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OBJECTIVE: In this study, we aimed to evaluate the kidney involvement assessed by estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), the associations with specific clinical disease variables and laboratory findings, and the predictive role of eGFR on clinical outcomes of patients admitted with COVID-19 in Internal Medicine ward in the first wave. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Clinical data of 162 consecutive patients hospitalized in the University Hospital Policlinico Umberto I in Rome, Italy, between December 2020 to May 2021 were collected and retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS: The median eGFR was significantly lower in patients with worse outcomes than in patients with favorable outcomes [56.64 ml/min/1.73 m2 (IQR 32.27-89.73) vs. 83.39 ml/min/1.73 m2 (IQR 69.59-97.08), p<0.001]. Patients with eGFR < 60 ml/min/1.73 m2 (n=38) w ere s ignificantly o lder c ompared to patients with normal eGFR [82 years (IQR 74-90) vs. 61 years (IQR 53-74), p<0.001] and they had fever less frequently [39.5% vs. 64.2%, p<0.01]. Kaplan-Meier curves demonstrated that overall survival was significantly shorter in patients with eGFR < 60 ml/min/1.73 m2 (p<0.001). In multivariate analysis, only eGFR < 60 ml/min/1.73 m2 [HR=2.915 (95% CI=1.110-7.659), p<0.05] and platelet to lymphocyte ratio [HR=1.004 (95% CI=1.002-1.007), p<0.01] showed a significant predictive value for death or transfer to intensive care unit (ICU). CONCLUSIONS: Kidney involvement on admission was an independent predictor for death or transfer to ICU among hospitalized COVID-19 patients. The presence of chronic kidney disease could be regarded as a relevant factor in risk stratification for COVID-19. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Este trabalho objetivou estimar as exigências nutricionais de energia metabolizável (EM) e lisina digestível (LD) para codornas Japonesas nas fases de cria (1 a 14 dias) e recria (15 a 42 dias) e verificar suas implicações na composição química corporal, peso relativo dos órgãos, parâmetros sanguíneos e ósseos. O delineamento adotado foi o inteiramente casualizado em esquema fatorial 4 x 4 (EM = 2.830, 2.970, 3.110 e 3.250 kcal x LD = 0,90; 1,07; 1,24 e 1,41%), perfazendo 16 tratamentos com 3 repetições cada, contendo 50 codornas por unidade experimental na fase de cria (totalizando 2.400 aves) e 35 codornas por unidade experimental na fase de recria (totalizando 1.680 aves). Não foi verificada interação entre os fatores sobre o desempenho de codornas Japonesas na fase de cria, sendo que as variáveis peso médio, ganho de peso, consumo de ração e conversão alimentar apresentaram efeito quadrático tanto para EM quanto para LD. Nesta fase, o extrato etéreo da carcaça e o índice de Seedor do fêmur e da tíbia exibiram interação significativa, e o peso relativo do fígado apresentou efeito linear da LD. Na fase de recria houve interação dos fatores para ganho de peso e consumo de ração. A conversão alimentar apresentou efeito quadrático de ambos os fatores e o peso médio foi influenciado de modo quadrático pela EM, que também influenciou de modo quadrático o índice de Seedor nos dois ossos e a densidade óssea do fêmur. Considerando as estimativas obtidas por meio dos gráficos de contornos sobrepostos, os níveis de 3.030 kcal de EM e 1,221% de LD foram estimados para a fase de cria e os níveis de 3.055 kcal de EM e 1,202% de LD foram estimados para a fase de recria.

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to estimate the nutritional requirement of digestible methionine + cystine for Japanese quail during the growth phase and its residual effect on the laying phase. One experiment was conducted, including three phases: starter, from 1 to 14 days of age; grower, from 15 to 42 days of age; and laying, from 43 to 168 days of age. The experimental design was entirely randomized with five treatments (0.52, 0.64, 0.76, 0.88, and 1.00% of digestible methionine + cystine) and five replicates. In starter phase, 48 quail/experimental unit (box) were used; in grower phase, 31 quail/experimental unit (box) were used, which were reared until 14 days old, receiving conventional feed and, in laying phase, 12 quail/experimental unit were selected from grower phase to evaluate the residual effect. To evaluate animal performance, feed intake (g/bird), body weight (g), weight gain (g), feed conversion (g/g), and viability (%) were analyzed. At 14 and 42 days of age, the relative weight (%) of liver, spleen, and cloacal pouch organs, the birds’ warping (%) and body chemical composition (%) were evaluated. During laying, performance and egg quality were evaluated. In the starter and grower stages, quadratic effects were observed for all performance variables. Laying performance results confirmed the estimates obtained in the grower phase; however, there was no effect on egg quality. Considering the best feed conversion, the nutritional recommendation of digestible methionine + cystine for Japanese quail in the starter phase is 0.85% and in the grower phase, it is 0.77%, corresponding to daily intake of 50.43 and 158.5 mg of digestible methionine + cystine/day, respectively.

An experiment was carried out with Japanese quails in the initial laying phase, from 43 to 168 days of age, to determine the nutritional requirement of digestible methionine + cystine for this period. 375 quails were used, being fifteen quails used per experimental unit. A total of 5 treatments (0.60, 0.75, 0.90, 1.05 and 1.20% digestible methionine + cystine) were used in a completely randomized design with 5 replicates each. The performance parameters evaluated were feed intake (g / bird), body weight (g), egg weight (g), laying rate (%), egg mass (g eggs.bird.day-1), feed conversion by mass and dozen eggs (g.g-1 of eggs, g.dz-1 of eggs), viability (%) and the body chemical composition (%). The egg quality parameters were: % of component (yolk, albumen and shell relative to egg weight), specific gravity (g mL-1), Haugh unit, yolk index, shell weight per surface area and thickness of the shell (mm). Quadratic effect was found on the performance parameters evaluated (P0.05). The nutritional recommendation of digestible methionine + cystine for Japanese quails at laying phase is 0.90% from the maximum point obtained for the egg mass, egg weight and laying rate, corresponding to daily intake of 241.54 mg of digestible methionine + cystine / day, respectively. Keywords: body composition; egg mass; egg quality; egg weight.

An experiment was conducted to estimate the nutritional requirements of calcium (Ca) and available phosphorus (aP) for Japanese quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica) in the egg-laying stage (64–168 D). The experiment was an entirely randomized design, in a factorial scheme (Ca = 1.70, 2.40, 3.10, and 3.80% and aP = 0.15, 0.30, 0.45, and 0.60%), with 3 replicates and 10 quails per experimental unit. No interactions were found for quail body weight and daily feed intake (DFI) (P > 0.05). However, body weight decreased linearly (P < 0.05) as the levels of Ca increased, whereas DFI exhibited a quadratic effect (P < 0.05) for both Ca and aP. The lowest values of DFI were estimated in 2.79 and 0.36% for Ca and aP, respectively. Egg production, egg mass, and feed conversion ratio per egg dozen presented significant interaction in which all of them had a quadratic effect (P < 0.05), with estimations for maximum yield in feed containing 2.74, 2.71, 2.75, and 2.74% Ca and 0.40, 0.39, 0.39, and 0.40% aP. The concentration of Ca in the eggshell increased linearly as per the levels of Ca studied, having a quadratic effect for aP levels, with a maximum point of 0.44%. In relation to the bone parameters, there was a linear interaction for Ca and aP in bone density and bone resistance (BR) of the femur, with a quadratic effect in BD estimating 2.84 and 0.50% for Ca and aP, respectively. In BR, the estimation was 3.27% Ca, with linear increase for aP. The BR of the tibiotarso increased linearly as per the Ca levels, obtaining the same Ca concentration response in this bone. As conclusion, when considering the estimations obtained through overlapped contour plots, the best responses to the effects of Ca and aP on productive characteristics were estimated at 2.68% Ca and 0.38% aP to produce feed for egg-laying Japanese quails.