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In the Brazilian Amazon, almost 4 million people lack access to adequate sanitation services, and part of this population still practices open defecation. To contribute to successful public policies, this article explores the factors that motivate rural riverine residents from Central Amazon to adopt and/or use toilets. From interviews, Focus Group Discussion and Content Analysis, it was verified that the main motivations are comfort and convenience in using a toilet and the protection it offers against dangerous animals or when it is raining. It was also found that privacy is a strong and authentic motivation for women, and that it meets the Sustainable Development Goals. These results contribute to regionalized sanitation programs, which must take into account the opinion of those who benefit from the implementation of sanitation social technologies.

In this letter, we fabricated cadmium sulfide (CdS)-based hybrid thin-film transistors (TFTs) using Poly(vinylphenol) (PVP) as the polymer dielectric gate. The synthesis of PVP crosslinked with trimethoxy propyl silane was made by solution processing, and the films were deposited by a dip-coating technique. The PVP films were cured at 200 °C after deposition, which was the highest temperature for the devices processing. The CdS films were deposited at room temperature using a UV photo-assisted chemical bath deposition technique. These dielectric layers have low leakage current density (10−8 A/cm2) and a high dielectric constant of 4.7 at 1 kHz. The TFTs exhibited superior performance with a low threshold voltage of 0.3 V, ${I}_{ \mathrm{\scriptscriptstyle ON}/ \mathrm{\scriptscriptstyle OFF}}$ current ratio of 105, subthreshold slope 0.25 V/dec, and a high mobility 36.1 cm $^{\textsf {2}}\text{V}^{-\textsf {1}}\text{s}^{-\textsf {1}}$ at operating voltages less than 3 V. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Resumo: Este estudo apresenta uma avaliação dos impactos de saúde e social com base na implantação de sistemas de abastecimento de água em comunidades ribeirinhas na Região do Médio Solimões, Estado do Amazonas, Brasil. Os dados foram levantados em 21 comunidades rurais, dentre elas 19 que receberam a tecnologia de acesso à água de forma experimental nos últimos 14 anos. Para a comparação, participaram da pesquisa três comunidades rurais que não receberam a tecnologia. A metodologia utilizada foi quanti/quali, com aplicação das técnicas: grupos focais, entrevistas semiestruturadas, questionários, exames parasitólogicos e análise da qualidade da água. Avaliou-se que mesmo não ocorrendo a redução da prevalência de parasitoses, os sistemas apresentaram impactos quanto ao conforto, a privacidade e na redução do tempo gasto em atividades domésticas, como buscar água no rio ou lavar roupas e vasilhas fora do domicílio. Os impactos apontam para a melhoria das condições de vida com base na perspectiva do bem-estar.

Ion distributions in the 38 mm cross section of a drift tube for ion mobility spectrometry were determined using a charge accumulation IonCCD with imaging capability of 2126 pixels each 21 μm wide. A 10 mCi Ni ion source with concentric cylinder geometry was examined experimentally using a drift tube with compressed rings separated by sapphire balls. Results were compared to computational findings from SIMION to learn the influence of source geometry on equipotential contours and on beam shapes. Swarms of ions formed in air at ambient pressure were shaped though field contours into ion beams which retained shape over the 45 mm drift length in an electric field of 30 V/mm. The IonCCD images revealed subtle beam alignments from azimuthal asymmetry of the source and holder not possible to see in a simple Faraday plate detector. Double slit experiments demonstrated a capability to shape ion beams with mechanical structures over a drift tube cross section. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R) gene on plumage color in chickens. The gene was sequenced in 77 males and 77 females from 13 Spanish breeds, carrying 6 different alleles in the E locus (E*E, E*R, E*WH, E*N, E*B, E*BC), a recessive wheaten (yellowish-white) tester line (E*Y), and a White Leghorn population (heterozygous E*E). A total of 11 significant SNP were detected. Nine of them were nonsyn-onymous (T212C, G274A, G376A, T398AC, G409A, A427G, C637T, A644C, and G646A, corresponding to amino acid changes Met72Thr, Glu92Lys, Vall26Ile, Leul33GlnPro, Alal37Thr, Thrl43Ala, Arg213Cys, His215Pro, and Val216Ile), and 2 were synonymous (C69T and C834T). With respect to the significant SNP, 7 had an allelic frequency of 0.5 or greater for some of the alleles at the E locus. These results indicated a significant correlation between MC1R polymorphism and the presence of different alleles at the E locus. All the populations carrying the E*E or E*R alleles, except the Birchen Leonesa, had the G274A polymorphism. Eleven haplotypes were made with 7 of the significant SNP. The distribution of these haplotypes in the different alleles of the E locus showed that each haplotype was predominantly associated to one allele. The number of haplotypes was greatest for the Black Menorca, Birchen Leonesa, and Blue Andaluza breeds, whereas the Quail Castellana and Red-barred Vasca breeds were monomorphic. Our results suggested that the Glu92Lys mutation may be responsible of the activation of the receptor for eumelanin production, being necessary but not sufficient to express the extended black phenotype. They also suggested that the Arg213Cys mutation may be the cause of the loss or the decrease of function of the receptor to produce eumelanin, and the Alal37Thr mutation may be a candidate to attenuate the Glu-92Lys effect. The observed co-segregation of the E locus alleles and polymorphisms in MC1R confirms that the E locus is equivalent to MC1R. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on three cases of paragonimiasis, a parasitic disease caused by Paragonimus trematodes or lung flukes, diagnosed between July 2006 and September 2010 in individuals who had consumed raw crayfish from rivers in Missouri. Six additional cases were diagnosed in the same state between September 2009 and September 2010. The two cases in October 2009 has led the state's Department of Health and Senior Services (MDHSS), Department of Natural Resources and the Division of Tourism to distribute posters warning against eating raw crayfish.

In this retrospective study, 18 patients with war injuries of the shoulder were reviewed to evaluate the technical problems associated with external fixation and to analyze the incidence of infection and late functional results. The average patient age was 28.5 years. All patients were male. Thirteen patients had explosive wounds, whereas five wounds were caused by gunshot missiles. All injuries were extensive in terms of bone and soft tissue defects. Six patients presented with complex injuries involving neurovascular structures. Sixteen patients were treated with external fixation. Application of the proximal pins of the external fixator through the humeral head was possible in eight patients, the scapula served as the site of proximal fixation in four patients, only the clavicle was available for placement of pins in two patients, and both the scapula and the clavicle had to be pinned to achieve proximal stabilization in two patients. In two patients, fixation was not possible and early amputation was performed. Infection was eventually eradicated in all patients, allowing for adequate soft tissue coverage of the wounds. Analysis of functional results at an average of 6 years after the injury showed a considerable degree of functional deficit in most patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Benzoquinones are usually present in arthropod defence exudates. Here, we describe the chemical profiles of 12 harvestman species belonging to the neotropical family Gonyleptidae. Nine of the studied species produced benzoquinones, while three produced alkyl phenols. Two benzoquinones and one phenol exhibited biological activity against bacteria and fungi. We also studied the biosynthesis of 2-ethyl-1,4-benzoquinone by feeding Magnispina neptunus individuals with 13C-labelled precursors; the benzoquinones were biosynthesised through a polyketide pathway using acetate and propionate building blocks.

Abstract Background Lepidium meyenii Walp. (Brassicaceae), known as Maca, is a Peruvian hypocotyl growing exclusively between 4000 and 4500 m altitude in the central Peruvian Andes, particularly in Junin plateau and is used traditionally to enhance fertility. Maca is a cultivated plant and different cultivars are described according to the color of the hypocotyls. Methods The study aimed to elucidate the effect of Yellow, Red and Black Maca on cognitive function and depression in ovariectomized (OVX) mice. In all experiments OVX mice were treated during 21 days and divided in four groups: control group, Yellow Maca, Red Maca and Black Maca. Latent learning was assessed using the water finding task and the antidepressant activity of the three varieties of Maca was evaluated using the forced swimming test. Animals were sacrificed at the end of each treatment and the uterus were excised and weighed. Results Black Maca was the variety that showed the best response in the water finding task, particularly in the trained mice. The three varieties were effective to reduce finding latency in non trained and trained mice (P < 0.05). In the force swimming test, all varieties assessed reduced the time of immobility and increased uterine weight in OVX mice. Conclusion Black Maca appeared to have more beneficial effects on latent learning in OVX mice; meanwhile, all varieties of Maca showed antidepressant activity.

The utility of quality-of-life (QoL) measurements in daily clinical practice of cancer patients has been shown to influence decision making in 30.1% of medical interventions and in 63.2% of non-medical interventions. The purpose of our study was to assess the QoL of patients treated with radiotherapy at an upper middle-income country (UMIC). Fifty-five patients that were treated with 3D-conformal, Intensity-modulated radiation therapy, or Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy techniques from September 2021 to December 2021(four months). QoL was assessed using (QLQ-C30) in Spanish with the permission from the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC). This was administered in-person before radiotherapy (RT) and six weeks after treatment via phone. A linear transformation to standardize the raw score was applied according to the EORTC QLC-30 Scoring Manual. Data analysis was performed using Stata 12 to compare the global health status, functional scale, symptom scale, mean scores and standard deviations with the EORTC Reference Values for cancer patients. Of the 55 patients treated with RT, 42 (76.4%) were female, 35 (63.6%) were ≥50 years old, with most being diagnosed with cervical (32.7%) and breast cancer (14.5%). Compared with the pre-RT scores at 6 weeks after RT completion, patients had a significant increase in their global health status from 62.2 to 71.78 compared to the baseline assessment (p value 0.06). Emotional functioning, fatigue, pain and insomnia showed no significant differences compared to before treatment. Further studies are needed in UMICs to understand how patient education and pretreatment information can help patients undergoing radiation therapy to cope with the process of therapy to better estimate predictors of quality of life after radiation therapy, and to see if patient reported QoL recovers over time at different timeline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]