.05) in the presented order from slaughter floor to wheelbarrow after contact with carcasses. On the other hand, there was a significant (p<0.05) increase in washing water Salmonella counts before and after (0.7×1010±0.10×106a and 1.0×1010±1.0×106b CFU/100 ml) carcasses wash. To each of the antimicrobials tested, the percentage of the 67 isolates found resistant was as follows: ciprofloxacin, 25.4%; ofloxacin, 27%; ceftriaxone, 35.8%; amoxicillin/clavulanic acid, 88.1%; chloramphenicol, 59.7%; gentamicin, 34.3%; streptomycin, 49.3%; nalidixic acid, 49.3%; trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole, 76%; nitrofurantoin, 89.6%; and ampicillin, 100%.

Conclusion: Antimicrobial-resistant Salmonella were isolated from beef and slaughter/processing facilities in Anambra State. This underscores the need for a coordinated one health approach for the improvement of hygienic standard during slaughter/processing in the slaughterhouse surveyed, to limit meat contamination and hence safeguard human health.
Subclinical left ventricular dysfunction in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus
Authors: Tsvetkov Vladimir A. , Krutikov Evgeniy S. , Chistyakova Svetlana I.
Published: May 2020

BACKGROUND: Recent studies have shown a high prevalence of asymptomatic forms of heart failure in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. The presence of even subclinical forms of heart failure in type 2 DM is associated with a negative prognosis of the disease, leading to a significant increase in the frequency of hospitalizations and mortality.
AIMS: Identification of left ventricle subclinical dysfunction in terms of its diastolic function, deformation parameters and rotational properties of the myocardium in patients with type 2 diabetes.
METHODS: A prospective case-control single-center study, performed simultaneously in groups of patients with type 2 diabetes and hypertension. To identify left ventricular dysfunction (LV), an echocardiographic study was performed, including tissue dopplerography and Speckle Tracking Echocardiography in 2D and 3D modes.
RESULTS: We examined four groups of patients comparable in age and sex distribution, with no obvious clinical signs of heart failure. Group I comprised 56 patients with type 2 diabetes and moderate hypertension. Group II included 52 patients with type 2 diabetes without an increase of blood pressure. Group III (54 people) consisted of patients with essential II degree hypertension without diabetes. Group IV (control) 30 healthy individuals. The use of tissue dopplerography and Speckle Tracking Echocardiography allows more often (p0.05) to detect signs of LV dysfunction in patients with type 2 diabetes compared with routine echocardiography methods. It was found that in patients with a combination of type 2 diabetes and moderate hypertension, a prognostically unfavorable restrictive variant of diastolic dysfunction is more common (p0.05) in contrast to patients with diabetes without hypertension or those with hypertension without diabetes. The combination of type 2 diabetes and hypertension to a greater extent leads to an increase in the longitudinal global deformation of the left ventricle compared with patients who had only one of these diseases (p0.05). A decrease in the global area strain, an early marker of LV systolic dysfunction, was expressed (p0.05) in patients with type 2 diabetes, regardless of the presence of concomitant hypertension.
CONCLUSIONS: This study shows the importance of using tissue dopplerography and Speckle Tracking Echocardiography in the diagnosis of subclinical heart failure. The results indicate a high prevalence of subclinical systolic-diastolic LV dysfunction in type 2 diabetes, which is aggravated in the presence of concomitant hypertension in patients without obvious clinical signs of heart failure and other cardiovascular diseases.
A Química no Estatuto da Faculdade de Filosofia de Coimbra (1772): origens de uma Disciplina
Authors: Santos Ademir Valdir dos , Custódio Renato da Silva
Published: May 2020

Objetiva caracterizar a origem e desenvolvimento da disciplina de Química no ambiente de embates entre a tradição humanista e a racionalidade científica em Portugal, no século XVIII. A metodologia empregada é a Análise de Conteúdo do Estatuto da Faculdade de Filosofia de Coimbra, considerando um diálogo com Chervel (1990) sobre a história das disciplinas escolares. Os resultados apontam aspectos referentes à Química em quatorze diretrizes. A Análise de Conteúdo permitiu construir três categorias relacionadas à gênese, organização e desenvolvimento da disciplina: objetivos, conteúdos e metodologia, com base numa categorização que admite o movimento entre a Química enquanto ciência de referência e como disciplina escolar, destacando palavras-chave como examinar, separar, corpo, substância, composição, afinidade, propriedade, combinação, misturas, comparação, lente/professor, teoria e experiência/prática/laboratório. Foram analisadas finalidades reais - relacionadas às práticas escolares - e finalidades de objetivo - prescritas no texto oficial, delineando a Química enquanto disciplina vinculada às transformações históricas.
INTERNAÇÃO COMPULSÓRIA DE DEPENDENTES QUÍMICOS: VIOLAÇÃO DO DIREITO DE LIBERDADE OU PROTEÇÃO DO DIREITO À VIDA?
Authors: Pereira Luis Fernando Gonçalves , Ricardo Igor Machado , Aquino Rafael Lemes de , Xavier Douglas Ataniel Alves
Published: May 2020

Este trabalho versa sobre a internação compulsória de dependentes químicos e suas peculiaridades no âmbito do Direito Constitucional. Aborda as garantias constitucionais inerentes ao tema, especialmente o direito à vida, o direito à liberdade e o princípio da dignidade da pessoa humana. Estuda as comparações e o conflito existente entre os preceitos garantidos pela nossa Constituição Federal, tais como o direito à saúde, dignidade da pessoa humana e direito à liberdade.  Analisa os tipos de internações psiquiátricas e o seu amparo legal. Apresenta um estudo sobre a ligação entre as drogas e a violência nos dias atuais, com base na doutrina e na jurisprudência que abordam o tema.
El mundo que se hizo visible a través de lo afectivo
Authors: C. Stewart Kathleen , Calero Alejandro Ponce de León
Published: May 2020

Los estudios sobre los afectos y lo afectivo (Affect studies) hacen parte de una reciente búsqueda etnográfica por encontrar nuevas formas de describir lo que precede y excede en aquellas categorías con que definimos las labores de la vida de nuestro presente histórico. Para mí, lo afectivo apareció a través de una práctica etnográfica detenida, atenta, y en sintonía con las formas y fuerzas que se desarrollan en las escenas y en los encuentros. En el mundo de lo afectivo, el punto de análisis ya no era rastrear los efectos predeterminados de las lógicas y estructuras abstraíbles sino, más bien, componer un registro vivencial en donde ocurren cosas en relación al mundo material, social, estético, y político. Asimismo, en el mundo propuesto por lo afectivo, las cosas se empezaron a juntar, quizás con mucha fuerza, para hacerse reconocibles como algo en lo que se está, o se acerca, que opone y se resiste, pero que siempre es una composición aproximada de lo que ha sucedido. La escritura etnográfica también comenzó a narrar estados colectivos y sensibilidades que afectaban a las personas y que atravesaban cosas que, de otro modo, serían inconmensurables; haciendo que el aparato de la conceptualización se alinease con las preocupaciones inmanentes de dicha etnografía detenida y con las preocupaciones de los mundos que yo intentaba rastrear.
Time to Reconsider Foot and Leg Position During the Bench Press
Authors: Nuzzo James L.
Published: May 2020

The “feet on the floor” guideline for the bench press is a historical byproduct of old bench designs. The “psoas-relaxed position,” where the hips and knees are flexed and the feet rest on adjustable plates at the end of the bench, should be considered to replace existing guidelines. The psoas-relaxed position accommodates lifters of all body heights, is more sport-specific than current bench press posture, and reduces lumbar lordosis and increases the cross-sectional area of the dural sac and spinal canal, making the exercise more viable for certain back pain patients. Steps to implementation include research on bench press postural preferences, development of adjustable foot plates, and formal revision to bench press guidelines.
Apparent Fracture Toughness of the CoB-Co2B Interface
Authors: Campos-Silva I. , Hernández-Ramírez E. J. , Mondragón-Nava H. I. , Contreras-Hernández A. , Fernández-Valdés D. , Meneses-Amador A. , Delgado-Brito A. M.
Published: May 2020

In this study, new results for the interfacial fracture toughness of the CoB-Co2B layer formed at the surface of the ASTM F1537, Standard Specification for Wrought Cobalt-28Chromium-6Molybdenum Alloys for Surgical Implants (UNS R31537, UNS R31538, and UNS R31539), alloy were estimated. Initially, the cobalt boride layers were developed by means of the powder-pack boriding process at 1,173 K with 6 h of exposure, and 1,223 K with 8 h of exposure. The depth-sensing Vickers microindentation tests were performed using applied loads ranging between 1 and 2.3 N to generate a crack along the CoB-Co2B interface. The apparent fracture toughness (Kca) of the CoB-Co2B interface was estimated using a half-penny cracking model and considering the interfacial values of the Young’s modulus, hardness, and the critical point (Pc, ac), in which Pc was considered as a criterion of the adhesion between CoB and Co2B. To verify the influence of the cobalt boride layer thickness and the magnitude of the residual stresses developed on CoB-Co2B interface, the cracking model was extended to estimate the Kca for the boriding condition at 1,273 K with 6 h of exposure. In addition, the magnitude of the shear stresses on the CoB-Co2B interface was analyzed by the finite element method as a function of the indentation loads of 1 and 2.3 N using the boriding conditions of 1,173 K with 6 h of exposure and 1,223 K with 8 h of exposure. The results showed that the interfacial fracture toughness of the CoB-Co2B increased as a function of the CoB layer thickness, whereas the magnitude of the compressive residual stresses decreased for the thicker cobalt boride layer formed at 1,273 K with 6 h of exposure. Finally, the distribution of the maximum shear stresses located on the CoB-Co2B interface oscillated from 3.9 to 4.4 GPa according to the indentation loads.
Les médias dans la région : quels enjeux pour l’information locale?
Authors: Bazimana Aimé-Jules
Published: May 2020

Avec l’actuelle crise des médias causée par la révolution numérique, les territoires locaux ont ressentifortement les incidences des bouleversements des modèles d’affaires sur l’existence des salles de rédactionet sur la vitalité de l’information locale. Les effets combinés de la crise économique et de la crise de lapublicité dans les modèles d’affaires ont été dévastateurs dans certaines régions. Cet article présente quatreaxes de réflexion sur l’évolution des médias régionaux et locaux au Québec. Les enjeux économiques, politiques, de développement local et de déséquilibres entre les centres urbains et les collectivités régionales etrurales en lien avec les médias locaux se posent dans le contexte de l’essor du numérique et de l’interventionétatique par le biais des politiques publiques.
Pregnancy and lactation, a challenge for the skeleton
Authors: Winter E M , Ireland A , Butterfield N C , Haffner-Luntzer M , Horcajada M-N , Veldhuis-Vlug A G , Oei L , Colaianni G , Bonnet N
Published: May 2020

In this review we discuss skeletal adaptations to the demanding situation of pregnancy and lactation. Calcium demands are increased during pregnancy and lactation, and this is effectuated by a complex series of hormonal changes. The changes in bone structure at the tissue and whole bone level observed during pregnancy and lactation appear to largely recover over time. The magnitude of the changes observed during lactation may relate to the volume and duration of breastfeeding and return to regular menses. Studies examining long-term consequences of pregnancy and lactation suggest that there are small, site-specific benefits to bone density and that bone geometry may also be affected. Pregnancy- and lactation-induced osteoporosis (PLO) is a rare disease for which the pathophysiological mechanism is as yet incompletely known; here, we discuss and speculate on the possible roles of genetics, oxytocin, sympathetic tone and bone marrow fat. Finally, we discuss fracture healing during pregnancy and lactation and the effects of estrogen on this process.
Thyroid tumor cells-fibroblasts crosstalk: role of extracellular vesicles
Authors: Bravo-Miana Rocío del Carmen , Della Vedova Ana Belén , De Paul Ana Lucía , Remedi María Mónica , Guantay María Laura , Gilardoni Mónica Beatriz , Pellizas Claudia Gabriela , Donadio Ana Carolina
Published: May 2020

Tumor-stroma crosstalk leads to a tumor-promoting microenvironment. In this milieu, extracellular vesicles (EVs) are protagonists in cell-cell communication. Despite thyroid cancer being the most common endocrine malignancy, the contribution of the tumor microenvironment to thyroid cancer progression is still largely underexplored. We focused on the role of thyroid tumor cell-fibroblast interaction and EVs as mediators of tumor-stroma interplay, in the promotion of thyroid tumor aggressiveness. Thyroid tumor (TPC-1, 8505c) or non-tumor thyroid cells (NThyOri) were co-cultured with human fibroblasts (Fb). Thyroid cell migration was investigated by the wound-healing assay and actin-network staining. Cell-CD147 expression was characterized by flow cytometry. EVs, obtained by ultracentrifugation of conditioned media (CMs), were characterized by transmission electron-microscopy and CD81 and CD147 expression. Metalloproteinases (MMPs) were evaluated by zymography in CMs. A migratory phenotype was triggered in thyroid tumor cells treated with CMs from Fb or from Fb-thyroid tumor cell co-cultures. Fb-thyroid cell co-cultures induced the secretion of proMMP9 and proMMP2 and led to a significant MMP2 activation in CMs. Fb, thyroid cells and Fb-thyroid cell co-cultures released EVs, and remarkably, EVs released by Fb-thyroid tumor cell co-cultures induced the secretion of proMMP2 and the expression of MMP2 from normal Fb. A significant CD147 expression was demonstrated in Fb-thyroid tumor cell-derived EVs. These findings reveal the role of Fb and thyroid tumor cell-Fb interaction in the promotion of a microenvironment suitable for thyroid tumor progression. Moreover, they highlight, for the first time, the role of thyroid tumor cell-Fb interaction in the production of specialized EVs.
Not Crying After Birth as a Predictor of Not Breathing
Authors: KC Ashish , Lawn Joy E. , Zhou Hong , Ewald Uwe , Gurung Rejina , Gurung Abhishek , Sunny Avinash K. , Day Louise Tina , Singhal Nalini
Published: May 2020

BACKGROUND:

Worldwide, every year, 6 to 10 million infants require resuscitation at birth according to estimates based on limited data regarding “nonbreathing” infants. In this article, we aim to describe the incidence of “noncrying” and nonbreathing infants after birth, the need for basic resuscitation with bag-and-mask ventilation, and death before discharge.

METHODS:

We conducted an observational study of 19 977 infants in 4 hospitals in Nepal. We analyzed the incidence of noncrying or nonbreathing infants after birth. The sensitivity of noncrying infants with nonbreathing after birth was analyzed, and the risk of predischarge mortality between the 2 groups was calculated.

RESULTS:

The incidence of noncrying infants immediately after birth was 11.1%, and the incidence of noncrying and nonbreathing infants was 5.2%. Noncrying after birth had 100% sensitivity for nonbreathing infants after birth. Among the “noncrying but breathing” infants, 9.5% of infants did not breathe at 1 minute and 2% did not to breathe at 5 minutes. Noncrying but breathing infants after birth had almost 12-fold odds of predischarge mortality (adjusted odds ratio 12.3; 95% confidence interval, 5.8–26.1).

CONCLUSIONS:

All nonbreathing infants after birth do not cry at birth. A proportion of noncrying but breathing infants at birth are not breathing by 1 and 5 minutes and have a risk for predischarge mortality. With this study, we provide evidence of an association between noncrying and nonbreathing. This study revealed that noncrying but breathing infants require additional care. We suggest noncrying as a clinical sign for initiating resuscitation and a possible denominator for measuring coverage of resuscitation.
Ex Vivo Analysis of MTA FLOW® Biomineralization and Push-Out Strength: A Pilot Study
Authors: Benavides García Marianella , Hernández Meza Erick , Reyes-Carmona Jessie
Published: May 2020

This study evaluated the biomineralization processes and push-out strength of MTA Flow® with radicular dentine in three different consistencies. The push-out test was performed on an ex vivo model, using 2mm thick dentin discs from the middle third of the root with standardized cavities of 1.5 mm. Samples were filled with MTA-Angelus (Angelus Dental, Brazil), Biodentine (Septodont, France), MTA Flow® Putty (Ultradent, USA), MTA Flow® Thick or MTA Flow® Thin. The samples were divided into 3 groups: subgroup 1 (n=5), analysis of the biomineralization process; 2 (n=20), evaluation of the bonding strength and push-out resistance; and 3 (n=5), evaluation of the cement/dentin interface. The samples filled with Biodentine had a higher precipitation of carbonate apatite. However, there was no significant difference between MTA-Angelus, MTA Flow® Putty, or Thick (p=0.0536), but there was a significant difference in the Thin group (P<0.05). The samples with Biodentine displayed the greatest release of calcium ions. The formation of a partially carbonated intermediate apatite layer was observed in all groups. Zones of biomineralization were observed at the interface but were not continuous. After 72 hours, a significant difference was found between the Biodentine and MTA Flow® Thin groups (p=0.0090) in the push-out test. The samples submerged in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) for 15 days showed a significant difference between all groups and MTA Flow® Thin (p=0.0147). Putty or Thick consistencies presented a similar bonding strength to MTA-Angelus and Biodentine. MTA Flow® Putty and Thick consistencies show a good adaptation to dentin, similar to MTA-Angelus. However, the thickness of the interface was lower compared to that of Biodentine. MTA Flow® Thin, despite their tubular infiltration, results in gaps and a defective peripheral seal. Therefore, MTA Flow®, in Putty or Thick consistencies, presents a biomineralization process and push-out strength similar to MTA Angelus and Biodentine, however, both characteristics decreases considerably in Thin consistency.