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In order to review and complete our knowledge of the typology and synecology of the aspen communities from the central-southern Apennines, ten original relevés were performed on the Gargano plateau and a set of 35 relevés assigned to four community types (HP: Holco mollis-Populetum tremulae; MP: Melico uniflorae-Populetum tremulae; FP: Fraxino orni-Populetum tremulae; GP: Geranio versicoloris-Populetum tremulae) were assembled from literature. These relevés along with several environmental variables either measured or estimated were involved in cluster and ordination analyses. The relevés from Gargano formed a distinctive cluster and were assigned to a new community type (SP: Stellario holosteae-Populetum tremulae ass. nova), which can be considered an Adriatic synvicariant of HP that is distributed in similar habitats (doline bottoms) but on the Tyrrhenian escarpment. At low levels of floristic similarity, the grouping of relevés in two clusters induces a sharp separation between the aspen communities distributed in the central Apennines (MP and FP) and those from the southern Apennines (SP, HP and GP), which is mainly due to compositional differences in the regional species pool. The ordination scores of relevés were best related to terrain slope, soil nitrogen, elevation, air temperature, light availability and, to a lesser extent, to soil moisture and reaction. Unlike MP and GP that appear the most mesophilous, the FP stands display a slightly more xerophilous and acidophilous character induced by the steeper slopes on which they occur. The HP habitat is the driest and lightest very likely because of the open overlying canopy, in contrast to MP stands featuring a high shrub cover. The highest occurrence of nitrophilous species was observed in SP and MP. The management of these pioneer woods should be aimed at conservation, as they play an important role in the recovery of forest herb diversity along the ecological succession towards hardwood forests.

Provides information on a study that performed deep level transient spectroscopy and temperature-dependent Hall effect measurements on undoped, n-, and p-type GaAs doped with erbium either by ion implantation or during molecular beam epitaxial growth. Methodology of the study; Results and discussion on the study.

Abstract: This study introduces a two consecutive steps basic–acid transesterification process, (denominated Transesterification Double Step Process — TDSP) for biodiesel production from vegetable oils. The process involves homogeneous consecutive basic–acid catalysis steps and is characterized by formation of well-defined phases, easy separation procedures, high reaction velocity and high conversion efficiency. The proposed TDSP is different in relation to other traditional two-step procedures which normally include acid esterification followed by basic transesterification, or enzymatic or even supercritical transesterification conditions. The biodiesel (fatty acid methyl esters) was analyzed by standard biodiesel techniques in addition to 1H-NMR, indicating high quality and purity biodiesel products. The transesterification of sunflower and linseed oils resulted in oil conversions higher than 97% corresponding to yields of 85%. A probable reaction mechanism responsible for the process is presented. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

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Objective: To estimate original wild-type BNT162b2 effectiveness against symptomatic Omicron infection among children 5-11 years of age., Methods: This prospective test-negative, case-control study was conducted in Toledo, southern Brazil, from June 2022 to July 2023. Patients were included if they were aged 5-11 years, sought care for acute respiratory symptoms in the public health system, and were tested for SARS-CoV-2 using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. In the primary analysis, we determined the effectiveness of two doses of original wild-type BNT162b2 against symptomatic COVID-19. The reference exposure group was the unvaccinated., Results: A total of 757 children were enrolled; of these, 461 (25 cases; 436 controls) were included in the primary analysis. Mean age was 7.4 years, 49.7 % were female, 34.6 % were obese, and 14.1 % had chronic pulmonary disease. Omicron accounted for 100 % of all identified SARS-CoV-2 variants with BA.5, BQ.1, and XBB.1 accounting for 35.7 %, 21.4 % and 21.4 %, respectively. The adjusted estimate of two-dose vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic Omicron was 3.1 % (95 % CI, -133.7 % to 61.8 %) after a median time between the second dose and the beginning of COVID-19 symptoms of 192.5 days (interquartile range, 99 to 242 days)., Conclusion: In this study with children 5-11 years of age, a two dose-schedule of original wild-type BNT162b2 was not associated with a significant protection against symptomatic Omicron infection after a median time between the second dose and the beginning of COVID-19 symptoms of 192 days, although the study may have been underpowered to detect a clinically important difference., Trial Registration Number: ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT05403307 (https://classic., Clinicaltrials: gov/ct2/show/NCT05403307)., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest Rodrigues, Maltempi de Souza, Manfio, de Souza, Araujo, Cohen, Barbosa, Romeiro Silva, Sganzerla, Dias da Silva, Ferreira, Kunkel, Camargo, Sarturi, Guilhem, Oliveira, Lopes, Widmar, Barufi, Nunes da Silva, Gradia, Brandalize, Royer, Luiz, Baura, Abreu, and Poitevin report honoraria fee for working in this study from Hospital Moinhos de Vento. Rosa reports honoraria fee related to investigator activities from Pfizer, and research grants from Pfizer, MSD and Brazilian Ministry of Health. Falavigna reports honoraria fee related to investigator activities from Pfizer and MSD, consulting fees from Sanofi, Ultragenyx, Novartis, Alnylam, PTC and JCR, and honoraria for lectures from Janssen, Abbvie, Sanofi, Roche, Pfizer and Novartis.Valluri, Srivastava, Julião, Melone, Allen, Kyaw, Spinardi, Castillo, and McLaughlin are Pfizer empolyees. Kucharski, and Pedrotti have nothing to disclose., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Background: Evidence regarding effectiveness of BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine against Omicron in Latin America is limited. We estimated BNT162b2 effectiveness against symptomatic COVID-19 in Brazil when Omicron was predominant., Methods: This prospective test-negative, case-control study was conducted in Toledo, Brazil, following a mass COVID-19 vaccination with BNT162b2. Patients were included if they were aged ≥12 years, sought care for acute respiratory symptoms in the public health system between November 3, 2021 and June 20, 2022, and were tested for SARS-CoV-2 using RT-PCR. In the primary analysis, we determined the effectiveness of two doses of BNT162b2 against symptomatic COVID-19., Results: A total of 4,574 were enrolled; of these, 1,758 patients (586 cases and 1,172 controls) were included in the primary analysis. Mean age was 27.7 years, 53.8 % were women, and 90.1 % had a Charlson comorbidity index of zero. Omicron accounted for >97 % of all identified SARS-CoV-2 variants, with BA.1 and BA.2 accounting for 84.3 % and 12.6 %, respectively. Overall adjusted estimate of two-dose vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic COVID-19 was 46.7 % (95 %CI, 19.9 %-64.6 %) after a median time between the second dose and the beginning of COVID-19 symptoms of 94 days (IQR, 60-139 days). Effectiveness waned from 77.7 % at 7-29 days after receipt of a second dose to <30 % (non-significant) after ≥120 days., Conclusion: In a relatively young and healthy Brazilian population, two doses of BNT162b2 provided protection against symptomatic Omicron infection. However, this protection waned significantly over time, underscoring the need for boosting with variant-adapted vaccines in this population prior to waves of disease activity., Trial Registration Number: ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT05052307 (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT05052307)., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest Rosa reports honoraria fee related to investigator activities from Pfizer, and research grants from Pfizer and Brazilian Ministry of Health. Falavigna reports honoraria fee related to investigator activities from Pfizer, consulting fees from Sanofi, Ultragenyx,Novartis, Alnylam, PTC and JCR, and honoraria for lectures from Janssen, Abbvie, Sanofi, Roche, Pfizer and Novartis. Manfio, Araujo, Cohen, Barbosa, Paula de Souza, Silva, Sganzerla, da Silva, Ferreira, Rodrigues, Maltempi de Souza de Souza, Oliveira, Gradia, Brandalize, Royer, and Luiz report honoraria fee for working in this study from Hospital Moinhos de Vento. Valluri, Srivastava, Julião, Melone, Allen, Kyaw, Spinardi, Castillo, and McLaughlin are Pfizer empolyees. Kucharski, and Pedrotti have nothing to disclose., (Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Real-world data on COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness are needed to validate evidence from randomized clinical trials. Accordingly, this study aims to evaluate, in a real-world setting in Brazil, the effectiveness of Pfizer-BioNTech BNT162b2 against symptomatic COVID-19 and COVID-19-related complications across diverse populations., Materials and Methods: A test-negative case-control study with follow-up of cases is currently being conducted in Toledo, a city in southern Brazil, following a mass COVID-19 vaccination campaign with BNT162b2. The study is being conducted among patients aged 12 years or older seeking care in the public health system with acute respiratory symptoms and tested for SARS-CoV-2 on reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Cases are RT-PCR positive and controls RT-PCR negative. Test-positive cases are prospectively followed through structured telephone interviews performed at 15 days post-enrollment, and at 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. Baseline demographic, clinical, and vaccination data are being collected by means of structured interviews and medical registry records reviews at the time of enrollment. All RT-PCR-positive samples are screened for mutations to identify SARS-CoV-2 variants., Ethics and Dissemination: The study protocol has been approved by the research ethics committee of all participant sites. Study findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations., Trail Registration: Clinicatrials.gov: NCT05052307., Competing Interests: I have read the journal’s policy and the authors of this manuscript have the following competing interests: Regis Goulart Rosa: has received honoraria related to investigator activities of the present study, research grants from the Brazilian Ministry of Health and Pfizer for COVID-19 studies, and honoraria for lectures from Novartis. Júlia Regazzini Spinardi: is Pfizer employee and owns Pfizer stocks. Kristen Allen: is Pfizer employee and owns Pfizer stocks. Josélia Manfio: is Moinhos de Vento employee Cintia Laura Pereira de Araujo: is Moinhos de Vento employee Mírian Cohen: is Moinhos de Vento employee and has received research grants from Medicago. Caroline Cabral Robinson: is Moinhos de Vento employee Daniel Sganzerla: has received honoraria related to statistical analysis activities of the present study. Diogo Rosas Ferreira: has received honoraria related to data managing activities of the present study. Emanuel Maltempi de Souza: has received supply of resources to perform SARS-COV-2 variant genotyping procedures of the present study. Jaqueline Carvalho de Oliveira: has received supply of resources to perform SARS-COV-2 variant genotyping procedures of the present study. Daniela Fiori Gradia: has received supply of resources to perform SARS-COV-2 variant genotyping procedures of the present study. Ana Paula Carneiro Brandalize: has received supply of resources to perform SARS-COV-2 variant genotyping procedures of the present study. Gabriela Almeida Kucharski: has no competing interests Fernando Pedrotti: has no competing interests Cristina de Oliveira Rodrigues: has received supply of resources to perform SARS-COV-2 variant genotyping procedures of the present study. Moe H. Kyaw: is Pfizer employee and owns Pfizer stocks. Graciela del Carmen Morales Castillo: is Pfizer employee and owns Pfizer stocks. Amit K. Srivastava: is Pfizer employee and owns Pfizer stocks. John M McLaughlin: is Pfizer employee and owns Pfizer stocks. Maicon Falavigna: has received honoraria related to investigator activities of the present study, consulting fees from Sanofi, Ultragenyx, Novartis, Alnylam, PTC and JCR, honoraria for lectures from Janssen, Abbvie, Sanofi, Roche, Pfizer and Novartis, and Payment for expert testimony from Merck Sharp & Dohme. This does not alter our adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.

We studied the quality of dry pasta packaged and stored for 45 days in biodegradable bags made from triticale flour films. Results were compared with the quality of pasta packaged in commercial bags. Characterization of films and technologic and microbiological quality of pasta were performed. Biodegradable bags presented adequate properties during storage. There was no microbiological growth or differences in moisture and breaking force of dry pasta within both types of packaging during storage. Cooking quality of pasta was not affected by the type of packaging or storage time. We also studied the antioxidant capacity of pasta enriched with partially-deoiled-chia flour during storage in both types of packaging. A decrease in the antioxidant activity measured by ABTS assay was found at 45 days of storage in pasta packaged in biodegradable bags. Nevertheless, the total phenolic content and the antioxidant activity evaluated by FRAP method did not change significantly with time or type of packaging., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestThe authors report no conflict of interest., (© Association of Food Scientists & Technologists (India) 2019.)

Phytothermotherapy ("grass baths") is a traditional phytotherapy for rheumatism consisting of taking baths in hot fermenting grass. Scientific studies have demonstrated its efficiency in treating several rheumatic diseases. However the efficiency and repeatability of the therapy is dependent on the wild fermentations, determining sometimes the appearance of unpleasant conditions leading to the early abandonment of the therapy. The metabolism undergoing in the grass baths is unknown and there is not an established method to evaluate and predict grass baths quality. The aim of this study is to establish a simple VOCs profiling method able to evaluate the grass baths, predicting their evolution, through the identification of marker volatiles related to the best conditions and/or the spoilage. After replicating in real scale the traditional grass baths, the volatile profiles were measured using passive diffusion samplers injected in a thermal desorption-comprehensive GC × GC-TOF-MS. The high dimensionality of the data coupled with the limited number of time points, required a rigorous method development for the analysis of the data, achieved through the development of a novel R package for variable selection in GC × GC data matrices. The further application of a fuzzy clustering approach demonstrated to be a useful tool dealing with short time series, allowing to discard un-trending volatiles and giving a clear snapshot of the main trends in the data. A broad coverage of the volatolome was provided, thus suitable to describe the main metabolic changes ongoing in the grass baths. Coupling this data with the temperature and pH, and comparing it to the data from similar processes, like silage and compost, we demonstrated that the established method can be helpful to evaluate short time series, allowing us to obtain a list of volatiles as candidate markers for the quality of the grass baths. The established method gave a list of markers applicable to real scale grass baths to predict spoilage; furthermore it provides a list of volatiles where to search for candidate markers with reported health-related effects and can be used to generate hypothesis on the mechanisms of action of the treatment., (Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.)