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Objective: To evaluate the associativity in groups of vegetable producers from six municipalities of the Central Valleys of Oaxaca, through an analysis of the attributes that are established to measure whether or not there is associativity, under the assumption that associativity is high in the analyzed communities. Economic globalization transforms the behavior of people and their values, devaluing the national identity of associative work. Design/methodology/approach: The study was carried out in the region of the Central Valleys of Oaxaca, with a qualitative and quantitative approach, in two phases: the first, documentary research on the theoretical approaches of associativity; the second, with field questionnaires, for which six municipalities were selected to represent vegetable producers. Results: The results show the absence of associativity in the production of vegetables. Limitations on study/implications: The number of the sample is within the limitations, so by expanding the number of municipalities the probability of association would be higher. Findings/conclusions: The conclusion is that the increase in productivity and income and the reduction of production costs would favor the continuity of vegetable production and associativity would be promoted with this. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We consider the stability of flux-driven flow through a long planar rigid channel, where a segment of one wall is replaced by a pre-tensioned hyperelastic (neo-Hookean) solid of finite thickness and subject to a uniform external pressure. We construct the steady configuration of the nonlinear system using Newton's method with spectral collocation and high-order finite differences. In agreement with previous studies, which use an asymptotically thin wall, we show that the thick-walled system always has at least one stable steady configuration, while for large Reynolds numbers the system exhibits three co-existing steady states for a range of external pressures. Two of these steady configurations are stable to non-oscillatory perturbations, one where the flexible wall is inflated (the upper branch) and one where the flexible wall is collapsed (the lower branch), connected by an unstable intermediate branch. We test the stability of these steady configurations to oscillatory perturbations using both a global eigensolver (constructed based on an analytical domain mapping technique) and also fully nonlinear simulations. We find that both the lower and upper branches of steady solutions can become unstable to self-excited oscillations, where the oscillating wall profile has two extrema. In the absence of wall inertia, increasing wall thickness partially stabilises the onset of oscillations, but the effect remains weak until the wall thickness becomes comparable to the width of the undeformed channel. However, with finite wall inertia and a relatively thick wall, higher-frequency modes of oscillation dominate the primary global instability for large Reynolds numbers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fractal dimension is a powerful tool employed as a measurement of geometric aspects. In this work we propose a method of topological fractal analysis for 2D binary digital images by using a graph-based topological model of them, called Homological Spanning Forest (HSF, for short). Defined at interpixel level, this set of two trees allows to topologically describe the (black and white) connected component distribution within the image with regards to the relationship "to be surrounded by". This distribution is condensed into a rooted tree, such that its nodes are connected components determined by some special sub-trees of the previous HSF and the levels of the tree specify the degree of nesting of each connected component. We ask for topological auto-similarity by comparing this topological description of the whole image with a regular rooted tree pattern. Such an analysis can be used to directly quantify some characteristics of biomedical images (e.g. cells samples or clinical images) that are not so noticeable when using geometrical approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista de la Academia Mexicana de Odontología Pediátrica (2594-1798) is the property of Academia Mexicana de Odontologia Pediatrica, A. C. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Agro Productividad is the property of Colegio de Postgraduados and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Penduliflorain I, a new plant endopeptidase, was isolated and characterized from Hohenbergia penduliflora. Crude extract was obtained from stems. A partially purified enzyme preparation was obtained by ethanol precipitation. This preparation showed maximum activity between pH 7.5 and 8.5, was stable at ionic strength (20% decrease in proteolytic activity could be detected after 2 h in 0.4 M sodium chloride solution), and exhibited high thermal stability (inactivation required heating for 20 min at 75 °C). Inhibition and activation assays indicated the cysteine nature of the enzymatic preparation. Penduliflorain I was purified by anion exchange chromatography (Q-Sepharose HP) by FPLC system. Homogeneity was confirmed by mass spectroscopy. Molecular mass of the enzyme was 23 412.847 Da (MALDI-TOF–MS). Kinetic parameters were determined for PFLNA ( Km = 0.3227 mM and kcat = 4.27 s−1). The N-terminal sequence (AVPQSIDWRDYGAVTTDKNQ) of isolated protease showed considerable similarity to other cysteine proteases obtained from stems or fruits of different Bromeliaceae species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human plasma is the source of a wide variety of therapeutic proteins, yet it is also a potential source of viral contamination. Recent outbreaks of emergent viral pathogens, such as West Nile virus, and the use of live vaccinia virus as a vaccine have prompted a reassessment of the viral safety of plasma-derived products. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of current viral inactivation methods for West Nile and vaccinia viruses and to reassess the use of model viruses to predict inactivation of similar viral pathogens. Virus-spiked product intermediates were processed using a downscaled representation of various manufacturing procedures. Virus infectivity was measured before and after processing to determine virus inactivation. The results demonstrated effective inactivation of West Nile virus, vaccinia virus and a model virus, bovine viral diarrhoea virus, during pasteurization, solvent/detergent treatment and caprylate treatment. Caprylate provided rapid and effective inactivation of West Nile virus, vaccinia virus, duck hepatitis B virus and Sindbis virus. Inactivation of West Nile virus was similar to that of bovine viral diarrhoea virus. This study demonstrates that procedures used to inactivate enveloped viruses in manufacturing processes can achieve inactivation of West Nile virus and vaccinia virus. In addition, the data support the use of model viruses to predict the inactivation of similar emergent viral pathogens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives Minimizing the transmission risk of infectious diseases is of primary importance in the manufacture of products derived from human plasma. A novel chromatography-based intravenous immunoglobulin (IGIV) manufacturing process was developed and the reduction of virus and transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE) during the manufacturing process was assessed. Mechanistically distinct steps that could affect virus reduction were identified, and the robustness of virus reduction over the range of process conditions was determined. Materials and Methods Virus and TSE reduction by processing steps were assessed using a scaled-down version of the IGIV manufacturing process. Results Virus and TSE reduction at manufacturing process set points were well within safety standards. Robustness studies verified that the reproducibility of virus reduction was maintained at or beyond operating parameter extremes. Virus reduction across two combined manufacturing steps was lower than the sum of virus-reduction values across the individual steps, indicating mechanistic similarity of the two steps with respect to virus reduction. Only reduction from mechanistically distinct steps was claimed. Conclusions This comprehensive approach to pathogen safety provides the new immunoglobulin manufacturing process with a detailed, yet realistic, assessment of the risk of transmission of infectious pathogens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Previous research has found that candidates for bariatric surgery usually present anxiety, depression, personality disorders and/or a tendency to binge eating. The situation related with the pandemic and the lockdowns during the 2020 are possible aggravating factors for these characteristics. Objectives: To study the more important psychological characteristics presented by candidates for bariatric surgery. Methods: 40 people between 29 and 65 years old (M=46.4, SD=9.1; 37.5% male, 62.5% female) were evaluated between July and December of 2020. The assessment consisted in an interview carried out by a clinical psychologist, and a pool of questionnaires to evaluate depression and anxiety symptoms (Beck Depression Inventory, BDI; and the Goldberg Anxiety and Depression Scale, GADS) the existence of a binge eating pattern (the Binge Eating Scale; BES) and personality traits (the Salamanca Screening Test). Results: The 25% of the sample had previous mental health antecedents. Eight people disclosed to feel stress in relation with the COVID-19, and 18 presented an emotional regulation strategy using food during the lockdown. 62.5% scored above the cut-off point on the BDI (mild=27.5%, moderate=20%, severe=15%) and a 40%and a 47.5% did it for the anxiety and the depression (respectively) GADS subscales. 20% presented a binge eating pattern according with the BES. Most common personality traits were histrionic (50%), emotionally unstable impulsive type (45%), and anxious (42.5%). Conclusions: These findings support the previous scientific literature. Psychological intervention programs may be considered to guarantee the surgery's success, especially when adverse contextual circumstances are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]