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Highlights • Renal cell carcinoma can be associated with other tumors. • Its association with fibromixoid sarcoma is rare. • We report a case of the aforementioned association. • Nephrectomy and removal of the fibromixoid sarcoma was done. • Patient was released after surgery with no complications., Introduction Renal cell carcinoma comprises over 90% of renal cancers, thus, it is the most common form of renal neoplasia. This carcinoma can often present itself in a variable fashion, ranging from incidentalomas to metastatic diseases. Furthermore, the most common metastasis associated with this type of carcinoma occurs in the lungs, bones or liver. We aim to report a case of renal cell carcinoma which presented together with a fibromixoid sarcoma. Case presentation A 50 year-old woman presented with hematuria, weight loss, asthenia and right lumbar pain that started 7 months prior to the consult. CT scan was performed and revealed a solid injury of 10 cm in the right kidney together with a mass in the left flank. Total right nephrectomy was promptly performed and the patient was submitted 3 months later to a tumoral resection of the abdominal wall. Histopathological findings revealed a primary renal cell carcinoma and the second, metastatic tumor was shown to be a fibromixoid sarcoma. The patient was not submitted to chemotherapy and is currently under follow-up with the surgery and oncology staffs, without showing any symptoms. Discussion Renal cell carcinoma usually presents itself together with secondary tumors on the lungs and bones. The association of this type of carcinoma with a fibromixoid sarcoma of the abdominal wall is rare and poorly reported in the literature. Conclusion This case reports shows a successful treatment regarding this rare association, which can help other physicians to re-evaluate their medical conduct.

For the manufacturing of glass-ceramic products, a monolithic glass is prepared using the same technologies for the conventional glass production, followed by a thermal-treatment of nucleation and crystal growth. An alternative process could be the production of glass-ceramic materials by pressing of glass powders and densification by sintering. In this way, the same equipment used in a traditional ceramic tile plant could be used to produce components with complex geometry. In this work, the single-firing process was used to obtain LAS glass-ceramic (Li2O.Al2O3.SiO2) tiles. The aim of the work was to determine the effect of particle size, pressing and sintering temperature on the bending strength and thermal expansion coefficient of the glass-ceramic tiles. The raw materials were melted in alumina crucibles (1480 °C, 80 min) and the obtained glass was quenched in water and annealed (600 °C). The glass was milled for 1 and 2 h (ball mill), resulting in two particle sizes, 9.1 μm (1 h) and 22 μm (2 h). The powders were granulated and pressed at 35 and 45 MPa, resulting in four processing conditions. In sequence, the compacts were dried (150 °C, 24 h) and sintered at 1175 and 1185 °C (10 °C/min heating rate). The microstructure of the glass-ceramic tiles was determined by SEM and XRD techniques. The bending strength was determined by the 3-point method and the thermal expansion coefficient (CTE) was determined by dilatometry. As a result, LAS glass-ceramics tiles were obtained, showing high modulus of flexural strength (70–80 MPa) and very low thermal expansion coefficients (1.2–1.4 × 10−6 °C−1). Surface crystallization was achieved and the main phase was β-spodumene. Sintering was simultaneous to crystallization, in a typical one-step process.

This article presents the study and application of techniques for evaluating photovoltaic modules, in relation to dirt, temperature along with the main forms of visual degradation to which the materials constituting the photovoltaic modules of multicrystalline technology may be subject and their respective impacts on the performance of the generation of electric energy. To this end, 48 photovoltaic modules were analyzed from 5 different models, which totaled a power peak of 10.16 kWp derived from the photovoltaic system installed at the Research Laboratory of Power Electronics at the Federal University of Uberlândia-Brazil (NUPEP-FEELT-UFU). Initially, all the modules were appropriately cleaned. With the purpose of evaluating any endured degradation, a visual inspection was performed, and for the analysis of heat distribution across the surface of the modules, thermographic images were obtained and evaluated with the aim of identifying hots-pots, then these signs were related to the degradation identified during the inspection. In addition, with the objective to quantify the impact of failures in electrical performance, the curves I-V and P-V were measured in loco in 2017 and 2018, both individually and as a string, in order to obtain the main electric parameters.

Trueperella pyogenes is an opportunistic pathogen associated with a variety of diseases and responsible for important economic losses for pig production. Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Pulsed Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE) typing analysis were used to determine the MIC distribution and to genetically characterize a total of 180 T. pyogenes isolates obtained from slaughtered pigs reared under intensive (TpIN, n = 89) and extensive (TpEX, n = 91) farming practices. Low MIC 90 values for penicillin and amoxicillin (0.008 and 0.06 μg/ml, respectively), ceftiofur, gentamicin and enrofloxacin (1 μg/ml, respectively) were obtained, so they could be of choice for the empiric treatment of T. pyogenes infections. Except for the penicillin, amoxicillin and ceftiofur, a statistically significant difference was observed in the MIC distribution of all antimicrobials analysed between TpIN and TpEX isolates. Also, MIC 90 values were higher in TpIN than in TpEX isolates for neomycin and streptomycin (32 μg/ml vs 8 μg/ml), sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim (30.4/1.6 μg/ml vs 1.90/0.10 μg/ml) and tylosin (≥1024 μg/ml vs 1 μg/ml). A relatively lower genetic diversity was detected in TpIN in comparison with TpEX isolates (GD 0.42 and GD 0.47, respectively). All isolates were distributed in three clusters (A, B, C). TpIN isolates were statistically associated with cluster A (P = 0.0002; OR 3.21; CI 95 1.74–5.93), whereas the TpEX were distributed throughout the dendrogram, showing more genetic diversity. These data suggest that the antimicrobial susceptibility and genetic variability of the T. pyogenes isolates could be influenced by the management systems.

Salmonella spp., Campylobacter spp. and Listeria monocytogenes have a significant impact on public health with slaughterhouses providing many opportunities for the proliferation of pathogenic bacteria. To evaluate the prevalence and diversity of these microorganisms along the free-range pork production chain, a total of 750 samples (5 samples/animal; 15 animals/farm; 5 farms/slaughterhouse) were collected from two slaughterhouses and analysed by specific ISO methodologies. Salmonella spp. (12.93%, CI 95 10.72–15.52%), Campylobacter spp. (17.17%, CI 95 13.00–21.74%) and L. monocytogenes (9.07%, CI 95 7.21–11.33%) were recovered at different stages of the production chain, with the highest prevalence detected in tonsils for Salmonella spp. (30.67%, CI 95 23.85–38.44%) and L. monocytogenes (39.33%, CI 95 31.87–47.32%) and in faeces for Campylobacter spp. (57.33%, CI 95 49.33–64.96%). Thirteen different Salmonella serotypes were detected with monophasic Salmonella Typhimurium as the most frequent one. C. coli , C. jejuni and L. monocytogenes serotype 4b and 1/2a were also identified. A significant higher prevalence of Salmonella spp. in total and from skin samples in slaughterhouse B than in slaughterhouse A was detected. In addition, a higher, although not significant, prevalence of the selected pathogens was observed in meat samples from slaughterhouse B with respect to slaughterhouse A (10.67% vs 0% for Campylobacter spp.; and 4% vs 0% for Salmonella spp. and L. monocytogenes ). Our results highlight the risk of contamination of pork meat by the microorganisms under study and point out the importance of implementing specific control measures.

The safety of ready-to-eat products such as cured pork loins must be guaranteed by the food industry. In the present study, the efficacy of the dry curing process of pork loins obtained from free-range pigs in the reduction of three of the most important foodborne pathogens is analysed. A total of 28 pork loin segments, with an average weight of 0.57±0.12kg, were divided into four groups with three being inoculated by immersion with 7logCFU/ml of either Salmonella Typhimurium, Campylobacter coli or Listeria innocua and the last one inoculated by immersion with sterile medium (control group). The loin segments were treated with a seasoning mixture of curing agents and spices, packed in a synthetic sausage casing and cured for 64days. Microbiological analysis, pH and water activity (aw) were assessed at four stages. The values of pH and aw decreased with curing time as expected. S. Typhimurium and C. coli dropped significantly (3.28 and 2.14 log units, respectively), but limited reduction of L. innocua (0.84 log unit) was observed along the curing process. In our study, three factors were considered critical: the initial concentration of the bacteria, the progressive reduction of pH and the reduction of aw values. Our results encourage performing periodic analysis at different stages of the manufacturing of dry cured pork loins to ensure the absence of the three evaluated foodborne pathogens.

The quadrangular space is a space in the axilla bounded by the inferior margin of the teres minor muscle, the superior margin of the teres major muscle, the lateral margin of the long head of the triceps brachii muscle and the surgical neck of the humerus, medially. The axillary nerve (C5-C6) and the posterior circumflex humeral artery and veins pass through this space in order to supply their territories. The subscapularis muscle is situated into the scapular fossa and inserts itself into the lesser tubercle of the humerus, thus helping stabilize the shoulder joint. A supernumerary muscle known as accessory subscapularis muscle originates from the anterior surface of the muscle and usually inserts itself into the shoulder joint. It is a rare variation with few reports of its existence and incidence. We present a case of the accessory subscapularis muscle in a male cadaver fixated with a 10% formalin solution. The muscle passed anteriorly to the axillary nerve, thus, predisposing an individual to quadrangular space compression syndrome. We perform a review of the literature and address its clinical, anthropological and anatomical significance.

Dry-cured hams, shoulders and loins of Iberian pigs are highly appreciated in national and international markets. Salting, additive addition and dehydration are the main strategies to produce these ready-to-eat products. Although the dry curing process is known to reduce the load of well-known food borne pathogens, studies evaluating the viability of other microorganisms in contaminated pork have not been performed. In this work, the efficacy of the dry curing process to eliminate three swine pathogens associated with pork carcass condemnation, Streptococcus suis, Streptococcus dysgalactiae and Trueperella pyogenes, was evaluated. Results of this study highlight that the dry curing process is a suitable method to obtain safe ready-to-eat products free of these microorganisms. Although salting of dry-cured shoulders had a moderate bactericidal effect, results of this study suggest that drying and ripening were the most important stages to obtain dry-cured products free of these microorganisms.

Objective The incremental shuttle walking test (ISWT) is used to estimate cardiorespiratory fitness, but data from healthy individuals suggest that demographic and anthropometric measures account for much of the variance in test performance. The aim of this study was to determine whether anthropometric, demographic and selected gait measures also predict ISWT performance (i.e. distance walked) in patients with cardiovascular disease. Design Observational study. Setting A community-based cardiac rehabilitation centre (Cohort 1) and a hospital outpatient cardiac rehabilitation programme (Cohort 2). Participants Sixteen patients with clinically stable cardiovascular disease (Cohort 1) and 113 patients undergoing cardiac rehabilitation (Cohort 2). Interventions Patients in Cohort 1 performed the ISWT on two occasions. Anthropometric data and walking and turning variables were collected. Linear regression analyses were used to identify the predictors of test performance. The authors subsequently attempted to validate the equation created by comparing predicted and actual ISWT values in a larger (n = 113) validation sample (Cohort 2). Main outcome measures Distance walked during ISWT, step length and height. Results No gait or turning measures were significantly associated with ISWT performance. Distance walked correlated most strongly with step length (r = 0.83, P < 0.05) and height (r = 0.74, P < 0.05). Given the similarity of these correlations and the rarity of step length assessment in clinical practice, ISWT performance was predicted using patient’s height; this explained 55% of the variance in ISWT performance. Height was also the best predictor in Cohort 2, explaining 17% of test variance (P < 0.01). Body mass index explained an additional 3% of variance (P < 0.05) in ISWT performance. Conclusions Routine clinical measures, particularly patient’s height, are predictive of ISWT performance. The findings of the present study are in partial agreement with similar studies performed in healthy individuals, and it remains unclear whether the ISWT performance of patients with cardiovascular disease is influenced by the same factors as the ISWT performance of healthy individuals. © 2013 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of Chartered Society of Physiotherapy.

Biochemical profiles, PFGE typing and MLST analysis were used to investigate an outbreak of septicaemic pasteurellosis in a free-range pig farm in Spain. Signs of coughing, dyspnoea and a visible inflammation of the ventral area of the neck (jowl), which acquired a cyanotic and necrotic appearance, were the characteristic findings in affected animals, associated with a high morbidity (70%) and case mortality (95%). Diffuse, haemorrhagic and fibrinous pleuroneumonia and acute, focally extensive and haemorrhagic myositis and panniculitis were observed in the histopathological analysis from three analyzed animals. Pasteurella multocida subsp. multocida, capsular type B, biovar 13 was isolated in pure culture from lung, submandibular tissue (jowl), liver, spleen and kidney tissue from diseased pigs. After PFGE typing, all P. multocida isolates displayed undistinguishable macrorestriction patterns with Bsp120I restriction enzyme demonstrating that the infection was caused by a single strain. With the multihost P. multocida MLST database, all P. multocida isolates were assigned to the new sequence type ST47 which was highly related with other bovine isolates of P. multocida type B associated with haemorrhagic septicaemia. This is the first description of an outbreak of septicaemic pasteurellosis in free-range pigs associated with P. multocida type B of the unusual biovar 13. The communication and complete diagnosis of cases of swine septicaemia and the possible role of pigs as reservoirs of this new pathogen must be evaluated to determine the importance of this disease for pigs.

To clarify the effects of low sound pressure level (LSPL) infrasound on local bone turnover and explore its underlying mechanisms, femoral defected rats were stabilized with a single-side external fixator. After exposure to LSPL infrasound for 30 min twice everyday for 6 weeks, the pertinent features of bone healing were assessed by radiography, peripheral quantitative computerized tomography (pQCT), histology and immunofluorescence assay. Infrasound group showed a more consecutive and smoother process of fracture healing and modeling in radiographs and histomorphology. It also showed significantly higher average bone mineral content (BMC) and bone mineral density (BMD). Immunofluorescence showed increased expression of calcitonin gene related peptide (CGRP) and decreased Neuropeptide Y (NPY) innervation in microenvironment. The results suggested the osteogenesis promotion effects of LSPL infrasound in vivo. Neuro-osteogenic network in local microenvironment was probably one target mediating infrasonic osteogenesis, which might provide new strategy to accelerate bone healing and remodeling.

Recent studies have demonstrated that spatial patterns of fMRI BOLD activity distribution over the brain may be used to classify different groups or mental states. These studies are based on the application of advanced pattern recognition approaches and multivariate statistical classifiers. Most published articles in this field are focused on improving the accuracy rates and many approaches have been proposed to accomplish this task. Nevertheless, a point inherent to most machine learning methods (and still relatively unexplored in neuroimaging) is how the discriminative information can be used to characterize groups and their differences. In this work, we introduce the Maximum Uncertainty Linear Discrimination Analysis (MLDA) and show how it can be applied to infer groups' patterns by discriminant hyperplane navigation. In addition, we show that it naturally defines a behavioral score, i.e., an index quantifying the distance between the states of a subject from predefined groups. We validate and illustrate this approach using a motor block design fMRI experiment data with 35 subjects.

The purpose of this study was to validate diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging in the prediction of the evolutive course of brain edema and to establish its pathophysiologic presence in patients with eclampsia/severe preeclampsia.Seventeen patients with a clinical diagnosis of severe eclampsia/preeclampsia and T2 hyperintense brain lesions on routine magnetic resonance imaging were evaluated at hospital admission and 8 weeks later.Brain edema was reversible in 13 patients and irreversible in 4 patients, as indicated on follow-up magnetic resonance imaging. Sixteen of 17 patients were differentiated accurately into reversible and irreversible groups on the basis of diffusion imaging on hospital admission. Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated a significant increase in water mobility in abnormal regions compared with normal-appearing brains in patients in the reversible group (1.34+/-0.10 mm(2) vs 0.79+/-0.08 mm(2)/s x 10(-3), P.001). In the irreversible group, restricted water diffusion was present, which was consistent with cytotoxic edema and early brain infarction in 3 of 4 patients.Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging can predict successfully the evolutive course of brain edema in an acute setting in these patients. Our findings indicate that brain edema is vasogenic, although ischemic/cytotoxic edema was observed less commonly.

The method of partial Fourier transform is used to find explicit formulas for two remarkable fundamental solutions for a generalized Tricomi operator. These fundamental solutions reflect clearly the mixed type of the Tricomi operator. In proving these results, we establish explicit formulas for Fourier transforms of some functions involving Bessel functions.

Joao Ricardo Sato1,4, Carlos Eduardo Thomaz2, Ellison Fernando Cardoso1, Andre Fujita3, Maria da Graca Morais Martin1, Edson Amaro Jr1 1 NIF/LIM44 – Institute of Radiology, Hospital das Clinicas, University of Sao Paulo – Brazil. 2 Centro Universitario da FEI, Sao Paulo – Brazil. 3 Institute of Medical Sciences, University of Tokyo – Japan 4 Mathematics, Computation and Cognition Center –Universidade Federal do ABC Brazil email : joao.sato@ufabc.edu.br