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Background: The standard treatment of osteosarcoma includes cisplatin and high-dose methotrexate (HDMTX); both agents exert significant toxicity, and HDMTX requires complex pharmacokinetic monitoring and leucovorin rescue. In the previous OS91 trial, the treatment of localized disease with carboplatin, ifosfamide, doxorubicin, and HDMTX yielded outcomes comparable to those of cisplatin-based regimens and caused less toxicity. To build on this experience, the authors conducted a multi-institutional trial (OS99) that evaluated the efficacy of carboplatin, ifosfamide, and doxorubicin without HDMTX in patients with newly diagnosed, localized, resectable osteosarcoma.Methods: Treatment was comprised of 12 cycles of chemotherapy administered over 35 weeks: 3 cycles of carboplatin (dose targeted to area under the concentration-time curve of 8 mg/mL × min on Day 1) and ifosfamide (at a dose of 2.65 g/m(2) daily ×3 days) and 1 cycle of doxorubicin (at a dose of 25 mg/m(2) daily ×3 days) before surgical resection, followed by 2 additional cycles of the combination of carboplatin and ifosfamide and 3 cycles each of doxorubicin (25 mg/m(2) daily ×2 days) combined with ifosfamide or carboplatin.Results: A total of 72 eligible patients (median age, 13.4 years) were enrolled between May 1999 and May 2006. Forty of the 66 (60.6%) evaluable patients had good histologic responses (>90% tumor necrosis) to preoperative chemotherapy. The estimated 5-year event-free survival rate was 66.7% ± 7.0% for the OS99 trial compared with 66.0% ± 6.8% for the OS91 trial (P = .98). The estimated 5-year survival rate was 78.9% ± 6.3% for the OS99 trial and 74.5% ± 6.3% for the OS91 trial (P = .40).Conclusions: The regimen used in the OS99 trial was found to produce outcomes comparable to those of cisplatin-containing or HDMTX-containing regimens. This therapy offers a good alternative for patients, particularly those who demonstrate an intolerance of HDMTX, and for institutions that cannot provide pharmacokinetic monitoring for MTX. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The promotion effect of Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu and Zn sulfides on the hydrodesulfurization (HDS) activity of Mo and W sulfides, under experimental conditions like industrial ones, using staked beds, was studied. Synergism between staked beds in all the studied pairs, with a magnitude that leads a volcano curve with a maximum in Co and Ni sulfides was detected. Promotion was well explained by the formation of spillover hydrogen (Hso) in the first bed (in which Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu or Zn sulfides supported on γ-Al2O3 were located) that migrate to the second bed (in which Mo or W sulfides supported on γ-Al2O3 were located), 5mm below. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Forty-eight bulls were transported by road in groups of eight for approximately 30 min, 3 or 6 h in two replicates. After slaughter, steaks from the longissimus dorsi thoracis of all transported animals were analysed in terms of pH, water-holding capacity, myoglobin concentration, texture at 7 and 14 days of ageing (compression and Warner-Bratzler analyses) and colour of the same surface of meat cut at 24 h post-mortem and allowed to bloom for 24 h and 7 d (L&ast;a&ast;b&ast;, chroma and hue). The myofibrillar resistance of the meat from animals transported 30 min was significantly greater at 20% compression (P<0.05). The maximum load and a&ast;b&ast; and chroma were all lower for meat aged 14 days. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The indexing techniques most commonly applied in information retrieval systems associate weights to the terms of documents; this association is carried out in order to quantify the term's capacity for representing the document. Subsequently, these weights are used in query processing, playing an important role in the performance of the system. This work presents a method for the adjustment of index weights by processing text that has been highlighted by users. Text in a document is highlighted using an application which provides annotation facilities in order to support active reading. Highlighted text is supposed to be of special relevance and the method tries to improve the index weights of terms located in these highlighted fragments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

RESUMEN. El objetivo de este estudio fue desarrollar una formulación optimizada de mermelada dietética, aplicando la metodología Taguchi. La razón que se tuvo para seleccionar dentro del diseño experimental esta metodología de trabajo fue demostrar las ventajas que tiene la aplicación de diseños factoriales ortogonales a problemas que ocurren con bastante frecuentes en la industria alimentaria especialmente en el área de desarrollo de productos, cuando la respuesta que se busca depende de la influencia de múltiples variables. En esta ocasión se desarrolló una formulación de mermelada de damasco de bajocontenido energético tratando de obtener la mejor combinación de múltiples variables para lograr una calidad sensorial óptima. Se trabajó simultáneamente con cinco factores de control: acidez, espesante, edulcorante, aromatizante y tiempo, así como posibles interacciones entre algunas de ellas, aplicando el diseño ortogonal L8 (2(7)). Se elaboraron ocho formulaciones experimentales que se analizaron sensorialmente aplicando el test de puntaje compuesto y una escala descriptiva cuantitativa desde "1= Malo hasta 5= Muy bueno". El análisis estadístico permitió comprobar que los factores espesante, edulcorante y aromatizante afectaban significativamente "(pSUMMARY. Development of an optimized dietetic formulation of damask marmalade using the taguchi methodology. The goal of this present study was the development of an optimized formula of damask marmalade low in calories applying taguchi methodology to improve the quality of this product. The selection of this methodoly lies on the fact that in real life conditions the result of an experiment frequently depends on the influence of several variables, therefore, one expedite way to solve this problem is utilizing factorial designs. The influence of acid, thickener, sweetener and aroma additives, as well as time of cooking, and possible interactions among some of them, were studied trying to get the best combination of these factors to optimize the sensorial quality of an experimental formulation of dietetic damask marmalade. An orthogonal arrayL8(2(7)) was applied in this experience, as well as level average analysis was carried out according taguchi methodology to determine the suitable working levels of the design factors previously choiced, to achieve a desirable product quality. A sensory trained panel was utilized to analyze the marmalade samples using a composite scoring test with a descriptive cuantitative scale ranging from 1= Bad, 5= Good. It was demonstrated that the design factors sugar/aspartame, pectin and damask aroma had a significant effect(p

Andean fold-and-thrust belts (FTBs) in the western border of South America show important along-strike variations in their structural style (thin- or thick-skinned) and shortening magnitudes, among others. These variations can arise from multiple factors, such as depth-to-detachment, geometry, and thickness of underlying basins, structural highs, the competence of the units involved in deformation, pre-orogenic structure of the basement, the rheological state of the upper crust or latitudinal gradients in shortening, among others. We carry out a set of new analogue models to understand how two of these factors affect the development and the geometry of the thrust systems within the Andean Principal Cordillera and adjacent fold-and-thrust belts at 32°-34°S (La Ramada and Aconcagua FTBs). In this contribution, we present the results of analogue modeling of doubly-vergent thrust systems with a built-in heterogeneity that allow us to evaluate the influence of differential shortening and presence of competent blocks (of relatively higher cohesion) in the generation, evolution, and structural setting of Andean FTBs. We highlight that despite the similar pattern of differential shortening in the models, the presence of the competent block has a significant influence on the structural configuration and leads to greater topographic uplift. Differential shortening plays a role in accommodating deformation, but when a competent block is present, the faults bounding the block control the deformation, producing a notable curvature of the FTBs. Summarizing, the presence of a competent block significantly influences the structural configuration within a doubly-vergent thrust system, emphasizing the role of inherited architecture in the orogenic growth of the Southern Central Andes. • Analogue models were carried out to assess the impact of differential shortening and competent blocks on FTB formation. • We ran a series of models to establish comparisons with the Principal Cordillera and neighboring FTBs in the Central Andes. • We recognize that pre-orogenic architecture controls the structural development of the Southern Central Andes. • We recognize that competent blocks within a doubly-vergent wedge induces the generation of curved thrust systems. • We propose that differential shortening and competent blocks exert critical control on obliquity andmcurvatures of structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Text-based patient medical records are a vital resource in medical research. In order to preserve patient confidentiality, however, the U.S. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requires that protected health information (PHI) be removed from medical records before they can be disseminated. Manual de-identification of large medical record databases is prohibitively expensive, time-consuming and prone to error, necessitating automatic methods for large-scale, automated de-identification. Methods We describe an automated Perl-based de-identification software package that is generally usable on most free-text medical records, e.g., nursing notes, discharge summaries, X-ray reports, etc. The software uses lexical look-up tables, regular expressions, and simple heuristics to locate both HIPAA PHI, and an extended PHI set that includes doctors' names and years of dates. To develop the de-identification approach, we assembled a gold standard corpus of re-identified nursing notes with real PHI replaced by realistic surrogate information. This corpus consists of 2,434 nursing notes containing 334,000 words and a total of 1,779 instances of PHI taken from 163 randomly selected patient records. This gold standard corpus was used to refine the algorithm and measure its sensitivity. To test the algorithm on data not used in its development, we constructed a second test corpus of 1,836 nursing notes containing 296,400 words. The algorithm's false negative rate was evaluated using this test corpus. Results Performance evaluation of the de-identification software on the development corpus yielded an overall recall of 0.967, precision value of 0.749, and fallout value of approximately 0.002. On the test corpus, a total of 90 instances of false negatives were found, or 27 per 100,000 word count, with an estimated recall of 0.943. Only one full date and one age over 89 were missed. No patient names were missed in either corpus. Conclusion We have developed a pattern-matching de-identification system based on dictionary look-ups, regular expressions, and heuristics. Evaluation based on two different sets of nursing notes collected from a U.S. hospital suggests that, in terms of recall, the software out-performs a single human de-identifier (0.81) and performs at least as well as a consensus of two human de-identifiers (0.94). The system is currently tuned to de-identify PHI in nursing notes and discharge summaries but is sufficiently generalized and can be customized to handle text files of any format. Although the accuracy of the algorithm is high, it is probably insufficient to be used to publicly disseminate medical data. The open-source de-identification software and the gold standard re-identified corpus of medical records have therefore been made available to researchers via the PhysioNet website to encourage improvements in the algorithm.

Two Daphnia magna offsprings (animals from the first and third brood) whose parentals (F0-generation) were exposed during 21 days to different tetradifon (4-chlorophenyl 2,4,5-trichlophenyl sulfone) concentrations, were transferred to a pesticide free medium during 21 days (recovery period). The algae Nannochloris oculata (5x 105 cells/mL) was used as food. In this recovery study, survival, growth and reproduction (mean total young per female, mean brood size, onset of reproduction and mean number broods per female) were assessed as individual parameters and the intrinsic rate of natural increase (r) as population parameter, for F1 generation (1st and 3rd broods). Reproduction was still reduced in F1 (1stand 3rd broods) generation daphnids from parentals (F0) exposed to 0.18 mg/L tetradifon and higher concentrations even after 21 days in clean water. However, survival was not significantly different (p>0.05) in those F1 offsprings from parentals pre-exposed to the acaricide. Growth was still reduced in F1 daphnids from parentals pre-exposed to 0.10-0.44 mg/L tetradifon. The intrinsic rate of natural increase (r) was still affected in F1 generation daphnids, specially in those from the third brood. Therefore, F1 generation D. magna offsprings from a parental generation (F0) previously exposed to the acaricide tetradifon were not able to recuperate completely when a recovery period of 21 days was allowed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

El pulmón recibe sangre desde la circulación bronquial y pulmonar. La circulación pulmonar presenta importantes diferencias con la sistémica, sus vasos sanguíneos poseen características únicas que le permiten cumplir sus diferentes funciones, siendo la más importante el intercambio gaseoso. Existen múltiples factores, activos y pasivos, que están involucrados en la regulación de la resistencia vascular y flujo sanguíneo pulmonar.

The catalytic oxidation activity of structured macro/mesoporous Pt catalysts obtained by the one-step impregnated carbon procedure (ICP) with different binder/support combinations (sepiolite or mixtures with TiO 2 or Al 2 O 3 ) is compared to that of catalysts with the same composition obtained by conventional impregnation of the previously shaped support, with and without activated carbon as pore-generating agent. The superior results of the former are explained in terms of porosity and metal dispersion, estimated by calculation of the platinum apparent molar surface coverage from electrophoretic migration measurements. The big macropores generated reduce the internal diffusion limitations, facilitating the accessibility of the gaseous compounds to the active phase. However, the main improvement for these sepiolite-based monoliths must be mainly attributed to the good Pt dispersion obtained by this method, with metal particles smaller than 10 nm, confirming the role of the activated carbon template not only as a macroporosity generating agent, but also as a dispersant and stabilizer of the metal particles – preventing agglomeration – and as source of CO for in situ reduction of the precursor. In addition, the ICP method minimizes the calcination steps needed for the preparation of the catalyst. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute and chronic toxicity tests with the rice herbicides molinate (S-ethyl hexahydro-1H-azepine-1-carbothioate) and thiobencarb (S-4-chlorobenzyl diethyl thiocarbarnate) were conducted on the rotifer Brachionus calyciflorus. The 24-hr static LC50's were 11.37 and 47.82 mg.L-1 for molinate and thiobencarb, respectively. The effectsof sublethal levels of both herbicides on the rotifer B. calyciflorus were evaluated using some demographic parameters: intrinsic rate ofnatural increase (r), generation time (T) and net reproductive rate (Ro). All the parameters studied decreased with increasing toxicant concentrations. The maximum acceptable toxicant concentration (MATC) was calculated for both herbicides using the intrinsic rate of naturalincrease (r) as parameter of evaluation and the chronic data was used to calculate aplication factors (AF) of 0.062 and 0.066 mg.L-1 for molinate and thiobencarb, respectively. Finally, the EC-50values were derived for the selected life history parameters (Ro, T,r) of B. calyciflorus after exposure to both herbicides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The feeding behavior of the cladocera Daphnia magna was studied whenubjected to a short-term exposure to the acaricide tetradifon (4-chlorophenyl 2,4,5-trichlorophenyl sulfone). Test species were exposed to sublethal levels of tetradifon and the effect of the toxicant on filtration and ingestion rates was determined. The experiments were performed using the unicellular algae Nannachloris oculata in a density of 5 x 105 cells/mL as food for the organisms. Rates of filtration and ingestion of D. magna declined with increasing toxicant concentrations. The effective tetradifon concentrations in D. magna at which feeding rate were reduced to 50% of that in controls (EC50) were 0.02 and 0.24 mg/L for filtration and ingestion rates respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of proper environmental enrichment would be a useful tool to tackle the welfare problems associated with intensive indoor lamb production. This study analyses the effect of enrichment with double bunk and cereal straw on behaviour, use of space, stress response, productive traits and meat quality variables during the finishing phase of fattening lambs. Sixty lambs were placed in enriched (ED) or conventional (CO) pens (3 pens each treatment, 10 lambs/pen) where ED had a double bunk with ramps and cereal straw as bedding and forage. The CO pen was barren, similar to commercial feedlots, without straw or any other enrichment. The proposed ED had a positive effect on the behavioural characteristics of the lambs, which displayed a richer behavioural repertoire, fewer stereotypes and more affiliative interactions, improving group cohesion. Moreover, ED lambs had enhanced immunity and there were no discernible detrimental effects on performance or on the commercial quality of their meat. However, the enriched system proposed may pose difficulties for feedlot handling procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study analyses spatial preferences and behavioural patterns of lambs during fattening in straw enriched pens. Lambs were allocated in three replicates with 12 lambs each and housed in 6x6 m pens partially divided in two equal areas with and without straw bedding. Each pen was video-recorded continuously from 8 am to 8 pm on days 1, 5, 7, 14, 21 and 28. The use of different pen areas and the behaviour of the lambs were evaluated and analysed. The use of the space was significantly higher (p<0.05) for the straw area, where there was also more resting and affiliative interactions (p<0.05). In the areas without straw, animals walked more, remained standing longer periods (p<0.05) and had more stereotypic and aggressive behaviour (p<0.05). The study demonstrated that, when given the choice between two areas with similar resources, lambs prefer straw bedding. Straw is suggested to promote affiliation improving the adaptation to the feedlot. This could be useful to convince system managers that the availability of straw is beneficial to lamb welfare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pre-slaughter handling of fish can have important effects on product quality, although few studies have related fasting duration with water temperature and flesh quality in trout. In this study, 90 rainbow trout were fasted for 1, 2 and 3days (11.5, 22.9 and 34.1°C days, respectively) and slaughtered at 08H00, 14H00 and 20H00 to observe the effect of fasting duration and hour of slaughter on flesh quality indicators up to 72h post mortem. The values of the fasted fish were compared with 90 control fish kept under similar conditions but not fasted. Results indicate that the interaction between fasting, hour of slaughter and storage time had a significant effect on pH, rigor and water holding capacity, although differences were small. Flesh colour was more affected by storage time than fasting time, with a tendency for higher lightness (L*) values as storage time increased and lower a* and b*-values. Muscle glycogen and R-values were not affected by fasting or time of slaughter, although the high values of the latter indicate some kind of pre-slaughter stress. Overall, these results suggest that fasting up to 34°C days has little effect on fillet quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A series of V2O5–ZrO2–SO4 2−–sepiolite mixtures were extruded, calcined and characterised. NH3-SCR activity was found to be related to the content of the active VO X –ZrO2–SO4 2− phase (VSZ). The distribution of sepiolite and VSZ at the surface of the mechanical mixtures was studied by the electrophoretic migration technique. The samples were further characterised by nitrogen adsorption, NH3-TPD, XRD and scanning electron micrography techniques. The electrophoretic migration results showed that the addition of sepiolite to VSZ, by kneading in water, had a dramatic effect on the quantity of VO X –ZrO2–SO4 2− present at the support''s surface, both strongly decreasing the molar fraction of zirconia at the surface, and altering the electrophoretic properties of the mixtures. The SEM micrographs, XRD patterns and activity measurements of the water-kneaded samples supported the electrophoretic migration results. Furthermore, it was verified by electrophoretic migration experiments that up until a composition of 75% VO X –ZrO2–SO4 2−, the sepiolite fibers coats the zirconia particles. This has a slightly negative influence on the overall SCR activity of fresh catalysts. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The effect of gallium in W/Ga(x)–γ-Al2O3 catalysts was investigated in the hydrodesulfurization of dibenzothiophene. The γ-Al2O3 carrier was modified by the gallium addition prior to W impregnation and further calcination at 723K. An electrophoretic study was carried out on the calcined Ga samples at 0, 0.29, 0.55, 0.84, 1.09, 1.43, 1.71 and 2.22wt.% of Ga and it indicated that Ga addition affected significantly the surface of alumina. The presence of at least two gallium species was proposed, at low gallium content GaAl2O4 species decreased the isoelectric point (IEP) and probably the formation of Ga2O3 at higher contents increased again the IEP. Raman spectroscopy showed that the gallium incorporation had a strong effect in the formation of WO x species at the surface of catalysts. The highest amount of irregular WO x particles calculated by the Raman (Oh name="dbnd" />O+W13;O–W band intensities ratio was found on the W/Ga(1.09)–γ-Al2O3 catalyst. The presence of gallium induced higher activity on the dibenzothiophene hydrodesulfurization reaction in all catalysts tested. The highest Raman ratio and the highest activity were found for the W/Ga(1.09)–γ-Al2O3 catalyst, suggesting that better dispersed W species could be responsible for the highest HDS activities. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Insemination of rabbit does at early post-partum combined with dam-litter separation (DLS) can increase prolificacy and decrease parturition intervals, but little is known about longer-term effects on kit survival and growth. In this study, does (n =138) were artificially inseminated on day 4 post-partum (nine times over a period of 10 months, 35-day reproductive rhythm, kits weaned at 25 days), after DLS (for 48 or 24h) or 48h after 25 UI eCG injection. The litters from each group were adjusted to seven to nine kits per doe and then weighed at 2, 4, 16 and 25 days of age. Mortality was calculated in the pre-weaning period and development of the digestive system was quantified (length of intestinal villi). After DLS24 or DLS48, 4-day-old kits were lighter than eCG or controls of the same age. By 16 and 25 days of age, 48-h weaned kits had regained the same weight as the eCG and control groups (higher daily weight gain). The 24-h weaned kits weighed less, probably because their litter size was larger and daily weight gain was lower. Total kit mortality (day 2 to day 25) was highest in the DLS48 group but percentage mortality varied among treatments depending on the period considered (days 2–4, days 5–16 and days 17–25). In the first period, mortality was higher for DLS48; in the second, mortality was similar for all groups except eCG (which was lower). After 16 days of age, mortality was quite low and similar in all groups. There was a significant effect of the number of parturitions on the parameters considered. Intestinal villi were measured in 12 kits slaughtered at 4, 16 and 25 days of age (DLS for 24 or 48h on days 3 and 2, respectively) and compared with controls (2, 4, 16 and 25 days old). At 4 days (immediately after separation), the stomach and whole digestive system were lighter in DLS48 than controls, due to the absence of the milk, but there were no significant differences among groups by days 16 and 25. Intestinal villi were shorter in 4-day-old DLS kits (24 and 48h) compared to controls of the same age, longer at 16days (possibly due to an intense cellular proliferation) and similar among all groups by day 25. In summary, both 24-h DLS and 48-h DLS can substitute hormonal treatments to synchronize oestrus in intensive rhythms, but kit mortality was higher after 48-h DLS in primiparous does, suggesting that results would improve if those females had a better body condition. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The importance of the isoelectric point for the preparation and characterization of functional materials to understand their behavior and optimize their performance is highlighted, with especial focus on industrial catalysts. In different liquid-phase steps involved in materials synthesis, the knowledge of the surface charge as a function of the pH of the medium is fundamental, since it is the dynamizing agent of processes such as gelation, peptization, coagulation and agglomeration to form solid particles. Therefore, zeta potential (ζ) measurements, often based on electrophoretic migration techniques, are a powerful source of information. The basic principles are introduced to explain through relevant examples the possibilities for materials design. Regarding materials preparation, the measurement of the zeta potential to control the synthesis and coating of supports is reviewed, with special attention to shaped supports. Aspects as the influence of the binders on the supports properties depending on their mutual interaction are analyzed, with example systems based on TiO 2 or Al 2 O 3 and natural silicates such as sepiolite. Also, how the knowledge of ζ as a function of pH allows, by choosing the appropriate pH, the preferential impregnation of noble metals on porous supports, as well as the washcoating of dense ceramic monoliths with porous supports. Special attention has been paid to surfaces characterization based on the use of zeta potential measurements to estimate the formation and relative location of species, the apparent surface coverage, or the adsorption and reactivity, to establish synthesis strategies to achieve specific properties. [Display omitted] • Zeta potential measurements help defining synthesis and coating strategies. • Explanation of the relative distribution and apparent surface coverage of active species in shaped supports. • Estimation of active phase dispersion on a support until multilayers or agglomerated crystals start to form. • Prediction of nanomaterials reactivity in the human body and the environment for grouping and a safe and sustainable design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study was conducted to evaluate the thermophysiological, haematological, biochemical and behavioural stress responses of sheep transported on road. A total of 44 Chamarita breed adult ewes were randomly allotted to one of two groups, one control group (untransported) and transported group (journey of 4 h), and blood stress indicators were measured 1 day before transport and at four time points post-transport (0, 4 and 24 h). Thermophysiological profiles of ewes were measured by temperature buttons ( iButton Thermochron®) and placed in intravaginal sponges. Direct observations, with a combination of scan and behaviour sampling, were carried out to collect information on individual behaviour and the time it took the ewes to drink water, eat and rest after returning to their pen respectively. Transported ewes lost approximately 1 kg live weight compared to controls and had higher body temperatures until 12 h post-transport. Cortisol, glucose, non-esterified fatty acid ( NEFA) concentrations as well as the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (N/L) and other physiological indicators were higher immediately after unloading in transported ewes but mostly returned to normal after 4 h, with complete recovery after 24 h. Behavioural analysis post-transport demonstrated that transported ewes chose to eat before drinking and spent less time resting than controls in the first 3 h after unloading. The study demonstrates that transportation even under short-journey conditions induced behavioural, physiological and thermophysiological responses indicative of the induction of significant stress, leading to live weight shrinkage that may jeopardize farmer's incomes. Finally, results of this study validated the use of iButton Thermochron® data loggers for monitoring the stress response during transport. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing concerns about farm animal welfare have led to an increase in the availability of welfare-friendly-products (WFP), but little is known about how much more consumers are willing-to-pay (WTP) for WFP or about their buying trends in Latin America. In this study, a survey was given to 843 meat consumers in the city of Toluca, Mexico. The results show that consumers were interested in farm animal welfare issues and their ethical, sociological and economic implications, as in Europe. The people surveyed also conveyed a high level of empathy with animal feelings and emotions, however they clearly demanded more information and regulations related to farm animal welfare. The majority of respondents expressed that they were WTP more for properly certified WFP, but mostly based on the benefits in terms of product quality and human health. If the demand for WFP begins to increase in Mexico, the supply chain should consider a certification system to guarantee product origin based on current conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives To determine efficacy and safety of withholding antimicrobials in children with cancer, fever and neutropenia (FN) with a demonstrated respiratory viral infection. Methods Prospective, multicentre, randomized study in children presenting with FN at five hospitals in Santiago, Chile, evaluated at admission for diagnosis of bacterial and viral pathogens including PCR-microarray for 17 respiratory viruses. Children positive for a respiratory virus, negative for a bacterial pathogen and with a favourable evolution after 48 h of antimicrobial therapy were randomized to either maintain or withhold antimicrobials. Primary endpoint was percentage of episodes with uneventful resolution. Secondary endpoints were days of fever/hospitalization, bacterial infection, sepsis, admission to paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) and death. Results A total of 319 of 951 children with FN episodes recruited between July 2012 and December 2015 had a respiratory virus as a unique identified microorganism, of which 176 were randomized, 92 to maintain antimicrobials and 84 to withdraw. Median duration of antimicrobial use was 7 days (range 7–9 days) versus 3 days (range 3–4 days), with similar frequency of uneventful resolution (89/92 (97%) and 80/84 (95%), respectively, not significant; OR 1.48; 95% CI 0.32–6.83, p 0.61), and similar number of days of fever (2 versus 1), days of hospitalization (6 versus 6) and bacterial infections throughout the episode (2%–1%), with one case of sepsis requiring admission to PICU in the group that maintained antimicrobials, without any deaths. Conclusions The reduction of antimicrobials in children with FN and respiratory viral infections, based on clinical and microbiological/molecular diagnostic criteria, should favour the adoption of evidence-based management strategies in this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Structured hybrid materials based on the combination adsorbent-photocatalyst with optimal mechanical resistance and reduced cost, are prepared by extrusion using four different natural silicates with similar mesoporous distribution: sepiolite (S), bentonite (B), mordenite (M) and kaolinite (K). The effect of the textural, morphological and structural properties of plate shaped composites calcined at different temperatures on the adsorption and photocatalytic degradation of formaldehyde in gas phase is analyzed. Silicates allows TiO 2 extrusion into flat plates with a content of 50 wt% of titania. All shaped materials present adequate mechanical resistance to be scaled-up for use in continuous-flow gas-phase catalytic reactors. Thermal treatment at 500 °C ensures an optimum combination of mechanical, textural and HCHO adsorption properties. The silicates cover part of the TiO 2 particles thus reducing the fraction of TiO 2 actually exposed on the surface of the composites, essential to carried out the photocatalytic process, but they also allow controlling TiO 2 dispersion and the amount of HCHO adsorbed. The HCHO degradation rate is enhanced with all the silicate-TiO 2 composites with respect to that of the benchmark TiO 2 . The incorporation of titania into the silicate matrix favors the gas phase removal of HCHO in the following sequence: MTi > KTi > STi > BTi > TiO 2 . The exposed fraction of titania particles and the size of the TiO 2 -anatase crystalline domains determine the efficiency of the hybrid material, which is optimized in high-aluminum kaolinite and mordenite based hybrids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

En este trabajo se presenta un programa computacional desarrollado en lenguaje FORTRAN, totalmente interactivo, que permite elegir, coordinando en forma adecuada, las protecciones eléctricas de un Alimentador de Distribución Radial. El programa se ha corrido en un microcomputador IBM compatible y como características más relevantes aparecen su gran rapidez de cálculo y pequeño requerimiento de memoria, lo que lo muestra como una herramienta de mucha utilidad en el diseño del sistema de protecciones de redes de distribución radial. De las diversas pruebas a la que ha sido sometido, se ilustra la aplicación a un alimenatdor que consta de once "puntos singulares". Los resultados son muy satisfactorios y, en el caso particular del alimentador citado, no aparecen diferencias importantes respecto a los obtenidos utilizando otros medios. Como ventajas presenta que se logra un gran ahorro de tiempo y que permite considerar otras soluciones alternativas.

• The consequences of long-distance transport on the fitness of young bulls to adapt to the feedlot are unknown. • We studied the post-arrival consequences of 32-hour journeys and the trailer compartment in 104 young bulls. • We found post-transport fatigue (PTF) during the first two weeks' post-arrival. • We found persistent signs of bovine respiratory disease (BRD) from day 5 to day 60 post-arrival. • Transporting young bulls in the belly was linked to fatigue after transport, while transport in the deck was associated with respiratory problems. Some studies have shown that long distance journeys and the type of trailer compartment have consequences on farm animal welfare. However, there is little evidence to indicate how these consequences affect the fitness of young bulls to adapt to a novel and challenging environment such as an intensive industrial feedlot. Therefore, the objective of our study was to evaluate the consequences of long-distance transport and trailer compartment on the behavior and health of young bulls during the first 60 days after arrival to the feedlot. An evaluation protocol was conducted to record individual behavior (scan sampling) and health indicators of young bulls from days 1-10 and 51-60 after arrival. In addition, three ocular thermal images were taken per animal in a chute during weighing, one each on day 0, day 2 (48 h) and day 50. From our results, the thermophysiological profile, maintenance behaviors and health indicators suggest that there are two distinct groups of consequences affecting animal fitness during the first two months in the feedlot. The first was linked to post-transport fatigue (PTF) that seemed to disappear after the 10 days post-arrival at feedlot. The second was related to signs of bovine respiratory disease (BRD) that began 6 days post-transport and persisted until day 60. In addition, the trailer compartments known as the belly and the deck were shown to be problematic for animal welfare, where the transport in the belly was linked to fatigue after transport, while transport in the deck was associated with respiratory problems. Our study underscores the importance of applying preconditioning practices in cow-calf rearing systems at least a couple of months prior to the long-distance journey, in addition to implementing good loading practices to select which animals are best suited for a given compartment. Our results may be useful to minimize the impacts of PTF and BRD, to propose best practices for livestock transport in countries with similar production systems and agroecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We analysed the effect of enriched housing on the sensory meat quality and fatty acid composition of longissimus muscle in 60 entire Rasa Aragonesa lambs, housed indoors for 5weeks in six pens (10 lambs/pen, 0.95m2/lamb, initial weight 17.13±0.18kg and carcass mean 12.23±0.23kg); three control pens (barren) and three enriched pens (straw, platform with ramps and a small ramp). The final weight, carcass weight, fatness scores and cooking losses of meat from enriched lambs (EG) were higher and pH24 was lower (P≤0.05). The EG lambs had more C18:0 and total SFA (P≤0.05). Lamb odour and grass odour were more intense in EG (P≤0.05). Overall liking was higher for EG (P≤0.05) and associated with tenderness (P≤0.0001). The results suggest that environmental enrichment can have effects on fatty acid composition and sensory meat quality. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]