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Every year, many agricultural wastes such as rice straw are produced in different countries that need to be managed and converted into valuable materials. The present study was planned to design a bioprocess for fast production of enriched biocompost from rice straw (RS) as an available lignocellulosic biomass. Three native bacterial strains (MC: 107 cells/gram RS), chicken manure (CM), and vinasse were used as starter cultures and accelerators, respectively. The research was conducted in a completely randomized design with five treatments (each 18 kg) in insulated composters. The treatments included RS as control; RS and chicken manure (CM) (T1); RS, CM, and microbial cocktail (MC) (T2); RS, CM, vinasse, and MC (T3); and RS, vinasse, and MC (T4). Treatment T2 showed maximum changes in bulk density, color, odor, pH, EC, and temperature increase (55 °C). Significant reduction of C/N and NH4+/NO3− (36%) ratios and a maximum increase of nutrient content were observed for T2. In the supplementary experiment that followed, application of T2 (5% w/w) showed significant effects on wheat growth factors, including plant height (47.11 cm), leaf area (15.35 cm2), fresh weight (3.18 g), dry weight (0.57 g), and special leaf area. The use of native effective microorganisms and chicken manure enhanced efficient lignocellulose degradation, reduced the composting process time, and increased the quality of the compost from RS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recently adopted Ariel ESA mission will measure the atmospheric composition of a large number of exoplanets. This information will then be used to better constrain planetary bulk compositions. While the connection between the composition of a planetary atmosphere and the bulk interior is still being investigated, the combination of the atmospheric composition with the measured mass and radius of exoplanets will push the field of exoplanet characterisation to the next level, and provide new insights of the nature of planets in our galaxy. In this white paper, we outline the ongoing activities of the interior working group of the Ariel mission, and list the desirable theoretical developments as well as the challenges in linking planetary atmospheres, bulk composition and interior structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of extrasolar planets and of the Solar System provides complementary pieces of the mosaic represented by the process of planetary formation. Exoplanets are essential to fully grasp the huge diversity of outcomes that planetary formation and the subsequent evolution of the planetary systems can produce. The orbital and basic physical data we currently possess for the bulk of the exoplanetary population, however, do not provide enough information to break the intrinsic degeneracy of their histories, as different evolutionary tracks can result in the same final configurations. The lessons learned from the Solar System indicate us that the solution to this problem lies in the information contained in the composition of planets. The goal of the Atmospheric Remote-Sensing Infrared Exoplanet Large-survey (ARIEL), one of the three candidates as ESA M4 space mission, is to observe a large and diversified population of transiting planets around a range of host star types to collect information on their atmospheric composition. ARIEL will focus on warm and hot planets to take advantage of their well-mixed atmospheres, which should show minimal condensation and sequestration of high-Z materials and thus reveal their bulk composition across all main cosmochemical elements. In this work we will review the most outstanding open questions concerning the way planets form and the mechanisms that contribute to create habitable environments that the compositional information gathered by ARIEL will allow to tackle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: We analyzed the lumbosacral segmental geometry and clinical outcome in patients undergoing L5 corpectomy. Methods: Fourteen consecutive patients who underwent L5 (n = 12) or L4 + 5 (n = 2) corpectomy at our department between January 2010 and April 2015 were included. All patients underwent a baseline physical and neurologic examination on admission. The diagnostic routine included MRI and CT scans and, if possible, an upright X-ray of the lumbar spine before and after surgery. The local lordosis angle [L4(L3)-S1] was measured. Results: The most common pathology was infection (N = 7), followed by neoplastic disease (n = 3), pseudarthrosis (n = 2) after previous spinal fusion procedures and burst fractures (n = 2) of the L5 vertebral body. We observed seven complications (2 intraoperative; 5 postoperative) in five (36%) patients. Three patients needed revision surgery because of cage subsidence and/or dislodgement (21%). Additional anterior plating was used in two of the revision surgeries to secure the cage. Two spondylodiscitis patients (14%) with complications died of sepsis. Of the 12 remaining patients, 8 were available for follow-up. Conclusion: L5 corpectomy is a technically challenging but feasible procedure even though the overall complication rate can be as high as 36%. The radiologic and clinical outcome seems to be better in patients with a small lordosis angle between L4(L3) and S1, since an angle of >50 degrees seems to facilitate cage dislodgement. Anterior plating should be considered in these cases to prevent implant failure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Minimally invasive spine surgery (MISS) has been increasingly advocated during the last decade with new studies being reported every year. Minimally invasive spine procedures, such as minimally invasive transforaminal interbody fusion (MI-TLIF), have been introduced to reduce approach-related muscle trauma, to minimise blood loss, and to achieve faster wound healing, quicker ambulation and earlier patient discharge. Methods: The aim of this article was to give a comprehensive review of the available English literature comparing open TLIF with MI-TLIF techniques published or available online between 1990 and 2014 as identified by an electronic database search on . Fourteen relevant studies comparing MI-TLIF and open TLIF cohorts could be identified. Results and conclusion: MI-TLIF seems to be a valid alternative to open TLIF. Both methods yield good clinical results with similar improvements of Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and visual analogue scale (VAS) on follow-up. There seems to be no significant differences in clinical outcome and fusion rates on comparison. These results are consistent throughout all reported studies in this review. The most pronounced benefits of MI-TLIF are a significant reduction of blood loss, shorter lengths of hospital stay (LOHS) and lower surgical site infection rates. On the downside, MI-TLIF seems to be associated with significantly higher intraoperative radiation doses, a shallow learning curve, at least in the beginning, longer operating times and potentially more frequent implant failures/cage displacements and revision surgeries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epinephrine, in high doses, exhibits cardiotoxicity that is associated with excessive production of free radicals. Melatonin is antioxidant and free radical scavenger with cardioprotective properties. In our study, cardioprotective effects of melatonin against epinephrine cardiotoxicity were explored in the model of isolated rat heart. In the melatonin group, melatonin (50 μmol/l) was present in the perfusion solution during the whole experiment. In the control group, perfusion solution contained no melatonin. In both of the groups, after 30 min of initial perfusion, epinephrine was applied during 2 min directly into the heart and led to its strong stimulation. Changes in the heart function and arrhythmogenesis were evaluated before application of epinephrine and after the decline of its acute effects. No significant differences were observed during the initial perfusion. However, in the 15th and 20th minute after epinephrine application, indexes of ventricular contraction and relaxation were significantly higher in the melatonin group. Likewise, the values of the left ventricular developed pressure were significantly increased in this group in the 15th minute. These differences indicate better preservation of contraction and relaxation in the melatonin-treated group. Parameters of arrhythmogenesis-arrhythmia score, incidence and total duration of severe ventricular arrhythmias, were not significantly different between the experimental groups. However, their markedly lower average values in the melatonin-treated group suggest the reduction of electrical instability by melatonin. In conclusion, the obtained data confirm cardioprotective properties of melatonin and fill in the mosaic of information that can lead to the usage of melatonin as a therapeutic tool. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the division of domestic labor in low-income cohabiting Black stepfamilies. We analyze survey data collected from 136 such families in order to understand how stepparent gender and relationship length impact the distribution of domestic labor. We hypothesize that women do more domestic work than men across all three family types, and that stepfathers are more involved in domestic labor in established relationships compared to new relationships. Findings indicate that cohabiting stepfathers in both new and established cohabiting Black stepfamilies make substantial contributions to domestic labor. These families demonstrate a division of labor consistent with traditional gender roles, though both partners agree on how much work each does. Parents, regardless of gender, are more involved in domestic labor than stepparents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Activated carbons (AC) have been long recognized as prominent absorbents in industries and feature numerous applications in preventing or absorbing the harmful gases and liquids and could be employed for filtration and remediation or even reutilization of chemicals. In order to investigate the capacity of AC in reducing the absorption of heavy metals (HM) including lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) and dual complex (Pb × Cd) by spinach, a factorial experiment in a completely randomized design with three replications on a pot trial was conducted. Three factors including five levels of AC 0, 5000, 10000, 15000, 20000 mg/kg soil, one concentration level of Pb 4,000 mg/kg soil and one concentration level of cadmium Cd 8 mg/kg soil were tested. The index of heavy metal concentration was calculated in leaf, stem and root and their corresponding dry weights. Results illustrated that in contaminated soils, plants with AC exhibited a superior reduction of absorption of HM vis-à-vis the plants without AC. The foremost result regarding the impact of AC on reducing the concentration of Pb and Cd was observed in 20,000 level of AC. This reveals that AC declined the soil contamination and lessened the accumulation of HM into the shoots and roots. Results suggest that the application of AC may be an eligible solution for decreasing the translocation of HM into the plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]